
The Rig Veda, Book 1, Verses 51 to 60

HYMN LI. Indra.
1 MAKE glad with songs that Ram whom many men invoke, worthy
of songs of praise, Indra, the sea of wealth;
Whose gracious
deeds for men spread like the heavens abroad: sing praise to
him the Sage, most liberal for our good.
2 As aids the skilful
Rbhus yearned to Indra strong to save, who fills mid-air, encompassed
round with might,
Rushing in rapture; and -o'er Satakratu
came the gladdening shout that urged him on to victory.
3
Thou hast disclosed the kine's stall for the Angirases, and
made a way for Atri by a hundred doors.
On Vimada thou hast bestowed both food and wealth, making
thy bolt dance in the sacrificer's fight.
4 Thou hast unclosed
the prisons of the waters; thou hast in the mountain seized
the treasure rich in gifts.
When thou hadst slain with might
the dragon Vrtra, thou, Indra, didst raise the Sun in heaven
for all to see.
5 With wondrous might thou blewest enchanter
fiends away, with powers celestial those who called on thee
in jest.
Thou, hero-hearted, hast broken down Pipru's forts,
and helped Rjisvan when the Dasyus were struck dead.
6 Thou
savedst Kutsa when Susna was smitten down; to Atithigva gavest
Sambara for a prey.
E'en mighty Arbuda thou troddest under
foot: thou from of old wast born to strike the Dasyus dead.
7 All power and might is closely gathered up in thee; thy bounteous
spirit joys in drinking Soma juice.
Known is the thunderbolt
that lies within thine arms: rend off therewith all manly prowess
of our foe.
8 Discern thou well Aryas and Dasyus; punishing
the lawless give them up to him whose grass is strewn.
Be
thou the sacrificer's strong encourager all these thy deeds
are my delight at festivals.
9 Indra gives up the lawless
to the pious man, destroying by the Strong Ones those who have
no strength.
Vamra when glorified destroyed the gathered
piles of the still waxing great one who would reach the heaven.
10 The might which Usana hath formed for thee with might rends
in its greatness and with strength both worlds apart.
O Hero-souled,
the steeds of Vata, yoked by thought, have carried thee to fame
while thou art filled with power.
11 When Indra hath rejoiced
with Kavya Usana, he mounts his steeds who swerve wider and
wider yet.
The Strong hath loosed his bolt with the swift
rush of rain, and he hath rent in pieces Susna's firm-built
forts.
12 Thou mountest on thy car amid strong Soma draughts:
Saryata brought thee those in which thou hast delight.
Indra,
when thou art pleased with men whose Soma flows thou risest
to unchallenged glory in the sky.
13 To old Kaksivin, Soma-presser,
skilled in song, O Indra, thou didst give the youthful Vrcaya.
Thou, very wise, wast Mena, Vrsanaiva's child: those deeds of
thine must all be told at Soma feasts.
14 The good man's
refuge in his need is Indra, firm as a doorpost, praised among
the Pajras.
Indra alone is Lord of wealth, the Giver, lover
of riches, chariots, kine, and horses.
15 To him the Mighty
One, the self-resplendent, verily strong and great, this praise
is uttered.
May we and all the heroes, with the princes,
be, in this fray, O Indra, in thy keeping.
HYMN LII. Indra.
1 I GLORIFY that Ram who finds the light of heaven, whose
hundred nobly-natured ones go forth with him.
With hymns
may I turn hither Indra to mine aid,-the Car which like a strong
steed hasteth to the call.
2 Like as a mountain on firm basis,
unremoved, he, thousandfold protector, waxed in mighty strength,
When Indra, joying in the draughts of Soma juice, forced the
clouds, slaying Vrtra stayer of their flow.
3 For he stays
e'en the stayers, spread o'er laden cloud, rooted in light,
strengthened in rapture by the wise.
Indra with thought,
with skilled activity, I call, most liberal giver, for he sates
him with the juice.
4 Whom those that flow in heaven on sacred
grass, his own assistants, nobly-natured, fill full like the
sea,-
Beside that Indra when he smote down Vrtra stood his
helpers, straight in form, mighty, invincible.
