Indra is the warrior god of storm, thunder and rain in the Vedic religion of ancient India and the king of the devas. About a quarter of the hymns of the Rigveda are addressed to him, celebrating his slaying of the serpent Vritra with the thunderbolt (vajra). In later Hinduism his status declined, while he lived on in Buddhism, Jainism and, as a demon, in Zoroastrian texts.
Indra at a glance
| Role | King of the devas; god of storm, rain, thunder and war |
|---|---|
| Earliest sources | Rigveda, about 250 hymns |
| Weapon | Vajra, the thunderbolt |
| Mount | Airavata, a white elephant |
| Consort | Shachi (Indrani) |
| Abode | Amaravati, in the heaven Svarga |
| Other names | Shakra (Sakka in Pali), Vritrahan, Purandara |
Indra in the Rigveda
In the Vedas, the oldest scriptures of India, Indra is the most frequently invoked deity. Around 250 hymns of the Rigveda, roughly a quarter of the collection, are devoted to him, and he appears in many others. He is a vigorous, heroic god: a lover of battle, a generous giver of cattle and wealth, and the champion of the Aryas, the people who composed the hymns.
Indra is a great drinker of soma, the sacred drink pressed in the Vedic sacrifice, which gives him the strength for his deeds. He is accompanied by the storm gods, the Maruts, and is called Purandara, "breaker of forts."
The hymns praise him for freeing the cows hidden in a cave by the Panis, for bringing light and the dawn, and for supporting heaven and earth. He is also a divine king who protects his worshippers in war and rewards generous patrons of the sacrifice. Unlike the moral guardian Varuna, Indra is celebrated above all for strength, courage and exuberant energy. Hymns sometimes show him boasting after drinking soma, a vivid portrait that has made him one of the most characterful figures of Vedic poetry.
The Slaying of Vritra
Indra's central myth is his victory over Vritra, a serpent or dragon who had enclosed the waters. Strengthened by soma and armed with the vajra, the thunderbolt fashioned by the divine craftsman Tvashtri, Indra struck Vritra down and released the waters, which rushed to the sea like lowing cows. The myth has been read as a story of the monsoon rains breaking a drought, of the creation of order from chaos, and of the release of light and life. It earned Indra the title Vritrahan, "slayer of Vritra."
Scholars compare this story with other Indo-European tales of a storm god who kills a serpent, such as Thor and the Midgard serpent. Encyclopaedia Britannica notes parallels between Indra and gods such as Zeus, Jupiter and Odin, although the exact relationships are debated.
Indra in Later Hinduism
In the epics and Puranas, Indra remains king of the gods and ruler of Svarga, the heaven where he lives in the city of Amaravati, riding the white elephant Airavata with his queen Shachi. But he is overshadowed by the great gods Vishnu and Shiva and is often shown as proud, jealous or pleasure-loving. Well-known stories include his seduction of Ahalya, the wife of the sage Gautama, and the tale in which the young Krishna persuades the cowherds of Vraja to stop worshipping Indra; the angry god sends torrential rain, and Krishna lifts Mount Govardhana to shelter them.
In the Mahabharata, the hero Arjuna is Indra's son. Indra also appears as a guardian of the eastern direction, one of the lokapalas. Puranic cosmology presents "Indra" as an office as well as a person: each cosmic age has its own Indra, and a new king of heaven takes the throne when the old one's merit is exhausted.
Shakra in Buddhism and Jainism
Buddhist texts know Indra as Shakra (Pali Sakka), ruler of the Trayastrimsha heaven, the heaven of the thirty-three gods. He is a devout follower and protector of the Buddha, though still a deva subject to rebirth. The image of Indra's net, an endless net with a jewel at each knot reflecting all the others, became a famous symbol of interconnection in East Asian Buddhism. In Jainism, Indra is the king of the heavenly beings who celebrates the great events in the lives of the Tirthankaras.
Indra in Ancient Iran and the Near East
A treaty between the Hittites and the kingdom of Mitanni, from around 1380 BCE, invokes Indra together with Mitra, Varuna and the Nasatyas, one of the earliest external witnesses to Vedic gods. In Iran, by contrast, Indra became a demon. The Zoroastrian Vendidad names Indra among the daevas, the rejected gods opposed to the good creation. Interestingly, the Vedic title vritrahan has a counterpart in the name of the Iranian god of victory, Verethragna, a yazata honored by Zoroastrians.
Indra is still celebrated in festivals such as Indra Jatra in Kathmandu, and in the Erawan elephant imagery of Thailand and Cambodia.
Related entries
Frequently asked questions
Why is Indra less important in modern Hinduism?
In the Vedic period Indra was the leading god of the sacrifice. As Hinduism developed, devotion shifted toward Vishnu, Shiva and the Goddess, and Indra became a subordinate king of heaven, sometimes portrayed with flaws. He is still honored, but rarely as a main object of worship.
What is Indra's weapon?
Indra's weapon is the vajra, a thunderbolt forged by the divine craftsman Tvashtri, with which he killed the serpent Vritra. The vajra later became an important ritual object in Buddhism, especially in Tibetan and Vajrayana traditions, where it symbolizes the indestructible nature of enlightenment.
Why is Indra a demon in Zoroastrianism?
The Zoroastrian Avesta lists Indra among the daevas, gods that Zarathustra's followers rejected as false and harmful. Scholars still debate how this reversal happened, but it reflects the separate religious development of Iranians and Indians from a shared Indo-Iranian heritage.
Sources and further reading
This entry replaces an article from the original Mystica encyclopedia (online since 2001). It was rewritten from the sources above by The Mystica Editorial Team under our editorial standards. Last reviewed: September 30, 2026.