Atharva-Veda Samhita/Book II/Hymn 5

5. Praise and prayer to Indra.

[Bhṛgu Ātharvaṇa.—saptarcam. āindram. trāiṣṭubham: 1, 2. upariṣṭād bṛhatī (1. nicṛt; 2. virāj); 3. virāṭpathyābṛhatī; 4. jagatī purovirāj.]

Verses 1, 3, and 4 are found in Pāipp. ii., and 5-7 elsewhere in its text (xiii.). Verses 1-3 occur also in SV. (ii. 302-4) and ÇÇS. (ix. 5. 2); and the first four verses form part of a longer hymn in AÇS. (vi. 3. l). KB. (xvii. l) quotes by way of pratīka vs. 1 a, b (in their SV. and ÇÇS. form), and speaks of the peculiar structure of the verses, as composed of twenty-five syllables, with nine syllables interpolated (three at the end of each of the first three five-syllabled pādas): cf. Roth, Ueb. d. AV., 1856, p. 11 ff., and Weber, notes to his translation. At TB. ii. 4. 3¹⁰ may be found RV. x. 96. I treated in a somewhat similar way (four syllables prefixed to each jagatī-pāda); the first five verses of RV. x. 77 itself are another example; ⌊yet others are AV. vii. 14 (15). 1, 2; v. 6. 4 a, c; RV. i. 70. 11 as it appears at AÇS. vi. 3. 1; cf. further RV. X. 21, 24, 25⌋. ⌊I suspect that these interpolations were used as antiphonal responses.⌋

The hymn is used once in Kāuç. (59. 5), among the kāmya rites, or those intended to secure the attainment of various desires; it is addressed to Indra, by one desiring strength (balakāma). In Vāit. (16. 11), it (not vs. 1 only, according to the comm.) accompanies an oblation to Soma in the agniṣṭoma sacrifice, and again (25. 14) a ṣoḑa-çigraha. And the comm. quotes it from Nakṣ. Kalpa 17 and 18, in a mahāçānti to Indra. None of these uses has about it anything special or characteristic.

Translated: Weber, xiii. 143; Griffith, i. 46.—Verses 5-7 discussed, Lanman's Reader, p. 360-1.

1. O Indra, enjoy thou—drive on;—come, O hero—with thy two bays;—drink of the pressed [soma]—intoxicated here—loving the sweet [draught], fair one, unto intoxication.

Ppp. omits the three interpolations (as Weber reports certain Sūtra-works to assert of the Atharvan texts in general), and reads indra juṣasva yāhi çūra pibā sutaç ça a madhoç cakāna cārum madathaḥ. The second interpolation in AÇS. is harī iha, apparently to be read as harī ’ha, for which then SV. and ÇÇS. give the senseless háriha. The third, in all the three other texts, is matír ná ('like a wise one'?); the translation above implies the heroic (or desperate) emendation of matér ihá to mattá ihá (to be read matté ’há); Weber conjectures máder ha. AÇS. and ÇÇS. have the older madhvas for madhos. The comm. has no notion of the peculiar structure of these verses: as, indeed, he has no phraseology in his vocabulary to suit such a case; he explains mates first as mananīyasya, then as medhāvinas; and cakānas as either tarpayan or stūyamānas. The Anukr. implies that the second half-verse scans as 8 + 11 syllables, instead of 9 + 10.

2. O Indra, [thy] belly—like one to be praised—fill thou with the sweet [draught]—like the heavens—with this soma—like the sky (svàr)—; unto thee have gone the well-voiced intoxications.

The omission of this verse in Ppp. is perhaps only an accidental one, due to the scribe. The first interpolation in the other texts is návyaṁ ná; to get a sense, Weber boldly emends to nāvyaṁ na 'like [the hold] of a vessel'; the comm. explains by nūtanas (anenā ”darātiçaya uktaḥ!), taking no heed of the accent—which, however, requires to be changed to návyas, whichever sense be given it; perhaps nadyò ná 'like streams,' would be most acceptable. In the third interpolation, SV. combines svàr ná and AÇS. ÇÇS. svàr ṇá; and the mss. vary between the two; our edition reads the former, with the majority of our mss.; SPP. has the latter, with the majority of his; one or two of ours corrupt to svàr mó ’pa. The three other texts have at the end asthus. The comm. takes divás as gen., supplying amṛteṇa to govern it; and he takes svàr as of locative value. The Anukr. scans the verse as 8 + 8: 8 + 10 = 34 syllables.

3. Indra, a swiftly-overcoming friend, who slew Vritra—like moving [streams]—, [who] split Vala—like Bhṛgu—, who overpowered his foes in the intoxication of soma.

