Two births of vasiShTha

THE TWO BIRTHS OF VASISTHA A FRESH STUDY OF RGVEDA VII 33. 9-141 Gantertācarjasamsmrtyai rasisthasye ‘ha janmanoh | karoti nutanām vjakhyam rāmo vāsısthagotrajah It is suggested that every regular family book (mandala ) of the Rgveda contains what may be called a family-hymn, the main purpose of which is to glorify the progenitor of the family and to celebrate some special attainments and characteristic cxploits of that family as a whole Such family hymds usually occur at the end of the group of hymns relating to Indra, for, it is believed that the peculiar distinction achieved by the family is essentially the result of Indra’s benign favour. The thirty third hymn in the seventh mandala of the Rgveda has, accord 10gly, to be regarded as the family-lıymn of the Vāsiṣṭhas who are traditionally recognised as the authors of that mandala ? The Anukramanı of Katyāyana characterises RV VII 33 as a samstava, which term is explained by the commentator Sad gurusisya as sahastuti In other words, according to Kätyāyana, the hymn contains mutual laudation by Vasistha, the progenitor of the family, and his descendants As the commentator has ela borated, in the first nine stanzas, Vasistha praises his descendants, me 1 For facility of reference, those stanzas have been reproduced at the end of this paper 2 katyayana’s Sarvanukyamapi says saptaman mandalat vasest ho ‘pasyal This is confirmed by Sayana and Sadgurusisya Also cf Arsenukramapi agni nara si to etat saptamant mandala pran sir Dasistho dugo murd, arunayok sutok / It may be addel that agnim narah are the init al words of the first hymn of the seventh book Apart from this scholastic evidence, attention may be drawn to the facts that a majority of the hymns in this book end with the typical refrain of the Vas athas (97) at prila svastıbh 1 sada nah), that the name Vas stha (whether un singular or in plural) occurs in this mandala, as many as 43 times and that the imprint of Vas ṣba’s personally, style, and idcology is quite unmistakable in many of the passages in this mapdala te may berita bola den that was phase iphone in plaas iba’s pers THE TWO BIRTHS OF VASISTHA 99 while, in the last five, the descendants praise their great ancestors According to Saunaka’s Brhaddevatā (V 163 ff ), the hymn is a dialogue-hymn — the Sarianukramanı also alternatively suggests : vasiṣthasja saputrasye ’ndrena 1ā samvadah – or it is merely an Indrasukta, a hymn in praise of Indra Both these views, how ever, seem to be upacceptable Actually the present hymn is a kind of ballad which seeks to glorify Maitrāvarun Vaststha, the progenitor of the Vasistha family, and shows many of the characteristics of a ballad For instance, like a ballad, it is made up partly of direct speech, whereby either the bard himself assumes the roles of the different characters in the story and speaks out their speeches (1 and 4. of Indra, 14 of Agastya) or he rhetorically addresses the person who is being glorified, samely, Maitrāvaruni Vasistha (as in 10 and 11), and partly of narration in the third person The hymn is further characterised by such features as repetition (eg be gingings of the first three quarters of 3, 9 cd and 12 cd), ellipsis (9, 10, 14 ), absence of proper sequence of stanzas, impromptu addition (12 b), and parenthesis (12 a), which are common to oral poetry like ballad + That the central theme of this hymn 15 the glorification of Vasistha is skilfully brought out by the poet by deliberately introducing the word vasistha, whether in singular or in plural and in different cases, in all its stanzas, In this connection, it may be pointed out that, even where the word occurs in plural, it can be understood as referring to the progenitor of the family himself, the plural having been used as a token of respect (ādararthe) 3 GELDNER (Der Rig Veda, Part II, p 211 ) adds A Vási tha as the tpokesman of the whole family proclaims, in the presence of his ancestor, the latter’s glory and indirectly that of his descendants Indra joins in this glori fication and supplements (st 1 4) as it were the parralion by that Vísisha 4 Indeed most of these features may be said to distinguisb Vassthas style generally 5 This Iterary device, which, nadcntally, is rarely met with in the Raredo, also confirms the ballad-character of the hymn 6 The only passage where the plural tasishab u used unequnocally to denote the descendants of Maiträvarudi 13 st 4 (cf vab pilpum