{"collection":"Hinduism","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/hin/sbe32/sbe3222.htm","path":"hin/sbe32/sbe3222.htm","source_url":"https://sacred-texts.com/hin/sbe32/sbe3222.htm","text":"Vedic Hymns, Part I (SBE32), by Max M\u00fcller, [1891]\n1. Those who glance forth like wives and yoke-fellows 1, the powerful sons of Rudra on their way, they, the Maruts, have indeed made heaven and earth to grow 2; they, the strong and wild, delight in the sacrifices.\n2. When grown up 1, they attained to greatness; the Rudras have established their seat in the sky. While singing their song and increasing their vigour, the sons of Prisni have clothed themselves in beauty 2.\n3. When these sons of the cow (Prisni) 1 adorn themselves with glittering ornaments, the brilliant 2 ones put bright weapons on their bodies 3. They drive away every adversary 4; fatness (rain) streams along their paths;\u2014\n4. When you 1, the powerful, who shine with your spears, shaking even what is unshakable by strength,\u2014when you, O Maruts, the manly hosts 2, had yoked the spotted deer, swift as thought, to your chariots;\u2014\n5. When you had yoked the spotted deer before your chariots, hurling 1 the stone (thunderbolt) in the fight, then the streams of the red-(horse) 2 rush forth: like a skin 3 with water they water the earth.\n6. May the swiftly-gliding, swift-winged horses carry you hither! Come forth with your arms 1! Sit down on the grass-pile; a wide seat has been made for you. Rejoice, O Maruts, in the sweet food 2.\n7. Strong in themselves, they grew 1 with might; they stepped to the firmament, they made their seat wide. When Vishnu 2 saved the enrapturing Soma, the Maruts sat down like birds on their beloved altar.\n8. Like 1 heroes indeed thirsting for fight they rush about; like combatants eager for glory they have striven in battles. All beings are afraid of the Maruts; they are men terrible to behold, like kings.\n9. When the clever Tvashtar 1 had turned the well-made, golden, thousand-edged thunderbolt, Indra takes it to perform his manly deeds 2; he slew Vritra, he forced out the stream of water.\n10. By their power they pushed the well 1 aloft, they clove asunder the rock (cloud), however strong. Blowing forth their voice 2 the bounteous Maruts performed, while drunk of Soma, their glorious deeds.\n11. They pushed the well (cloud) athwart this way, they poured out the spring to the thirsty Gotama. The Maruts with beautiful splendour approach him with help, they in their own ways satisfied the desire of the sage.\n12. The shelters which you have for him who praises you, grant them threefold 1 to the man who gives! Extend the same to us, O Maruts! Give us, ye heroes 2, wealth with valiant offspring!\nThis hymn is ascribed to Gotama. No verse of this hymn occurs in SV., VS.; verse 6 = AV. XX, 13, 2; verse 7 = TS. IV, 1, 11, 3; verse 12 = TS. I, 5, 11, 5; TB. II, 8, 5, 6.\nNote 1. The phrase g\u00e1nayah n\u00e1 s\u00e1ptayah is obscure. As g\u00e1ni has always the meaning of wife, and s\u00e1pti in the singular, dual, and plural means horse, it might be supposed that g\u00e1nayah could be connected with s\u00e1ptayah, so as to signify mares. But although g\u00e1ni is coupled with patn\u00ee, I, 62, 10, in the sense of mother-wife, and though s\u00e1pti is most commonly joined with some other name for horse, yet g\u00e1nayah s\u00e1ptayah never occurs, for the simple reason that it would be too elaborate and almost absurd an expression for vadav\u00e2h. We find s\u00e1pti joined with v\u00e2g\u00edn, I, 162, 1; with r\u00e1thya, II, 31, 7; \u00e1tyam n\u00e1 s\u00e1ptim, III, 22, 1; s\u00e1pt\u00ee h\u00e1r\u00ee, III, 35, 2; \u00e1sv\u00e2 s\u00e1pt\u00ee-iva, VI, 59, 3.\nWe might then suppose the thought of the poet to have been this: What appears before us like race-horses, viz. the storms coursing through the sky, that is really the host of the Maruts. But then g\u00e1nayah remains unexplained, and it is impossible to take g\u00e1nayah n\u00e1 s\u00e1ptayah as two similes, like unto horses, like unto wives.\nI believe, therefore, that we must here take s\u00e1pti in its original etymological sense, which would be ju-mentum, a yoked animal, a beast of draught, or rather a follower, a horse that will follow. S\u00e1pti, therefore, could never be a wild horse, but always a tamed horse, a horse that will go in harness. Cf. IX, 21, 4. hit\u00e2\u00b4h n\u00e1 s\u00e1ptayah r\u00e1the, like horses put to the chariot; or in the singular, IX, 70, 10. hit\u00e1h n\u00e1 s\u00e1ptih, like a harnessed horse. The root is sap, which in the Veda means to follow, to attend on, to worship. But if s\u00e1pti means originally animals that will go\ntogether, it may in our passage have retained the sense of yoke-fellow (\u03c3\u03cd\u03b6\u03c5\u03b3\u03bf\u03c2), and be intended as an adjective to g\u00e1nayah, wives. There is at least one other passage where this meaning would seem to be more appropriate,. viz.\nVIII, 20, 23. y\u00fby\u00e1m sakh\u00e2yah saptayah.\nYou (Maruts), friends and followers! or you, friends and comrades!\nHere it is hardly possible to assign to s\u00e1pti the sense of horse, for the Maruts, though likened to horses, are never thus barely invoked as saptayah!\nIf then we translate, 'Those who glance forth like wives and yoke-fellows,' i. e. like wives of the same husband, the question still recurs how the simile holds good, and how the Maruts rushing forth together in all their beauty can be compared to wives. In answer to this we have to bear in mind that the idea of many wives belonging to one husband (sapatn\u00ee) is familiar to the Vedic poet, and that their impetuously rushing into the arms of their husbands, and appearing before them in all their beauty, are frequent images in their poetry. In such phrases as p\u00e1tim n\u00e1 g\u00e1nayah and g\u00e1nayah n\u00e1 g\u00e1rbham, the ganis, the wives or mothers, are represented as running together after their husbands or children. This impetuous approach the poet may have wished to allude to in our passage also, but though it might have been understood at once by his hearers, it is almost impossible to convey this implied idea in any other language.\nWilson translates: 'The Maruts, who are going forth, decorate themselves like females: they are gliders (through the air), the sons of Rudra, and the doers of good works, by which they promote the welfare of earth and heaven. Heroes, who grind (the solid rocks), they delight in sacrifices.'\nLudwig translates: 'Die ganz besonders sich schm\u00fccken wie frauen, die renner, zu ihrem zuge,' &c. This is possible, yet the simile sounds somewhat forced.\nNote 2. The meaning of this phrase, which occurs very frequently, was originally that the storms by driving away the dark clouds, made the earth and the sky to appear\nlarger and wider. It afterwards takes a more general sense of increasing, strengthening, blessing.\nNote 1. Ukshit\u00e1 is here a participle of vaksh or uksh, to grow, to wax; not of uksh, to sprinkle, to anoint, to inaugurate, as explained by S\u00e2yana. Thus it is said of the Maruts, V, 55, 3. s\u00e2k\u00e1m g\u00e2t\u00e2\u00b4h\u2014s\u00e2k\u00e1m ukshit\u00e2\u00b4h, born together, and grown up together.\nNote 2. The same expression occurs VIII, 28, 5. sapt\u00f3 (iti) \u00e1dhi sr\u00edyah dhire. See also I, 116, 17; IX, 68, 1.