{"collection":"Hinduism","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/hin/sbe46/sbe46051.htm","path":"hin/sbe46/sbe46051.htm","source_url":"https://sacred-texts.com/hin/sbe46/sbe46051.htm","text":"Vedic Hymns, Part II (SBE46), by Hermann Oldenberg [1897]\n1 1. Thou, O Agni, the flaming one, (art born) from out the Heavens 2, thou (art born) from out the Waters and the stone (the flint); thou (art born) from out the forests and the herbs; thou art born bright, O Lord of men, (as belonging) to men 3.\n2 1. To thee, O Agni, belongs the Hotri's and the Potri's office exercised at the appointed season; to thee belongs the office of the Neshtri; thou art the Agn\u00eedh 2 for the righteous. To thee belongs the office of the Pras\u00e2stri; thou actest as an Adhvaryu, and thou art the Brahman and the master of the house in our house 3.\n3 1. Thou, O Agni, art Indra, a bull among (all) beings. Thou art the wide-ruling Vishnu, worthy of adoration. Thou art the Brahman, a gainer of wealth, O Brahmanaspati 2. Thou, O Vidhartri (i. e. who keepest asunder all things), art united with Puramdhi (or the Liberality of the gods) 3.\n4. Thou, O Agni, art the king Varuna whose laws are firm; thou becomest Mitra, the wondrous one, worthy of being magnified. Thou art Aryaman, the lord of beings, whom I may enjoy 1. Thou, O god, art Amsa 2, desirous of distributing (goods) in the assembly 3.\n5. Thou, O Agni, being Tvashtri, (grantest) to thy worshipper abundance in heroes. To thee, who art accompanied by the (divine) wives 1, who art great like Mitra, belongs relationship 2. Thou,\nthe quick inciter 3, givest abundance in horses. Thou, rich in wealth, art the host of men 4.\n6. Thou, O Agni, art Rudra, the Asura of the high Heaven 1; thou, being the host of the Maruts, rulest over nourishment. Thou goest along with the flame-coloured Winds, bringing happiness to our home. Thou, being P\u00fbshan, protectest thy worshippers by thy own might.\n7. Thou, O Agni, art a giver of wealth to him who does service to thee 1; thou art the god Savitri, a bestower of treasures. Thou, being Bhaga, O lord of men, rulest over wealth. Thou art a protector in his house to him who has worshipped thee. 2.\n8. Towards thee, in the house, the lord of the clan, O Agni, the clans strive, towards thee, the bounteous king. Thou with the beautiful face possessest all things. Thou art equal to thousands, to hundreds, to ten (of others).\n9. Thee, O Agni, men (make) their father by their sacrifices 1; thee who shinest with thy body they (invite) to brotherhood by their (sacrificial) work. Thou becomest a son to him who has worshipped thee. As a kind friend thou protectest against attack.\n10. Thou, O Agni, art Ribhu, to be adored when near. Thou rulest over strength 1, over wealth rich in food. Thou shinest 2, thou burnest for the sake of giving (wealth). Thou art a hewer 3, an expander of sacrifice.\n11. Thou, Agni, O god, art Aditi to the worshipper. Thou, being Hotr\u00e2 Bh\u00e2rat\u00ee 1, growest strong by prayer. Thou art Id\u00e2, living a hundred winters, for (the increase of) ability. Thou, the killer of Vritra, O Lord of wealth, art Sarasvat\u00ee 2.\n12. Thou, O Agni, well kept, art the highest vital power. In thy lovely colour and in thy appearance (dwell all) beauties. Thou art great strength that carries us forward. Thou art abundant wealth, extending on all sides.\n13. The \u00c2dityas have made thee, O Agni, their mouth; the bright ones have made thee their tongue, O Sage. The R\u00e2ti-s\u00e2k gods (i. e. the 'bounteous' gods) accompany thee at the sacrifices. In thee the gods eat the offering which is offered to them.