Fetching
One moment.
Fetching
One moment.
Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1See also Sat. Br. V, 4, 3, 3. Stanza 7. Cf. RV. X, 85, 34. ni^khidam, lit. ' to throw out.' Pro- fessor Roth suggests ni-khfdam, ' to get down.' ni^khid is certainly for. Aey. and might be for nishkhid==ni-shkhid, re- minding us of the MSS. of the Tait. S. which write khkhid in the interior of words (after augment and prepositions) ; see Ind. Stud. XIII, 106-7. But the statement, that the oppressor of Brahmans swallows the cow, and that he then cannot get her out again, because she sticks in his throat, is equally suitable. Stanza 8. b. The expression nadfika dantas tapasa * bhidigdha/^ seems to me to contain a double entente, ' his windpipe (shaft of the arrow), his teeth (points of the arrow), are bedaubed (like the arrow with poison) with holy fire/ A striking figure of speech, hardly to be misunderstood ! Muir, ' his windpipe is arrow-points smeared with fire ; ' Ludwig, ' die naaftka (speiserore oder luftrore ?) die zahne vom tapa^ bestrichen ; ' Zimmer, ' seine luftrohre mit Gluth bestrichne Pfeilspitzen ; ' Grill, ' die Luftrohr Pfeil- spitze, in des Eifers Gluth getauchet.' Stanza 10. d. vaitahavya, patronymic from vitahavya, a proper name; cf. st. 11, and V, 19, 1. Zimmer, pp. 132, 200-1, translates the word by ' die aus habsucht opfernden/ and 'die opfergierigen,' but the word per se has no disparaging meaning ; cf. vitihotra. Stanza 11. c, d. Ludwig, ' die der Kesaraprabandha letztgeborene gebraten.' This involves the emendation of £arama£*am to ^arama^am (sc. vatsam, ' calf), and makes Kesarapra- bandha the name of a cow ; cf. prathama^d. That cows V, 19. COMMENTARY. 433 had names may be seen from our introduction to II, 32, but this name, ' having her hair braided,' is clearly that of a woman. Apparently the iniquity of the Vaitahavyas reaches its height, when they do not spare the only goat of the poor woman. If the text were only as sound as the moral ! Stanza 12. a. Cf. V, 19, ii, where the number 99 takes the place of 101. Both are formulaic. Stanza 14. Cf. st. 6 and XII, 5, 4. 58. c. hant^bhuastendras ought, in the light of stanza 6, to mean { Indra slays the curser,' or * Indra destroys curses/ Accordingly the Pet. Lex. proposes hanta. ^bhfoastim (cf. Whitney, Sanskrit Grammar2, §§ 271 d, 946); hanta, ^bhuaster is equally possible (cf. 1. c, § 1182 d). The text might possibly be sustained by reading hanta *bhuasta (ace. plur. neut.). Ludwig takes both words as nomina- tives of tar-stems, c Indra toter flucher.' Zimmer, still differently, reads hanta ^bhuas tarn. d. For vedhas, cf. our note on I, it, 1 b. V, 19.
2text might possibly be sustained by reading hanta *bhuasta (ace. plur. neut.). Ludwig takes both words as nomina- tives of tar-stems, c Indra toter flucher.' Zimmer, still differently, reads hanta ^bhuas tarn. d. For vedhas, cf. our note on I, it, 1 b. V, 19. Commentary to page 171. For the employment of this hymn in the ritual, and other general considerations, see the introduction to V, 18. Stanza 1. c. Bhr/gu is a typical name for an Atharvan priest ; cf. angirasa in st. 2; bhWgvangiras, like atharvangiras, is a name of the Atharva-veda itself; see Kaiu. 63, 3 ; 94, 3. 4. Like Atharvan and Ahgiras, the Bhrzgu are connected with the production of fire ; cf. Ludwig, III, 140. For the SrzV^ayas, see Weber, Ind. Stud. I, 208 ff., 232 ; Ludwig, III, 154; Zimmer, 132; Weber, * Episches im vedischen Ritual,' Sitzungsberichte der Koniglich Preu- ssischen Akademie, July 23, 1891, vol. xxxviii, p. 797 [42] F f 434 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA. (p. 31 of the reprint). The legend which is alluded to here (and in V, 18, 10. 