Talk:The Rig Veda/Mandala 10/Hymn 34

Latest comment: 17 years ago by Anthony Appleyard in topic Revision of translation

Revision of translation edit

Revision of translation following Arthur Anthony Macdonnell's book "A Vedic Reader", publ Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 81-208-1017-1 (cloth bound), ISBN 81-208-1018-x (paperback).

  • "a dice which scored one too much": ekaparasya = "of one-beyond": in this game, the best throw is a multiple of 4, and the worst throw is one more than a multiple of 4.
  • "three-times-fifty": tripancashaH: Macdonnell thought that it means "three fifties" here.
  • "Mūjavant": = "that which has Mūja" = "the land of the Mūja or Mūza people", perhaps the Pamir Mountains.
  • "Vibhīdaka" (Terminalia bellirica): a tall Indian tree that grows nuts that were used as gambling counters; and the game that uses those nuts.
  • For the god Savitr see wikipedia:Savitar.

(See this link for help for addictive gambling.)
Anthony Appleyard 21:27, 25 April 2006 (UTC)Reply

  • I have not been following this work closely and could be wrong. However I believe this is the translation by Ralph T.H. Griffith (That is what it says at The Rig Veda). We certainly allow alternate and modified translations at Wikisource (See Wikisource:Translations). Yet they must seperated and labeled as such. To alter this translation to reflect possibly more correct modern reasearch, actually damages the text integrity. This becomes something which is no longer the Griffith translation we claim it is. Also be careful about copying passages from copyrighted translations. We have not really had to deal with that issue yet, but I can see how it could be a problem.--BirgitteSB 12:50, 26 April 2006 (UTC)Reply
  • Macdonnell's book was first published in England in 1917 and is now out of copyright. Anthony Appleyard 08:33, 27 April 2006 (UTC)Reply