in 4a, it 19 (Continued on the next page) 100 EXERCISES IN INDOLOGY This family hymn of the Vāsiṣṭhas can be divided into three clear-cut sections (a) 1-6 Vasistha personally called upon Indra (st 1 abhi pra manduh, the Gopatha-Brāhmaṇa 2 2 13 also says that Vasistha was the only seer who had personally seen Indra sayo va indram pratyaksam na ‘paśyams tam asistha eva pratyaksam apaśyat) and won him over to his own side, that is to say, to the side of the Trtsus and the Bharatas (2), and, through Indra’s favour (3) and Vasistha’s priestcraft (4) prayers (5), and leadership (6) the Trtsu-Bharatas became victorious in the Dasarajña, (b) 78 Vasistha was a master of mystic knowledge and inimitable priestly prowess, and (c) 9-14 the two births of Vasistha It will be easily realised that the sequence of these three sections should properly have been the other way round namely, first, the section dealing with Vasistha’s double birth, secondly, the one eulogising the special attainments of Vasistha, and, finally, the one celebrating the victory in the Daśarajña The story of Vasistha’s birth has, obviously, to be regarded as the core and kernel of this whole hymn For, it is, indeed, the peculiar character of the birth of Vasistha which may be said to distinguish him essentially from the other Vedic seers More over, while the other two topics namely, Vasistha’s priesterait and his positive role in the Dasarajña, have occurred in several other passages in the seventh book, a more or less detailed refe rence to his miraculous birth is to be found only in the present hymn Four things need to be clearly borne in mind before any attempt is made to analyse the section dealing with the birth of Vasistha (9-14) First, the various stages in this story have not been set forth here in their proper sequence It is, therefore, necessary to rearrange many of the quarters (pādas ) (Cont pued from the last page) interesting to notc that, even here the plural trnamn refers to the greal ancestor ) St 1 sccms to be contextually connected with VII 18 21 (cl pra mandih in 33 1 a and pra amamaduh in 18 21 a), and since in the latter passage, Parasara batayitu and Vas atha arc mentioncd, the plural pasistha in 33 id may also be understood as referring to Vas stha and some of his descendants THE TWO DIRTHS OF VASISTHA ! 101 of these six stanzas so as to make them yield a logically consistent account. Secondly, the word vasiṣtha, whether used in singular or in plural in these stanzas, is invariably to be understood as referring to the progenitor of the family of the Vāsiṣṭhas. Thirdly, the various features of ballad-poetry, mentioned above, parti cularly ellipsis and mixing up of third person narration and second person locution are quite conspicuous in this part of the hymn. And lastly. this hyma evidently constitutes a kind of an appendix to the original Samhita - among other things, it does not have the usual refrain - and thus contains many ideas which are reminiscent of a slightly later age. The poet begins by proclaiming (9 ab) that he (te : used ādararthe), that is, Vasistha, alone (11), on account of the light of his heart (hrdayasya praketaih) or inper vision, moves about freely in, that is to say, is quite familiar with abhi saṁ caranti) the thousand-branched mystery sahasravalsam ninyam) that this manifold and multifarious phenomenal world is. The use of the present tense, in this context, is intended to suggest that such knowledge was natural and innate to Vasiṣtba. Since Vasiṣṭha already possessed that knowledge, he did not feel either any curio sity or any enticement in respect of being born in this world and actually experiencing the various vicissitudes of the worldly life or saṁsära. And yet, he did become inclined to take birth in this world, because, as the poet tells us (9 c), he wanted to weave fur ther (vayantah) the garment (paridhn) which Yama had started weaving (yamena tatam ). Yama was, according to the Vedic mythology, the progenitor of the human race. This idea is ex pressed here through the imagery of the starting of the weaving of a garment. Every one is obligated to see that the weaving of this garment, which Yama has initiated, continues uninterrupted ly, lest the buman race itself may otherwise eventually disappear from the face of the earth. It is verily this reasoning which 7. CE. VII. 33. 8 a : szryasyo ‘va vaksatho Jyodir eṣām. 8. To be understood in the desiderative sense. 