Fetching
One moment.
Fetching
One moment.
Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1va) tatra sazrcvuati; Ke^ava, kha/vam adhomukhapa/- /ikaw grzhitva . . . svapiti ; Saya/za, kha/vaya adhomukhapa/Zikaw gn'hitva triratra/rc svapiti. The practice refers symbolically to st. ib, 'do not hold out upon thy bed/ All this does not explain dirghotpale; cf. the equally difficult utpale, Kauy. 36, 7 (see the introduction to IV, 5). 3 Read, apparently, with Saya^/a and one MS. prabadhya- for prabaddha-. Ill, 28. COMMENTARY. 359 pierces the heart of an effigy * made of potter's clay ' (ibid. p. xlvii). The last Sutra embodies st. 2. For Kama in general as a cosmic force, see the introduc- tion to IX, 2. For Kama as the god of love, Weber, Ind. Stud. V, 225 ; Muir, Original Sanskrit Texts, V, 407 ; Zimmer, p. 300. In both forms he is brought into close relation with Agni (fire) ; cf. Hir. Grih. I, 3, 7, The hymn has been translated by Weber, Ind. Stud. V, 224 ; XVII, 290 ff. ; Muir, 1. a, p. 407 ; Ludwig, Der Rig- veda, III, 516 ; Zimmer, p. 307 ; Grill2, pp. 53, 115 ff.; cf also Bergaigne et Henry, Manuel Vedique, p. 144. The Anukrama/zi, maitravaruzza^z kameshudevataka/^ ka. Stanza 1. b. Saya/za reads drithak, glossing, iayanavishayam ada- ram ma karshi^, ' have no regard for matters connected with the bed (sleep).' Stanza 2. b. sa//zkalpa, literally 'determination.' Saya/za, with naive picturesqueness, \dam me syad idam me syad iti bhogavishayasa/zzkalpanam. Cf. Tait. S. Ill, 4, 7, 3. Stanza 4. c. Grill regards nfmanyu^ as the equivalent of nfrman- yu/z, 'versohnt' The word seems, however, to have a slightly different meaning, lit. ( having laid down your pride or anger.' Saya/za, nyakk/Vtapra/zayakalahcL Stanza 5. c, d. The passage is formulary, being repeated at I, 34, 2 ; VI, 9, 2 ; Pada d is repeated at VI, 42, 3 ; 43, 3. Ill, 28. Commentary to page 145. Contrary to modern superstitions which regard the birth of twins as auspicious, and prize animals born in pairs, the prevailing Hindu view is that the birth of twins is an 1 Cf. Kaur. 36, 14 in the introduction to VI, 130. 360 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA. ominous occurrence to be expiated by diverse performances, and that the cattle itself is, as a rule, to be given to the Brahmans. But there are not wanting indications that a favourable view of such events also existed, and one may suspect shrewdly that the thrifty Brahmans, who stood ever ready to gather in all sorts of odds and ends (cf.
