14. Give, O Maruts, to the worshippers strength glorious, invincible in battle, brilliant, wealth-conferring, praiseworthy, known to all men. Let us foster our kith and kin during a hundred winters.

15. Will1 you then, O Maruts, grant unto us wealth, durable, rich in men, defying all onslaughts?-wealth a hundred and a thousand-fold, always increasing ?May he who is rich in prayers' (the host of the Maruts) come early and soon!

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like water. He compares ρυθμός, as derived from ῥέω. Another explanation might be, that the hymns are powerful like water, when it has been banked up. Yet all these similes seem very lame, and I feel convinced that we ought either to change the accent, and read ápal, or the last vowel, and read apẩh. In the former case the meaning would be, 'As one wise in mind and clever performs his work, so do I compose these hymns.' In the second case, which seems to me preferable, we should translate: Like a workman, wise in mind and handy, I put together these hymns.'

Verse 2, note. It is difficult to say in passages like this, whether Dyu should be taken as heaven or as a personified deity. When the Maruts are called Rudrásya máryâh, the boys of Rudra (vii. 56, 1), the personification is always preserved. Hence if the same beings are called Diváh máryâk, this too, I think, should be translated the boys of Dyu (iii. 54, 13; v. 59, 6), not the sons of heaven. The bulls of Dyu is a more primitive and more vigorous expression for what we should call the fertilising winds of heaven.

Verse 2, note 2. Márya is a male, particularly a young male, a boy, a young man (i. 115, 2; iii. 33, 10; iv. 20, 5; v. 61, 4, with vîra):

v. 59, 5. máryâh-iva su-vrídhah vavridhuh nárah. Like boys that grow well they have grown men.

When joined with nárah (v. 53, 3), nárah máryâh arepásah, it may be taken as an adjective, manly, strong. At last márya assumes the general meaning of man:

i. 91, 13. máryah-iva své okyẽ.

Like a man in his own house.

Verse 2, note. The simile, like giants, is not quite clear. Sátvan means a strong man, but it seems intended here to convey the idea of supernatural strength. Benfey translates, 'like brave warriors; Wilson, 'like evil spirits.' Ghorávarpas is an adjective belonging to the Maruts rather than to the giants, and may mean of awful aspect, i. 19, 5, or of cruel mind; cf. i. 39, 1, note3.

Verse 3, note1. Abhog-ghánah, the slayers of the demon, are the slayers of the clouds, viz. of such clouds as do not yield rain. Abhog, not nurturing, is a name of the rainless cloud, like Námuki (na-muk, not delivering rain), the name of another demon killed by Indra; see Benfey, Glossar, s. v. The cloud which sends rain is called bhugmán:

viii. 50, 2. giríh ná bhugmẩ maghávat-su pinvate.

Like a feeding cloud he showers his gifts on the worshippers.

Verse 4, note 1. The ornaments of the Maruts are best described v. 54, 11:

ámseshu vah rishtayah pat-sú khâdáyah vákshah-su rukmah.

On your shoulders are the spears, on your feet rings, on your chests gold ornaments.

Rukmá as a masc. plur. is frequently used for ornaments which are worn on the breast by the Maruts, but no hint is given as to the exact nature of the ornaments. The Maruts are actually called rukmávakshasah, gold-breasted, (ii. 34, 2; v. 55, 1; 57, 5-)

Verse 4, note. Vápushe and subhé, as parallel expressions, occur also vi. 63, 6.

Verse 4, note. Ní mimrikshur does not occur again in the Rig-veda, and Roth has suggested to read ní mimikshur instead; see ni + marg. He does not, however, give our

passage under myak, but under mraksh, and this seems indeed preferable. No doubt, there is ample analogy for mimikshuh, and the meaning would be, their spears stick firm to their shoulders. But as the MSS. give mimrikshuh, and as it is possible to find a meaning for this, I do not propose to alter the text. The question is only, what does mimrikshuh mean? Mraksh means to grind, to rub, and Roth proposes to render our passage by 'the spears rub together on their shoulders.' The objections to this translation are the preposition ni, and the active voice of the verb. I take mraksh in the sense of grinding, pounding, destroying, which is likewise appropriate to mraksha-krítvan (viii. 61, 10), and tuvi-mrakshá (vi. 18, 2), and I translate, 'the spears on their shoulders pound to pieces.'

Verse 4, note. The idea that the Maruts owe everything, if not their birth, at least their strength (svá-tavasah, svá-bhânavah, sva-srítah), to themselves is of frequent occurrence in these hymns.

Verse 5, note. They are themselves compared to kings (i. 85, 8), and called îsâná, lords (i. 87, 4).

Verse 5, note 2. Dhúni is connected with root dhvan, to dun or to din. Sâyana explains it by bending or shaking, and Benfey, too, translates it by Erschütterer. Roth gives the right meaning.

