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

322 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS. (dwelling in darkness) on any other theory; and if this explanation is accepted, it is not difficult to understand how the solar orb could be said to be utilized by Indra in vanquishing the demons and regaining the morning light. In other words, Indra helps the sun in destroying the obs- truction which marred or clouded his lustre, and when this obstruction is removed the sun regains his light and rises up from the nether ocean. Indra is, therefore, correctly described in IV, 17, 14, as having stopped the wheel öf the sun, and, turning it round, flung it into the concealing darkness at the bottom of rajas or in the nether world of darkness. But the passage important for our purpose is VI, 31, 3. It reads as follows:— Tvam Kutsena abhi Shuṣhṇam Indra Ashuṣhaṁ yudhya Kuyavam gaviṣhṭau । Daśha prapitve adha Sūryasya mushāyas chakram avive rapāṁsi ॥ The first half of the verse presents no difficulty. It means "O Indra! in the striving for the cows, do you, with Kutsa, fight against Shuṣhṇa, the Ashuṣha and the Kuyava."* Here Ashuṣha and Kuyava are used as adjectives to Shuṣhṇa and mean 'the voracious Shuṣhṇa, the bane of the crops." The second hemistich, however, is not so simple. The last phrase avive-rapāṁsi is split in the Pada text as aviveḥ and rapāṁsi, which means "destroy calamities or mischiefs (rapāṁsi)." But Prof. Oldenberg proposes to divide the phrase as aviveḥ and apāṁsi, in confirmity with IV, 19, 10, and translates, "Thou hast manifested thy manly works (apāṁsi)."† It is not, however, necessary for our present purpose to examine the re- lative merits of these two interpretations; and we may, there- fore, adopt the older of the two, which translates the phrase as meaning, "Thou hast destroyed calamities or mischiefs,

• See Ṛig. VI, 31, 3,—त्वं कुत्सेनाभि शुष्णमिंद्राशुषं युध्य कुयवं गविष्टौ । दश प्रपित्वे अध सूर्यस्य मुषायश्चक्रमविवेरपांसि ॥ † See Oldenberg's Vedic Hymns, S.B.E. Series, Vol. XLVI, p. 69.

VEDIC MYTHS—THE MATUTINAL DEITIES. 323 (Arapāṁsi)." Omitting the first two words, viz., dasha and pra- pitve, the second hemistich may, therefore, be rendered, "Thou hast stolen the wheel of Sûrya and hast destroyed calamities." We have now to ascertain the meaning of dasha prapitve. Sâyaṇa takes dasha as equivalent to adashaḥ (lit., bittest, from daṁsh, to bite), and prapitve to mean "in the battle" —and translates, "Thou bittest him in the battle." But this is evidently a forced meaning, and one that does not harmonise with other passages, where the same legend is describ- ed. Thus in IV, 16, 12, we are told that Shuṣhṇa was killed at ahnaḥ prapitve, and the last phrase evidently denotes the time when Shuṣhṇa was defeated; while in V, 31, 7, Indra is described as having checked the wiles of Shuṣhṇa by reaching prapitvam. By the side of the expression dasha prapitve, we thus have two more passages in the Ṛig-Veda, referring to the same legend, and in one of which Shuṣhṇa is said to be killed at the prapitva of the day (ahnaḥ prapitve), while in the other, the wiles of the demon are said to be checked by Indra on reaching prapitvam. The three expressions, dasha prapitve, ahnaḥ prapitve, and Prapitvam yan, must, therefore, be taken to be synonymous; and whatever meaning we assign to prapitve, it must be applicable to all the three cases. The word prapitve is used several times in the Ṛig-Veda, but scholars are not agreed as to its mean- ing. Thus Grassmann gives two meanings of prapitva. The first denoting "advance," and the second "the beginning of the day." According to him ahnaḥ prapitve means "in the morning" (IV, 16, 12). But he would render prapitvam yan simply by "advancing." In VI, 31, 3, he would also take prapitve as meaning "in the morning." The word prapitve also occurs in I, 189, 7, and there Prof. Olden- berg translates it by "at the time of the advancing day," and quotes Geldner in support thereof. Sâyaṇa in VIII, 4, 3, translates âpitve by 'friendship' and prapitve by 'having ac- quired,' (cf. Nir. III, 20). Under these circumstances it is, I

