Chapter 3Mandala Four

Book 3. Part Three: Commentaries and Annotated Translations

[14]

[RV IV.28.1–2]

Rigveda IV

By thee as yokefellow, with thee for friend, O Soma, Indra set flowing the waters for this human mentality; he slew the Serpent, he poured out the seven streams, he uncovered doors concealed (opened the doors that had been closed).

. Manu, the typical

or simply “man” with a stress upon the root idea of the word, “man the mental being”.

. Sayana says

means originally, “thus”, “thus indeed”, “so”, and is identical with

. It may, therefore, have like

the sense of emphasis, or like

in Bengali the sense “and”, or its more usual significance of comparison, “as it were, like”. The latter here, comparing the concealed but now uncovered waters to doors that have been shut or curtained over, is possible, for the figure of uncovering the concealed waters is common enough in the Veda; but it would be strained and inappropriate. Sayana renders “and he opened the concealed doors of the waters”; but

coming after seems specially to affect that word. We may take Sayana’s rendering or else render it, either, “doors indeed concealed”, or “opened doors that were, as it were, concealed.”

. Sayana takes the image to be that of Surya’s wheel, one of two in his chariot, which Indra violently cuts off, — the wheel that moves in the wide air above us & goes everywhere. But there is no allusion to a chariot &

, the Greek

, may well refer to the sun, the wheel or disc of the sun.

is rather dug or cut out than cut off. The waters of the first verse are always associated with the cows or rays of light of Surya. The poet therefore passes naturally from the image of the waters to that of Surya himself concealed & brought out for man, like the waters, by Indra. He dug out from the darkness the disc of Surya that moves in the fixed level above of the Mahat or Vijnana and brought it down to the mental plane for Man

. The two verses, then, form a connected & logical development of thought.

. Sy. takes

from

to go or move = all-pervading. But we have also

= life, & there is nothing to prevent us from taking

= that which is the source of all being here on this earth, for Surya is

, the Father & Creator; all things are, says the Vishnu Purana,

. Sayana says “The wheel was wrested from Surya, the great doer of harm”!

. An astonishing interpretation. The great evil-doer, injurer of the

is surely the demon, Vritra or another, who covers from us the waters, covers from us the disc of the Sun: of him the wheel now is uncovered, from him rapt away. It was

, it is now

. All the ideas & expressions then hang together, allude to each other, express a connected whole.

[15]

[RV IV.31, 32, 26, 27, 28, 29, 19]

Notes on Rigveda.

IV. 31 1.

Sy Sy Sy Sy Sy —

— only intelligible if it means “By what expansion of being, by what action of highest energy may this brilliant one, our friend, be an ever-increasing force in us?”

Sy Sy Sy What true and most copious of delights (Ananda) shall intoxicate thee with this (earthly) food (annam), so that thou mayst break down even firm-set states of our being.

(

)

& so in later passages.

Sy Faults of Sayana — 1. Capricious ingenuities of learning. 2. Inconsistency of interpretation. 3. Disregard of tense.

Towards us thou becomest by a hundred expandings the increaser of thy friends and adorers.

Objection to sense “expansion”, unless

also means to “increase”.

to produce (Latin avus; auctor), to keep in being (protect), to increase in being.

But he takes it later as

action.

Sy Sy Sy Sy Towards us in our battling activity come into active being as work that is fulfilled by the applications of our efforts. (external figure — come rolling like a round wheel or moving wheel towards us battling with multitudes of men)

Sy Verily, thou comest down headlong to the seats of our strengths (mental willings); thou art enjoyed in company with the Sun, (the mind supported by the Ideality & mingled with it).

Sy Sy Sy

— cf

, firm land or desert.

When, O Indra, thy emotions and thy acts become firm in us, now in thee and now in the Sun

. Full proof of

in sense of action.

Sy Sy Thee in very truth, O master of energy, they have called him of the full & compact substance, the giver who disperses not his light.

Sy Always in truth to him who offers to thee his being & joy thou increasest in fullness even his many possessions.

Sy Sy Sy Sy Sayana’s fault — straining of words to mean what they do not convey.

Not even a hundred of those who limit & restrain can shut in thy delight; there are no stumblings for thee when thou wouldst act.

10.

Sy Us may thy hundred, yea thy thousand expandings increase in growth, us all approaches of thine.

11.

Sy Sy Us on this earth accept for thy friendship, for perfect being, for ideal felicity in the brightness of heaven (pure mind).

. Cannot be earthly wealth; there is no sense in “shining wealth”; even if we apply it to gold, it is unnatural and inconsistent with

in the next line. Neither in that line is there any sense in protecting with wealth, although increasing with wealth is possible.

12.

But elsewhere he takes it

differently.

Sy Us increase into universal being by an all-encompassing felicity, us by all manner of expandings.

