Note 2. I formerly took áva dishîya in the sense of 'to unloose,' used originally with reference to tethered horses. As horses are unloosed before they can do their work, so the gods are, as it were, unloosed by prayer, or set off, so that they may fulfil what they are asked to do; see RV. I. 25, 3. In the passage quoted by Ludwig from the TS. I, 8, 6, 2, the same meaning seemed quite appropriate: áva Rudrám adimahi—yáthâ nah sréyasah kárat, 'We unloosed Rudra, that he might make us happier.' Ludwig takes it to mean, 'We have bound, tied, or obliged Rudra, so that he make us happy,' but the preposition ava is against this interpretation. Muir proposes 'to avert' or 'to propitiate,' the latter being adopted by Geldner.

However, in an article lately published by Roth on Wergeld in the Veda (Z. D. M. G. XLI, 672), ava-day has been recognised as an almost technical legal term, meaning 'to pay off, to compound.' Thus, Tândya Br. XVI, 1, 12, we read yâh satam vairam tad devân avadayate, 'He portions off, i. e. he satisfies, or pacifies, the gods who were offended, by giving a hundred cows.' With nih, we find TB. I, 6, 10, 1. pragâ´ rudrâ´n nír áva dayate; the same occurs in Maitr. S. I, 10, 20, where we also read, griheshv eva Rudram nir ava dayata esha te Rudra bhâgas. See also Ait. Br. II, 7, 1. There is a verse quoted, ávâmba Rudrám adimahi, in TS. I, 8, 6, 2;

and again in MS. I, 10, 4; Kâth. IX, 7; Kap. S. VIII, 10; VS. III, 58, and this gives us the right key to our verse, namely, 'May I pay off, may I pacify, Rudra with my songs of praise,' dishîya being the optat. of the aorist, adimahi the aor. ind.

Note 3. On ridûdárah, see Benfey, Quantitätsversch. V, 1; p. 25; Geldner, K. Z. XXVIII, 201; Ludwig, Süsses in seinem bauche habend; Bergaigne, miséricordieux. The meaning is doubtful.

Verse 6.