Commentary on the Rig Veda

HYMN 19

In the fifth Section, the second Hymn beginning with prati tyam, addressed to Agni and Maruts, has nine Riks. The Rishi and metre are as before.

This is the first Rik.

1. prati tyam cārumadhvaram gopithāya pra hūyase, marudbhiragna ā gahi.

   prati tyam cārum adhvaram go’pithāya pra hūyase maruť bhiḥ agne ā gahi.

agne O Agni; tyam that which is being performed by me; cārum desirable, bereft of mal-formation; adhvaram prati towards the sacrifice; gopithāya gauḥ is the juice of Soma, for its drink; prahūyase thou art called ardently; hence marudbhih along with the Maruts; āgahi come.

The word tya has the same meaning as the pronoun tat.

As the external sacrifice, in the inner sacrifice too, the mutual relation among the parts must be harmonious. Thereby the sacrifice becomes beautiful. By the term go, the product of the cow, milk is meant. The ancients have explained gauh as Soma-juice because all oblation compares with the enjoyable denoted by the word anna and Soma is well-known as the chief of the enjoyables. Something has been said of the Màruts before. More will be said later in the due place. The Maruts are special deities, with impulsions common to the gusts of wind, fast in speed, belonging to the life-plane, who give a divine motion to the activities of intelligence illumined by the light and strength of Indra. That is why—suffice it to say-Agni is prayed to come with them for taking the milky yield denoting the light of the mind.

Tr. Agni, thou art ardently called to the desirable sacrifice to drink the Soma-juice ; come with the Maruts.

This is the second Rik.

2. nahi devo na martyo mahastava kratum paraḥ, marudbhiragna ā gahi.

   nahi devaḥ na martyaḥ mahaḥ tava kratum paraḥ marut bhiḥ agne ā gahi.

agne O Agni; mahaḥ mighty (elision of ta is Vedic); tava thine; kratum active will or power of action (transgressing it); paraḥ another; devaḥ God; na hi is not indeed; so also martyaḥ na there is no man; marudbhiḥ, etc. as before.

Tr. No God or man exceeds the will of Thee, the mighty, come with the Maruts.

This is the third Rik.

3. ye maho rajaso vidurvis ve devāso adruhaḥ, marud-bhiragna ā gahi.

   ye mahaḥ rajasaḥ viduḥ viśve devāsaḥ adruhaḥ maruť bhiḥ agne ā gahi.

agne O Agni; ye adruhaḥ they who do not deceive the praising dependent ; viśve devāḥ All Gods, the seven kinds of the host of Maruts mahaḥ of the great (elision of ta) ; rajasaḥ of the world (genetive in the sense of accusative) the great mid-world, the word rajas denoting world is well-known as the mid-region; viduḥknow; stationed in the mid-region they know the whole of the middle world; come with those Maruts (as before).

Tr. Agni, all Gods who do not let down, who know the great mid-world, with those Maruts come.

This is the fourth Rik.

4. ya ugrā arkamānscuranādhſșțāsa ojasā, marudbhiragna ā gahi.

   ye ugrāḥ arkam ānscuḥ anādhȚştā saḥ ojasā marutbhiḥ agne ā gahi.

ye Maruts; ugrāḥ brave; ojasā by the might of another; avadhșştāraḥ unassailed, unconquered ; arkam worship, laudation in Kik; ānscuh they worship; (the form is from șc to go, to worship, like ’they sing the song’. Perfect in the sense of Present); arka is water; says Sayana, it is Indra, says Skandasvamin; in both the places it is justified by examples from the Veda; brave Maruts, brothers of Indra, are able to make the laudation full of valour, to reach to Indra the showerer of all wealth or to impel the currents of divine Power denoted by the term waters; with those Maruts, etc. (as before).

Tr. The brave Maruts, unassailed by the might of others, who laud the laudation, with them come.

This is the fifth Rik.

5. ye śubhrā ghoravarpasaḥ sukșatrāso risādasaḥ, marudbhiragna ā gahi.

   ye śubhrāḥ ghora’varpasaḥ su’ ksatrāsaḥ rišādasaḥ marutbhiḥ agne ā gahi.

ye Maruts; śubhrāḥ radiant, ghoravarpasaḥ terrifying in form (varpa name for form); sukșatrāsaḥ mighty; riśādasaḥ devourers of the injurious ; with those Maruts, etc.