\nNote 1. G\u00f3-m\u00e2tri, like g\u00f3-g\u00e2ta, a name of the Maruts, who are also called pr\u00edsni-m\u00e2tarah, sindhu-m\u00e2tarah.\nNote 2. Subhr\u00e1 is applied to the Maruts, I, i9, 5. Otherwise, no doubt, it might refer, as Ludwig remarks, to vir\u00fakmatah, always supposing that vir\u00fakmat is a feminine. Whether tan\u00fbshu subhr\u00e2h can stand for tan\u00fbshu subhr\u00e2su is more doubtful.\nNote 3. Vir\u00fakmatah must be an accusative plural. It occurs I, 127, 3, as an epithet of \u00f3gas; VI, 49, 5, as an epithet of the chariot of the Asvins. In our place, however, it must be taken as a substantive, signifying something which the Maruts wear, probably armour or weapons. This follows chiefly from X, 138, 4. s\u00e1tr\u00fbn asrin\u00e2t vir\u00fakmat\u00e2, Indra tore his enemies with the bright weapon. In VIII, 20, 11, where rukm\u00e1 occurs as a masculine plural, vi bhr\u00e2gante rukm\u00e2\u00b4sah \u00e1dhi b\u00e2h\u00fashu, their bright things shine on their arms, it seems likewise to be meant for weapons; according to S\u00e2yana, for chains. In V, 55, 3; X, 78, 3, the Maruts are called vi-rok\u00ednah, bright like the rays of the sun or the tongues of fire.\nNote 4. Observe the short syllable in the tenth syllable of this P\u00e2da; Benfey, Vedica, p. 124; Lanman, Noun-Inflection, pp. 378, 543.\nNote 1. The sudden transition from the third to the second person is not unusual in the Vedic hymns, the fact\nbeing that where we in a relative sentence should use the same person as that of the principal verb, the Vedic poets frequently use the third.\nNote 2. Vr\u00edsha-vr\u00e2ta is untranslatable for reasons stated p. 138 seq.; it means consisting of companies of vr\u00edshans, in whatever sense that word be taken. Wilson in his translation mistakes \u00e1kyut\u00e2 for \u00e1kyut\u00e2h, and vr\u00e2ta for vrata. He translates the former by 'incapable of being overthrown,' the latter by 'entrusted with the duty of sending rain,' both against the authority of S\u00e2yana. Vr\u00edshavr\u0103ta occurs twice in the Rig-veda as an epithet of Soma only, IX, 62, 11; 64, 1.\nNote 1. If we take \u00e1dri for cloud, then ramh might have the meaning of stirring up.\nV, 32, 2. tv\u00e1m \u00fats\u00e2n rit\u00fa-bhih badbadh\u00e2n\u00e2\u00b4n \u00e1ramhah.\nThou madest the springs to run that had been shut up by the seasons.\nVIII, 19, 6. t\u00e1sya \u00edt \u00e1rvantah ramhayante \u00e2s\u00e1vah. His horses only run quick.\nBut \u00e1dri often means stone, in the sense of weapon, or bolt (cf. adrivah, voc., wielder of the thunderbolt), and ramhayati would then have the meaning of hurling. This is the meaning adopted by Benfey and Ludwig.\nNote 2. The red may be the dark red cloud, but arush\u00e1 has almost become a proper name, and its original meaning of redness is forgotten. Nay, it is possible that arush\u00e1, as applied to the same power of darkness which is best known by the names of Vritra, Dasyu, &c., may never have had the sense of redness, but been formed straight from ar, to hurt, from which arvan, arus, &c. (see p. 65 seq.). It would then mean simply the hurter, the enemy. It is possible also to take arush\u00e1 in the sense of the red horse, the leader between the two Haris, when we ought to remember that the Maruts pour forth the streams of the stallion, RV. V, 83, 6. pr\u00e1 pinvata vr\u00edshnah \u00e1svasya dh\u00e2\u00b4r\u00e2h, and that they lead about the horse to make it rain, RV. I, 64, 6. \u00e1tyam n\u00e1 mih\u00e9 v\u00ed nayanti v\u00e2g\u00ednam.\nNote 3. S\u00e2yana explains: 'They moisten the whole earth like a hide,' a hide representing a small surface which is watered without great effort. Wilson: 'They moisten the earth, like a hide, with water.' Langlois: 'Alors les gouttes d\u2019eau, per\u00e7ant comme la peau de ce (nuage) bienfaisant viennent inonder la terre.' Benfey: 'Dann st\u00fb\u00b4rzen reichlich aus der rothen (Gewitterwolke) Tropfen, mit Fluth wie eine Haut die Erde netzend. (Dass die Erde so durchn\u00e4sst wird, wie durchregnetes Leder.)' If the poet had intended to compare the earth, before it is moistened by rain, to a hide, he might have had in his mind the dryness of a tanned skin, or, as Professor Benfey says, of leather. If, on the contrary, the simile refers to the streams of water, then k\u00e1rma-iva, like a skin, might either be taken in the technical acceptation of the skin through which, at the preparation of the Soma, the streams (dh\u00e2r\u00e2h) of that beverage are squeezed and distilled, or we may take the word in the more general sense of water-skin. In that case the comparison, though not very pointedly expressed, as it would have been by later Sanskrit poets, would still be complete. The streams of the red-(horse), i. e. of the cloud, rush forth, and they, whether the streams liberated by the Maruts, or the Maruts themselves, moisten the earth with water, like a skin, i. e. like a skin in which water is kept and from which it is poured out. The cloud itself being called a skin by Vedic poets (I, 129, 3) makes the comparison still more natural.\nOne other explanation might suggest itself, if the singular of k\u00e1rma should be considered objectionable on account of the plural of the verb. Vedic poets speak of the skin of the earth. Thus:\nX, 68, 4. bh\u00fb\u00b4my\u00e2h udn\u00e2\u00b4-iva vi tv\u00e1kam bibheda.\nHe (Brihaspati) having driven the cows from the cave, cut the skin of the earth, as it were, with water, i. e. saturated it with rain.\nThe construction, however, if we took k\u00e1rma in the sense of surface, would be very irregular, and we should have to translate: They moisten the earth with water like a skin, i. e. skin-deep.\nWe ought to scan k\u0101rm\u1e17v\u014dd\u1eafbh\u012bh v\u012d\u0301 \u016bnd\u0101\u0301nt\u012d bh\u00fb\u0304\u0301m\u0101 for k\u0101rm\u0113v\u0103 \u016dd\u0103bh\u012bh vy\u016bnd\u0101nt\u012d bh\u00fb\u0304m\u0101 would give an unusual c\u00e6sura.\nNote 1. AV. XX, 13, 2. With your arms, i. e. according to S\u00e2yana, with armfuls of gifts. Though this expression does not occur again so baldly, we read I, 166, 10, of the Maruts, that there are many gifts in their strong arms, bh\u00fbr\u00eeni bhadr\u00e2\u00b4 n\u00e1ryeshu b\u00e2h\u00fashu; nor does b\u00e2h\u00fa, as used in the plural, as far as I am able to judge, ever convey any meaning but that of arms. The idea that the Maruts are carried along by their arms as by wings, does not rest on Vedic authority, otherwise we might join raghup\u00e1tv\u00e2nah with b\u00e2h\u00fabhih, come forth swiftly flying on your arms! As it is, and with the accent on the antepenultimate, we must refer raghup\u00e1tv\u00e2nah to s\u00e1ptayah, horses.\nNote 2. The sweet food is Soma.\nNote 1. The initial 'a' of avardhanta must be elided, or 't\u00e9 a' be pronounced as two short syllables equal to one long.\nNote 2. Taitt. S. IV, I, 11, 3. Vishnu, whose character in the hymns of the Veda is very different from that assumed by him in later periods of Hindu religion, must here be taken as the friend and companion of Indra. Like the Maruts, he assisted Indra in his battle against Vritra and the conquest of the clouds. When Indra was forsaken by all the gods, Vishnu came to his help.