According to the commentators, Darila, Ke^ava, and Saya/^a, the performances for removing poison at Kaus. 28, 1-4 include the recitation of this as well as the next hymn (IV, 7). Kau^ika, however, rubricates only IV, 6, as fol- lows : 1. i While reciting IV, 6, in a low voice, and making
374 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA.
obeisance to Takshaka1, the patient is made to sip water and is sprinkled with water. 2. The same performance takes place with water into which has been put a branch of the krzmuka-tree, which has been ground to pieces, and then the patient is sprinkled with water warmed by quench- ing in it a heated old garment 2, or a heated old skin of an antelope, or a heated wisp of a broom 3. 3. In a water- vessel which has been smeared with the dregs of ghee a mixed drink is stirred by means of two arrows (whose points) have been daubed (with poison ; cf. st. 7), and whose points are upward 4 ; then lumps of earth 5 are broken into it (while the hymns are being recited) stanza by stanza, and the mixture is drunk until vomiting takes place. 4. Then the patient is given to drink yellow curcuma in ghee (cf. IV, 7, 2, and especially 3)/
The hymn has been translated by Ludwig, Der Rig- veda, III,5i2.
For the cosmogonic conception in the first hemistich, cf.
Muir, Orig. Sanskrit Texts, I2, p. 21. In the Ramaya^a
(cf. IV, 10, 22), the demon Rava^a is represented as a
1 Takshaka Vaualeya, a serpent-god ; cf. Kaiu. 29, 1; 32, 20; 56, 13, and Ind. Stud. I, 35.
2 Darila, ^ir//avasa^ ; Ke^ava, dunnaka^, or dullaka/i The passages are not given in the edition.
3 The Sutra abounds in subtle symbolic allusions. The krzmuka- tree embodies the bow (karmuka) ; cf. sts. 4, 6. The garment, and the old antelope-skin refer to IV, 7, 6. For ^vala cf. Kau^. 27, 29, in the introduction to III, 7. Darila glosses avakara by ukura- /ikatrz/zani ; Kcrava by ukari^ika marg-anikatr/wam ; Sayawa has patitamar^-anika^akalai^ ; cf. Kamika, Introduction, p. xlv, bottom.
4 For urdhvaphalabhyam see Kaiwika, Introduction, p. Hi, s.v. phala. The poisoned arrows with their points upward symbolise the flight of the poison away from the patient ; cf. sts. 4, 5.
5 Darila glosses rayidhara/zapi/zdan by bhumis tanmayan piw^an. But Ke^ava (and Saya//a with him, as usual) has madanaphalani, ' fruit from the madana-plant/ And Ke^ava remarks anent this plant, yatha Mardayati.
Iv, 6. Commentary. 375
Brahma/za with ten heads. S&ya^a identifies the Brahmawa with Takshaka, in accordance with the Sutra, above.
Cf. Vkg. S. XXXVIII, 26, and for the seven rivers,
Max Muller, Chips from a German Workshop, I, 63 ;
Muir, 1. c, p. 490, note ; Zimmer, Altindisches Leben,
The poison is evidently a plant (Saya/za, kandavisha), since the eagle is constantly associated with the origin and functions of medicinal and magic plants; see I, 24, 1; II, 27, 2 ; IV, 20, 3 ; V, 14, 1, and especially our note on IV, 20, 3. For amimada^ in Pada c, cf. madavati in IV, 7, 4 a.
c. The rendering of apaskambha is mere conjecture. Neither the root skambh nor stambh occurs with the pre- position apa. The Pet. Lexs., and Zimmer, 1. c, p. 300, ' the fastening of the point upon the shaft of the arrow ; ' Ludwig, ' widerhaken.' Saya;za has two explanations neither of which is satisfactory, apaskabhyate vidharyate antarikshe iti apaskambha^ kramukavrzksha^ (cf. Kaui". 28, 2, above) tasya ^alyad jakalat . . . yadva avaskabhyate dhanushi dharyate iti apaskambho bana/i. Our own ' tearing (arrow) ' is based upon the supposition that apa + skambh may mean ' uproot/ or the like, as opposite of skambh.
For the parts of the arrow as described here, see
Zimmer, 1. c, p. 300. Saya^a, pra^-anat pralepat . . .
apash/Mt apakr/sh^vasthad etatsaw^Tzad vishopadanat.