324 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS. think, safer to ascertain the meaning of prapitve direct from those Vedic passages where it occurs in contrast with other words. Thus in VII, 41, 4, (Vâj. Sam, XXXIV, 37) and VIII, 1, 29, we find prapitve very distinctly contrasted with madhye (the middle) and uditâ (the beginning) of the day; and in both these places prapitve can mean nothing but 'the decline or the end of the day.'* Mahîdhara, on Vâj. Sam. XXXIV, 37, explains prapitve as equivalent to prapatane or astamaye, meaning "the decline, fall, or end of the day." Adopting this meaning, the phrase ahnaḥ prapitve ni barhîḥ, in IV, 16, 12, would then mean that Shuṣhṇa was killed 'when the day had declined.' Now if Shuṣhṇa was killed when the day had de- clined the phrase dasha prapitve ought to be, by analogy, inter- preted in the same way. But it is difficult to do so, so long as dasha is separated from prapitve, as is done in the Pada text. I propose, therefore, that dasha-prapitve be taken as one word, and interpreted to mean "at the decline of the ten," meaning that Shuṣhṇa was killed at the end or completion of ten (months). In I, 141, 2, the phrase dasha-pramatim is taken as a compound word in the Pada text, but Oldenberg, following the Petersberg Lexicon, splits it into dasha and pra- matim. I propose to deal exactly in the reverse way with the phrase dasha prapitve in the passage under consideration, and translate the verse thus:—"O Indra! in the striving for cows do thou, with Kutsa, fight against Shuṣhṇa, the Ashuṣha and Kuyava. On the decline (or the completion) of the ten (scil. months), thou stolest the wheel of Sûrya and didst destroy cala- mities (or, according to Oldenberg, manifest manly works)." The passage thus becomes intelligible, and we are not required

• Ṛig. VII, 41, 4,—उतेदानीं भगवंतः स्यामोत प्रपित्व उत मध्ये अह्नां । उतोदिता मघवन्सूर्यस्य वयं देवानां सुमतौ स्याम ॥ Ṛig. VIII, 1, 29—मम त्वा सूर उदिते मम मध्यंदिने दिवः। मम प्रपित्वे अपिशर्वरे वसवा स्तोमासो अवृत्सत ॥ These two passages clearly prove that prapitve, used with reference to the day, denotes decline or the termination thereof.

VEDIC MYTHS—THE MATUTINAL DEITIES. 325 to invent a new meaning for dasha and make Indra bite his enemy on the battle-field. If we compare the phrase dasha- prapitve with ahnaḥ prapitve occurring in IV, 16, 12, and bear in mind the fact that both are used in connection with the legendary fight with Shuṣhṇa, we are naturally led to suppose that dasha-prapitve denotes, in all probability, the time of the contest, as ahnaḥ prapitve does in the other passage, and that dasha prapitve must be taken as equivalent to dashânâm prapitve and translated to mean “On the completion of the ten,” which can be done only by taking dasha-prapitve as a compound word. The grammatical construction being thus determined, the only question that remains is to decide whether dasha (ten) means ten days or ten months. A comparison with ahnaḥ prapitve may suggest “days,” but the fight with Shuṣhṇa cannot be regarded to have been fought every ten days. It is either annual or daily; and we are thus led to interpret dasha in the compound dasha- prapitve (or dashânâm when the compound is dissolved) as equivalent to ten months in the same way as the numeral dvâdashasya is interpreted to mean “of the twelfth month,” or dvâdashasya mâsasya in VII, 103, 9. The passage thus denotes the exact time when the wheel of the sun, or the solar orb, was stolen by Indra and utilized as a weapon of attack to demolish the demons of darkness. This was done at the end of ten months, or at the end of the old Roman year, or at the close of the sacrificial session of the Dashagvas who with Indra are said to have found the sun dwelling in darkness. The construction of the passage proposed above is not only natural and simple, but the sense it gives is in harmony with the mean- ing of similar other passages relating to the fight of Shuṣhṇa, and is far more rational than the current meaning which makes Indra bite his enemy in a rustic and unpre- cedented manner. It is the Pada text that is responsible for the present unnatural meaning; for if it had not split

326 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS. up the phrase into dasha and prapitve, its correct meaning might not have become so obscure as at present. But the Pada text is not infallible; and even Yâska and Sâyaṇa have adopted amendments in certain cases (cf. I, 105, 18; X, 29, 1; and Nir. V, 21; VI, 28), and the same thing has been done rather more freely by Western scholars. We are not, therefore, following an untrodden path in giving up the Pada text, especially when the verse is more naturally and intelligently interpreted by taking dasha-prapitve as one compound word. When the verse is so interpreted we get a complete account of the annual course of the sun in the home of the Aryans in an- cient days. It was Indra, who caused the sun to rise after his long fight with Vṛitra; and when the sun had shone for ten months, Indra stole the solar orb and took the sun with him into darkness to fight with the demons. That is the meaning of the whole legend; and when it can be so naturally explained only by the Arctic theory, the necessity of the latter becomes at once established. Vishnu's three strides. There are a few more Vedic legends which indicate or suggest the Arctic conditions of climate or calendar, and I propose to briefly examine them in this chapter. One of these legends relates to Viṣhṇu and his three long strides, which are distinctly mentioned in several places in the Ṛig-Veda (I, 22, 17-18; I, 154, 2). Yâska (Nir. XII, 19) quotes the opinion of two older writers regarding the character of these three steps. One of these, viz., Shâkapûṇi, holds that the three steps must be placed on the earth, in the atmosphere, and in the sky; while Aurṇavâbha thinks that the three steps must be located, one on the hill where the sun rises (samârohaṇa), another on the meridian sky (Viṣhṇu-pada), and the third on the hill of setting (gaya-shiras.) Prof. Max Muller thinks that this three-fold stepping of Viṣhṇu is emblematic of the rising, the

