Hymn to Indra
Rigveda IX.56 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.
Swiftly doth Soma course, as high-born truth itself, whirling through the filter, shattering the fiends, ever in search of the gods.
When he driveth toward the prize, like a hundred toiling streams, he entereth into league with Indra.
The ten maidens cry aloud to thee, as doth a maiden call unto her love.
Thou art made fair, O Soma, for the winning.
Thou, O sweet-flowing drop, flow forth for Indra, yea, for Viṣṇu too.
Shield thou the noble-hearted, the singers of praise, from the narrow and perilous way.
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.56
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.
pari soma ṛtam bṛhad āśuḥ pavitre arṣati |
vighnan rakṣāṁsi devayuḥ || 1 ||
yat somo vājam arṣati śataṁ dhārā apasyuvaḥ |
indrasya sakhyam āviśan || 2 ||
abhi tvā yoṣaṇo daśa jāraṁ na kanyānūṣata |
mṛjyase soma sātaye || 3 ||
tvam indrāya viṣṇave svādur indo pari srava |
nṝn stotṝn pāhy aṁhasaḥ || 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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