Atharva-Veda Samhita/Book XI/Hymn 8

8. Mystic: especially on the constitution of man.

[Kāurupathi.—catustriṅçat. adhyātmamanyudāivatam. ānuṣṭubham: 33. pathyāpan̄kti.]

Found also (except vss. 33, 34) in Pāipp. xvi. (in the verse-order 1-6, 8-10, 7, 12, 11, 13, 15, 14, 16-32). ⌊The hymn is noticed neither by Kāuç. nor by Vāit.⌋

Translated: Ludwig, p. 402; Scherman, p. 67 (8 vss.); Deussen, Geschichte, i. 1. 270-277 (with introduction and interpretation); Henry, 123, 160; Griffith, ii. 80.

1. When fury (manyú) brought his wife away from the house of contrivance (saṁkalpá), who were the groomsmen (jánya)? who the wooers (vará)? who also was chief wooer?

Ppp. combines in c kā ”san. ⌊Its c, d = our 6 c, d.⌋

2. Penance and also action were within the great sea (arṇavá); those were the groomsmen, those the wooers; the bráhman was chief wooer.

The pada-mss. (save one of SPP's) divide evā́stām in a into evá: ā́stām, and the accent of the verb is perfectly defensible, though SPP. alters to āstām. Some of the mss. (including our Bp.P.M.E.) leave mahati unaccented: cf. vs. 6 b, and iii. 6. 3.

3. Ten gods were born together from gods of old; whoever may know them plainly, he verily may talk big to-day.

'May teach the unlimited brahman' is the comm's understanding of the last clause.

4. Breath-and-expiration, sight, hearing, indestructibleness and destruction, out-breathing and up-breathing, speech, mind—they verily brought design (ā́kūti).

The first half-verse occurs also as 7. 25 a, b above, and the first three pādas as vs. 26 a, b, c below. Ppp. combines vā ”kūtim in d.

5. Unborn were the seasons, likewise Dhātar, Brihaspati, Indra-andAgni, the two Açvins, at that time: whom did they worship (upa-ās) [as] chief?

The comm. reads at the end āsate.

6. Both penance, namely, and action were within the great sea; penance was born from action; that did they worship as chief.

The comm. again has āsate at the end. SPP. reads āstām in pada-text, this time with two of his mss. Some mss. again (cf. vs. 2) read mahati (so our Bp.E.; P.M. mahaty árṇavé).

7. The earth that was previous to this one (itás), which the sages (addhātí) indeed knew—whoever may know that by name, he may think himself knowing in ancient things.

The translation implies emendation of tā́n in c to tā́ṁ, which SPP. gives in his text, with about half of his mss. Ppp's version is quite different; it reads for a ye ’to bhūmiṣ pūrvā ”sit; and, for c, d, ke tasyan devā ”sate kasinin sā ’dhi çrutaḥ ⌊intending tasyām and çritā?⌋.

8. Whence was Indra, whence Soma, whence Agni born? whence did Tvashṭar come into being? whence was Dhātar born?

Ppp. has for d dhātā sam abhavat kutaḥ.

9. From Indra Indra, from Soma Soma, from Agni Agni was born; Tvashṭar was born from Tvashṭar; from Dhātar Dhātar was born.

Ppp. arranges in d dhātā dhātur.

10. The ten gods that were of old, born from gods—having given the world to [their] sons, in what world sit they?

Ppp. combines tā ”san in a, and reads puraḥ for purā in b. ⌊For consistency, the Berlin ed. should have dattvā́.⌋

11. When he brought hair, bone, sinew, flesh, marrow, having made a body with feet, what world did he afterward enter?

The comm. reads sam abharat in b.

12. Whence brought he the hair, whence the sinew, whence the bones? the limbs, the joints, the marrow, the flesh who brought from whence?

Ppp. combines at the end kutā ”bharat. The comm. appears again to read sam abharat at end of b. A few mss. (including our Bp.R.) read snā́vaḥ in a.

13. Pourers-together namely are those gods who brought together the bringings-together; having poured together the whole mortal, the gods entered man.

