‘When they harness their chariots for to conquer, implies brilliancy, glory, victory, but it conveys at the same time a tangible meaning. Let us now see whether the same meaning is appropriate in other passages :
I, 23, 11. gdyatam-iva tanyatué maritam eti dhvishauya yat sibham yathdna narah.
The thundering voice of the Maruts comes fiercely, like that of conquerors, when you go to conquer, O men!
Sayama : ‘When you go to the brilliant place of sacrifice.’ Wilson: ‘When you accept the auspicious (offering).’ Benfey: ‘Wenn ihr euren Schmuck nehmt.’
V, 57, 2. yathana sibham, you go to conquer. Cf. V, 55, 1.
Sayama: ‘For the sake of water, or, in a chariot.’
V, 52, 8. sfrdhak mérutam ut samsa—utd sma té subhé ndrad pra syandra# yugata tmana.
Praise the host of the Maruts, whether they, the men, the quickly moving, have by themselves harnessed (the chariots) for conquest.
Sayana: ‘ For the sake of water.’ Cf. X, 105, 3.
V, 57, 3. subhé yat ugrah prfshatiz d4yugdhvam.
When you have harnessed the deer for conquest.
Sayana: ‘For the sake of water.’
III, 26, 4. subhé—pr/shatiz# ayukshata.
They had harnessed the deer for victory.
Sd4yama: ‘They had harnessed in the water the deer together (with the fires).’
When striving with each other they came together, for the sake of glory, the brisk (Maruts), immeasurable (in strength), panting for victory in the fight.
Sayama: ‘For the sake of brilliant wealth.’
VIT, 82, 5. martt-bhiZ ugra# subham any4Z tyate.
The other, the fearful (Indra), goes with the Maruts to glory.
Sayama : ‘ He takes brilliant decoration.’
I, 167, 6. & asthapayanta yuvatim yuvd4nad subhé nimisl4m.
The Maruts, the youths, placed the maid (lightning on their chariot), their companion for victory (subhé nimisl4m).
Sayava: ‘For the sake of water, or, on the brilliant chariot.’ Cf. I, 127, 6; 165, 1.
VI, 62, 4. sibham pr/ksham {sham Urgam vdhanta.
The Asvins bringing glory, wealth, drink, and food.
VIII, 26, 13. subhé £akrate, you bring him to glory.
Subham-yavan is an epithet of the Maruts, I, 89, 7; V, 61,13. Cf. subhra-y4van4, VIII, 26, 19 (Asvinau).
Subham-y4, of the wind, IV, 3, 6.
Subham-yu, of the rays of the dawn, X, 78, 7.
Verse 4,
Note 1. Sayaza: ‘With spotted deer for their horses.’ See I, 37, 2, note 1, page 70; as Pdshan is called agdsva, having goats for his horses, RV. V, 58, 2.
That the Maruts have not only pvishatis, but horses for their chariots, we have seen before. In I, 88, 1, we have asvaparnaih rathebhik.
Sayaza: ‘With spotted deer for their horses.’ See I, 37, 2, note 1, page 70; as Pdshan is called agdsva, having goats for his horses, RV. V, 58, 2.
That the Maruts have not only pvishatis, but horses for their chariots, we have seen before. In I, 88, 1, we have asvaparnaih rathebhik.
Note 2. Ay is a word of very rare occurrence in the Rig-veda. It is the instrum. sing. of the feminine pronominal base 4 or f, and as a pronoun followed by a noun it is frequently to be met with; V, 45,11. aya dhiyd, &c. But in our verse it is irregular in form as not entering into Sandhi with fs4na%. This irregularity, however, which might have led us to suppose an original ayi/, indefatigable, correp. 165sponding with the following asi, is vouched for by the Pada text, in such matters a better authority than the Samhita text, and certainly in this case fully borne out by the Pratisdkhya, I, 163, 10. Unless we read aydA&, we must take aya as an adverb, in the sense of thus or hence; cf. VI, 66, 4. In some passages where ay& seems thus to be used as an adverb, it would be better to supply a noun from the preceding verse. Thus in II, 6, 2, ay& refers to samfdham in II, 6,1. In VI, 17,15, a similar noun, samidha or gira, should be supplied. But there are other passages where, unless we suppose that the verse was meant to illustrate a ceremonial act, such as the placing of a samidh, and that ay& pointed to it, we must take it as a simple adverb, like the Greek rg: RV. III, 12, 2; IX, 53, 2; 106, 14. In X, 116, 9, the Pada reads ayaA-iva, not dy4, as given by Roth; in VI, 66, 4, aya nu, the accent is likewise on the first.
Note 3. Riva-yévan is well explained by B. and R. as going after debt, searching out sin. Sdyaza, though he explains viza-yavan by removing sin, derives it nevertheless correctly from vima and ya, and not from yu. The same formation is found in subham-yavan, &c.; and as there is rina-y& besides rixa-ydvan, so we find subham-yé besides subham-yavan. Ludwig prefers the derivation from yu.
Verse 5.
Note 1. The Soma-juice inspires the poet with eloquence.
Note 2. Sdmi occurs again in IT, 31,6; ITI, 55,3; VIII, 45, 27; X, 40, 1. Grassmann has shown that it may be taken as an instrum. of smi, meaning work, but with special reference to the toil of the battle-field or the sacrifice. It is used in the former sense in
VIII, 45, 27. vi Anaz turvdze sami.
He (Indra) was able to overcome, lit. he reached to, or he arrived at the overcoming or at victory by toil.
But, like other words which have the general meaning of working or toiling, sami is used both in a general sense, and in the more special sense of sacrifice.
X, 40, 1. vasto4-vastok# vahamanam dhiyé sami.
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Your chariot, O Asvins, driven along every morning by thought and deed.
II, 31, 6. apim napat asu-hém4 dhiya sami.
Apam napat (Agni) moving quickly by thought and deed.
X, 40, 1. vasto4-vastok# vahamanam dhiyé sami.
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Your chariot, O Asvins, driven along every morning by thought and deed.
II, 31, 6. apim napat asu-hém4 dhiya sami.
Apam napat (Agni) moving quickly by thought and deed.
In these two passages it might be possible, with a slight alteration of the accent, to read dhiyda-sdmi as one word. Dhiy4-s4m would mean the sacrificer who is engaged in prayer ; cf. dhiya-gur, V, 43,15. Thus we read:
VI, 2, 4. yah te su-dfnave dhiy& marta’ sasdmate.
The mortal who toils for thee, the liberal god, with prayer.
There is no necessity, however, for such a change, and the authority of the MSS. is against it. See also IX, 74,7.
In III, 55, 3, sami dkéha didye pdrvy&zi, Roth takes sami as an acc. plur. neut., Lanman as an instrum., Grassmann as a locative.
I glance back at the former sacrifices. See B.R. sv. di and sami.
In other passages the feminine sami seems to mean work, sacrificial work, but, as far as we can see, not simply sacrifice. Thus the Azbhus and others are said to have acquired immortality by their work or works, s4mf or samibhif, I, 20, 2; 110, 4; III, 60, 3; IV, 33, 4. Cf IV, 22, 8; 17,18; V, 42,10; 77,4; VI, 52,1; VIII, 75, 143 IX, 74,7; X, 28,12. In VI, 3, 2, we read:
igé yagnébhik sasamé samibhiz.
