General Index to the 49 Volumes of the Sacred Books of the East (SBE Vol. 50; comp. M. Winternitz, 1910)

b. The Pada is formulaic, being repeated at V, 22, 9 b.

b. For the epithet sahasdiksha, see the note on IV, 20, 4. * Thousand-eyed ' here refers to the power of infallibly spy- ing out victims ; cf. especially the ' thousand-eyed curse ' at VI, 37, 1.

VI, 27. Commentary to page 166.

The pigeon as a bird of omen is well known in Teutonic mythology; cf. Gothic hraivadubo, literally * carcass -dove/ as the name of the turtle, and see Grimm, Deutsche Mytho- logie, p. 659 ff. The present hymn is the Atharvanic equivalent of RV. X, 165, 1-3, and the archaic locative &sh/n in 3 b (cf. Ath. Pr&tLs'&khya I, 74) seems to indicate a certain superiority of the Atharvan text, which is, how- ever, not borne out by 2 b and 3 c, whose Rig-vedic form is metrically preferable. Cf. Adbhuta-Brahma/za 6 and 8 (Weber, Omina und Portenta, pp. 325, 330) ; Hultzsch, Prolegomena zu des Vasantar^a vSakuna, p. 7. At Kaus. 46, 7 this and the two following hymns are recited while the 'great consecration5 (maha^anti) is being poured (cf. Kau^-. 9, 6, note). The Anukrama^i defines the three hymns as yamyany uta nairrztani. The present hymn has been treated by Florenz, Bezzenberger's Beitrage, XII, p. 282 ff.

b. The RV., grzheshu for grtham na/z. The Atharvan
reading almost looks as though anaga(/z) were understood
in the sense of 'not arriving' (an-a-ga^). The accent of

Vi, 37- Commentary. 475

the stem is both anagas and anagas, and the Padapa/^a
does not divide it, thus apparently indicating its own doubt
as to the character of the word. Saya;/a, anaparadhaka^.

VI, 29. Commentary to page 166.

For the general character of this hymn and its treat-
ment in the ritual, see the introduction to VI, 27. It has
been treated by Florenz, Bezzenberger's Beitrage, XII,
p. 287 ff.

VI, 32. Commentary to page 36.

The practice connected with this hymn at Kaiu. 31, 3 consists in digging a ditch near the fire, filling it with hot water, and in sacrificing into it a rice-cake after circum- ambulating it thrice and muttering the hymn. The hot water near the fire is doubtless emblematic of the well- known properties of Agni as the most obvious enemy of spooks and uncanny hostile forces. Darila, pi.ya^ana.yanam. The hymn figures also in the £atanaga/za, ' list of hymns with which (demons, &c.) are chased away' in the Ga^amala, Ath. Parii*. 32, 3 (cf. Kauj. 8, 25, note). It has been trans- lated by Florenz, Bezzenberger's Beitrage, XII, 291 fif.

The second hemistich is repeated at VIII, 8, 21. Saya/za
renders ^ataram by abhignam svaminam, 'experienced
master.' Ludwig, Der Rigveda, III, 528, bottom, cder sie
kennt.'

VI, 37. Commentary to page 93.

The hymn is rubricated at Kaui*. 48, 23-26, in prac- tices designed to repel the sorcery-practices of enemies. A white lump (of earth) 1 is given to a dog (cf. st. 3), an

1 So Kcrava and Saya^a, .yvetam/Yttika.

476 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA.

amulet of tkrk/ia.1 is put on, an oblation (of ingu/a-oil, Kaur. 47, 3) is poured, and fagots (of vadhaka-wood, Kaii*. 47, 13 ; cf. AV. VIII, 8, 3) are laid on the fire. The practice is based upon symbolic realisations of suggestions contained in the hymn 2.

Previous translations: Grill2, pp. 25, 161 ff. ; Florenz,
Bezzenberger's Beitrage, XII, 297. The Anukrama/zi,
£andramasam.

a. For the epithet ' thousand-eyed/ see the note on IV,
20, 4, and especially VI, 26, 3. Saya^a identifies it out-
right with Indra, indra^ japatha^ .yapakriyaya^ karta.

d. The sentiment of this Pada and of the first hemistich
of the next stanza are worked up anew in VII, 59. That
mantra is accompanied, Kaus. 47, 37, by an interesting
practice : wood from a tree struck by lightning is put on
the fire, to symbolise the destruction of the enemy by
lightning.

c. pesh/ram may mean 'flesh' rather than 'bone/ in
accordance with our note on IV, 12, 2. Saya/za reads
pesh/am (pish/amaya^ khadyam). For avakshamam (Pada-
pa^a, ava-kshamam) we have ventured a new interpreta-
tion, 'down upon the ground/ from ava and kshaman
'ground.' Saya^a, avadagdham ; Pet. Lex., 'abfindung'
('sop'); Grill, 'brock-en;' Florenz, c knochenrest ;' Boht-

1 According to Darila ' an amulet consisting of a bone ' (? asthi- kamam ; cf. pe'sh/ram in st. 3) ; according to Kcrava and Sayawa ' an amulet of pal aja- wood/ Cf. the mantra in Kauj. 13, 12.

