Vedic and Puranic Mythology
Vedic and Puranic MythologyPREFACE.Part I. The Vedic DeitiesCHAPTER I. THE VEDAS.CHAPTER II. THE VEDIC GODS GENERALLY.CHAPTER III. DYAUS AND PRITHIVI.CHAPTER IV. ADITI, AND THE ĀDITYAS.CHAPTER V. AGNI.CHAPTER VI. SUN OR LIGHT DEITIES.CHAPTER VII. THE STORM DEITIES.CHAPTER VIII. SOMA.CHAPTER IX. TVASTRI OR VISVAKARMA.CHAPTER X. YAMA.PART II. THE PURĀNIC DEITIES.CHAPTER I. THE PURĀNAS.CHAPTER II. BRAHMA. *CHAPTER III. BRAHMĀ AND SARASVATI.CHAPTER IV. VISHNU AND LAKSHMI.CHAPTER V. THE INCARNATIONS OR AVATARAS OF VISHNU.CHAPTER VI. SIVA.CHAPTER VII. UMĀ.CHAPTER VIII. SONS OF SIVA AND PĀRVATI.CHAPTER IX. THE PURĀNIC ACCOUNT OF THE CREATION.CHAPTER X. THE PURĀNIC DIVISIONS OF TIME.PART III. THE INFERIOR DEITIES.CHAPTER I. THE DIVINE RISHIS.CHAPTER II. KUVERA.CHAPTER III. THE DEMIGODS OF THE RĀMĀYANA.CHAPTER IV. THE DEMIGODS OF THE MAHĀBHĀRATA.CHAPTER V. THE PLANETS.CHAPTER VI. THE ASURAS.CHAPTER VII. SACRED ANIMALS AND BIRDS.CHAPTER VIII. GANGĀ.CHAPTER IX. SACRED TREES.CHAPTER X. MISCELLANEOUS MINOR DEITIES.CHAPTER XI. SUPERHUMAN, THOUGH NOT DIVINE BEINGS.Copyright
Vedic and Puranic Mythology
W.J. Wilkins
PREFACE.
On reaching India, one of my first inquiries was for a full and
trustworthy account of the mythology of the Hindus; but though I
read various works in which some information of the kind was to be
found, I sought in vain for a complete and systematic work on this
subject. Since then two classical dictionaries of India have been
published, one in Madras and one in London; but though useful books
of reference, they do not meet the want that this book is intended
to supply. For some years I have been collecting materials with the
intention of arranging them in such a way that any one without much
labour might gain a good general idea of the names, character, and
relationship of the principal deities of Hinduism. This work does
not profess to supply new translations of the Hindu Scriptures, nor
to give very much information that is not already scattered through
many other books. In a few cases original extracts have been made;
but, generally speaking, my work has been to collect and arrange
translations ready to hand. It has been my endeavour to give a fair
and impartial account of these deities, as far as possible in the
words of the sacred books; such an account as I should expect an
honest-minded Hindu to give of God from a careful study of the
Bible. I have honestly striven to keep free from prejudice and
theological bias; and, wishing to let the sacred books speak for
themselves, have refrained from commenting on the passages quoted,
excepting where some explanation seemed necessary. I have not
selected those texts which describe the darker side only of the
Hindu gods, nor have such been altogether suppressed. There was
much that could not be reproduced. Of what was fit for publication
I have taken a proportionate amount, that this, together with what
is worthy of commendation, may give a faithful picture. To magnify
either the good or the evil is the work of the advocate—a work I,
in this book, distinctly disclaim. An honest effort has been made
to give a reliable account of the things commonly believed by
millions of our Hindu fellow-subjects.
In order to render the work more interesting and instructive, a
number of illustrations of the principal deities have been
introduced. Most of them have been copied from pictures drawn by
the Hindus themselves, and which may be seen in the houses of the
people. No attempt has been made to idealize them; they are, what
they profess to be, faithful representations of the designs of
Hindu artists. For their kindness in making these drawings from the
original highly-coloured pictures, I am very greatly indebted to my
friends the Rev. A. J. Bamford, B.A., and Messrs. H. T. Ottewill
and C. A. Andrews, B.A.
By the introduction of a full index it is hoped that this work will
serve as a classical dictionary of India; whilst the classification
of the gods will enable the student to obtain a general view of
Hindu mythology, and of the relation in which one deity stands to
others. And as many legends are given at some length, the book can
hardly fail to be interesting to the general reader, who may not
have time or opportunity to refer to the sacred writings from which
they are taken.
A word of explanation respecting the classification of the deities
is called for. It will be noticed that some of those described as
belonging to the Vedic Age appear under the same or other names in
the Purānas; whilst others spoken of as belonging to the Purānic
Age have their origin, traceable indeed with difficulty in some
cases, in the Vedas. It was a common practice with the writers of
the later books to claim a remote antiquity, and the authority of
the Vedas, for the more recent additions to the Pantheon. In some
instances an epithet, descriptive of one of the old deities, is
attached as the name of a later one. And by this means the old and
the new are linked together. The Vedic gods are those whose
description is chiefly to be found in the Vedas, and whose worship
was more general in the Vedic Age; the Purānic are those who are
more fully described in the Purānas, and whose worship was more
general in the Purānic Age. Any very rigid classification it is
impossible to make.
Part I. The Vedic Deities
CHAPTER I. THE VEDAS.
Before speaking of the Vedic Deities, it is necessary that
something be said concerning the Vedas themselves, the source of
our information concerning them. The root of the word is vid, "to
know;" hence the term Veda signifies knowledge; and as these books
were not written for centuries after they were originally composed,
it signifies knowledge that was heard, or orally communicated. The
Vedas are not the work of a single person, but, according to
popular belief, were communicated to a number of Rishis or saints,
who in their turn transmitted them to their disciples. The Seer
Vyāsa is styled the arranger, or, as we should now say, the editor,
of these works.
The instruction contained in these writings is said to have been
breathed forth by God Himself. Other writers teach that it issued
from Him like smoke from fire. Sometimes the Vedas are said to have
sprung from the elements. The accounts of their origin, though
differing in form, agree in teaching that they were the direct gift
of God to man; and hence they are regarded with the greatest
veneration. They are the special property of the Brāhmans. As early
as Manu, the nominal author or compiler of a law book probably not
more than two or three centuries later than the Vedas, though some
suppose it to have been no earlier than A.D. 500, it was regarded
as a grave offence for a single word of these divinely given books
to be heard by a man of a lower caste.
