by incantation; conquer the enemies; go forth; slay of them each best one; let no one soever of them yonder be released.
Pādas a-c and e are RV. vi. 75. 16, a verse found also in a number of other texts: SV. ii. 1213; VS. xvii. 45; TS. iv. 6. 44; TB. iii. 7. 623; ĀpÇS. iii. 14. 3. RV.SV.VS. agree throughout, having gácha for jáya at beginning of c, and, for d, mā́ ’mī́ṣāṁ káṁ canó ’c chiṣaḥ; the others have this d, except that they put eṣām in place of amī́ṣām; they also give viça for padyasva at end of c, and TS. has the nom. -çitā, which is better, at end of b, while TB. and ĀpÇS. alter to ávasṛṭaḥ párā pata çaró (for çáro?) bráhmasaṁçitaḥ. Our d is found again as xi. 10. 21 b; our e, as viii. 8. 19 d; xi. 9. 20 d; 10. 19 d. The presence of -saṁçite in this verse gives it a kind of right to stand as part of the hymn, of which sam-çā is the unifying word; vss. 6 and 7 are probably later additions. In Ppp., vss. 6-8, with RV. x. 103. 10, form a piece by themselves; vs. 8 ends with pra padyasva sā māiṣāṁ kaṁ cano ’c chiṣaḥ (nearly as RV.). Correct the accent-mark in d so as to read váraṁ-varam.
20. To Agni and other gods: for various blessings.
[Vasiṣṭha.—daçarcam. āgteyam uta mantroktadevatyam. ānuṣṭubham: 6. patkyāpan̄kti; 8. virāḍjagatī.]
Excepting the last verse, the hymn is found in Pāipp. iii. (in the verse-order 1-3, 7, 4, 6, 5, 8, 9). It includes (vss. 2-7) a whole RV. hymn (x. 141), with a single RV. verse (iii. 29. 10) prefixed, and only the last two verses occur nowhere else. It is used in Kāuç. (18. 13) in the nirṛtikarman, with an offering of rice mixed with pebbles; again (40. 11), in the rite of the removal of the sacrificial fire, with transfer of it to the fire-sticks or to one's self; again (41. 8), with v. 7 and vii. 1, in a rite for success in winning wealth; and the comm. directs vs. 4 to be used in the sava sacrifices (ity anayā bhṛgvan̄girovidaç catura ārṣeyān āhvayet). In Vāit., vs. 1 appears in the agniṣṭoma sacrifice (24. 14), and again in the sarvamedha (38. 14) with the same use as in Kāuç. 40. 11; and also in the agnicayana (28. 25), with the laying of the gārhapatya bricks; further, verses 2-4 and 7 and 8 in the agnicayana (29. 19); vs. 4 a, b in the agniṣṭoma (15. 16), as the adhvaryu follows the fire and soma; vs. 5 in the same (23. 20), with certain offerings; and vs. 6 in the same (19. 2), with a graha to Indra and Vāyu.
Translated: Weber, xvii. 272; Griffith, i. III.—See Weber, Berliner Sb., 1892, p. 797.
1. This is thy seasonable womb (yóni), whence born thou didst shine; knowing it, O Agni, ascend thou; then increase our wealth.
The verse is found in numerous other texts: besides RV. (iii. 29. 10), in VS. (iii. 14 et al.), TS. (i. 5. 52 et al.), TB. (i. 2. 116 et al.), MS. (i. 5. 1 et al.), K. (vi. 9 et al.), Kap. (i. 16 et al.), JB. (i. 6l): in nearly all occurring repeatedly. VS.TS.TB.JB. differ from our version only by reading áthā for ádhā at beginning of d; Ppp. and the comm. have atha; MS.K. substitute tátas; but RV. gives further sīda for roha in c, and gíras for rayím in d. The comm., in accordance with the ritual uses of the verse, declares ayám at the beginning to signify either the fire-stick or the sacrificer himself.
2. O Agni, speak unto us here; be turned toward us with good-will; bestow upon us, O lord of the people (víç); giver of riches art thou to us.
