Hymn to Indra
Rigveda III.51 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 3 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.
O Indra, thou alone art lord of all the cosmos vast and wide! The heavens bow before thy might; the earth doth tremble at thy word. No god is greater than thyself; no power can match thy thunderous strength. Thou art the sovereign of all realms, the keeper of the eternal flame.
Come to us, mighty Indra, hear the voice of those who call on thee. We mortals gather round the fire and raise our hymns of praise to thee. The soma hath been pressed and strained; the butter hath been melted pure. Accept this offering, O great one, and let thy blessings fall on us.
Thou art the victor ever-crowned, the slayer of the serpent foul. Vṛtra, that demon most vile, fell broken 'neath thy golden club. The clouds did burst; the rains did fall; the rivers rushed toward the sea. All life did flourish and grow strong when thou didst strike that fatal blow.
The priests do sing thy glory now, as generations sang before. Thy name hath echoed through all time; thy deeds shall never pass away. From age to age the singers praise thy valour and thy boundless might. O Indra, hear us, hear us now!
Grant unto us a warrior's heart, the courage fierce and strong within. Let us stand firm against our foes; let us go forth and claim the day. Give us the bounty and the wealth that comes from serving thee with faith. Let our descendants ever know the favour of thy mighty hand.
O Indra, sovereign lord supreme, accept this final hymn of praise. Be thou our champion evermore; be thou our guardian and our guide. Through all the ages yet to come, we call upon thy glorious name.
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 III.51
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.
carṣaṇīdhṛtam maghavānam ukthya1m indraṁ giro bṛhatīr abhy anūṣata |
vāvṛdhānam puruhūtaṁ suvṛktibhir amartyaṁ jaramāṇaṁ dive-dive || 1 ||
śatakratum arṇavaṁ śākinaṁ naraṁ giro ma indram upa yanti viśvataḥ |
vājasanim pūrbhidaṁ tūrṇim apturaṁ dhāmasācam abhiṣācaṁ svarvidam || 2 ||
ākare vasor jaritā panasyate 'nehasaḥ stubha indro duvasyati |
vivasvataḥ sadana ā hi pipriye satrāsāham abhimātihanaṁ stuhi || 3 ||
nṛṇām u tvā nṛtamaṁ gīrbhir ukthair abhi pra vīram arcatā sabādhaḥ |
saṁ sahase purumāyo jihīte namo asya pradiva eka īśe || 4 ||
pūrvīr asya niṣṣidho martyeṣu purū vasūni pṛthivī bibharti |
indrāya dyāva oṣadhīr utāpo rayiṁ rakṣanti jīrayo vanāni || 5 ||
tubhyam brahmāṇi gira indra tubhyaṁ satrā dadhire harivo juṣasva |
bodhy ā3pir avaso nūtanasya sakhe vaso jaritṛbhyo vayo dhāḥ || 6 ||
indra marutva iha pāhi somaṁ yathā śāryāte apibaḥ sutasya |
tava praṇītī tava śūra śarmann ā vivāsanti kavayaḥ suyajñāḥ || 7 ||
sa vāvaśāna iha pāhi somam marudbhir indra sakhibhiḥ sutaṁ naḥ |
jātaṁ yat tvā pari devā abhūṣan mahe bharāya puruhūta viśve || 8 ||
aptūrye maruta āpir eṣo 'mandann indram anu dātivārāḥ |
tebhiḥ sākam pibatu vṛtrakhādaḥ sutaṁ somaṁ dāśuṣaḥ sve sadhasthe || 9 ||
idaṁ hy anv ojasā sutaṁ rādhānām pate |
pibā tv a1sya girvaṇaḥ || 10 ||
yas te anu svadhām asat sute ni yaccha tanvam |
sa tvā mamattu somyam || 11 ||
pra te aśnotu kukṣyoḥ prendra brahmaṇā śiraḥ |
pra bāhū śūra rādhase || 12 ||
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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