Ancient Sanskrit Online

In many of the poems of the Rigveda divine powers are addressed devó-devah 'god after god'. In this lesson text the poet's song praises gods of creation, weather and earthly provision in turn, concluding with an appeal to the twin horsemen, who of all gods are gámistha 'most willing to come', to convey all resulting gifts to man safely.

Reading and Textual Analysis

The text is verses 13-18 of V, 42 (396), an eighteen-verse poem addressed to víçve devâ´h 'all the gods'. The metre is tristubh, with the exception of the penultimate verse, which is a rare ekapadâ ('one-line') virâj. The god of the first verse is unnamed, as often in such litanies, but the riddle is easily solved. The 'good shelterer' is the divine artificer Tvashtar (see example 267 in section 39), who moulds the 'forms' of existence, from Heaven and Earth to the beasts of the field: yá imé dyâ´vaprthivî´ jánitrî, rûpaír ápimsad bhúvanâni víçvâ (X, 110, 9) 'who fashioned this Heaven and Earth, the two parents, with the forms, all living things'; tvástâ rûpâ´ni hí prabhúh, paçû´n víçvân samânajé (I, 188, 9) 'for Tvashtar presides over the forms, he has made manifest all the beasts'.

The rain god of the next verse is often attended by the Maruts, the lightning-speared warriors of the storm (I, 168, 5 and V, 52, 13), named in the verse that follows. The Maruts inspire fear - prá vepayanti párvatân, ví viñcanti vánaspátîn (I, 39, 5) 'they make the mountains tremble, tear the trees apart', but when accompanied by the god of rain bring welfare: prá vâ´tâ vâ´nti patáyanti vidyúta, úd ósadhîr jíhate pínvate svàh, írâ víçvasmai bhúvanâya jâyate, yát parjányah prthivî´m rétasâ´vati (V, 83, 4) 'the winds blow forth, the lightnings fall; the plants shoot up, heaven yields abundance; nourishment is born for all living things when Parjanya quickens the earth with seed'.

Although severally named in poems of this kind, the power of the gods is ultimately one, and the divine parents moulded by Tvashtar, dyaús pitâ´ (Greek Zeus patêr, Latin Iupiter) and mâtâ´ prthivî´, are united as the source of all saúbhagâni 'gifts of fortune': û´rjam no dyaúç ca prthivî´ ca pinvatâm, pitâ´ mâtâ´ viçvavídâ sudámsasâ (VI, 70, 6) 'power for us, may Heaven and Earth yield abundance, the Father, Mother, all-providing, wonderful'.

prá sû´ mahé suçaranâ´ya medhâ´m
gíram bhare návyasîm jâ´yamânâm
yá âhanâ´ duhitúr vaksánâsu
rûpâ´ minânó ákrnod idám nah

• sú -- particle; <sú> well, surely -- verily
• mahé -- adjective; dative singular masculine of <máh> great -- to the great
• suçaranâ´ya -- noun; dative singular masculine of <suçaraná> good shelterer, good protector -- good shelterer
• medhâ´m -- noun; accusative singular feminine of <medhâ´> wise thought -- a wise thought
• gíram -- noun; accusative singular feminine of <gír> song -- a song
• prá bhare -- verb; 1st person singular middle present of </bhr, bhárati> bring, bear + preverb <prá> forth -- I offer up
• návyasîm -- adjective; accusative singular feminine of <návyâms> newer -- newer
• jâ´yamânâm -- adjective; accusative singular feminine of present middle participle of </jâ, jâ´yate> be born -- being born
• yás -- relative pronoun; nominative singular masculine of <yás, yâ´, yát> who, which -- who
• âhanâ´s -- adjective; nominative singular masculine of <âhanás> abundantly productive -- abundantly productive
• duhitúr -- noun; genitive singular feminine of <duhitr´> daughter -- of the daughter
• vaksánâsu -- noun; locative plural feminine of <vaksánâ> fertile place -- in the fertile places # See the Series Introduction for the indological translation of this word.
• rûpâ´ -- noun; accusative plural neuter of <rûpá> form -- the forms
• minânás -- participle; nominative singular masculine present middle participle of </mî, minâ´ti> vary, transgress -- varying
• ákrnot -- verb; 3rd person singular active imperfect of </kr, krnóti> do, make -- made
• idám -- demonstrative pronoun; accusative singular neuter of <ayám, iyám, idám> this -- this world
• nas -- personal pronoun; accusative/dative/genitive enclitic form of <vayám> we -- for us

prá sustutí stanáyantam ruvántam
ilás pátim jaritar nûnám açyâh
yó abdimâ´m udanimâ´m íyarti
prá vidyútâ ródasî uksámânah