9. Scc : DANDEKAR, “Yama in the Veda”, Vedic Mythological Tracts, 118-140. 102 EXERCISES IN INDOLOGY underl.es the concept of pier-rna (= debt which one owes to his fathers), which is one of the three major debts that it is incumbent on every one to requite.10 Vasistha thought of taking birth in this world not because he was in any way enamoured of this samsåra - he alreadly had the innate knowledge of all its secrets, good and evil, without having had to get physically involved in it; but there was this obligation of ensuring the uninterrupted conti. nuity of the human race. The pādas 9 ab are usually interpreted as if they referred to Vasistha’s behaviour after his advent in this world. Vasistha is said to have moved about fearlessly within the thousandfold mystery of this world. 11 This is, however, too literal and obviously pointless. Moreover, with such an interpretation, the words hrdaj asya praheraih would lose all their significance. So too would the reference to the weaving further of the garment of the human race. This latter reference actually provides a definite cosmic-ethical motivation for the event of Vasistha’s birth, and undoubtedly elevates, though perhaps indirectly, the character ol Vasistha. The poet seems to have been particular about this point. That is why he repeats that statement once more in 12 cd, where, incidentally, the desiderative sense is clearly brought out (vayisyan). The deliberate use, in 9 ab, of the present tense abhi san caranti, which verb, in view of the phrase hrdayasya praketaih, is necessarily to be understood in a figurative sense, and of the narrative past (upa seduh) in 9 cd, should not be underestimated. The verse-halves, 9 ab and 9 cd, have, therefore, to be syntactically joined to each other with some such words as and yet words which the bard presumably did utter while singing the ballad. It was only with a view to fulfilling his cosmic ethical obligation of promoting the continuity of the human race that Vasistha, as the poet tells us (9 d), approached the celestial nymph (apsarasah: plural ādararthe) with reverence (upa seduh) 10. Cf. Tasttriya-San. VI. 3. 10.5 : jayamano vai brahmanas tribhur fraud dyato brahmacaryepa (subhyo yajñena deocbhyah prajayd patybhyah. 11. Cf, for instance, VELANXAR, Rgpeda Mapdala VII, English Trans lation, p. 86. THE TWO BIRTHS OF VASISTHA 103 due to a mother.12 The päda 12 d confirms this by stating that Vasistha was born of the celestial nymph (apsarasaḥ pari jajñe pasisthah). How did this happen? Once upon a time, Mitra-Varuņa (Mitrāvarunau ) were pre vailed upon by means of salutations (13 a : isitä namobhih) to attend a long Soma-sacrificial session (sattra), which was being performed by Viśve Devāh (mentioned in 11 d). Indeed, they were ioitiated to officiate as priests (jätau) at that saftra. There they happened to see the celestial nymph Urvasi (mentioned in 11 b), who was also present at the satira presumably to participate in the ritual drama connected with the sattra, and, were intensely allured by her superb beauty. They could not control their passion, and, suddenly and simultaneously (13 b: samânam) discharged their fecundating fluid (relah sisicatuh ), which was eventually collected in a jar (kumbhe). The dual of jātau and iṣıtā (in 13 a) leaves no doubt that those two participles have to be connected with Mitrāvaruņā, who have been mentioned in 10b - mitrāı arunā being the only noun in dual in the present context. The phrase satire ha (13 a) is interpreted variously. It is read (against the Samhitāpātha and the Padapātha) as satrā ha; and the phrase satrā ha jātau (= verily, born together ) is then understood as emphasizing the simultaneous birth of Mitra-Varuṇa.13 It will, however, be agreed that the mention of the simultaneous birth of Mitra Varuṇa has no relevance whatsoever to the main theme. More over, changing the reading sattre ha to satrā ha would seem to be quite upwarranted. It is alternatively suggested that one might analyse sattre lia in the Sanhitāpātha as safrā iha (against the Padapātha ): Mitra-Varuṇa arrived (jätau = prāptau) at that place (tha) together (satra). Such a reference too is hardly pertinent. On the other hand, it may be pointed out that, with out the assumption of a satira, it would be very difficult ratio 12. “The poet rouses the curiosity and sustains the interest of his audience by such casual but pregnant statements. 