The translation follows closely our text, though this, as the other versions show, is badly corrupted in a, b, even to the partial effacement of the first interpolation. The others read accordantly: índras turāṣā́ṇ mitró ná jaghā́na vṛtráṁ yátir ná; our yatī́r may possibly be meant for yátīn 'as he did the Yatis.' The comm. explains yatī́s first as āsuryaḥ prajāḥ, then as parivrājakāḥ. Ppp. agrees with the other texts, only omitting the interpolations: indras turāṣāḑ jaghāna vṛtram; it then omits the third pāda, and goes on thus: sasāhā çatrūn mamuç ca: vajrīr made somasya. All the AV. mss. read sasahe, unaccented, and SPP. admits this into his text; our edition makes the necessary emendation to sasahé ⌊in some copies (and so the Index Verborum); in others the accent-mark has slipped to the right⌋; the other texts rectify the meter by reading sasāhé (our O. agrees with them as regards the ā). Words of verses 2 and 3 are quoted in the Prāt. comment, but not in a way to cast any light upon the readings. ⌊SPP., with most of his authorities and our Op., reads valám.⌋ The metrical definition of the Anukr. is of course senseless; it apparently implies the division 9 + 7: 8 + 10 = 34 syllables.

4. Let the pressed [somas] enter thee, O Indra; fill thy (two) paunches; help, O mighty one! for our prayer (dhī́) come to us; hear [my] call, enjoy my songs; hither, O Indra, with self-harnessed [steeds]; revel here unto great joy.

This verse is really, as AÇS. plainly shows, made up of two like the preceding three, of five five-syllabled pādas each, but without interpolations. The first half-verse is vs. 5 in AÇS., where it reads thus: ā tvā viçantu kavir na sutāsa indra tvaṣṭā na: pṛṇasva kukṣī somo nā 'viḍhḍhi çūra dhiyā hiyānaḥ. Of the two versions of the last pada, that of AÇS. is doubtless the original, though ours (the pada has dhiyā́ ā́ ihi ā́ naḥ) is ingenious enough to give a fair sense; the reading dhiyéhi is authenticated by the Prāt. comment, which quotes it more than once (to iii. 38; iv. 113-115). The translation implies the restoration of aviḍḍhí, as the only true reading ⌊namely, an aorist imperative from av—see Skt. Gram.² §908⌋; the mss. all read viḍhḍhí, which SPP's edition as well as ours properly emends to viḑḑhí. ⌊My copy of the printed text reads viḑhḑhí; but Whitney's Index Verborum and his Roots, Verb-forms, etc. have viḑḑhí, under viṣ.⌋ The comm. reads vṛḑḑhi, explaining it by vardhaya! The second half-verse is rather more altered in its AV. version; in AÇS. (as vs. 4), with the interpolations, it runs thus: çrudhī havaṁ na indro na giro juṣasva vajrī na: indra sayugbhir didyun na matsvā madāya mahe raṇāya. Ppp. has only this half-verse (without the interpolations), reading thus: çruti hava me kiro juṣasya indrasya gubhir matsa madāya mahe raṇāya. The Anukr. would doubtless have us divide 10 + 13: 10 + 13 = 46 syllables. ⌊As to viḑhḑhí, see notes to Prāt. i. 94. Accent of mátsva, Gram. §628.⌋

We may conjecture that the hymn originally ended here, as one of five verses; the appended three verses that follow are of a wholly other character. AÇS. adds one more verse, which is RV. i. 70. 11, with similar interpolations after each of its four five-syllabled pādas.

5. Now will I proclaim the heroisms of Indra, which first he of the thunderbolt (vajrín) did; he slew the dragon (áhi); he penetrated to the waters; he split ⌊forth⌋ the bellies (vakṣáṇā) of the mountains.

Verses 5-7 are RV. 1. 32. 1-3; and found also in TB. (11. 5. 4^1-2); vss. 5 and 6 further in MS. iv. 14. 13, and vs. 5 in SV. (i. 613): in these texts without any variant from the RV. reading; they all have in 5 a prá, and put vīryā̀ṇi before it. Ppp. also offers no variants from our text. SPP. reads prā́ in a, with all the mss. ⌊except our O.⌋, and our text should have done the same. The comm. renders ánu in c by tadanantaram, and tatarda by jihiṅsa! also vakṣáṇās in d by nadyas.

6. He slew the dragon that had resorted (çri) to the mountain; Tvashṭar fashioned for him the whizzing (?) thunderbolt; like lowing kine, flowing (syand), at once the waters went down to the ocean.

The text is precisely the same as in the other passages. The comm. explains svaryà as suṣṭhu preraṇīya (from su + root ṛ), and tatakṣa as tikṣṇaṁ cakāra!

7. Acting like a bull, he chose the soma; he drank of the pressed [draught] in the tríkadrukas; the bounteous one (maghávan) took his missile thunderbolt; he slew that first-born of dragons.

RV. (and TB.) combines in a -ṇo ‘vṛṇīta, and some of the mss. (including our O.) do the same. The comm. understands the trikadrukas as the three abhiplava days. ⌊For d, rather, 'smote him, the first-born of dragons.' The difference is, to be sure, only a rhetorical one.⌋

In the first anuvaka, ending here, are included 5 hymns, of 29 verses; the old Anukr. says: pañcarcādye (i.e. 'in the first division of the 5-verse book') viṅçateḥ syur navo ”rdhvam.