13. For us open up like an archer the pens of the brilliant herds, O Indra, with ever new expandings.

. This is decisive against the sense of protection for uti, since to open up by protections is nonsense & along with new protections is a forced construction and forced sense. Favours is possible; but the connection of

is against it.

14.

Sy Sy

The meaning?

Violently our chariot of delight proceeds brilliant, O Indra, & unfalling, seeking the herds of light, seeking the steeds of life.

Not decisive, but significant.

15.

Sy Sy Sy Sy

(

)

Sayana’s defects. Want of literary perception & taste.

For us, O Sun, make highest inspiration in the gods like a full & mighty day above us.

32.

Sy O Indra, Vritra-slayer, come thou to our sphere, vast with vast expandings.

Sy Sy Sy Sy Sy Sy Sy Thou who bringest art also he who shieldest; O curious brilliance, thou createst in the powers of brilliance their varied light for our growth.

By little powers thou slayest in thy might one who is swifter (or bulkier) and increasing for thy comrades who live with thee.

. Light is thrown on the meaning of bradhna by vr´adhan-tam.

We to thee cleave, O Indra, we towards thee urge; us, us raise up to thee.

. The sense of being, increasing is established by this verse. Latin avus, avidus, avis, ovis, ovum. Cf aveo to desire, S. av to wish. But aveo to be well & ovare to rejoice, belong to the sense of

to be well off, to protect, to be glad etc.

O master of being, come to us with bright increasings & blameless and inviolate.

Decisive for

. Significant for

(

)

May we be entirely the comrades of one who is a possessor of light like thee, one who battles for that brilliant plenty.

With

IV.31.11. See also next line.

For thou alone art master, O Indra, of that brilliant plenty; do thou then work out for us a mighty (boundless) force.

8. Thee they press not back by any other when thou, established in praise, distributest fullness to those who give thee the praise, O Indra who delightest in the expressive word.

Towards thee & in thee the Gotamas (the utterly enlightened) by speech widen out for thy giving, O Indra, of that brilliant plenty.

10.

We would declare (bring out in ourselves) thy mightinesses which thou didst when in the intoxication of thy rapture thou didst assail and break the cities of the foe.

11.

Those then the disposers of the sacrifice express, thy virile things which thou didst in the pourings of the Soma, O Indra who hast delight of the expressive Word.

12.

The Gotamas (utterly enlightened) who support that fixity of thee, O Indra, have increased thee (in themselves) (or, have in-creased their being who support that fixity in thee); in them do thou establish a forceful victoriousness.

13.

Since indeed thou, O Indra, art common to all who attain perpetuity, therefore to thee we call.

14.

(

)

Sy connects these two words, but ,

is common.

Lean downward to the lower world, accept in us the utter intoxication of Earth’s food, O Indra, Soma-drinker of the Soma-wine.

15.

May the fixity of our thoughts govern thee in us, O Indra; downward turn thy steeds.

16.

Thou hast eaten of our sacrificial cake and thou cleavest lovingly to our Words as a lover to the speech of his mistresses.

17.

- A thousand yoked coursers we desire from Indra, a hundred measures of Soma-wine.

. Proved by association with psychological

18.

Hundreds & thousands of thy kine we make descend to us; into our world let enter thy felicity.

19.

Ten shining jars of thee we attain; a giver of largeness art thou, O Vritra-slayer.

20.

O giver of largeness, thy largeness give to us; not the petty bring, but the large only; the largeness it is that thou seekest to divide.

21.

As the giver of largeness art thou known multiformly, O hero, O Vritra-slayer; enjoy us in our felicity.

22.

But cf O Indra of perfect seeing, I declare in myself thy many-coloured steeds; O saviour of the herds descending (or, O thou who de-scendest from the saviour of the herds), destroy not by these two those kine.

23.

Like young girls firm & new and swift-footed & small the dappled pair shine in their coursings.

Identified with yajna by Sayana.

24.

Sufficient for me whether moving in the light or moving unillumined are thy dappled pair for they stumble not in their courses.

. The passage sufficiently proves the psychological character of the horses.

26.

- I became Manu, I am Surya; Kakshivan the Rishi am I of the illumined mind; I [

] Kutsa son of Arjuni, I am Ushana the seer; Me behold.

I give earth to the Aryan man, I rain of strength to the mortal who giveth; I bring the waters sounding; the gods move according to the perceptions of my mind.

I shattered to pieces, rejoicing, the nine & ninety cities of Sham-bara; the hundredth I made a city of dwelling in man’s universal extension when Divodasa’s being I increased, Divodasa of far-ranging knowledge.

May that bird, O ye Maruts, be first of all the birds and a hawk swift-winging above all hawks since, perfectly winging over, he brought to man by actionless self-calm the offering loved of the gods.

This verse perfectly establishes the psychological intention of

and the figure of the hawk.