VEDIC MYTHS—THE MATUTINAL DEITIES. 327 culminating and the setting of the sun; and Muir quotes a passage from the Râmâyaṇa (IV, 40, 64), which mentions udaya-parvata, or the mountain of sun-rise, and says that on the top of it is the peak Saumanasa, the place where Viṣhṇu's first step was planted. We are then told that his second step was placed on the summit of Meru ; and that " when the sun had circled round Jambudvîpa by the north, he is mostly visible on that lofty peak." It seems, therefore, that according to the Râmâyaṇa the third step of Viṣhṇu was round Jambudvîpa, and was planted after sunset, whatever that may mean. In the Purâṇic literature, Viṣhṇu's three steps appear as the three steps of Vâmana, the fifth incarnation of Viṣhṇu. Bali, the powerful enemy of the gods, was celebrating a sacrifice, when, assuming the form of a dwarf, Viṣhṇu approached him, and begged for three paces of ground. No sooner the request was granted than Viṣhṇu assumed a miraculous form and occupied the whole earth by the first step and the atmosphere and everything above it with the second. Bali, who was the lord of the universe before, was surprised at the metamorphosis of the dwarf; but had to make good his own word by offering his head for the third step of Vâmana. The offer was accepted and Bali was pressed down under the third step into the nether world, and the empire of the earth and heavens above was again restored to Indra from whom it had been snatched away by Bali. Amongst these various interpretations one thing stands out very clear, viz., that Viṣhṇu represents the sun in one form or another. But Vedic scholars are not agreed as to whether Viṣhṇu's strides represent the daily or the yearly course of the sun. We must, therefore, carefully examine the Vedic passages relating to Viṣhṇu, and see if any indication is found therein to decide which of these two views is more probable or correct. Now in I, 155, 6, Viṣhṇu is described as setting in motion, like a revol- ving wheel, ‘his ninety steeds with their four names, evidently

328 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS. referring to 360 days, divided into four groups or seasons of 90 days each. This is good evidence to hold that the yearly course of the sun must be taken as the basis of the exploits of Viṣhṇu. The Ṛig-Veda further tells us that Viṣhṇu was the intimate friend of Indra (yujyaḥ sakhâ, I, 22, 19), and that he assisted Indra in his fight with Vṛitra. Thus in IV, 18, 11, we are told that " Indra about to kill Vṛitra said ' O friend Viṣhṇu ! stride vastly,' (also cf. VIII, 12, 27)"; and . in I, 156, 4, Viṣhṇu is said to have opened the cows' stable with the assistance of his friend, while both Indra and Viṣhṇu are described as having together vanquished Shambara, conquered the host of Varchins and produced the sun, dawn and the fire in VII, 99, 4 and 5. It is evident from these passages that Viṣhṇu was the associate of Indra in his fight with Vṛitra (cf. VIII, 100, 12); and if so, one of the three steps must be placed in regions where this fight was fought, that is, in the nether world. We can now understand why, in I, 155, 5, it is said that two of the three steps of Viṣhṇu are visible to man, but the third is beyond the reach of birds or mortals (also cf. VII, 99, 1). When the third step of Viṣhṇu is located in the nether world, it can well be said to be invisible, or beyond the reach of mortals. We have seen that the abode of Vṛitra is said to be hidden and filled with darkness and waters. If Viṣhṇu helped Indra in his fight with Vṛitra, his third step must be taken to correspond with the home of Vṛitra ; in other words, Viṣhṇu's strides represent the annual course of the sun divided into three parts. Dur- ing two of these the sun was above the horizon, and hence two of Viṣhṇu's three strides were said to be visible. But when in the third or the last part of the year the sun went below the horizon producing continuous darkness, Vi- ṣhṇu's third step was said to be invisible. It was then that he helped Indra to demolish Vṛitra and bring back the dawn, the sun and the sacrifice. It has been shown in the last