Note that even though the Maruts are awful in form, etc. the adjective subhra (bright) is used to denote this action of happy fruition.

Tr. The Maruts who are radiant, awful in form mighty and devourers of the foes, with them come.

Thus ends the twenty sixth group in the first Chapter of the first Eighth.

This is the sixth Rik.

6. ye nākasyādhi rocane divi devāsa äsate, marudbhiragna ā gahi.

   ye nākasya adhi rocane divi devāsaḥ ā sate, maruť bhih agne ā gahi.

The third station in the lower triple world is called the Heaven. This is the derivation; that in which there is no unhappiness, na akam ; thus they derive resorting to the compound of negation. Of that heaven-named in the triple world, nākasya adhi above; rocane in the shining; divi in a particular place in the luminous world, ’in the seventh, the station of Vayu’, says Skandasvamin (seven are the divisions of Maruts spoken of); ye devāḥ āsate the gods that are; with those Maruts (as before). Though the Maruts belong to the mid-region and are by nature Life-Powers, being connected with Indra they spread, by the glory of Indra, as far as the world Heaven, his abode That is how they are described in Mantras elsewhere ’strong in themselves, seers, sun-skinned”.

Tr. The Gods who are in the luminous world above the Heavens, with those Maruts, O Agni, come.

This is the seventh Rik.

7. ya inkhayanti parvatān tirassamudramarņavam, marudbhiragna ā gahi.

   ye inkhayanti parvatān tiraḥ samudram arņavam, maruť bhih agne ā gahi.

ye the gods, Maruts, parvatān unmoving mountains; inkhayanti move ; arņavam full of water; samudram tiraḥ scorn the ocean, crossing of the boundless ocean is itself the scorn; with those Maruts (as before).

Here, apparently, the moving of the immobile mountains and the crossing of the ocean of masses of waters difficult to cross indicate the mighty strength of the Maruts. Commentators have it that the scorn lies in causing the movement to set up waves, etc. in the waveless ocean. Here the purport to be noted can be grasped by us if we recall the symbolic meaning. The Maruts, extensions of the Life-force, become Powers of the luminous Intelligence. They set in movement the inert body heavy with tamas, or the gross knowledge gone inert, symbolised by the term mountain, in whose womb lies the being of knowledge, power, etc. That brings about the blossoming of knowledge, power, etc. By the movement of the whole being, unmoving and difficult to cross, potent with all powers, the infinite substances symbolised by the term ocean, the manifesation of its parts, its waves, is effected. Agni is prayed to come with Maruts of such mighty prowess.

inkhayanti : inkh among ukh, nakh means movement.

Tr. The Gods move the mountains and scorn the ocean of waters, with those Maruts, O Agni, come.

This is the eighth Rik.

8. ā ye tanvanti rasmibhistirah samudramojasā, marudbhiragna ā gahi.

   ā ye tanvanti rasmi’bhiḥ tiraḥ samudram ojasā marut bhiḥ agne ā gahi.

ye the gods; rasmibhih with solar rays spreading wisdom ; ā tanvanti extend (tanu in the sense of extension), over the infinite mid-region or the ocean as described earlier; ojasā by their own might ; samudram (mentioned already); tiraḥ scorn, crossing itself is to scorn, here perhaps extension, spreading ; with them, the rest as before.

Tr. The Gods who spread wide with their rays, scorn the ocean with their might, with those Maruts, O Agni, come.

This is the ninth Rik.

9. abhi tvā pūrvapitaye sșjāmi somyam madhu, marudbhiragna ā gahi.

   abhi tvā pūrva’pitaye spjāmi somyam madhu marut bhiḥ agne ā gahi.

agne, O Agni ; tvā abhi for the sake of thee; pūrvapitaye for the first quaff; somyam full of Soma (that which befits Soma); madhu sweet juice ; spjāmi I release; the rest as before.

Tr. O Agni, for thee, I pour the sweet juice Soma-full for the early quaff; come with the Maruts.

Thus ends the thirty-seventh group in the first Chapter of the first Eighth.

Thus ends the first Chapter in the first Eighth.