The Vedas are four in number; of these the Rig-Veda is the oldest,
next in order was the Yajur-Veda, then the Sama-Veda, and last of
all the Atharva-Veda. Each of these Vedas consists of two main
parts: a Sanhita, or collection of mantras or hymns; and a
Brāhmana, containing ritualistic precept and illustration, which
stands in somewhat the same relation to the Sanhita as the Talmud
to the Law. In these are found instructions to the priests who
conduct the worship of the gods addressed in. the hymns. Attached
to each Brāhmana is an Upanishad, containing secret or mystical
doctrine. These are regarded as of lesser authority than the
Mantras and Brāhmanas. For whilst they are spoken of as Sruti, i.e.
heard, the Upanishads are Smriti, learned. Though based on the
older compositions, if there is any discrepancy between them, the
teaching of the later ones is rejected. The Sanhita and Brāhmana
are for the Brāhmans generally; the Upanishads for philosophical
inquirers. Yet, strange to say, whereas the older portions had,
until recent years, been almost entirely neglected, with some parts
of the Upanishads there was considerable acquaintance amongst the
learned pundits of Benares and other places. In many parts of India
not a man could be found able to read and interpret them. Of the
Sanhitas, the "Rig-Veda Sanhita—containing one thousand and
seventeen hymns—is by far the most important; whilst the
Atharva-Veda-Sanhita, though generally held to be the most recent,
is perhaps the most interesting. Moreover, these are the only two
Vedic hymn-books worthy of being called separate original
collections;" * the others being almost entirely made up of
extracts from the Rig-Veda. Between the time of the composition of
the Rig-Veda and that of the Atharva, considerable changes in the
religious faith of the people had come about. The childlike trust
of the earlier hymns has disappeared, and the deities now seem more
cruel, and there is greater need of propitiatory offerings.
Probably the old religion of the people whom they had conquered had
begun to tell on that of the Aryans.
The Sanhitas of three of the Vedas are said to have some
peculiarity. "If a mantra is metrical, and intended for loud
recitation, it is called Rich (from rich, praise) whence the name
Rig Veda; i.e. the Veda containing such praises. If it is prose
(and then it must be muttered inaudibly), it is called Yajus (yaj,
sacrifice, hence, literally, the means by which sacrifice is
effected); therefore Yajur-Veda signifies the Veda containing such
yajus. And if it is metrical, and intended for chanting, it is
called Sāman [equal]; hence Sāman Veda means the Veda containing
such Samans. The author of the Mantra, or as the Hindus would say,
the inspired 'Seer,' who received it from the Deity, is termed its
Rishi; and the object with which it is concerned is its devata—a
word which generally means a 'deity,' but the meaning of which, in
its reference to mantras, must not always be taken literally, as
there are hymns in which not gods nor deified beings, but, for
instance, a sacrificial post, weapons, etc., invoked, are
considered as the devata. * It should, however, be noticed that the
deifying of a "sacrificial post" or a "weapon" is in perfect
harmony with the general pantheistic notions which prevailed
amongst the people then as now: so that there is nothing unnatural
according to their religious ideas in speaking even of inanimate
objects as deities. There is little doubt that the Brāhmanas are
more recent than the Sanhitas.
The Vedas have not come down to the present time without
considerable dispute as to the text. As might have been expected,
seeing that this teaching was given orally, discrepancies arose.
One account mentions no less than twenty-one versions (Sākhās) of
the Rig-Veda; another gives five of the Rig-Veda, forty-two of the
Yajur-Veda, mentions twelve out of a thousand of the Sāman-Veda,
and twelve of the Atharva-Veda. And as each school believed that it
possessed the true Veda, it anathematized those who taught and
followed any other. The Rig-Veda Sanhita that has survived to the
present age is that of one school only, the Sākala; the Yajur-Veda
is that of three schools; the Sāma-Veda is that of perhaps two, and
the Atharva-Veda of one only.
"The history of the Yajur-Veda differs in so far from that of the
other Vedas, as it is marked by a dissension between its own
schools far more important than the differences which separated the
school of each [of the] other Vedas. It is known by the distinction
between a Yajur-Veda called the Black—and another called the
White—Yajur-Veda. Tradition, especially that of the Purānas,
records a legend to account for it. Vaisampāyana, it says, a
disciple of Vyāsa, who had received from him the Yajur-Veda, having
committed an offence, desired his disciples to assist him in the
performance of some expiatory act. One of these, however,
Yājnavalkya, proposed that he should alone perform the whole rite;
upon which Vaisampāyana, enraged at what he considered to be the
arrogance of his disciple, uttered a curse on him, the effect of
which was that Yājnavalkya disgorged all the Yajus texts he had
learned from Vaisampāyana. The other disciples, having been
meanwhile transformed into partridges (tittiri), picked up these
tainted texts and retained them. Hence these texts are called
Taittiriyas. But Yājnavalkya, desirous of obtaining Yajus texts,
devoutly prayed to the Sun, and had granted to him his wish—'to
possess such texts as were not known to his teacher.'" * And thus
there are two Yajur-Vedas to this day; the Black being considered
the older of the two.
As to the date of the Vedas, there is nothing certainly known.
There is no doubt that they are amongst the oldest literary
productions of the world. But when they were composed is largely a
matter of conjecture. Colebrooke seems to show from a Vaidick
Calendar that they must have been written before the 14th century
B.C. Some assign to them a more recent, some a more ancient, date.
Dr. Haug considers the Vedic age to have extended from B.C. 2000 to
B.C. 1200, though he thinks some of the oldest hymns may have been
composed . B.C. 2400. Max-Müller gives us the probable date of the
Mantra, or hymn portion of the Vedas, from B.C. 1200 to B.C. 800,
and the Brāhmanas from B.C. 800 to B.C. 600, and the rest from B.C.
600 to B.C. 200.
There is nothing whatever in the books themselves to indicate when
they were written. All references in them are to their being given
orally, learned, and then again taught audibly to others. Probably
for centuries after the art of writing was known in India it was
not employed for preserving the sacred books, as in the Mahābhārata
those who write the Vedas are threatened with the punishment of
hell.( 9 )
Footnotes5:* "Indian Wisdom," p. 9.
6:* Goldstücker, art. "Vedas," Chambers's Cyclopædia.
7:* Art. "Vedas," Chambers's Cyclopædia.
CHAPTER II. THE VEDIC GODS GENERALLY.
Yaska (probably the oldest commentator on the Vedas) gives the
following classification of the Vedic gods. "There are three
deities, according to the expounders of the Vedas: Agni, whose
place is on the earth; Vāyu or Indra, whose place is in the air;
and Surya, whose place is in the sky. These deities receive
severally many appellations in consequence of their greatness, or
of the diversity of their functions." * In the Rig-Veda itself this
number is increased to thirty-three, of whom eleven are said to be
in heaven, eleven on earth, and eleven in mid-air. "Agni, the wise
god, lends an ear to his worshippers. God with the ruddy steeds,
who lovest praise, bring hither those three-and-thirty." This is
the number usually mentioned, though it is by no means easy to
decide which are the thirty-three intended, as the lists found in
various places vary considerably; whilst in another verse it is
said that "three hundred, three thousand, thirty-and-nine gods have
worshipped Agni."