VEDIC MYTHS—THE MATUTINAL DEITIES. 329 chapter that Indra's fight with Shambara commenced on the fortieth day of Sharad or in the eighth month after the begin- ning of the year with Vasanta. These eight months of sunshine and four of darkness may very well be represented by two visible and one invisible step of Viṣhṇu, and the Purâṇic story of Viṣhṇu's sleeping for four months in the year further supports the same view. It may also be noticed that Viṣhṇu is said to sleep, on his serpent bed in the midst of the ocean ; and the ocean and the serpent here alluded to are evidently the waters (âpaḥ) and Ahi or Vṛitra mentioned in the Vṛitra legend. It is said that the sleep of Viṣhṇu represents the rainy season of four months ; but this is a later misrepresenta- tion of the kind we have noticed in the last chapter in regard to waters. When the exploits of Indra were transferred from the last season of the year, viz., Hemanta, to Varshâ or the rainy season, the period, during which Viṣhṇu lay dormant, must have been naturally misunderstood in the same way and identified with the rainy season. But originally Viṣhṇu's sleep and his third step must have been identical ; and as the third step is said to be invisible, we cannot suppose that it was planted in the rainy season, which is visible enough. The long darkness of the winter night in the Arctic region can alone adequately represent the third step of Viṣhṇu or the period of his sleep; and the legend about the Phrygian god, who, accord- ing to Plutarch, was believed to sleep during winter and resume his activity during summer, has been interpreted by Prof. Rhys in the same way. The Irish couvade of the Ultonian heroes also points out to the same conclusion.* But apart from the sleep of Viṣhṇu which is Purâṇic, we have a Vedic legend which has the same meaning. In the Ṛig-Veda (VII, 100, 6), Viṣhṇu is represented as having a bad name, viz., shipivishṭa. Thus the poet says, "O Viṣhṇu!

• See Rhys' Hibbert Lectures, p. 632. The passage is quoted in full in Chap. XII, infra.

330 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS. what was there to be blamed in thee when thou declaredest ' I am shipivishṭa ' ?" Yâska records (Nir. V, 7-9) an old tradi- tion that according to Âupamanyava, Vishṇu has two names Shipivishṭa and Vishṇu, of which the former has a bad sense (kutsitârthîyam); and then quotes the aforesaid verse which he explains in two ways. The first of these two interpreta- tions accords with that of Aupamanyava; and shipivishṭa is there explained by Yâska to mean shepaḥ iva nirveshṭitaḥ, or "enveloped like the private parts," or "with rays obscured " (apratipanna-rashmiḥ). Yâska, however, suggests an alter- native interpretation and observes that shipivishṭa may be taken as a laudatory appellation, meaning "one whose rays (shipayaḥ) are displayed (âvishṭâḥ)." It is inferred by some scholars from this passage that the meaning of the word shi- pivishṭa had already become uncertain in the days of Yâska; but I do not think it probable, for even in later literature shi- pivishṭa is an opprobrious appellation meaning either "one whose hair has fallen off," or "one who is afflicted with an incurable skin disease." The exact nature of the affliction may be uncertain; but there can be no doubt that shipivishta has a bad meaning even in later Sanskrit literature. But in days when the origin of this phrase, as applied to Vishṇu, was for- gotten, theologians and scholars naturally tried to divest the phrase of its opprobrious import by proposing alternative mean- ings; and Yâska was probably the first Nairukta to formulate a good meaning for shipivishta by suggesting that shipi may be taken to mean "rays." That is why the passage from the Mahâbhârata (Shânti-Parvan, Chap. 342, vv. 69-71), quoted by Muir, tells us that Yâska was the first to apply the epithet to Vishṇu; and it is unreasonable to infer from it, as Muir has done, that the writer of the Mahâbhârata "was not a par- ticularly good Vedic scholar." In the Taittirîya Saṁhitâ, we are told that Vishṇu was worshipped as Shipivishṭa (II, 2, 12, 4 and 5), and that shipi means cattle or pashavaḥ (II, 5, 5, 2;

VEDIC MYTHS—THE MATUTINAL DEITIES. 331 Tān. Br. XVIII, 6, 26 ). Shipivishṭa is thus explained as a laudatory appellation by taking shipi equal to 'cattle,' 'sacrifice' or 'rays.' But these etymological devices have failed to invest the word with a good sense in Sanskrit literature; and this fact by itself is sufficient to show that the word shipivishṭa originally was, and has always been, a term of reproach indicating some bodily affliction, though the nature of it was not exactly known. The theological scholars, it is true, have tried to explain the word in a different sense; but this is due to their unwillingness to give opprobrious names to their gods, rather than to any uncertainty about the real meaning of the word. It was thus that the word shipivishṭa, which is originally a bad name (kutsitārthīyam) according to Aupamanyava, was converted into a mysterious (guhya) name for the deity. But this transition of meaning is confined only to the theological literature, and did not pass over into the non-theological works, for the obvious reason that in ordinary language the bad meaning of the word was sufficiently familiar to the people. There can, therefore, be little doubt that, in VII, 100, 5 and 6, shipivishṭa is used in a bad sense as stated by Aupamanyava. These verses have been translated by Muir as follows:—" I, a devoted worshipper, who know the sacred rites, today celebrate this thy name shipivishṭa; I, who am weak, laud thee who art strong and dwellest beyond this lower world (kshayantam asya rajasaḥ parāke). What, Vishṇu, hast thou to blame, that thou declaredest, 'I am Shipivishṭa'? Do not conceal from us this form (vārpas), since thou didst assume another shape in the battle." The phrase "dwelling in the lower world "(rajasah parāke), or "beyond this world," furnishes us with a clue to the real meaning of the passage. It was in the nether world that Vishṇu bore this bad name. And what was the bad name after all? Shipivishṭa, or "enveloped like shepa," meaning that his rays were obscured, or that he was temporarily concealed