• sustutís -- noun; nominative singular feminine of <sustutí> fine hymn of praise -- a fine hymn of praise
• stanáyantam -- participle; accusative singular masculine present active causative participle of </stan> thunder -- thunder-maker
• ruvántam -- participle; accusative singular masculine present active participle of </ru, ruváti> roar -- roaring
• ilás -- noun; genitive singular feminine of <íd> refreshment -- of refreshment # In the Rigveda d between two vowels becomes l.
• pátim -- noun; accusative singular masculine of <páti> lord -- lord
• jaritar -- noun; vocative singular masculine of <jaritr´> singer -- O singer
• nûnám -- adverb; <nûnám> now -- now
• prá açyâs -- verb; 3rd person singular active aorist optative of </amç, açnóti> reach + preverb <prá> forth -- may it reach # For *açyâst, a precative form.
• yás -- relative pronoun; nominative singular masculine of <yás, yâ´, yát> who, which -- who
• abdimâ´n -- adjective; nominative singular masculine of <abdimánt> consisting of storm-clouds -- storm-clouded
• udanimâ´n -- adjective; nominative singular masculine of <udanimánt> rich in water -- rich in water
• íyarti -- verb; 3rd person singular active of </r, íyarti> go, send -- goes
• vidyútâ -- noun; instrumental singular feminine of <vidyút> lightning flash -- with a lightning flash
• ródasî -- noun; accusative dual feminine of <ródas> world -- the two worlds
• prá uksámânas -- participle; nominative singular masculine present middle participle of </uks, uksáte> sprinkle + preverb <prá> forth -- deluging

esá stómo mâ´rutam çárdho áchâ
rudrásya sûnû´mr yuvanyû´mr úd açyâh
kâ´mo râyé havate mâ suastí
úpa stuhi pr´sadaçvâm ayâ´sah

• esás -- demonstrative pronoun; nominative singular masculine of <esás, esâ´, etát> this -- this
• stómas -- noun; nominative singular masculine of <stóma> eulogy -- eulogy
• mâ´rutam -- adjective; accusative singular neuter of <mâ´ruta> of the storm gods, the Maruts' -- the Maruts' # See section 17.1 for this formation.
• çárdhas -- noun; accusative singular neuter of <çárdhas> troop -- troop
• ácha -- preverb; <ácha> towards -- to # As in the Lesson 3 text, a verb 'goes' or 'is sent' is understood with ácha.
• rudrásya -- noun; genitive singular masculine of <rudrá> Rudra -- of Rudra
• sûnû´n -- noun; accusative plural masculine of <sûnú> son -- the sons
• yuvanyû´n -- adjective; accusative plural masculine of <yuvanyú> ever young -- ever young
• út açyâs -- verb; 3rd person singular active aorist optative of </amç, açnóti> reach + preverb <út> up -- may it reach up to
• kâ´mas -- noun; nominative singular masculine of <kâ´ma> longing -- longing
• râyé -- noun; dative singular masculine of <rayí> possession, treasure -- for treasure
• havate -- verb; 3rd person singular middle of </hû, hávate> invoke, call upon -- calls to
• mâ -- personal pronoun; accusative singular enclitic form of <ahám> I -- me
• svastí -- noun; instrumental singular feminine of <svastí> wellbeing -- with wellbeing
• úpa stuhi -- verb; 2nd person singular active imperative of </stu, stusé> praise + preverb <úpa> up to -- send up praise to
• pr´sadaçvân -- adjective; accusative plural masculine of <pr´sadaçva> with white-flecked horses -- with white-flecked # The Maruts, or gods of the storm.
• ayâ´sas -- adjective; accusative plural masculine of <ayâ´s> nimble -- the nimble ones

praísá stómah prthivî´m antáriksam
vánaspátîmr ósadhî râyé açyâh
devó-devah suhávo bhûtu máhyam
mâ´ no mâtâ´ prthivî´ durmataú dhât