11) is not to be found elsewhere. One may fairly question whether it is not, in a measure at least, trumped up in deference to a supposed etymology : -^aya in sringa-ya. suggests ' conquer, oppress ' (cf. ^iyate in st. 6, and brahmagyasya in st. 7) ; the syllable srzn (Padapa/^a sr/n ^aya) is not above the suspicion of having suggested srihgin, 'horned animal,' RV. I, 32, 5, &c. ; cf. the later writing srmga,ya, Vish/m-pura#a, &c. Note however Tait. S. VI, 6, 6, 2, and 5at. Br. XII, 9, 3, 1 ff., in both of which places the Sringayas come to grief. Stanza 2. c. The text has ubhayadam, which we have emended (with Grill) to ubhayadann, ' having two rows of teeth.' The ram is ordinarily a harmless animal ; but, just as he portentously devours a lioness at RV. VII, 18, 17, so he here appears armed with extra teeth, and capable of doing mischief. Possibly, however, ubhayadam is an accusative from ubhayada = ubhayadant, ' horse/ and ' the goat de- voured the horse ' is another way of marking the ominous destruction of the property of oppressors. Cf. RV. X, 90, 10, and the Pet. Lexs., s.v. ubhayatodant, ubhayatodanta, ubha- yadant. Stanza 3. b. I have accepted Professor Weber's not altogether certain emendation of .mklam to .yulkam (Ind. Stud. XVII, 304). This is based upon Muir's perfectly secure parallel correction at III, 29, 3 (Original Sanskrit Texts, V, 310). These two passages are the only ones upon which the Pet. Lex., s.v.
3r's not altogether certain emendation of .mklam to .yulkam (Ind. Stud. XVII, 304). This is based upon Muir's perfectly secure parallel correction at III, 29, 3 (Original Sanskrit Texts, V, 310). These two passages are the only ones upon which the Pet. Lex., s.v. 2d, bases the meanings ' auswurf, schleim, rotz' for .9ukla ; otherwise the word means ' white.' It must be conceded, however, that the reading ^ulkam disturbs the parallelism between Padas a and b, and that the construc- tion of ish with the locative of the person from whom something is desired is strange. The text as it stands would yield, 'who threw slime upon him.' c, d. This punishment broaches upon the later infernal V, 19. COMMENTARY. 435 fancies of the Marka^eya-pur^^a ; see Scherman, Roman- ische Forschungen, V, 539 ff. ; Materialien zur Geschichte der Indischen Visionsliteratur (Leipzig, 1892), and Feer, Journal Asiatique, Eighth Series, vol. xx, p. 185 ff. ; Ninth Series, vol. i, p. 112 fif. ; cf. also Zimmer, 420 ff. Stanza 4. b. * As far as she reaches or penetrates/ i.e. wherever she is distributed and eaten (?). Ludwig, ' wohin sie uberhaupt gewandelt,' i. e. wherever she has been during her life-time. Zimmer (and similarly Grill), ' wahrend sie noch unter dem beile zuckt' Stanza 5. b. I read aiyate for asyate with Zimmer and Grill ; cf. V, 18, 3 d. See also the note on III, 4, 7, and Proc. Amer. Or. Soc, May, 1886 (Journ., vol. xiii, p. cxvii ff.). Stanza 7. The last word, brahma^yasya, is a gloss (Anukr. upari- sh/adbrzhati). The cow is described as portentous, hence she forebodes destruction ; cf. VIII, 6, 22. Stanza 9. c. The Pet. Lex., s. v. man with abhi, reads tad dhanam for sad dhanam. The emendation is not urgent. d. Narada is the typical interlocutor in the Pura^as ; in AV. XII, 4, 16. 24. 41 ff., he is especially engaged in pro- curing the brahmagavi'. Stanza 11. Cf. V, 1 8, 1 2. For nava navataya^, see Whitney, Sk. Gr.2 § 477 d. Stanza 12. A favourite method of imprecation in the Atharvan consists in threatening with the ceremonies of funeral, or even employing stanzas and formulas originally constructed for burial ; cf. the introduction to I, 14, and the note on II, 12, 7. The present stanza, as well as sts. 13, and F f 2 436 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA. XII, 5, 47 ff., contain such threats against the oppressor of Brahmans ; cf. our Contributions, Second Series, Amer. Journ. Phil. XI, p. 336 ff. (especially pp. 339 ff.). In this stanza reference is made to the custom of tying a kudi-plant (according to Darila at Kauj. 21, 2.
