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Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1are very deficient, and where an independent authority would be of real use, no Grantha MS. has as yet been discovered. * They have since been printed, but the translation has in consequence been delayed. PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION. XXXili which we can only guess. Here, no doubt, a continued study will remove some of our difficulties, and many a passage that is now dark, will receive light hereafter from a happy combination. Much has already been achieved by the efforts of European scholars, but much more remains to be done; and our only chance of seeing any rapid progress made lies, I believe, in communicating freely what every one has found out by himself, and not minding if others point out to us that we have overlooked the very passage that would at once have solved our difficulties, that our conjectures were unnecessary, and our emendations wrong. True and honest scholars whose conscience tells them that they have done their best, and who care for the subject on which they are engaged far more than for the praise of benevolent or the blame of malignant critics, ought not to take any notice of merely frivolous censure. There are mistakes, no doubt, of which we ought to be ashamed, and for which the only amende honorable we can make is to openly confess and retract them. But there are others, particularly in a subject like Vedic interpretation, which we should forgive, as we wish to be forgiven. This can be done without lowering the standard of true scholarship or vitiating the healthy tone of scientific morality. Kindness and gentleness are not incompatible with earnestness,—far from it !—and where these elements are wanting, not only is the joy embittered which is the inherent reward of all bon4 fide work, but selfishness, malignity, aye, even untruthfulness, gain the upper hand, and the healthy growth of science is stunted. While in my translation of the Veda and in the remarks that I have to make in the course of my commentary, I shall frequently differ from other scholars, I hope I shall never say an unkind word of men who have done their best, and who have done what they have done in a truly scholarlike, that is, in a humble spirit. It would be unpleasant, even were it possible within the limits assigned, to criticise every opinion that has been put forward on the meaning of certain words or on the construction of certain verses of the Veda. I prefer, as much as possible, to vindicate my own translation, instead of [32] c XXXIV VEDIC HYMNS.
2I prefer, as much as possible, to vindicate my own translation, instead of [32] c XXXIV VEDIC HYMNS. examining the translations of other scholars, whether Indian or European. SAyama’s translation, as rendered into English by Professor Wilson, is before the world. Let those who take an interest in these matters compare it with the translation here proposed. In order to give readers who do not possess that translation, an opportunity of comparing it with my own, I have for a few hymns printed that as well as the translations of Langlois and Benfey* on the same page with my own. Everybody will thus be enabled to judge of the peculiar character of each of these translations. That of S&yana represents the tradition of India; that of Langlois is the ingenious, but thoroughly uncritical, guesswork of a man of taste; that of Benfey is the rendering of a scholar, who has carefully worked out the history of some words, but who assigns to other words either the traditional meaning recorded by S4yaza, or a conjectural meaning which, however, would not always stand the test of an intercomparison of all passages in which these words occur. I may say, in general, that SAyava’s translation was of great use to me in the beginning, though it seldom afforded help for the really difficult passages. Langlois’ translation has hardly ever yielded real assistance, while I sincerely regret that Benfey’s rendering does not extend beyond the first Mandala. It may sound self-contradictory, if, after confessing the help which I derived from these translations, I venture to call my own the first translation of the brane first Rig-veda. The word translation, however, raisonnée. has many meanings. I mean by translation, not a mere rendering of the hymns of the Rig-veda into English, French, or German, but a full account of the reasons which justify the translator in assigning such a power to such a word, and such a meaning to such a sentence. I mean by translation a real deciphering, a work like that which Burnouf performed in his first attempts at a translation of the Avesta,—a traduction raisonnée, if such an expression may be used. Without such a process, * In the new edition, Langlois’ translation has been omitted, and those of Ludwig and Grassmann have been inserted occasionally only. PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION. XXXV
3Without such a process, * In the new edition, Langlois’ translation has been omitted, and those of Ludwig and Grassmann have been inserted occasionally only. PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION. XXXV without a running commentary, a mere translation of the ancient hymns of the Brahmans will never lead to any solid results. Even if the translator has discovered the right meaning of a word or of a whole sentence, his mere translation does not help us much, unless he shows us the process by which he has arrived at it, unless he places before us the piéces justificatives of his final judgment. The Veda teems with words that require a justification; not so much the words which occur but once or twice, though many of these are difficult enough, but rather the common words and particles, which occur again and again, which we understand to a certain point, and can render in a vague way, but which must be defined before they can be translated, and before they can convey to us any real and tangible meaning. It was out of the question in a translation of this character to attempt either an imitation of the original rhythm or metre, or to introduce the totally foreign element of rhyming. Such translations may follow by and by: at present a metrical translation would only be an excuse for an inaccurate translation. While engaged in collecting the evidence on which the meaning of every word and every sentence must be founded, I have derived the most important assistance from the Sanskrit Dictionary of Professors Bohtlingk and Roth, which has been in course of publication during the last sixteen years. The Vedic portion of that Dictionary may, I believe, be taken as the almost exclusive work of Professor Roth, and as such, for the sake of brevity, I shall treat it in my notes. It would be ungrateful were I not to acknowledge most fully the real benefit which this publication has conferred on every student of Sanskrit, and my only regret is that its publication has not proceeded more rapidly, so that even now years will elapse before we can hope to see it finished. But my sincere admiration for the work performed by the compilers of that Dictionary does not prevent me from differing, in many cases, from the explanations of Vedic words given by Professor Roth. If I do not always criticise Professor Roth’s explanations when I differ from him, the reason is obvious. A dictionary without a full c2 XXXVI VEDIC HYMNS.
