Page:Atharva-Veda samhita.djvu/225

55 uṣṇih, and bṛhatī, eighty of each, spoken of in AA. i. 4. 3—simply because they are the only such groups that he finds mentioned elsewhere; the number is probably taken indefinitely, as an imposing one.

5. O heaven-and-earth, attend (ā-dīdhī) ye after me; O all ye gods, take ye hold (ā-rabh) after me; O Angirases, Fathers, soma-feasting (somyá), let the doer of abhorrence (apakāmá) meet with (ā-ṛ) evil.

6. Whoso, O Maruts, thinks himself above us, or whoso shall revile our incantation (bráhman) that is being performed—for him let his wrongdoings be burnings (tápus); the sky shall concentrate its heat (sam-tap) upon the bráhman-hater.

7. Seven breaths, eight marrows: them I hew [off] for thee with [my] incantation; thou shalt go to Yama's seat, messengered by Agni, made satisfactory.

8. I set thy track in kindled Jātavedas; let Agni dispose of (? viṣ) the body; let speech go unto breath (? ásu).

The verse is in part obscure; the comm. sets it in connection with one of the details of the Kāuç. ceremony: "I set or throw in the fire the dust from thy track combined with chopped leaves: i.e. I roast it in the roaster; let Agni, through this dust entering thy foot, pervade or burn thy whole body"; he takes ásu as simply equivalent to prāṇa, and explains: sarvendriyavyavahāraçūnyo bhavatu, become incapable of acting for the senses: i.e. become mere undifferentiated breath—which is perhaps the true meaning. ⌊Quite otherwise A. Kaegi—citation in Bloomfield, p. 294.⌋ The Anukr. apparently expects us to resolve ā́ at the beginning into a-ā́. Ppp. has in a ā dadāmi, and for d imaṁ gachatu te vasu.

The last two verses are so discordant in style and content, as well as in meter, with