I have sacrificed with sacrifices, I have worked with pious works.
Here the verb sam must be taken in the sense of working, or performing ceremonial worship, while in other places (III, 29,16; V, 2, 7) it may be perhaps taken in the more special sense of singing songs of praise. The Greek xdy.-vw, to work, to labour, to tire (Sanskrit sAmyati), the Greek xoyuid7j and xopi(w, to labour for or take care of a person, and possibly even the Greek xaos, a song or a festival (not a village song), may all find their explanation in the Sanskrit root sam.
The idea that the Maruts did not originally enjoy divinep. 167 honours will occur again and again: cf. I, 6, 4; 72, 3. A similar expression is used of the Ribhus, I, 20, 8, &c. But while originally the expression of obtaining sacred names meant no more than obtaining a sacred or divine character, it was soon taken literally, and a number of names were invented for the Maruts which even in the V4gasan. Samhita XVII, 80-85 amount to 49, i.e. 7x7. Yagiilya, properly ‘worthy of sacrifice,’ has the meaning of divine or sacred. The Greek &yos has been compared with y4gya, sacrificio colendus, which is not a Vedic word.
Verse 6.
Note 1. Sriyase kim seems to be the same as the more frequent sriyé kam. Sriydse only occurs twice more, V, 59, 3. The chief irregularity consists in the absence of Guaa, which is provided for by Pazini’s kasen (III, 4, 9). Similar infinitives, if they may so be called, are bhiydse, V, 29, 4; vridhase, V, 64, 5; dhruvdse, VII, 70, 1; tugdse, IV, 23, 7; ringase, VIII, 4,17; vritigdse, VIII, 76,1; rikdse, VII, 61, 6. In VI, 39, 5, rtkdse may be a dat. sing. of the masculine, to the praiser.
Similar infinitives, if they may so be called, are bhiydse, V, 29, 4; vridhase, V, 64, 5; dhruvdse, VII, 70, 1; tugdse, IV, 23, 7; ringase, VIII, 4,17; vritigdse, VIII, 76,1; rikdse, VII, 61, 6. In VI, 39, 5, rtkdse may be a dat. sing. of the masculine, to the praiser.
Note 2. Mimikshire from myaksh, to be united with. Rasmi, rays, after bh4nu, splendour, may seem weak. It might be possible to assign to rasm{ the meaning of reins, and take vikvabhir in the sense of sounding or tinkling. In V, 79, 8, aréf is used in juxtaposition with rasmi.
Note 3. The bearing of this concluding verse is not quite clear, unless we take it as a continuation of the preceding verse. It was there said that the Maruts (the rékvanah) obtained their holy names after having joined Indra in his work, which means that they then and there became what they are. Having thus obtained their true character and a place among the gods, they may be said to have won at the same time splendour, and worshippers to sing their praises, and to have established themselves in what became afterwards known as their own domain, their own place among the gods who are invoked at the sacrifice. See VII, 58, 1.
The metre requires that we should read dhamanad.
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BENFEY translates: Gedeih’n zu spenden woll’n die schéngeschmiicketen mit Lichtern, Strahlen mit Lobsingern regenen ; die briillenden, furchtlosen, stiirmischen, sie sind bekannt als Glieder des geliebten Marutstamms.
WILSON: Combining with the solar rays, they have willingly poured down (rain) for the welfare (of mankind), and, hymned by the priests, have been pleased partakers of the (sacrificial food). Addressed with praises, moving swiftly, and exempt from fear, they have become possessed of a station agreeable and suitable to the Maruts.
LupDwWIG: Zu herlichkeit haben dise sich mit liechtglanz versehen, mit sausenden ziigeln die schénberingten, schwertbewaffnet die kraftvollen, ohne furcht besitzen sie die freundliche Marutmacht.
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MANDALA I, HYMN 88. ASH7AKA I, ADHYAYVA 6, VARGA 14.
To THE Maruts (THE STORM-GODS).
1. Come hither, Maruts, on your chariots charged with lightning, resounding with beautiful songs’, stored with spears, and winged with horses! Fly* to us like birds, with your best food’, you mighty ones!
2. They come gloriously on their red, or, it may be, on their tawny horses which hasten their chariots. He who holds the axe? is brilliant like gold ;— with the tire? of the chariot they have struck the earth.
3. On your bodies there are daggers for beauty ; may they stir up our minds! as they stir up the
- forests. For yourselves, O well-born Maruts, the vigorous (among you) shake? the stone (for distilling Soma).
4. Days went round you and came back?, O hawks, back to this prayer, and to this sacred rite; the Gotamas making prayer with songs, pushed up the lid of the well (the cloud) for to drink.
For yourselves, O well-born Maruts, the vigorous (among you) shake? the stone (for distilling Soma).
4. Days went round you and came back?, O hawks, back to this prayer, and to this sacred rite; the Gotamas making prayer with songs, pushed up the lid of the well (the cloud) for to drink.
5. No such hymn? was ever known as this which Gotama sounded for you, O Maruts, when he saw you on golden wheels, wild boars? rushing about with iron tusks.
6. This comforting speech rushes sounding towards you, like the speech of a suppliant: it rushed freely from our hands as our speeches are wont to do.
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NOTES.
This hymn is ascribed to Gotama, the son of Rahigaza. The metre varies. Verses 1 and 6 are put down as Prastara-pankti, i.e.as 12+12+8+4+8, By merely counting the syllables, and dissolving semivowels, it is just possible to get twenty-four syllables in the first line of verses 1 and 6. The old metricians must have scanned verse 1:
4 vidyunmat-bhiZ maruta# su-arkaik rathebhid ydta~rishdimat-bhik asva-parnaih. Again verse 6: eshd syd vak marutad anu-bhartrt prati stobhati vaghatad na vAmi. But the general character of these lines shows that they were intended for hendecasyllabics, each ending in a bacchius, though even then they are not free from irregularities. The first verse would scan: 4 vidyunmat-bhif marutas su-arkaiz rathebhié yAta~vishéimat-(bhiZ) asva-parnaih. And verse 6: eshd sy vak marutak~anu-bhartrt prati stobhati vaghatak na vani. Our only difficulty would be the termination bhiz of rzshéimat-bhiZ. I cannot adopt Professor Kuhn’s suggestion to drop the Visarga of bhi# and change i into y (Beitrage, vol. iv, p. 198), for this would be a license without any parallel. It is different with sat, originally sa, or with feminines in i#, where parallel forms in { are intelligible. The simplest correction would be to read rathebhi£ yata~vishfi-mantah~asva-parnaih. One might urge in support of this reading that in all other passages where rishfimat occurs, it refers to the Maruts themselves, and never to their chariots. Yet the difficulty remains, how
could so simple a reading have been replaced by a more difficult one?
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In the two Gayatri p4das which follow I feel equally reluctant to alter. I therefore scan
A varshishzAayA nak isha vayah na paptata su-m4y4s, taking the dactyl of paptata as representing a spondee, and admitting the exceptional bacchius instead of the amphimacer at the end of the line.
The last line of verse 6 should be scanned :
astobhayat vritha~Asim anu svadhdm gabhastyoA.
The last line of verse 6 should be scanned :
astobhayat vritha~Asim anu svadhdm gabhastyoA.
