The heroic deeds of Indra

Songs to Indra the Golden, foremost of the Rigvedic gods

Oct 26, 2023

Many readers have written in, asking that we look at the suktas of the Rigveda. I feel it is appropriate to begin with the hymns to Indra, foremost of the Rigvedic gods. I have not, and do not intend to, translate any of the suktas themselves. My reason for this is twofold:

first, at least two complete English translations of the Rigveda, by scholars far more accomplished than I, already exist, the earliest by Ralph Griffiths dated 1896 (this is in the public domain and available online; I have linked the specific suktas I mention below to this translation), and the latest, completed as recently as 2014, by Joel Brereton and Stephanie Jamison; both translations are incredibly valuable towards understanding the Rigveda, if not fully, then at least in part. (See details below, ‘Sources and Further Reading’.)
second, whilst translations of the original is the only way for most of us to access the Rigveda, I find that no translation, however diligent, however beautiful in itself, truly conveys the magnificence of the original; I therefore give a general overview of what the suktas say, and, in addition to links to Ralph Griffiths’ translation, leave you with links where to read and listen to some of the original suktas.

Now, onto the praise of Indra…

INDRA THE GOLDEN

The Rigveda, as we have seen, is a liturgical text, its suktas composed by priest-poets for recitation during the performance of fire-sacrifices. Narrative mythology, such as found in the later epics and Puranas, is practically absent in the Rigveda. Though the Rigvedic suktas, as songs of praise, go to great lengths to describe the praiseworthy qualities and great deeds of the gods, they do not, except in a few rare instances, give the back stories. The doings of the gods are mentioned briefly and without much detail; the sole exception is Indra, whose life events and deeds of valour are dealt with much more comprehensively.

Indra, the creator and director of the universe (8.85.6), is the most important of the Rigvedic gods. Of the 1028 suktas of the Rigveda, the largest number by far are devoted to his praise: 250 suktas are addressed to him alone and another 50 to him together with other gods (Dandekar, 1950, p.1). The suktas in his praise contain some of the most magnificent poetry in the Rigveda.

Indra is first and foremost a warrior. He is golden-hued, with red-gold hair and shaggy, red-gold beard. He is vast of frame and immensely strong, his arms are long, his hands large and strong and well-shaped. He is untouched by age—forever youthful, handsome and vigorous, he possesses every heroic quality. His deeds are many and glorious. His primary weapon is the vajra or mace, fashioned for him by Tvashtar, the artisan of the gods. Made of metal, Indra’s vajra is hundred-angled, hundred-jointed, and thousand pointed. It is also sharp, and Indra sharpens it like a knife before battle. In later tradition, Indra became a god of rain and storms, and his vajra became a thunderbolt. But in the Rigveda it is a formidable weapon which Indra uses to bring down his enemies, either by hurling it at them or striking them with it. He also uses other weapons: he is sometimes described as carrying a bow and arrows, and sometimes an ankusha or great hook. He rides a golden chariot drawn by two red-gold horses with flowing manes and tails. He is especially fond of soma and drinks enormous quantities of it, particularly before confronting his enemies or going into battle. (See 1.2, 2.16, 2.12,10.23, 10.96).

INDRA’S BIRTH

Unlike other major gods of the Rigveda, Indra is also spoken of as having been born. Two full suktas, 3.48 and 4.18, are devoted to his birth (the latter, often referred to as the ‘birth sukta’ is especially notable). Indra’s mother is not mentioned by name; his father is said to be Tvastar. Indra’s birth is fraught: he insists on emerging from his mother’s side, rather than in the more usual way. His mother gives him soma to drink as soon as he is born. His heroic attributes becomes evident very quickly after his birth. He is also engaged in fierce rivalry with his father, from whom he steals the sacred soma and whom he kills. There is also a suggestion that his mother abandons him upon birth and he has to find his own way in the world.

Allusions to his birth are also made in other mandalas, particularly 8 and 10. In Sukta 8.45, for instance, the new-born Indra is reassured by his mother that he will prevail over all his enemies and grant the wishes of all who seek his help.

THE SLAYING OF VRITRA

The most important story about Indra in the Rigveda is that of his battle with the serpent Vritra. It is mentioned frequently throughout the Rigveda, but, unlike other stories which are usually only alluded to, this is actually narrated almost in full in sukta 32 of Mandala 1. This magnificent sukta is attributed to the priest-poet Hiranyastupa of the Angira family.

Vritra was an enormous serpent, who lay coiled around a mountain in which were enclosed all the waters. For life to exist, the waters had to be released, and for that, the serpent had to be killed. Indra battles the serpent alone, smites him with his mace, and after a long and furious battle, kills him. He then splits open the mountain and releases the waters, which flow to Manu (and therefore, it is implied, to his descendants, the manavas or mankind). Indra also kills Vritra’s mother, Danu, so there is no possibility of another Vritra being born. The waters, released from the mountains, flow over the corpses of Vritra and his mother. For this deed, Indra is known as ‘vritrahan’, the ‘slayer of Vritra’. The name ‘Vritra’ also means ‘obstacle’, and the serpent represents all obstacles—thus Indra, as ‘vritrahan’ is also the one who destroys all obstacles.

