वेदों की प्राचीनता एवं काल-निर्णय / ओरायन (लोकमान्य बाल गंगाधर तिलक - खगोलीय वैदिक शोध)

160 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS. was known to the poets of the Ṛig-Veda. The evidence, which I am now going to cite, comes from another source, I mean, the sacrificial litetature, which is quite independent of the legend of the seven Âdityas. The Ṛig-Veda mentions a number of ancient sacrificers styled 'our fathers' (II, 33, 13; VI, 22, 2), who instituted the sacrifice in ancient times, and laid down, for the guidance of man, the path which he should, in future, follow. Thus the sacrifice offered by Manu, is taken as the type, and other sacri- fices are compared with it in I, 76, 5. But Manu was not alone to offer this ancient sacrifice to the gods. In X, 63, 7, he is said to have made the first offerings to the gods along with the seven Hotṛis; while Aṅgiras and Yayâti are mentioned with him as ancient sacrificers in I, 31, 17, Bhṛigu and Aṅgiras in VIII, 43, 13, Atharvan and Dadhyañch in I, 80, 16, and Dadhy- añch, Aṅgiras, Atri and Kaṇva in I, 139, 9. Atharvan by his sacrifices is elsewhere described, as having first extended the paths, whereupon the sun was born (I, 83, 5 ), and the Atharvans, in the plural, are styled 'our fathers' (naḥ pitaraḥ) along with Aṅgirases, Navagvas and Bhṛigus in X, 14, 6. In II, 34, 12, Dashagvas are said to have been the first to offer a sacrifice; while in X, 92, 10 Atharvan is spoken of, as having established order by sacrifices, when the Bhṛigus showed themselves as gods by their skill. Philologically the name of Atharvan appears as Athravan, meaning a fire-priest, in the Avesta, and the word Aṅgiras is said to be etymolo- gically connected with the Greek Aggilos, a 'messenger' and the Persian Angara 'a mounted courier.' In the Aitareya Brâhmaṇa (III, 34) Aṅgirases are said to be the same as Aṅgârâḥ, 'burning coals or fire,' (Cf. Ṛig. X. 62, 5). Whether we accept these etymologies as absolutely correct or not, the resemblance between the different words sufficiently warrants the assump- tion that Atharvan and Aṅgiras must have been the ancient