Hymn to Indra
Rigveda III.52 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 mighty Indra, hear our cry! We stretch our hands to thee in prayer. Grant us the wealth we do entreat; bestow upon us all good gifts. The herds shall multiply and grow; the fields shall yield their golden grain. Our enemies shall turn to dust; our foes shall scatter in the night.
We come before thee with the soma, pressed and filtered clear and bright. The butter flows like summer rain upon the altar's sacred place. The priests have chanted all the hymns; the fire doth roar and leap up high. Accept these offerings, mighty one, and hear the voices of the meek.
O Indra, thou art strong to save! Thou liftest up the fallen man. Through thy great mercy we do live; by thy great power we prevail. The widow finds her shelter safe; the orphan finds a father's care. The poor man gains his rightful share; the weak are strengthened by thy hand.
Guard us, O Indra, from all ill! Keep sickness far from our abode. Let pestilence and plague depart; let death pass by our dwelling-place. Ward off the curse, the evil eye, the demon's spite, the sorcerer's spell. Be thou our fortress and our shield; be thou our refuge evermore.
Grant us the favour that we seek; grant us the blessing that we crave. Let warriors born unto our line be fierce and fearless in the fray. May they go forth with steadfast heart and come back home with glory won. Let them protect our herds and kin, our lands and all our precious wealth.
O Indra, answer unto us! Accept this prayer, this sacred rite. Bestow upon the faithful folk the blessings that they justly earn. For ever let thy name be praised; for ever let thy glory shine.
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.52
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.
dhānāvantaṁ karambhiṇam apūpavantam ukthinam |
indra prātar juṣasva naḥ || 1 ||
puroḻāśam pacatyaṁ juṣasvendrā gurasva ca |
tubhyaṁ havyāni sisrate || 2 ||
puroḻāśaṁ ca no ghaso joṣayāse giraś ca naḥ |
vadhūyur iva yoṣaṇām || 3 ||
puroḻāśaṁ sanaśruta prātaḥsāve juṣasva naḥ |
indra kratur hi te bṛhan || 4 ||
mādhyaṁdinasya savanasya dhānāḥ puroḻāśam indra kṛṣveha cārum |
pra yat stotā jaritā tūrṇyartho vṛṣāyamāṇa upa gīrbhir īṭṭe || 5 ||
tṛtīye dhānāḥ savane puruṣṭuta puroḻāśam āhutam māmahasva naḥ |
ṛbhumantaṁ vājavantaṁ tvā kave prayasvanta upa śikṣema dhītibhiḥ || 6 ||
pūṣaṇvate te cakṛmā karambhaṁ harivate haryaśvāya dhānāḥ |
apūpam addhi sagaṇo marudbhiḥ somam piba vṛtrahā śūra vidvān || 7 ||
prati dhānā bharata tūyam asmai puroḻāśaṁ vīratamāya nṛṇām |
dive-dive sadṛśīr indra tubhyaṁ vardhantu tvā somapeyāya dhṛṣṇo || 8 ||
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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