Atharva-Veda Samhita/Book IV/Hymn 32

32. Praise and prayer to fury (manyú).

[Brahmāskanda.—manyudāivatam. trāiṣṭubham: 1. jagatī.]

This hymn ⌊which is RV. x. 83⌋ goes in all respects with hymn 31, which see.

Translated: by the RV. translators; and Griffith, i. 174; Weber, xviii. 129.

1. He who hath worshiped thee, O fury, missile thunderbolt, gains (puṣ) power, force, everything, in succession; may we, with thee as ally, that art made of power, overpower the barbarian, the Aryan, with powerful power.

Ppp. has sadyo for manyo in a, and sahīyasā at the end. All the mss. accent púṣyati in b, and SPP. very properly so reads; our text was altered to conform with RV., which in general is distinctly less apt to give accent to a verb in such a position ⌊Skt. Gram. §597 a⌋. RV. also omits the redundant and meter-disturbing (the Anukr. takes no notice of this) vayám in c. Several of our mss. (P.M.W.E.) give vidadhat instead of ‘vidhat in a. Sāhyā́ma (p. sahyā́ma) is expressly prescribed by Prāt. iii. 15, iv. 88; the comm. appears to read sahy-. The comm. renders ānuṣak by anuṣaktaṁ saṁtatam. ⌊For vajra sāyaka, see note to iv. 31. 6; and for púṣyati, note to iv. 13. 2.⌋

2. Fury [was] Indra, fury indeed was a god; fury [was] priest (hótar), Varuṇa, Jātavedas; the clans (víç) which are descended from Manu (mā́nuṣa) praise fury; protect us, O fury, in accord with fervor (tápas).

The translation assumes in c the reading manyúm (instead of -yús), which is given by RV., the comm. (with one of SPP's mss.), and TB. (ii. 4. 1¹¹) and MS. (iv. 12. 3); the nomin. here appears to be a plain corruption, though Ppp. also has it. TB. gives in a bhágas for índras, and devayántīs for mā́nuṣīr yā́ḥ in c, and çrámeṇa for sajóṣās at the end; MS. has ávā for pāhí at beginning of d; both have viçvávedās at end of b. Ppp. reads yaṣ for yāḥ before pāhi.

3. Attack, O fury, being mightier than a mighty one; with fervor as ally smite apart the foes; slayer of enemies, slayer of Vṛtra, and slayer of barbarians, do thou bring to us all [their] good things.

Ppp. rectifies the meter of b (the Anukr. does not notice its deficiency) by inserting iha before çátrūn. ⌊See above, p. lxxiv.⌋

4. Since thou, O fury, art of overcoming force, self-existent, terrible, overpowering hostile plotters, belonging to all men (-carṣaṇí), powerful, very powerful—do thou put in us force in fights.

RV. has sáhāvān for sáhīyān in c. MS. (iv. 12. 3) gives svayaṁjás in b, and sáhāvān in c; and for d it has sá hūyámāno amṛ́tāya gachat.

5. Being portionless, I am gone far away, by the action (? krátu) of thee that art mighty, O forethoughtful one; so at thee, O fury, I, actionless, was wrathful; come to us, thine own self (tanū́), giving strength.

RV. has at the end baladéyāya mé ’hi (p. mā: ā́: ihi). In c it reads jihīḍā ’hám, and both the editions follow it (Ppp. and the comm. have the same), although the AV. saṁhitā reading is unquestionably jī́hīḍ-; the saṁhitā mss. have this almost without exception (all ours save O.), the pada-mss. put after the word their sign which shows a difference between pada and saṁhitā reading, and jīh- is twice distinctly prescribed by the Prāt. (iii. 14; iv. 87). The comm. understands the obscure first pāda of going away from battle; akratu he paraphrases by tvattoṣakarakarmavarjita.

6. Here I am for thee; come hitherward unto us, meeting (pratīcīná) [us], O powerful, all-giving one; O thunderbolt-bearing fury, turn hither to us; let us (two) slay the barbarians; and do thou know thy partner (āpí).

RV. keeps better consistency by reading mā for nas in a, and mā́m for nas in c; at the end of b it has viçvadhāyas. In a Ppp. has mā, like RV.; in c it reads upa nas, combining to na ”vav-. The comm. supplies çatrūn as object of pratīcīnas, and paraphrases the end of the verse with api ca bandhubhūtam mām budhyasva.

7. Go thou forth against [them]; be on our right hand; then will we (two) smite and slay many Vṛtras; I offer to thee the sustaining top of the sweet (mádhu); let us both drink first the initial draught (? upāṅçú).

Ppp. has at the end pibeva. RV. has me instead of nas at end of a, and combines ubhā́ up- in d. The comm. begins b with atha. Compare also RV. viii. 100 (89). 2, of which the present verse seems a variation; its a, dádhāmi te mádhuno bhakṣám ágre, is much more intelligible than our corresponding c. ⌊In b, is not vṛtrā́ṇi (neuter!) rather 'adversaries,' as in v. 6. 4?—In his prior draft, W. renders, "let us both drink first in silence (?)." "Initial draught" seems to overlook the gender of upāṅçú.⌋