\nIV, 18, 11. ut\u00e1 m\u00e2t\u00e2\u00b4 mahish\u00e1m \u00e1nu avenat am\u00ee\u00b4 (iti) tv\u00e2 gahati putra dev\u00e2\u00b4h,\n\u00e1tha abrav\u00eet vritr\u00e1m \u00edndrah hanishy\u00e1n s\u00e1khe vishno (\u00edti) vi-tar\u00e1m v\u00ed kramasva.\nThe mother also called after the bull, these gods forsake thee, O son; then, when going to kill Vritra, Indra said, Friend, Vishnu, step forward!\nThis stepping of Vishnu is emblematic of the rising, the culminating, and setting of the sun; and in VIII, 12, 27,\n[paragraph continues] Vishnu is said to perform it through the power of Indra. In VI, 20, 2, Indra is said to have killed Vritra, assisted by Vishnu (v\u00edshnun\u00e2 sak\u00e2n\u00e1h). Vishnu is therefore invoked together with Indra, VI, 69, 8; VII, 99; with the Maruts, V, 87; VII, 36, 9. In VII, 93, 8, Indra, Vishnu, and the Maruts are called upon together. Nay, m\u00e2\u00b4ruta, belonging ta the Maruts, becomes actually an epithet of Vishnu, V, 46, 2. m\u00e2\u00b4ruta ut\u00e1 vishno (iti); and in I, 156, 4. m\u00e2\u00b4rutasya vedh\u00e1sah has been pointed out by Roth as an appellation of Vishnu. The mention of Vishnu in our hymn is therefore by no means exceptional, but the whole purport of this verse is nevertheless very doubtful, chiefly owing to the fact that several of the words occurring in it lend themselves to different interpretations.\nThe translations of Wilson, Benfey, and others have not rendered the sense which the poet intends to describe at all clear. Wilson says: 'May they for whom Vishnu defends (the sacrifice), that bestows all desires and confers delight, come (quickly) like birds, and sit down upon the pleasant and sacred grass.' Benfey: 'Wenn Vishnu sch\u00fctzt den rauschtriefenden tropfenden (Soma), sitzen wie V\u00f6gel sie auf der geliebten Streu.' Langlois: 'Quand Vichnou vient prendre sa part de nos enivrantes libations, eux, comme des oiseaux, arrivent aussi sur le cousa qui leur est cher.' Ludwig: 'Als Vishnu half dem zum rauschtrank eilenden stiere, setzten sie sich wie v\u00f6gel aufs liebe barhis.'\nWhence all these varieties? First, because \u00e2\u00b4vat may mean, he defended or protected, but likewise, it is supposed, he descried, became aware. Secondly, because vr\u00edshan is one of the most vague and hence most difficult words in the Veda, and may mean Indra, Soma, or the cloud: (see the note on Vr\u00edshan, p. 138.) Thirdly, because the adjective belonging to vr\u00edshan, which generally helps us to determine which vr\u00edshan is meant, is here itself of doubtful import, and certainly applicable to Indra as well as to Soma and the Asvins, possibly even to the cloud. Mada-ky\u00fat is readily explained by the commentators as bringing down pride, a meaning which the word might well have in modern Sanskrit, but which it clearly has not in\nthe Veda. Even where the thunderbolt of Indra is called madaky\u00fat, and where the meaning of 'bringing down pride' would seem most appropriate, we ought to translate 'wildly rushing down.'\nVIII, 96, 5. \u00e2\u00b4 y\u00e1t v\u00e1gram b\u00e2hv\u00f3h indra dh\u00e1tse madaky\u00fatam \u00e1haye h\u00e1ntavai \u00fbm (iti).\nWhen thou tookest the wildly rushing thunderbolt in thy arms in order to slay Ahi.\nWhen applied to the gods, the meaning of madaky\u00fat is by no means certain. It might mean rushing about fiercely, reeling with delight, this delight being produced by the Soma, but it may also mean sending down delight, i. e. rain or Soma. The root kyu is particularly applicable to the sending down of rain; cf. Taitt. Samh. II, 4, 9, 2; 10, 3; III, 3, 4, 1; and Indra and his horses, to whom this epithet is chiefly applied, are frequently asked to send down rain. However, madaky\u00fat is also applied to real horses (I, 126, 4) where givers of rain would be an inappropriate epithet. I should therefore translate madaky\u00fat, when applied to Indra, to his horses, to the Asvins, or to horses in general by furiously or wildly moving about, as if 'made or madena kyavate,' he moves in a state of delight, or in a state of intoxication, such as was not incompatible with the character of the ancient gods. Here again the difficulty of rendering Vedic thought in English, or any other modern language, becomes apparent, for we have no poetical word to express a high state of mental excitement produced by drinking the intoxicating juice of the Soma or other plants, which has not something opprobrious mixed up with it, while in ancient times that state of excitement was celebrated as a blessing of the gods, as not unworthy of the gods themselves, nay, as a state in which both the warrior and the poet would perform their highest achievements. The German R a u sc h is the nearest approach to the Sanskrit mada.\nVIII, I, 21. v\u00edsvesh\u00e2m tarut\u00e2\u00b4ram mada-ky\u00fatam m\u00e1de h\u00ed sma d\u00e1d\u00e2ti nah.\nIndra, the conqueror of all, who rushes about in rapture, for in rapture he bestows gifts upon us. Cf. I, 51, 2.\nThe horses of Indra are called madaky\u00fat, I, 81, 3; VIII, 33, 18; 34, 9. Ordinary horses, I, 126, 4.\nIt is more surprising to see this epithet applied to the Asvins, who are generally represented as moving about with exemplary steadiness. However we read:\nVIII, 22, 16. m\u00e1nah-gavas\u00e2 vrishan\u00e2 mada-kyut\u00e2.\nYe two Asvins, quick as thought, powerful, wildly moving; or, as S\u00e2yana proposes, liberal givers, humblers of your enemies. See also VIII, 35, 19.\nMost frequently madaky\u00fat is applied to Soma, X, 30, 9; IX, 32, 1; 53, 4; 79, 2; 108, 11; where particularly the last passage deserves attention, in which Soma is called madaky\u00fatam sah\u00e1sra-dh\u00e2ram vrishabh\u00e1m.\nLastly, even the wealth itself which the Maruts are asked to send down from heaven, most likely rain, is called, VIII, 7, 13, ray\u00edm mada-ky\u00fatam puru-ksh\u00fam visvadh\u00e2yasam.\nIn all these passages we must translate mada-ky\u00fat by bringing delight, showering down delight.\nWe have thus arrived at the conclusion that vr\u00edshanam mada-ky\u00fatam, as used in our passage I, 85, 7, might be meant either for Indra or for Soma. If the Asvins can be called vr\u00edshanau mada-ky\u00fat\u00e2, the same expression would be even more applicable to Indra. On the other hand, if Soma is called vrishabh\u00e1h mada-ky\u00fat, the same Soma may legitimately be called vr\u00edsh\u00e2 inada-ky\u00fat. In deciding whether Indra or Soma be meant, we must now have recourse to other hymns, in which the relations of the Maruts with Vishnu, Soma, and Indra are alluded to.\nIf Indra were intended, and if the first words meant 'When Vishnu perceived the approach of Indra,' we should expect, not that the Maruts sat down on the sacrificial pile, but that they rushed to the battle. The idea that the Maruts come to the sacrifice, like birds, is common enough:\nVIII, 20, 10. vrishanasv\u00e9na marutah vr\u00edsha-psun\u00e2 r\u00e1thena vr\u00edsha-n\u00e2bhin\u00e2, \u00e2\u00b4 syen\u00e2\u00b4sah n\u00e1 paksh\u00ednah vr\u00edth\u00e2 narah havy\u00e2\u00b4 nah v\u00eet\u00e1ye gata.\nCome ye Maruts together, to eat our offerings, on your\nstrong-horsed, strong-shaped, strong-naved chariot, like winged hawks!