• esás -- demonstrative pronoun; nominative singular masculine of <esás, esâ´, etát> this -- this
• stómas -- noun; nominative singular masculine of <stóma> eulogy -- eulogy
• prthivî´m -- noun; accusative singular feminine of <prthivî´> earth -- earth
• antáriksam -- noun; accusative singular neuter of <antáriksa> airy space, atmosphere -- the atmosphere
• vánaspátîn -- noun; accusative plural masculine of <vánaspáti> forest lord, tree -- the lords of the forest
• ósadhîs -- noun; accusative plural feminine of <ósadhi> plant -- the plants
• râyé -- noun; dative singular masculine of <rayí> possession, treasure -- for treasure
• prá açyâs -- verb; 3rd person singular active aorist optative of </amç, açnóti> reach + preverb <prá> forth -- may it reach
• devó-devas -- iterative compound; <devó-devas> god after god -- god after god
• suhávas -- adjective; nominative singular masculine of <suháva> easily invoked -- easily invoked
• bhûtu -- verb; 3rd person singular active aorist imperative of </bhû, bhávati> be -- may he be
• máhyam -- personal pronoun; dative singular of <ahám> I -- for me
• mâ´ -- particle; <mâ´> not, that not -- not
• nas -- personal pronoun; accusative/dative/genitive enclitic form of <vayám> we -- us
• mâtâ´ -- noun; nominative singular feminine of <mâtr´> mother -- Mother
• prthivî´ -- noun; nominative singular feminine of <prthivî´> earth -- Earth
• durmataú -- noun; locative singular feminine of <durmatí> bad thought, envy -- in disfavour
• dhât -- verb; 3rd person singular active aorist injunctive of </dhâ, dádhâti> place, grant -- let her place

uraú devâ anibâdhé siyâma

• uraú -- adjective; locative singular masculine of <urú> broad, spacious -- in spacious
• devâs -- noun; vocative plural masculine of <devá> divine, god -- O gods
• anibâdhé -- noun; locative singular masculine of <anibâdhá> liberty -- liberty
• syâma -- verb; 1st person plural active optative of </as, ásti> be -- we would be

sám açvínor ávasâ nû´tanena
mayobhúvâ supránîtî gamema
â´ no rayím vahatam ótá vîrâ´n
â´ víçvâni amrtâ saúbhagâni

• açvínos -- noun; genitive dual masculine of <açvín> horseman, Ashvin -- of the two horsemen
• ávasâ -- noun; instrumental singular neuter of <ávas> help -- help
• nû´tanena -- adjective; instrumental singular neuter of <nû´tana> now existing -- present
• mayobhúvâ -- adjective; instrumental singular neuter of <mayobhû´> bringing happiness -- bringing happiness
• supránîtî -- noun; instrumental singular feminine of <supránîti> safe guidance -- with safe guidance
• sám gamema -- noun; 1st person plural active aorist optative of </gam, gáchati> go + preverb <sám> together -- may we partake of # This combination of verb and preverb with a specialised sense has occurred before, in the second verse of the Lesson 4 text. It takes the instrumental case.
• nas -- personal pronoun; accusative/dative/genitive enclitic form of <vayám> we -- us
• rayím -- noun; accusative singular masculine of <rayí> possession, treasure -- treasure
• â´ vahatam -- verb; 2nd person dual active imperative of </vah, váhati> conduct, bring + preverb <â´> (intensifies or reverses meaning) -- convey
• utá -- conjunction; <utá> and -- and
• vîrâ´n -- noun; accusative plural nominative of <vîrá> hero, man, strong son -- strong sons
• víçvâni -- adjective; accusative plural neuter of <víçva> all -- all
• amrtâ -- adjective; vocative dual masculine of <amr´ta> immortal, undying -- O immortal pair
• saúbhagâni -- noun; accusative plural neuter of <saúbhaga> gift of fortune -- gifts of fortune # From subhága, with strengthened first syllable.