2 Saya«a thinks that st. 3 is referred to in Kaur. 47, 37 under the pratika, y6 nah .rapat. But the lightning is not mentioned in st. 3, but rather in st. 2. Hence the little hymn VII, 59 is doubt- less the one intended at Kauj. 47, 37 : it consists of sentiments contained in VI, 37, 3 and 2, and begins also with the words, yo na>& japat.

Vi, 3^. Commentary. 477

lingk's Lexicon, 'lean;' Whitney in the Index Verborum
shelters the word under the root ksham with ava. Cf. XI,
10, 23.

VI, 38. Commentary to page 116.

This and the next hymn are worked up in the course of the royal rites (ra^akarmam, Kaoy. 14-17). The object of both the hymn and the practices connected with it is to endow a king with var^as, ' lustre,' and more particularly to transfer to him the var^as inherent in men, animals, and brilliant substances. The practice, Kaar. 13, 3-6, is as follows : While reciting VI, 38 and 39, hairs from the navel of a snataka \ a lion, a tiger, a goat, a ram, a bull, or a king, are pasted together with lac, covered with gold, and fastened on as an amulet. Also an amulet prepared from the splinter of ten kinds of (' holy ') wood is put on (see the introduction to II, 9). While reciting the same two hymns, and in addition III, 16 ; VI, 69, and IX, 1, the seven vital organs 2 (of a lion or any of the other animals mentioned above), mixed with a mess of rice, are eaten. The relation of these performances to VI, 38 are obvious.

Both hymns are rubricated further in the course of the practices at the initiation of pupils to the study of the Vedas, Kaur. 139, 15, and they hold membership in the two var£asyaga/zas of the Ga/zamala, Ath. ParLy. 32, 10 and 27 (see Kaus. 12, 10 and 13, 1, notes). Cf. also Ath. Pam. 4, 1; 182, 12.

The two hymns have been translated by Ludwig, Der
Rigveda, III, 240; Florenz, Bezzenberger's Beitrage, XII,
297 ff. The Anukrama^i : ime br/haspatidevatye var^as-
kama^ . . . rzshir apa^yat.

1 A Brahmawa who has performed the ceremony of ablution, required on finishing the period of his disciplehood (brahma/fcarya), before entering the second period of his life, that of a house- holder (grz'hastha). This embodies in practice the word brah- nia^e' in st. 38, 1 b.

2 Darila defines these as padamadhyani nabhih/Ydayaw murdha fa.

478 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA.

The relation of the two hemistichs of each stanza of the
hymn is anacoluthic. It seems best in translation to supply
some such expression as na astu from na etu in Pada d.

b. The rendering of brahma;ze by ' in the Brahma/za ' is
rendered certain by the word snataka in the Sutra above.
Florenz, erroneously, ' im Brahman Agni.'

d. The mention of Indra in all sorts of royal charms is due to the most prominent characteristic of the god, namely strength. Indra is the heavenly rag-an, par excellence. His ever-shadowy mother also is personified strength. Indra is putra^ ^avasa^ and javasa^ sunu^ (RV. VIII, 93, 14 ; IV, 24, 1). See Perry, Journ. Amer. Or. Soc. XI, 130 ff. ; Contributions, Sixth Series, Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenlandischen Gesellschaft, XLVIII, 548.

Cf. the related passage from the var^asya-hymn, IX, 1, 18.

a, b. Ludwig renders dundubhav ayatayam ' in der pauke,
der langezogen tonenden.' This receives a certain support
from Saya^a, ata<iyamanayam, but we prefer to compare
ayata as used of the tightened bowstring, e.g. XI, 2, 1.
For purushasya mayau, cf. XIX, 49, 4.

VI, 39. Commentary to page 117.