\nBut when the Maruts thus come to a sacrifice it is to participate in it, and particularly in the Soma that is offered by the sacrificer. This Soma, it is said in other hymns, was prepared by Vishnu for Indra (II, 22, 1), and Vishnu is said to have brought the Soma for Indra (X, 113, 2). If we keep these and similar passages in mind. and consider that in the preceding verse the Maruts have been invited to sit down on the sacrificial pile and to rejoice in the sweet food, we shall see that the same train of thought is carried on in our verse, the only new idea being that the saving or, possibly, the descrying of the Soma is ascribed to Vishnu. See, however, Bergaigne, Journ. Asiat. 1884, p 472.\nNote 1. On na and iva together, see Bollensen, Orient and Occident, II, 470.\nNote 1. Tv\u00e1shtar, the workman of the gods, frequently. also the fashioner and creator.\nNote 2. N\u00e1ri, the loc. sing. of nri, but, if so, with a wrong accent, occurs only in this phrase as used here, and as repeated in VIII, 96, 19. n\u00e1ri \u00e1p\u00e2msi k\u00e1rt\u00e2 s\u00e1h vritrah\u00e2\u00b4. Its meaning is not clear. It can hardly mean 'on man,' without some more definite application. If nri could be used as a name of Vritra or any other enemy, it would mean, to do his deeds against the man, on the enemy. Nri, however, is ordinarily an honorific term, chiefly applied to Indra, IV, 25, 4. n\u00e1re n\u00e1ry\u00e2ya nr\u00ed-tam\u00e2ya nrin\u00e2\u00b4m, and hence its application to Vritra would be objectionable. S\u00e2yana explains it in the sense of battle. I believe that n\u00e1ri stands for n\u00e1ry\u00e2, the acc. plur. neut. of n\u00e1rya, manly, and the frequent epithet of \u00e1pas, and I have translated accordingly. Indra is called n\u00e1rya-apas, VIII, 93, 1. See also Kuhn's Zeitschrift, vol. xxv, p. 601.\nNote 1. Avat\u00e1, a well, here meant for cloud, like \u00fatsa, I, 64, 6.\nNote 2. Dh\u00e1mantah v\u00e2n\u00e1m is translated by S\u00e2yana as playing on the lyre, by Benfey as blowing the flute. Such a rendering, particularly the latter, would be very appropriate, but there is no authority for v\u00e2n\u00e1 meaning either lyre or flute in the Veda. V\u00e2n\u00e1 occurs five times only. In one passage, VIII, 20, 8. g\u00f3bhih v\u00e2n\u00e1h agyate, it means arrow; the arrow is sent forth from the bow-strings. The same meaning seems applicable to IX, 50, I. v\u00e2n\u00e1sya kodaya pav\u00edm. In another passage, IX, 97, 8. pr\u00e1 vadanti v\u00e2n\u00e1m, they send forth their voice, is applied to the Maruts, as in our passage; in IV, 24, 9, the sense is doubtful, but here too v\u00e2n\u00e1 clearly does not mean a musical instrument. See III, 30, 10. Spiegel compares the Huzvaresh and Armenian v\u00e2ng (Pers. b\u00e2nig), voice. M. Senart (Journal Asiatique, 1874, p. 281) is in favour of taking v\u00e2na for flute.\nNote 1. In the Taitt. S. I, 5, 11, we have sasam\u00e2n\u00e2ya, and in the Taitt. Br. II, 8, 5, 6, samsam\u00e2n\u00e2ya, but S\u00e2yana explains sasam\u00e2n\u00e2ya, samsanam kurvate. He explains tridh\u00e2t\u00fbni by asanam, p\u00e2nam, kh\u00e2danam.\nVr\u00edshan.\nNote 2. In vr\u00edshan we have one of those words which it is almost impossible to translate accurately. It occurs over and over again in the Vedic hymns, and if we once know the various ideas which it either expresses or implies, we have little difficulty in understanding its import in a vague and general way, though we look in vain for corresponding terms in any modern language. In the Veda, and in ancient languages generally, one and the same word is frequently made to do service for many. Words retain their general meaning,\u2014though at the same time they are evidently used with a definite purpose. This is not only a peculiar phase of language, but a peculiar phase of thought, and as to us this phase has become strange and unreal, it is very difficult to transport ourselves back into it, still more to translate the pregnant terms of the Vedic poets into the definite languages which we have to use. Let us imagine a state of\nthought and speech in which virtus still meant manliness, though it might also be applied to the virtue of a woman; or let us try to speak and think a language which expressed the bright and the divine, the brilliant and the beautiful, the straight and the right, the bull and the hero, the shepherd and the king by the same terms, and we shall see how difficult it would be to translate such terms without losing either the key-note that was still sounding, or the harmonics which were set vibrating by it in the minds of the poets and their listeners.\n1. Vr\u00edshan, male.\nVr\u00edshan, being derived from a root vrish, spargere, meant no doubt originally the male, whether applied to animals or men. In this sense vr\u00edshan occurs frequently in the Veda, either as determining the sex of the animal which is mentioned, or as standing by itself and meaning the male. In either case, however, it implies the idea of strength and eminence, which we lose whether we translate it by man or male.\nThus \u00e1sva is horse, but VII, 69, 1, we read:\n\u00e2\u00b4 v\u00e2m r\u00e1thah\u2014vr\u00edsha-bhih y\u00e2tu \u00e1svaih.\nMay your chariot come near with powerful horses, i. e. with stallions.\nThe H\u00e1ris, the horses of Indra, are frequently called vr\u00edshan\u00e2\nI, 177, 1. yuktv\u00e2\u00b4 h\u00e1r\u00ee (iti) vr\u00edshan\u00e2.\nHaving yoked the bay stallions.\nVrishab\u00e1, though itself originally meaning the male animal, had become fixed as the name of the bull, and in this process it had lost so much of its etymological import that the Vedic poet did not hesitate to define vrishabh\u00e1 itself by the addition of vr\u00edshan. Thus we find:\nVIII, 93, 7. s\u00e1h vr\u00edsh\u00e2 vrishabh\u00e1h bhuvat.\nMay he (Indra) be a strong bull.\nI, 54, 2. vr\u00edsh\u00e2 vrisha-tv\u00e2\u00b4 vrishabh\u00e1h.\nIndra by his strength a strong bull; but, literally, Indra by his manliness a male bull.\nEven vrishabh\u00e1 loses again its definite meaning; and as\nbull in bull-calf means simply male, or in bull-trout, large, so vrishabh\u00e1 is added to \u00e1tya, horse, to convey the meaning of large or powerful:\nI, 177, 2. y\u00e9 te vr\u00edshanah vrishabh\u00e2\u00b4sah indra\u2014\u00e1ty\u00e2h. Thy strong and powerful horses; literally, thy male bull-horses.\nWhen vr\u00edshan and vrishabh\u00e1 are used as adjectives, for instance with s\u00fashma, strength, they hardly differ in meaning:\nVI, 19, 8. \u00e2\u00b4 nah bhara vr\u00edshanam s\u00fashmam indra.\nBring us thy manly strength, O Indra.\nAnd in the next verse:\nVI, 19, 9. \u00e2\u00b4 te s\u00fashmah vrishabh\u00e1h etu.\nMay thy manly strength come near.\nV\u00e1msaga, too, which is clearly the name for bull, is defined by vr\u00edshan, I, 7, 8:\nvr\u00edsh\u00e2 y\u00fbth\u00e2\u00b4-iva v\u00e1msagah.\nAs the strong bull scares the herds.\nThe same applies to var\u00e2\u00b4ha, which, though by itself meaning boar, is determined again by vr\u00edshan:\nX, 67, 7. vr\u00edsha-bhih var\u00e2\u00b4haih.\nWith strong boars.\nIn III, 2, 11, we read:\nvr\u00edsh\u00e2\u2014n\u00e2\u00b4nadat n\u00e1 simh\u00e1h.\nLike a roaring lion.\nIf used by itself, vr\u00edshan, at least in the Rig-veda, can hardly be said to be the name of any special animal, though in later Sanskrit it may mean bull or horse. Thus if we read, X, 43, 8, vr\u00edsh\u00e2 n\u00e1 kruddh\u00e1h, we can only translate like an angry male, though, no doubt, like a wild bull, would seem more appropriate.