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.
1See also Sat. Br. V, 4, 3, 3. Stanza 7. Cf. RV. X, 85, 34. ni^khidam, lit. ' to throw out.' Pro- fessor Roth suggests ni-khfdam, ' to get down.' ni^khid is certainly for. Aey. and might be for nishkhid==ni-shkhid, re- minding us of the MSS. of the Tait. S. which write khkhid in the interior of words (after augment and prepositions) ; see Ind. Stud. XIII, 106-7. But the statement, that the oppressor of Brahmans swallows the cow, and that he then cannot get her out again, because she sticks in his throat, is equally suitable. Stanza 8. b. The expression nadfika dantas tapasa * bhidigdha/^ seems to me to contain a double entente, ' his windpipe (shaft of the arrow), his teeth (points of the arrow), are bedaubed (like the arrow with poison) with holy fire/ A striking figure of speech, hardly to be misunderstood ! Muir, ' his windpipe is arrow-points smeared with fire ; ' Ludwig, ' die naaftka (speiserore oder luftrore ?) die zahne vom tapa^ bestrichen ; ' Zimmer, ' seine luftrohre mit Gluth bestrichne Pfeilspitzen ; ' Grill, ' die Luftrohr Pfeil- spitze, in des Eifers Gluth getauchet.' Stanza 10. d. vaitahavya, patronymic from vitahavya, a proper name; cf. st. 11, and V, 19, 1. Zimmer, pp. 132, 200-1, translates the word by ' die aus habsucht opfernden/ and 'die opfergierigen,' but the word per se has no disparaging meaning ; cf. vitihotra. Stanza 11. c, d. Ludwig, ' die der Kesaraprabandha letztgeborene gebraten.' This involves the emendation of £arama£*am to ^arama^am (sc. vatsam, ' calf), and makes Kesarapra- bandha the name of a cow ; cf. prathama^d. That cows V, 19. COMMENTARY. 433 had names may be seen from our introduction to II, 32, but this name, ' having her hair braided,' is clearly that of a woman. Apparently the iniquity of the Vaitahavyas reaches its height, when they do not spare the only goat of the poor woman. If the text were only as sound as the moral ! Stanza 12. a. Cf. V, 19, ii, where the number 99 takes the place of 101. Both are formulaic. Stanza 14. Cf. st. 6 and XII, 5, 4. 58. c. hant^bhuastendras ought, in the light of stanza 6, to mean { Indra slays the curser,' or * Indra destroys curses/ Accordingly the Pet. Lex. proposes hanta. ^bhfoastim (cf. Whitney, Sanskrit Grammar2, §§ 271 d, 946); hanta, ^bhuaster is equally possible (cf. 1. c, § 1182 d). The text might possibly be sustained by reading hanta *bhuasta (ace. plur. neut.). Ludwig takes both words as nomina- tives of tar-stems, c Indra toter flucher.' Zimmer, still differently, reads hanta ^bhuas tarn. d. For vedhas, cf. our note on I, it, 1 b. V, 19.
2text might possibly be sustained by reading hanta *bhuasta (ace. plur. neut.). Ludwig takes both words as nomina- tives of tar-stems, c Indra toter flucher.' Zimmer, still differently, reads hanta ^bhuas tarn. d. For vedhas, cf. our note on I, it, 1 b. V, 19. Commentary to page 171. For the employment of this hymn in the ritual, and other general considerations, see the introduction to V, 18. Stanza 1. c. Bhr/gu is a typical name for an Atharvan priest ; cf. angirasa in st. 2; bhWgvangiras, like atharvangiras, is a name of the Atharva-veda itself; see Kaiu. 63, 3 ; 94, 3. 4. Like Atharvan and Ahgiras, the Bhrzgu are connected with the production of fire ; cf. Ludwig, III, 140. For the SrzV^ayas, see Weber, Ind. Stud. I, 208 ff., 232 ; Ludwig, III, 154; Zimmer, 132; Weber, * Episches im vedischen Ritual,' Sitzungsberichte der Koniglich Preu- ssischen Akademie, July 23, 1891, vol. xxxviii, p. 797 [42] F f 434 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA. (p. 31 of the reprint). The legend which is alluded to here (and in V, 18, 10. 