Atharva-Veda Samhita/Book III/Hymn 3

3. For the restoration of a king.

[Atharvan.—nānādevatyam utā ”gneyam. trāiṣṭubham: 3. 4.-p. bhurih pan̄kti; 5. 6. anuṣṭubh.]

Found in Pāipp. ii. (our vs. 5 coming last). Used by Kāuç. (16. 30), with the hymn next following, in a ceremony for the restoration of a king to his former kingdom. In Vāit. (9. 2), vs. 1 accompanies a morning oblation to Agni anīkavant in the sākamedha rite of the cāturmāsya sacrifice; and again (30. 27), vs. 2 is used at the end of the sāutrāmaṇī ceremony.

Translated: Ludwig, p. 441; Weber, xvii. 185; Griffith, i. 83; Bloomfield, 112, 327.—Cf. Bergaigne-Henry, Manuel, p. 140.

1. He hath shouted (? krand); may he be protector of his own here; O Agni, bend apart the two widened firmaments (ródasī); let the all-possessing Maruts harness (yuj) thee; lead thou hither with homage yon man of bestowed oblation.

This is a very literal translation of the obscure verse, which is plainly an adaptation or corruption, or both, of a RV. verse in a hymn to Agni (vi. 11. 4: it is repeated, without variant, in MS. iv. 14. 15): ádidyutat sv ápāko vibhā́va ’gne yájasva ródasī urūcī́: āyúṁ ná yáṁ námasā rātáhavyā añjánti suprayásam páñca jánāḥ; and, what is very noteworthy, the latter half-verse of RV. is decidedly more closely reflected in the Ppp. version: amuṁ naya namasā rātahavyo yujanti suprajasaṁ pañca janāḥ; Ppp. has also bhavat at end of a. It could not be expected to find concinnity and sense in a verse so originated; the address seems to be changed from Agni to Indra, and some sort of comparison aimed at between the latter and the reinstated king. The pada-text divides in a sva॰pā́ḥ, and, as the word may be a part of the adaptation ⌊of the original to the purpose of this hymn⌋, the translation so treats it, instead of substituting, as Weber and Ludwig do, su॰apā́ḥ; the comm. explains it both ways: svakīyānām prajānām pālakaḥ sukarmā vā. The comm. makes the king subject of ácikradat in a, apparently takes vyàcasva in b as one word (= vyāpnuhi), tvā in c as designating Agni (yuñjantu = prāpnuvantu, tvatsahāyā bhavantu), and amúm in d as the king. The Anukr. ignores the jagatī pāda (c) ⌊or lets it offset a counted as 10!⌋ ⌊The usual compound is sv-ápās; but sv-apā́s, though not quotable, is quite possible.⌋

2. Indra, the inspired one, however far away, let the ruddy ones set in motion hither (ā-cyāvaya-) in order to friendship, when the gods venture (?) for him a gāyatrī́, a bṛhatī́, a song (arká), with the sāutrāmaṇī́ (ceremony).

This verse is nearly as obscure as the preceding, and probably as hopelessly corrupt. The "ruddy ones" in a are, according to the comm., priests (ṛtvij); Weber understands "horses," Ludwig "somas." The comm. takes dádhṛṣanta in d first from root dhṛ (! = adhārayan), then apparently from dhṛṣ (pūrvaṁ visrastāvayavant indram punaḥ sarvāvayavopetam akurvan, citing TS. v. 6. 3⁴); Ppp. has dadṛçanta; perhaps dadṛhanta might be made to yield the best sense; restoration of the augment would fill out the deficient meter, which the Anukr. fails to remark. R. conjectures "made firm for him the mighty gāyatrī as bolt." About half the mss. (including our Bp.E.I.H.K.) accent in b sakhyā̀ya; the same uncertainty as to this word appears elsewhere.

3. For the waters let king Varuṇa call thee; let Soma call thee for the mountains; let Indra call thee for these subjects (víç); becoming a falcon, fly unto these subjects.

"For" may of course be "from" in a and b, as preferred by ⌊the four⌋ translators and comm. Ppp. reads, in a, b varuṇo juhāva somas tvā ’yaṁ hvayati; and again in c, indras ivā ’yaṁ hvayati. With the proper resolutions, this verse is a decent triṣṭubh; the Anukr. scans it as 11 + 10: 10 + 10 = 41. The verses in our text are wrongly numbered from this one on.

4. Let the falcon lead hither from far (pára) the one to be called, living exiled in others' territory (kṣétra); let the (two) Açvins make the road for thee easy to go; settle together about this man, ye his fellows.

The translation follows both previous translators, and the comm. (= hvātavyam), in implying hávyam in a instead of havyám 'oblation'; yet Ppp. reads havis, which supports havyám. The comm., with several of SPP's mss., has avaruddham in b; for ⌊the technical⌋ aparuddhaç caran (and ava-gam, 6 d) compare especially PB. xii. 12. 6.

5. Let thine opponents call thee; thy friends have chosen [thee] against [them] (? práti); Indra-and-Agni, all the gods, have maintained for thee security (kṣéma) in the people (víç).

The comm., and a few of SPP's mss. that follow it, have at the beginning váyantu (= sāṁtatyena sevantām). Several saṁhitā-mss. (including our P.M.O.Op.) read pratijānā́ḥ; Ppp. has the easier reading pañca janāḥ, with hvyanti for -ntu, and, in b, varṣata for avṛṣata; also it ends with adīdharas. As in more than one other case, all the mss. accent té in the second half-verse, and the pada-mss. puts its double stroke of pada-division before the word; and both editions read té; but it should plainly be te, as our translation renders, and as the comm. also explains it. The comm. combines in b pratimitrās, making it mean "opposing friends"; the combination of vṛ 'choose' with prati is strange and obscure.

6. Whatever fellow disputes thy call, and whatever outsider—making him go away (ápāñc), O Indra, then do thou reinstate (ava-gamaya) this man here.

The comm. explains sajātá and níṣṭya as samabala and nikṛṣṭabala (!) ⌊as at i. 19. 3⌋, and ava gamaya as bodhaya. The Anukr. takes no notice of the metrical deficiency in a; emendation to -vádati would fairly rectify it. ⌊For ava-gam, see note to vs. 4.⌋