\nI, 186, 5. y\u00e9na n\u00e1p\u00e2tam ap\u00e2\u00b4m gun\u00e2\u00b4ma manah-g\u00favah vr\u00edshanah y\u00e1m v\u00e1hanti.\nThat we may excite the son of the water (Agni), whom the males, quick as thought, carry along.\nHere the males are no doubt the horses or stallions of Agni. But, though this follows from the context, it would be wrong to say that vr\u00edshan by itself means horse.\nIf used by itself, vr\u00edshan most frequently means man, and chiefly in his sexual character. Thus:\nI, 140, 6. vr\u00edsh\u00e2-iva p\u00e1tn\u00eeh abh\u00ed eti r\u00f3ruvat.\nAgni comes roaring like a husband to his wives.\nI, 179, i. \u00e1pi \u00fbm (\u00edti) n\u00fa p\u00e1tn\u00eeh vr\u00edshanah gagamyuh.\nWill the husbands now come to their wives?\nII, 16, 8. sakr\u00edt s\u00fa te sumat\u00ed-bhih\u2014s\u00e1m p\u00e1tn\u00eebhih n\u00e1 vr\u00edshanah nas\u00eemahi.\nMay we for once cling firmly to thy blessings, as husbands cling to their wives.\nV, 47, 6. upa-praksh\u00e9 vr\u00edshanah m\u00f3dam\u00e2n\u00e2h div\u00e1h path\u00e2\u00b4 vadhv\u00e3h yanti \u00e1kkha.\nThe exulting men come for the embrace on the path of heaven towards their wives.\nIn one or two passages vr\u00edshan would seem to have a still more definite meaning, particularly in the formula s\u00fb\u00b4rah dr\u00eds\u00eeke vr\u00edshanah ka pa\u00fbmsye, which occurs IV, 41, 6; X, 92, 7. See also I, 179, 1.\nIn all the passages which we have hitherto examined vr\u00edshan clearly retained its etymological meaning, though even then it was not always possible to translate it by mal e.\nThe same meaning has been retained in other languages in which this word can be traced. Thus, in Zend, arshan (the later gushan) is used to express the sex of animals in such expressions as aspah\u00e9 arshn\u00f4, gen. a male horse; var\u00e2zahe arshn\u00f4, gen. a male boar; g\u00e9us arshn\u00f4, gen. a male ox; but likewise in the sense of man or hero, as arsha husrava, the hero Husrava. In Greek we find \u1f04\u03c1\u03c3\u03b7\u03bd and \u1f04\u1fe4\u1fe5\u03b7\u03bd used in the same way to distinguish the sex of animals, as \u1f04\u03c1\u03c3\u03b5\u03bd\u03b5\u03c2 \u1f35\u03c0\u03c0\u03bf\u03b9, \u03b2\u03bf\u1fe6\u03bd \u1f04\u03c1\u03c3\u03b5\u03bd\u03b1. In Latin the same word may be recognised in the proper name Varro, and in v\u00e2ro and b\u00e2ro.\nWe now come to another class of passages in which vr\u00edshan is clearly intended to express more than merely the masculine gender. In some of them the etymological meaning of spargere, to pour forth, seems to come out again, and it is well known that Indian commentators are very fond of explaining vr\u00edshan by giver of rain, giver of\ngood gifts, bounteous. The first of these meanings may indeed be admitted in certain passages, but in others it is more than doubtful.\nII. Vr\u00edshan, fertilising.\nI, 181, 8. vr\u00edsh\u00e2 v\u00e2m megh\u00e1h may be translated, your raining cloud.\nI, 129, 3. dasm\u00e1h h\u00ed sma vr\u00edshanam pinvasi tv\u00e1kam.\nThou art strong, thou fillest the rainy skin, i. e. the cloud.\nSee also IV, 22, 6; and possibly V, 83, 6.\nIt may be that, when applied to Soma too, vr\u00edshan retained something of its etymological meaning, that it meant gushing forth, poured out, though in many places it is impossible to render vr\u00edshan, as applied to Soma, by anything but strong. All we can admit is that vr\u00edshan, if translated by strong, means also strengthening and invigorating, an idea not entirely absent even in our expression, a strong drink.\nIII. Vr\u00edshan, strong.\nI, 80, 2. s\u00e1h tv\u00e2 amadat vr\u00edsh\u00e2 m\u00e1dah, s\u00f3mah\u2014sut\u00e1h.\nThis strong draught inspirited thee, the poured out Soma-juice.\nI, 91, 2. tv\u00e1m vr\u00edsh\u00e2 vrisha-tv\u00e9bhih.\nThou, Soma, art strong by strength.\nI, 175, 1. vr\u00edsh\u00e2 te vr\u00edshne \u00ednduh v\u00e2g\u00ee\u00b4 sahasra-s\u00e2\u00b4tamah.\nFor thee, the strong one, there is strong drink, powerful, omnipotent.\nIn the ninth Mandala, specially dedicated to the praises of Soma, the inspiriting beverage of gods and men, the repetition of vr\u00edshan, as applied to the juice and to the god who drinks it, is constant. Indo vr\u00edsh\u00e2 or vr\u00edsh\u00e2 indo are incessant invocations, and become at last perfectly meaningless.\nIV. Vr\u00edshan, epitheton ornans.\nThere can be no doubt, in fact, that already in the hymns of the Veda, vr\u00edshan had dwindled away to a mere epitheton ornans, and that in order to understand it correctly, we must, as much as possible, forget its etymological\ncolouring, and render it by hero or strong. Indra, Agni, the Asvins, Vishnu, the Ribhus (IV, 35, 6), all are vr\u00edshan, which means no longer male, but manly, strong.\nIn the following passages vr\u00edshan is thus applied to Indra:\nI, 54, 2. y\u00e1h dhrishn\u00fan\u00e2 s\u00e1vas\u00e2 r\u00f3das\u00ee (\u00edti) ubh\u00e9 (\u00edti) vr\u00edsh\u00e2 vrisha-tv\u00e2\u00b4 vrishabh\u00e1h ni-ri\u00f1g\u00e1te.\n(Praise Indra) who by his daring strength conquers both heaven and earth, a bull, strong in strength.\nI, 100, 1. s\u00e1h y\u00e1h vr\u00edsh\u00e2 vr\u00edshnyebhih s\u00e1m-ok\u00e2h mah\u00e1h div\u00e1h prithivy\u00e2\u00b4h ka sam-r\u00e2\u00b4t sat\u00een\u00e1-satv\u00e2 h\u00e1vyah bh\u00e1reshu mar\u00fbtv\u00e2n nah bhavatu \u00edndrah \u00fbt\u00ee\u00b4.\nHe who is strong, wedded to strength, who is the king of the great sky and the earth, of mighty might, to be invoked in battles,\u2014may Indra with the Maruts come to our help!\nI, 16, 1. \u00e2\u00b4 tv\u00e2 vahantu h\u00e1rayah vr\u00edshanam s\u00f3ma-p\u00eetaye, Indra tv\u00e2 s\u00fb\u00b4ra-kakshasah.\nMay the bays bring thee hither, the strong one, to the Soma-draught, may the sunny-eyed horses (bring) thee, O Indra!\nIV, 16, 20. ev\u00e1 \u00edt \u00edndr\u00e2ya vrishabh\u00e2\u00b4ya vr\u00edshne br\u00e1hma akarma bhr\u00edgavah n\u00e1 r\u00e1tham.\nThus we have made a hymn for Indra, the strong bull, as the Bhrigus make a chariot.\nX, 153, 2. tv\u00e1m vrishan vr\u00edsh\u00e2 \u00edt asi.\nThou, O hero, art indeed a hero; and not, Thou, O male, art indeed a male; still less, Thou, O bull, art indeed a bull.\nI, 101, 1. avasy\u00e1vah vr\u00edshanam v\u00e1gra-dakshinam mar\u00fatvantam sakhy\u00e2\u00b4ya hav\u00e2mahe.\nLonging for help we call as our friend the hero who wields the thunderbolt, who is accompanied by the Maruts.\nVIII, 6, 14. n\u00ed s\u00fashne indra dharnas\u00edm v\u00e1gram gaghantha d\u00e1syavi, vr\u00edsh\u00e2 h\u00ed ugra srinvish\u00e9.\nThou, O Indra, hast struck the strong thunderbolt against Sushna, the fiend; for, terrible one, thou art called hero!\nVIII, 6, 40. vavridh\u00e2n\u00e1h \u00fbpa dy\u00e1vi vr\u00edsh\u00e2 vagr\u00ee\u00b4 arorav\u00eet, vritra-h\u00e2\u00b4 soma-p\u00e2\u00b4tamah.\nGrowing up by day, the hero with the thunderbolt has roared, the Vritra-killer, the great Soma-drinker.\nV, 35, 4. vr\u00edsh\u00e2 h\u00ed \u00e1si r\u00e2\u00b4dhase gag\u00f1ish\u00e9 vr\u00edshni te s\u00e1vah.\nThou (Indra) art a hero, thou wast born to be bounteous; in thee, the hero, there is might.\nV. V\u00e1rshishtha, strongest, best, oldest.