Verse 6, note. I translate sudanavah by bounteous, or good givers, for, if we have to choose between the two meanings of bounteous or endowed with liquid drops or dew, the former is the more appropriate in most passages. We might, of course, admit two words, one meaning, possessed of good water, the other, bounteous; the former derived from danu, neuter, water, or rain, the other from dânú, giving. It cannot be denied, for instance, that whenever the Maruts are called sudẩnaval, the meaning, possessed of good rain, would be applicable: i. 40, 1; 44, 14; 64, 6; 85, 10; ii. 34, 8; iii. 26, 5; v. 52, 5; 53, 6; 57, 5; viii. 20, 18; x. 78, 5; i. 15, 2; 23, 9; 39, 10. Yet, even in these passages, while sudẩnavah in the sense of possessed

of good rain is possible throughout, that of good giver would sometimes be preferable, for instance, i. 15, 2, as compared with i. 15, 3.

When the same word is applied to Indra, vii. 31, 2; x. 23, 6; to Vishnu, viii. 25, 12; to the Asvins, i. 112, 11; to Mitra and Varuna, v. 62, 9; to Indra and Varuna, iv. 41, 8, the meaning of giver of good rain might still seem more natural. But with Agni, vi. 2, 4; the Âdityas, v. 67, 4; viii. 18, 12; 19, 34; 67, 16; the Vasus, i. 106, 1; x. 66, 12; the Visve, x. 65, 11, such an epithet would not be appropriate, while sudanavah, in the sense of bounteous givers, is applicable to all. The objection that dânu, giver, does not occur in the Veda, is of no force, for many words occur at the end of compounds only, and we shall see passages where sudẩnu must be translated by good giver. Nor would the accent of dânú, giver, be an obstacle, considering that the author of the Unâdi-sûtras had no Vedic authority to guide him in the determination of the accent of dânú. Several words in nu have the accent on the first syllable. But one might go even a step further, and find a more appropriate meaning for sudẩnu by identifying it with the Zend hudânu, which means, not a good giver, but a good knower, wise. True, this root dâ, to know, does not occur in the ordinary Sanskrit, but as it exists both in Zend and in Greek (Sánμi, Sáes), it may have left this one trace in the Vedic word sudanu. This, however, is only a conjecture; what is certain is this, that apart from the passages where sudẩnu is thus applied to various deities, in the sense of bounteous or wise, it also occurs as applied to the sacrificer, where it can only mean giver. This is clear from the following passages:

i. 47, 8. ísham priñkántâ su-kríte su-dẩnave.

Bringing food to him who acts well and gives well.

vii. 96, 4. gani-yántah nú ágravah putri-yántah su-dẩnavah, sárasvantam havâmahe.

We, being unmarried, and wishing for wives and wishing for sons, offering sacrifices, call now upon Sarasvat. viii. 103, 7. su-dẩnavah deva-yávah.

Offering sacrifices, and longing for the gods. Cf. x. 172, 2; 3; vi. 16, 8.

iv. 4, 7. sáh ít agne astu su-bhágah su-dãnuh yh trà nítyena havíshâ yáh ukthaíh píprîshati.

O Agni, let the liberal sacrificer be happy, who wishes to please thee by perpetual offerings and hymns. See also vi. 16, 8; 68, 5; X. 172, 2, 3.

It must be confessed that even the meaning of dẩnu is by no means quite clear. It is clear enough where it means demon, ii. 11, 18; 12, 11; iv. 30, 7; x. 120, 6, the seven demons. In i. 32, 9; iii. 30, 8, danu, demon, is applied to the mother of Vritra. From this dẩnu we have the derivative dânavá, meaning again demon. Why the demons, conquered by Indra, were called danu, is not clear. It may be in the sense of wise, or in the sense of powerful, for this meaning is ascribed to dânú by the author of the Unâdisûtras. If the latter meaning is authentic, and not only deduced ex post from the name of Dânu and Dânava, it might throw light on the Celtic dána, fortis, from which Zeuss derives the name of the Danube.

But the sense of the neuter dẩnu is by no means settled. Sometimes it means Soma:

x. 43, 7. ấpah ná síndhum abhí yát sam-áksharan sómâsah índram kulyah-iva hradám, várdhanti víprâh máhah asya sádane yávam ná vrishťíh divyéna dẩnunâ.

When the Somas run together to Indra, like water to the river, like channels to the lake, then the priests increase his greatness in the sanctuary, as rain the corn, by the heavenly Soma-juice.

In the next verse gîrádânu means the sacrificer whose Soma is always alive, always ready.

In vi. 50, 13, however, dẩnu páprih is doubtful. As an epithet to Apẩm nápât, it may mean he who wishes for Soma, or he who grants Soma; but in neither case is there any tangible sense. Again, viii. 25, 5, Mitra and Varuna are called sriprá-dânû, which may mean possessed of flowing rain. And in the next verse, sám yấ dấnûni yemáthuh may be rendered by Mitra and Varuna, who brought together rain.

The fact that Mitra-Varunau and the Asvins are called danunaspátî does not throw much more light on the subject, and the one passage where dẩnu occurs as a feminine, VOL. I.

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