Atharva-Veda Samhita/Book III/Hymn 14

14. A blessing on the kine.

[Brahman.—nānādevatyam uta goșțhadevatākam. ānușțubham: 6. ārṣī triṣṭubh.]

The hymn (except vs. 5) is found in Pāipp. ii. (in the verse-order 2, 4, 6, 1, 3). It is used by Kāuç., with other hymns (ii. 26 etc.), in a ceremony for the prosperity of cattle (19. 14). In Vāit. (21. 26), vs. 2 accompanies the driving of kine in the agnișțoma. The Vāit. use does not appear to be mentioned by the comm., and his report of the Kāuç. use is mostly lost from the manuscript (but filled in by the editor).

Translated: Ludwig, p. 469; Weber, xvii. 244; Grill, 64, 112; Griffith, i. 101; Bloomfield, 143, 351.

1. With a comfortable (suṣád) stall, with wealth, with well-being, with that which is the name of the day-born one, do we unite you.

Ppp. reads in b sapuṣṭyā for subhūtyā. The obscure third pāda is found again below as v. 28. 12 c; it is altogether diversely rendered (conjecturally) by the translators (Weber, "with the blessing of favorable birth"; Ludwig, "with [all] that which one calls day-born"; Grill, "with whatever a day of luck brings forth"); R. suggests "with all (of good things) that the day brings, or that is under the heaven": none of these suits the other occurrence.

2. Let Aryaman unite you, let Pūshan, let Brihaspati, let Indra, who is conqueror of riches; in my possession gain ye what is good.

'In my possession,' lit. 'with me' (bei mir, chez moi). The comm. takes puṣyata as = poṣayata; and so do the translators, unnecessarily and therefore inadmissibly; or, we may emend to puṣyatu, with vásu as subject. "Unite" calls for the expression of with what; this is not given, but the verse may be regarded as (except d) a continuation of vs. 1. The three pādas a-c are found as a gāyatrī-verse in MS. (iv. 2. 10: with poṣā́ for pūṣā́ in b). Ppp. has iha puṣyati at beginning of d.

3. Having come together, iinaffrighted, rich in manure, in this stall, bearing the sweet of soma, come ye hither, free from disease.

Three of the pādas (a, b, d) again form, with considerable variants, a gāyatrī in MS. (ibid.) immediately following the one noted above: MS. has ávihrutās for ábibhyuṣīs, purīṣíṇīs for kar-, and, in place of our d, svāveçā́ na ā́ gata. Ppp. gives, as not seldom, in part the MS. readings, corrupted: it begins saṁjanānāṁ vihṛtām, has havis for madhu in c, and, for d, svāveçāsa etana. The combination of p. upa॰étana into s. upétana is one of those aimed at by Prāt. iii. 52, according to the comment on that rule; but it would equally well fall under the general rule (iii. 38) as to the order of combination when ā comes between two vowels (upa-ā-itana like indra-ā-ihi etc.). ⌊Cf. also Lanman, JAOS. x. 425.⌋

4. Come ye just here, O kine, and flourish here like çákā; also multiply (pra-jā) just here; let your complaisance be toward me.

Çáke ’va (p. çákā॰iva) in b is very obscure: Weber renders "like dung" (as if çákā = ćákṛt); Ludwig, "with the dung" (as if çákā = çáknā́); Grill, "like plants" (implying çākam iva or çākā iva) the comm. says "multiply innumerably, like flies" (çakā = makṣikā); this last is, so far as can be seen, the purest guesswork, nor is anything brought up in its support; and the "dung" comparisons are as unsuitable as they are unsavory. The explanation of the comm. accords with one among those offered by the commentators on VS. xxiv. 32 (= MS. iii. 14. 13) and TS. v. 5. 18¹, where çákā also occurs. Ppp. reads ṣakā iva. SPP. reports his pada-mss. as accenting gā́vaḥ in a, but emends in his pada-text to gāvaḥ; the latter is read by all ours, so far as noted.

5. Let your stall be propitious; flourish ye like çāriçā́kā; also multiply just here; with me we unite you.

There is no Ppp. text of this verse to help cast light on the obscure and difficult çāriçākā (p. çāriçā́kā॰iva). The comm. (implying -kās) explains the word as meaning "kinds of creatures that increase by thousands in a moment," but offers no etymology or other support; the translators supply a variety of ingenious and unsatisfactory conjectures (Weber, "like çāri-dung," çāri perhaps a kind of bird; Grill "[fatten yourselves] like the çārikā" or hooded crow; Ludwig simply puts a question-mark in place of a translation). R. offers the conjecture çāriḥ (= çāliḥ) çaka iva 'like rice in manure.' Our P. M.E.I, accent çā́riçā́ke ’va.

⌊BIoomfield emends to çāri-çukeva (= -kās iva), 'thrive ye like starlings and parrots.' True, these birds are habitual companions in literature as in life (see my translation of Karpūra-mañjarī, p. 229, note), loquacity being their salient characteristic; but what is the tertium comparationis between the thriving of cows and of starlings?⌋

6. Attach yourselves, O kine, to me as lord of kine; this your stall here [be] flourishing; to you, becoming numerous with abundance of wealth, to you living, may we living be near (upa-sad).

Bhávantas in c would be a desirable emendation. Upa-sad may be rather 'wait upon' (so Grill), only then we should expect rather sadāma (comm., upagacchema). ⌊W's implied difference between sadema and sadāma is not clear to me.⌋ Ppp. reads in a gopatyā, and its b is mayi vo goṣṭha iha poṣayāti. ⌊The epithet ārṣī seems to be as meaningless here as at iii. 12. 7—see note, end.⌋