2is, as a rule, to be given to the Brahmans. But there are not wanting indications that a favourable view of such events also existed, and one may suspect shrewdly that the thrifty Brahmans, who stood ever ready to gather in all sorts of odds and ends (cf. the elaborate oratio pro domo, XII, 4, in connection with the va^a), gave vigorous support to any tendency towards superstitious fear which might show its head in connection with such occurrences. Weber, Indische Studien, XVII, 298 ff., has assembled quite a number of passages which represent the Hindu attitude towards twins. Cf. also Tait. S. II, i, 8, 4. The hymn is rubricated thrice in the Kaorika, in the thirteenth book, which is devoted to expiatory perform- ances (praya^itti), in connection with all sorts of omens and portents. It is employed in chapters 109, 5; no, 4; in, 5, on the occasion of the birth of twins from cows, mares, asses, and women. The practices consist in cook- ing a porridge in the milk of the mother, offering ghee, pouring the dregs of the ghee into a water-vessel and upon the porridge. Then the animal and its young are made to eat of the porridge, to drink of the water, and they are also sprinkled with the same water. The mother is then given to the Brahmans, and in the case of the human mother a ransom ' according to her value, or, in accordance with the wealth (of the father)/ is paid. Cf. Weber, Omina und Portenta, p. 377 ff. The hymn has been translated by Weber, Indische Studien, XVII, 397 ff. The Anukrama^i, yaminyam . . . brahma*nena yaminim astaut pa^uposha/zaya. Stanza 1. Since the mother of the twins was born under an arrange- ment which made a separate act of creation necessary for each individual, the birth of two at a time is apartii, ' un- seasonable, portentous.' Pada b is hypermetric and may be relieved in a measure by throwing out bhutakr/to, but Ill, 30. COMMENTARY. 36 1 even this does not yield good metre. In Pada d, riphatf, ' growling,' is not altogether certain. Saya^a, upon the basis of the Dhatupa//&a (riph rinph, hiwsayam), renders it by bhakshayanti, ' eating.' In Apast. Sr. XII, 22, 7 the root occurs in the sense of rikh, likh, ' scratch,' which suits the context quite as well. For the interchange of gutturals and labials, see Contributions, Sixth Series, Zeitschr. d. Deutsch. Morgenl. Gesellsch. XLVIII, 557 note, and the note on XI, 2, 25. Stanza 2. Cf. XII, 4, 5. 10-12. In Pada b, vyadvari, ' devouring/ looks very well by the side of kravyad, 'flesh-eating.' In the form vyadvara the word occurs also at .Sat. Br.
3hr. d. Deutsch. Morgenl. Gesellsch. XLVIII, 557 note, and the note on XI, 2, 25. Stanza 2. Cf. XII, 4, 5. 10-12. In Pada b, vyadvari, ' devouring/ looks very well by the side of kravyad, 'flesh-eating.' In the form vyadvara the word occurs also at .Sat. Br. VII, 4, t, 27, and the scholiast derives it from ad, 'eat' But at II, 31, 4; VI, 50, 3 (twice) we have vyadhvara1, and Saya?za reads vyadhvari in our stanza (' causing misfortune, afflicted with an evil way'), du^khahetur dush/amarga^ tadvati. The two words are blended and diversified by popular etymology, and it may be that one of them only is original. Cf. the note on II, 31,4. Stanzas 5, 6. The mother of twins is invited to enter the world of the blissful which is described in all its attractiveness, and yet, implicitly, is not desired, for the time being, by the owner of the cow. In yamini, ' mother of twins,' there is a pun 'fit for Yama, the god of heaven, and death:' this makes it still more appropriate that she shall go there. The first hemistich is formulaic: see VI, 120, 3. Cf. also XVIII, 2, 24 ; 3> 9. Ill, 30. Commentary to page 134. In Kaui". 12, 5 this hymn heads a ga/za or series of seven Atharvan charms (III, 30; V, 1, 5; VI, 64; 73; 74; 94; VII, 52), which are designated as sawmanasyani (sc. suk- 1 Thus the vulgata. Shankar Pandit's edition with Saya^a and most MSS., vyadvara. 362 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA. tani), ' designed to produce harmony/ The practices which are undertaken with them are stated in the sequel, Kau.r. \%, 6-9, as follows: 6. ' A jar full of water, anointed with the dregs of ghee, is carried about the (quarrelling) throng and poured out in their midst. 7. The same proceedings are undertaken with a jar full of brandy (sura). 8. (They who desire peace) are given to eat the pickled flesh of a young cow three years old. 9. Food, brandy, and water from the (public?) drinking-place are anointed with the dregs of ghee (and consumed).' In justification of this translation, see the commentaries here, and at Kaor. 35, 19: the relation of the proceedings to the charm are not clear in every detail ; see especially st. 6, and VI, 70, 1. The hymn has been treated previously by Muir, Original Sanskrit Texts, V, 439 ; Metrical Translations, p. 139 ; Ludwig, Der Rigveda, III, 256, 516; Zimmer, p. 316; Weber, Ind. Stud. XVII, 306 ff. ; Grill2, pp. 30, 116 ff. ; Hillebrandt, Vedachrestomathie, p. 45. The Anukrama/zi designates the hymn as £andramasa//z sawmanasyam, its author being Atharvan.
