Fetching
One moment.
Fetching
One moment.
Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1the epithet dhrzta- vrata as applied to Varu/za at AV. VII, 83, 1. Reference is therefore made to the suppliant attitude of the gods3 as they induce Agni by promises to come forth from the waters and attend to his business. c. Weber translates tatra . . . parama/^^anftra/^ ' dort is hauptsachlich dein Entstehen,' and Grohmann and Zimmer adopt this very pregnant rendering. Ludwig, on the other hand, says, 'da war deine erste geburt.' It seems to me that neither translation is correct. The Pada is formulaic ; in RV. I, 163, 4 (the hymn to the horse, a^vastuti) we have, yatra ta ahu/i parama^ ^anitram, and Ludwig translates (902), ' wo man sagt, dass dein hochster geburtsort.' Cf. also parame ^ani'tre in X, 56, 1. The expression parama^ g-amtram, moreover, is the equivalent of parame ^anman in RV. II, 9, 3, which is contrasted with avare sadhasthe. The former obviously refers to Agni, the lightning, and, as the takman is the effect of that Agni, the same origin is assumed for him. Hence I have translated the expres- sion by ' origin on high.' Stanza 2. b. Literally, ' or whether thy origin is a splinter-seeking one,' a bold figure as applied to the takman. But throughout this hymn the parallelism between fire and the takman is uppermost in the mind of the poet, and the phenomenon of Agni's growth, as he eagerly licks the split wood, is meta- phorically transferred to his disease. Weber translates prettily, 'sei Splitterfeuer, ziingelndes, dein geburtsort.' Zimmer, less vividly, ' oder wenn deine geburtsstatte glim- mend ist.' Ludwig does not comment upon his obscure result, ' oder mag spitze stachel suchend (stechend) deine geburt sein ; ' he, at any rate, unnecessarily abandons the metaphor of the fire. Saya^a, sakalyam dahya.ni kash//*a- samuham iMati ^akalye/ agni^. I, 25. COMMENTARY. 273 c. I have left the word hruVu 1 untranslated, as I have not been able to discover any basis for the existing trans- lation, ' cramp,' which Weber, 1. c, p. 420, proposes, and Ludwig adopts. Weber's result is derived from etymo- logical considerations of insufficient cogency, and the recorded symptoms of the takman or the ^vara fail to include cramps. The word occurs only in this hymn, in evident alliteration with haritasya, and I should not wonder if the word would yet turn out to have some connection with ' yellow.' For haritasya deva, see the note on V, 22, 2 a. Stanza 3. b.
2a fail to include cramps. The word occurs only in this hymn, in evident alliteration with haritasya, and I should not wonder if the word would yet turn out to have some connection with ' yellow.' For haritasya deva, see the note on V, 22, 2 a. Stanza 3. b. The takman as a son of Varu/za presents a snatch of that broader and deeper view of the origin of disease, according to which it is due to the violation of the laws of Varu;za, who has in his charge the order of the universe, and punishes the sinner by his ' fetters ' of disease, especially the dropsy ; see, e.g. AV. IV, 16, 6, 7 2. In general, to be sure, the lower view prevails in the Atharvan : possession by demons, and the witchcraft of enemies, are the causes of sickness. Stanza 4. The metre is irregular : P£da a, anush/ubh ; b and c, trish/ubh; d,^agati. b. For rura, see the note on V, 22, 10 a. c. yo anyedyiir . . . abhyeti (see also VII, 11 6, 2) refers to a fever which attacks, or becomes highest, every twenty- four hours ; cf. perhaps the vela^vara, mentioned by Kcrava 1 Some MSS., according to Weber, read hrikfa, and Whitney, Index Verborum, s. v., reports also hftVu, hruVru, and ruVu. Saya/za reads rud/iuh (rohaka^ purusha^arire utpadaka^). Shankar Pandit notes still other variants. 2 I prefer this view to another suggested by Grohmann, 1. c, p. 406 ff., according to which the malarial takman in marshy (i. e. watery) regions is especially pointed out. Varuwa, being the god of the sea (water), this variety of takman might thus be regarded as his son. This seems rather far-fetched. [42] T 2 74 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA. to Kauj-. 26, 25. Such is the interpretation of all authorities (Grohmann, p. 387; Zimmer, p. 382), and Wise, p. 232, describes the Anye^yuka (Suiruta's anyedyushka) as follows : ' If the paroxysm of fever recurs at the same hour daily, it is called Anye^yuka.' It is therefore equiva- lent to the rhythmus quotidianus. Saya/za, anye- dyu^ anyasmin paradine ya^ .nta^vara^ abhyeti. — yo . . . ubhayadyiir abhyeti, ' he who returns for two successive days,' i. e. with the implication that the next day (as we should say, the third day) is free from fever3. Grohmann, p. 388. and Zimmer, p. 382, identify this with the rhythmus quartanuscomplicatus, a form of the disease in which the attacks repeat themselves on two successive days, the third day being exempt. This would remind us of the eMntarita mentioned by Kcrava, 1. c. But it seems to fit also the ^aturthaka viparyaya. Wise, 1.
