Page:Atharva-Veda samhita volume 2.djvu/402

31. In the southern quarter, away etc. etc.

32. In the western quarter, away etc. etc.

33. In the northern quarter, away etc. etc.

34. In the fixed quarter, away etc. etc.

35. In the upward quarter, away etc. etc.

These six verses, 30-35, have the same refrain of 35 syllables as vss. 25-28; and the prefixed part, variable only in its first word, ranges from 17 to 19 syllables; the definition of the Anukr. is approximately accurate.

36. Dhartar ('maintainer') art thou; maintaining art thou; bull (váṅsaga) art thou.

37. Water-purifying art thou; honey-purifying art thou; wind-purifying art thou.

The comm. regards both these prose verses (yajurmantra) as addressed to Agni, quoting RV. iv. 58. 3 and vi. 16. 39 to prove the applicability to him of the epithets in 36. The sūtras make no use of them save by their inclusion in the series 25-37 in Kāuç. 85. 26: see above, under vs. 25. The Anukr., in counting the syllables of 36, restores both the elided initial a's.

⌊Verses 38 and 39 are addressed to the oblation-carts. The rearrangement of the RV. pādas in the AV. text is of such critical interest that it is worth a little space to exhibit the method to the eye.—The yuje vām etc. of the RV. seems to be clearly prefatory, and probably few will deny that the RV. order is the more nearly original, and that the AV. order and readings are secondary.

RV. x. 13. 1 and 2.		AV. xviii. 3. 38 and 39.
yujé vām bráhma pūrvyáṁ námobhir	$\scriptstyle {\left.{\begin{matrix}\ \\\\\ \ \end{matrix}}\right\}\,}$☟
ví çlóka etu pathyèva sūréḥ।
çṛṇvántu víçve amṛ́tasya putrā́
ā́ yé dhā́māni divyā́ni tasthúḥ॥1		itáç ca mā amútaç cāvātām [mā?]
yamé iva yátamāne yád āitam		yamé iva yátamāne yád āitám।
prá vām bharan mā́nuṣā devayántaḥ।		prá vām bharan mā́nuṣā devayánta
ā́ sīdataṁ svám u lokáṁ vídāne		ā́ sīdataṁ svám u lokáṁ vídāne॥38
svāsasthé bhavatam índave naḥ॥2		svā́sasthe bhavatam índave no
	☝$\scriptstyle {\left\{{\begin{matrix}\ \\\\\ \ \end{matrix}}\right.}$	yujé vām bráhma pūrvyáṁ námobhiḥ।
		ví çlóka eti pathyèva sūriḥ
		çṛṇvántu víçve amṛ́tāsa etát॥39⌋

38. Both from here and from yonder let them (du.) aid me.

As ye (du.) ⌊neut.⌋ went pressing on (root yat) like two twins, god-loving men (mā́nuṣa) bring you forward; sit ye, [each] on thine own place, knowing [it];—

⌊See my added note just preceding the translation of verse 38.⌋ In this and the three following verses we have the ⌊entire⌋ RV. hymn x. 13, ⌊except its last verse, the fifth, and⌋ except its vs. 1 d. ⌊See introduction, page 848, top.⌋ This verse is its 2 a, b, c ⌊its d follows at the beginning of our next verse⌋, with a pāda prefixed as our a that forms no part of the RV. hymn. The first two verses are addressed