Or perhaps 'he goes as Mātariçvan,' identifying the action of sun and of wind. Mimā́nas in c should be emended to mímānas, which is read only by D. The Anukr. notices this time the redundant syllable in a.
20. A united (saviyáñc) line along all the directions, within the gāyatrī́, the womb (embryo?) of the immortal.—Against that god etc. etc.
'Line' here is accus., as taking up and carrying on the idea of 19 c. The verse lacks two syllables of being a full atyaṣṭi (68 syll.).
21. Three settings, dawnings also three; three welkins, skies verily three: we know, O Agni, the birth-place of thee threefold; threefold the births of the gods we know.—Against that god etc. etc.
The verse is regular if tredhā́ in c (not in d) is made, as often elsewhere, trisyllabic.
22. He who in birth (jā́yamāna) opened out the earth, [who] set the ocean in the atmosphere—against that god etc. etc.
The meter is the same as that of vs. 20.
23. Thou, O Agni, impelled by powers (krátu), by lights (ketú), didst shine up, a kindled song (? arká) in the sky; unto what did the Maruts, having the spotted one for mother, sing, when the gods generated the ruddy one?—Against that god etc. etc.
Pischel (Ved. Stud. i. 26) takes arká as 'sun'; the connection with abhy ārcan in c is strongly opposed to this. The last pāda is the same with 12 c above. The verse (12 + 12: 12 + 11: 44) counts properly 91 syllables, one short of a full vikṛti.
24. He who is self-giving, strength-giving, of whom all, of whom [even] the gods wait upon the direction, who is master of these bipeds, who of quadrupeds—against that god etc. etc.
The verse proper is identical with the first three pādas of iv. 2. 1 (found also in other texts: see the notes to that hymn). Bp. here reads (doubtless by accident) asya in c. Two more syllables are needed to make a full kṛti (80 syll.).
25. The one-footed strode out more than the two-footed; the two-footed falls upon the three-footed from behind; the four-footed acted within the call of the two-footed ones, beholding the series (pan̄tí), drawing near (upa-sthā).—Against that god etc. etc.
The first two pādas are identical with 2. 27 a, b, and the whole verse corresponds to RV. X. 117. 8. RV. reads in a bhū́yo dvipádo, in b dvipā́t tripā́dam, in c eti (for cakre) dvipádām, in d pan̄ktī́r up-. The accentuation dvípāt and trípāt (only in these verses) was noticed under 2. 27. Here we lack two syllables of a full vikṛti.
26. The white son of the black [mother], the young of night, was born; he ascends upon the sky; the ruddy one ascended the ascents.
⌊Here ends the third anuvāka, with 1 hymn and 26 verses. The quoted Anukr. says ṣaḍviṅçat (ṣaḍviṅça?).⌋