These deities, though spoken of as immortal, are not said to be
self-existent beings; in fact their parentage in most cases is
given; but the various accounts of their origin do not agree with
each other. Agni and Savitri are said to have conferred immortality
upon the other gods; whilst it is also taught that Indra obtained
this boon by sacrifice. An interesting account is given in the
Satapatha Brāhmana * of the means by which the gods obtained
immortality, and superiority over the asuras or demons. All of
them, gods and demons alike, were mortal, all were equal in power,
all were sons of Prajāpati the Creator. Wishing to be immortal, the
gods offered sacrifices liberally, and practised the severest
penance; but not until Prajāpati had taught them to offer a
particular sacrifice could they become immortal. They followed his
advice, and succeeded. Wishing to become greater than the asuras,
they became truthful. Previously they and the asuras spoke
truthfully or falsely, as they thought fit; but gradually, whilst
they ceased from lying, the asuras became increasingly false; the
result was that the gods after protracted struggles gained the
victory. Originally the gods were all equal in power, all alike
good. But three of them desired to be superior to the rest, viz.
Agni, Indra, and Surya. They continued to offer sacrifices for this
purpose until it was accomplished. Originally there was not in Agni
the same flame as there is now. He desired, "May this flame be in
me," and, offering a sacrifice for the attainment of this blessing,
obtained it. In a similar manner Indra increased his energy, and
Surya his brightness. These three deities form what is commonly
described as the Vedic Triad. In later times other three took their
place, though an attempt is made to show them to be the same.
It will be noticed that each of the gods is in turn regarded by the
worshipper as superior to all the others. In the Vedas this
superlative language is constantly employed, and identical epithets
are indiscriminately given to various deities. Professor Max-Müller
says, "When these individual gods are invoked, they are not
conceived as limited by the power of others, as superior or
inferior in rank. Each god, to the mind of the supplicants, is as
good as all the gods. He is felt at the time as a real divinity, as
supreme and absolute, in spite of the limitations which, to our
mind, a plurality of gods must entail on every single god. All the
rest disappear for a moment from the vision of the poet, and he
only who is to fulfil their desires, stands in full light before
the eyes of the worshippers. . . . It would be easy to find, in the
numerous hymns of the Rig-Veda, passages in which almost every
single god is represented as supreme and absolute."
The will of these gods is sovereign; no mortal can thwart their
designs. They exercise authority over all creatures. In their hands
is the life of mortals. They know the thoughts and intentions of
men, and whilst they reward the worshipper, they punish those who
neglect them.
When the Puranic deities are described it will be noticed that the
representations of the deities of that age are far more clearly
defined than those of earlier times. Though the Vedic gods are
spoken of as possessing human forms and acting as human beings,
there is considerable vagueness in the outline. But as time goes on
this is lost. The objects of worship are no longer indistinct and
shadowy, but are so minutely described that their portraits could
be easily painted. And as their physical features are no longer
left to the imagination, so their mental and moral characters are
fully delineated. They are of like passions with those who depict
them, only possessing vastly greater powers.
Professor Williams says * "that the deified forces addressed in the
Vedic hymns were probably not represented by images or idols in the
Vedic period, though doubtless the early worshippers clothed their
gods with human forms in their own imaginations." Professor Müller
† speaks more positively: "The religion of the Veda knows of no
idols. The worship of idols in India is a secondary formation, a
later degradation of the more primitive worship of ideal gods." The
guarded language of Professor Williams seems to be better suited to
the facts, as far as they are known, for Dr. Bollensen ‡ speaks
quite as strongly on the other side. He writes, "From the common
appellation of the gods as divo naras, 'men of the sky,' or simply
naras, 'men,' and from the epithet nripesas, 'having the form of
men,' we may conclude that the Indians did not merely in
imagination assign human forms to their gods, but also represented
them in a sensible manner. Thus a painted image of Rudra (Rig-Veda,
ii. 33, 9) is described with strong limbs, many-formed, awful,
brown, he is painted with shining colours.'" "Still clearer appears
the reference to representations in the form of an image. 'I now
pray to the gods of these (Maruts).' Here it seems that the Maruts
are distinguished from their gods, i.e. their images.'" "There is
in the oldest language a word, 'Sandris,' which properly denotes
'an image of the gods.'
We shall now proceed to the consideration in detail of the deities
as described in the Vedas.Footnotes9:* Muir, O. S. T., v. 8.
10:* Muir O. S. T., iv. 54-62.
12:* "Indian Wisdom," p. 15.
12:† "Chips from a German Workshop," i. 38.
12:‡ Muir, C. S. T., v. 453
CHAPTER III. DYAUS AND PRITHIVI.
The general opinion respecting Dyaus (Heaven) and Prithivi (Earth)
is that they are amongst the most ancient of the Aryan deities,
hence they are spoken of in the hymns of the Rig-Veda as the
parents of the other gods. * They are described as "great, wise and
energetic;" those who "promote righteousness, and lavish gifts upon
their worshippers." And in another place they are said to have
"made all creatures," and through their favour "immortality is
conferred upon their offspring." Not only are they the creators,
but also the preservers of all creatures; and are beneficent and
kind to all. In other passages Heaven and Earth are said to have
been formed by Indra, who is declared to transcend them in
greatness, whom they follow "as a chariot follows the horse." They
are described as bowing down before him; as trembling with fear on
account of him; and as being subject to his control. Again, they
are said to have been formed by Soma; and in other verses other
deities are said to have made them. This confusion of thought
respecting the origin of the gods led very naturally to the
question being asked in other hymns, "How have they been produced?
Who of the sages knows?"
There seems to be considerable ground for the opinion that Indra
gradually superseded Dyaus in the worship of the Hindus soon after
their settlement in India. As the praises of the newer god were
sung, the older one was forgotten; and in the present day, whilst
Dyaus is almost unknown, Indra is still worshipped, though in the
Vedas both are called the god of heaven. The following statement of
Professor Benfey * gives a natural explanation of this. "It may be
distinctly shown that Indra took the place of the god of heaven,
who, in the Vedas, is invoked in the vocative as Dyauspitar
(Heaven-father). This is proved by the fact that this phrase is
exactly reflected in the Latin Jupiter, and the Greek Zeū-pater as
a religious formula, fixed, like many others, before the separation
of the languages. When the Sanskrit people left the common country,
where for them, as well as for other kindred tribes, the brilliant
radiance of heaven appeared to them, in consequence of the climate
there prevailing, as the holiest thing, and settled in sultry
India, where the glow of the heavens is destructive, and only its
rain operates beneficially, this aspect of the Deity must have
appeared the most adorable, so that the epithet Pluvius, in a
certain sense, absorbed all the other characteristics of
Dyauspitar. This found its expression in the name In-dra, in which
we unhesitatingly recognize a word (which arose in some local
dialect, and was then diffused with the spread of the worship)
standing for Sind-ra, which again was derived from Syand, 'to
drop.' The conceptions which had been attached to Dyaus were then
transferred to Indra." The opinion that Indra has taken the place
of Dyaus is now pretty generally believed, and the above
explanation appears natural.
