Hymn to Indra
Rigveda VI.34 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 6 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.
Grant us, O Indra, grant us cattle in abundance—the black cow and the red, the white and the spotted. Let our herds multiply as stars multiply in the sky. Let them wax fat upon the pasture; let them bear many calves.
Grant us gold, O lord! Yellow gold, bright as the sun, that shall adorn our bodies and honor thy shrines. We shall fashion vessels of thy praise and lay them at thy feet. The gold shall flow from thy hand to the hands of those who worship thee.
Grant us sons, O mighty one—bold sons who shall carry our name into the future, who shall themselves become warriors and priests. Let our daughters marry into prosperous families; let our line be honored among all peoples.
Grant us victory in the assembly, O Indra! When we speak, let our words be wise and persuasive. When we contend with others in debate, let us prevail. Let our counsel be heard; let our opinion sway the gathered elders.
Grant us health, O lord, and long life. Let us see our grandchildren's grandchildren. Let no disease strike us down in our strength; let no poison destroy us. Guard us from the evil eye; protect us from the sorceress's curse.
Hear our prayer, O Indra most generous! We offer thee the soma; we sing thy praise; we lay the butter upon thy fire. Accept our worship and grant us these things we ask. For thou alone canst give; thou alone hast the power to deny or to bestow. Be gracious unto us, O lord of all giving!
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 VI.34
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.
saṁ ca tve jagmur gira indra pūrvīr vi ca tvad yanti vibhvo manīṣāḥ |
purā nūnaṁ ca stutaya ṛṣīṇām paspṛdhra indre adhy ukthārkā || 1 ||
puruhūto yaḥ purugūrta ṛbhvām̐ ekaḥ purupraśasto asti yajñaiḥ |
ratho na mahe śavase yujāno3 'smābhir indro anumādyo bhūt || 2 ||
na yaṁ hiṁsanti dhītayo na vāṇīr indraṁ nakṣantīd abhi vardhayantīḥ |
yadi stotāraḥ śataṁ yat sahasraṁ gṛṇanti girvaṇasaṁ śaṁ tad asmai || 3 ||
asmā etad divy a1rceva māsā mimikṣa indre ny ayāmi somaḥ |
janaṁ na dhanvann abhi saṁ yad āpaḥ satrā vāvṛdhur havanāni yajñaiḥ || 4 ||
asmā etan mahy āṅgūṣam asmā indrāya stotram matibhir avāci |
asad yathā mahati vṛtratūrya indro viśvāyur avitā vṛdhaś ca || 5 ||
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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