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.
1va) tatra sazrcvuati; Ke^ava, kha/vam adhomukhapa/- /ikaw grzhitva . . . svapiti ; Saya/za, kha/vaya adhomukhapa/Zikaw gn'hitva triratra/rc svapiti. The practice refers symbolically to st. ib, 'do not hold out upon thy bed/ All this does not explain dirghotpale; cf. the equally difficult utpale, Kauy. 36, 7 (see the introduction to IV, 5). 3 Read, apparently, with Saya^/a and one MS. prabadhya- for prabaddha-. Ill, 28. COMMENTARY. 359 pierces the heart of an effigy * made of potter's clay ' (ibid. p. xlvii). The last Sutra embodies st. 2. For Kama in general as a cosmic force, see the introduc- tion to IX, 2. For Kama as the god of love, Weber, Ind. Stud. V, 225 ; Muir, Original Sanskrit Texts, V, 407 ; Zimmer, p. 300. In both forms he is brought into close relation with Agni (fire) ; cf. Hir. Grih. I, 3, 7, The hymn has been translated by Weber, Ind. Stud. V, 224 ; XVII, 290 ff. ; Muir, 1. a, p. 407 ; Ludwig, Der Rig- veda, III, 516 ; Zimmer, p. 307 ; Grill2, pp. 53, 115 ff.; cf also Bergaigne et Henry, Manuel Vedique, p. 144. The Anukrama/zi, maitravaruzza^z kameshudevataka/^ ka. Stanza 1. b. Saya/za reads drithak, glossing, iayanavishayam ada- ram ma karshi^, ' have no regard for matters connected with the bed (sleep).' Stanza 2. b. sa//zkalpa, literally 'determination.' Saya/za, with naive picturesqueness, \dam me syad idam me syad iti bhogavishayasa/zzkalpanam. Cf. Tait. S. Ill, 4, 7, 3. Stanza 4. c. Grill regards nfmanyu^ as the equivalent of nfrman- yu/z, 'versohnt' The word seems, however, to have a slightly different meaning, lit. ( having laid down your pride or anger.' Saya/za, nyakk/Vtapra/zayakalahcL Stanza 5. c, d. The passage is formulary, being repeated at I, 34, 2 ; VI, 9, 2 ; Pada d is repeated at VI, 42, 3 ; 43, 3. Ill, 28. Commentary to page 145. Contrary to modern superstitions which regard the birth of twins as auspicious, and prize animals born in pairs, the prevailing Hindu view is that the birth of twins is an 1 Cf. Kaur. 36, 14 in the introduction to VI, 130. 360 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA. ominous occurrence to be expiated by diverse performances, and that the cattle itself is, as a rule, to be given to the Brahmans. But there are not wanting indications that a favourable view of such events also existed, and one may suspect shrewdly that the thrifty Brahmans, who stood ever ready to gather in all sorts of odds and ends (cf.