There are two other verses in this hymn where the metre is difficult. In the last pada of verse 5 we have seven syllables instead of eleven. Again, I say, it would be most easy to insert one of the many tetrasyllabic epithets of the Maruts. But this would have been equally easy for the collectors of the Veda. Now the authors of the Anukramanis distinctly state that this fifth verse is viradrdpé, i.e. that one of its pAdas consists of eight syllables. How they would have made eight syllables out of vi-dhavatas varahdin does not appear, but at all events they knew that last pada to be imperfect. The rhythm does not suffer by this omission, as long as we scan vi-dh4vatah varahin.
Lastly, there is the third p&da of the second verse, rukmaé na fitrak svadhiti-van. It would not be possible to get eleven syllables out of this, unless we admitted vydha not only in svadhitivan or svadhiti-vAn, but also in kitrah. Kuhn (Beitrage, vol. iv, p. 192) proposes to scan rukmaii na Aitarak svadhitivan. Nothing would be easier than to insert esham after Aitrak, but the question occurs again, how could esh4ém be lost, or why, if by some accident it had been lost, was not so obvious a correction made by Saunaka and Katyayana ?
No verse of this hymn occurs in SV., VS., AV., TS., TB.
Verse L
Note 1. Alluding to the music of the Maruts, and not to the splendour of the lightning which is mentioned before. See Wolf, Beitrage zur Deutschen Mythologie, vol. ii, p- 137. ‘Das Ross und den Wagen des Gottes begleitet munterer Hornerschall, entweder stésst er selbst ins Horn,p. 172 oder sein Gefolge. Oft vernimmt man auch eine liebliche Musik, der keine auf Erden gleich kommt (Miillenhof, 582). Das wird das Pfeifen und Heulen des Sturmes sein, nur in idealisirter Art.’ Ibid. p. 158.
Note 2. Varshish/ha, which is generally explained as the superlative of vriddha, old (Paz. VI, 4, 157), has in most passages of the Rig-veda the more general meaning of strong or excellent: VI, 47, 9. {sham & vakshi ish&m varshish¢ham ; III, 13, 7 (vdsu); III, 26, 8 (ratna); III, 16, 3 (raf); IV, 31,15; VIII, 46, 24 (sravak); IV, 22, 9 (nrimma) ; V, 67, 1 (kshatrd); VI, 45, 31 (mdrdhdn). In some passages, however, it may be taken in the sense of oldest (I, 37,6; V, 7,1), though by no means necessarily. Varshish¢ha is derived in reality from vréshan, in the sense of strong, excellent. See note to I, 85, 12, page 144.
Note 3. Paptata, the second person plural of the imperative of what is commonly, though without much reason, called the aorist of the causative of pat. It is curiously like the Greek ainrere, but it has the meaning of flying rather than falling ; see Curtius, Grundziige, p. 190. Two other forms formed on the same principle occur in the Rigveda, papta# and paptan :
II, 31, 1. pra yat vayak na pdptan.
That they may fly to us like birds.
VI, 63, 6. pra vam vayak—anu paptan.
190. Two other forms formed on the same principle occur in the Rigveda, papta# and paptan :
II, 31, 1. pra yat vayak na pdptan.
That they may fly to us like birds.
VI, 63, 6. pra vam vayak—anu paptan.
May your birds fly after you.
X, 95,15. purdravak ma mrithaé mf pra paptak.
Puriravas, do not die, do not go away!
Verse 2.
Note 1. Though svadhiti-van does not occur again, it can only mean he who holds the axe, or, it may be, the sword or the thunderbolt, the latter particularly, if Indra is here intended. Svadhiti signifies axe:
III, 2, 10. sva-dhitim nd tégase.
They adorned Agni like an axe to shine or to cut.
The svddhiti is used by the butcher, I, 162,9; 18; 20; and by the wood-cutter or carpenter, III, 8,6; 11; X, 89, 7, &c. Roth (s.v.) takes svadhiti as meaning also a tree,
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possibly the oak, and he translates svadhitivan in our passage by a chariot made of the wood of the Svadhiti tree. In RV. IX, 96, 6, svadhitir vandnam may well mean ‘the strong axe among woods,’ the axe being naturally made of the strongest wood. In V, 32, 10, a devi svddhitiz is mentioned, possibly the lightning, the companion of Indra and the Maruts.
Note 2. The tire of the chariot of the Maruts is frequently mentioned. It was considered not only as an essential part of their chariot, but likewise as useful for crushing the enemy :
They cut the mountain (cloud) with the tire of their chariots.
I, 166, 10. pavishu kshur&% ddhi.
On their tires are sharp edges.
In V, 31, 5, tires are mentioned without horses and chariot, which were turned by Indra against the Dasyus (I, 64, 11). I doubt, however, whether in India or elsewhere the tires or the wheels of chariots were ever used as weapons of attack, as detached from the chariot ; (see M.M., On Pavirava, in Beitrage zur Vergleichenden Sprachforschung, vol. iii, p. 447.) If we translate the figurative language of the Vedic poets into matter-of-fact terms, the tires of the chariots of the Maruts may be rendered by thunderbolts; yet by the poets of the Veda, as by the ancient people of Germany, thunder was really supposed to be the noise of the chariot of a god, and it was but a continuation of the same belief that the sharp wheels of that chariot were supposed to cut and crush the clouds; (see M. M., loc. cit., p. 444.)
Verse 3.
Note 1. That the vasis are small weapons, knives of daggers, we saw before, p. 71. Sayama here explains vast by a weapon commonly called 4ra, or an awl. In X, 101, 10, v&sis are mentioned, made of stone, asman-méayi.
The difficulty begins with the second half. Medhé, as here written in the Pada text, could only be a plural of
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71. Sayama here explains vast by a weapon commonly called 4ra, or an awl. In X, 101, 10, v&sis are mentioned, made of stone, asman-méayi.
The difficulty begins with the second half. Medhé, as here written in the Pada text, could only be a plural ofp. 174 a neuter medhda, but such a neuter does nowhere exist in the Veda. We only find the masculine médha, sacrifice, which is out of the question here, on account of its accent. Hence the passage III, 58, 2, drdhv&% bhavanti pitdra-iva médha&, is of no assistance, unless we alter the accent. The feminine medh& means will, thought, prayer: I, 18, 6; II, 34, 73 IV, 33, 103 V, 27,43; 42,13; VII, 104, 6; VIII, 6, 10; 52,9; IX, 9, 9; 26, 3; 32,6; 65, 16; 107, 25; X, 91, 8. The construction does not allow us to take medh& as a Vedic instrumental instead of medhdyA, nor does such a form occur anywhere else in the Rig-veda. Nothing remains, I believe, but to have recourse to conjecture, and the addition of a single Visarga in the Pada would remove all difficulty. In the next line, if tuvi-dyumnasak be the subject, it would signify the priests. This, however, is again without any warrant from the Rig-veda, where tuvi-dyumna is always used as an epithet of gods. I therefore take it as referring to the Maruts, as an adjective in the nominative, following the vocatives marutah su-gaté#. The conception that the Maruts stir up the forests is not of unfrequent occurrence in the Rig-veda: cf. 1,171, 3. That Ordhva is used of the mind, in the sense of roused, may be seen in I, 119, 23 134,13 144,13 VII, 64, 4. The idea in the poet’s mind seems to have been that the thunderbolts of the Maruts rouse up men to prayer as they stir the tops of the forest trees, Ludwig takes medha, masc., in the sense of lance, comparing it with Icelandic meidhr, but the two words cannot well be the same. Possibly vana may be meant for lances: ‘May they raise our minds, like lances ;’ see note to I, 171, 3.
