Page:Atharva-Veda samhita.djvu/344

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iv. 15-
BOOK IV. THE ATHARVA-VEDA-SAṀHITĀ.
174
is vātā varṣasya varṣatuṣ pravahantu pṛthivīm anu. The comm. renders avantu by tarpayantu; ajagarās here by ajagarātmanā vitarkyamānāḥ, and under vs. 9 by ajagarasamānākārāḥ: i.e. "that look like great serpents as they wind sinuously along"; he takes sudānavas in a alternatively as vocative, notwithstanding its accent.


8. Let it lighten to every region (ā́çā); let the winds blow to (from ?) every quarter; let the clouds, started forward by the Maruts, come together along the earth.

Ppp. has in d varṣantu, as our text in the preceding verse. The comm. also points out the possibility of taking diçás as either accus. pl. or abl. sing. The Anukr. somehow omits to define the metrical character of this verse and of vs. 14.


9. Waters, lightning, cloud, rain—let the liberal ones favor you, also the fountains, great serpents; let the clouds, started forward by the Maruts, show favor (pra-av) along the earth.

Ppp. begins with vātas instead of āpas, and omits (as in 7 a) vas in b; and, for the last two pādas, it reads prā pyāyasva pra pitṛsva saṁ bhūmiṁ payasā sṛja. The comm. again takes sudānavas as vocative, and makes the elements mentioned in a subjects of sam avantu; in d he reads plāvantu but regards it as for prā ’vantu ⌊parallel with palāyate etc. (W's Gram. §1087 c), for which he cites Pāṇini viii. 2. 19⌋.


10. Agni, who, in unison with the waters' selves (tanū́), hath become overlord of the herbs—let him, Jātavedas, win (van) for us rain, breath for [our] progeny, amṛ́ta out of the sky.

The comm. paraphrases amṛtam with amṛtatvaprāpakam. The Anukr. duly notes the redundant syllable in d.


11. May Prajāpati from the sea, the ocean, sending waters, excite the water-holder; let the seed of the stallion (vṛ́ṣan áçva) be filled up; come hitherward with that thunder,—

To this verse really belongs the first pāda of our vs. 12, as the sense plainly shows, as well as its association in RV. (v. 83. 6 b, c, d) with the two closing pādas here. ⌊Cf. Lanman, Reader, p. 370; misdivision as between hymns.⌋ But the mss., the Anukr., the comm., and both editions, end vs. 11 with é ’hi. RV. reads in our c pinvata for pyāyatām, and dhā́rās for rétas. Ppp. combines in b āp’ īrayann, and begins c with prā py-. The comm. gives viṣṭos instead of vṛṣṇas in c, and explains both it and salilād in a by vyāpanaçīla, which is one of his standing glosses for obscure words; ardayāti he paraphrases with raçmibhir ādānena pīḑayatu, and udadhim simply by jaladhim. This verse is as much bhurij as vs. 10, unless we combine ā́pe ”ráyan in b. ⌊For -núnéhi, see Prāt. iii. 38, note.⌋


12. Pouring down waters, our Asura father.

Let the gurgles of the waters puff, O Varuṇa; let down the descending waters; let the speckled-armed frogs croak (vad) along the water-courses (íriṇa).

What is left of the verse after transferring its first triṣṭubh pāda to vs. 11, where it belongs, is (but for the intruded word varuṇa, which is wanting in Ppp.) a regular anuṣṭubh, having its avasāna division after sṛja; and this is the division actually made