13. The two phrases salrd jalau (13 a) and samanan sificatur ( 13 b) are said to denote some kind of correspondence. 104 EXERCISES IN INDOLOGY Dally to explain the simultaneous presence of Mitra-Varuṇa Viśve Devāh, and Uryası at one and the same place 16 In the present context, the word jātau is used in the technical sense of diksitau (initiated) The Artareya Brāhmaṇa (VII 22 4), for instance, clearly states that one who gets himself initiated is, 10 deed, born again from the sacrifice yajñād u ha vā esa punar jāyale yo dik sate Mitra Varuṇa did not attend that sattra as its dividities It is also obvious that, in that sattra, they were initiated as officiating priests and not as sacrificer ( Yajamāna), for, they are said to have been persuaded with salutations to be present at the sattra and accept the priestly office Attention may be incidentally drawn here to the character of Mitra Varuṇa as divine priests 16 It may also be presumed that the Maitrāvaruna, who is one of the sixteen principal priests of the later Vedic ritual, has something to do with the priestly character of Vedic Mitra Varuṇa For, while the names of most of these sixteen priests are indicative of their specific functions in the ritual, that of the Maitrāyaruna seems to have been directly derived from his divine prototype The suggestion that Mitra Varuṇa were seduced by Urvasi by means of obeisance ([ urvaśyā] namobhih 15ıtā) in attending the sattra is evidently unwarranted it clearly militates against Urvasi’s role in this drama as indicated in 11 b (it would, indeed, appear from 9 d that Urvasi did not take any initiative but had to be induced to mother Vasistha ), against the statement in 13 b (which suggests suddenness of action on the part of Mitra Varuṇa), and also against the usual story-motif prevailing in similar situations in Indian legends It would seem that, when Mitra-Varuṇa happened to have a glimpse of Urvasi, their erotic emotion was roused and they could not control the consequent sudden (as seems to have been implied by the word samānam ) discharge of their semen. In order that that potent fluid should 14 Thc Sarodnul ramon and the Bihaddevald also speak of a sallra 15. Dumezil suggests (Lidéologue in parte des Indo-Europeens) that, from among the threc functions, namely, of priests warriors, and producers, that of the priests is represented in Vedic mythology by Mitra Varuṇa,THE TWO BİRTHS OF VASISTHA VOS not be wasted or should not cause any damage by falling on the ground, it was made to flow into, that is, it was collected in a jar.16 Before proceeding with the further details of the central theme of Vasistha’s birth, the poet tells us ( 13 cd )- almost parenthetically-that, out of that semen (tatah), verily (ha), arose ( ud iyāja) Māna or Agastya from the middle ( madhyāt) of the jar, 17 and that the seer born out of that very semen they call Vasistha (tato jātam rsim āhur vasistham).18 The words fatah madhyāt (13 c) are also interpreted as tasya kumbhasya madhyāt (from the middle of that kumbha) and tataḥ (13 d) as tasmāt kumbhat bahh (outside the kumbha)! But this is rather farfetched and also unnecessary. It is, however, possible to understand tatah (in 13 d) in the sense of thereafter’, for, Vasiṣṭha is traditionally believed to have been born after Agastya and to have accordingly been Agastya’s younger brother,20 Now to revert to the main theme (11 cd ). While the fecun dating fluid of Mitra-Varuṇa was being collected in the jar (13 b), a drop of it fell out. But the sacrificers Vißve Devāh, pre sumably apprehensive of the disaster which that drop might cause if it was allowed to reach the ground, promptly held it fast upon a lotus (drapsaṁ skannam viśye devah puskare adadanta). It was of course by no means easy to tackle with that concentrate of virsle power, but Viśve Devāh were cnabled to do so with the help of the divine, magically potent spell (darvyena brahmana) 16 The Sarudnukramani on RV I, 166 says that it was the jar of the vasalivari water, 17. This explains why Māna, which is only another name of secr Aga stya, 13 also known as Kumbhayoni. 18. This may be regarded as another instance of the bardic device of making a pregnant statement in a more or less casual parenthetical manner and thereby holding the interest of the audience. One may also note the ballad-like ring in 13 d 19 According to the Sardanukramani on RV. I, 166, both Agastya and Vanxha were born out of the semen in the jar, Sadgurusiqya says : tatah kumdhan mahaghasad agastya-basishap ajayelim The Byhaddepata (V. 151-152), on the other hand, states that Vasıfjha was born on the ground (sthala) while Agastya took birth in the jar. 20. Thu tradition is confirmed by 10 d and 14. 