Note 2. On dhan in the sense of to agitate, see B. and R.s.v. The shaking of the stone may be the shaking of the stone for distilling the heavenly Soma or the rain; but adri may also be meant for the thunderbolt. I now take tuvidyumna for an adjective referring to the Maruts, because it is a divine rather than a human epithet. Still, the passage is doubtful.
Verse 4.
Note 1. The first question is, which is the subject, ahani
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I now take tuvidyumna for an adjective referring to the Maruts, because it is a divine rather than a human epithet. Still, the passage is doubtful.
Verse 4.
Note 1. The first question is, which is the subject, ahanip. 175 or grfdhrahk? If grfdhrak were the subject, then we should have to translate it by the eager poets, and take dhAni in the sense of visva ahani. The sense then might be: ‘ Day by day did the eager poets sing around you this prayer.’ There would be several objections, however, to this rendering. First, gv/dhr4#, though metaphorically applicable to poets, never occurs again as signifying poets or priests. One passage only could be quoted in support, IX, 97, 57, kavdyak nd grfdhrahk (not gridhr&h), like greedy poets. But even here, if indeed the translation is right, the adjective is explained by kavi, and does not stand by itself. Secondly, 4h4ni by itself is never used adverbially in the sense of day after day. The only similar passage that might be quoted is IIT, 34, 10, and that is very doubtful. To take dhani as a totally different word, viz. as 4+h4ni, without ceasing, without wearying, would be too bold in the present state of Vedic interpretation. If then we take dh4ni as the subject, gv/dhraZ would have to be taken as a vocative, and intended for the Maruts. Now, it is perfectly true, that by itself grédhra, hawk, does not occur again as a name of the Maruts, but syend, hawk, and particularly a strong hawk (IX, 96, 6), is not only a common simile applied to the Maruts, but is actually used as one of their names:
They plucked each other with their beaks (?), the hawks, rushing like the wind, strove together.
Agus might be the aorist of gai, to sing, or of gA, to go:
I, 174, 8. sdn4 té te indra ndvy4h & aguh.
New poets, O Indra, sang these thy old deeds.
ITI, 56, 2. gévak & aguh.
The cows approached.
If then the sense of the first line is, ‘Days went and came back to you,’ the next question is whether we are to extend the construction to the next words, im&m dhfyam varkéryam a devim, or whether these words are to be joined to krinvdntak, like br{hma. The meaning of
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If then the sense of the first line is, ‘Days went and came back to you,’ the next question is whether we are to extend the construction to the next words, im&m dhfyam varkéryam a devim, or whether these words are to be joined to krinvdntak, like br{hma. The meaning ofp. 176 varkary& is, of course, unknown. SAyama’s interpretation as ‘what is to be made by means of water’ is merely etymological, and does not help us much. It is true that the object of the hymn, which is addressed to the Maruts, is rain, and that literally varkaryd might be explained as ‘that the effect of which is rain. But this is far too artificial a word for Vedic poets. Possibly there was some other word that had become unintelligible and which, by a slight change, was turned into varkarya, in order to give the meaning of rain-producing. It might have been darkArya, glorious, or the song of a poet called Varkara, or, as Ludwig suggests, Vrzkari. The most likely supposition is that varkary# was the name given to some famous hymn, some pzan or song of triumph belonging to the Gotamas, possibly to some verses of the very hymn before us. In this case the epithet devi would be quite appropriate, for it is frequently used for a sacred or sacrificial song: IV, 43, 1, devim su-stutim ; III, 18, 3. im&m dhfyam sata-s¢éy4ya devim. See, however, the note to verse 6.
The purport of the whole line would then be that many days have gone for the Maruts as well as for the famous hymn once addressed to them by Gotama, or, in other words, that the Gotamas have long been devoted to the Maruts, an idea frequently recurring in the hymns of the Veda, and, in our case, carried on in the next verse, where it is said that the present hymn is like one that Gotama composed when he saw the Maruts or spoke of them as wild boars with iron tusks. The pushing up the lid of the well for to drink, means that they obtained rain from the cloud, which is here, as before, represented as a covered well.
See another explanation in Haug, Uber die urspriingliche Bedeutung des Wortes Brahma, 1868, p. 5.
Verse 5. Note 1. Ydgana commonly means a chariot : VI, 62, 6. arezu-bhiz ydganebhif bhuganta. You who possess dustless chariots. VIII, 72, 6. dsva-vat yoganam brhat.
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The great chariot with horses.
It then became the name for a distance to be accomplished without unharnessing the horses, just as the Latin jugum, a yoke, then a juger of land, ‘quod uno jugo boum uno die exarari posset,’ Pliny XVIII, 3, 3, 9.
In our passage, however, yégana means a hymn, lit. a composition, which is clearly its meaning in
VIII, 90, 3. brahma te indra girvazah kriydnte dnatidbhutaé, im& gushasva hari-asva ydgan4 {indra ya te amanmahi.
Unequalled prayers are made for thee, praiseworthy Indra; accept these hymns which we have devised for thee, O Indra with bright horses !
brahma te indra girvazah kriydnte dnatidbhutaé, im& gushasva hari-asva ydgan4 {indra ya te amanmahi.
Unequalled prayers are made for thee, praiseworthy Indra; accept these hymns which we have devised for thee, O Indra with bright horses !
Note 2. Var&hu has here the same meaning as vardhd, wild boar (VIII, 77, 10; X, 28,4). It occurs once more, I, 121, 11, as applied to Vvitra, who is also called var4hd, I, 61, 7; X, 99, 6. In X, 67, 7, vrésha-bhi# var&haixz (with the accent on the penultimate) is intended for the Maruts*. Except in this passage, varaha has the accent on the last syllable. In IX, 97, 7, varaha is applied to Soma.
Verse 6.
This last verse is almost unintelligible to me. I give, however, the various attempts that have been made to explain it.
WILSON : This is that praise, Maruts, which, suited (to your merits), glorifies every one of you. The speech of the priest has now glorified you, without difficulty, with sacred verses, since (you have placed) food in our hands.
BENFEY: Dies Lied—Maruts!—das hinter euch emporstrebt, es klingt zuriick gleich eines Beters Stimme. Miihlos schuf solche Lieder er, entsprechend eurer Arme Kraft. (Note: Der zum Himmel schallende Lobgesang findet seinen Widerhall (wirklich, ‘bebt zuriick’) in dem Sturma See Genthe, Die Windgottheiten, 1861, p.14 ; Grimm, Deutsche Mythologie, p. 689. Grimm mentions eburSrung (boar-throng) as a name of Orion, the star that betokens storm.
[32] Np. 178 geheul der Maruts, welches mit dem Geheul des Betenden verglichen wird.)
Lupwic: Dises lied, o Marut, euch unterstiitzend (aufnemend) als eines priesters braust euch entgegen, nachbrausen hat es gemacht ohne miihe in (die) der nahe die gottliche weise (ihrer) arme.
