Hymn to Indra
Rigveda II.19 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 2 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.
There is none like unto thee, O Indra! There is no god who can rival thee in strength or in glory. Thou standest alone at the pinnacle of power. The heavens tremble at thy word. The earth shaketh beneath thy feet.
Who among the devas possesseth thy might? None. Who hath thy courage, thy wisdom, thy skill in battle? None. Thou art unique, singular, supreme. Thy victories are innumerable as the stars. Thy deeds echo through eternity.
When thou didst slay Vṛtra, the demon serpent, the waters were unleashed. The rivers flowed forth in their abundance. The world was renewed and made fertile. This was thy greatest triumph, yet it is but one among thy countless conquests.
We call thee the unrivaled champion, the unconquerable warrior, the eternal victor. Thy name is sung in every corner of creation. Thy fame surpasseth all measure. The mortals praise thee; the immortals acknowledge thy supremacy.
Come to us now in our hour of trial. We face our own demons, our own serpents of opposition. We need thy strength, thy guidance, thy invincible protection. Grant us a portion of thy might. Let us stand as thou standest—unconquered and unconquerable.
We pour the Soma at thy altar. The prayers rise like flames from our hearts. O unrivaled one! O champion beyond challenge! Hear us and answer. Show us thy favour. Grant us thy blessing. Let us too know the taste of victory, the sweetness of triumph that only thou canst grant.
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 II.19
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.
apāyy asyāndhaso madāya manīṣiṇaḥ suvānasya prayasaḥ |
yasminn indraḥ pradivi vāvṛdhāna oko dadhe brahmaṇyantaś ca naraḥ || 1 ||
asya mandāno madhvo vajrahasto 'him indro arṇovṛtaṁ vi vṛścat |
pra yad vayo na svasarāṇy acchā prayāṁsi ca nadīnāṁ cakramanta || 2 ||
sa māhina indro arṇo apām prairayad ahihācchā samudram |
ajanayat sūryaṁ vidad gā aktunāhnāṁ vayunāni sādhat || 3 ||
so apratīni manave purūṇīndro dāśad dāśuṣe hanti vṛtram |
sadyo yo nṛbhyo atasāyyo bhūt paspṛdhānebhyaḥ sūryasya sātau || 4 ||
sa sunvata indraḥ sūryam ā devo riṇaṅ martyāya stavān |
ā yad rayiṁ guhadavadyam asmai bharad aṁśaṁ naitaśo daśasyan || 5 ||
sa randhayat sadivaḥ sārathaye śuṣṇam aśuṣaṁ kuyavaṁ kutsāya |
divodāsāya navatiṁ ca navendraḥ puro vy airac chambarasya || 6 ||
evā ta indrocatham ahema śravasyā na tmanā vājayantaḥ |
aśyāma tat sāptam āśuṣāṇā nanamo vadhar adevasya pīyoḥ || 7 ||
evā te gṛtsamadāḥ śūra manmāvasyavo na vayunāni takṣuḥ |
brahmaṇyanta indra te navīya iṣam ūrjaṁ sukṣitiṁ sumnam aśyuḥ || 8 ||
nūnaṁ sā te prati varaṁ jaritre duhīyad indra dakṣiṇā maghonī |
śikṣā stotṛbhyo māti dhag bhago no bṛhad vadema vidathe suvīrāḥ || 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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