332 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS. in a dark cover. The poet, therefore, asks Viṣhṇu not to be ashamed of the epithet, because, says he, the form indicated by the bad name is only temporarily assumed, as a dark armour, for the purpose of fighting with the Asuras, and as it was no longer needed, Viṣhṇu is invoked to reveal his true form (varpas) to the worshipper. That is the real meaning of the verses quoted above, and in spite of the attempt of Yâska and other scholars to convert the bad name of Viṣhṇu into a good one by the help of etymological speculations, it is plain that shipiviṣhṭa was a bad name, and that it signified the dark outer appearance of Viṣhṇu in his fight with the demons in the nether world. If the sun is called bṛihach-chhepas when moving in regions above the horizon, he can be very well described as shipiviṣhṭa or "enveloped like shepa," when moving in the nether world; and there is hardly anything therein of which the deity or his worshippers should be ashamed. Later Purâṇic tradition represents Viṣhṇu as sleeping during this period; but whether we take it as sleep or disease it means one and the same thing. It is the story of Viṣhṇu going down to the nether world, dark or diseased, to plant his third step on the head of the Asuras, or in a dark armour to help Indra in his struggle for waters and light, a struggle, which, we have seen, lasted for a long time and resulted in the flowing of waters, the recovery of the dawn and the coming out of the sun in a bright armour after a long and con- tinuous darkness. A comparison with the abodes of other Vedic deities, who are said to traverse the whole universe like Viṣhṇu confirms the same view. One of these deities is Savitṛi, who in V, 81, 3, is described as measuring the world (rajâṁsi); and in I, 35, 6, we are told "There are three heavens (dyâvaḥ) of Savitṛi, two of them are near and the third, bearing the brave, is in the world of Yama." This means that two of Savitri's three abodes are in the upper heaven and one in the nether world or

VEDIC MYTHS—THE MATUTINAL DEITIES. 333 the kingdom of Yama. The second deity that traverses or measures the universe is Agni (VI, 7, 7). He has three stations, one in samudra or ocean, one in heaven (divi) and one in the waters or apsu (I, 95, 3). His light is spoken of as three-fold (III, 26, 7), he has three heads (I, 146, 1) and three seats, powers or tongues (III, 20, 2; VIII, 39, 8). Now although these three stations do not seem to be always conceived alike, yet one of them at any rate can be clearly identified with the third step of Viṣhṇu; for in X, 1, 3, we are told that the third station of Agni is known only to Viṣhṇu, while in V, 3, 3, Agni, with the upama (last or highest) step of Viṣhṇu, is said to guard the sacred cows. This description agrees well with I, 154, 5 and 6, where swift moving cows and a spring of honey are said to exist in the place where the highest step of Viṣhṇu is planted. It has been shown above that Agni sometimes represents the sun in the Ṛig-Veda, and that his hiding in the waters and coming out of them as apāṁ napāt or the child of waters is only a different version of the sun sinking below the horizon for a long time and then emerg- ing out of the nether ocean at the end of the long Arctic night. Viṣhṇu is also the same sun under a different name, and the third step of Viṣhṇu and the third or the hidden abode of Agni can, therefore, be easily recognised as identical in character. The third deity that traverses the universe is the Ashvins to whom the epithet parijman or 'going round' is applied several times in the Ṛig-Veda (I, 46, 14; I, 117, 6). The Ashvins are said to have three stations (VIII, 8, 23), and their chariot, which is said to go over both the worlds alike (I, 30, 18), has three wheels one of which is represented as deposited in a cave or a secret place, like the third step of Viṣhṇu, which is beyond the ken of mortals (cf. X, 85, 14–16). This coin- cidence between the third stations of the three different world- traversing gods cannot be treated as accidental; and if so, the combined effect of all the passages stated above will be

334 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS. clearly seen to point out to the conclusion that the third or the hidden place, dwelling or abode in each case must be sought for in the nether world, the world of the Piṭris, of Yama, of waters and darkness.

Trita Âptya.