\nIt is curious to watch the last stage of the meaning of vr\u00edshan in the comparative and superlative v\u00e1rsh\u00eeyas and v\u00e1rshishtha. In the Veda, v\u00e1rshishtha still means excellent, but in later Sanskrit it is considered as the superlative of vriddha, old, so that we see vr\u00edshan, from meaning originally manly, vigorous, young, assuming in the end the meaning of old. (M. M., Sanskrit Grammar, \u00a7 252.)\nYet even thus, when vr\u00edshan means simply strong or hero, its sexual sense is not always forgotten, and it breaks out, for instance, in such passages as,\nI, 32, 7. vr\u00edshnah v\u00e1dhrih prati-m\u00e2\u00b4nam b\u00fabh\u00fbshan purutr\u00e2\u00b4 vritr\u00e1h asayat v\u00ed-astah.\nVritra, the eunuch, trying to be like unto a man (like unto Indra), was lying, broken to many pieces.\nThe next passages show vr\u00edshan as applied to Agni:\nIII, 27, 15. vr\u00edshanam tv\u00e2 vay\u00e1m vrishan vr\u00edshanah s\u00e1m idh\u00eemahi.\nO, strong one, let us the strong ones kindle thee, the strong!\nV, I, 12. \u00e1vok\u00e2ma kav\u00e1ye m\u00e9dhy\u00e2ya v\u00e1kah vand\u00e2\u00b4ru vrishabh\u00e2\u00b4ya vr\u00edshne.\nWe have spoken an adoring speech for the worshipful poet, for the strong bull (Agni).\nVishnu is called vr\u00edshan, I, 154, 3:\npr\u00e1 v\u00edshnave s\u00fbsh\u00e1m etu m\u00e1nma giri-ksh\u00edte uru-g\u00e2y\u00e2\u00b4ya vr\u00edshne.\nMay this hymn go forth to Vishnu, he who dwells in the mountain\"(cloud), who strides wide, the hero!\nRudra is called vr\u00edshan:\nII, 34, 2. rudr\u00e1h y\u00e1t vah marutah rukma-vakshasah vr\u00edsh\u00e2 \u00e1gani pr\u00edsnyah sukr\u00e9 \u00fb\u00b4dhani.\nWhen Rudra, the strong man, begat you, O Maruts with\nbright ornaments on your chests, in the bright lap of Prisni.\nThat the Maruts, the sons of Rudra, are called vr\u00edshan, we have seen before, and shall see frequently again (I, 165, 1; II, 33, 13; VII, 56, 20; 21; 58, 6). The whole company of the Maruts is called vr\u00edsh\u00e2 gan\u00e1h, the strong or manly host, i. e. the host of the Maruts, without any further qualification.\nVI. Vr\u00edshan, name of various deities.\nHere lies, indeed, the chief difficulty which is raised by the common use of vr\u00edshan in the Veda, that when it occurs by itself, it often remains doubtful who is meant by it, Indra, or Soma, or the Maruts, or some other deity. We shall examine a few of these passages, and first some where vr\u00edshan refers to Indra:\nIV, 30, 10. \u00e1pa ush\u00e2\u00b4h \u00e1nasah sarat s\u00e1m-pisht\u00e2t \u00e1ha bibhy\u00fash\u00ee, n\u00ed y\u00e1t s\u00eem sisn\u00e1that vr\u00edsh\u00e2.\nUshas went away from her broken chariot, fearing lest the hero should do her violence.\nHere vr\u00edshan is clearly meant for Indra, who, as we learn from the preceding verse, was trying to conquer Ushas, as Apollo did Daphne; and it should be observed that the word itself, by which Indra is here designated, is particularly appropriate to the circumstances.\nI, 103, 6. bh\u00fb\u00b4ri-karmane vrishabh\u00e2\u00b4ya vr\u00edshne saty\u00e1-sushm\u00e2ya sunav\u00e2ma s\u00f3mam, y\u00e1h \u00e2-dr\u00edtya paripanth\u00ee\u00b4-iva s\u00fb\u00b4rah \u00e1yagvanah vi-bh\u00e1gan \u00e9ti v\u00e9dah.\nLet us pour out the Soma for the strong bull, the performer of many exploits, whose strength is true, the hero who, watching like a footpad, comes to us dividing the wealth of the infidel.\nHere it is clear again from the context that Indra only can be meant.\nBut in other passages this is more doubtful:\nIII, 61, 7. rit\u00e1sya budhn\u00e9 ush\u00e1s\u00e2m ishany\u00e1n vr\u00edsh\u00e2 mah\u00ee\u00b4 (\u00edti) r\u00f3das\u00ee (\u00edti) \u00e2\u00b4 vivesa.\nThe hero in the depth of the heaven, yearning for the dawns, has entered the great sky and the earth.\nThe hero who yearns for the dawns, is generally Indra; here, however, considering that Agni is mentioned in the preceding verse, it is more likely that this god, as the light of the morning, may have been meant by the poet. That Agni, too, may be called vr\u00edshan, without any other epithet to show that he is meant rather than any other god, is clear from such passages as,\nVI, 3, 7. vr\u00edsh\u00e2 ruksh\u00e1h \u00f3shadh\u00eeshu n\u00fbnot.\nHe the wild hero shouted among the plants.\nIn VII, 60, 9, vrishanau, the dual, is meant for Mitra and Varuna; in the next verse, vrishanah, the plural, must mean the same gods and their companions.\nThat Soma is called simply vr\u00edshan, not only in the ninth Mandala, but elsewhere, too, we see from such passages as,\nIII, 43, 7. \u00edndra p\u00edba vr\u00edsha-dh\u00fbtasya vr\u00edshnah (\u00e2\u00b4 y\u00e1m te syen\u00e1h usat\u00e9 gabh\u00e2\u00b4ra), y\u00e1sya m\u00e1de kyav\u00e1yasi pr\u00e1, krisht\u00ee\u00b4h y\u00e1sya m\u00e1de \u00e1pa gotr\u00e2\u00b4 vav\u00e1rtha.\nIndra drink of the male (the strong Soma), bruised by the males (the heavy stones), inspirited by whom thou makest the people fall down, inspirited by whom thou hast opened the stables.\nHere S\u00e2yana, too, sees rightly that 'the male bruised by the males' is the Soma-plant, which, in order to yield the intoxicating juice, has to be bruised by stones, which stones are again likened to two males. But unless the words, enclosed in brackets, had stood in the text, words which clearly point to Soma, I doubt whether S\u00e2yana would have so readily admitted the definite meaning of vr\u00edshan as Soma.\nI, 109, 3. m\u00e2\u00b4 khedma rasm\u00ee\u00b4n \u00edti n\u00e2\u00b4dham\u00e2n\u00e2h pitr\u00een\u00e2\u00b4m sakt\u00ee\u00b4h anu-y\u00e1kkham\u00e2n\u00e2h, indr\u00e2gn\u00ed-bhy\u00e2m k\u00e1m vr\u00edshanah madanti t\u00e2\u00b4 h\u00ed \u00e1dr\u00ee (\u00edti) dhish\u00e1n\u00e2y\u00e2h up\u00e1-sthe.\nWe pray, let us not break the cords (which, by means of the sacrifices offered by each generation of our forefathers, unite us with the gods); we strive after the powers of our fathers. The Somas rejoice for Indra and Agni; for the two stones are in the lap of the vessel.\nFirst, as to the construction, the fact that participles are thus used as finite verbs, and particularly when the subject changes in the next sentence, is proved by other passages,\nsuch as II, 11, 4. The sense is that the new generation does not break the sacrificial succession, but offers Soma, like their fathers. The Soma-plants are ready, and, when pressed by two stones, their juice flows into the Soma-vessel. There may be a double entendre in dhish\u00e1n\u00e2y\u00e2h up\u00e1-sthe, which Sanskrit scholars will easily perceive.\nWhen vr\u00edshan is thus used by itself, we must be chiefly guided by the adjectives or other indications before we determine on the most plausible translation. Thus we read:\nI, 55, 4. s\u00e1h \u00edt v\u00e1ne namasy\u00fa-bhih vakasyate k\u00e2\u00b4ru g\u00e1neshu pra-bruv\u00e2n\u00e1h indriy\u00e1m, vr\u00edsh\u00e2 kh\u00e1nduh bhavati haryat\u00e1h vr\u00edsh\u00e2 ksh\u00e9mena dh\u00e9n\u00e2m magh\u00e1-v\u00e2 y\u00e1t \u00ednvati.\nIn the first verse the subject may be Indra or Soma: 'He alone is praised by worshippers in the forest (or in the wooden vessel), he who shows forth among men his fair power.' But who is meant to be the subject of the next verse? Even S\u00e2yana is doubtful. He translates first: 'The bounteous excites the man who wishes to sacrifice; when the sacrificer, the rich, by the protection of Indra, stirs up his voice.' But he allows an optional translation for the last sentences: when the powerful male, Indra, by his enduring mind reaches the praise offered by the sacrificer.'