०७२

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सायण-भाष्यम्

‘नि काव्या ’ इति दशर्चमष्टमं सूक्तं त्रैष्टुभमाग्नेयं पराशरस्यार्षम् । अनुक्रान्तं च नि काव्या’ इति । प्रातरनुवाकाश्विनशस्त्रयोरुक्तो विनियोगः ॥

Jamison Brereton

72
Agni
Parāśara Śāktya
10 verses: triṣṭubh
Another hymn in which the overall structure and the relationships among the parts are unclear. The dominant myth here is the gods’ search for and recov ery of Agni, who had gone missing, and his (re)establishment as the ritual fire. This myth is treated in verses 2, 4, and 6 at least, and verses 3 and 5 are prob ably related as well. However, sorting out the narrative(s) is made difficult by the lack of overt subjects (as Geldner already pointed out) and by the number of injunctive verb forms, as well as some perfects that can have either presential or preterital value. These grammatical ambiguities allow much of the hymn to be

applicable simultaneously to the mythic past of the gods and the ritual present of men. Other mythic references include the dog Saramā’s discovery and release of the penned-in cattle (vs. 8), thematically parallel to the discovery and recovery of Agni, and a puzzling reference to Aditi and her sons the Ādityas and the suckling of a bird (vs. 9).
What provides some unity to the hymn is less these unfinished scraps of mythical narrative than a focus on the vocabulary of knowledge and discovery: forms of the root vid “find, acquire, possess” and the homonymous root vid “know, discern,” as well as the semantically related roots jñā “know, recognize” and cit “discern,” are found, often multiply, in almost every verse. The hymn can thus be read as a sort of meta-reflection on the process of learning.
Another important feature of the hymn is the preoccupation with names and bodies, rather like the later category of “name-and-form” (nāma-rūpa). Proferes argues that verse 5 contains an early reflection of the Tānūnaptra rite, in which the sacrificer and the officiating priests at a soma sacrifice enter into a pact to be loyal to each other. The charter myth for this vow involves the gods all depositing their bodies in a common place (the sun, or Indra standing for the sun) to produce a common defense against external enemies. (See Proferes 2007: 59 for I.72.5 and 51–61 for the rite in general and its mythological background.) We agree with his analysis, but in fact think that the theme is more prominent in the hymn than in just that one verse. The central verses seem to suggest that the gods’ quest for Agni and their discovery of him and his name (not overtly present, but formulai cally suggested) in verse 2 and their ritual service to him in verse 3 allow them to acquire their own ritually worthy names and to make their own bodies also worthy of ritual service in verse 4. This leads to the mutual exchange and mutual possession of bodies in the Tānūnaptra verse proper (5). Thus rendered ritually worthy, they find within Agni the intricate and secret “tracks” of the ritual itself (vs. 6ab), a discovery that allows them to protect their own (6c), and that also leads to the beneficial actions of Agni in the world of men (6d, 7). More benefits follow in verses 8–9, though the connection of these to what precedes is admit tedly hazy. The “deposit” in a central entity, here Agni, that is the heart of the Tānūnaptra pact seems to reappear in verse 10, in a context both cosmogonic (10b) and apparently ritual (10cd).
The depiction of Agni in this hymn as the locus for the joint deposit of the bod ies of the gods in the Tānūnaptra myth is the mirror and complementary image of Agni Vaiśvānara, the fire “belonging to all men,” around which all the allied human clans rally, in the earlier hymns of Parāśara Śāktya’s Agni cycle (esp. I.68–70).

Jamison Brereton Notes

Agni

01 नि काव्या - त्रिष्टुप्

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नि᳓ का᳓व्या+++(नि)+++ वेध᳓सः श᳓श्वतस् कर्+++(=कर्ता)+++
ह᳓स्ते द᳓धानो न᳓र्या+++(=नृहितानि)+++ पुरू᳓णि ।
अग्नि᳓र् भुवद् रयि-प᳓ती रयीणां᳓
सत्रा᳓+++(=सहैव)+++ चक्राणो᳓+++(=कुर्वाणो)+++ अमृ᳓तानि वि᳓श्वा ॥

02 अस्मे वत्सम् - त्रिष्टुप्

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अस्मे᳓+++(=अस्माकं [वृषभराशौ वर्तित्वाद्])+++ वत्सं᳓ प᳓रि ष᳓न्तं+++(=वर्तमानं)+++ न᳓ विन्दन्न्+++(=अलभन्त)+++
इच्छ᳓न्तो वि᳓श्वे अमृ᳓ता अ᳓मूराः+++(=अमूढा [मरुतः])+++ ।
श्रमयु᳓वः+++(=श्रान्ताः)+++ पदव्यो᳙+++(=पादगा)+++ धियं-धा᳓स्
तस्थुः᳓ पदे᳓ परमे᳓ चा᳓र्व् अग्नेः᳓ ॥

03 तिस्रो यदग्ने - त्रिष्टुप्

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तिस्रो᳓ य᳓द् अग्ने शर᳓दस् त्वा᳓म् इ᳓च्
छु᳓चिं घृते᳓न शु᳓चयः सपर्या᳓न् ।
ना᳓मानि चिद् दधिरे यज्ञि᳓यान्य्+++(=यज्ञोचितानि)+++
अ᳓सूदयन्त +++(स्व-प्राचीन-)+++तन्व᳓१ः᳓ सु᳓जाताः ॥
+++(नामानि च तैत्तिरीयके समाम्नायन्ते - “ईदृक् चान्याद्यक् च तादृङ् च प्रतिदृङ् च मितश्च संमितश्च सभराः” इद्यादीनि । एतैश्चाग्नि-चयने मारुताः सप्त-कपाला हूयन्ते । अग्रे ऽग्नेर् ३*२१ यज्ञ-पदान्य् अपि वक्ष्यति। तेषाम् भरणार्थम् अपेक्षितस् स्याद् त्रिवर्षात्मकः कालः।)+++