5 To him,
as in wild joy he fought with him who stayed the rain, his helpers
sped like swift streams down a slope,
When Indra, thunder-armed,
made bold by Soma draughts, as Trta cleaveth Vala's fences,
cleft him through.
6 Splendour encompassed thee, forth shone
thy warrior might: the rain-obstructer lay in mid-air's lowest
deep,
What time, O Indra, thou didst cast thy thunder down
upon the jaws of Vritra hard to be restrained.
7 The hymns
which magnify thee, Indra, reach to thee even as water-brooks
flow down and fill the lake.
Tvastar gave yet more force
to thine appropriate strength, and forged thy thunderbolt of
overpowering might.
8 When, Indra, thou whose power is linked
with thy Bay Steeds hadst smitten Vrtra, causing floods to flow
for man,
Thou heldst in thine arms the metal thunderbolt,
and settest in the heaven the Sun for all to see.
9 In fear they raised the lofty self-resplendent hymn, praise
giving and effectual, leading up to heaven,
When Indra's
helpers fighting for the good of men, the Maruts, faithful to
mankind, joyed in the light.
10 Then Heaven himself, the
mighty, at that Dragon's roar reeled back in terror when, Indra,
thy thunderbolt
In the wild joy of Soma had struck off with
might the head of Vrtra, tyrant of the earth and heaven.
11 O Indra, were this earth extended forth tenfold, and men
who dwell therein multiplied day by day,
Still here thy conquering
might, Maghavan, would be famed: it hath waxed vast as heaven
in majesty and power.
12 Thou, bold of heart, in thine own
native might, for help, upon the limit of this mid-air and of
heaven,
Hast made the earth to be the pattern of thy strength:
embracing flood and light thou reachest to the sky.
13 Thou
art the counterpart of earth, the Master of lofty heaven with
all its mighty Heroes:
Thou hast filled all the region with
thy greatness: yea, of a truth there is none other like thee.
14 Whose amplitude the heaven and earth have not attained, whose
bounds the waters of mid-air have never reached,-
Not, when
in joy he fights the stayer of the rain: thou, and none else,
hast made all things in order due.
15 The Maruts sang thy
praise in this encounter, and in thee all the Deities delighted,
What time thou, Indra, with thy spiky weapon, thy deadly bolt,
smotest the face of Vrtra.
HYMN LIII. Indra.
I WE will present fair praise unto the Mighty One, our hymns
to Indra in Vivasvdn's dwelling-place;
For he hath ne'er
found wealth in those who seem to sleep: those who give wealth
to men accept no paltry praise.
2 Giver of horses, Indra,
giver, thou, of kine, giver of barley, thou art Lord and guard
of wealth:
Man's helper from of old, not disappointing hope,
Friend of our friends, to thee ,as such we sing this praise.
3 Indra, most splendid, powerful, rich in mighty deeds, this
treasure spread around is known to be thine own.
Gather therefrom,
O Conqueror, and bring to us: fail not the hope of him who loves
and sings to thee.
4 Well pleased with these bright flames
and with these Soma drops, take thou away our poverty with seeds
and kine.
With Indra scattering the Dasyu through these drops,
freed from their hate may we obtain abundant food.
5 Let
us obtain, O Indra, plenteous wealth and food, with strength
exceeding glorious, shining to the sky:
May we obtain the
Goddess Providence, the strength of heroes, special source of
cattle, rich in steeds.
6 These our libations strength-inspiring,
Soma draughts, gladdened thee in the fight with Vrtra, Hero
Lord,
What time thou slewest for the singer with trimmed
grass ten thousand Vrtras, thou resistless in thy might.
7 Thou goest on from fight to fight intrepidly, destroying castle
after castle here with strength.
Thou, Indra, with thy friend
who makes the foe bow down, slewest from far away the guileful
Namuci.
8 Thou hast struck down in death Karanja, Parnaya,
in Atithigva's very glorious going forth.
Unyielding, when
Rjisvan compassed them with siege, thou hast destroyed the hundred
forts of Vangrida.
9 With all-outstripping chariot-wheel,
O Indra, thou far-famed, hast overthrown the twice ten Kings
of men,
With sixty thousand nine-and-ninety followers, who
came in arms to fight with friendless Susravas.