Of Prithivi we hear again. The "Vishnu Purāna" † gives the
following account of her birth. There was a king named Venā,
notorious for his wickedness and general neglect of religious
duties. When the Rishis of that age could bear with his impiety no
longer, they slew him. But now a worse evil happened; anarchy
prevailed, and they felt that a bad king was better than none at
all. Upon this they rubbed the thigh of Venā, when there came forth
a black dwarf, resembling a negro in appearance. Immediately after
his birth the dwarf asked, "What am I to do?" He is told, "Nisīda"
(sit down), and from this his descendants are called "Nisidis" unto
this day. The corpse was now pure, as all sin had left it in the
body of this black dwarf. The right arm was then rubbed, and from
it there came a beautiful shining prince, who was named Prithu, and
reigned in the place of his father. Now during his reign there was
a terrible famine. As the Earth would not yield her fruits, great
distress prevailed. Prithu said, "I will slay the Earth, and make
her yield her fruits." Terrified at this threat, the Earth assumed
the form of a cow, and was pursued by Prithu, even to the heaven of
Brahmā. At length, weary with the chase, she turned to him and
said, "Know you not the sin of killing a female, that you thus try
to slay me?" The king replied that "when the happiness of many is
secured by the destruction of one malignant being, the slaughter of
that being is an act of virtue." "But," said the Earth, "if, in
order to promote the welfare of your subjects, you put an end to
me, whence, best of monarchs, will thy people derive their
support?" Overcome at length, the Earth declared that all vegetable
products were old, and destroyed by her, but that at the king's
command she would restore them "as developed from her milk." "Do
you, therefore, for the benefit of mankind, give me that calf by
which I may be able to secrete milk. Make also all places level, so
that I may cause my milk, the seed of all vegetation, to flow
everywhere around."
Prithu acted upon this advice. "Before his time there was no
cultivation, no pasture, no agriculture, no highways for merchants;
all these things (or all civilization) originated in the reign of
Prithu. Where the ground was made level, the king induced his
subjects to take up their abode. . . . He therefore having made
Swayambhuva Manu the calf, milked the Earth, and received the milk
into his own hand, for the benefit of mankind. Thence proceeded all
kinds of corn and vegetables upon which people now subsist. By
granting life to the Earth, Prithu was as her father, and she
thence derived the patronymic appellation Prithivi."
In a note Professor Wilson adds, * the commentator observes that
"by the 'calf,' or Manu in that character, is typified the promoter
of the multiplication of progeny;" Manu, as will be seen in the
account of the Creation, being regarded by some of the Purānas as
the first parent of mankind. This legend, with considerable
variation, is found in most of the Purānas; Soma, Indra, Yama, and
others taking the place of Manu as the calf, whilst Prithu's place
as the milker is taken by the Rishis, Mitra, etc. In the same note
Professor Wilson says, "These are all probably subsequent
modifications of the original simple allegory, which typified the
earth as a cow, who yielded to every class of beings the milk that
they desired, or the object of their wishes."
It should be noticed that, later in the "Vishnu Purāna," Prithivi
is said to have sprung from the foot of Vishnu.
Footnotes13:* Muir, O. S. T., v. 23.
14:* Muir, O. S. T., v. 18.
14:† Page 103.
16:* "Vishnu Purāna," p. 104.
CHAPTER IV. ADITI, AND THE ĀDITYAS.
Aditi has the honour of being almost the only goddess mentioned by
name in the Rig-Veda, as the mother of any of the gods; but it is
by no means an easy task to delineate her character, as the most
contradictory statements are made concerning her. She was invoked
as the bestower of blessings on children and cattle; and she is
declared to be the mother of Varuna, and other deities, sometimes
eight, sometimes twelve in number. She is supposed to be the
impersonation of "infinity, especially the boundlessness of heaven,
in opposition to the finiteness of earth." Another supposition is
that Aditi is the personification of "universal, all-embracing
Nature or Being." This latter idea seems to be the more correct
from the following verses, * where a man about to be immolated
says, "Of which god, now, of which of the immortals, shall we
invoke the amiable name, who shall give us back to the great Aditi,
that I may behold my father and my mother?" Whatever may have been
intended by the poets to be expressed by this name, or whatever may
have been the precise power personified by Aditi, she is connected
with the forgiveness of sin. Thus, "May Aditi make us sinless."
"Aditi be gracious, if we have committed any sin against you."
"Whatever offence we have, oh Agni, through our folly committed
against you, oh most youthful god, make us free from sins against
Aditi." "Whatever sin we have committed, may Aditi sever us from
it." * Probably the term Aditi "the boundless," was originally
employed as an epithet of Dyauspitar, the Heaven-father. When the
heavens came to be divided into a number of parts, over each of
which a ruler was nominated, a mother was wanted for them, and the
name Aditi was given to her.
In the account of the Creation given in the Rig-Veda, Aditi is said
to have sprung from Daksha, and in the same verse Daksha is called
her son. There is also a reference to her other sons. In the
"Vishnu Purāna" we have no less than three somewhat differing
accounts of the origin of Daksha the father of Aditi. In the first
account, his name appears amongst the mind-born sons of Brahmā; and
in this connection he is said to have had twenty-four daughters;
but Aditi is not mentioned as one of them. In the second account of
Daksha, Aditi is said to have been one of his sixty daughters, and
was given in marriage to Kasypa, by whom she had twelve sons—the
Ādityas. Elsewhere we read that Vishnu, when incarnate as the
Dwarf, was a result of this marriage. In the third account of
Daksha, Aditi is again mentioned as his daughter, and the mother of
Vivasat (the Sun). The sons of Aditi are termedTHE ĀDITYAS.
This name signifies simply the descendants of Aditi. In one passage
in the Rig-Veda † the names of six are given: Mitra, Aryaman,
Bhaga, Varuna, Daksha and Amsa. In another passage they are said to
be seven in number, though their names are not given. In a third,
eight is the number mentioned; but "of the eight sons of Aditi, who
were born from her body, she approached the gods with seven, and
cast out Mārttānda (the eighth)." * As the names of these sons
given in different parts of the Vedas do not agree with each other,
it is difficult to know who were originally regarded as Ādityas.
Judging from the number of hymns addressed to them, some of these
deities occupied a conspicuous position in the Vedic Pantheon;
whilst others are named once or twice only, and then in connection
with their more illustrious brethren. In the "Satapatha Brāhmana,"
and the Purānas, the number of the Ādityas is increased to twelve.
