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Rig Veda · 513 of 1027
Mandala 6: HYMN LXXII. Indra-Soma.
1.GREAT is this might of yours, Indra and Soma: the first high exploits were your own achievements. Ye found the Sun ye found the light of heaven: ye killed all darkness and the Gods’ blasphemers.
2.Ye, Indra-Soma, gave her light to Morning, and led the Sun on high with all his splendour. Ye stayed the heaven with a supporting pillar, and spread abroad apart, the Earth, the Mother.
3.Ye slew the flood -obstructing serpent Vṛtra, Indra and Soma: Heaven approved your exploit. Ye urged to speed the currents of the rivers, and many seas have ye filled full with waters.
4.Ye in the unripe udders of the milch-kine have set the ripe milk, Indra, thou, and Soma. Ye have held fast the unimpeded whiteness within these many-coloured moving creatures.
5.Verily ye bestow, Indra and Soma, wealth, famed, victorious, passing to our children. Ye have invested men, ye Mighty Beings, with manly strength that conquers in the battle.
Asked of Guide
Why do Indra and Soma act together throughout this hymn?
The hymn pairs Indra and Soma as joint agents of cosmic order: they find the Sun, “killed all darkness,” and “slew the flood‑obstructing serpent Vṛtra,” sharing creation and victory. The text treats Soma’s enlivening force and Indra’s heroic deed-working as a single power that stabilizes heaven, fills rivers, and makes milk ready in kine.
This tandem echoes other Rig Veda hymns where Soma is the vital, intoxicating energy and Indra the warrior who channels it; see Mandala 1 hymns where Soma empowers Indra’s slaying of Vṛtra. Together they produce wealth, strength, and the settled world the rishis praise.
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