The sukta portrays Indra as invincible, and though Vritra fights back, there is never any doubt that Indra will triumph. The sukta, though, has a curious ending: Indra is victorious, he has killed Vritra as well as his mother Danu, and apparently has nothing to fear. But suddenly he flees like a frightened falcon across the nine and ninety flowing rivers. “Whom did you see, Indra, as the avenger of Vritra, that fear possessed your heart after you had killed him?” asks the poet. There is no answer or explanation given and we are left with our wonderings.

Sukta 1.32 is a complex, nuanced hymn. It raises many questions and has been interpreted variously by scholars, Indian and western, since at least the time of the grammarian Yaska (c. 4th century BCE), if not earlier. Based on his battle with Vritra, Indra has been seen as the god of thunderstorms, the one who releases the celestial waters in the form of rain, as well as the sun god who releases the frozen mountain rivers in the summer. Some also say that this depicts a real battle for water between the Rigvedic Aryans and the ‘original’ inhabitants of the land. Others seek to prove that Indra the god was based on a real king who was later elevated to godhead. None of these interpretations really hold up to close examination. A full and detailed exploration of the Vritra myth and the origins and attributes of Indra would need input from poets, linguists, mythologists, historians, archaeologists, sociologists, geologists, and more, and is well beyond the scope of this post.

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THE RELEASE OF THE CATTLE FROM THE CAVES OF VALA

The Vala myth, as this story is often called, is the second most important story about Indra in the Rigveda. It is much more fragmented than the Vritra story, but can be put together from references in various suktas.

A group called the Panis capture all the cattle and keep them hidden in the Vala cave. Indra releases the cattle, who are also the dawns. Interestingly, Indra does not use his mace to smash open the cave. Instead, he does so with the help of mantras which he chants; in this, he is accompanied not by warriors, but priests, the Angiras and the Navagvas. In this role of priest-king, Indra is called ‘brihaspati’, ‘lord of sacred speech’. In the Rigveda, therefore, Indra is often the same as the god Brihaspati; in later tradition Indra loses his priestly role and Brihaspati becomes a separate divinity.

While there is no complete narrative of the Vala story in the Rigveda, Sukta 10.108 relates a small but interesting episode in the story: Indra sends his dog, Sarama, to the Panis, asking them to free the cattle. Sarama conveys Indra’s request, and tells the Panis that if they do not comply, Indra himself will come for the cattle. The Panis are curious: what is this Indra like, they want to know, and declare in their arrogance that they’ll offer him friendship, make him their herdsman if he comes. Sarama warns them not to defy Indra. But the Panis refuse to release the cattle, declaring they will not give them up without a battle but defend them with their sharp-pointed weapons. Sarama is unmoved by their threats. Indra and the Angiras want these cows, she says, and therefore the Panis will do well to give them up and run as far away as they can—for Indra will come as Brihaspati, and with him will come the Angiras and the Navgvas. The sukta does not tell us what ultimately happened, but from elsewhere in the Rigveda, it is clear that Indra and the priests were successful in their mission to free the cattle and the dawns.

The Vritra myth and the Vala myth are sometimes merged together, so that after Indra slays Vritra, he releases not just the waters, but also the cattle (and sometimes the Sun as well) from the mountain.

OTHER ADVERSARIES

Indra also has many other foes of whom we catch glimpses now and then in various suktas. These include a wild mountain boar called Emusha which he shoots; in some versions of the story he is helped by Vishnu (1.69.7). Other enemies include Namuchi and Shambara, stories about whom are further developed in later tradition.

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INDRA, VRISHAKAPI, AND INDRANI

A brief mention must be made here of the famous Vrishakapi sukta (X.86). This narrates a somewhat risque conversation between Indra, his wife, the goddes Indrani, and a monkey called Vrishakapi. This conversation has been interpreted in various ways. According to R.N. Dandekar, the monkey is identified with Vishnu in the role of a fertility god, and relates to Indra’s efforts to preserve his virility (Dandekar, 1950, p. 22). Brereton and Jamison interpret this as a ‘parodic interpretation’ of the Ashvamedha or Horse Sacrifice (Brereton and Jamison, 2020, p. 161). Still others interpret it as merely a domestic dispute between Indra and Indrani.

This wide variation in interpretation is a classic problem when it comes to the Rigveda. I will not attempt to untangle this, but will be very happy to hear from my readers should they have any further knowledge on this hymn or an interpretation to offer! Do write in via the comments below.

SELECTED SOURCES AND FURTHER READING

Jamison, Stephanie W., and Joel P. Brereton. The Rigveda: The earliest religious poetry of India. 3 vols. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Brereton, Joel P.; and Jamison, Stephanie W. The Rigveda: A Guide. New York: Oxford University Press, 2020.
Dandekar, R. N. “VṚTRAHĀ INDRA.” Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute 31, no. 1/4 (1950): 1–55. http://www.jstor.org/stable/44028390.
Griffiths, Ralph T., trans. The Rig Veda. 1896. As available online at sacred-texts.com. https://sacred-texts.com/hin/rigveda/index.htm.
"Rig Veda. Mandala 1. Sukta 32". 2022. Sri-Aurobindo.Co.In. https://sri-aurobindo.co.in/workings/matherials/rigveda/01/01-032.htm.