Page:Atharva-Veda samhita volume 2.djvu/197

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TRANSLATION AND NOTES. BOOK XI
-xi. 9

9. Let the buzzards, jāṣkamadás, vultures, falcons, winged ones, let the crows, the birds (çakúni), satisfy themselves—exhibiting among the enemies—in case of thy bite, O Arbudi.

We have here two refrain-phrases, neither of which stands in any grammatical connection with its surroundings (the pple. 'exhibiting' being nom. sing. masc). The comm. reads in a aliklabāḥ and yāḥ klamadāḥ; and some of the mss. have jāḥkam- (so our B.O.s.m.).


10. Then let all wild beasts, let the fly, let the worm satisfy itself upon the carrion of men, bitten, O Arbudi, of thee.

Here the refrain stands again in grammatical connection.


11. Take ye (two) hold, tear out (sam-bṛh) [their] breath-and-expiration, O Nyarbudi; let groaning (? nivāçá) noises assemble—exhibiting among the enemies—in case of thy bite, O Arbudi.

Again (as in vs. 3) the other serpent-deity is included in a in the invocation ⌊this time of Nyarbudi⌋. The comm. reads vṛhatam in a. He explains nivāçās as nīcīnaṁ vāçyamānā ābhāṣyamāṇāḥ.


12. Make thou [them] tremble; let them quake together; unite our enemies with fear; with broad-gripping arm-hooks pierce thou our enemies, O Nyarbudi.

The comm. reads in c ūrugrāhāis (which is not bad) and bāhuvan̄kāis, explaining the latter by bāhunā vakrabandhanāiḥ. Our P.M.W. read at the end amítrāṇy arbude: compare 6 a, above.


13. Let their arms be confounded, and what thought-and-design is in their heart; let not anything of them be left—in case of thy bite, O Arbudi.

The second pāda is the same with vs. 1 d, above.


14. Smiting themselves let them (f.) run together, smiting on the breast, the thighs (? paṭāurá), not anointing, with disheveled hair, wailing when the man is slain, bitten, O Arbudi, of thee.

Translated by Bloomfield, ib. (see vs. 7). I follow both translators in rendering paṭāurá by 'thigh,' although it is not too acceptable, considering the familiarity of ūru as name for 'thigh.' SPP. reads instead paṭūrāú, with a very small minority of his mss. (of ours, only B.s.m. has it), and with the comm. The latter defines it simply as tat- (i.e. uraḥ) pradeçāu. He makes aghārin from agha and root ṛ: aghena bhartṛviyogajanitena duḥkhenā ”rtāḥ!


15. Dog-accompanied Apsarases, she-jackals (? rū́pakā) also, O Arbudi, the riçā́, licking much in the inner vessel, seeking what is ill-deposited—all these (f.), O Arbudi, do thou make our enemies to see, and do thou show forth specters;—

The conclusion is nearly the same with vs. 1 e, f, g, above, and is also repeated below ⌊vss. 22, 24⌋. The accent of çvànvatīs seems certainly wrong, but it is read by all the mss., and avouched by the commentary to Prāt. iii. 73. The translation of rūpakā