Ppp. reads çaṅsatas for saṁsicas in a, and saṁsṛjya for saṁsicya in c.

14. Thighs, feet, knee-joints, head, hands, also face, ribs, nipples (? barjahyà), sides: what seer put that together?

The comm. has nothing to say for barjahyè except 'the parts so called.' Ppp. reads instead majjahye; and it has çroṇī for çiras in b. It also makes our 14 c, d and 15 c, d exchange places.

15. Head, hands, also face, tongue and neck, vertebræ—all that, having enveloped with skin, the great putting-together put together.

Ppp. reads ⌊bāhu for mukham in a and has⌋ in c tat sarvam. The comm. paraphrases saṁdhā in d with saṁdhānakartrī devatā.

16. The great body which lay there, put together by the putting-together—who brought into it the color with which it shines (ruc) here today?

Ppp. reads adadhat for açayat in a, mayi for mahat in b, and ko ‘smin in d. SPP. reports all his pada-mss. as having at the end ā॰ábharat, which he emends to ā́: abharat; our pada-mss. give the latter.

17. All the gods assisted (? upa-çikṣ); that she who was a woman knew; she who was wife of control (? váça), mistress (īçā́), brought color into it.

Ppp. reads in a upāsikṣan, and viṣasya for vaçasya in c; the comm. (with two or three of SPP's mss.) has instead of the latter viçvasya. There are, failing help from sense, various questionable points in the construction.

18. When Tvashṭar bored through [him?] who [was] the superior father of Tvashṭar, having made the mortal a house, the gods entered into man.

Probably c is adjunct of devā́s; whether b is object of the verb in a is more doubtful. Ppp. gives no help. The comm. makes b define Tvaṣṭar himself, and understands the 'boring' of the openings for the senses, the eyes and ears etc. ⌊Ludwig renders c: "machten die götter den sterblichen zu [ihrem] hause."⌋

19. Sleep, weariness, misery (nírṛti), the deities named evils, old age, baldness, hoariness, entered the body afterward (ánu).

The comm. reads tandrī in a, and khālityam in c. Anu perhaps rather 'one after another.'

20. Theft, ill-doing, wrong, truth, sacrifice, great glory, both strength, dominion, and force, entered the body afterward.

Ppp. has the better reading sahas for bṛhat in b.

21. Both growth (bhū́ti) and diminution, generosities and niggardlinesses, both hungerings and all thirstings, entered the body afterward.

Ppp. combines vā ’bhūtiç in a.

22. Both revilings and non-revilings, both what [says] "come on" (hánta) and "no," faith, the sacrificial fee, and non-faith, entered the body afterward.

Ppp. combines vā ’nindāç in a. The majority of mss. (including our Bp.B.P.M.E.T.R.K.) read dakṣiṇā́ in c; ⌊if I understand W's Collation Book, only Bp.T.K. among his mss. are noted as so reading;⌋ both editions give dákṣiṇā. The comm. explains the word as meaning dhanasamṛddhi. ⌊Cf. Oldenberg, ZDMG. l. 449.⌋

23. Both knowledges and ignorances, and what else is to be taught (upa-diç); the bráhman entered the body; the verses, the chant, also the formula.

Ppp. combines vā ’vidyāç in a, and reads for c çarīraṁ sarve prā ’viçan ⌊= our 25 c⌋. Bráhman perhaps is here the 'charm,' representing the Atharvan hymns.

24. Delights, joys, enjoyments, and they that enjoy enjoyments, laughter, sport, dances, entered the body afterward.

Ppp. reads for a ānandā nandāṣ pramado. The comm. reads nur iṣṭās in c ⌊see SPP's note, p. 163⌋. The first half-verse is identical with 7. 26 a, b above.

25. Both appeals (ālāpá) and pratings (pralāpá), and they who utter (-lap) addresses (abhīlāpa-)—all entered the body, joiners-on (āyúj), joiners-forth (prayúj), joiners.

