Hymn to Indra
Rigveda VI.43 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.
Sing, O my soul, of Indra's deeds—the mighty works He wrought,
The battles fought, the demons slain, the fortresses He sought!
Did He not smite the serpent Vṛtra in its cavern dark,
And loose the waters of the world? Did not His lightning-spark
Illuminate the vault of heaven? Did not the mountains shake
When Indra, drunk with Soma's bliss, rose up for all our sake?
And Śambara the sorcerer—did not the Thunderer
Cast down his ninety fortresses and make the demon blur
Into the dust of ages past? Yea, and the Paṇis too,
Who hoarded cattle in their caves and barred them from the view
Of mortal men—did not brave Indra drive them forth with might,
And restore the sacred herds unto the people's right?
There were the Dāsas, dark of skin, who challenged His command,
And raised their armies numberless across the threatened land.
But Indra rode forth in His chariot, the Maruts at His side,
And swept them from the field of battle—where could they e'er hide?
The cities of the wicked ones—their walls of stone and steel—
Did crumble at the touch of Him and turn like burning teal.
Each fortress fell; each army broke; each enemy confessed
The glory of the Thunderer, the greatest and the best.
O Indra, thou whose valor is as boundless as the sky,
Whose deeds are sung in every realm and never shall deny
The proof of Thy supremacy in battle and in rule—
Receive our hymn of wonder; Thou art wisdom's truest tool.
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.43
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.
yasya tyac chambaram made divodāsāya randhayaḥ |
ayaṁ sa soma indra te sutaḥ piba || 1 ||
yasya tīvrasutam madam madhyam antaṁ ca rakṣase |
ayaṁ sa soma indra te sutaḥ piba || 2 ||
yasya gā antar aśmano made dṛḻhā avāsṛjaḥ |
ayaṁ sa soma indra te sutaḥ piba || 3 ||
yasya mandāno andhaso māghonaṁ dadhiṣe śavaḥ |
ayaṁ sa soma indra te sutaḥ piba || 4 ||
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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