My own translation is to a great extent conjectural. It seems to me from verse 3, that the poet offers both a hymn of praise and a libation of Soma. Possibly varkarya in verse 4 might be taken in the sense of Soma-juice, and be derived from valkala, which in later Sanskrit means the bark of trees. In that case verse 5 would again refer to the hymn of Gotama, and verse 6 to the libation which is to accompany it. Anu-bhartri does not occur again, but it can only mean what supports or refreshes, and therefore would be applicable to a libation of Soma which supports the gods. The verb stobhati would well express the rushing sound of the Soma, as in I, 168, 8, it expresses the rushing noise of the waters against the fellies of the chariots. The next line adds little beyond stating that this libation of Soma rushes forth freely from the hands, the gabhastis being specially mentioned in other passages where the crushing of the Soma-plant is described :
IX, 71, 3. ddri-bhiz sutds pavate gabhastyok.
The Soma squeezed by the stones runs from the hands.
ddri-bhiz sutds pavate gabhastyok.
The Soma squeezed by the stones runs from the hands.
The translation would then be: O Maruts, this comforting draught (of Soma) rushes towards you, like the speech of a suppliant; it rushed freely from our hands, as our draughts (of Soma) are wont to do.
On svadhi, see p. 32.
p. 179
MANDALA I, HYMN 165. ASHTAKA II, ADHYAYA 8, VARGA 24-26.
To THE Maruts AND INpDRA.
The Prologue.
The sacrificer speaks :
1. To what splendour do the Maruts all equally? cling?, they who are of the same age, and dwell in the same nest? With what thoughts ?—from whence are they come*?- Do these heroes sing forth their (own) strength *, wishing for wealth ?
2. Whose prayers have the youths accepted ? Who has turned the Maruts to his own sacrifice ? By what strong desire’ may we arrest them, they who float through the air like hawks ?
The Dialogue.
The Maruts speak :
3. From whence}, O Indra, dost thou come alone, thou who art mighty? O lord of men®, what has thus happened to thee? Thou greetest (us) * when thou comest together with (us), the bright (Maruts)*. Tell us then, thou with thy bay horses, what thou hast against us!
Indra speaks :
4. The sacred songs are mine, (mine are) the prayers'; sweet* are the libations! My strength rises*, my thunderbolt is hurled forth. They call for me, the hymns yearn for me. Here are my horses, they carry me hither.
The Maruts speak :
5- From thence, in company with our strong N 2
p. 180
friends!, having adorned our bodies, we now harness our fallow deer? with all our might *;—for, Indra, according to custom, thou hast come to be with us.
Indra speaks :
6. Where, O Maruts, was that custom with you, when you left me alone in the killing of Ahi? I indeed am terrible, powerful, strong,—I escaped from the blows of every enemy’.
The Maruts speak :
7. Thou hast achieved much with us as companions', With equal valour, O hero! let us achieve then many things, O thou most powerful, O Indra! whatever we, O Maruts, wish with our mind %,
Indra speaks :
8. I slew Vrztra, O Maruts, with (Indra’s) might, having grown powerful through my own vigour; I, who hold the thunderbolt in my arms, have made these all-brilliant waters to flow freely for man’.
The Maruts speak :
9. Nothing, O mighty lord, is strong! before thee ; no one is known among the gods? like unto thee. No one who is now born ® comes near, no one who has been born. Do what thou wilt do‘, thou who art grown so strong.
Indra speaks :
10. Almighty strength be mine alone, whatever I may do, daring in my heart?; for I indeed, O Maruts, am known as terrible: of all that I threw down, I, Indra, am the lord.
Indra speaks :
11, O Maruts, now your praise has pleased me, the glorious hymn which you have made for me, yep. 181 men !—for me, for Indra, for the joyful hero, as friends for a friend, for your own sake, and by your own efforts 1.
Indra speaks :
Indra speaks :
11, O Maruts, now your praise has pleased me, the glorious hymn which you have made for me, yep. 181 men !—for me, for Indra, for the joyful hero, as friends for a friend, for your own sake, and by your own efforts 1.
Indra speaks :
12. Truly, there they are, shining towards me, bringing blameless glory, bringing food. O Maruts, wherever I have looked for you, you have appeared to me in bright splendour: appear to me also now!
The Epilogue.
The sacrificer speaks :
13. Who has magnified you here, O Maruts? Come hither, O friends, towards your friends. Ye brilliant Maruts, welcoming?! these prayers, be mindful? of these my rites.
14. The wisdom of M4nya has brought us hither, that he should help as the poet helps the performer of a sacrifice': turn hither quickly?! Maruts, on to the sage! the singer has recited these prayers for you.
15. May this your praise, O Maruts, this song of Mandarya, the son of Mana’, the poet, bring offspring ? for ourselves with food. May we have an invigorating autumn, with quickening rain
p. 182
NOTES.
A critical examination of Professor von Roth’s remarks on this hymn, together with some supplementary notes of my own, will be found in the Preface to this volume.
According to the Anukramamika this hymn is a dialogue between Agastya, the Maruts, and Indra. A careful consideration of the hymn would probably have led us to a similar conclusion, but I doubt whether it would have led us to adopt the same distribution of the verses among the poet, the Maruts, and Indra, as that adopted by the author of the Anukramazika4. He assigns the first two verses to Indra, the third, fifth, seventh, and ninth to the Maruts, the fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth to Indra, and the three concluding verses to Agastya. I think that the two verses in the beginning, as well as the three concluding verses, belong certainly to Agastya or to whoever else the real performer of the sacrifice may have been. The two verses in the beginning cannot be ascribed to Indra, who, to judge from his language, would never say: ‘By what strong desire may we arrest the Maruts?’ It might seem, in fact, as if the three following verses too should be ascribed to the sacrificer, so that the dialogue between Indra and the Maruts would begin only with the sixth verse. The third verse might well be addressed to Indra by the sacrificer, and in the fourth verse we might see a description of all that he had done for Indra. What is against this view, however, is the phrase prébhritaZ me adriz. If used by the sacrificer, it might seem to mean, ‘my stone, i.e. the stone used for squeezing the Soma, has been brought forth.’ But though Professor Roth assigns this meaning to prdbhvita in our passage, I doubt whether, in connection with ddri, or with vagra, prabhvita can mean anything but hurled. Thus we read :
I, 61,12. asmaf {t Om ({ti) pra bhara—vritraya vagram.
Thus we read :
I, 61,12. asmaf {t Om ({ti) pra bhara—vritraya vagram.
Hurl thou, Indra, the thunderbolt against this Vritra.
V, 32, 7- yat im vagrasya prd-bhritau dadabha.
When Indra conquered him in the hurling of the thunderbolt.
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I therefore suppose the dialogue to begin with verse 3, and I find that Langlois, though it may be from different reasons, arrived at the same conclusion.