\n14. In thee, O Agni, with (thy) mouth 1 all the guileless 2 immortal gods eat the offering which is offered to them. Through thee the mortals taste their drink. Thou hast been born, the bright one, as the child of the plants.\n15 1. Thou art united with them and equal to them in strength, O well-born Agni, nay, thou surpassest them, O god, when thy power 2 has expanded here in its greatness over Heaven and Earth, over both worlds.\n16. The liberal lords who pour out, O Agni, over thy praisers gifts at the head of which there are cows 1, the ornament of which are horses: lead both ourselves and them to welfare. May we speak loud in the assembly 2, rich in valiant men.\nThe Rishi is Gritsamada, the metre Gagat\u00ee.\u2014Verse 1 = VS. XI, 27; TS. IV, 1, 2, 5; T\u00c2. X, 76, 1; MS. II, 7, 2. Verse 2 = RV. X, 91, 10. Verse 6 = TS. I, 3, 14, 1; TB. III, 12, 2, 1. Verse 13 = TB. II, 7, 12, 6.\nNote 1. Among the numerous texts which treat of the different origins of Agni (see Bergaigne, I, 20 seq.), especially the following two verses may be compared with this passage: VI, 48, 5. y\u00e1m \u00e2\u00b4pah \u00e1drayah v\u00e1n\u00e2 g\u00e1rbham rit\u00e1sya p\u00edprati s\u00e1has\u00e2 y\u00e1h mathit\u00e1h g\u00e2\u00b4yate nr\u00edbhih prithivy\u00e2\u00b4h \u00e1dhi s\u00e2\u00b4navi; X, 45, 1. div\u00e1h p\u00e1ri pratham\u00e1m gag\u00f1e agn\u00edh asm\u00e1t dvit\u00ee\u00b4yam p\u00e1ri g\u00e2t\u00e1ved\u00e2h trit\u00ee\u00b4yam aps\u00fa nrim\u00e1n\u00e2h \u00e1gasram \u00edndh\u00e2na enam garate sv\u00e2dh\u00ee\u00b4h.\nNote 2. The text (dy\u00fabhih tv\u00e1m \u00e2susuksh\u00e1nih) seems to be corrupt. I believe that tv\u00e1m, which is so frequently repeated through this verse and through the next verses, has been put here in the wrong place, and that we should read, dy\u00fabhyah \u00e2\u00b4 susuksh\u00e1nih.\nNote 3. With the last words of this verse, comp. the conclusion of verse 24.\nNote 1. This whole verse is repeated, X, 91, 10.\nNote 2. In my opinion there is no doubt that instead of the traditional reading, agn\u00edt, the correct form is agn\u00ee\u00b4t. The word is a compound of agn\u00ed and idh and means 'the inflamer of the fire.' Cf. M. M., Hist. of A. S. L., 1859, pp. 450, 469.\nNote 3. This is the most ancient list of the 'seven priests,' by the side of whom the grih\u00e1-pati or 'master of the house' is mentioned as the eighth. Comp. the formula in which the Adhvaryu names the officiating priests, K\u00e2ty\u00e2yana IX, 8, 8 seq., and see the remarks of Weber, Indische Studien, X, 141, 376, and my own exposition, Religion des Veda, 383 seq., 396. The 'Brahman' mentioned in our verse is the Br\u00e2hman\u00e2kkhamsin of the later ritual. Comp. K\u00e2ty\u00e2yana IX, 8, 11; Satapatha Br\u00e2hmana IV, 6, 6, 5.\nNote 1. On verses 3\u20136, see von Bradke, Dy\u00e2us Asura, p. 52 seq.\nNote 2. Brihaspati or Brahmanaspati is the Brahman among the gods. But it is doubtful whether the title of Brahman in this connection should be understood in the later technical sense of the word, as the Ritvig who has to superintend the whole sacrifice. Comp. H. O., Religion des Veda, 396, note 1.\nNote 3. Vidhartri seems to be here another name of Bhaga; (comp. VII, 41, 2. bh\u00e1gam huvema \u2026 y\u00e1h vidhart\u00e2\u00b4). It is known that no god is so frequently mentioned in connection with Puramdhi as Bhaga. The passages have been collected by Grassmann in his Dictionary, s. v. p\u00faram-dhi.