Hymn to Indra
Rigveda IX.8 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.
These soma-draughts have flowed unto Indra’s longing, uplifting his might and the boldness of his arm.
Cleansed they are, finding their stead in the beakers, hastening to Vāyu and the twin horse-lords; may they grant us gallant strength.
O Soma, stir the soul of Indra to give freely, as thou art made pure to rest upon the womb of truth.
Ten fingers do tend thee; seven wise thoughts drive thee onward.
The god-breath’d singers have urged thee with cheer.
For the joy of the gods, for their rapture, thee, who art rushing through the ewes, do we array in kine as raiment.
In the washing-vats made clean, he, gold-hued and red,
hath clad himself in the garb of kine.
Draw hither to us free-handed givers by thy cleansing.
Smite down all spite.
O drop, go thou unto thy friend.
Rain down the sky’s wetness and heaven’s shining from the earth below.
Grant us strength for the fray, O Soma.
Let us have our portion in thee—
who drawest eyes of men, who art quaffed by Indra, who findest the sun— and a share in kin and delight.
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.8
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.
ete somā abhi priyam indrasya kāmam akṣaran |
vardhanto asya vīryam || 1 ||
punānāsaś camūṣado gacchanto vāyum aśvinā |
te no dhāntu suvīryam || 2 ||
indrasya soma rādhase punāno hārdi codaya |
ṛtasya yonim āsadam || 3 ||
mṛjanti tvā daśa kṣipo hinvanti sapta dhītayaḥ |
anu viprā amādiṣuḥ || 4 ||
devebhyas tvā madāya kaṁ sṛjānam ati meṣyaḥ |
saṁ gobhir vāsayāmasi || 5 ||
punānaḥ kalaśeṣv ā vastrāṇy aruṣo hariḥ |
pari gavyāny avyata || 6 ||
maghona ā pavasva no jahi viśvā apa dviṣaḥ |
indo sakhāyam ā viśa || 7 ||
vṛṣṭiṁ divaḥ pari srava dyumnam pṛthivyā adhi |
saho naḥ soma pṛtsu dhāḥ || 8 ||
nṛcakṣasaṁ tvā vayam indrapītaṁ svarvidam |
bhakṣīmahi prajām iṣam || 9 ||
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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