04 आ रोदसी - त्रिष्टुप्

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आ᳓ रो᳓दसी बृहती᳓ +++(द्यावापृथिवी)+++ वे᳓विदानाः+++(→जाज्ञायमानाः)+++
प्र᳓ रुद्रि᳓या +++(मरुतो [ऽग्निं कृत्तिकासु])+++ जभ्रिरे+++(=जह्रिरे)+++ यज्ञि᳓यासः+++(=यज्ञार्हाः)+++ ।
विद᳓न्+++(→पश्यन्)+++ म᳓र्तो +++(विपरीत)+++नेम᳓+++(=भाग)+++-धिता+++(=धारको)+++ चिकित्वा᳓न्
अग्निं᳓ पदे᳓ परमे᳓ +++(खे कृत्तिकासु)+++ तस्थिवां᳓सम् ॥ +++(सप्त वै मरुतः सप्त च कृत्तिकास् तच्छ्रियः।)+++
+++(अत्र सायणाभिप्रायो भिन्नः।)+++

05 सञ्जानाना उप - त्रिष्टुप्

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सं-जानाना᳓ उ᳓प सीदन्न् अभि-ज्ञु᳓+++(=अभिजानु)+++
प᳓त्नीवन्तो नमस्यं᳙ +++(अ)+++नमस्यन् ।
+++(तपोभिः)+++ रिरिक्वां᳓सस्+++(=रिक्तीभूतास्)+++ तन्वः᳙ कृण्वत स्वाः᳓
स᳓खा स᳓ख्युर् +++(ते)+++ नि-मि᳓षि+++(=दर्शन-स्पर्धायां [नियमान्])+++ र᳓क्षमाणाः ॥

06 त्रिः सप्त - त्रिष्टुप्

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त्रिः᳓ सप्त᳓ +++(= ७ पाकयज्ञाः, ७ हविर्यज्ञाः, ७ सोमयज्ञाः, ७ च कृत्तिकाः)+++ य᳓द् गु᳓ह्यानि त्वे᳓+++(=त्वयि)+++ इ᳓त्
पदा᳓ ऽविदन् नि᳓हिता यज्ञि᳓यासः+++(=यज्ञार्हा)+++ ।
ते᳓भी रक्षन्ते अमृ᳓तं +++(त्वां)+++ सजो᳓षाः
पशू᳓ञ् च स्थातॄ᳓ञ् चर᳓थं च पाहि ॥

07 विद्वाँ अग्ने - त्रिष्टुप्

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विद्वाँ᳓ अग्ने वयु᳓नानि+++(=ज्ञानानि)+++ +++(खे देव-)+++क्षितीनां᳓
व्य् आनुष᳓क्+++(=सन्ततम्)+++ छुरु᳓धो+++(=शोकरुधो [वनस्पतीन्/ खे सोमं‌‌])+++ जीव᳓से+++(=जीवितुं)+++ धाः ।
अन्तर् विद्वाँ᳓ अ᳓ध्वनो+++(=अध्वानान्)+++ देव-या᳓नान्
अ᳓तन्द्रो दूतो᳓ अभवो हविर्वा᳓ट् ॥

08 स्वाध्यो दिव - त्रिष्टुप्

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+++(खे कृत्तिकाः)+++ स्व्-आ-ध्यो᳙ दिव᳓ आ᳓ सप्त᳓ यह्वी᳓+++(=महत्यः)+++
+++(विषुव-स्थानत्वाद्)+++ रायो᳓ दु᳓रो+++(=द्वाराणि)+++ व्य् ऋ᳙तज्ञा᳓ अजानन् ।
विद᳓द् ग᳓व्यं सर᳓मा +++(canis major)+++ दृळ्ह᳓म् ऊर्वं᳓+++(=सङ्ग्रहं [वृषभराशाव् वृषाकपिसूक्तेऽप्य् उक्तम्])+++
ये᳓ना नु᳓ कं+++(← पादपूरणे)+++ मा᳓नुषी भो᳓जते वि᳓ट् +++(विषुवस्था)+++ ॥
+++(अग्निर् हि विषुवस्थानम् प्रसिद्धम्।)+++

09 आ ये - त्रिष्टुप्

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आ᳓ ये᳓ वि᳓श्वा स्व्-अपत्या᳓नि तस्थुः᳓
कृण्वाना᳓सो अमृतत्वा᳓य +++(यागैर्)+++ गातु᳓म्+++(=मार्गम्)+++ ।
मह्ना᳓ मह᳓द्भिः +++(पुत्रैः)+++ पृथिवी᳓ वि᳓ तस्थे
माता᳓ पुत्रै᳓र् +++(आदित्यैश् च)+++ अ᳓दितिर् धा᳓यसे+++(=धरणाय)+++ वेः᳓+++(=अन्नस्य??)+++ ॥

10 अधि श्रियम् - त्रिष्टुप्

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अ᳓धि श्रि᳓यं नि᳓ दधुश् चा᳓रुम् अस्मिन्
दिवो᳓ य᳓द् अक्षी᳓ अमृ᳓ता अ᳓कृण्वन्
अ᳓ध क्षरन्ति सि᳓न्धवो न᳓ सृष्टाः᳓
प्र᳓ नी᳓चीर् अग्ने अ᳓रुषीर् अजानन्