Hymn to Indra
Rigveda IX.113 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 9 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.
Let Indra the Foebreaker quaff the reed-born Soma, nerve in his breast for a mighty deed; O drop, flow round about for Indra.
Cleanse thyself, Lord of the Quarters, bounteous Soma foaming high; with words of naked truth, in faith and fervour art thou bruised. — O drop, flow round about for Indra.
The thunder-fed Buffalo waxed in strength; the Daughter of the Sun bore him, the Gandharvas welcomed him, and hid him as living sap within the Soma. — O drop, flow round about for Indra.
Truth is thy splendour, truth thy tongue; thy works are real, Sovereign Soma. By the Fashioner art thou made ready. — O drop, flow round about for Indra.
Lofty art thou and firm of limb; twin torrents mingle and rush as one. Rich in thy very richness, tawny lord, thou art strained by hallowed spell. — O drop, flow round about for Indra.
There where the chanter, shaper of measure, lifts his voice beside the grinding stone, waxing great on Soma and kindling joy— O drop, flow round about for Indra.
There where the deathless radiance dwells, the realm wherein the Sun is set, set me, self-cleansing one, in the world that faileth not. — O drop, flow round about for Indra.
Where Vivasvant’s son is king, where a ladder leans from heaven, where the ever-youthful waters race—there make me deathless. — O drop, flow round about for Indra.
Where free spirit may wander at will through heaven’s triple-arched expanse, in those light-filled worlds set me immortal. — O drop, flow round about for Indra.
Where longing and fulfilment meet, where burneth the bright brow of the coppery lord, where freedom and full content abide—there make me immortal. — O drop, flow round about for Indra.
Where joys and sweetnesses abide, where rapture lifts her shining head, where the very desires of desire are won—there make me immortal. — O drop, flow round about for Indra.
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 IX.113
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.
śaryaṇāvati somam indraḥ pibatu vṛtrahā |
balaṁ dadhāna ātmani kariṣyan vīryam mahad indrāyendo pari srava || 1 ||
ā pavasva diśām pata ārjīkāt soma mīḍhvaḥ |
ṛtavākena satyena śraddhayā tapasā suta indrāyendo pari srava || 2 ||
parjanyavṛddham mahiṣaṁ taṁ sūryasya duhitābharat |
taṁ gandharvāḥ praty agṛbhṇan taṁ some rasam ādadhur indrāyendo pari srava || 3 ||
ṛtaṁ vadann ṛtadyumna satyaṁ vadan satyakarman |
śraddhāṁ vadan soma rājan dhātrā soma pariṣkṛta indrāyendo pari srava || 4 ||
satyamugrasya bṛhataḥ saṁ sravanti saṁsravāḥ |
saṁ yanti rasino rasāḥ punāno brahmaṇā hara indrāyendo pari srava || 5 ||
yatra brahmā pavamāna chandasyā3ṁ vācaṁ vadan |
grāvṇā some mahīyate somenānandaṁ janayann indrāyendo pari srava || 6 ||
yatra jyotir ajasraṁ yasmim̐l loke svar hitam |
tasmin māṁ dhehi pavamānāmṛte loke akṣita indrāyendo pari srava || 7 ||
yatra rājā vaivasvato yatrāvarodhanaṁ divaḥ |
yatrāmūr yahvatīr āpas tatra mām amṛtaṁ kṛdhīndrāyendo pari srava || 8 ||
yatrānukāmaṁ caraṇaṁ trināke tridive divaḥ |
lokā yatra jyotiṣmantas tatra mām amṛtaṁ kṛdhīndrāyendo pari srava || 9 ||
yatra kāmā nikāmāś ca yatra bradhnasya viṣṭapam |
svadhā ca yatra tṛptiś ca tatra mām amṛtaṁ kṛdhīndrāyendo pari srava || 10 ||
yatrānandāś ca modāś ca mudaḥ pramuda āsate |
kāmasya yatrāptāḥ kāmās tatra mām amṛtaṁ kṛdhīndrāyendo pari srava || 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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