saḥ - he (Indra); āvasat - lived; puṣkara-nāla-tantūn - in the network of the fibers of a lotus stem; alabdha-bhogaḥ - not getting any material comfort (practically starving for all material needs); yat - which; iha - here; agni-dūtaḥ - the fire-god messenger; varṣāṇi - celestial years; sāhasram - one thousand; alakṣitaḥ - invisible; antaḥ - within his heart; sañcintayan - always thinking of; brahma-vadhāt - from the killing of a brāhmaṇa; vimokṣam - liberation.

Always thinking of how he could be relieved from the sinful reaction for killing a brāhmaṇa, King Indra, invisible to everyone, lived in the lake for one thousand years in the subtle fibers of the stem of a lotus. The fire-god used to bring him his share of all yajñas, but because the fire-god was afraid to enter the water, Indra was practically starving.