3s quartanuscomplicatus, a form of the disease in which the attacks repeat themselves on two successive days, the third day being exempt. This would remind us of the eMntarita mentioned by Kcrava, 1. c. But it seems to fit also the ^aturthaka viparyaya. Wise, 1. c, says, ' In Chaturthaka the paroxysms of this fever occur every fourth day. When the paroxysm continues for two days, the fever is that called Chaturthaka Bipar^yaya/ None of these construc- tions, however, is certain. Saya^a here says, ubhayadyu^ ubhayasmin dvitiye*hani . . . ayati, and, still more ex- plicitly at VII, 116, 2, yas ks. ubhayedyu^ (!) ubhayor divasayo/%, atitayor iti seshak, abhyeti, Mturthika^vara ity artha^. This means a kind of fever that omits two days and returns on the third day, and would thus be identical with the tr/tiyaka, according to the current construction (see Pada d). But see the Pet. Lex. under ubhayadyiir and ubhayedyM. d. For tr/tiyaka, see the note on V, 22, 13 a. I, 34. Commentary to page 99. This hymn belongs to a quite extensive class of Atharvan charms, the object of which is either to generate love in a person of the opposite sex, or restore alienated affection. In general, charms of this class are rubricated in the second 1 Cf. our not altogether certain interpretation of vitrz'trya, V, 22, 13a. I, 34. COMMENTARY. 275 part of the fourth book of the Kaurika (32, 28-36, 40). This is designated by the commentators as strikarmam, ' women's rites/ and presents the greatest variety of prac- tices connected with the life of women and their relations to men ; see Kaimka, Introduction, p. lxv, and cf. the fol- lowing hymns. Yet this particular hymn is not mentioned in the book in question, though it is otherwise worked up three times, Kaiu. 38, 17 ; 76, 8. 9 ; 79, 10. In the first of these passages, 38, 17, the hymn is employed in a simple practice uttered by an intending disputant before entering upon a debate in the sabha or parishad, the village assembly : ' While reciting AV. I, 34 he approaches the assembly from the north-east, chewing licorice.' The commen- tators do not quite agree as to the special purpose of the practice. Ke^ava says that it produces victory in disputa- tion (vivade ^ayakarma;/a^ vldhi/i) ; Darila, more mildly, says that it is an expiatory performance to wipe out the guilt incurred in defeating an opponent (in debate), praty- artha^ayadosha^amana;^ 1 pr^ya^ittam.
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.
1the epithet dhrzta- vrata as applied to Varu/za at AV. VII, 83, 1. Reference is therefore made to the suppliant attitude of the gods3 as they induce Agni by promises to come forth from the waters and attend to his business. c. Weber translates tatra . . . parama/^^anftra/^ ' dort is hauptsachlich dein Entstehen,' and Grohmann and Zimmer adopt this very pregnant rendering. Ludwig, on the other hand, says, 'da war deine erste geburt.' It seems to me that neither translation is correct. The Pada is formulaic ; in RV. I, 163, 4 (the hymn to the horse, a^vastuti) we have, yatra ta ahu/i parama^ ^anitram, and Ludwig translates (902), ' wo man sagt, dass dein hochster geburtsort.' Cf. also parame ^ani'tre in X, 56, 1. The expression parama^ g-amtram, moreover, is the equivalent of parame ^anman in RV. II, 9, 3, which is contrasted with avare sadhasthe. The former obviously refers to Agni, the lightning, and, as the takman is the effect of that Agni, the same origin is assumed for him. Hence I have translated the expres- sion by ' origin on high.' Stanza 2. b. Literally, ' or whether thy origin is a splinter-seeking one,' a bold figure as applied to the takman. But throughout this hymn the parallelism between fire and the takman is uppermost in the mind of the poet, and the phenomenon of Agni's growth, as he eagerly licks the split wood, is meta- phorically transferred to his disease. Weber translates prettily, 'sei Splitterfeuer, ziingelndes, dein geburtsort.' Zimmer, less vividly, ' oder wenn deine geburtsstatte glim- mend ist.' Ludwig does not comment upon his obscure result, ' oder mag spitze stachel suchend (stechend) deine geburt sein ; ' he, at any rate, unnecessarily abandons the metaphor of the fire. Saya^a, sakalyam dahya.ni kash//*a- samuham iMati ^akalye/ agni^. I, 25. COMMENTARY. 273 c. I have left the word hruVu 1 untranslated, as I have not been able to discover any basis for the existing trans- lation, ' cramp,' which Weber, 1. c, p. 420, proposes, and Ludwig adopts. Weber's result is derived from etymo- logical considerations of insufficient cogency, and the recorded symptoms of the takman or the ^vara fail to include cramps. The word occurs only in this hymn, in evident alliteration with haritasya, and I should not wonder if the word would yet turn out to have some connection with ' yellow.' For haritasya deva, see the note on V, 22, 2 a. Stanza 3. b.