\nAccording to these suggestions, Wilson translated: He (Indra) is the granter of their wishes (to those who solicit him); he is the encourager of those who desire to worship (him), when the wealthy offerer of oblations, enjoying his protection, recites his praise.\nBenfey: The bull becomes friendly, the bull becomes desirable, when the sacrificer kindly advances praise.\nLanglois: When the noble Maghavan receives the homage of our hymns, his heart is flattered, and he responds to the wishes of his servant by his gifts.\nAs far as I know, the adjective kh\u00e1ndu does not occur again, and can therefore give us no hint. But haryat\u00e1, which is applied to vr\u00edshan in our verse, is the standing epithet of Soma. It means delicious, and occurs very frequently in the ninth Mandala. It is likewise applied. to Agni, P\u00fbshan, the Haris, the thunderbolt, but wherever\nit occurs our first thought is of Soma. Thus, without quoting from the Soma-Mandala, we read, X, 96, 1, haryat\u00e1m m\u00e1dam, the delicious draught, i. e. Soma.\nX, 96, 9. p\u00eetv\u00e2\u00b4 m\u00e1dasya haryat\u00e1sya \u00e1ndhasah, means having drunk of the draught of the delicious Soma.\nVIII, 72, 18. pad\u00e1m haryat\u00e1sya ni-dh\u00e2ny\u00e2\u00b4m, means the place where the delicious Soma resides.\nIII, 44, 1. haryat\u00e1h s\u00f3mah.\nDelicious Soma.\nII, 21, 1. bhara \u00edndr\u00e2ya s\u00f3mam yagat\u00e2\u00b4ya haryat\u00e1m.\nBring delicious Soma for the holy Indra.\nI, 130, 2. m\u00e1d\u00e2ya haryat\u00e2\u00b4ya te tuv\u00edh-tamaya dh\u00e2\u00b4yase.\nThat thou mayest drink the delicious and most powerful draught, i. e. the Soma.\nIf, then, we know that vr\u00edshan by itself is used in the sense of Soma, haryat\u00e1 vr\u00edshan can hardly be anything else. Vakasyate also is peculiar to Soma in the sense of murmuring, or as it were talking, .and never occurs as a passive. I therefore should prefer to assign the whole verse to Soma, and translate: He indeed, when in the wooden vessel, talks with his worshippers, proclaiming his fair power among men; the strong Soma is pleasing, the strong Soma is delicious, when the sacrificer safely brings the cow, i. e. the milk to be mixed with the Soma.\nThat Indra was thirsting for Soma had been said in the second verse, and he is again called the Soma-drinker in the seventh verse. A verse dedicated to Soma therefore seems to come in quite naturally, though the Anukraman\u00ee does not sanction it.\nThat the Maruts are called vr\u00edshan, without further explanations, will appear from the following passages:\nI, 85, 12. ray\u00edm nah dhatta vrishanah su-v\u00ee\u00b4ram.\nGive us wealth, ye heroes, consisting of good offspring.\nVIII, 96, 14. \u00edshy\u00e2mi vah vrishanah y\u00fadhyata \u00e2ga\u00fa.\nI wish for you, heroes (Maruts), fight in the race!\nIn all the passages which we have hitherto examined, vr\u00edshan was always applied to living beings, whether animals, men, or gods. But as, in Greek, \u1f04\u03c1\u03c3\u03b7\u03bd means at last simply strong, and is applied, for instance, to the\ncrash of the sea, \u03ba\u03c4\u03cd\u03c0\u03bf\u03c2 \u1f04\u03c1\u03c3\u03b7\u03bd \u03c0\u03cc\u03bd\u03c4\u03bf\u03c5, so in the Veda vr\u00edshan is applied to the roaring of the storms and similar objects.\nV, 87, 5. svan\u00e1h vr\u00edsh\u00e2.\nYour powerful sound (O Maruts).\nX, 47, 1. gagribhm\u00e1 te d\u00e1kshinam indra h\u00e1stam vasuy\u00e1vah vasu-pate v\u00e1s\u00fbn\u00e2m, vidm\u00e1 h\u00ed tv\u00e2 g\u00f3-patim s\u00fbra g\u00f3n\u00e2m asm\u00e1bhyam kitr\u00e1m vr\u00edshanam ray\u00edm d\u00e2h.\nWe have taken thy right hand, O Indra, wishing for treasures, treasurer of treasures, for we know thee, O hero, to be the lord of cattle; give us bright and strong wealth.\nShould kitr\u00e1 here refer to treasures, and vr\u00edshan to cattle?\nX, 89, 9. n\u00ed am\u00edtreshu vadh\u00e1m indra t\u00famram vr\u00edshan vr\u00edshanam arush\u00e1m sis\u00eehi.\nWhet, O hero, the heavy strong red weapon against the enemies.\nThe long \u00e2 in vr\u00edshanam is certainly startling, but it occurs once more, IX, 34, 3, where there can be no doubt that it is the accusative of vr\u00edshan. Professor Roth takes vr\u00edshan here in the sense of bull (s. v. tumra), but he does not translate the whole passage.\nIII, 29, 9. krin\u00f3ta dh\u00fbm\u00e1m vr\u00edshanam sakh\u00e2yah.\nMake a mighty smoke, O friends!\nStrength itself is called vr\u00edshan, if I am right in translating the phrase vr\u00edshanam s\u00fashmam by manly strength. It occurs,\nIV, 24, 7. t\u00e1smin dadhat vr\u00edshanam s\u00fashmam \u00edndrah.\nIndra may give to him manly strength.\nBring to us, O Indra, manly strength.\nVII, 24, 4. asm\u00e9 (\u00edti) d\u00e1dhat vr\u00edshanam s\u00fashmam indra.\nGiving to us, O Indra, manly strength.\nSee also VI, 19, 9, s\u00fashmah vrishabh\u00e1h, used in the same sense.\nVII. Vr\u00edshan, general and empty term of praise.\nThis constant play on the word vr\u00edshan, which we have observed in the passages hitherto examined, and which give by no means a full idea of the real frequency of its\noccurrence in the Veda, has evidently had its influence on the Vedic Rishis, who occasionally seem to delight in the most silly and unmeaning repetitions of this word, and its compounds and derivatives. Here no language can supply any adequate translation; for though we may translate words which express thoughts, it is useless to attempt to render mere idle play with words. I shall give a few instances:\nI, 177, 3. \u00e2\u00b4 tishtha r\u00e1tham vr\u00edshanam vr\u00edsh\u00e2 te sut\u00e1h s\u00f3mah p\u00e1ri-sikt\u00e2 m\u00e1dh\u00fbni, yuktv\u00e2\u00b4 vr\u00edsha-bhy\u00e2m vrishabha kshit\u00een\u00e2\u00b4m h\u00e1ri-bhy\u00e2m y\u00e2hi pra-v\u00e1t\u00e2 \u00fapa madr\u00edk.\nMount the strong car, the strong Soma is poured out for thee, sweets are sprinkled round; come down towards us, thou bull of men, with the strong bays, having yoked them.\nBut this is nothing yet compared to other passages, when the poet cannot get enough of vr\u00edshan and vrishabh\u00e1.\nII, 16, 6. vr\u00edsh\u00e2 te v\u00e1grah ut\u00e1 te vr\u00edsh\u00e2 r\u00e1thah vr\u00edshan\u00e2 h\u00e1r\u00ee (\u00edti) vrishabh\u00e2\u00b4ni \u00e2\u00b4yudh\u00e2, vr\u00edshnah m\u00e1dasya vrishabha tv\u00e1m \u00eesishe indra s\u00f3masya vrishabh\u00e1sya tripnuhi.\nThy thunderbolt is strong, and thy car is strong, strong are the bays, the weapons are powerful, thou, bull, art lord of the strong draught, Indra rejoice in the powerful Soma!\nV, 36, 5. vr\u00edsh\u00e2 tv\u00e2 vr\u00edshanam vardhatu dya\u00fah vr\u00edsh\u00e2 vr\u00edsha-bhy\u00e2m vahase h\u00e1ri-bhy\u00e2m, s\u00e1h nah vr\u00edsh\u00e2 vr\u00edsharathah su-sipra vr\u00edsha-krato (iti) vr\u00edsh\u00e2 vagrin bh\u00e1re dh\u00e2h.\nMay the strong sky increase thee, the strong; a strong one thou art, carried by two strong bays; do thou who art strong, with a strong car, O thou of strong might, strong holder of the thunderbolt, keep us in battle!