Rig Veda · 176 of 1027
Mandala 1: HYMN CLXXVI. Indra.
1.CHEER thee with draughts to win us bliss: Soma, pierce Indra in thy strength. Thou stormest trembling in thy rage, and findest not a foeman nigh.
2.Make our songs penetrate to him who is the Only One of men; For whom the sacred food is spread, as the steer ploughs the barley in.
3.Within whose hands deposited all the Five Peoples’ treasures rest. Mark thou the man who injures us and kill him like the heavenly bolt.
4.Slay everyone who pours no gift, who, hard to reach, delights thee not. Bestow on us what wealth he hath: this even the worshipper awaits.
5.Thou helpest him the doubly strong whose hymns were sung unceasingly. When Indra fought, O Soma, thou helpest the mighty in the fray.
6.As thou, O Indra, to the ancient singers wast ever joy, like water to the thirsty, So unto thee I sing this invocation. May we find strengthening food in full abundance.
Asked of Guide
Why does the hymn ask Soma to 'pierce Indra in thy strength' rather than praise Indra directly?
The hymn asks Soma to ‘pierce Indra in thy strength’ because it casts Soma as the active medium that awakens Indra’s power; the poet calls Soma to ‘pierce’ so Indra will storm and find no foeman, turning divine energy into martial victory. The ritual speaker relies on Soma’s intoxicating efficacy to make Indra responsive and present, which is how the god becomes the patron of the worshipper’s prosperity and protection.
The poem ties Indra’s favor to ritual reciprocity: Soma rouses Indra to ‘bestow on us what wealth he hath’ and to ‘kill him like the heavenly bolt’ who injures the worshipper. This logic matches what Sayana and later commentators underline in their glosses on the Rigveda: ritual substance enlivens deity, and the deity then secures gifts and victory for the sacrificer.
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