2is, as a rule, to be given to the Brahmans. But there are not wanting indications that a favourable view of such events also existed, and one may suspect shrewdly that the thrifty Brahmans, who stood ever ready to gather in all sorts of odds and ends (cf. the elaborate oratio pro domo, XII, 4, in connection with the va^a), gave vigorous support to any tendency towards superstitious fear which might show its head in connection with such occurrences. Weber, Indische Studien, XVII, 298 ff., has assembled quite a number of passages which represent the Hindu attitude towards twins. Cf. also Tait. S. II, i, 8, 4. The hymn is rubricated thrice in the Kaorika, in the thirteenth book, which is devoted to expiatory perform- ances (praya^itti), in connection with all sorts of omens and portents. It is employed in chapters 109, 5; no, 4; in, 5, on the occasion of the birth of twins from cows, mares, asses, and women. The practices consist in cook- ing a porridge in the milk of the mother, offering ghee, pouring the dregs of the ghee into a water-vessel and upon the porridge. Then the animal and its young are made to eat of the porridge, to drink of the water, and they are also sprinkled with the same water. The mother is then given to the Brahmans, and in the case of the human mother a ransom ' according to her value, or, in accordance with the wealth (of the father)/ is paid. Cf. Weber, Omina und Portenta, p. 377 ff. The hymn has been translated by Weber, Indische Studien, XVII, 397 ff. The Anukrama^i, yaminyam . . . brahma*nena yaminim astaut pa^uposha/zaya. Stanza 1. Since the mother of the twins was born under an arrange- ment which made a separate act of creation necessary for each individual, the birth of two at a time is apartii, ' un- seasonable, portentous.' Pada b is hypermetric and may be relieved in a measure by throwing out bhutakr/to, but Ill, 30. COMMENTARY. 36 1 even this does not yield good metre. In Pada d, riphatf, ' growling,' is not altogether certain. Saya^a, upon the basis of the Dhatupa//&a (riph rinph, hiwsayam), renders it by bhakshayanti, ' eating.' In Apast. Sr. XII, 22, 7 the root occurs in the sense of rikh, likh, ' scratch,' which suits the context quite as well. For the interchange of gutturals and labials, see Contributions, Sixth Series, Zeitschr. d. Deutsch. Morgenl. Gesellsch. XLVIII, 557 note, and the note on XI, 2, 25. Stanza 2. Cf. XII, 4, 5. 10-12. In Pada b, vyadvari, ' devouring/ looks very well by the side of kravyad, 'flesh-eating.' In the form vyadvara the word occurs also at .Sat. Br.
3hr. d. Deutsch. Morgenl. Gesellsch. XLVIII, 557 note, and the note on XI, 2, 25. Stanza 2. Cf. XII, 4, 5. 10-12. In Pada b, vyadvari, ' devouring/ looks very well by the side of kravyad, 'flesh-eating.' In the form vyadvara the word occurs also at .Sat. Br. VII, 4, t, 27, and the scholiast derives it from ad, 'eat' But at II, 31, 4; VI, 50, 3 (twice) we have vyadhvara1, and Saya?za reads vyadhvari in our stanza (' causing misfortune, afflicted with an evil way'), du^khahetur dush/amarga^ tadvati. The two words are blended and diversified by popular etymology, and it may be that one of them only is original. Cf. the note on II, 31,4. Stanzas 5, 6. The mother of twins is invited to enter the world of the blissful which is described in all its attractiveness, and yet, implicitly, is not desired, for the time being, by the owner of the cow. In yamini, ' mother of twins,' there is a pun 'fit for Yama, the god of heaven, and death:' this makes it still more appropriate that she shall go there. The first hemistich is formulaic: see VI, 120, 3. Cf. also XVIII, 2, 24 ; 3> 9. Ill, 30. Commentary to page 134. In Kaui". 12, 5 this hymn heads a ga/za or series of seven Atharvan charms (III, 30; V, 1, 5; VI, 64; 73; 74; 94; VII, 52), which are designated as sawmanasyani (sc. suk- 1 Thus the vulgata. Shankar Pandit's edition with Saya^a and most MSS., vyadvara. 362 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA. tani), ' designed to produce harmony/ The practices which are undertaken with them are stated in the sequel, Kau.r. \%, 6-9, as follows: 6. ' A jar full of water, anointed with the dregs of ghee, is carried about the (quarrelling) throng and poured out in their midst. 7. The same proceedings are undertaken with a jar full of brandy (sura). 8. (They who desire peace) are given to eat the pickled flesh of a young cow three years old. 9. Food, brandy, and water from the (public?) drinking-place are anointed with the dregs of ghee (and consumed).' In justification of this translation, see the commentaries here, and at Kaor. 35, 19: the relation of the proceedings to the charm are not clear in every detail ; see especially st. 6, and VI, 70, 1. The hymn has been treated previously by Muir, Original Sanskrit Texts, V, 439 ; Metrical Translations, p. 139 ; Ludwig, Der Rigveda, III, 256, 516; Zimmer, p. 316; Weber, Ind. Stud. XVII, 306 ff. ; Grill2, pp. 30, 116 ff. ; Hillebrandt, Vedachrestomathie, p. 45. The Anukrama/zi designates the hymn as £andramasa//z sawmanasyam, its author being Atharvan.
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.
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