\nV, 40, 2-3. vr\u00edsh\u00e2 gr\u00e2\u00b4v\u00e2 vr\u00edsh\u00e2 m\u00e1dah vr\u00edsh\u00e2 s\u00f3mah ay\u00e1m sut\u00e1h, vr\u00edshan indra vr\u00edsha-bhih vritrahan-tama, vr\u00edsh\u00e2 tv\u00e2 vr\u00edshanam huve.\nThe stone is strong, the draught is strong, this Soma that has been poured out is strong, O thou strong Indra, who killest Vritra with the strong ones (the Maruts), I, the strong, call thee, the strong.\nVIII, 13, 31-33. vr\u00edsh\u00e2 ay\u00e1m indra te r\u00e1thah ut\u00f3 (\u00edti) te\nvr\u00edshan\u00e2 h\u00e1r\u00ee (\u00edti), vr\u00edsh\u00e2 tv\u00e1m sata-krato (\u00edti) vr\u00edsh\u00e2 h\u00e1vah. vr\u00edsh\u00e2 gr\u00e2\u00b4v\u00e2 vr\u00edsh\u00e2 m\u00e1dah vr\u00edsh\u00e2 s\u00f3mah ay\u00e1m sut\u00e1h, vr\u00edsh\u00e2 yag\u00f1\u00e1h y\u00e1m \u00ednvasi vr\u00edsh\u00e2 h\u00e1vah. vr\u00edsh\u00e2 tv\u00e2 vr\u00edshanam huve v\u00e1grin kitr\u00e2\u00b4bhih \u00fbt\u00ed-bhih, vav\u00e1ntha h\u00ed pr\u00e1ti-stutim vr\u00edsh\u00e2 h\u00e1vah.\nThis thy car is strong, O Indra, and thy bays are strong; thou art strong, O omnipotent, our call is strong. The stone is strong, the draught is strong, the Soma is strong, which is here poured out; the sacrifice which thou orderest is strong, our call is strong. I, the strong, call thee, the strong, thou holder of the thunderbolt, with manifold blessings; for thou hast desired our praise; our call is strong.\nThere are other passages of the same kind, but they are too tedious to be here repeated. The commentator, throughout, gives to each vr\u00edshan its full meaning either of showering down or bounteous, or male or-bull; but a word which can thus be used at random has clearly lost its definite power, and cannot call forth any definite ideas in the mind of the listener. It cannot be denied that here and there the original meaning of vr\u00edshan would be appropriate even where the poet is only pouring out a stream of majestic sound, but we are not called upon to impart sense to what are verba et praeterquam nihil. When we read, I, 122, 3, v\u00e2\u00b4tah ap\u00e2\u00b4m vrishan-v\u00e2n, we are justified, no doubt, in translating, 'the wind who pours forth water;' and X, 93, 5, ap\u00e2\u00b4m vrishan-vas\u00fb (\u00edti) s\u00fb\u00b4ry\u00e2m\u00e2\u00b4s\u00e2, means 'Sun and Moon, givers of water.' But even in some passages where vr\u00edshan is followed by the word vrish, it is curious to observe that vrish is not necessarily used in the sense of raining or pouring forth, but rather in the sense of drinking.\nVI, 68, 11. \u00edndr\u00e2varun\u00e2 m\u00e1dhumat-tamasya vr\u00edshnah s\u00f3masya vrishan\u00e2 a \u00e2\u00b4 vrisheth\u00e2m.\nIndra and Varuna, you strong ones, may you drink of the sweetest strong Soma.\nThat \u00e2-vrish means to drink or to eat, was known to S\u00e2yana and to the author of the Satapatha-br\u00e2hmana, who paraphrases \u00e2 vrish\u00e2yadhvam by asn\u00eeta, eat.\nThe same phrase occurs I, 108, 3.\nI, 104, 9. uru-vy\u00e1k\u00e2h gath\u00e1re \u00e2\u00b4 vrishasva.\nThou of vast extent, drink (the Soma) in thy stomach.\nThe same phrase occurs X, 96, 13.\nVIII, 61, 3. \u00e2\u00b4 vrishasva\u2014sut\u00e1sya indra \u00e1ndhasah.\nDrink, Indra, of the Soma that is poured out.\nIn conclusion, a few passages may be pointed out in which vr\u00edshan seems to be the proper name of a pious worshipper:\nI, 36, 10. y\u00e1m tv\u00e2 dev\u00e2\u00b4sah m\u00e1nave dadh\u00fah ih\u00e1 y\u00e1gishtham havya-v\u00e2hana, y\u00e1m k\u00e2nvah m\u00e9dhya-atithih dhanaspr\u00edtam y\u00e1m vr\u00edsh\u00e2 y\u00e1m upa-stut\u00e1h.\nThee, O Agni, whom the gods placed here for man, the most worthy of worship, O carrier of oblations, thee whom Kanva, thee whom Medhy\u00e2tithi placed, as the giver of wealth, thee whom Vrishan placed and Upastuta.\nHere the commentator takes Vrishan as Indra, but this would break the symmetry of the sentence. That Upastut\u00e1h is here to be taken as a proper name, as Upastuta, the son of Vrishtihavya, is clear from verse 17:\nagn\u00edh pra \u00e2vat mitr\u00e2\u00b4 ut\u00e1 m\u00e9dhya-atithim agn\u00edh s\u00e2t\u00e2\u00b4 upastut\u00e1m.\nAgni protected also the two friends, Medhy\u00e2tithi and Upastuta, in battle.\nThe fact is that whenever upastut\u00e1 has the accent on the last syllable, it is intended as a proper name, while, if used as a participle, in the sense of praised, it has the accent on the first.\nVIII, 5, 25. y\u00e1th\u00e2 kit k\u00e1nvam \u00e2\u00b4vatam priy\u00e1-medham upa-stut\u00e1m.\nAs you have protected Kanva, Priyamedha, Upastut\u00e1. Cf. I, 112, 15.\nVIII, 103, 8. pr\u00e1 m\u00e1mhishth\u00e2ya g\u00e2yata\u2014\u00fapa-stut\u00e2sah agn\u00e1ye (accent of the vocative).\nSing, O Upastut\u00e1s, to the worthiest, to Agni!\nX, 115, 9. \u00edti tv\u00e2 agne vrishti-h\u00e1vyasya putr\u00e2\u00b4h upastut\u00e2\u00b4sah r\u00edshayah avokan.\nBy these names, O Agni, did the sons of Vrishtihavya, the Upastut\u00e1s, the Rishis, speak to you.\nVrishan occurs once more as a proper name in VI, 16, 14 and 15:\nt\u00e1m \u00fbm (\u00edti) tv\u00e2 dadhy\u00e1\u1e45 r\u00edshih putr\u00e1h \u00eedhe \u00e1tharvanah, vritra-h\u00e1nam puram-dar\u00e1m.\n t\u00e1m \u00fbm (\u00edti) tv\u00e2 p\u00e2thy\u00e1h vr\u00edsh\u00e2 s\u00e1m \u00eedhe dasyuh\u00e1ntamam, dhanam-gay\u00e1m r\u00e1ne-rane.\nThee, O Agni, did Dadhyak kindle, the Rishi, the son of Atharvan, thee the killer of Vritra, the destroyer of towns;\n Thee, O Agni, did Vrishan P\u00e2thya kindle, thee the best killer of enemies, the conqueror of wealth in every battle.\nHere the context can leave no doubt that Dadhyak and Vrishan were both intended as proper names. Yet as early as the composition of the Satapatha-br\u00e2hmana, this was entirely misunderstood. Dadhyak, the son of Atharvan, is explained as speech, Vrishan P\u00e2thya as mind (Sat. Br. VI, 3, 3, 4). On this Mahidhara, in his remarks on V\u00e2g. Samh. XI, 34, improves still further. For though he allows his personality to Dadhyak, the son of Atharvan, he says that P\u00e2thya comes from pathin, path, and means he who moves on the right path; or it comes from p\u00e2thas, which means sky, and is here used in the sense of the sky of the heart. He then takes vrishan as mind, and translates the mind of the heart. Such is a small chapter in the history of the rise and fall of the Indian mind!\n151:a The dual vr\u00edshanau occurs only when the next word begins with a vowel. Before an initial a, \u00e2, i, the au is always changed into \u00e2v in the Samhit\u00e2 (I, 108, 7-12; 116, 21; 117, 19; 153, 2; 157, 5; 158, 1; 180, 7; VII, 61, 5). Before u the preceding au becomes \u00e2 in the Samhit\u00e2, but the Pada gives au, in order to show that no Sandhi can take place between the two vowels (VII, 60, 9; p. 152 X, 66, 7). Before consonants the dual always ends in \u00e2, both in the Samhit\u00e2 and Pada. But there are a few passages where the final \u00e2 occurs before initial vowels, and where the two vowels are allowed to form one syllable. In four passages this happens before an initial \u00e2 (I, 108, 3; VI, 68, 11; I, 177, 1; II, 16, 5). Once, and once only, it happens before u, in VIII, 22, 12.","title":"Vedic Hymns, Part I (SBE32): Vedic Hymns: I, 85. To the Maruts (the Storm-gods)","type":"page"}