\nNote 1. Prof. von Bradke (Dy\u00e2us Asura, 53) believes that the text is corrupt; he thinks that the fourth P\u00e2da may have occupied the place of a lost continuation of the relative clause, y\u00e1sya sam-bh\u00fagam. I cannot but share the feeling on which Prof. von Bradke's remark rests, though I do not believe that the solution of the difficulty which he proposes is very probable. Could not the correct reading be y\u00e2si (instead of y\u00e1sya) sam-bh\u00fagam, 'thou goest to the enjoyment (of goods)?' Comp. VI, 71, 6, where the traditional text has v\u00e2m\u00e1sya h\u00ed ksh\u00e1yasya deva bh\u00fb\u00b4reh, and ksh\u00e1yasya doubtless should be changed into ksh\u00e1yasi.\nNote 2. On Amsa, as one of the \u00c2dityas, comp. Bergaigne, III, 39, 99.\nNote 3. Vid\u00e1the: comp. the note on I, 31, 6. It is tempting to conjecture vidhat\u00e9 (comp. verse 5), but there is no necessity for such a conjecture. Comp., for instance, VI, 24, 2. vid\u00e1the d\u00e2ti v\u00e2\u00b4gam.\nNote 1. Gn\u00e2vah should be read without accent, as Grassmann, Prof. Weber, and M. Henry (Revue Critique, Jan. 12, 1891, p. 23) have seen. Cf. Lanman, 518, 519.\nNote 2. The meaning probably is, 'Thou art related to the other gods and to men,' or 'Thou art related to us.' Comp. VIII, 27, 10; 73, 12.\nNote 3. Agni seems to be identified here with Ap\u00e2m nap\u00e2t, who frequently is called \u00e2su-h\u00e9man. Comp. Windisch, Festgruss an Roth, 143 seq.\nNote 4. The men, of course, are the Maruts, as is shown by the well-known use of s\u00e1rdhah (cf. vol. xxxii, p. 67 seq.).\nNote 1. Comp. von Bradke, Dy\u00e2us Asura, J3 seq.\nNote 1. As to aramkr\u00edte, cf. VIII, 67, 3.\nNote 2. Or, thou art a protector to him who has worshipped thee in his house.\u2014Among the various ways for explaining or removing the metrical deficiency of the last P\u00e2da the correction d\u00e1me \u00e2\u00b4 (for d\u00e1me) is recommended by verse 8.\nNote 1. Isht\u00edbhih, standing by the side of s\u00e1my\u00e2, seems to be derived from the root yag. Thus \u00eeg\u00e9, \u00eeg\u00e2n\u00e1 stand by the side of sasam\u00e9, sasam\u00e2n\u00e1.\u2014Cf. isht\u00edbhih mat\u00edbhih, II, 18, 1.\nNote 1. The names of the three Ribhus are Ribhu, V\u00e2ga, Vibhvan. The word v\u00e2\u00b4ga used here evidently alludes to the second of these names.\nNote 2. Bergaigne (Religion V\u00e9d., II, 406) no doubt is right in believing that the verb v\u00ed bh\u00e2si ('thou shinest') alludes to the name Vibhvan. Comp. X, 91, 1. vibh\u00fah vibh\u00e2\u00b4v\u00e2.\nNote 3. Vi-s\u00edkshuh again seems to convey an allusion to the Ribhu myth. When dividing the cup of Tvashtri into four cups, the Ribhus say, s\u00e1khe v\u00ed siksha (IV, 35, 3). This v\u00ed siksha and the corresponding adjective vi-s\u00edkshu should be derived from the root sas, 'to cut to pieces.'\nNote 1. Here we have the three goddesses of the \u00c2pr\u00ee hymns, Bh\u00e2rat\u00ee, Id\u00e2, and Sarasvat\u00ee. Of the goddess\n[paragraph continues] Bh\u00e2rat\u00ee the full name is given, Hotr\u00e2 Bh\u00e2rat\u00ee, i. e. 'the Offering of the Bharatas.' Comp. Bergaigne, I, 322 seq.\nNote 2. Comp. VI, 6.1, 7, where Sarasvat\u00ee is called vr\u00edtraghn\u00ee\u00b4.\nNote 1. Or 'through (thee who art their) mouth.'\nNote 2. Comp. I, 19, 3. v\u00edsve dev\u00e2\u00b4sah adr\u00fahah; vol. xxxii, pp. 53, 55.\nNote 1. On this verse, compare Pischel, Vedische Studien, I, 97.\nNote 2. On priksh\u00e1h, see above, I, 127, 5, note 1.\nNote 1. On g\u00f3-agra, compare Pischel, Vedische Studien, I, 51.\nNote 2. Vid\u00e1the: comp. the note on I, 31, 6.","title":"Vedic Hymns, Part II (SBE46): II, 1","type":"page"}