Lesson Text

prá sû´ mahé suçaranâ´ya medhâ´m
gíram bhare návyasîm jâ´yamânâm
yá âhanâ´ duhitúr vaksánâsu
rûpâ´ minânó ákrnod idám nah

prá sustutí stanáyantam ruvántam
ilás pátim jaritar nûnám açyâh
yó abdimâ´m udanimâ´m íyarti
prá vidyútâ ródasî uksámânah

esá stómo mâ´rutam çárdho áchâ
rudrásya sûnû´mr yuvanyû´mr úd açyâh
kâ´mo râyé havate mâ suastí
úpa stuhi pr´sadaçvâm ayâ´sah

praísá stómah prthivî´m antáriksam
vánaspátîmr ósadhî râyé açyâh
devó-devah suhávo bhûtu máhyam
mâ´ no mâtâ´ prthivî´ durmataú dhât

uraú devâ anibâdhé siyâma

sám açvínor ávasâ nû´tanena
mayobhúvâ supránîtî gamema
â´ no rayím vahatam ótá vîrâ´n
â´ víçvâni amrtâ saúbhagâni

Translation

Verily I offer up a wise thought, a newer song being born,
To the great one, the good shelterer,
Who, abundantly productive, in the fertile places of the daughter
Varying the forms made this world for us.

May a fine hymn of praise now reach the roaring thunder-maker,
Lord of refreshment, O singer,
Who goes, storm-clouded, rich in water,
With a lightning flash deluging the two worlds.

This eulogy goes out to the Maruts' troop,
May it reach up to the ever-young sons of Rudra;
Longing for treasure with wellbeing calls to me,
Send praise up to the nimble ones with white-flecked horses.

May this eulogy reach the earth, the atmosphere,
The lords of the forest, the plants, for treasure;
May god after god be easily invoked for me,
Let not Mother Earth place us in disfavour.

We would be in spacious liberty, O gods.

May we partake of the present help of the two horsemen,
Bringing happiness with safe guidance;
Convey to us treasure, bring us strong sons,
Bring us all gifts of fortune, O immortal pair.

Grammar

36. Secondary stems in -ín.

Like the stems in -vant and -mant, this suffix, which carries the accent, usually has the sense 'possessing' (occasionally a v is interposed before the suffix). The majority of these adjectives are masculine; a feminine form is made, as with the -vant and -mant stems, using the secondary suffix -î described in section 17.3. Examples of this formation are vajrín 'armed', from vájra 'weapon', manîsín 'thoughtful' from manîsâ´ 'thought', paksín 'winged' from paksá 'wing', açvín 'horseman' from áçva 'horse', and çatín 'a hundredfold', sahasrín 'a thousandfold'; with v interposed ádvayâvin 'not duplicitous', with the accent lost to the privative prefix. The table uses vâjín 'strong', possessing vâ´ja, to show the masculine forms that occur.

• brhátsumnah prasavîtâ´ nivéçano, jágata sthâtúr ubháyasya yó vaçî´ (Lesson 2 text) 'the bringer to life, the source of rest, of high benevolence, who is the one who holds sway over (possesses váça 'will, power') both the moving and the standing world' [239]
• utá tyâ´ daívyâ bhisájâ, çám nah karato açvínâ (Lesson 5 text) 'and those divine healers, the two horsemen, will bless us' [240]
• sám açvínor [açvínos] ávasâ nû´tanena, mayobhúvâ supránîtî gamema (lesson text) 'may we partake of the present help of the two horsemen, bringing happiness with safe guidance' [241]
• ní grâ´mâso aviksata, ní padvánto ni paksínah, ní çyenâ´saç cid arthínah (X, 127, 5) 'people have gone to rest, to rest the footed and the winged, even the purposeful (possessing ártha 'intention') eagles' [242]
• sám tvâ râ´yah çatínah sám sahasrínah, suvî´ram yanti vratapâ´m adâbhya (I, 31, 10) 'treasures a hundredfold, a thousandfold accompany you, not to be deceived, great hero protecting holy law' [243]
• úso vâ´jena vâjini prácetâ, stómam jusasva grnató maghoni (III, 61, 1) 'O Ushas strong with power, the mindful one, enjoy the eulogy of the singer, O gracious lady' [244]

37. Introduction to the Aorist System: the aorist tense.

The aorist tense is used to describe an event in the immediate past. Like the imperfect, which is used to describe events in the distant past ("Indra destroyed the dragon"), it has a prefixed augment á- and the secondary verbal endings described in section 23. There are three distinct kinds of aorist: the simple, reduplicating, and the sigmatic aorist.