Ppp. reads prāyujas in d. The comm. explains the last words as = āyojanāni, prayojanāni, and yojanāni. The first half-verse is as it were a change rung on 24 a, b.

26. Breath-and-expiration, sight, hearing, indestructibleness and destruction, out-breathing and up-breathing, speech, mind—they go about (īja-) with the body.

The first three pādas are the same with 4 a, b, c, above.

27. Both blessings (āçís) and precepts (praçís), demands (saṁçís) and explanations (viçís), thoughts, all devisings, entered the body afterward.

The comm. explains the difficult compounds of -çis as mechanically as those of -yuj in vs. 25: āçāsanāni, praçāsanāni, saṁçāsanāni, vividhāni çāsanāni.

28. Both those of the blood and those of the bladder, the hasting and those that are pitiable, the secret, the clear, the thick waters—those they caused to settle in the repugnant one.

That is, apparently, in the body that was loth to receive them. SPP. reads unaccountably at the beginning ā́steyīs, against the great majority of his mss., the comm., and the sense. The reading has not been noted at all among our mss., but sn and st are very imperfectly distinguished in general by the scribes, and the latter may possibly have been intended by some among them. The comm. derives the word from ā + snā, instead of from asan; the form in which he gives it is āsneyyas. The second word he reads vāsneyyas, and derives it from vā 'or' + snā! Then he adds another derivation for both words, from āsana 'sitting,' and vasna 'price' respectively. He reads then āpas in c. Ppp. reads çukriyā in c.

29. Having made bone [their] fuel, then they caused eight waters to settle; having made seed [their] sacrificial butter, the gods entered man.

The first part of the verse is spoiled in Ppp. The comm. has the more regular accus. pl. apas in b (the pada-text aṣṭá: ā́paḥ, as required by the accent; the comm. in general pays no heed to accent). He acutely refers to Tāitt. Brāh. i. 1. 9⁴, where bone is identified with fuel, and seed with sacrificial butter.

30. What waters [there are], and what deities, what virā́j, with bráhman; bráhman entered the body; on (ádhi) the body [is] Prajāpati.

31. The sun, the wind, shared [respectively] the eye, the breath of man; then his other self the gods bestowed (pra-yam) on Agni.

'Shared' (ví bhejire, pl.) is ungrammatical as taken with the subject (which is only two-fold) given in the text. The comm. understands that the other 'senses' with their deities are viewed as included with these two. Ppp. reads tathā instead of atha in c.

32. Therefore, indeed, one who knows man ⌊púruṣa⌋ thinks "this is bráhman"; for all deities are seated in him, as cows in a cow-stall.

Our text should read at the end ivā́ ”sate with SPP. and nearly all the mss. (our Bp.B. ivā ”sate). Ppp. has a less naive d: çarīre ‘dhi samāhitaḥ.

33. By the first dying, it goes apart dividing threefold: yonder goes it with one [part]; yonder goes it with one; here with one it dwells (? ni-sev).

This verse and the one following are (as above noted) wanting in Ppp. The comm. reads ni for vi in b. He regards the two 'yonders' as pointing respectively to heaven and hell, and paraphrases ni ṣevate by nitarāṁ sukhaduḥkhātmakān bhogān sevate. ⌊He makes jīvātmā the subject: and a masculine subject seems required by víṣvan̄, unless we read ní just after it.⌋

34. Within waters that are sluggish (? stīmá), old, is the body placed; within that is might (? çáva, çávas ?); thence is it called might.

There is perhaps in c, d a play upon the word çávas, which may mean either 'might' (as neut.) or (as masc.) 'corpse.' The comm. paraphrases it both times with balātmakaḥ sūtrātmā ⌊i.e. the parameçvara⌋. He explains stīmāsu as anārdraṁ sarvaṁ jagad ārdraṁ kurvatīṣu.

⌊Here ends the fourth anuvāka, with 2 hymns and 61 verses. The quoted Anukr. says with reference to this eighth hymn "yan manyur" ity atra caturdaça ca: that is 14 over 20.⌋