10 Thou hast
protected Susravas with succour, and Turvayana with thine aid,
O Indra.
Thou madest Kutsa, Atithigva, Ayu, subject unto
this King, the young, the mighty.
11 May we protected by
the Gods hereafter remain thy very prosperous friends, O Indra.
Thee we extol, enjoying through thy favour life long and joyful
and with store of heroes.
HYMN LIV. Indra.
1 URGE us not, Maghavan, to this distressful fight, for none
may comprehend the limit of thy strength.
Thou with fierce
shout hast made the woods and rivers roar: did not men run in
crowds together in their fear?
2 Sing hymns of praise to
Sakra, Lord of power and might; laud thou and magnify Indra
who hearcth thee,
Who with his daring might, a Bull exceeding
strong in strength, maketh him master of the heaven and earth.
3 Sing forth to lofty Dyaus a strength-bestowing song, the Bold,
whose resolute mind hath independent sway.
High glory hath
the Asura, compact of strength, drawn on by two Bay Steeds:
a Bull, a Car is he.
4 The ridges of the lofty heaven thou
madest shake; thou, daring, of thyself smotest through Sambara,
When bold with gladdening juice, thou warredst with thy bolt,
sharp and twoedged, against the banded sorcerers.
5 When
with a roar that fills the woods, thou forcest down on wind's
head the stores which 8usga kept confined,
Who shall have
power to stay thee firm and eager-souled from doing still this
day what thou of old hast done?
6 Thou helpest Narya, Turvasa,
and Yadu, and Vayya's son Turviti, Satakratu!
Thou helpest
horse and car in final battle thou breakest down the nine-and-ninety
castles.
7 A hero-lord is he, King of a mighty folk, who
offers free oblations and promotes the Law,
Who with a bounteous
guerdon welcomes hymns of praise: for him flows down the abundant
stream below the sky.
8 His power is matchless, matchless
is his wisdom; chief, through their work, be some who drink
the Soma,
Those, Indra, who increase the lordly power, the
firm heroic strength of thee the Giver.
9 Therefore for thee
are these abundant beakers Indra's drink, stone-pressed juices
held in ladles.
Quaff them and satisfy therewith thy longing;
then fix thy mind upon bestowing treasure.
10 There darkness
stood, the vault that stayed the waters' flow: in Vrtra's hollow
side the rain-cloud lay concealed.
But Indra smote the rivers
which the obstructer stayed, flood following after flood, down
steep declivitics.
11 So give us, Indra, bliss-increasing
glory give us great sway and strength that conquers people.
Preserve our wealthy patrons, save our princes; vouchsafe us
wealth and food with noble offspring.
HYMN LV. Indra.
1 THOUGH e'en this heaven's wide space and earth have spread
them out, nor heaven nor earth may be in greatness Indra's match.
Awful and very mighty, causing woe to men, he whets his thunderbolt
for sharpness, as a bull.
2 Like as the watery ocean, so
doth he receive the rivers spread on all sides in their ample
width.
He bears him like a bull to drink of Soma juice, and
will, as Warrior from of old, be praised for might.
3 Thou
swayest, Indra, all kinds of great manly power, so as to bend,
as't were, even that famed mountain down.
Foremost among
the Gods is he through hero might, set in the van, the Strong
One, for each arduous deed.
4 He only in the wood is praised
by worshippers, when he shows forth to men his own fair Indra-power.
A friendly Bull is he, a Bull to be desired when Maghavan auspiciously
sends forth his voice.
5 Yet verily the Warrior in his vigorous
strength stirreth up with his might great battles for mankind;
And men have faith in Indra, the respIendent One, what time
he hurleth down his bolt, his dart of death.
6 Though, fain
for glory, and with strength increased on earth, he with great
might destroys the dwellings made with art,
He makes the
lights of heaven shine forth secure, he bids, exceeding wise,
the floods flow for his worshipper.
7 Drinker of Soma, let
thy heart incline to give; bring thy Bays hitherward, O thou
who hearest praise.
Those charioteers of' thine, best skilled
to draw the rein, the rapid sunbeams, Indra, lead thee not astray.