Many modal forms, that is, forms of moods like the subjunctive and optative, are assigned to the Aorist System, but of the aorist tense itself only six examples have so far been encountered in the lesson texts. Four of these are found in Lesson 2, where the poet is describing an event that he has just observed. Savitar "has proffered his gift to us" (úd ayân, a sigmatic aorist), "has filled the airy spaces" (aprâs, a sigmatic aorist), "has stretched out his arms" (asrâk, another sigmatic aorist) and "has created (ájijanat, a reduplicating aorist) a boon worthy of holy song", which is the immediate cause of his poem, the 'holy song' itself. In the Lesson 3 text, similarly, the exchange between the poet and the streams is brought about by the appeal that the poet has just made: "Desiring help, I, son of Kushika, have made the invocation (ahve, a simple aorist)"; and the poem to dawn, the Lesson 4 text, is composed on the waking of the poets -- "You, O daughter of heaven, we have wakened (abhutsmahi, a sigmatic aorist) eager to meet, O dawn".

37.1. The simple aorist.

The simple aorist either adds the endings with a connecting -a- or directly to the root. Forms of the aorist can be distinguished from forms of the imperfect in that there is no corresponding present tense form. The following elementary table distinguishes sample forms of the third person active singular from those of the imperfect.

These are the forms that would occur if made from /vid, vindáti 'find', which adds the endings with a connecting -a-.

Third person plural endings can vary. In roots which add the ending without connecting -a- the active ending is frequently -ur, águr, ádhur, ásthur (but ábhûvan), and the middle ending is often -ran, as ádrçran (from /drç) in example 250 below.

Forms of the simple aorist that have already occurred in examples are assembled below.

• abhí dvijánmâ trî´ rocanâ´ni, víçvâ rájâmsi çuçucânó asthât (I, 149, 4) 'of double birth, (Agni) has risen above the three spheres of light, all the airy regions, shining bright' [245] (=170)
• víçve jânanti mahinâ´ yád â´gâd [â´ ágât], índrasya kárma súkrtâ purû´ni (III, 30, 13) 'all know when she has come in her glory -- the many deeds of Indra are well done' [246] (= 223)
• út sû´ryo brhád arcî´msi açret (VII, 62, 1) 'the sun has shed rays up on high (from /çri)' [247] (=92)
• samudrâ´d ûrmír mádhumâm úd ârat (IV, 58, 1) 'from the sea the wave of sweetness has arisen (from /r 'go)' [248] (=94)

37.2. The reduplicating aorist.

The reduplicating vowel of this aorist is long, and is most often -î-; compare the short -i- of the reduplicating syllable of desideratives. The endings are attached to the root with a connecting -a-. The table shows the active forms that would occur if made from /jan 'produce, create, bear'. No dual form occurs, and middle forms are rare. This aorist often has a causative sense.

• satyásya nâ´vah sukr´tam apîparan (IX, 73, 1) 'the ships of truth have borne across the virtuous one (sukr´t (m); the verb is from /pr 'pass')' [249]
• etâ´ u tyâ´h práty adrçran purástâj, jyótir yáchantîr usáso vibhâtî´h, ájîjanan sû´ryam yajñám agním, apâcî´nam támo agâd [agât] ájustam (VII, 78, 3) 'now these have come into view before us (purástât), the shining dawns, spreading light; they have given birth to the sun, to worship, to fire, the unloved dark has retreated (lit. 'has gone backwards')' [250]

37.3. The sigmatic aorist.

The sigmatic aorist adds a sibilant to the root, sometimes with a connecting -i-. As with the imperfect, the endings of the 2nd and 3rd person singular active often disappear because of the phonological law described in section 18 of Lesson 3. In the Lesson 2 text aprâs 'he has filled' occurs for the phonologically impossible *aprâst, and asrâk and ayân, two more sigmatic aorists, have lost both the -s- and the -t. Where the sigmatic form is -is- the second and third persons singular active ending becomes -îs (for is-s) and -ît (for is-t). The 3rd person plural active regularly ends in -ur. Middle forms, like ábhutsmahi in the Lesson 4 text, are of frequent occurrence. Dual forms are rare.