There can be little doubt that the other verses, to verse 12, are rightly apportioned between Indra and the Maruts. Verse 12 might perhaps be attributed again to the worshipper of the Maruts, but as there is no absolute necessity for assigning it to him, it is better to follow the tradition and to take it as the last verse of Indra’s speech. It would seem, in fact, as if these ten verses, from 3 to 12, formed an independent poem, which was intended to show the divine power of the Maruts. That their divine power was sometimes denied, and that Indra’s occasional contempt of them was well known to the Vedic poets, will become evident from other hymns. This dialogue seems therefore to have been distinctly intended to show that, in spite of occasional misunderstandings between the Maruts and the all-powerful Indra, Indra himself had fully recognised their power and accepted their friendship. If we suppose that this dialogue was repeated at sacrifices in honour of the Maruts, or that possibly it was acted by two parties, one representing Indra, the other the Maruts and their followers, then the two verses in the beginning and the three at the end ought to be placed in the mouth of the actual sacrificer, whoever he was. He begins by asking, Who has attracted the Maruts to his sacrifice, and by what act of praise and worship can they be delighted? Then follows the dialogue in honour of the Maruts, and after it the sacrificer asks again, ‘Who has magnified the Maruts, i.e. have not we magnified them?’ and he implores them to grant him their friendship in recognition of his acts of worship. If then we suppose that the dialogue was the work of MAndarya Manya, the fourteenth verse, too, would lose something of its obscurity. Coming from the mouth of the actual sacrificer, it would mean, ‘the wisdom, or the poetical power, of Manya has brought us to this, has induced us to do this, i.e. to perform this dialogue of Manya, so that he, MAnya, should assist, as a poet assists the priest at a sacrifice.’ Of course all this is and can only be guess-work.
p. 184
to perform this dialogue of Manya, so that he, MAnya, should assist, as a poet assists the priest at a sacrifice.’ Of course all this is and can only be guess-work.
p. 184
We do not know the age of M4nya nor that of Agastya. We do not know whether they were contemporaries or not. But supposing that Manya was present at the sacrifice, vipra might be meant for Manya; and in the last words, too, ‘the singer has recited these prayers for you,’ the singer (garitd) might again be Manya, the powerful poet whose services the sacrificer had engaged, and whose famous dialogue between Indra and the Maruts was considered a safe means of winning their favour. It would be in keeping with all this, if in the last verse the sacrificer once more informed the Maruts that this hymn of praise was the work of the famous poet Mandarya, the son of MAna, and if he then concluded with the usual prayer for safety, food, and progeny.
No verse of this hymn occurs in the Sama-veda ; verse 3= VS. XXXIII, 27; verse 4=VS. XXXIII, 78; verse 6=TB. II, 8, 3, 5; verse 8= TB. II, 8, 3,6; verseg=VS.XXXIII,79.
Verse 1.
Note 1. As samani occurs in the Veda as the feminine of samana (cf. IV, 51, 9; X, 191, 3; 4), samanya might, no doubt, be taken as an instrumental, belonging to subh&. We should then have to translate: ‘With what equal splendour are the Maruts endowed?’ SAyaza adopts the same explanation, while Wilson, who seems to have read samany§44, translates ‘of one dignity.’ Professor Roth, s.v. myaksh, would seem to take sam4nyd& as some kind of substantive, and he refers to another passage, I, 167, 4, sAdharamya-iva maritak mimikshué, without, however, detailing his interpretation of these passages.
It cannot be said that Sayama’s explanation is objectionable, yet there is something awkward in qualifying by an adjective, however indefinite, what forms the subject of an interrogative sentence, and it would be possible to avoid this, by taking samAnyé as an adverb. It is clearly used as an adverb in ITI, 54, 7; VIII, 83, 8.
Note 2. Mimikshu% is the perfect of myaksh, in the sense of to be firmly joined with something. It has therefore a more definite meaning than the Latin miscere and the Greek ployew, which come from the same source, i.e.
p. 185
from a root mik or mig, in Sanskrit also mis in mis-ra; (see Curtius, Grundziige, p. 300.) There may be indeed one or two passages in the Veda where myaksh seems to have the simple meaning of mixing, but it will be seen that they constitute a small minority compared with those where myaksh has the meaning of holding to, sticking to ; I mean
X, 104, 2. mimikshid# yam dadraya& indra tubhyam.
The Soma which the stones have mixed for thee.
mimikshid# yam dadraya& indra tubhyam.
The Soma which the stones have mixed for thee.
This form cannot be derived from mimiksh, but is the 3rd pers. plur. perf. Parasm. of myaksh. It may, however, be translated, ‘This Soma which the stones have grasped or squeezed for thee,’ as may be seen from passages quoted hereafter, in which myaksh is construed with an accusative.
II, 3,11. ghvztam mimikshe.
The butter has been mixed.
This form cannot be derived from mimiksh, but is the 3rd pers. sing. perf. Atm. of myaksh. If the meaning of mixing should be considered inadmissible, we might in this verse also translate, ‘The butter has become fixed, solid, or coagulated.’
Leaving out of consideration for the present the forms which are derived from mimiksh, we find the following passages in which myaksh occurs. Its original meaning must have been to be mixed with, to be joined to, and in many passages that original sense is still to be recognised, only with the additional idea of being firmly joined, of sticking to, or, in an active sense, laying hold of, grasping firmly.
1, Without any case:
I, 169, 3. 4myak s& te indra risht{h asmé (Iti).
This thy spear, O Indra, sat firm for us.
This would mean that Indra held his weapon well, as a soldier ought to hold his spear. Amyak is the 3rd pers. sing. of a second aor. Parasm., Amyaksham, amyak(sh + t) ; (Say. prapnoti.) Cf. VIII, 61, 18.
2. With locative: X, 44, 2. mimydksha vagrak nri-pate gabhdstau. In thy fist, O king, the thunderbolt rests firmly.
p. 186
I, 167, 3. mimydksha yéshu si-dhita—vishd.
To whom clings the well-grasped spear.
VI, 50, 5. mimydksha yéshu rodasi nu devi.
To whom the goddess Rodasi clings. (Say. samgakkhate.)
VI, 11, 5. Amyakshi s4dma sddane prithivyah.
The seat was firmly set on the seat of the earth. (Say. gamyate, parigrzhyate.) It is the 3rd pers. sing. aor. pass.
To whose hand men cling, in whose golden chariot the drivers stand firm, in whose strong fists the reins are well held, on whose path the harnessed stallions hold together. (Say. Asifyante, 4pfryante; or Asifzanti, pfrayanti.)
X, 96, 3. indre nf rdp& hdrité mimikshire.
Bright colours stuck or clung or settled on Indra. (Say. nishikt4ni babhivu/ ; mihe# sanantat karmami rdpam.)
8. With instrumental :
I, 165, 1. kay subh& maritaé sam mimikshuf.
To what splendour do the Maruts cling; or, what splendour clings to them?
V, 58, 5. sv4y4 maty# marita# sim mimikshué. (See also I, 165, 1.)
The Maruts cling to their own thought or will. (Say. vrishtyA samyak sivtanti.)
I, 167, 4. yavy& sAdhdrazy&-iva maritad mimikshuA.
The Maruts cling to the young maid, as if she belonged to all. See I, 173, 12; VIII, 98, 8; or VI, 27, 6.
I, 87, 6. bhand-bhi# sam mimikshire.
The Maruts were joined with splendour. (Sdy. medsum ikkhanti.)
4. With accusative:
yavy& sAdhdrazy&-iva maritad mimikshuA.
The Maruts cling to the young maid, as if she belonged to all. See I, 173, 12; VIII, 98, 8; or VI, 27, 6.
I, 87, 6. bhand-bhi# sam mimikshire.
