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Dhammapada · narration sample

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Rig Veda · 941 of 1027

Mandala 10: HYMN CIV. Indra.

1.Soma hath flowed for thee, Invoked of mat Speed to our sacrifice with both thy Coursers. To thee have streameld the songs or mighty singers, imploring, Indra, drink of our libation.

2.Drink of the juice which men have washed in waters, and fill thee full, O Lord of Tawny Horses. O Indra, hearer of the laud, with Soma which stones have mixed for thee enhance thy rapture.

3.To make thee start, a strong true draught I offer to thee, the Bull, O thou whom Bay Steeds carry. Here take delight, O Indra, in our voices while thou art hymned with power and all our spirit.

4.O Mighty Indra, through thine aid, thy prowess, obtaining life, zealous, and skilled in Order, Men in the house who share the sacred banquet stand singing praise that brings them store of children.

5.Through thy directions, Lord of Tawny Coursers, thine who art firm, splendid, and blest, the people Obtain most liberal aid for their salvation, and praise thee, Indra, through thine excellencies.

6.Lord of the Bays, come with thy two Bay Horses, come to our prayers, to drink the juice of Soma. To thee comes sacrifice which thou acceptest: thou, skilled in holy rites, art he who giveth.

7.Him of a thousand powers, subduing foemen, Maghavan praised with hymns and pleased with Soma,— Even him our songs approach, resistless Indra: the adorations of the singer laud him.

8.The way to bliss for Gods and man thou foundest, Indra, seven lovely floods, divine, untroubled, Wherewith thou, rending forts, didst move the ocean, and nine-and-ninety flowing streams of water.

9.Thou from the curse didst free the mighty Waters, and as their only God didst watch and guard them. O Indra, cherish evermore thy body with those which thou hast won in quelling Vṛtra.

10.Heroic power and noble praise is Indra yea, the song worships him invoked of many. Vṛtra he quelled, and gave men room and freedom: gakra, victorious, hath conquered armies.

11.Call we on Maghayan, auspicious Indra. best Hero in this fight where spoil is gathered, The Strong, who listens, who gives aid in battles, who slays the Vṛtras, wins and gathers riches.

Asked of Guide

Why does every stanza ask Indra to drink Soma with his bay horses?

The hymn repeatedly invites Indra to drink Soma with his bay horses because Soma is the sacrificial gift that empowers him to act: verses say “drink of our libation” and call him “Lord of Tawny Horses,” linking the god’s strength and presence to participating in the rite. The poets present Soma as the tangible medium by which worshippers enlist Indra’s prowess—he becomes “resistless” and victorious after taking the draught, enabling feats like quelling Vṛtra (verse 7).

The ritual image of Indra arriving with his two bay horses emphasizes his movement from the cosmic to the communal: Soma unites heaven and the sacrificers so that Indra can “give men room and freedom” (verse 10) and secure “liberal aid for their salvation” (verse 5). This connection between drink, deity, and benefaction echoes other hymns in the Rig Veda where Soma’s draught animates gods to protect and enrich humans.

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