These are the middle forms of /stu 'praise' that would occur.

The penultimate example below illustrates both simple and sigmatic aorists, and the last the three different types. Both verses conclude the poem in which they occur.

• ní grâ´mâso aviksata, ní padvánto ni paksínah, ní çyenâ´saç cid arthínah (X, 127, 5) 'people have gone to rest (from /viç), to rest the footed and the winged, even the purposeful eagles' [251] (= 242)
• ástosata svábhânavo, víprâ návisthayâ matî´ (I, 82, 2) 'the poets, self-luminous, have sung praises with their newest thought' [252]
• ájaismâdyâ´sanâma [ájaisma adyá ásanâma] ca, ábhûmâ´nâgaso [ábhûma ánagâsas] vayám, úso yásmâd dusvápnyâd, ábhaismâ´pa [ábhaisma ápa] tád uchatu, aneháso va ûtáyah, suûtáyo va ûtáyah (VIII, 47, 18) 'now we have conquered and won, we have become free of sin. O dawn, we have been afraid of a bad dream (from /bhî 'fear' which takes the ablative), may she shine that away; your aids are incomparable, your aids are good aids' [253]
• ávarsîr [ávarsîs] varsám úd u sû´ [sû´] grbhâya, ákar dhánvâni átietavâ´ [áti-etavaí] u, ájîjana [ájîjanas] ósadhîr bhójanâya kám, utá prajâ´bhyo avido [avidas] manîsâ´m (V, 83, 10) 'you have shed rain, now wholly cease; you have now made the deserts passable. You have produced plants for nourishment, and you have originated a poem for creatures' [254]

38. Omission of the verb.

Omission of the verb 'be' is a regular feature of the language of the Rigveda, as it is of Homeric Greek. A simple example was given in lesson 2: yó no dâtâ´ sá nah pitâ´ (VIII, 52, 5) 'He who (is) a giver to us (is) a father to us' (example 39). Another regular characteristic is the omission, or elision, of the preceding verb. In the first example in the last section, ní grâ´mâso aviksata, ní padvánto ni paksínah, ní çyenâ´saç cid arthínah (X, 127, 5), the sense of the verb aviksata is carried through all three lines of the verse simply by the repetition the preverb ní. Compare the use of út in the verse quoted in the introduction to Lesson 6, úd [út] îratâm ávara út párâsa, ún [út] madhyamâ´h pitárah somyâ´sah (X, 15, 1), literally 'may they rise up, the more recent, up the distant, up those from the middle past, the inspired fathers', and of â´ in the last line of the lesson text: â´ no rayím vahatam ótá [â´ utá] vîrâ´n, â´ víçvâni amrtâ saúbhagâni.

In the Rigveda elision of the verb is frequent, even when the elided verb has not just appeared, if it can be understood from the context. A preverb is often present to suggest the missing verb, as in the Lesson 3 text: prá síndhum áchâ brhatî´ manîsâ´ 'a lofty poem (goes) forth to the river', and as in this lesson text, again with ácha: esá stómo mâ´rutam çárdho áchâ.

• prá ririce divá [divás] índrah prthivyâ´ [prthivyâ´s], ardhám íd asya práti ródasî ubhé (VI, 30, 1) 'Indra surpasses heaven and earth, indeed one half (ardhá masculine) of him equals both the two worlds' (omission of the verb 'be', here ásti with preverb práti in its specialised sense 'is equal to'; see example 203) [255]
• ádha prá sû´ na úpa yantu dhîtáyo, devâ´m áchâ ná dhîtáyah (I, 139, 1) 'then may our thoughts surely go forth, thoughts (that go) as it were to the gods' [256]
• índra [índre] okyàm didhisanta dhîtáyo, devâ´m áchâ ná dhîtáyah (I, 132, 5) 'thoughts will long to have (subjunctive desiderative of /dhâ) a refuge in Indra, thoughts (that go) as it were to the gods' [257] (the formulaic last line occupies the same position in this and the previous example, in both concluding a long (atyasti) verse)
• rádat pathó várunah sû´ryâya, prá árnâmsi samudríyâ nadî´nâm (VII, 87, 1) 'Varuna hewed a pathway for the sun, (he sent) forth the floods of streams belonging to the sea' (the supplied second verb ásrjat, suggested by the preverb prá, is confirmed by the past participle srstá in the line that follows) [258]
• âtmâ´ devâ´nâm bhúvanasya gárbha, yathâvaçám carati devá esáh, ghósâ íd asya çrnvire ná rûpám (X, 168, 4) 'the breath of the gods, the germ of being, this god goes as he wills. His sounds indeed are heard, his form is not (seen)' (supplying dadrçe; compare I, 164, 44, also of the wind: dhrâ´jir ékasya dadrçe ná rûpám 'of one the passage is seen, not the form') [259]

