Hymn to Indra
Rigveda VII.19 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 7 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 hast shown thy might before all the gods and all the heavens! None is like unto thee in strength; none can match thy prowess in battle.
The enemies of the gods do fall before thy thunderbolt as the grass falleth before the scythe. When thou dost raise thy weapon, even the mountains tremble and the earth doth quake beneath thy feet. The demons and the sorcerers do flee in terror when they perceive thy approaching thunder.
With the Maruts thou dost ride forth upon the tempest winds. The clouds gather at thy calling; the rain falls at thy command. The rivers overflow their banks when thou dost lead them. Thou art the master of the waters and the master of the storms.
O mighty one, thy generosity is boundless! Thou givest cattle unto those who praise thee; thou givest gold and treasure unto those who bring thee soma. A thousandfold shall thy worshipper be rewarded.
The warriors call upon thee before they go to battle. They invoke thy name with voices raised in hymn. And thou dost come, O Indra, to stand beside them in their hour of greatest peril. With thy presence, they are invincible; with thy aid, they shall triumph.
Indra, the Bull, the Thunderer! Receive thou the soma that we offer. Drink thou and be glad! Let thy belly be filled with rapture; let thy strength increase beyond all measure.
Grant unto us, O mighty Indra, thy blessing and thy protection. Be thou our father and our friend. Guard us against all evil; lead us unto victory in all our endeavors.
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 VII.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.
yas tigmaśṛṅgo vṛṣabho na bhīma ekaḥ kṛṣṭīś cyāvayati pra viśvāḥ |
yaḥ śaśvato adāśuṣo gayasya prayantāsi suṣvitarāya vedaḥ || 1 ||
tvaṁ ha tyad indra kutsam āvaḥ śuśrūṣamāṇas tanvā samarye |
dāsaṁ yac chuṣṇaṁ kuyavaṁ ny asmā arandhaya ārjuneyāya śikṣan || 2 ||
tvaṁ dhṛṣṇo dhṛṣatā vītahavyam prāvo viśvābhir ūtibhiḥ sudāsam |
pra paurukutsiṁ trasadasyum āvaḥ kṣetrasātā vṛtrahatyeṣu pūrum || 3 ||
tvaṁ nṛbhir nṛmaṇo devavītau bhūrīṇi vṛtrā haryaśva haṁsi |
tvaṁ ni dasyuṁ cumuriṁ dhuniṁ cāsvāpayo dabhītaye suhantu || 4 ||
tava cyautnāni vajrahasta tāni nava yat puro navatiṁ ca sadyaḥ |
niveśane śatatamāviveṣīr ahañ ca vṛtraṁ namucim utāhan || 5 ||
sanā tā ta indra bhojanāni rātahavyāya dāśuṣe sudāse |
vṛṣṇe te harī vṛṣaṇā yunajmi vyantu brahmāṇi puruśāka vājam || 6 ||
mā te asyāṁ sahasāvan pariṣṭāv aghāya bhūma harivaḥ parādai |
trāyasva no 'vṛkebhir varūthais tava priyāsaḥ sūriṣu syāma || 7 ||
priyāsa it te maghavann abhiṣṭau naro madema śaraṇe sakhāyaḥ |
ni turvaśaṁ ni yādvaṁ śiśīhy atithigvāya śaṁsyaṁ kariṣyan || 8 ||
sadyaś cin nu te maghavann abhiṣṭau naraḥ śaṁsanty ukthaśāsa ukthā |
ye te havebhir vi paṇīm̐r adāśann asmān vṛṇīṣva yujyāya tasmai || 9 ||
ete stomā narāṁ nṛtama tubhyam asmadryañco dadato maghāni |
teṣām indra vṛtrahatye śivo bhūḥ sakhā ca śūro 'vitā ca nṛṇām || 10 ||
nū indra śūra stavamāna ūtī brahmajūtas tanvā vāvṛdhasva |
upa no vājān mimīhy upa stīn yūyam pāta svastibhiḥ sadā naḥ || 11 ||
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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