natural count of syllables (8 + 8: 11 + 11: 11 + 12 = 61) comes three short of a full aṣṭi: ⌊the jagatī cadence of e suggests that something is missing (read sárvāṅç ca lo-?) in that pāda; and f is to be read (like 53. 2 d, with Ppp. double saṁdhi) as 11 syllables⌋.
⌊Here ends the sixth anuvāka, with 9 hymns, and with 63 verses as they are numbered by the Berlin text and summed up by certain mss.; but the Anukr. counts 9 and 5 verses (instead of 10 and 6) in hymns 47 and 54 respectively, which makes the sum 61 instead of 63.⌋
55. To Agni.
Only the first verse is found in Pāipp. (in xx.). The comm. points out that the hymn is plainly meant to be used in the early morning worship of Agni, but quotes no authority. ⌊As to a seventh verse, see SPP's Critical Notice, vol. i., p. 24, and see under vss. 5 and 7.⌋
Translated: Ludwig, p. 363; Griffith, ii. 312.
1. Night after night bringing to him without mixture, as fodder to a horse that stands, let not us, O Agni, thy neighbors, receive harm, reveling with abundance of wealth, with food (íṣ).
The verse corresponds nearly with VS. xi. 75, also with a verse in TS. iv. i. 101 and MS. ii. 7. 7. VS. begins a with áhar-ahar (but ÇB. vi. 6. 41 ⌊like KÇS. xvi. 6. 2⌋ gives a pratīka with rā́trīṁ-rātrīm instead), TS. reads with us, and MS. has rā́trīṁ-rātrīm ⌊and repeats the pratīka at iii. 1. 9, p. 1212⌋. At end of b, all have asmāi unaccented. In d, all put ágne at the beginning, ‘gne mā́ te práti-. In a, all the authorities have áprayātam ⌊an isolated -tum counts for nothing⌋, and so has the text of the comm., according to SPP., who prints áprayātam. But the comm. in his explanation has aprayāvam, which he glosses by apracchidya or sāṁtatyena ⌊which harmonizes well with the sádam ít of iii. 15. 8 a⌋; ⌊the six Yajus texts just cited (both verses and pratīkas) all read áprayāvam, on which the Berlin emendation* rests⌋. ⌊Weber, Ind. Stud. xvii. 251, cites K. xvi. 7 as reading rātrīṁ-rātrīm, with the rest as in VS.; and Knauer, Index to MGS., p. 155, adds K. xix. 10 and Kap. S. xxx. 8.⌋ The second half of our iii. 15.8 above agrees precisely with our c, d here; the first half differs a good deal, ⌊having for a viçvā́hā te sádam íd bharema, and ending b with jātavedaḥ instead of ghāsám asmā́i. Ppp. has in a aprayāmaṁ, at end of b agne for asmāi (as in our vs. 7), and in d ‘gnāi mā te pr- (intending the same as the Yajus texts).
*⌊Griffith's version of áprayāvam is 'with care unceasing' (AV.VS.); and Eggeling's is 'unremittingly' (ÇB.); so also W. at iii. 5. 1 (see the note); and in his Roots he connects -yāvam only with root yu 'separate'; one does not see why he departs from that here: nevertheless, the sense 'mix' is well avouched for the root yu 'unite' with pra by JUB. i. 8, yathā madhunā lājān prayuyād evam (see JAOS. xvi. 88 and 228).—I may add in the proof that even the Anukr. reads aprayātam, but that the Yajus readings, and the sádam it (W. 'constantly') of iii. 15. 8, seem to place the Berlin emendation beyond doubt: and that the Ppp. reading aprayucchan at iii. 5. 1 helps to establish for the Vulgate not only the form áprayāvam as gerund, but also the meaning 'without being careless' or 'unremittingly' as against 'without mixing.'⌋