In addition to the six whose names are given above, the following
are also described in some hymns of the Rig-Veda as the offspring
of Aditi: Surya, "as an Āditya identified with Agni, is said to
have been placed by the gods in the sky;" † Savitri, and Indra too,
are in one passage addressed as an Āditya along with Varuna and the
Moon. In the Taittiriya Texts, the following are described as
Ādityas:—Mitra, Varuna, Aryaman, Amsu, Bhaga, Indra, and Vivasvat
(Surya).
Professor Roth says ‡ of these deities, "In the highest heaven
dwell and reign those gods who bear in common the name of Ādityas.
We must, however, if we would discover their earliest character,
abandon the conceptions which in a later age, and even in that of
the heroic poems, were entertained regarding these deities.
According to this conception they were twelve Sun-gods, there being
evident reference to the twelve months. But for the most ancient
period we must hold fast to the primary significance of their
names. They are inviolable, imperishable, eternal things. Aditi,
Eternity, or The Eternal, is the element which sustains them, or is
sustained by them. The eternal and inviolable element in which the
Ādityas dwell, and which forms their essence, is the celestial
light. The Ādityas, the gods of this light, do not therefore by any
means coincide with any of the forms in which light is manifested
in the universe. They are neither the sun, nor moon, nor stars, nor
dawn, but the eternal sustainers of this luminous life, which
exists, as it were, behind these phenomena."
As noticed above, the text of the Rig-Veda says, * "Of the eight
sons who were born from the body of Aditi, she approached the gods
with seven, but cast away the eighth." In the commentary, the
following explanation of this circumstance is given. "The eighth
son was deformed. His brothers, seeing his deformity, improved his
appearance. He was afterwards known as Vivasvat (the Sun). From the
superfluous flesh cut off his body an elephant was formed, hence
the proverb, Let no man catch an elephant, for the elephant
partakes of the nature of man.'"
According to a passage quoted in Chapter II. † from the "Satapatha
Brāhmana," Agni, Indra, and Surya, obtained superiority over the
other gods by means of sacrifice. By whatever means this position
was obtained, it is certain that they were the most popular deities
of the Vedic Age. Agni stands in a class by himself; but with Indra
and Surya there are other deities closely associated, and
possessing very similar attributes. Nearly the whole of the more
conspicuous Vedic deities may be classified as follows:—(1) Agni,
the god of Fire; (2) Sun Gods, or gods of Light; and (3) Storm
Gods, or those associated with Indra.Footnotes17:* Muir, O. S. T., v. 45.
18:* Muir, O. S. T., v. 46, 47.
18:† Ibid. v. 54.
19:* Muir, O. S. T., v. 49.
19:† Ibid. v. 54.
19:‡ Ibid. v. 56.
20:* Muir, O. S. T., v. 49.
20:† Page 10.
CHAPTER V. AGNI.
Agni, the god of Fire, is one of the most prominent of the deities
of the Vedas. With the single exception of Indra, more hymns are
addressed to him than to any other deity. Professor Williams gives
the following spirited description of Agni:—
"Bright, seven-rayed god, how manifold thy shapes
Revealed to us thy votaries: now we see thee
With body all of gold; and radiant hair
Flaming from three terrific heads, and mouths,
Whose burning jaws and teeth devour all things.
Now with a thousand glowing horns, and now
Flashing thy lustre from a thousand eyes,
Thou’rt borne towards us in a golden chariot,
Impelled by winds, and drawn by ruddy steeds,
Marking thy car's destructive course with blackness."
Various accounts are given of the origin of Agni. He is said to be
a son of Dyaus and Prithivi; he is called the son of Brahmā, and is
then named Abhimāni; and he is reckoned amongst the children of
Kasyapa and Aditi, and hence one of the Ādityas. In the later
writings he is described as a son of Angiras, king of the Pitris
(fathers of mankind), and the authorship of several hymns is
ascribed to him. In pictures he is represented as a red man, having
three legs and seven arms, dark eyes, eyebrows and hair. He rides
on a ram, wears a poita (Brāhmanical thread), and a garland of
fruit. Flames of fire issue from his mouth, and seven streams of
glory radiate from his body. The following passage, for every
sentence of which Dr. Muir * quotes a text from the Vedas, gives a
good idea of the character and functions of this deity in the Vedic
Age.
Agni is an immortal who has taken up his abode with mortals as
their guest. He is the domestic priest who rises before the dawn,
and who concentrates in his own person and exercises in a higher
sense all the various sacrificial offices which the Indian ritual
assigns to a number of different human functionaries. He is a sage,
the divinest among the sages, immediately acquainted with all the
forms of worship; the wise director, the successful accomplisher,
and the protector of all ceremonies, who enables men to serve the
gods in a correct and acceptable manner in cases where they could
not do this with their own unaided skill. He is a swift messenger,
moving between heaven and earth, commissioned both by gods and men
to maintain their mutual communication, to announce to the
immortals the hymns, and to convey to them the oblations of their
worshippers; or to bring them (the immortals) down from the sky to
the place of sacrifice. He accompanies the gods when they visit the
earth, and shares in the reverence and adoration which they
receive. He makes the oblations fragrant; without him the gods
experience no satisfaction.
Agni is the lord, protector, king of men. He is the lord of the
house, dwelling in every abode. He is a guest in every home; he
despises no man, he lives in every family. He is therefore
considered as a mediator between gods and men, and as a witness of
their actions; hence to the present day he is worshipped, and his
blessing sought on all solemn occasions, as at marriage, death,
etc. In these old hymns Agni is spoken of as dwelling in the two
pieces of wood which being rubbed together produce fire; and it is
noticed as a remarkable thing that a living being should spring out
of dry (dead) wood. Strange to say, says the poet, the child, as
soon as born, begins with unnatural voracity to consume his
parents. Wonderful is his growth, seeing that he is born of a
mother who cannot nourish him; but he is nourished by the oblations
of clarified butter which are poured into his mouth, and which he
consumes.
The highest divine functions are ascribed to Agni. Although in some
places he is spoken of as the son of heaven and earth, in others he
is said to have stretched them out; to have formed them, and all
that flies or walks, or stands or moves. He formed the sun, and
adorned the heavens with stars. Men tremble at his mighty deeds,
and his ordinances cannot be resisted. Earth, heaven, and all
things obey his commands. All the gods fear, and do homage to him.
He knows the secrets of mortals, and hears the invocations that are
addressed to him.
The worshippers of Agni prosper, are wealthy, and live long. He
watches with a thousand eyes over the man who brings him food, and
nourishes him with oblations. No mortal enemy can by any wondrous
power gain the mastery over him who sacrifices to this god. He also
confers and is the guardian of immortality. In a funeral hymn, Agni
is asked to warm with his heat the unborn (immortal) part of the
deceased, and in his auspicious form to carry it to the world of
the righteous. He carries men across calamities, as a ship over the
sea. He commands all the riches in earth and heaven; hence he is
invoked for riches, food, deliverance, and in fact all temporal
good. He is also prayed to as the forgiver of sins that may have
been committed through folly. All gods are said to be comprehended
in him; he surrounds them as the circumference of a wheel does the
spokes.