8 Thou bearest in both hands treasure that never fails; the
famed One in his body holds unvanquished might.
O Indra,
in thy members many powers abide, like wells surrounded by the
ministering priests.
HYMN LVI. Indra.
I FOR this man's full libations held in ladles, he hath roused
him, eager, as a horse to meet the mare.
He stays his golden
car, yoked with Bay Horses, swift, and drinks the Soma juice
which strengthens for great deeds.
2 To him the guidance-following
songs of praise flow full, as those who seek gain go in company
to the flood.
To him the Lord of power, the holy synod's
might, as to a hill, with speed, ascend the loving ones.
3 Victorious, great is he; in manly battle shines, unstained
with dust, his might, as shines a mountain peak;
Wherewith
the iron one, fierce e'en against the strong, in rapture, fettered
wily Sushna fast in bonds.
4 When Strength the Goddess, made
more strong for help by thee, waits upon Indra as the Sun attends
the Dawn,
Then. he who with his might unflinching kills the
gloom stirs up the dust aloft, with joy and triumphing.
5
When thou with might, upon the framework of the heaven, didst
fix, across, air's region firmly, unremoved,
In the light-winning
war, Indra, in rapturous joy, thou smotest Vrtra dead and broughtest
floods of rain.
6 Thou with thy might didst grasp,the holder-up
of heaven, thou who art mighty also in the seats of earth.
Thou, gladdened by the juice, hast set the waters free, and
broken Vrtra's stony fences through and through.
HYMN LVII. Indra.
I To him most liberal, lofty Lord of lofty wealth, verily
powerful and strong, I bring my hymn,-
Whose checkless bounty,
as of waters down a slope, is spread abroad for all that live,
to give them strength.
2 Now all this world, for worship,
shall come after thee-the offerer's libations like floods to
the depth,
When the well-loved one seems to rest upon the
hill, the thunderbolt of Indra, shatterer wrought of gold.
3 To him the terrible, most meet for lofty praise, like bright
Dawn, now bring gifts with reverence in this rite,
Whose
being, for renown, yea, Indra-power and light, have been created,
like bay steeds, to move with speed.
4 Thine, Indra, praised
by many, excellently rich! are we who trusting in thy help draw
near to thee.
Lover of praise, none else but thou receives
our laud: as earth loves all her creatures, love thou this our
hymn.
5 Great is thy power, O Indra, we are thine. Fulfil,
O Maghavan, the wish of this thy worshipper.
After thee lofty
heaven hath measured out its strength: to thee and to thy power
this earth hath bowed itself.
6 Thou, who hast thunder for
thy weapon, with thy bolt hast shattered into pieces this broad
massive cloud.
Thou hast sent down the obstructed floods
that they may flow: thou hast, thine own for ever, all victorious
might.
HYMN LVIII., Agni.
I NE'ER waxeth faint the Immortal, Son of Strength, since
he, the Herald, hath become Vivasvan's messenger.
On paths
most excellent he measured out mid-air: he with oblation calls
to service of the Gods.
2 Never decaying, seizing his appropriate
food, rapidly, eagerly through the dry wood he spreads.
His
back, as he is sprinkled, glistens like a horse: loud hath he
roared and shouted like the heights of heaven?
3 Set high
in place o'er all that Vasus, Rudras do, immortal, Lord of riches,
seated as High Priest;
Hastening like a car to men, to those
who live, the God without delay gives boons to be desired.
4 Urged by the wind be spreads through dry wood as he lists,
armed with his tongues for sickles, with a mighty roar.
Black
is thy path, Agni, changeless, with glittering waves! when like
a bull thou rushest eager to the trees.
5 With teeth of flame,
wind-driven, through the wood he speeds, triumphant like a bull
among the herd of cows,
With bright strength roaming to the
everlasting air: things fixed, things moving quake before him
as he flies.
6 The Bhrgus established thee among mankind
for men, like as a treasure, beauteous, easy to invoke;
Thee,
Agni, as a herald and choice-worthy guest, as an auspicious
Friend to the Celestial Race.
7 Agni, the seven tongues'
deftest Sacrificer, him whom the priests elect at solemn worship,
The Herald, messenger of all the Vasus, I serve with dainty
food, I ask for riches.
