the place of the λόγος of Ogmios. It is probable, however, that he owes certain of his attributes to his having assumed some of those of an ancient storm-god Trita,[1] or perhaps of Dyaus; and among them may be reckoned the thunderbolt. Above all, one has to bear in mind the distortion which the Hindu side of the picture has undergone in consequence of the removal of the abode of the dead from the nether world to the most distant heaven. But when it is considered what a far cry it is from the shores of the Baltic to the land of the Five Rivers, how long it must have taken our kindred to reach it, and how largely their blood had by that time been mixed with that of other races, it is a matter of surprise that Sanskrit literature yields so many points of contact between Indra and Gwydion-Woden. Some of them are brought into prominence in the following verses[2] from the Rig-Veda, with which these remarks may be closed (i. 53. 2, 5, 6):
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'Thou art the giver of horses, Indra, thou art the giver of cows, the giver of corn, the strong lord of wealth: the old guide of man, disappointing no desires, a friend to friends. . . .' |
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'Du, Indra, schenkest Rosse, schenkest Rinder auch, |
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'Let us rejoice, Indra, in treasure and food, in wealth of manifold delight and splendour. Let us rejoice in the blessing of the gods, which gives us the strength of offspring, gives us cows first and horses.' |
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'Lass Reichthum, Indra, lass erlangen Labung uns, |