For the employment of this hymn in the ritual, and pre- vious translations, see the introduction to VI, 38. The keynote of the present hymn is ya^as (cf. VI, 58), that of the preceding, var^as. The word ya^as seems to be technically the name of the oblation which must have accompanied the recital of the hymn ; see sts. 1 a and 2 a.

a. Ludwig, * als herrlichkeit gedeihe das havis (das ya.ro- havis) ;' Florenz, 4zur ehr' gedeih das havis mir;' Saya/za,

Vi, 42- Commentary. 479

ya^aso hetutvat. It seems difficult to construe yaras as a nominative, in co-ordination with havis, but cf. the bhu- taw havis, VI, 78 1. We may, of course, either emend to ya.yoriavir, or take yiso as an instrumental ; cf. Lanman, Journ. Amer. Or. Soc. X, 562. But, I believe, the con- struction as it stands is technical.

b. Saya/za has for subhrz'tam the rather more acceptable reading suvrztam (sush//zu vartamanam).

a. yarobhir seems to refer directly to the havis in st. 1 ; see the introduction. Saya/za, evasively, kirtibhi^.

VI, 42. Commentary to page 136.

According to the text of the mantra this is a charm to appease wrath in general. But the Kaiuika, 36, 28-31, deals with it in the course of the so-called c women's rites ' (strikarma^zi, 32, 27-36 end), and the commentators are agreed in regarding it as an instance of conflict between two persons of opposite sex. According to Kcsava and Saya?za the charm is practised by a woman against an angry man (her husband, or lover) ; Darila, on the other hand, more naturally ascribes the acts to a man trying to appease an angry woman. These nicer specifications are therefore in all probability secondary. The practice is as follows : The person who desires to appease wrath takes up a stone while reciting st. 1. He places the stone upon the ground while reciting st. 2. He spits around the stone while reciting st. 3. Finally he lays an arrow on a bow while standing in the shadow (of the wrathful person). The last executes the sentiment of st. 1, with rather vague symbolism. The hymn is also recited, at Vait. Su. 1 2, 13, by

1 So also abhivarte'na havisha, RV. X, 174, 1. Ordinarily these havis are accompanied by an adjective, e. g. sa#zsravya#z havis, II, 26, 3; nairbadhyazrc havis, VI, 75, 1. Cf. also VI, 64, 2 ; VI, 87, 3, and Ludwig, Der Rigveda, III, 371 ff.

480 HYMNS OF THE ATHARVA-VEDA.

one who is consecrated for the performance of the soma-
sacrifice (dikshita), if he has been guilty of an outburst of
wrath.

Previous translations by Ludwig, Der Rigveda, III, 515 ;
Florenz, Bezzenberger's Beitrage, XII, 303 ff. ; Grill2, 29,
162. The Anukrama^i, mantroktamanyudevatyam.

The elaboration of this stanza in the Sutra above shows how vaguely punning the connection of the two channels of literature, mantra and sutra, may be at times : the words abhi tish/Mmi of the stanza seem to have suggested abhi- nish/^ivami in the Sutra. Cf, e.g. wSankh. Grth. where the mantra word akshan, ' they have eaten,' is employed as though it meant aksham, ' axle.' This is symbolism gone to seed, but we should err in supposing that the performers of the practices really misunderstood the mantras to that extent. It is the extreme outgrowth of the habit of con- sciously turning to immediate use, in any way at all, materials whose real value is something quite different, and whose true sense may have been well understood.

d. The Pada is formulaic; see I, 34, 2; III, 25, 5 ; VI,
9, 2 ; 43, 3. The entire second hemistich is repeated in
VI, 43> 3-

VI, 43. Commentary to page 137.

The magic power of darbha-grass (cf. XIX, 32) is here employed to appease wrath. According to Kao?. 36, 32, the grass is dug up (in the manner prescribed at Kaor. 33» 9 5 cf. Kejava), and fastened on as a talisman. The Kau^ika, in working up this hymn among the ' women's rites 5 (cf. the introduction to the preceding hymn), is com- mitted to the view that the hymn deals with a conflict between a man and a woman. The text of the hymn, how- ever, reveals no such specific purpose. The hymn has been translated by Florenz, Bezzenberger's Beitrage, XII, 303 ; Grill2, pp. 30, 162. The Anukramam, mantroktamanyu^a- manam.

Vi, 44- Commentary. 48 1

For Pada b, cf. RV. VI, 75, 19. The text of Pada c seems untenable. For vfmanyukasya*yam, Grill suggests vfman- yukaj £a*yam, Florenz, vimanyuko ayam, either of which yields the sense of our translation. Possibly manor vfman- yukasya*yam may be the true reading: 'the appeaser of wrath of the man that is free from wrath it is called ; ' cf. Saya/za, manyo^ manyumata/£ purushasya.

For the second hemistich, and for Pada d, cf. the note on VI, 43, 3.