11) is not to be found elsewhere. One may fairly question whether it is not, in a measure at least, trumped up in deference to a supposed etymology : -^aya in sringa-ya. suggests ' conquer, oppress ' (cf. ^iyate in st. 6, and brahmagyasya in st. 7) ; the syllable srzn (Padapa/^a sr/n ^aya) is not above the suspicion of having suggested srihgin, 'horned animal,' RV. I, 32, 5, &c. ; cf. the later writing srmga,ya, Vish/m-pura#a, &c. Note however Tait. S. VI, 6, 6, 2, and 5at. Br. XII, 9, 3, 1 ff., in both of which places the Sringayas come to grief. Stanza 2. c. The text has ubhayadam, which we have emended (with Grill) to ubhayadann, ' having two rows of teeth.' The ram is ordinarily a harmless animal ; but, just as he portentously devours a lioness at RV. VII, 18, 17, so he here appears armed with extra teeth, and capable of doing mischief. Possibly, however, ubhayadam is an accusative from ubhayada = ubhayadant, ' horse/ and ' the goat de- voured the horse ' is another way of marking the ominous destruction of the property of oppressors. Cf. RV. X, 90, 10, and the Pet. Lexs., s.v. ubhayatodant, ubhayatodanta, ubha- yadant. Stanza 3. b. I have accepted Professor Weber's not altogether certain emendation of .mklam to .yulkam (Ind. Stud. XVII, 304). This is based upon Muir's perfectly secure parallel correction at III, 29, 3 (Original Sanskrit Texts, V, 310). These two passages are the only ones upon which the Pet. Lex., s.v.
3r's not altogether certain emendation of .mklam to .yulkam (Ind. Stud. XVII, 304). This is based upon Muir's perfectly secure parallel correction at III, 29, 3 (Original Sanskrit Texts, V, 310). These two passages are the only ones upon which the Pet. Lex., s.v. 2d, bases the meanings ' auswurf, schleim, rotz' for .9ukla ; otherwise the word means ' white.' It must be conceded, however, that the reading ^ulkam disturbs the parallelism between Padas a and b, and that the construc- tion of ish with the locative of the person from whom something is desired is strange. The text as it stands would yield, 'who threw slime upon him.' c, d. This punishment broaches upon the later infernal V, 19. COMMENTARY. 435 fancies of the Marka^eya-pur^^a ; see Scherman, Roman- ische Forschungen, V, 539 ff. ; Materialien zur Geschichte der Indischen Visionsliteratur (Leipzig, 1892), and Feer, Journal Asiatique, Eighth Series, vol. xx, p. 185 ff. ; Ninth Series, vol. i, p. 112 fif. ; cf. also Zimmer, 420 ff. Stanza 4. b. * As far as she reaches or penetrates/ i.e. wherever she is distributed and eaten (?). Ludwig, ' wohin sie uberhaupt gewandelt,' i. e. wherever she has been during her life-time. Zimmer (and similarly Grill), ' wahrend sie noch unter dem beile zuckt' Stanza 5. b. I read aiyate for asyate with Zimmer and Grill ; cf. V, 18, 3 d. See also the note on III, 4, 7, and Proc. Amer. Or. Soc, May, 1886 (Journ., vol. xiii, p. cxvii ff.). Stanza 7. The last word, brahma^yasya, is a gloss (Anukr. upari- sh/adbrzhati). The cow is described as portentous, hence she forebodes destruction ; cf. VIII, 6, 22. Stanza 9. c. The Pet. Lex., s. v. man with abhi, reads tad dhanam for sad dhanam. The emendation is not urgent. d. Narada is the typical interlocutor in the Pura^as ; in AV. XII, 4, 16. 24. 41 ff., he is especially engaged in pro- curing the brahmagavi'. Stanza 11. Cf. V, 1 8, 1 2. For nava navataya^, see Whitney, Sk. Gr.2 § 477 d. Stanza 12. A favourite method of imprecation in the Atharvan consists in threatening with the ceremonies of funeral, or even employing stanzas and formulas originally constructed for burial ; cf. the introduction to I, 14, and the note on II, 12, 7. The present stanza, as well as sts. 13, and F f 2 436 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA. XII, 5, 47 ff., contain such threats against the oppressor of Brahmans ; cf. our Contributions, Second Series, Amer. Journ. Phil. XI, p. 336 ff. (especially pp. 339 ff.). In this stanza reference is made to the custom of tying a kudi-plant (according to Darila at Kauj. 21, 2.
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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