It has been stated above that the year divided into three parts of 4 months each represents the three steps of Vishṇu; and that the first two parts were said to be visible as contrasted with the third which was hidden, because in the ancient home of the Aryan people the sun was above the horizon only for about 8 months. If we personify these three parts of the year, we get a legend of three brothers, the first two of whom may be described as arranging to throw the third into a pit of darkness. This is exactly the story of Trita Âptya in the Ṛig-Veda or of Thrâetaona in the Avesta. Thus Sâyaṇa, in his commentary on I, 105, quotes a passage from the Taittirîya Brâhmaṇa (III, 2, 8, 10–11) and also a story of the Shâṭyâyanins giving the legend of three brothers called Ekata, Dvita and Trita, or the first, the second and the third, the former two of whom threw the last or Trita into a well from which he was taken out by Bṛihaspati. But in the Ṛig-Veda Ekata is not mentioned any- where; while Dvita, which grammatically means the second, is met with in two places (V, 18, 2; VIII, 47, 16). Dvita is the seer of the 18th hymn in the fifth Maṇḍala, and in the second verse of the hymn he is said to receive maimed offerings; while in VIII, 47, 16, the dawn is asked to bear away the evil dream to Dvita and Trita. Grammatical analogy points out that Trita must mean the third, and in VI, 44, 23, the word triteṣhu is used as a numeral adjective to rochaneshu meaning "in the third region." As a Vedic deity Trita is called Âptya, meaning "born of or re- siding in waters" (Sây. on VIII, 47, 15); and he is referred to in several places, being associated with the Maruts and Indra in

VEDIC MYTHS--THE MATUTINAL DEITIES. 335 slaying the demon or the powers of darkness like Vṛitra. Thus in X, 8, 8, Trita, urged by Indra, is said to have fought against and slain the three-headed (tri-shiras) son of Tvaṣhṭṛi and released the cows ; while in X, 99, 6, we read that Indra subdued the loud-roaring six-eyed demon, and Trita, strengthened by the same draught, slew the boar (varâha) with his iron-pointed bolt. But the most important incident in the story of Trita is mention- ed in I, 105. . In this hymn Trita is described as having fallen into a kûpa or well, which is also called vavra or a pit in X, 8, 7. Trita then invoked the gods for help and Bṛihaspati hearing his prayers released him from his distress (I, 105, 17). Some of the verses in the hymn are very suggestive ; for instance in verse 9, Trita tells us about his "kinship with the seven rays in the heaven. Trita Âptya knows it and he speaks for kinship." The ruddy Vṛika, or the wolf of darkness, is again described in verse 18 as having perceived Trita going by the way. These references show that Trita was related to the powers of light, but had the misfortune of being thrown into darkness. In IX, 102, 2, Trita's abode is said to be hidden or secret, a description similar to that of the third step of Viṣhṇu. The same story is found in the Avesta. There Thrâetaona, who bears the patronomic epithet Âthwya (Sans. Âptya), is described as slaying the fiendish serpent Azi Dahâka, who is said to be three-mouthed and six- eyed (Yt. XIX, 36-37; V, 33-34). But what is still more remarkable in the Avestic legend is that Thrâetaona in his expedition against the demon is said to have been accompanied by his two brothers who sought to slay him on the way.* The Avestic legend thus fully corroborates the story of the Shâṭyâyanins quoted by Sâyaṇa, and when the two accounts agree so well we cannot lightly set aside the story in the Brâhmaṇa,

• See Spiegel, Die Arische Periode, p. 271, quoted by Macdonell in his Vedic Mythology, § 23. Also compare S. B. E. Series, Vol. XXXIII p. 222 note 2.

336 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS. or hold that it was woven out of stray references in the Ṛig-Veda. But in the absence of the Arctic theory, or the theory of long darkness extending over nearly four months or a third part of the year, European Scholars have been at a loss to understand why the deity should have been named 'the Third'; and various ingenious theories have been started to explain how Trita, which ordinarily means the third, came to denote the deity that was thrown into a pit or well in a distant land. Thus Prof. Max Muller thinks that the name of the deity was originally Tṛita (तृत) and not Trita (त्रित); and he derives the former from the root tṛî (तॄ) to cross. Tṛita (तृत) which, by-the-by, is not a regular grammatical form though found in the Atharva Veda VI, 113, 1 and 3, would thus mean "the sun crossing the ocean," being in this respect comparable to taraṇi which means "the sun" in the later Sanskrit literature. In short, according to Prof. Max Muller, Tṛita (तृत) means the 'set sun'; and the story of Trita (त्रित) is, therefore, only a different version of the daily struggle be- tween light and darkness. But Prof. Max Muller's theory re- quires us to assume that this misconception or the corruption of Tṛita (तृत) into Trita (त्रित) took place before the Aryan separation, inasmuch as in Old Irish we have the word triath which means the sea, and which is phonetically equivalent to Greek triton, Sanskrit trita and Zend thrita. Prof. Max Muller himself admits the validity of this objection, and points out that the Old Norse Thridi, a name of Odin, as the mate of Har and Jasnhar, can be accounted for only on the supposition that tṛita (तृत) was changed by a misapprehen- sion into trita (त्रित) long before the Aryan separation. This shows to what straits scholars are reduced in explaining certain myths in the absence of the true key to their meaning. We assume, without the slightest authority, that a mis- apprehension must have taken place before the Aryan separa- tion, because we cannot explain why a deity was called