14. 106 EXERCISES IN INDOLOGY wbich they commanded 21 And here the bard, rhetorically addressing Vasistha, says In that Viśve Devāh held up that drop of the semen of Mitra-Varuṇa on a lotus, they actually " held you” (na adadanta) 22 It may be added that, in this context, the word två is used proleptically How this was so is explained in 10 ab This passage is ex ceedingly elliptical As has been mentioned above, Vasistha wanted to take birth in this world in order to weave further the web of Yama He now saw the most propitious opportunity to do so Moving away from, that is to say, abandoning his natural essential existence, Vasistha, like a flash of lightning as it were (vidyuto jyotih [ iva), entered into the drop of the semen of Mitra-Varuṇa, which had been held up on a lotus by Viśve Devāh, with a view to taking birth out of that drop The imagery of the flash of lightnjog suggests, on the one hand, the resplendence that constituted the original basic form of Vaṣistha, and, on the other, the spontaneity with which Vasistha decided to avail himself of the unique opportunity for carrying out his cosmic ethical mission Approvingly, Mitra Varuṇa watched Vasistha abandoning (part sam pihånam, in the secondary seose) his natural essential form and entering into the drop of their semen and blessed him When (yad in 10 b) this happeged, an important phase of the great event of Vasistha’s first birth may be said to have been accomplished (10 c) Incidentally it may be pointed out that it is possible to interpret 10 a as (When Mitra Varuṇa saw you) going away from your original lightning ( splendour-) form (vidyutah ab! ) to the mass of light (Jyoth acc ), that is to say, to the drop of semen But, as indicated above, the earlier interpretation would seem to be poetically more apposite It was at this stage that Urvası, the celestial nymph, interve ned. She came to know that Vasistha, having forsaken his subtle essential form, had entered into the drop of the semen of Mitra. 21 Brāhmaṇa dayana is to be syntactically connected not with skannam, but with adadanta (from the root dd to grasp, to hold fast 22 By means of this statement, the bard again rouses the curiosity ol the audience THE TWO BIRTHS OF VASISTHA 107 Varuṇa. She also realised that a female agency, in some form or the other, was necessary in the process of the germination of that seed. Presumably the poet wanted to suggest that Urvasi received some kind of inner reverential appeal from Vasistha himself this might be implied by 9 d: apsarasah upa sedur vasisthāh– and was thereby induced to act as she did. She meditated upon that seed, and this eventually resulted in the birth of Vasıṣtha,23 “ You, o Vasistha “, says the bard addressing him, “are, verily, the child of Mitra-Varuṇa, and at the same time, you, o Brahman, are born from the mind of Urvaśī” (11 ab). The appellation, Brabman, may be taken to have been used here proleptically.** The interpretation of urvaśyāḥ in, 11 b as an ablative form (“born from Urvaśī— from [her] mental power”) is rather odd. Similarly to suggest that urvaśyah may be understood as an object-genitive and may be figuratively connected with manas in the sense of passion’ (’t born out of the passion (of Mitra Varuṇa for Urvası”) is ingenious, but it manifestly misses the main point. The word manas in this context denotes the mental activity on the part of Urvasi. She fixed her mind (abhidhyāna) on the drop of the semen of Mitra-Varuṇa caught up by Viśve Devāh on the lotus, thereby exercising her volition (sanikalpa) that a son be born out of that drop. The birth of Vaṣiṣtha was not the result of any normal physical activity - Vasistha was not yonija - and this fact at once establishes the superhuman cha racter of his birth.25 “This, then “, says the poet, “was your one (first) birth (10 c).20 When Agastya took you ( and introduced you) to the clan (of the Tetsus; cf. St. 6), (there occurred your other 23. It would thus be clear why, in Il cd, the holding up of the drop of the semen (drapsa) on the lotus was regarded as being tantamount to the holding of Vasıfsha himself (fa). Attention has already been drawn to the proleptic use of tua in that context. 