The main characteristics of this deity are taught in the following
verses by Dr. Muir:— *
"Great Agni, though thine essence be but one,
Thy forms are three; as fire thou blazest here,
As lightning flashest in the atmosphere,
In heaven thou flamest as the golden sun
"It was in heaven thou hadst thy primal birth;
By art of sages skilled in sacred lore
Thou wast drawn down to human hearths of yore,
And thou abid’st a denizen of earth.
"Sprung from the mystic pair, * by priestly hands
In wedlock joined, forth flashes Agni bright;
But, oh! ye heavens and earth, I tell you right,
The unnatural child devours the parent brands.
"But Agni is a god; we must not deem
That he can err, or dare to comprehend
His acts, which far our reason's grasp transcend;
He best can judge what deeds a god beseem.
"And yet this orphaned god himself survives:
Although his hapless mother soon expires,
And cannot nurse the babe as babe requires,
Great Agni, wondrous infant, grows and thrives.
"Smoke-bannered Agni, god with crackling voice
And flaming hair, when thou dost pierce the gloom
At early dawn, and all the world illume,
Both heaven and earth and gods and men rejoice.
"In every home thou art a welcome guest,
The household tutelary lord, a son,
A father, mother, brother, all in one,
A friend by whom thy faithful friends are blest.
"A swift-winged messenger, thou tallest down
from heaven to crowd our hearths the race divine,
To taste our food, our hymns to hear, benign,
And all our fondest aspirations crown.
"Thou, Agni, art our priest: divinely wise,
In holy science versed, thy skill detects
The faults that mar our rites, mistakes corrects,
And all our acts completes and sanctifies.
"Thou art the cord that stretches to the skies,
The bridge that scans the chasm, profound and vast,
Dividing earth from heaven, o’er which at last
The good shall safely pass to Paradise.
"But when, great god, thine awful anger glows,
And thou revealest thy destroying force,
All creatures flee before thy furious course,
As hosts are chased by overpowering foes.
"Thou levellest all thou touchest; forests vast
Thou shear’st, like beards which barber's razor shaves.
Thy wind-driven flames roar loud as ocean's waves,
And all thy track is black when thou hast past.
"But thou, great Agni, dost not always wear
That direful form; thou rather lov’st to shine
Upon our hearths, with milder flame benign,
And cheer the homes where thou art nursed with care.
"Yes! thou delightest all those men to bless
Who toil unwearied to supply the food
Which thou so lovest—logs of well-dried wood,
And heaps of butter bring, thy favourite mess.
"Though I no cow possess, and have no store
Of butter, nor an axe fresh wood to cleave,
Thou, gracious god, wilt my poor gift receive:
These few dry sticks I bring—I have no more.
"Preserve us, lord; thy faithful servants save
From all the ills by which our bliss is marred;
Tower like an iron wall our homes to guard,
And all the boons bestow our hearts can crave.
"And when away our brief existence wanes,
When we at length our earthly homes must quit,
And our freed souls to worlds unknown shall flit,
Do thou deal gently with our cold remains.
"And then, thy gracious form assuming, guide
Our unborn part across the dark abyss
Aloft to realms serene of light and bliss,
Where righteous men among the gods abide."
"In a celebrated hymn of the Rig-Veda, attributed to Visishtha,
Indra and the other gods are called upon to destroy the Kravyāds
(the flesh-eaters), or Rākshas, enemies of the gods. Agni himself
is a Kravyād, and as such takes an entirely different character. He
is then represented under a form as hideous as the beings he, in
common with the other gods, is called upon to devour. He sharpens
his two iron tusks, puts his enemies into his mouth, and devours
them. He heats the edges of his shafts, and sends them into the
hearts of the Rākshasas." *
"In the Mahābhārata, Agni is represented as having exhausted his
vigour by devouring too many oblations, and desiring to consume the
whole Khāndava forest, as a means of recruiting his strength. He
was [at first] prevented from doing this by Indra; but having
obtained the assistance of Krishna and Arjuna, he baffled Indra,
and accomplished his object." †
According to the Rāmāyana, in order to assist Vishnu when incarnate
as Rāma, Agni became the father of Nila by a monkey mother; and
according to the "Vishnu Purāna," he married Swāhā, by whom he had
three sons—Pāvaka, Pavamāna, and Suchi.
Agni has many names; those more generally known are the
following:—
Vahni, "He who receives the hom, or burnt sacrifice."
Vītihotra, "He who sanctifies the worshipper."
Dhananjaya, "He who conquers (destroys) riches."
Jivalana, "He who burns."
Dhūmketu, "He whose sign is smoke."
Chhāgaratha, "He who rides on a ram."
Saptajihva, "He who has seven tongues."
Brihaspati and Brahmanaspati are generally regarded as being
identical with Agni. Nearly the same epithets are applied to them,
with this additional one—of presiding over prayer. In some few
hymns they are addressed as separate deities. In "The Religions of
India," M. Barth, regarding these as names of one and the same
deity, thus describes him:—
"Like Agni and Soma, he is born on the altar, and .thence rises
upwards to the gods; like them, he was begotten in space by Heaven
and Earth; like Indra, he wages war with enemies on the earth and
demons in the air; like all three, he resides in the highest
heaven, he generates the gods, and ordains the order of the
universe. Tinder his fiery breath the world was melted and assumed
the form it has, like metal in the mould of the founder. At first
sight it would seem that all this is a late product of abstract
reflection; and it is probable, in fact, from the very form of the
name, that in so far as it is a distinct person, the type is
comparatively modern; in any case, it is peculiarly Indian; but by
its elements it is connected with the most ancient conceptions. As
there is a power in the flame and the libation, so there is in the
formula; and this formula the priest is not the only person to
pronounce, any more than he is the only one to kindle Agni or shed
Soma. There is a prayer in the thunder, and the gods, who know all
things, are not ignorant of the power in the sacramental
expressions. They possess all-potent spells that have remained
hidden from men and are as ancient as the first rites, and it was
by these the world was formed at first, and by which it is
preserved up to the present. It is this omnipresent power of prayer
which Brahmanaspati personifies, and it is not without reason that
he is sometimes confounded with Agni, and especially with Indra. In
reality each separate god and the priest himself become
Brahmanaspati at the moment when they pronounce the mantras which
gave them power over the things of heaven and of earth."Footnotes22:* Muir, O. S. T., v. 119 ff.
24:* Muir, O. S. T., v. 221.
25:* The two pieces of wood from which fire is produced.
27:* Dowson, "Dictionary of Hindu Mythology.''
27:† Ibid. s.v.
CHAPTER VI. SUN OR LIGHT DEITIES.