VEDIC MYTHS—THE MATUTINAL DEITIES. 337 'the Third,' and why triath in Old Irish was used to denote the sea. But the whole legend can be now very easily and naturally explained by the Arctic theory. The personified third part of the year, called Trita or the Third, is naturally described as going into darkness, or a well or pit, or into the waters of the nether world, for the sun went below the horizon during that period in the home of the ancestors of the Vedic people. The connection of Trita with darkness and waters, or his part in the Vritra fight, or the use of the word triath to de- note the sea in Old Irish now becomes perfectly plain and intel- ligible. The nether world is the home of aerial waters and Bṛihaspati, who is said to have released the cows from their place of confinement in a cave in the nether world, is natural- ly spoken of as rescuing Trita, when he was sunk in the well of waters. Speaking of the abode of Trita, Prof. Max Muller observes that "the hiding place of Trita, the vavra, is really the same anārambhaṇam tamas, the endless darkness, from which light and some of its legendary representatives, such as Atri, Vandana and others, emerged every day." I subscribe to every word of this sentence except the last two. It shows how the learned Professor saw, but narrowly missed grasping the truth having nothing else to guide him except the Dawn and the Vernal theory. He had perceived that Trita's hiding place was in the endless darkness and that the sun rose out of the same dark region; and from this to the Arctic theory was but a small step. But whatever the reason may be, the Professor did not venture to go further, and the result is that an otherwise correct conception of the mythological incidents in Trita's legend is marred by two ominous words viz., "every day," at the end of the sentence quoted above. Strike off the last two words, put a full point after 'emerged,' and in the light of the Arctic theory we have a correct explana- tion of the legend of Trita as well as of the origin of the name, Trita or the Third. ' 22

338 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS. ÂPAH. The nature and movement of aerial or celestial waters have been discussed at length in the last chapter and practi- cally there is very little that remains to be said on this point. We have also seen how the nether world or the world of waters was conceived like an inverted hemisphere or tub, so that any- one going there was said to go to the region of endless dark- ness or bottomless waters. A mountainous range was again be- lieved to extend over the borders of this ocean, forming a stony wall as it were between the upper and the lower world; and when the waters were to be freed to flow upwards, it was ne- cessary to pierce through the mountainous range and clear the apertures which were closed by Vṛitra by stretching his body across them. In one place the well or avata, which Brahma- ṇaspati opened, is said to be closed at its mouth with stones (ashmâsyam, II, 24, 4), and in X. 67, 3, the stony barriers (ashmanmayâni nahanâ) of the prison wherein the cows were confined are expressly mentioned. A mountain, parvata, is also said to exist in the belly of Vṛitra (I, 54, 10), and Sham- bara is described as dwelling on the mountains. We have seen how the word parvata occuring in this connection has been misunderstood ever since the days of the Nairuktas, who, though they did a yeoman's service to the cause of Vedic in- terpretation, seem to have sometimes carried their etymologi- cal method too far. The connection of the nether world of waters with mountains and darkness may thus be taken as established, and the legends of Vṛitra, Bhujyu, Saptavadhri, Tṛita, &c. further show that the nether waters formed not only the home of the evil spirits and the scene of fights with them, but that it was the place which Sûrya, Agni, Vishṇu, the Ashvins and Trita had all to visit during a portion of the year. It was the place where Vishṇu slept, or hid himself, when af- flicted with a kind of skin-disease, and where the sacrificial