44 Sec the sequel 25. This Lind of abnormal birth, parucularly in respect of great persona. lities, is a common motif in the mythologies of the world. 26. GELDNER, Der Rig Veda, Part 2, P 213, joins the words ula ekath rasistha syntactically to 10 d.” This is your (one) birth, and the other) onc, o Vasiffha, (was) when….”. 108 EXERCISES IN INDOLOGY [second] birth )” (10 d ) 27 The Padapātha reads viśah with the accent on the second syllable When it is so accepted, the form silah has to be understood either as ablative singular or genitive singular The passage is, therefore, translated as “When Agastya brought you from the clan (viśah, abl.) (of gods to the clan of men But this is unacceptable, for, there has been no indication whatsoever of Vasistha’s having belonged to the clan of gods It is possible to take visah as accusative plural (of course, ignoring the accent) and translate : “When Agastya brought you over to the Tștsu people (cf St 6)” But, idiomati cally, the accusative would not go quite well with a jabhara Under these circumstances, one would feel inclined to ignore the Pada pātha and read yıse (dat sing 28 Before proceeding to elaborate the second birth of Vasistha the bard proclaims (12 a) presumably with a view to reiterat ing the initial statement made by him in 9 ab, that “ (Vasistha ), being endowed with inner light ( sapraketah), had the full prior knowledge (pravidvan) of both ( ubhayasya) (his births)” It may be noted that the word sapraketah establishes a corres pondence between 12 a and 9 ab, which seem to echo each other This correspondence is further confirmed by the near identity of 9 cd and 12 cd However, here again we have to go against the Samhitāpātha and the Padapatha and read sapraketah instead of sa praketah (which latter would hardly make any sense) One cannot think of interpreting praketah as an adjective, for, if no where occurs in the Rgveda as an adjective Nor would it be natural to read prakete (loc ) and translate it with “in (that is, on account of his inner light" In view of the whole context, there is hardly any doubt that ubhayasya refers to the two births and not, as sometimes suggested, to the two worlds, heaven and earth, or to the two peoples, divine and human The pada 12 b contains some kind of impromptu statement made by the bard, but its sense is not at all clear 27 This pida as elliptical 28 Perhaps as a lesser cul! In none of these cases, however, will it be necessary to change the Sambıtāpatha, ufa ajabhara THE TWO BIRTHS OF VASISTHA 109 Mitra-Varuņa and Urvasi were responsible for bringing Vasistha into this phenomenal world. But mere biological birth was not going to help Vasiṣṭha in the fulfilment of his cosmic ethical mission. It was at best only a necessary precondition. What was now needed was what may be called a social birth or a socio-ethical personality.29 Agastya, the elder brother, is, there fore, said to have presented Vasistha to the clan of the Títsus urging them to receive him as their Purohita.30 Addressing the Trtsus, Agastya says: “Here would Vasiṣṭha come unto you, o Pratrds (14 d); do you receive him with honour, entertaining good will (for him)” (14c). The Pratçds32 are evidently to be identified with the Tįtsus mentioned in st. 6 of this hymn. For one thing, both names are derived from the same root trd. Further, the name Prated would easily remind one of Pratardana who was one of the early kings of the Trtsu-Bharatas.92 What is, however, particularly important for our present pur pose is that, while introducing Vasistha to the Pratsds, Agastya emphasizes the special priestcraft of Vasistha (14 ab). The pâdas 14 ab are variously explained. It is suggested that 14 ab form a part of the narrative, while 14 cd constitute the direct address of Agastya to the Títsus. In that case, bibharti ( narrative present) in 14 a is connected with ā jabhāra in 10 d. and its subject is taken to be Agastya. Agastya, bearing the Soma-crush ing stone (grāvānam bibhrat; grāyan to be understood as the symbol of the Adhvaryu’s office), that is, in his capacity as the Adhvaryu, takes (bibharti) Vasiṣṭha, who is a bearer of Ukthas (that is, a master of the Rgvedic ritual; Hotr) and a bearer of Sāmans (that is, a master of the Sámavedic ritual; Vågāts), to the Trtsus, and announces before them (agre pra vadāti: “Here would Vasistha . etc.”