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1are very deficient, and where an independent authority would be of real use, no Grantha MS. has as yet been discovered. * They have since been printed, but the translation has in consequence been delayed. PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION. XXXili which we can only guess. Here, no doubt, a continued study will remove some of our difficulties, and many a passage that is now dark, will receive light hereafter from a happy combination. Much has already been achieved by the efforts of European scholars, but much more remains to be done; and our only chance of seeing any rapid progress made lies, I believe, in communicating freely what every one has found out by himself, and not minding if others point out to us that we have overlooked the very passage that would at once have solved our difficulties, that our conjectures were unnecessary, and our emendations wrong. True and honest scholars whose conscience tells them that they have done their best, and who care for the subject on which they are engaged far more than for the praise of benevolent or the blame of malignant critics, ought not to take any notice of merely frivolous censure. There are mistakes, no doubt, of which we ought to be ashamed, and for which the only amende honorable we can make is to openly confess and retract them. But there are others, particularly in a subject like Vedic interpretation, which we should forgive, as we wish to be forgiven. This can be done without lowering the standard of true scholarship or vitiating the healthy tone of scientific morality. Kindness and gentleness are not incompatible with earnestness,—far from it !—and where these elements are wanting, not only is the joy embittered which is the inherent reward of all bon4 fide work, but selfishness, malignity, aye, even untruthfulness, gain the upper hand, and the healthy growth of science is stunted. While in my translation of the Veda and in the remarks that I have to make in the course of my commentary, I shall frequently differ from other scholars, I hope I shall never say an unkind word of men who have done their best, and who have done what they have done in a truly scholarlike, that is, in a humble spirit. It would be unpleasant, even were it possible within the limits assigned, to criticise every opinion that has been put forward on the meaning of certain words or on the construction of certain verses of the Veda. I prefer, as much as possible, to vindicate my own translation, instead of [32] c XXXIV VEDIC HYMNS.
2I prefer, as much as possible, to vindicate my own translation, instead of [32] c XXXIV VEDIC HYMNS. examining the translations of other scholars, whether Indian or European. SAyama’s translation, as rendered into English by Professor Wilson, is before the world. Let those who take an interest in these matters compare it with the translation here proposed. In order to give readers who do not possess that translation, an opportunity of comparing it with my own, I have for a few hymns printed that as well as the translations of Langlois and Benfey* on the same page with my own. Everybody will thus be enabled to judge of the peculiar character of each of these translations. That of S&yana represents the tradition of India; that of Langlois is the ingenious, but thoroughly uncritical, guesswork of a man of taste; that of Benfey is the rendering of a scholar, who has carefully worked out the history of some words, but who assigns to other words either the traditional meaning recorded by S4yaza, or a conjectural meaning which, however, would not always stand the test of an intercomparison of all passages in which these words occur. I may say, in general, that SAyava’s translation was of great use to me in the beginning, though it seldom afforded help for the really difficult passages. Langlois’ translation has hardly ever yielded real assistance, while I sincerely regret that Benfey’s rendering does not extend beyond the first Mandala. It may sound self-contradictory, if, after confessing the help which I derived from these translations, I venture to call my own the first translation of the brane first Rig-veda. The word translation, however, raisonnée. has many meanings. I mean by translation, not a mere rendering of the hymns of the Rig-veda into English, French, or German, but a full account of the reasons which justify the translator in assigning such a power to such a word, and such a meaning to such a sentence. I mean by translation a real deciphering, a work like that which Burnouf performed in his first attempts at a translation of the Avesta,—a traduction raisonnée, if such an expression may be used. Without such a process, * In the new edition, Langlois’ translation has been omitted, and those of Ludwig and Grassmann have been inserted occasionally only. PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION. XXXV
3Without such a process, * In the new edition, Langlois’ translation has been omitted, and those of Ludwig and Grassmann have been inserted occasionally only. PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION. XXXV without a running commentary, a mere translation of the ancient hymns of the Brahmans will never lead to any solid results. Even if the translator has discovered the right meaning of a word or of a whole sentence, his mere translation does not help us much, unless he shows us the process by which he has arrived at it, unless he places before us the piéces justificatives of his final judgment. The Veda teems with words that require a justification; not so much the words which occur but once or twice, though many of these are difficult enough, but rather the common words and particles, which occur again and again, which we understand to a certain point, and can render in a vague way, but which must be defined before they can be translated, and before they can convey to us any real and tangible meaning. It was out of the question in a translation of this character to attempt either an imitation of the original rhythm or metre, or to introduce the totally foreign element of rhyming. Such translations may follow by and by: at present a metrical translation would only be an excuse for an inaccurate translation. While engaged in collecting the evidence on which the meaning of every word and every sentence must be founded, I have derived the most important assistance from the Sanskrit Dictionary of Professors Bohtlingk and Roth, which has been in course of publication during the last sixteen years. The Vedic portion of that Dictionary may, I believe, be taken as the almost exclusive work of Professor Roth, and as such, for the sake of brevity, I shall treat it in my notes. It would be ungrateful were I not to acknowledge most fully the real benefit which this publication has conferred on every student of Sanskrit, and my only regret is that its publication has not proceeded more rapidly, so that even now years will elapse before we can hope to see it finished. But my sincere admiration for the work performed by the compilers of that Dictionary does not prevent me from differing, in many cases, from the explanations of Vedic words given by Professor Roth. If I do not always criticise Professor Roth’s explanations when I differ from him, the reason is obvious. A dictionary without a full c2 XXXVI VEDIC HYMNS.
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
No commentary for this page.