Hymn to Indra
Rigveda VIII.88 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.
We seek thee, O Indra, at the time of sacrifice. The sacred fire burneth brightly upon the altar. The smoke riseth up toward the heavens, carrying with it our prayers and our songs. Be pleased to accept our offering, and grant unto us thy favour.
Thou art the god who dwelleth closest to the hearts of men. Other gods are far away, dwelling in the highest reaches of heaven. But thou, O Indra, art ever near to those who call upon thee. When the righteous cry out in distress, thou hearest them. When the warrior setteth forth to battle, thou goest before him. When the farmer looketh up at the sky in hope of rain, thou sendest the thunder.
The bond between thee and thy worshippers is stronger than steel, deeper than the roots of the mountains. We do not serve thee as slaves serve a harsh master, but as children serve a loving father. We know that thou carest for us, that thy heart is moved by our prayers, that thy power is exerted always for our good.
At the sacrifice, we make our covenant with thee anew. We bring the soma to the altar. We kindle the sacred fires. We chant the hymns that have been sung since ancient times. And thou, mighty Indra, dost come forth to meet us. The presence of thy glory filleth the sacred place. We feel thy strength flowing into us; we sense thy will becoming one with ours.
From this meeting shall come forth blessings upon our households, protection for our children, victory for our warriors, and prosperity for our people. The covenant is made; the sacred bond is renewed. We are thy people, O Indra, and thou art our protector and our king.
Stand thou at the side of those who call upon thy name. Let no evil come nigh unto those who have sought thy favour. Grant unto us the wisdom to discern right from wrong, and the courage to follow the path of righteousness.
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.88
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.
taṁ vo dasmam ṛtīṣahaṁ vasor mandānam andhasaḥ |
abhi vatsaṁ na svasareṣu dhenava indraṁ gīrbhir navāmahe || 1 ||
dyukṣaṁ sudānuṁ taviṣībhir āvṛtaṁ giriṁ na purubhojasam |
kṣumantaṁ vājaṁ śatinaṁ sahasriṇam makṣū gomantam īmahe || 2 ||
na tvā bṛhanto adrayo varanta indra vīḻavaḥ |
yad ditsasi stuvate māvate vasu nakiṣ ṭad ā mināti te || 3 ||
yoddhāsi kratvā śavasota daṁsanā viśvā jātābhi majmanā |
ā tvāyam arka ūtaye vavartati yaṁ gotamā ajījanan || 4 ||
pra hi ririkṣa ojasā divo antebhyas pari |
na tvā vivyāca raja indra pārthivam anu svadhāṁ vavakṣitha || 5 ||
nakiḥ pariṣṭir maghavan maghasya te yad dāśuṣe daśasyasi |
asmākam bodhy ucathasya coditā maṁhiṣṭho vājasātaye || 6 ||
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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