1. SURYA.
Surya and Savitri are two names by which the Sun is commonly
addressed in the Vedic hymns. Sometimes one name is used
exclusively, sometimes they are used interchangeably, and sometimes
they are used as though they represented quite distinct objects. It
is supposed that Savitri refers to the sun when invisible; whilst
Surya refers to him when he is visible to the worshippers. This at
any rate gives some reason for the two names being employed, though
it may not explain the case satisfactorily in every instance.
Although the hymns in which Surya is addressed are not very
numerous, his worship was most common in the olden time, and has
continued to the present hour. It is to him that the Gayatri, the
most sacred text of the Vedas, is addressed at his rising by every
devout Brāhman. Simple in its phraseology, this short verse is
supposed to exert magical powers. It is as follows:—
"Let us meditate on that excellent glory of the divine
Vivifier;
May he enlighten (or stimulate) our understandings." *
As a specimen of the language employed in some of the later
writings in reference to this verse, read the following few lines
from the Skanda Purāna":—"Nothing in the Vedas is superior to the
Gayatri. No invocation is equal to the Gayatri, as no city is equal
to Kasi (Benares). The Gayatri is the mother of the Vedas, and of
Brāhmans. By repeating it a man is saved. By the power of the
Gayatri the Kshetriya (Warrior caste) Vishvamitra became a
Brāhmarsi (Brāhman saint), and even obtained such power as to be
able to create a new world. What is there indeed that cannot be
effected by the Gayatri? For the Gayatri is Vishnu, Brahmā, and
Siva, and the three Vedas." *
With promise of such blessings, it is not to be wondered at that
the worship of Surya should continue.
The following translation * of hymns from the Rig-Veda gives a fair
specimen of the language used in addresses to Surya
"Behold the rays of Dawn, like heralds, lead on high
The Sun, that men may see the great all-knowing god.
The stars slink off like thieves, in company with Night,
Before the all-seeing eye, whose beams reveal his presence,
Gleaming like brilliant flames, to nation after nation.
With speed, beyond the ken of mortals, thou, O Sun!
Dost ever travel on, conspicuous to all.
Thou dost create the light, and with it dost illume
The universe entire; thou risest in the sight
Of all the race of men, and all the host of heaven.
Light-giving Varuna! thy piercing glance dost scan,
In quick succession, all this stirring, active world,
And penetrateth too the broad ethereal space,
Measuring our days and nights, and spying out all creatures.
Surya with flaming locks, clear-sighted god of day,
Thy seven ruddy mares bear on thy rushing car.
With these, thy self-yoked steeds, seven daughters of thy
chariot
Onward thou dost advance. To thy refulgent orb
Beyond this lower gloom, and upward to the light
Would we ascend, O Sun! thou god among the gods."
Surya, as we have already noticed, is regarded as a son of Aditi;
at other times he is said to be a son of Dyaus. Ushas (the Dawn) is
called his wife, though in another passage he is said to be
produced by the Dawn. Some texts state that he is the Vivifier of
all things; whilst others state that he was formed and made to
shine by Indra, Soma, Agni, and others.
From the character ascribed to Savitri in some hymns, it seems more
natural to regard him as the sun shining in his strength, and Surya
as the sun when rising and setting. Savitri is golden-eyed, *
golden-handed, golden- tongued. He rides in a chariot drawn by
radiant, white-footed steeds. He illuminates the earth; his golden
arms stretched out to bless, infusing energy into all creatures,
reach to the utmost ends of heaven. He is leader and king in
heaven; the other gods follow him, and he it is who gives them
immortality. He is prayed to for deliverance from sin, and to
conduct the souls of the departed to the abode of the
righteous.
In the Purānic Age, Surya sustains quite a different character. He
is there called the son of Kasyapa and Aditi. He is described as a
dark-red man, with three eyes and four arms: in two hands are
water-lilies; with one he is bestowing a blessing, with the other
he is encouraging his worshippers. He sits upon a red lotus, and
rays of glory issue from his body. In addition to the daily worship
that is offered him by Brāhmans in the repetition of the Gayatri,
he is worshipped once a year by the Hindus of all castes, generally
on the first Sunday in the month of Māgh; and in seasons of
sickness it is no uncommon thing for the low-caste Hindus to employ
a Brāhman to repeat verses in his honour, in the hope that thus
propitiated he will effect their recovery.
In the "Vishnu Purāna" † we find the following account of Surya. He
married Sangnā, the daughter of Visvakarma; who, after bearing him
three children, was so oppressed with his brightness and glory that
she was compelled to leave him. Before her departure, she arranged
with Chhāya (Shadow) to take her place. For years Surya did not
notice the change of wife. But one day, in a fit of anger, Chhāya
pronounced a curse upon Yama (Death), a child of Sangnā's, which
immediately took effect. As Surya knew that no mother's curse could
destroy her offspring, he looked into the matter and discovered
that his wife had forsaken him, leaving this other woman in her
place. Through the power of meditation, Surya found Sangnā in a
forest in the form of a mare; and, in order that he might again
enjoy her society, he changed himself into a horse. After a few
years, growing tired of this arrangement, they returned in proper
form to their own dwelling. But in order that his presence might be
bearable to his wife, his father-in-law Visvakarma, who was the
architect of the gods, ground the Sun upon a stone, and by this
means reduced his brightness by one-eighth. The part thus ground
from Surya was not wasted. From it were produced the wonder-working
discus of Vishnu, the trident of Siva, the lance of Kartikeya (the
god of war), and the weapons of Kuvera (the god of riches).
The "Bhavishya Purāna" says, "Because there is none greater than he
(i.e. Surya), nor has been, nor will be, therefore he is celebrated
as the supreme soul in all the Vedas." Again, "That which is the
sun, and thus called light or effulgent power, is adorable, and
must be worshipped by those who dread successive births and deaths,
and who eagerly desire beatitude." In the "Brahmā Purāna" * is a
passage in which the sun is alluded to under twelve names, with
epithets peculiar to each, as though they were twelve distinct
sun-deities:—
"The first form of the sun is Indra, the lord of the gods, and the
destroyer of their enemies; the second, Dhata, the creator of all
things; the third, Parjanya, residing in the clouds, and showering
rain on the earth from its beams; the fourth, Twasta, who dwells in
all corporeal forms; the fifth, Pushan, who gives nutriment to all
beings; the sixth, Aryama, who brings sacrifices to a successful
conclusion; the seventh derives his name from almsgiving, and
delights mendicants with gifts; the eighth is called Vivasvan, who
ensures digestion; the ninth, Vishnu, who constantly manifests
himself for the destruction of the enemies of the gods; the tenth,
Ansuman, who preserves the vital organs in a sound state; the
eleventh, Varuna, who, residing in the waters, vivifies the
universe; and the twelfth, Mitra, who dwells in the orb of the
moon, for the benefit of the three worlds. These are the twelve
splendours of the sun, the supreme spirit, who through them
pervades the universe, and irradiates the inmost souls of
men."
