Hymn to Indra
Rigveda X.33 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 10 of the Rigveda, one of the 1,028 hymns organized within the ten books of the oldest Veda. The Rigveda was composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE in Vedic Sanskrit and preserved through oral transmission across millennia.
This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
The forerunners of the folk did yoke me at the fore, and as ever, I bore Pūṣan close within.
Then all the gods did hedge me round with guard, but lo, a cry was heard: “The one of ill command hath come!”
They scorch me from all sides, as rival wives might bite, or as sore ribs trouble the flesh.
Neglect, nakedness, and weariness press heavy upon me.
Like a restless bird, my mind doth flit hither and thither.
Like mice that gnaw their own tails, so gnaw my cares— and I, thy singer, am thus undone, O thou of a hundred counsels.
Have pity now, O open-handed Indra, and be unto us even as a father.
I chose Kuruśravaṇa, sprung of Trasadasyu’s line, to be my king— he who is most free in gift to those who chant.
I, a seer, have called him lord.
“For he whose chariot is drawn by three tawny steeds and who rideth straight upon the path— him shall I laud at the rite, where a thousand kine are given as priestly wage.” The father of Upamaśravas I praised—
for him were sweet songs sung, songs that pleased as a hearth to the home-bound soul.
Take heed, O Upamaśravas, thou son, thou child of Mitrāthiti’s house:
it is I who lifted the name of thy sire in the rite.
If I held sway o’er deathless ones or over mortal men, yet would my generous lord remain among the living.
But none liveth beyond the will of the gods— not even he whose soul were counted a hundredfold.
And so have I turned my gaze from the one who once stood yoked beside me.
Colophon
This hymn is drawn from the Śākala recension of the Rigveda, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, translated independently from the Sanskrit. Reference translations consulted during original translation are to be documented during audit.
Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
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Source Text: ṛgveda X.33
Sanskrit source text from the Aufrecht edition (1877) via GRETIL (Van Nooten & Holland input). Presented here for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above.
pra mā yuyujre prayujo janānāṁ vahāmi sma pūṣaṇam antareṇa |
viśve devāso adha mām arakṣan duḥśāsur āgād iti ghoṣa āsīt || 1 ||
sam mā tapanty abhitaḥ sapatnīr iva parśavaḥ |
ni bādhate amatir nagnatā jasur ver na vevīyate matiḥ || 2 ||
mūṣo na śiśnā vy adanti mādhyaḥ stotāraṁ te śatakrato |
sakṛt su no maghavann indra mṛḻayādhā piteva no bhava || 3 ||
kuruśravaṇam āvṛṇi rājānaṁ trāsadasyavam |
maṁhiṣṭhaṁ vāghatām ṛṣiḥ || 4 ||
yasya mā harito rathe tisro vahanti sādhuyā |
stavai sahasradakṣiṇe || 5 ||
yasya prasvādaso gira upamaśravasaḥ pituḥ |
kṣetraṁ na raṇvam ūcuṣe || 6 ||
adhi putropamaśravo napān mitrātither ihi |
pituṣ ṭe asmi vanditā || 7 ||
yad īśīyāmṛtānām uta vā martyānām |
jīved in maghavā mama || 8 ||
na devānām ati vrataṁ śatātmā cana jīvati |
tathā yujā vi vāvṛte || 9 ||
Source Colophon
Sanskrit text of the Rigveda, Śākala recension. The standard scholarly edition is the Bombay Oriental (Vishva Bandhu, 5 vols., 1963–66). IAST transliteration available from GRETIL (Göttingen Register of Electronic Texts in Indian Languages) and Vedaweb (University of Cologne). Both sources are open access. IAST transliteration from the Aufrecht edition (1877) via GRETIL (Van Nooten & Holland input, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
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