The vitality of preverbs is used to sophisticated poetic effect in the Lesson 5 text, where in two verses they indicate a change of verbal direction:

• utá syâ´ no dívâ matír, áditir ûtiyâ´ gamat, sâ´ çámtâti máyas karad ápa srídhah (VIII, 18, 7) 'and that (is) our thought by day: Aditi will come with help. She will make (karat) blessed happiness, banish (ápa [karat]) misfortunes' [260]
• çám agnír agníbhih karac, chám nas tapatu sû´riyah, çám vâ´to vâtu arapâ´ ápa srídhah (VIII, 18, 9) 'Agni will bless with fires, let the sun warm a blessing for us, let the wholesome wind blow (vâtu) a blessing, blow away (ápa [vâtu]) misfortunes' [261]

39. Three nouns with mixed stems.

The word naú (f), Greek naus, 'boat' declines as if from two stems, naú- and nâ´v-, showing elements of both the vowel and consonantal declensions. These are the forms that occur in the Rigveda.

• sá nah parsad áti durgâ´ni víçvâ, nâvéva [nâvâ´ iva] síndhum duritâ´ti agníh (I, 99, 1) 'so will Agni bear us over all hard ways and dangers, as with a boat over a river' [262] (=124)
• védâ [véda] yó vînâ´m padám, antáriksena pátatâm, véda nâváh samudríyah (I, 25, 7) '(Varuna) who knows the course of the birds flying through airy space, the course of the sea-faring boat (lit. 'belonging to the sea'; compare example 258 above)' [263] (=160)
• yâ´s te pûsan nâ´vo [nâ´vas] antáh samudré, hiranyáyîr antárikse cáranti, tâ´bhir yâsi dûtyâ´m sû´ryasya (VI, 58, 3) 'O Pushan, those golden (hiranyáyî, feminine of hiranyáya) ships of yours that move within the sea, within the atmosphere, with those you travel on the sun's embassy' [264]
• tám ûhathur naubhír âtmanvátîbhih (I, 116, 3) 'you (Ashvins) carried him with boats under sail' (lit. 'possessing breath'; compare example 259 above, where the wind is âtmâ´ devâ´nâm) [265]

The word rayí 'treasure, precious thing', is usually masculine, but can also be of feminine gender. It declines as if from two stems, rayí- and rây-. In the Rigveda the word is usually used in a non-material sense, and desire for treasure and offspring frequently go together, as in the lesson text. The table gives the usual forms.

• nissídhvarîs ta ósadhîr utâ´po, rayím ta indra prthivî´ bibharti (III, 55, 22) 'the plants and the waters are full of your benefits (feminine of nissídh-van), earth bears your treasure, Indra' [266]
• várûtrîbhih suçaranó no astu, tvástâ sudátro ví dadhâtu râ´yah, tán no râ´yah párvatâs tán na â´pas, tád râtisâ´ca ósadhîr utá dyaúh, vánaspátibhih prthivî´ sajósâ, ubhe ródasî pári pâsato nah (VII, 34, 22, 23) 'with protections may he be a good shelterer for us, may Tvashtar the good giver distribute treasures (acc); then there are treasures (nom) for us, the mountains, and the waters, the ones accompanied by gifts (râtisâ´c), the plants and the sky, the earth in concert with the trees, may both worlds guard us safe' [267]

Of the ancient complex of meaning given as dyú, dív (m) 'sky, heaven, day' in the glossary the forms dyaús, dívam, divás (genitive singular), diví and dívas (an anomalous feminine accusative plural form) have occurred in the lesson texts, all with the meaning 'heaven, sky'. In the second verse of the Lesson 7 text Heaven and Earth appear together in the dual compound dyâ´vâprthivî´, and in the third the iterative compound divé-dive 'day after day' demonstrates the other, related sense of the word. The meaning 'day' has also been encountered in the fixed form dívâ 'by day', often juxtaposed, as in the Lesson 1 text, with the accusative náktam 'by night'.

