MANDALA I, HYMN 74.

ASHTAKA I, ADHYAYA 5, VARGA 21-22.

1. Going forward to the sacrifice let us repeat a prayer to Agni who hears us, may he be afar or with us--

2. He who foremost in ... , when the human tribes met (in battle), has preserved his home to the worshipper.

3. And let the people say 'Agni is born, the slayer of foes (or, the slayer of Vritra), he who wins the prize in every battle.'

4. The man in whose home thou art a messenger, and to whose sacrificial food thou eagerly comest for feasting, to whose worship thou impartest wonderful power--

5. Such a man the people call a giver of good oblations, O Angiras, a friend of the gods, O son of strength , and a possessor of a good Barhis (or sacrificial grass).

6. And thou shalt conduct them hither, the gods , that we may praise them, that they may eagerly come, O resplendent one, to the sacrificial offerings.

7. No noise of the horses of the moving chariot is heard any way, when thou goest on thy messengership, O Agni.

8. When guarded by thee the racer becomes fearless; the worshipper, O Agni, who is behind, gains the advantage over him who is ahead.

9. And thou winnest, O Agni, brilliant, high bliss in strong heroes from the gods, O god, for the worshipper.

NOTES.

This hymn opens the section ascribed to Gotama Rahugana, and belonging indeed, as several passages show, to the family of the Gotamas (comp. Zeitschrift der D. Morg. Gesellschaft, XLII, 221). The metre is Gayatri.--Verse 1 = VS. III, 11; TS. I, 5, 5, 1; MS. I, 5, 1 (I, 5, 5. 6). Verses 1-3 = SV. II, 729. 730. 732. Verse 3 = TS. III, 5, 11, 4; MS. IV, 10, 3.

Verse 2.

Note [1:74:2:1]1. Or purvyah, 'the old Agni,' cf. IX, 96, 10? (M. M.)

Note [1:74:2:2]2. I have left untranslated the obscure word sni'hitishu (Sayana, vadhakarinishu). It seems to be identical with snehiti, which occurs VIII, 96, 13. apa snehitih nrimanah adhatta (the Sama-veda has the reading snih degrees). Here the verb apa adhatta (comp. VI., 20, 5; X, 164, 3) and the comparison of the second hemistichs of the two following verses, 14 and 15, seem to show that the word means some kind of hostile powers, which would do very well for our passage.--In Taittiriya Aranyaka IV, 23 the word sni'hiti occurs in an enumeration of the 'terrible substances' (ghora'h tanuvah) of Agni.--Comp. Ludwig, Ueber die neuesten Arbeiten auf dem Gebiete der Rig-veda-Forschung, p. 93.

Verse 5.

Note [1:74:5:1]1. See above, I, 26, 10, note 1.

Verse 6.

Note [1:74:6:1]1. See Delbruck, Syntaktische Forschungen, I, 20, 111.

Verse 7.

Note [1:74:7:1]1. On upabdi, which literally means the noise produced by going, see Joh. Schmidt, Kuhn's Zeitschrift, XXV, 55; Hubschmann, Das indogermanische Vocal-system, 124.