When the bird (of manifestation) brought thence his burden, quivering (or putting forth vigour) was he released, mind-swift on the paths of wideness; mightily the hawk came with (or at-tained strength by) the honey wine of the Soma and he attained in this world the revealed knowledge.

The hawk of strength straight-flying took the brightness from on high in his force, the intoxicating wine; he brought the Soma, growing firm in his strength, full of the godhead, taking it from that higher heavenly world.

The hawk seized & brought the Soma, a thousand pourings and ten thousand thereto; here the holder of the city slew the hostile energies in the rapture of the Soma-wine, unlimited he destroyed their limitations.

27.

While I was yet in the womb I knew in their order all the births of these gods. A hundred cities of iron kept me in; now I have cleft my way out of them as the hawk in my speed.

He took not from me my consent, (or he bore me not unconsenting), filled with an all-shattering energy I took my seat upon his wings; impetuous in force the master of the city left his foes, he overcame & passed by the strength that grew in him the winds of the Prana.

When now the hawk sent down his clanging cry from heaven each time they bear hence (or from here) the master of the city, when the archer of the subtle life willing fullness by the mind shot at him, then unloosed the string

= and 4.

Straight in flight the hawk bore him on the mighty upper plateau (of Mahas) as Bhujyu the enjoyer from the world of Indra, — deep in that winged passage flew of the bird now speeding forward in his course.

Now the white jar sprinkled with the rays (or by the cows), the pure bright food increasing, offered by the Adhwaryus in front of the honey-wine, let Indra dispose for intoxication in the drinking, the mighty One dispose for intoxication in the drinking (lit. to drink for intoxication).

28.

With thee as companion, in thy friendship, O Soma, Indra set the waters flowing for man; he slew the serpent destroyer; he poured forth the seven streams; he opened the doors that were sealed.

With thee as companion Indra cut out straightway by violence the wheel of the Sun, O Moon-lord of delight. The infinite life that dwells on the mighty upper plateau (of our being) was uncovered from our vast foeman (or from the assailant of Mahas).

Indra slew, Agni burned, O Indu, the demons before the midday in their meeting; many thousand companies of the assailants he crushed as by the might of his will in their inaccessible dwelling.

Everywhere, O Indra, thou hurledst the destroyers down to the nethermost places, thou madest unmanifest their hostile peoples. You twain oppressed & crushed our foes; by your smitings you won worship.

governing Thus you in the fullness of your might, O Soma, thou & Indra, driving towards us that truth which is the wide force of the Light, tore open by the thunderbolt the things that were covered and enriched these earths, our dwelling places.

29.

Come to us with increase, O Indra, established by praise, with thy havings of plenty, drawn by thy brilliances, full of delight, — come even from the levels in thy high activity to our many offerings, manifested by the strong, having the joy of the truth.

The strong one who perceiveth comes to our sacrifice called by the distillers of the Soma; he who fearless in his thinking and drawn by perfect steeds of sense takes his joy with the strong souls that offer the Soma-wine.

Let his ears hear the knowledge that he may increase, even in the direction that he loves, that he may rejoice; mounting in his growing mastery, strong for the rapture, may Indra effect for us safety in our passage & freedom from fear.

He who cometh to the [

] with increase here, to the soul enlightened that calls him and manifests by speech, setting in himself in hundreds & thousands his swift ones under yoke.

In thee increased, O Indra master of substance, may we illumined become sages expressing all of thee, enjoying the felicities of the vast heaven embodied here and of wide content for the giving.

Verily, O Indra of the lightnings, all the gods wide-living who hear the call, choose out thee alone in the slaying of Vritra, thee who art swift & vast & increasest the two firmaments elect.

wide-living, desirous, kindly, producing.

The gods [

] sent thee down; thou becamest supreme king, O Indra, a womb of Truth; thou slewest the dragon that slept coiled around the sea, thou hewedst out the powers of movement that are its universal streams.

Sayana appeals to the authority of the Taittiriya for his “full moon”.

The dragon insatiable, wide-extended, that cannot be known (or waked) & waketh not to knowledge but lies in deep sleep, O Indra, him thou didst rend with the lightning-flash in his jointless frame (?) who lies against the seven slopes.

Indra dug out by his flaming force earth for a foundation, as the wind by its violences digs up the waters; desiring force he shattered the things that were firmly settled; he broke down the peaks of the hills.

They ran to thee like women to a child, like chariots the hills sped together; thou didst satisfy those that moved abroad, thou didst crush what were heaped high; O Indra, thou settest flowing the pent up rivers.

Elsewhere

is rendered

names of Kings That great birth & universal stream flowing for manifestation of Force & wideness of being (or for him who manifests force & widens his being) thou didst give delight by submission to that moving ocean; thou madest, O Indra, its rivers easy to cross over.

But cf Latin vacuus.

[Riks 7–11 not translated.]