Verses 1, 2
प्र मंहि॑ष्ठाय बृह॒ते बृ॒हद्र॑ये स॒त्यशु॑ष्माय त॒वसे॑ म॒तिं भ॑रे । अ॒पामि॑व प्रव॒णे यस्य॑ दु॒र्धरं॒ राधो॑ वि॒श्वायु॒ शव॑से॒ अपा॑वृतं ॥
prá máṃhiṣṭhāya bṛhaté bṛhádraye satyáśuṣmāya taváse matím bhare ǀ apā́miva pravaṇé yásya durdháram rā́dho viśvā́yu śávase ápāvṛtam ǁ
अध॑ ते॒ विश्व॒मनु॑ हासदि॒ष्टय॒ आपो॑ नि॒म्नेव॒ सव॑ना ह॒विष्म॑तः । यत्पर्व॑ते॒ न स॒मशी॑त हर्य॒त इंद्र॑स्य॒ वज्रः॒ श्नथि॑ता हिर॒ण्ययः॑ ॥
ádha te víśvamánu hāsadiṣṭáya ā́po nimnéva sávanā havíṣmataḥ ǀ yátpárvate ná samáśīta haryatá índrasya vájraḥ śnáthitā hiraṇyáyaḥ ǁ
In these opening verses, the Ṛṣi approaches Indra as the supreme embodiment of vastness and truth-aligned energy. He offers his devotion, likening the spontaneous flow of Indra's grace to rushing waters tumbling down a mountain slope. The divine generosity is described as inexhaustible, constantly open to all existence. Building upon this image, the Ṛṣi celebrates the golden, flashing vajra—Indra's signature weapon—which shatters even the firmest mountain barriers. Just as rains or rivers freely water the thirsty fields of the sacrificer, Indra's radiant power breaks open obstacles, releasing boundless energy and clearing the path for spiritual elevation.
Verse 1: To the most bountiful, vast, and great-wealthy Indra, true-energized and strong, I offer my prayer. Like rushing waters down a slope, his inexhaustible grace is ever open to all beings for supreme power.
Verse 2: May all your surging powers flow forth for the seeker's quest, like waters pouring into a trough for the sacrificer, as the golden thunderbolt of Indra shatters the stubborn mountain.
The translation closely follows Sāyaṇa's ritualistic rendering of 'savana' as sacrificial oblations, while integrating Sri Aurobindo's psychological vision of 'vajra' as the luminous, illuminating force that breaks through unconscious mental obstructions.
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| प्र | pra | forward, forth |
| मंहिष्ठाय | maṃhiṣṭhāya | to the most bountiful |
| बृहते | bṛhate | to the vast |
| वज्रः | vajraḥ | thunderbolt, diamond-like weapon |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| अध | adha | now, then |
| आपः | āpaḥ | waters |
| वज्रः | vajraḥ | thunderbolt |
| हिरण्ययः | hiraṇyayaḥ | golden |
Picture a magnificent waterfall of liquid gold cascading down a mountain peak—this is Indra's grace, breaking all stony barriers to flood the devotee's life.
Verses 3, 4
अ॒स्मै भी॒माय॒ नम॑सा॒ सम॑ध्व॒र उषो॒ न शु॑भ्र॒ आ भ॑रा॒ पनी॑यसे । यस्य॒ धाम॒ श्रव॑से॒ नामें॑द्रि॒यं ज्योति॒रका॑रि ह॒रितो॒ नाय॑से ॥
asmái bhīmā́ya námasā sámadhvará úṣo ná śubhra ā́ bharā pánīyase ǀ yásya dhā́ma śrávase nā́mendriyám jyótirákāri haríto nā́yase ǁ
इ॒मे त॑ इंद्र॒ ते व॒यं पु॑रुष्टुत॒ ये त्वा॒रभ्य॒ चरा॑मसि प्रभूवसो । न॒हि त्वद॒न्यो गि॑र्वणो॒ गिरः॒ सघ॑त्क्षो॒णीरि॑व॒ प्रति॑ नो हर्य॒ तद्वचः॑ ॥
imé ta indra té vayám puruṣṭuta yé tvārábhya cárāmasi prabhūvaso ǀ nahí tvádanyó girvaṇo gíraḥ sághatkṣoṇī́riva práti no harya tádvácaḥ ǁ
The Ṛṣi calls upon the community to approach the fearsome and awe-inspiring deity with reverent prostrations at the ritual altar, comparing the bright offering to the pristine light of dawn. Indra's very abode and divine identity are established as the supreme source of luminous energy and inspiring fame. In the following verse, the poets declare their continuous attachment to Indra, noting that they cling to him as their source of support. They acknowledge that no other being can match his capacity to receive and reward hymns, urging Indra to lovingly accept their spoken words as a mother welcomes her child.