We have translated apash/M£ kkrihgkt, ' from its barbed
horn/ deriving ap&shMa from the root as in a^ri, ' corner ; '
cf. ash//nvantau, ' the knees/
Saya/za ascends the dizziest height of absurdity in his rendering of kulmalat, to wit : kutsitaprammala£ ka. yad
376 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA.
udbhuta//z visham, 'the poison sprung from the filth of loathsome animals.'
Saya/za agrees with all Western authorities in deriving apishan from the root pish, to wit : aushadham api;/zshan. He glosses vishagiri by kandamuladivishotpattihetu/z par- vata/z.
IV, 7. Commentary to page 26.
The practices, Kau.y. 28, 1-4, obviously refer to this
hymn as well as IV, 6. See the introduction to the pre-
ceding hymn. Translations are offered by Ludwig, Der
Rigveda, III, 201 ; Grill2, pp. 28, 121 ff. The Anukrama/zi,
vanaspatyam.
All Western interpreters regard varazzavati as a river ; cf., in addition to the authorities given above, Zimmer, Altindisches Leben, p. 20. Saya/za, vara/za n&ma vrzksha- visesh&A te asyam santi*ti vara/z&vati ; cf. vara^a (crataeva roxburghii), AV. VI, 85, 1 ; X, 3, 2 ff., where the same puns upon derivatives of the root var are displayed. The formation of the word vara/zavati might be compared with .ritikavati and hladikavati in RV. X, 16, i4 = AV. XVIII, 3, 60 ; see our Contributions, Second Series, Amer. Journ. Phil. XI, p. 341 ff. Cf. also madavati in st. 4 (cf. IV, 6, 3 c), as a designation of the poisonous plant, vara/zavati would then be the name of the curative plant, the antidote, ' affording protection/ But the ceremonies in the Sutra (28, 1) begin with the use of water, and the appearance of var in Pada a also points to the name of a river.
d. Cf. RV. I, 187, 10; Apast. Sv. XII, 4, 13. Cf. for this and the next stanza the ritual, above, Kau^. 28, 4.
a. In deciding upon the meaning of tiryam we have had in mind the evident concatenation of st. 2 with 3 a, b. The
Iv, 7- Commentary. 377
thought is continued, and, as is customary in catenary con- structions, a new motif is added, tirya//z (sc. visham) in addition to the pra^yam, &c. of stanza 2. Since pra^yam, &c. indicate directions, we have regarded tiryam in the same light, i.e. as a variant of thyank ; cf. X, 2, 11.-24. 25- 28; 8, 19; XI, 4, 25; XV, 3, 6. Saya//a also attributes tiryam to visham, but in the sense of ' secret, hidden,' tiro- bhavam praMannatvena prayuktam. This rendering is certainly possible. The Western translators all err because they attribute the word to karambharn : Pet. Lexs. and Zimmer— tilya, 'made from sesame;5 Ludwig, ' einen breiten kitchen;' Grill emends to atiriya ( = ati + riya), ' overflowing.'
b. The vulgate reads pibasphakam (Padapa/^a in Whit- ney's Index, pfba^ + phakam). Shankar Pandit's MSS. read pibaspakam (Padap. piba^ + pakam) ; Saya?za, piva- spakam, 'a rich mess.' For udarathim, see RV. I, 187, 10. The Pet. Lexs,, and Grill, ' dampfend ; ' Ludwig, ' hoch- aufgegangen ; 5 Saya/za, ' prosperous ' (udriktarti^anakam). Our own translation, 'cheering,' is equally conjectural.
Far from clear (cf. VI, 44, 1). Ludwig, ' wie einen wall (eine aufschiittung) um das dorf richten wir auf;' Grill, upon the basis of the Pet. Lex., ' als wie mit einer heeres- schaar umstellen wir dich mit dem wort' Saya;/a, ' the poison which is heaped up like a throng of people ' (^ana- samuham iva upakitam visham). He adds that the com- parison with the throng suggests the power of the poison (^ramadr/sh/antena vishasya prabalyam uktam), and thus nearly meets our own rendering, which, to be sure, suggests the frequency of the poison, rather than its strength.
a, b. The Sutra (28, 2) ought to be helpful here. Three articles are mentioned there, dunra, a^-ina, and avakara, two of which are given here in the same terms. It would seem to follow that the third, avakara, is identical with pavasta,
378 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA.
and accordingly Saya^a says outright, pavastai^ pavanaya astai^ sainmargamtrimiik. All this may be correct : the implication appears to be that the poisonous plant, itself worthless, is bartered for worthless things, stray wisps of broom-straw, old garments, and worn-out skin. But the word ^arat, ' old,' is not mentioned in the hymn, and the symbolism of the Sutra is obscure ; we cannot therefore regard all this as in any way secure. Moreover the diffi- cult task of making this interpretation fit the only other occurrence of pavasta (dual, pavaste), RV. X, 27, 7, remains. Saya/za quotes the passage and glosses the dual by dyava- przthivi, here as well as in the RV.
