In Hindu mythology, Indra was the king of heaven. There were, of course, many gods and goddesses with their special divine attributes such as love and music and crops and war, but the ruler of them all was Indra.

It happened once upon a time that the world was troubled by a demonic dragon named Vritra. The dragon stole all the waters of the earth, and confined them on top of a mountain. Every well and stream and pond went dry, and as a result of the drought the people of the world suffered terribly from famine and thirst.

Then the prayers and lamentations from the children of the earth rose up to heaven and the gods and goddesses came to their king and said, “Lord Indra, our ears are filled with the sound of suffering. Only you can do battle with Vritra. We beseech you, defeat the dragon.” And Indra agreed that he must act.

To prepare himself for battle, Indra drank a mighty quantity of the ritual drink soma, which gave him incomparable strength. Then, filled with divine fury, mounted on his great white elephant Airavata, Indra stormed up the mountain and with his weapon the thunderbolt, mortally wounded the dragon.

At once, water began to flow down the mountain, restoring life to the world, and all the people rejoiced. And to this day, when the monsoon rains come, or when the rumble of a thunderstorm is heard, people remember the power of Indra, now known as the god of rain.