The alternative accusative plural dyû´n most frequently occurs in the formula ánu dyû´n, like divé-dive with the meaning 'day after day'. The dual dyâ´vâ is also occasionally found as an abbreviated form of the compound dyâ´vâprthivî´, as in example 270.

• â´pa ósadhîr utá no avantu, dyaúr [dyaús] vánâ giráyo vrksákeçâh (V, 41, 11) 'may the waters and the plants favour us, the sky, the woods, the tree-tressed hills (girí (m))' [268]
• tvám dyâ´m ca mahivrata, prthivî´m câ´ti jabhrise (IX, 100, 9) 'you, mighty of law, bear yourself above heaven and above earth' [269]
• sâ´ mâ satyóktih pári pâtu viçváto, dyâ´vâ ca yátra tatánann áhâni ca (X, 37, 2) 'so may true praise safeguard me on every side, where Heaven and Earth and days will stretch out' (the two lines that complete the verse are example 214 in the last lesson) [270]
• ágne ví paçya brhatâ´bhí [brhatâ´ abhí] râyâ´, isâ´m no netâ´ bhavatâd [bhavatât] ánu dyû´n (III, 23, 2) 'O fire, discern with lofty treasure, be for us leader of refreshments day after day' (the rare imperative in -tât has a sustained future sense, like the Latin forms in -to, -tote)' [271]

40. Formulaic cadences and repetitions.

The conclusion of this lesson text is formulaic in nature, and its lines are repeated elsewhere. The poem that immediately follows this one, V, 43, is also addressed to a range of divinities, and has the same coda, repeating the text from mâ´ no mâtâ´ prthivî´ durmataú dhât to the end. The last verse of the lesson text, verse 18, is also used to conclude two poems to the Ashvins later in the same book, V, 76 and V, 77. This use of formulae has already been encountered, in the introduction to Lesson 4, where two lines describing dawn in VII, 81 also occurred in I, 48. The last two lines of the first lesson text, I, 98, are a familiar refrain: tán no mitró váruno mâmahantâm, áditih síndhuh prthivî´ utá dyaúh concludes 19 poems between I, 94 and I, 115, and supplies the end of the last verse of IX, 97, indicating that it originally also belonged with the poems in the first book.

Repetition frequently takes place within the same poem, as in example 212 in the last lesson. Each of the first six verses of a seven-verse supplication, I, 106, has as its last line víçvasmân no ámhaso nís pipartana 'from all trouble deliver us', the seventh ending with the usual refrain of this group described in the last paragraph.

• evâ´ na indra vâ´ryasya pûrdhi, prá te mahî´m sumatím vevidâma (VII, 24, 6; VII, 25, 6) 'so, Indra, fill us with bounty, may we ever find great favour with you' (concluding two successive poems) [272] (=221)
• úso yásmâd dusvápnyâd, ábhaismâ´pa tád uchatu, aneháso va ûtáyah, suûtáyo va ûtáyah (VIII, 47, 18) 'O dawn, we have been afraid of a bad dream, may she shine that away; your aids are incomparable, your aids are good aids' (the last two lines conclude every verse of this eighteen-verse poem) [273] (=253)
• nissídhvarîs ta ósadhîr utâ´po, rayím ta indra prthivî´ bibharti, sákhâyas te vâmabhâ´jah syâma, mahád devâ´nâm asuratvám ékam (III, 55, 22) 'the plants and the waters are full of your benefits, earth bears your treasure, Indra; may we be friends who share in your weal. Mighty is the single sovereignty of the gods' (the final verse of a poem addressed, like the lesson text, to víçve devâ´h, each verse of which ends with this line affirming the unified power of the gods) [274] (the first two lines =266)