Repeated at V, 6, % in an equally obscure connection. Saya^a, ' those enemies, O people, who were hostile to you in the witchcraft-practices which they performed, may they not by these practices injure our men here.'
IV, 8. Commentary to page hi.
This hymn is founded upon certain practices, well known in connection with the consecration of a king throughout the Vedic literature. Professor Weber has recently devoted to this subject a characteristically excellent treatise, ' Uber die Konigsweihe, den Ra^asuya,' Transactions of the Royal Prussian Academy of Sciences, 1893. Two noteworthy performances are indicated in the hymn : the king is sprinkled with water, derived from holy rivers, and mixed with the essence of holy plants (jantyudakam : see Kaay. 17, 1, and 9, 1 fif.) ; and he steps upon a tiger-skin. Both practices figure prominently in the descriptions of the ra^asuya in the Ya^us-sa/^hitas, Brahma^/as, and Sutras : see the index to Weber's treatise under 'salbung,' and * tiger-fell.' The hymn reflects throughout the spirit of antique popular institutions, and a genuine appreciation of the dignity of royalty.
The Atharvan ritual presents it in connection with a
Iv, 8. Commentary. 379
double treatment of the ra^*asuya, either as a more solemn and elaborate priestly jrauta-practice, or a more popular and direct grzhya-practice. The former is given at Vait Su. 36, 1-13 : it presents in a compendious form the practices current in other ^rauta-works, with particular attention to the chronology of the months. The sprinkling (abhishe^aniya) and the tiger-skin figure as the prominent points. The more popular phase of the practice is stated in a double form at Kaiu. 17, 1-29. The first (Kau^. 17, 1-10) is the simplest. Only the king and his chaplain (purohita) are here actively engaged: 1. * While reciting the hymn he who is about to sprinkle a king prepares at the banks of a great river * " holy water " from the ingre- dients prescribed (in st. 5 ; cf. Kaur. 9). 2. He causes a porridge to be cooked, and sprinkles the king who stands upon darbha-grass on the south-side of the vedi (called) parigrz'hya 2. 3. He seats the king upon a couch (placed) on a bull's skin 3. 4. They (the king and the purohita) fill for one another a water-vessel (with water). 5. They exchange them. 6. The Brahman says : " In common to us be the good we do, in common the bad." 7. (The king says) : " He (of us two) who shall do evil, his may the evil be; the good deed alone shall belong to both of us."
8. (The purohita) gives, the porridge (to the king) to eat.
9. Then he causes him to mount a horse, and turn to the north-eastern direction (apara^ita, " the unconquered ").
1 According to Darila near the rivers Ganga, Yamuna, or Sarasvati.
2 Darila, parigrzhya parigrz'hyavedi^ parigrahawam, sa yogo(!). Cf. Tait. S. II, 2, 10, 5; Maitr. S. I, 6, 3 (p. 89, 1. 14); Apast. St. IV, 5, 4, and AV. XII, 1, 13.
3 I fail to see why Professor Weber (1. c, p. 140, note 5) ignores my obvious emendation of talparshabham to talpa (i. e. talpe) arshabham. The bull's skin takes here the place of the tiger-skin. The more elaborate ceremony (mahabhisheka), described in the sequel (Kauj*. 17, n ff.), brings in the tiger-skin. The present form of the ra^asuya is the ' simple one ' (laghu, laghvabhisheka), according to Ke^ava and Sayawa.
380 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA.
10. A thousand (cows), or a choice village, is the fee for the priest.'
The Kausika continues further with another mode of consecration for an ekara^a, 'sole ruler1.' In this the tiger-skin takes the place of the bull's skin. Four princes and a number of servants and subjects participate in this. See Weber, 1. c, p. 14T fT.
The hymn has been translated by Ludwig, Der Rigveda,
III, 458; Weber, I.e., 139. By itself it figures as the
abhishekaga/za in the Ga;zamala, Ath. ParLy. 32, 30.
c, d. The king is all-powerful. But there is yet another
king, more powerful than he, death. Death is present in
person now, as at all times, but he shall assent to the rule
of the king.