Note 1. Here again Indra claims everything for himself, denying that the Maruts in any way assisted him while performing his great deeds. These deeds are the killing of Vritra, who withholds the waters, i. e. the rain from the earth, and the consequent liberation of the waters, so that they flow down freely for the benefit of Manu, that is, of man.

When Indra says that he slew Vritra indriyéna, he evidently chooses that word with a purpose, and we must therefore translate it here, not only by might, but by Indra's peculiar might. Indriyá, as derived from índra, means originally Indra-hood, then power in general, just as verethraghna in Zend means victory in general, though originally it meant the slaying of Vritra.

On bádhîm, see Bollensen, Z. D. M. G. XXII, p. 594.

[paragraph continues] He takes bádhîm for a contraction of badhisham, in analogy with badhîs and badhît. He refers to akramîm, X, 166, 5, and badhîm, X, 28, 7.

Verse 9.

Note 1. Ánutta, in the sense of 'not shaken,' not shakeable, inébranlable, is strange; likewise the genitive, where we expect the instrumental. Still, nud, by itself, occurs in similar phrases, e. g. VI, 17, 5, nutthâ´h ákyutam, thou shookest what is unshakeable, which might have been expressed by ákukyavah ánuttam, and I cannot bring myself to believe that in our passage Aufrecht's conjectural emendation is called for. He (K. Z. XXVI, 611) takes ánutta for ánudatta, like pratta for pradatta, &c., and proposes to omit the negative particle, translating the verse: 'Certainly it is conceded to thee, there is none among the gods like unto thee.'

But though I cannot adopt this emendation here, I think that in other passages Aufrecht's rendering of ánutta is far more appropriate than to take it for a-nutta; for instance, I, 80, 7; III, 31, 13; VII, 34, 11.

There remains one verse in which anutta seems to mean not shaken, not overcome, namely, VIII, 90, 5, tvám vritrâ´ni hamsi apratî´ni ékah ít ánuttâ karshani-dhrítâ, thou, being alone, killest the irresistible enemies with the thunderbolt (?). However, anudâ, in the sense of conceding, yielding, nachgeben, is certainly a very familiar idea in Vedic poetry.

II, 12, 10. yáh sárdhate ná anu-dádâti sridhyâ´m, who does not forgive the hurter his hurt.

I, 53, 8; II, 21, 4; 23, 11; X, 38, 5, Indra is called ananudáh, not yielding, not surrendering.

We must therefore admit two anuttas, one á-nutta, the other ánu(da)tta. In ánutta-manyu I prefer the former, 'of irresistible fury,' while Aufrecht prefers the latter, 'of recognised, or universally-admitted fury.'

Note 2. Devátâ in the ordinary sense of a deity never occurs in the Rig-veda. The word, in fact, as a feminine substantive occurs but twice, and in the tenth Mandala