8 Grant, Son of Strength, thou rich
in friends, a refuge without a flaw this day to us thy praisers.
O Agni, Son of Strength, with forts of iron preserve thou from
distress the man who lauds thee.
9 Be thou a refuge, Bright
One, to the singer, a shelter, Bounteous Lord, to those who
worship.
Preserve the singer from distress, O Agni. May he,
enriched with prayer, come soon and early.
HYMN LIX. Agni.
1 THE other fires are, verily, thy branches; the Immortals
all rejoice in thee, O Agni.
Centre art thou, Vaigvdnara,
of the people, sustaining men like a deep-founded pillar.
2 The forehead of the sky, earth's centre, Agni became the messenger
of earth and heaven.
Vaisvanara, the Deities produced thee,
a God, to be a light unto the Arya.
3 As in the Sun firm
rays are set for ever, treasures are in Vaisvanara, in Agni.
Of all the riches in the hills, the waters, the herbs, among
mankind, thou art the Sovran.
4 As the great World-halves,
so are their Son's praises; skilled, as a man, to act, is he
the Herald.
Vaisvanara, celestial, truly mighty, most manly
One, hath many a youthful consort.
5 Even the lofty heaven,
O Jatavedas Vaisvanara, hath not attained thy greatness.
Thou art the King of lands where men are settled, thou hast
brought comfort to the Gods in battle.
6 Now will I tell
the greatness of the Hero whom Prarti's sons follow as Vrtra's
slayer:
Agni Vaisvanara struck down the Dasyu, cleave Sambara
through and shattered down his fences.
7 Vaisvanara, dwelling
by his might with all men, far-shining, holy mid the Bharadvajas,
Is lauded, excellent, with hundred praises by Purunitha, son
of Satavani.
HYMN LX. Agni.
I As 'twere Some goodly treasure Matarisvan brought, as a
gift, the glorious Priest to Bhrgu,
Banner of sacrifice,
the good Protector, child of two births, the swiftly moving
envoy.
2 Both Gods and men obey this Ruler's order, Gods
who are worshipped, men who yearn and worship.
As Priest
he takes his seat ere break of morning, House-Lord, adorable
with men, Ordainer.
3 May our fair praise, heart-born, most
recent, reach him whose tongue, e'en at his birth, is sweet
as honey;
Whom mortal priests, men, with their strong endeavour,
supplied with dainty viands, have created.
4 Good to mankind,
the yearning Purifier hath among men been placed as Priest choice-worthy.
May Agni be our Friend, Lord of the Household, protector of
the riches in the dwelling.
5 As such we Gotamas with hymns
extol thee, O Agni, as the guardian Lord of riches,
Decking
thee like a horse, the swift prizewinner. May he, enriched with
prayer, come soon and early.
Suggestions for Further Reading
- The Rig Veda translation by Griffith, Introduction
- Hymns of the Sama veda translated by Ralph T.H. Griffith
- Yajur Veda: The Veda Of The Black Yajus School
- Hymns Of The Atharva-Veda
- Anugita English Translation
- THE Sanatsugâtîya, A Spiritual Dialogue
- Dharmashastras, the Sacred Law Books of Hindus
- The Hindu Dharmashastras, Subject Index
- The Grihya Sutras, The Vedic Domestic Ritual Texts
- The Sankhya Sutras of Kapila, Index page
- Translation of Upanishads by Swami Paramananda, Index
- A History Of Indian Philosophy - Chapter Index
- The Upanishads translated by Max Muller
- Vedic Reader for Students
- The Bhagavad-gita in a nutshell
- Essays On Dharma
- Esoteric Mystic Hinduism
- Introduction to Hinduism
- Hindu Way of Life
- Essays On Karma
- Hindu Rites and Rituals
- The Origin of The Sanskrit Language
- Symbolism in Hinduism
- Essays on The Upanishads
- Concepts of Hinduism
- Essays on Atman
- Hindu Festivals
- Spiritual Practice
- Right Living
- Yoga of Sorrow
- Happiness
- Mental Health
- Concepts of Buddhism
- General Essays
Source: An English translation of the Vedas by Ralph T.H. Griffith, 1896.