The Maruts were joined with splendour. (Sdy. medsum ikkhanti.)
4. With accusative:
VIII, 61, 18. nf y& vagram mimikshatuZ.
Thy two arms which have firmly grasped the thunderbolt. (Say. parigrzhzitat.)
Here I should also prefer to place VII, 20, 4, if we might read mimikshe or mimydksha, for it is impossible to take mimikshan for anything but a participle of the desiderative of mih, which does not yield an appropriate meaning.
p. 187
n{ vd4gram indrak m{mikshan.
Grasping firmly the thunderbolt. (Say. satrushu prapayan.)
VI, 29, 3. sriyé te pda duvak & mimikshud.
Thy servants embrace thy feet for their happiness. (Say. Asififanti, samarpayanti.)
Like other verbs which mean to join, myaksh, if accompanied by prepositions expressive of separation, means to separate. (Cf. vi-yukta, se-junctus.)
II, 28, 6. apo (fti) si myaksha varuza bhiydsam mat.
Remove well from me, O Varuma, terror. (Say. apagamaya.)
Quite distinct from this is the desiderative or inchoative verb mimiksh, from mih, in the sense of to sprinkle, or to shower, chiefly used with reference to the gods who are asked to sprinkle the sacrifice with rain. Thus we read :
I, 142, 3. madhva yagidm mimikshati.
(Nardsamsa) sprinkles the sacrifice with rain.
IX, 107, 6. mddhva yagitdm mimiksha naz.
Sprinkle (O Soma) our sacrifice with rain.
I, 34, 3. tri adya yagidm maddhund mimikshatam.
O Asvins, sprinkle the sacrifice with rain thrice to-day!
I, 47, 4. madhva yagfidm mimikshatam.
O Asvins, sprinkle the sacrifice with rain!
5. Without mddhu: I, 22,13. mahf dyau% prithivf ka nak imdm yagiidm mimikshatém. May the great heaven and earth sprinkle this our sacrifice.
Very frequently the Asvins are asked to sprinkle the sacrifice with their whip. This whip seems originally, like the whip of the Maruts, to have been intended for the cracking noise of the storm, preceding the rain. Then as whips had possibly some similarity to the instruments used for sprinkling butter on the sacrificial viands, the Asvins arep. 188 asked to sprinkle the sacrifice with their whip, i.e. to give rain:
I, 157, 4. madhu-matya nad kdsayA mimikshatam.
O Asvins, sprinkle us with your rain-giving whip.
I, 22, 3. taya yagidm mimikshatam.
O Asvins, sprinkle the sacrifice with it (your whip).
7. Lastly, we find such phrases as,
I, 48, 16. s4m nak raya—mimikshvd.
Sprinkle us with wealth, i.e. shower wealth down upon us. Here mih is really treated as a Hu-verb in the Atmanepada, though others take it for mimikshasva.
As an adjective, mimikshu is applied to Indra (III, 50, 3), and mimikshd to Soma (VI, 34, 4).
s4m nak raya—mimikshvd.
Sprinkle us with wealth, i.e. shower wealth down upon us. Here mih is really treated as a Hu-verb in the Atmanepada, though others take it for mimikshasva.
As an adjective, mimikshu is applied to Indra (III, 50, 3), and mimikshd to Soma (VI, 34, 4).
Note 3. I do not see how étasa# can here be taken in any sense but that suggested by the Pada, &-itadsak, come near. Professor Roth thinks it not impossible that it may be meant for éta/, the fallow deer, the usual team of the Maruts. These Etas are mentioned in verse 5, but there the Pada gives quite correctly étan, not &-itan, and Sayama explains it accordingly by gantin.
Note 4. The idea that the Maruts proclaim their own strength occurred before, I, 87, 3. It is a perfectly natural conception, for the louder the voice of the wind, the greater its strength, and vice versa.
Verse 2.
Note 1. Manas here, as elsewhere, is used in the sense of thought preceding speech, desire, or devotion not yet expressed in prayer. See Taitt. Sah. V, 1, 3, 3. yat purusho manasdbhigaksati tad v4e4 vadati, what a man grasps in his mind, that he expresses by speech. Professor Roth suggests an emendation which is ingenious, but not necessary, viz. mah@ ndmasA, with great adoration, an expression which occurs, if not in VI, 52, 17, at least in VII, 12, 1. We find, however, the phrase mah mdnas@ in
Come hither, thou hast always come, Indra, to our libation through our yearning great desire. Mayest thou hear these our prayers, and may then the sacrifice put vigour in thy body.
It is curious to observe that throughout the Rig-veda the instrumental singular mahé is always used as an adjective belonging to some term or other for praise and prayer. Besides the passages mentioned, we find:
II, 24,1. aya vidhema navaya mahé gird.
Let us sacrifice with this new great song.
VI, 52, 17. su-ukténa mah ndmasé4 é vivdse.
I worship with a hymn with great adoration, or I worship with a great hymn in adoration. VIII, 46, 14. gaya gir mahé vi-fetasam. Celebrate the wise Indra with a great song. Otherwise we might translate, Thou hast always come with a great yearning desire.
Verse 3.
_Note 1. We ought to scan kuta% tvam indra mahinak san, because y4si, being anudatta, could not begin a new pada. It would be more natural to translate kutak by why? for the Maruts evidently wish to express their surprise at Indra’s going to do battle alone and without their assistance. I do not think, however, that in the Rig-veda, even in the latest hymns, kita’ has as yet a causal meaning, and I have therefore translated it in the same sense in which it occurs before in the poet’s address to the Maruts.
I do not think, however, that in the Rig-veda, even in the latest hymns, kita’ has as yet a causal meaning, and I have therefore translated it in the same sense in which it occurs before in the poet’s address to the Maruts.
Note 2. Sat-pati, lord of men, means lord of real men, of heroes, and should not be translated by good lord. Sat by itself is frequently used in the sense of heroes, of men physically rather than morally good:
II, 1, 3. tvam agne indrak vrishabhds satdém asi.
Thou, Agni, art Indra, the hero among heroes.
I, 173, 7. samat-su tva sdra satim urazdm.
Thee, O hero, in battles the protector of (good and true) men.
Note 3. The meaning of sim prikkhase is very much the same as that of sdm vadasva in I, 170, 5.
Note 4. Subhdnd is evidently meant as a name for the
Iga VEDIC HYMNS.
Maruts, who thus speak of themselves in the third person, which is by no means unusual in the Rig-veda. Mahidhara explains subhanaif# by sobhanair vakanaih.
Verse 4.
Indra certainly addresses his old friends, the Maruts, very unceremoniously, but this, though at first startling, was evidently the intention of the poet. He wished to represent a squabble between Indra and the Maruts, such as they were familiar with in their own village life, and this was to be followed by a reconciliation. The boorish rudeness, selfishness, and boastfulness here ascribed to Indra may seem offensive to those who cannot divest themselves of the modern meaning of deities, but looked upon from the right point of view, it is really full of interest.
Note 1. Brahm4wi and matdyad are here mentioned separately in the same way as a distinction is made between brahman, stéma, and uktha, IV, 22,1; VI, 23,1; between brahm4zi and gira, III, 51,6; between brdhma, girak, and stémaX, VI, 38, 3; between brahma, giraf, ukthé, and mdnma, VI, 38, 4, &c.