Surya is said to have Aruna (Rosy), the Dawn, the son of Kasyapa
and Kadru, as his charioteer.
According to the Rāmāyana, Sugriva, the king of the monkey host
which assisted Rāma in his great expedition to regain possession of
Vita his wife, was a son of Surya by a monkey. According to the
Mahābhārata, the hero Karna also was the son of this deity; and
when he was in the form of a horse, he became father of the Asvins,
and communicated the white Yajur-Veda.
When speaking of the planets, Surya will be noticed again under the
name of Ravi.
Among the many names and epithets by which this deity is known, the
following are the most common:—
Dinakara, "The Maker of the day."
Bhāskara, "The Creator of light."
Vivaswat, "The Radiant one."
Mihira, "He who waters the earth;" i.e. he draws up the moisture
from the seas so that the clouds are formed.
Grahapati, "The Lord of the stars."
Karmasākshi, "The Witness of (men's) works."
Mārtanda, "A descendant of Mritanda."2. PUSHAN.
Pushan is the name of a sun-god to whom some hymns are exclusively
addressed, and whose praise at other times is sung in connection
with that of Indra and other gods. In these hymns his character is
not very clearly defined. He is said * to behold the entire
universe; is addressed as the guide of travellers, and the
protector of cattle. He is called upon to protect his servants in
battle, and to defend them as of old. He is invoked in the marriage
ceremonial, and asked to take the bride's hand, to lead her away,
and to bless her in her conjugal relations. He is said also to
conduct the spirits of the departed from this world to the next. In
one text he is called "the nourisher," as Vishnu in later times was
called "the preserver." By far the greater number of prayers
addressed to him seem to regard him as the guide and protector of
travellers, both along the ordinary journeys of life and in the
longer journey to the other world; and as he is supposed to be
constantly travelling about, he is said to know the road by which
they have to go.
The following is a specimen of the hymns addressed to Pushan in the
Rig-Veda:—"Conduct us, Pushan, over our road; remove distress, son
of the deliverer; go on before us. Smite away from before us the
destructive and injurious wolf which seeks after us. Drive away
from our path the waylayer, the thief and the robber. Tread with
thy foot upon the burning weapons of that deceitful wretch, whoever
he be. O wonder-working and wise Pushan, we desire that help of
thine wherewith thou didst favour our fathers! O god, who bringest
all blessings, and art distinguished by the golden spear, make
wealth easy of acquisition! Convey us past our opponents; make our
paths easy to travel; gain strength for us here. Lead us over a
country of rich pastures; let no new trouble (beset our) path.
Bestow, satiate, grant, stimulate us; fill our belly. We do not
reproach Pushan, we praise him with hymns; and we seek riches from
the wonder-working god." * "May we, O Pushan! meet with a wise man
who will straightway direct us and say, 'It is this.' May Pushan
follow our kine; may he protect our horses; may he give us food. .
. . Come hither, glowing god, the deliverer, may we meet." †
In the Purānas Pushan occupies a far less exalted position. It
seems almost like a burlesque to see him, who in the Vedas is
reverently approached as the giver of good to his worshippers,
described as being obliged to feed upon gruel, because his teeth
have been knocked out of his mouth. The earliest form of the legend
describing this event is found in the Taittiriya Sanhita. Rudra,
the name by which Siva was then known, not being invited to a great
sacrifice that Daksha, his father-in-law, was celebrating, in his
anger shot an arrow which pierced the sacrificial victim. Pushan
ate his share, and in doing so broke his teeth. In describing
Daksha, ‡ an account of this sacrifice will be given. In the
"Vishnu Purāna" Pushan appears as one of the Ādityas.3. MITRA AND VARUNA.
These deities are most frequently named together in the hymns;
Varuna is often addressed alone, but Mitra very seldom. The idea of
the older commentators was that Mitra represented and ruled over
the day, whilst Varuna was ruler of the night. "Varuna is sometimes
visible to the gaze of his worshippers; he dwells in a house having
a thousand doors, so that he is ever accessible to men. He is said
to have good eyesight, for he knows what goes on in the hearts of
men. He is king of gods and men; is mighty and terrible; none can
resist his authority. He is sovereign ruler of the universe." "It
is he who makes the sun to shine in heaven; the winds that blow are
but his breath; he has hollowed out the channels of the rivers
which flow at his command, and he has made the depths of the sea.
His ordinances are fixed and unassailable; through their operation
the moon walks in brightness, and the stars, which appear in the
nightly sky, vanish in daylight. The birds flying in the air, the
rivers in their sleepless flow, cannot attain a knowledge of his
power and wrath. But he knows the flight of the birds in the sky,
the course of the far travelling wind, the paths of ships on the
ocean, and beholds all the secret things that have been or shall be
done. He witnesses men's truth and falsehood." *
The following is a metrical version of one of the hymns of the
Rig-Veda as given by Dr. Muir:— †
"The mighty lord on high our deeds as if at hand espies;
The gods know all men do, though men would fain their deeds
disguise:
Whoe’er stands, whoe’er moves, or steals from place to place,
Or hides him in his secret cell, the gods his movements
trace.
Wherever two together plot, and deem they are alone,
King Varuna is there, a third, and all their schemes are
known.
This earth is his, to him belong those vast and boundless
skies,
Both seas within him rest, and yet in that small pool he
lies.
Whoever far beyond the sky should think his way to win,
He could not there elude the grasp of Varuna the king.
His spies descending from the skies glide all this world
around;
Their thousand eyes, all scanning, sweep to earth's remotest
bound.
Whate’er exists in heaven and earth, whate’er beyond the
skies,
Before the eye of Varuna the king unfolded lies.
The secret winkings all he counts of every mortal's eyes;
He wields this universal frame as gamester throws his dice.
Those knotted nooses which thou flingst, O god! the bad to
snare,
All liars let them overtake, but all the truthful spare."
Professor Roth says of this hymn, "There is no hymn in the whole
Vedic literature which expresses the divine omniscience in such
forcible terms;" and it would not be easy to find in any literature
many passages to surpass it in this respect.
In other hymns we learn that the affairs of men are under his
control; he is asked to prolong life, to punish transgressors; and
a hope is held out that the righteous shall see him reigning in the
spirit world in conjunction with Yama, the ruler of that region.
Varuna in fact has attributes and functions ascribed to him in the
Vedas, of a higher moral character than any other of the gods, and
therefore men call upon him for pardon and purity. "Release us,"
they say, "from the sins of our fathers, and from those which we
have committed in our own persons." And again, "Be gracious, O
mighty god, be gracious. I have sinned through want of power; be
gracious."
In the hymns addressed to Mitra and Varuna together, almost the
same terms are employed as when Varuna is addressed alone. Both are
spoken of as righteous, and as the promoters of religion. They are
said to avenge sin and falsehood.