MANDALA III, HYMN 22.

ASHTAKA III, ADHYAYA 1, VARGA 22.

1. This is that Agni with whom the desiring Indra took the pressed Soma into his body. Having obtained thousandfold strength like a horse, a racer , thou art praised, O Gatavedas!

2 . Thy splendour, O Agni, which dwells in heaven and on earth, in the plants, O worshipful one, and in the waters, wherewith thou hast spread through the wide air--that light of thine is fierce, waving , man-beholding.

3. Agni, thou goest to the floods of heaven. Thou hast spoken to the gods who are liberal (?) . (Thou goest) to the waters which (dwell) on high in the ether of the sun, and to those which approach below.

4. May the fires of the soil united with those on the hill-sides , without guile graciously accept our sacrifice and plentiful food free from all plague.

5 = III, 1, 23.

NOTES.

The same Rishi. The metre is Trishtubh, except in verse 4 which is Anushtubh.--A conjecture on the ritual use for which the hymn has been composed, see in the note on verse 4.--Verses 1-5 = VS. XII, 47-51; TS. IV, 2, 4, 2. 3; MS. II, 7, 11.--A sort of commentary on this hymn is found in the Satapatha Brahmana VII, 1, 1, 22 seq.

Verse 1.

Note [3:22:1:1]1. In the traditional text the words, 'a horse, a racer,' are accusatives. But it is the atya who attains

[paragraph continues] (san) the va'ga and who is called vagin (comp. M. M., vol. xxxii, pp. 116, 442, and on sapti, ibid. p. 102): see I, 130, 6; III, 2, 7; 38, 1 (V, 30, 14; IX, 93, 1; 96, 15, &c.); VII, 24, 5; IX, 43, 5; 82, 2; 85, 5; 86, 3; 96, 20; X, 96, 10 (I, 52, 1, and III, 2, 3 do not contradict this). Pischel (Vedische Studien, I, 105) believes that atyam na stands for atyah na, which seems impossible to me. But I think that we should correct the text and read atyah na saptih. The preceding accusatives have caused the blunder.

Verse 2.

Note [3:22:2:1]1. Comp. Grassmann, Kuhn's Zeitschrift, XVI, 165.

Note [3:22:2:2]2. Comp. ketuh arnavah su'ryasya, VII, 63, 2.

Verse 3.

Note [3:22:3:1]1. In the translation of dhishnya I have followed Pischel, Vedische Studien, II, 87, though this translation is quite uncertain. Should the meaning be: 'the gods who dwell on the dhishnya altars'?

Verse 4.