Verse 3: To this awesome and radiant one, bring your reverence at the sacrifice, bright like the dawn; for his supreme state and divine name have been fashioned as a light for glory, like tawny steeds harnessed for power.
Verse 4: We, O much-praised Indra, are your people who move about grasping onto you, O lord of vast wealth. None other than you, O praise-lover, can hold these hymns; lovingly accept this our speech.
Yāska's Nirukta emphasizes 'girvaṇaḥ' as one who delights in hymns of praise ('gīrbhiḥ vamyaḥ'), which anchors the literary imagery of Indra savoring the poetic expressions of the Ṛṣis.
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| अस्मै | asmai | to this one |
| भीमाय | bhīmāya | to the fearsome, awe-inspiring |
| उषः | uṣaḥ | dawn |
| ज्योतिः | jyotiḥ | light, luminosity |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| इन्द्र | indra | Indra |
| प्रभुवसो | prabhūvaso | lord of abundant riches |
| गिरः | giraḥ | songs of praise, hymns |
Imagine a flock of devoted followers holding tightly to the robes of a towering, golden king, offering him songs that shine as bright as the morning sun.
Verses 5, 6
भूरि॑ त इंद्र वी॒र्यं१॒॑ तव॑ स्मस्य॒स्य स्तो॒तुर्म॑घव॒न्काम॒मा पृ॑ण । अनु॑ ते॒ द्यौर्बृ॑ह॒ती वी॒र्यं॑ मम इ॒यं च॑ ते पृथि॒वी ने॑म॒ ओज॑से ॥
bhū́ri ta indra vīryám táva smasyasyá stotúrmaghavankā́mamā́ pṛṇa ǀ ánu te dyáurbṛhatī́ vīryám mama iyám ca te pṛthivī́ nema ójase ǁ
त्वं तमिं॑द्र॒ पर्व॑तं म॒हामु॒रुं वज्रे॑ण वज्रिन्पर्व॒शश्च॑कर्तिथ । अवा॑सृजो॒ निवृ॑ताः॒ सर्त॒वा अ॒पः स॒त्रा विश्वं॑ दधिषे॒ केव॑लं॒ सहः॑ ॥
tvám támindra párvatam mahā́murúm vájreṇa vajrinparvaśáścakartitha ǀ ávāsṛjo nívṛtāḥ sártavā́ apáḥ satrā́ víśvam dadhiṣe kévalam sáhaḥ ǁ
Here, the Ṛṣi reflects on the sheer magnitude of Indra's heroic deeds, asking the Maghavan (the generous one) to fulfill the deepest desires of the devoted singer. The cosmos itself bears witness to his might: the vast sky and the wide earth measure themselves against a fraction of his staggering energy. In the climatic final verse, the focus returns to the quintessential mythic act of Indra: cleaving the massive, static mountain (representing Vṛtra or arrested consciousness) piece by piece with his vajra. By doing so, he releases the imprisoned waters to flow freely, establishing his absolute and singular dominion over all cosmic strength.
Verse 5: Vast is your heroism, O Indra; we know it well. Fulfill the desire of this your singer, O Maghavan! The vast heaven measures itself against your might, and so too does this wide earth measure its power against your energy.
Verse 6: You, O Indra, chopped that massive, broad mountain piece by piece with your thunderbolt, O wielder of the vajra. You let loose the imprisoned waters to flow, and you alone hold all cosmic strength.
Traditional commentators like Sāyaṇa explain the mountain here as the literal cloud-demon Vṛtra holding back rain, whereas esoteric interpretations view the mountain as the rock of ignorance holding back the streams of spiritual consciousness.
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| वीर्यम् | vīryam | heroic power, vigor |
| मघकन् | maghavan | bountiful one, possessor of bounty |
| द्यौः | dyauḥ | heaven, sky |
| पृथिवी | pṛthivī | earth |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| पर्वतम् | parvatam | mountain, cloud-barrier |
| वज्रेण | vajreṇa | with the thunderbolt |
| अपः | apaḥ | waters |
| सहः | sahaḥ | might, victory, force |
Picture a cosmic giant splitting a towering fortress mountain with a single stroke of lightning, instantly unleashing a vibrant, life-giving river across the whole world.