Hymn to Indra
Rigveda VIII.59 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 8 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, hear the voice of those that praise thee! The soma floweth forth upon the altar; the gift is ready for thy holy pleasure. Come hither now and taste this draught so precious—be thou gladdened by the offering made.
Let thy great strength come down unto thy singer; let thy protection spread o'er all my dwelling. Grant me the victory in every contest, and wealth that shineth bright upon my household. Stand thou beside me in the hour of danger, when demons press upon me from all sides.
Thou art the guardian of all sacred places, the keeper of the rites and ancient customs. The heavens tremble at thy word of thunder; the earth doth shake when thy great bolt descendeth. Yet thou art gentle to the man who loves thee and offers up to thee his heart and gifts.
The Vālakhilya-hymns do end before thee, these lesser verses that we call upon thee. But thou art not made lesser by our smallness; thy might remaineth vast as earth and heaven. Accept these hymns, O Indra, source of blessing—let thy long favour rest upon our dwelling.
Grant us, O Indra, kinship with the gods and riches that no evil can diminish. Give strength unto our bodies, peace unto our hearts, and valor unto those who fight with honour. As thou hast guarded the ancient singers ever, so guard thou us and keep us from all harm.
The days and nights return in their succession; the seasons wheel, and life's great course continueth. O Indra, grant us life that runneth long and prosperous, in joy and health and strength throughout our living. Receive our final hymn before the finishing—let thy great blessings follow ever after.
So let it be. So shall it be forever. The gods have spoken through our priests and singers. The soma hath been drunk in ancient manner. Now let us hear, O Indra, thy assent to all that we have asked and all we offer.
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 VIII.59
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.
imāni vām bhāgadheyāni sisrata indrāvaruṇā pra mahe suteṣu vām |
yajñe-yajñe ha savanā bhuraṇyatho yat sunvate yajamānāya śikṣathaḥ || 1 ||
niṣṣidhvarīr oṣadhīr āpa āstām indrāvaruṇā mahimānam āśata |
yā sisratū rajasaḥ pāre adhvano yayoḥ śatrur nakir ādeva ohate || 2 ||
satyaṁ tad indrāvaruṇā kṛśasya vām madhva ūrmiṁ duhate sapta vāṇīḥ |
tābhir dāśvāṁsam avataṁ śubhas patī yo vām adabdho abhi pāti cittibhiḥ || 3 ||
ghṛtapruṣaḥ saumyā jīradānavaḥ sapta svasāraḥ sadana ṛtasya |
yā ha vām indrāvaruṇā ghṛtaścutas tābhir dhattaṁ yajamānāya śikṣatam || 4 ||
avocāma mahate saubhagāya satyaṁ tveṣābhyām mahimānam indriyam |
asmān sv indrāvaruṇā ghṛtaścutas tribhiḥ sāptebhir avataṁ śubhas patī || 5 ||
indrāvaruṇā yad ṛṣibhyo manīṣāṁ vāco matiṁ śrutam adattam agre |
yāni sthānāny asṛjanta dhīrā yajñaṁ tanvānās tapasābhy apaśyam || 6 ||
indrāvaruṇā saumanasam adṛptaṁ rāyas poṣaṁ yajamāneṣu dhattam |
prajām puṣṭim bhūtim asmāsu dhattaṁ dīrghāyutvāya pra tirataṁ na āyuḥ || 7 ||
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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