Mantra 42: “The
oceans flow from her; The four regions of space (cardinal directions) are
sustained by her. The imperishable akshara becomes kshara; the
cosmos is sustained.”
Akshara suggests alphabets and therefore the entire hymn may
be addressed to Vac, speech. But, it is more logical to see this hymn being
addressed to Divine Mother, or Brahman from whom/which all of the waters and the
space came. Also, akshara means something from which nothing can be
removed; something that does not diminish. That can be only Brahman, the
Primordial Force. And, kshara is the material world, which can decay and
diminish.
Some interpreters consider this hymn being addressed to vac,
speech. But the explanations they give to explain words such as akshara and
kshara and Samudra seem farfetched to me , considering that
Dirghatamas lived long before such explanations were possible.
Mantra 43: This is a
puzzling hymn, difficult to understand. For one thing, the rishi uses the word “shakamayam”.
The only meaning I can find is that it stands for something coming out of
excretion. Therefore, two interpreters translate it to mean “cow dung”.
He uses other words which are also difficult to grasp. For example, the word Ukshana means sprinkled, consecrated. Prushni may mean
spotted as an adjective; but as feminine noun this word may mean ray of light,
earth, cloud, milk and the starry sky.
The hymn translates as follows, according to my
non-scholarly understanding. “ I see smoke from afar, coming out of excretion.
It is smoldering between (or at the center of) heaven and earth. They cook the
spotted bull or they see (not apachyanta; apashyanta)
the consecrated cloud (or earth or the rays of light). That was the custom in the
beginning.”
What is the poet
referring to? May be, he is talking about the appearance of the sun in the sky
from amidst smoke and clouds? Or, is he
talking about a sacrifice in which the “divine person” comes through in the
middle through smoke and fire? How do we make sense of the word “shakamayam”,
if the meaning is really cow dung? May be, the poet has used some other word and it got
corrupted?
My note: I woke up one morning and realized that I
should look for internal consistency and continuity of ideas to understand this
puzzling hymn number 43. The preceding Hymn 42 refers to the cosmos and
mentions oceans, earth, imperishable and the cosmos. The next Hymn 44
mentions(rather, implies) components of
cosmos such as agni, apah and vayu and probably Aditya or surya. Therefore, going back to hymn 43, it is possible that the poet was referring to the sun
seen through the clouds and the rays (prishni) coming through the
clouds(ukshana). Or, the fire in the sacrificial altar seen through the smoke
in this world and the sun’s rays coming through the clouds in the sky.
Mantra 44: “Three deities with matted hair appear in ordered
seasons. One of them sows (or cuts) (vapati) in these yearly cycles (samvatsare).
With his powers one sees (supports) the universe. By its activity (shachibih)
and its impulse or power (dhrajih), one is seen; but not His form.”
One meaning of Samvatsara is the first year in a cycle of
five years, which might have been the custom in the days of Dirghatamas.
This hymn probably refers to the rta or rhythmic cycles of season and years and the three deities with matted locks may refer to agni-apah-and vayu or to Aditya. In some places agni-apah-and vayu are referred to as Aditya. Aditya also meant the Sun and his rays are often referred to as his hair. In specific seasons, which depend on the sun, people sow seeds or reap the harvest.
The hymn also implies that behind this visible universe is
an unseen force which drives. We know of its presence by its activities and its
powers, but we do not see his form. This must imply the Primordial Source of it
all, Brahman.
No comments:
Post a Comment