. Note 2. Sdm, which I have here translated by sweet, is a difficult word to render. It is used as a substantive, as an adjective, and as an adverb; and in several instances it must remain doubtful whether it was meant for one or the other. The adverbial character is almost always, if not always, applicable, though in English there is no adverb of such general import as sdm, and we must therefore render it differently, although we are able to perceive that in the mind of the poet it might still have been conceived as an adverb, in the sense of ‘well.’ I shall arrange the principal passages in which sam occurs according to the verbs with which it is construed.
1. With bha:
VIII, 79, 7. bhava nak soma sdm hridé.
Be thou, Soma, well (pleasant) to our heart. Cf. VIII, 82, 3.
Be thou well (sweet) to our heart, when drunk, O Soma! Cf. X, 9, 4.
I, 90, 9. s4m nak bhavatu aryamé.
May Aryaman be well (kind) to us!
VI, 74,1. sdm nak bhitam dvi-pdde sdm atué-pade.
May Soma and Rudra be well (kind) to our men and cattle.
NOTES, I, 165, 4. Ig!
Be thou well (sweet) to our heart, when drunk, O Soma! Cf. X, 9, 4.
I, 90, 9. s4m nak bhavatu aryamé.
May Aryaman be well (kind) to us!
VI, 74,1. sdm nak bhitam dvi-pdde sdm atué-pade.
May Soma and Rudra be well (kind) to our men and cattle.
Here sim might be rendered as an adverb, or as an adjective, or even as a substantive, in the sense of health or blessing.
Cf. VII, 54, 1; IX, 69,7. The expression dvipdad and katuh-pad is curiously like what occurs in the prayers of the Eugubian tables, Fisovie Sansie, ditu ocre Fisi, tote Jovine, ocrer Fisie, totar Jovinar dupursus, peturpursus fato fito (Umbrische Sprachdenkmiiler, ed. Aufrecht, p. 198); and also in the edicts of Piyadasi, dupada-fatupadesu pakhivalizalesu, ‘aux bipédes, aux quadrupédes, aux volatiles, aux animaux qui se meuvent dans les eaux.’ See Burnouf, Lotus, p. 667.
II, 38, 11. sam yat stotrt-bhyak Apaye bhavati.
What may be well (a pleasure) for the praisers, for the friend.
X, 37,10. s4m nak bhava Adkshasa.
Be kind to us with thy light!
2. With as:
VIII, 17, 6. sémak sdm astu te hridé.
May the Soma be well (agreeable) to thy heart!
I, 5, 7- sam te santu prd-ketase.
May the Somas be well (pleasing) to thee, the wise!
V, 11, 5. tibhyam manisha iy4m astu s4m hridé.
May this prayer be well (acceptable) to thy heart!
I, 114, 1. yatha sam dsat dvi-pdde Aatuh-pade.
That it may be well for our men and cattle. Cf. X, 165, I; 3-
He who is lief to thee to support, i.e. he whom thou likest to support.
V, 74,9. sam dm (iti) si vam—asmiakam astu karkritth.
Let there be happiness to you—glory to us!
p. 192
3. With as or bhd understood :
VI, 45, 22. sam yat gave na sakine.
A song which is pleasant to the mighty Indra, as food to an ox.
VIII, 13, 11. sam it hf te.
For it is well for thee.
X, 86,15. manthas te indra sim hridé.
The mixture is pleasant to thy heart, O Indra!
X, 97,18. dram k&maya, sdm hridé.
Enough for love, pleasant to the heart.
VI, 34, 3. sam tat asmai.
That is pleasant to him.
VI, 21, 4. kak te yagiit4h manase sam vadraya.
What sacrifice seems to thy mind pleasant to select ?
4. With kar: I, 43, 6. s4m nak karati drvate. May he do well to our horse, i.e. may he benefit our horses. IV, 1, 3. tokaya tugé—sdm kridhi. Do good to our children and progeny, or bless us for the procreation of children.
VIII, 18, 8. sm nak karatak asvina. May the two Asvins do us good!
. 5. With vah : I, 157, 3. sam nah & vakshat dvi-pdde £atu/-pade. May he bring blessing to us for man and cattle. VIII, 5, 20. téna nak—pdsve tokdya sim gave, vahatam pivarih ishak.
Bring to us rich food, a blessing to cattle, to children, and to the ox.
6. With verbs, such as p(, v4, and others, where it is clearly used as an adverb:
May he bring blessing to us for man and cattle. VIII, 5, 20. téna nak—pdsve tokdya sim gave, vahatam pivarih ishak.
Bring to us rich food, a blessing to cattle, to children, and to the ox.
6. With verbs, such as p(, v4, and others, where it is clearly used as an adverb:
Do thou, king Soma, stream upon us, a blessing for the ox, a blessing for man, a blessing for the horse, a blessing for the plants. Cf. IX, 11, 7; 60, 4; 61,153 109, 5.
VII, 35, 4. sém nat ishird# abhi vatu vdtah.
p. 193
May the brisk wind blow kindly upon us, or blow a blessing upon us!
VII, 35, 6. sdm nak tvdsh¢4 gndbhik ihd srinotu.
May Tvashéar with the goddesses hear us here well, i.e. auspiciously !
VII, 35, 8. sdm nak siryak—ut etu.
May the sun rise auspiciously for us !
VIII, 18, 9. sm na tapatu siryah,
May the sun warm us well !
III, 13, 6. sam nak soka—agne.
Shine well for us, O Agni!
. Sam Yod.
Sam also occurs in a phrase that has puzzled the interpreters of the Veda very much, viz. sim yds. These are two words, and must both be taken as substantives, though originally they may have been adverbs. Their meaning seems to have been much the same, and in English they may safely be rendered by health and wealth, in the old acceptation of these words :
I, 93, 7. dhattam yd4gam4ndya sam yd.
Give, Agni and Soma, to the sacrificer health and wealth.
I, 106, 5. sam yok ydt te mdnu/-hitam tat fmahe.
Brthaspati, we ask for health and wealth which thou gavest to Manu.
I, 114, 2. yat sam ka yok ka manuh 4-yegé pita tat asy4ma tava rudra pra-nitishu.
Rudra, the health and wealth which Manu, the father, obtained, may we reach it under thy guidance.
II, 33, 13. yani mdnud avrinita pité nak té sm ha yok ka rudrdsya vasmi.
The medicines which our father Manu chose, those I desire, the health and wealth of Rudra.
I, 189, 2, bhava tokaya tanaydya sdm yod.
Be to our offspring health and wealth !
IV, 12, 5. yakkha tokéya tanayaya sam yok.
Give to our offspring health and wealth !
V, 69, 3. ile tokaya tanaydya sdm yo.
I ask for our offspring health and wealth.
[32] ie)
p. 194
VI, 50, 7. dh&ta tokfya tanaydya sdm yd.
Give to our offspring health and wealth !
X, 182, 1. dtha karat y4gamanaya sdm yod.
May he then produce for the sacrificer health and wealth.
VII, 69, 5. téna nak sim yos—ni asvina vahatam.
On that chariot bring to us, Asvins, health and wealth.
III, 17, 3. 4tha bhava y4gam4ndya sam yo.
Then, Agni, be health and wealth to the sacrificer.