Atharva-Veda Samhita/Book I/Hymn 33

33. To the waters: for blessings.

[Çaṁtāti.—cāndramasam āpyam uta. trāiṣṭubham.]

Found in Pāipp. i., and also in TS. (v. 6. 1), MS. (ii. 13. 1), and the Mantrapāṭha ⌊i. 2. 2-5⌋ (Winternitz in Denksch. d. Wiener Akad. xl. 44). ⌊See also MGS. i. 2. 11 and p. 158.⌋ Reckoned by Kāuç. to the apāṁ sūktāni 'hymns of the waters' (121. 1, and 7. 14, note), also to both the çānti gaņas (9. 1, 4); appears further, with several other hymns, in a rite for good-fortune (41. 14); and in the godāna ceremony to accompany bathing after the shaving (54. 5), also in the feet-washing of a guest (90. 9), against the portent of the appearance of water in a waterless place (121. 1), and against that of the causeless breaking of water-jars etc. (136. 8). And the comm. quotes it as employed by Pariçiṣṭa v. 2 in the puṣpābhiṣeka rite.

Translated: Weber, iv. 428; Winternitz, Hochzeitsrituell, Wiener Denkschr. xl. 44; Griffith, i. 37.

1. Of golden color, clean (çúci), purifying, in whom [was] born Savitar, in whom Agni; who, of beauteous color, assumed Agni as embryo—let those waters be weal, pleasant to us.

⌊in c, for dadhiré, better, 'conceived'?⌋ TS. and MS. read in b jātáḥ kaçyápo yā́sv índraḥ; and Ppp. agrees with them; MP. has agníḥ instead of índraḥ. In c TS. MS. give vírūpās for suvarṇās; and TS. omits yā́s, and hence has dadhire (unaccented); MS. puts yā́s after agním. MP. offers te for nas in d. ⌊As to savitṛ = kaçyapa, cf. Bloomfield, AJP. xvii. 403.⌋

2. In the midst of whom goes king Varuṇa, looking down at the truth-and-falsehood of men; who, of beauteous color, etc. etc.

The first half-verse is found also in RV. (vii. 49. 3 a, b), without difference of reading; MP. agrees through the whole verse ⌊except in d, te for nas⌋; TS. MS. have a wholly different c. The comment to Prāt. ii. 11 gives avapaçyañ janānām as example of the general requirement that final n be assimilated to a following initial palatal, and half or more of our mss. so read; but SPP., as elsewhere, gives -an j- ⌊cf. note to i. 19.4⌋.

3. They of whom the gods in heaven make [their] draught (bhakṣá); they that come to be abundantly in the atmosphere; who, of beauteous color, etc. etc.

Again TS. MS. have a different c (yā́ḥ pṛthivī́m páyaso 'ndáanti çukrā́ḥ). Our O. has at end of c vírupāḥ (as TS. MS. in 1 c). MP. substitutes níviṣṭās for bhavantī in b. The comm. renders bhakṣám by upabhogyam.

4. With propitious eye behold me, O waters; with propitious body touch my skin; they that are ghee-dripping, clean, purifying—let those waters be weal, pleasant to us.

The first half-verse appears again below as xvi. 1. 12. It alone is found in TS. and MS.; but our c is RV. vii. 49. 3 c, and the two other texts have it after our 2 a, b ⌊all reading madhu- for ghṛta-⌋. MP. reads çivéna tvā cákṣuṣā paçyantv ā́paḥ, and in b spṛçantu and te. AB. (viii. 6. 10) quotes the whole verse in its TS. and MS. version. Our Bp. K. read -çcyutas in c; Ppp. has -çcantas. The Anukr, ignores the redundancy of one syllable (or more) in b.