2a fail to include cramps. The word occurs only in this hymn, in evident alliteration with haritasya, and I should not wonder if the word would yet turn out to have some connection with ' yellow.' For haritasya deva, see the note on V, 22, 2 a. Stanza 3. b. The takman as a son of Varu/za presents a snatch of that broader and deeper view of the origin of disease, according to which it is due to the violation of the laws of Varu;za, who has in his charge the order of the universe, and punishes the sinner by his ' fetters ' of disease, especially the dropsy ; see, e.g. AV. IV, 16, 6, 7 2. In general, to be sure, the lower view prevails in the Atharvan : possession by demons, and the witchcraft of enemies, are the causes of sickness. Stanza 4. The metre is irregular : P£da a, anush/ubh ; b and c, trish/ubh; d,^agati. b. For rura, see the note on V, 22, 10 a. c. yo anyedyiir . . . abhyeti (see also VII, 11 6, 2) refers to a fever which attacks, or becomes highest, every twenty- four hours ; cf. perhaps the vela^vara, mentioned by Kcrava 1 Some MSS., according to Weber, read hrikfa, and Whitney, Index Verborum, s. v., reports also hftVu, hruVru, and ruVu. Saya/za reads rud/iuh (rohaka^ purusha^arire utpadaka^). Shankar Pandit notes still other variants. 2 I prefer this view to another suggested by Grohmann, 1. c, p. 406 ff., according to which the malarial takman in marshy (i. e. watery) regions is especially pointed out. Varuwa, being the god of the sea (water), this variety of takman might thus be regarded as his son. This seems rather far-fetched. [42] T 2 74 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA. to Kauj-. 26, 25. Such is the interpretation of all authorities (Grohmann, p. 387; Zimmer, p. 382), and Wise, p. 232, describes the Anye^yuka (Suiruta's anyedyushka) as follows : ' If the paroxysm of fever recurs at the same hour daily, it is called Anye^yuka.' It is therefore equiva- lent to the rhythmus quotidianus. Saya/za, anye- dyu^ anyasmin paradine ya^ .nta^vara^ abhyeti. — yo . . . ubhayadyiir abhyeti, ' he who returns for two successive days,' i. e. with the implication that the next day (as we should say, the third day) is free from fever3. Grohmann, p. 388. and Zimmer, p. 382, identify this with the rhythmus quartanuscomplicatus, a form of the disease in which the attacks repeat themselves on two successive days, the third day being exempt. This would remind us of the eMntarita mentioned by Kcrava, 1. c. But it seems to fit also the ^aturthaka viparyaya. Wise, 1.
3s quartanuscomplicatus, a form of the disease in which the attacks repeat themselves on two successive days, the third day being exempt. This would remind us of the eMntarita mentioned by Kcrava, 1. c. But it seems to fit also the ^aturthaka viparyaya. Wise, 1. c, says, ' In Chaturthaka the paroxysms of this fever occur every fourth day. When the paroxysm continues for two days, the fever is that called Chaturthaka Bipar^yaya/ None of these construc- tions, however, is certain. Saya^a here says, ubhayadyu^ ubhayasmin dvitiye*hani . . . ayati, and, still more ex- plicitly at VII, 116, 2, yas ks. ubhayedyu^ (!) ubhayor divasayo/%, atitayor iti seshak, abhyeti, Mturthika^vara ity artha^. This means a kind of fever that omits two days and returns on the third day, and would thus be identical with the tr/tiyaka, according to the current construction (see Pada d). But see the Pet. Lex. under ubhayadyiir and ubhayedyM. d. For tr/tiyaka, see the note on V, 22, 13 a. I, 34. Commentary to page 99. This hymn belongs to a quite extensive class of Atharvan charms, the object of which is either to generate love in a person of the opposite sex, or restore alienated affection. In general, charms of this class are rubricated in the second 1 Cf. our not altogether certain interpretation of vitrz'trya, V, 22, 13a. I, 34. COMMENTARY. 275 part of the fourth book of the Kaurika (32, 28-36, 40). This is designated by the commentators as strikarmam, ' women's rites/ and presents the greatest variety of prac- tices connected with the life of women and their relations to men ; see Kaimka, Introduction, p. lxv, and cf. the fol- lowing hymns. Yet this particular hymn is not mentioned in the book in question, though it is otherwise worked up three times, Kaiu. 38, 17 ; 76, 8. 9 ; 79, 10. In the first of these passages, 38, 17, the hymn is employed in a simple practice uttered by an intending disputant before entering upon a debate in the sabha or parishad, the village assembly : ' While reciting AV. I, 34 he approaches the assembly from the north-east, chewing licorice.' The commen- tators do not quite agree as to the special purpose of the practice. Ke^ava says that it produces victory in disputa- tion (vivade ^ayakarma;/a^ vldhi/i) ; Darila, more mildly, says that it is an expiatory performance to wipe out the guilt incurred in defeating an opponent (in debate), praty- artha^ayadosha^amana;^ 1 pr^ya^ittam.
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.