VEDIC MYTHS—THE MATUTINAL DEITIES. • 339 horse, which represented the sun, was harnessed by Trita, and first bestrode by Indra (I, 163, 2). It was the place from which the seven aerial rivers rose up with the seven suns to illumine the ancient home of the Aryan race for seven months, and into which they again dropped with the sun after that period. It was the same waters that formed the source of earthly waters by producing rain by their circulation through the upper regions of heaven. These waters were be- lieved to stretch from west to east underneath the three earths, thus forming at once the place of desolation and the place of the birth of the sun and other matutinal deities men- tioned in the Ṛig-Veda. It was the place where Vṛitra con- cealed the cows in a stony stable, and where Varuṇa and Yama reigned supreme, and the fathers (Pitṛis) lived in comfort and delight. As regards the division of this watery region, we might say that the Vedic bards conceived the nether world as divided in the same way as the earth and the heaven. Thus there were three, seven or ten lower worlds to match with the three-fold, seven-fold or ten-fold division of the heaven and the earth. It will thus be seen that a right conception of the nether waters and their movement is quite necessary for understanding the real meaning of many a Vedic, and, we might even say, the Purâṇic legends, for the latter are ge- nerally based either upon the Vedic legends or some one or other incident mentioned in them. If this universal and com- prehensive character of the waters be not properly understood many legends will appear dark, confused or mysterious; and I have, therefore, summed up in this place the leading charac- teristics of the goddesses of water as conceived by the Vedic poets and discussed in the foregoing pages. In the post-Vedic literature many of these characteristics are predicated of the sea of salt water on the surface of the earth, much in the same way as the Greek Okeanos, which has been shewn to be phonetically identical with the Sanskrit word âshayâna or enveloping, came

340 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS. to denote the ocean or the sea in European languages. Thus- Bhartṛihari in his Vairâgya-Shataka (v. 76) says:—" Oh! how extensive, grand and patient is the body of the ocean! For here sleeps Keshava (Viṣhṇu); here the clan of his enemies (Vṛitra and other demons of darkness); here lie also the host of mountains (the parvata of the Vedas) in search of shelter; and here too (lies) the Mare's fire (submarine fire) with all the Saṁvartakas (clouds)." This is intended to be a summary of the Purâṇic legends regarding the ocean, but it can be easily seen that every one of them is based upon the Vedic concep- tion of the nature and movements of aerial waters, which formed the very material out of which the world was believed to be created. After this it is needless to explain why Âpaḥ occupied such an important place in the Vedic pantheon. Seven-fold Nine-fold and Ten-fold. It is stated above that the nether waters are divided after the manner of the heaven and the earth, either into three, seven or ten divisions. We have also seen that the ancient sacrificers completed their sacrificial session in seven, nine or ten months; and that the Navagvas and the Dashagvas are, therefore, sometimes mentioned together, sometimes separately and sometimes along with the seven sages or vipras. I have also breifly referred to the seven-fold division, which generally obtains not only in the Vedic, but also in other Aryan mytho- logies. But the subject deserves a fuller consideration, and I propose here to collect certain facts bearing upon it, which seem to have hitherto attracted but little attention. All that Yâska and Sâyaṇa tell us about the seven-fold division is that there are seven horses of the sun and seven tongues or flames of Agni, because the rays of the sun are seven in number; and the late Mr. S. P. Pandit goes so far as to assert that the seven rays here referred to may be the prismatic colours with which we are familiar in the Science of optics, or the seven

VEDIC MYTHS—THE MATUTINAL DEITIES. 341 colours of the rainbow. All this appears to be very satis- factory at the first sight, but our complacency is disturbed as soon as we are told that along with the seven rays and horses of the sun, the Ṛig-Veda speaks of ten horses or ten rays of the same luminary. Yâska and Sâyaṇa get over the difficulty either by ignoring or by explaining away, in a tortuous manner, all references to the ten-fold division of this kind. But the places where it is mentioned are too many to allow us to light- ly set aside the ten-fold division, which occurs along with the seven-fold one in the Ṛig-Veda; and we must find out why this double division is recorded in the Ṛig-Veda. But before inquiring into it, we shall collect all the facts and see how far this double division extends in the Vedic literature. We begin with the sun. He is described as seven-horsed (saptâshva) in V, 45, 9, and his chariot is described as seven- wheeled, or yoked with seven horses, or one seven-named horse in I, 164, 3. The seven bay steeds (haritaḥ) are also mentioned as drawing the carriage of the sun in I, 50, 8. But in IX, 63, 9, the sun is said to have yoked ten horses to his carriage; and the wheel of the year-god is said to be carried by ten horses in I, 164, 14. In the Atharva Veda XI, 4 22, the sun's carriage is, however, said to be eight-wheeled (ashṭâ-chakra). Indra is called sapta-rashmi in II, 12, 12, and his chariot is also said to be seven-rayed in VI, 44, 24. But in V, 33, 8, ten white horses are said to bear him; while in VIII, 24, 23, Indra is said to be "the tenth new" (dashamam navam). In the Taittirîya Âraṇyaka III, 11, 1, Indra's self is said to be go- ing about ten-fold (Indrasya âtmânaṁ dashadhâ charantam); and corresponding to it, it may be here noticed, we have in the Bahrâm Yasht, in the Avesta, ten incarnations of Vere- thraghna (Sans. Vṛitrahan) specifically mentioned. Amongst the proteges of Indra we again have one called Dasha-dyu, or one shining ten-fold (I, 33, 14; VI, 26, 4); while Dashoṇi,