. It must, however, be pointed 29. In a similar context, the Manusmp. II. 147-148 uses the two signi ficant words, sathbhan and jāli, 30 Does this indicate that Agastya was originally the Purohita of the Tfisus, and that, while returiog, le recommended his younger brother Vasisha for that august ofice ? 31. This name occurs but once in the Rgoeda, 32. Cl. Kathaka-Sat, 21, 10; Kausitaki-Up. 3. 1. 110 EXERCISES IN INDOLOGY out that strictly speaking the root hhr has two altogether diffe rent senses in bibhart, and a jabhira There is, again no point in referring to Agastya as the Adhvaryu And, finally, the charac terization of Vasıṣtha as a master of both the Rgicdic and the Sāmavedic rituals is quite unwarranted A far better sense could be derived from st 14, if that whole stanza was regarded as consti tuting the speech of Agastya “(This one, here ) “, says Agastya to the Titsus ( 14 ab), “supports (bibharti) the supporter of Ukthas (the Hot) and the supporter of Sūmans (the Udgült), (and he also supports him who) is the supporter of the Soma crushing stone (the Adhvaryu ) (elliptical, jah) gravanam bibhrat (sarjate tam api bibliariil), and (he alone) may speak with authority in front of all of them (agre pra vadall)” 11 will be clear that this entire description in 14 ab applies aptly to the Brahman Agastya eulogiscs Vasistha as the Brahman par excellence The significance of the appellation brahman prolepti cally used with reference to Vasistha in 11 b may now be properly realised The Brahman generally supervises and maintains in order (bibharti) the activities of the other three principal priests (who are here denoted by means of the symbols of their special functions, namely, Uktha, Saman and graian) It is again the Brahman who has the authority to sanction (pra vadati), as it were, the performance of the various sacrificial rites * We often find, for jostance, that, when the Adhvaryu announces that he would start a particular rits, the Brahman is required to acquiesce before the Adhvaryu actually starts that site Incidentally, in officiating as ahvaryu namely to interpret 1400 the reual as 33 Or agre (san) = being at the forefront of the r tual as it were 34 It would be incorrect to interpret 14 ab as if it referred to Vasistha’s role as the Adhvaryu pamely as This here, bearing the gravan that is officiating as the Adhvaryu supports the Hotr and the Udgate and at the beg aning of a site ( ago) gives out a call pra vad att prais) for act on on the part of the other pr ests The Adhvaryu can hardly be regarded as supporting the Hots and the Udgatp It is also not 1 kely that the phrase pro vadån denotes the pra sa of the Adhvaryu (aha s the ward normally used in such contexts) Nor again 35 Vas stha known for hs adhvaryava Inci dentally it may be ment oned that pra vad in ( makes a sound ) 13 some times connected wth gridan (yah) agre pra vadalt (tan) gr wanar biblural This is manifestly farfetched THE TWO BIRTHS OF VASISTHA 111 view of the comparative lateness of this hymn (to which a reference has already been made ), such specification of the duties of the four principal priests of the Vedic ritual may not be regarded as anachronistic, It is quite understandable that Agastya should have recommended Vasistha to the Pratṣds in such glow ing terms, for, Vasiṣṭha, though a seer of the Rgveda, has been traditionally recognised as a master of Atharvanic practices, and, therefore, as being best qualified to officiate as Brahman and Purobita,35 Rgveda VII. 33. 9-14 tá in ninyám hrdayasya praketaih sahásravaltam abhí sám caranti / yaména tatám paridhim váyanto ‘psarása úpa sedur rásisshāh || 9 // vidyúto jyótih pári samjihānan mitráiárunā zád ápasyatān iva / tát te jánimo ‘ai ‘kam vasiṣthā. ‘gástyo yát nā viśá ajabhára // 10 // utá ‘si maitrāvarunó vasistho Prváśyā brahman mánasó ‘dhi jätaḥ / drapsář skannám bráhmanā daivyena víśve devaḥ páskare två “dadanta // 11 // sá prakerá ubháyasya pravidvant sahasradâng tttt và sảdanah ! yaména tatán paridhim vayisyánn apsarásah pári jajñe vásiṣthah // 12 // sattré ha järấv isilá námoblih kumbhé rétah sisicatuh samānám / 35 Cf. Taittiriya Sam. III, 5.2.1 : tało zasisthapurohitih prajah pragdyanta tasmad vasıfjho brahma karyah prai ‘oa juyals. 112 EXERCISES IN INDOLOGY túto ha mana sirt tayo madhya! sáto jätám éṣını dikur sásiṣthanı // 13 // ukthabhrtam sāmablıçram bibharlı grávānam biblırat prá vadīty ágre/ upai nam ādham sumanas) amāna á 10 gacchali pratrdo vásisthah || 14 || I First published Hernann Cuntert Gedenkschrift, Innsbruck 1979, 425-432 )