१०३

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सायण-भाष्यम्

’ संवत्सरम् ’ इति दशर्चं चतुर्दशं सूक्त वसिष्ठस्यार्षं त्रैष्टुभम् । आद्या त्वनुष्टुप् । मण्डूका देवता । तथा चानुक्रान्तं- संवत्सरं दश पर्जन्यस्तुतिः संहृष्टान्मण्डूकांस्तुष्टावाद्यानुष्टुप् ’ इति । वृष्टिकामेनैतत्सूक्तं जप्यम् ।।

Jamison Brereton

103 (619)
Frogs
Vasiṣṭha Maitrāvaruṇi
10 verses: triṣṭubh, except anuṣṭubh 1
A rain charm, which cleverly matches accurate description of frogs noisily emerging from estivation and mating at the beginning of the rainy season with the behavior of priests at a particular ritual, the Pravargya (see esp. vss. 7–9). Although there has been much debate about whether this hymn satirizes priests by comparing them to frogs or instead is to be taken with deadly seriousness, the truth no doubt lies somewhere in between. The poet obviously took great delight in his skill at match
ing frog behavior with ritual behavior and is unlikely to have been unaware of the potentially comic aspects of the comparison; however, the explosive fertility of the frogs provides a model for similar increase in the human sphere, and therefore the comparison has a serious purpose.
Attention to modern studies of animal behavior allows us to see just how much careful observation of frogs lies behind the depiction of the frogs here, and understanding anuran mating habits deepens our understanding of the poem. (See Jamison 1993.) For example, the frog lying “like a dried-out leather bag” is a coun
terintuitively accurate representation of a frog in estivation: some really do go dor mant and dry up during the dry season, and “adding water” plumps them up and revives them. Once revived, the chorus of frogs begins, the purpose of which is to draw female frogs to the males, who are vocalizing, for mating. This antiphonal chorus is described in verses 2–6. Since the calls of different species are quite dis tinctive (as sketched in vs. 6), the different cries serve to attract conspecific females to the appropriate male. The actual mating posture of frogs is described in verse 4: it involves the male approaching the female from behind and grasping her firmly for as long as it takes—which for some species can be quite awhile (days or weeks).
Another important aspect of the hymn is its comparison of the frog chorus to a pedagogical situation (see esp. vss. 3, 5), in which the father/teacher speaks and the pupils exactly repeat his utterance. This is the clearest and earliest depiction of pedagogy in ancient India and is an example of how our knowledge of everyday life at that time must be obliquely won. The most famous word in this hymn is found in verse 3, the phonologically aberrant akhkhala (underlying the so-called cvi-formation, akhkhalī-[kŕ̥tya]). On the one hand, it would take a very austere interpreter, and a killjoy, not to recognize this as an onomatopoetic imitation of a froggy sound; on the other hand, in the inspired analysis of Paul Thieme (1954), this is, in Middle Indic guise, a representation of the word akṣara “syllable.” What the frog pupils are doing is “making syllables,” that is, repeating the utterance of the teacher verbatim, as sound, not meaning. This is a pedagogical technique that endures to this day in traditional Vedic learning. It is also telling that the word akhkhala is in Middle Indic form, as the everyday language of the R̥gvedic poets, and especially of their wives and children, had most likely already undergone many of the phonological and morphological changes characteristic of Middle Indic, but only found in preserved texts from a much later period. Instruction of the young, as well as most ordinary conversation, was no doubt carried out in this language rather than in the high Vedic Sanskrit of the hymns.
As for the ritual application, the Pravargya rite occurs after a year-long con secration, like that referred to in verse 1 and brought to an end in verses 7–9. The most salient feature of the Pravargya is the offering of the gharma drink, referred to specifically in verses 8–9, the heated milk-offering that boils until it overflows. The last, and most important, implicit comparison between frogs and priests turns on this ritual offering: the prodigious discharge of eggs after anuran mating, especially by many pairs simultaneously, must have reminded the poet of the frothy bubbling overflow of the boiling milk. And since the thousands of eggs released are a tan gible sign of fertility and increase, the frogs are seen as assuring increase for us as well, in the final verse (10), culminating in the “Pressing of Thousands.”
Oldenberg suggests that that this hymn was added at this point in the Maṇḍala, just after the two Parjanya hymns (VII.101–2), because of the presence of Parjanya in the first verse. It is certainly appropriate for the rainy season.

Jamison Brereton Notes

Frogs 134 My interpr. of this hymn relies on the treatment of it in my 1993 article “Natural History Notes on the Rigvedic ‘Frog’ Hymn,” Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute 72-73 (1991-92 [1993]) [=Amṛtamahotsava Volume, for 75th anniversary of the BORI], pp. 137-44. Since this article is not universally accessible, I will reproduce much of the commentary here (without particular ref. to pg. nos. or to the sec. lit. that is excerpted there). The hymn is one of the most popular in the RV and has been constantly tr. – e.g., besides the usual, Macdonell (VRS and Hymns …), Renou (Hymnes spéculatifs), Thieme (Gedichte), Maurer, Doniger.

01 संवत्सरं शशयाना - अनुष्टुप्

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संवत्सरं᳓ शशयाना᳓
ब्राह्मणा᳓ व्रतचारि᳓णः
वा᳓चम् पर्ज᳓न्यजिन्विताम्
प्र᳓ मण्डू᳓का अवादिषुः

02 दिव्या आपो - त्रिष्टुप्

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दिव्या᳓ आ᳓पो अभि᳓ य᳓द् एनम् आ᳓यन्
दृ᳓तिं न᳓ शु᳓ष्कं सरसी᳓ श᳓यानम्
ग᳓वाम् अ᳓ह न᳓ मायु᳓र् वत्सि᳓नीनाम्
मण्डू᳓कानां वग्नु᳓र् अ᳓त्रा स᳓म् एति

03 यदीमेनाँ उशतो - त्रिष्टुप्

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य᳓द् ईम् एनाँ उशतो᳓ अभ्य् अ᳓वर्षीत्
तृष्या᳓वतः प्रावृ᳓षि आ᳓गतायाम्
अख्खलीकृ᳓त्या पित᳓रं न᳓ पुत्रो᳓
अन्यो᳓ अन्य᳓म् उ᳓प व᳓दन्तम् एति

04 अन्यो अन्यमनु - त्रिष्टुप्

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अन्यो᳓ अन्य᳓म् अ᳓नु गृभ्णाति एनोर्
अपा᳓म् प्रसर्गे᳓ य᳓द् अ᳓मन्दिषाताम्
मण्डू᳓को य᳓द् अभि᳓वृष्टः क᳓निष्कन्
पृ᳓श्निः सम्पृङ्क्ते᳓ ह᳓रितेन वा᳓चम्

05 यदेषामन्यो अन्यस्य - त्रिष्टुप्

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य᳓द् एषा᳐म् अन्यो᳓ अन्य᳓स्य वा᳓चं
शाक्त᳓स्येव व᳓दति शि᳓क्षमाणः
स᳓र्वं त᳓द् एषां समृ᳓धेव प᳓र्व
य᳓त् सुवा᳓चो व᳓दथना᳓धि अप्सु᳓

06 गोमायुरेको अजमायुरेकः - त्रिष्टुप्

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गो᳓मायुर् ए᳓को अज᳓मायुर् ए᳓कः
पृ᳓श्निर् ए᳓को ह᳓रित ए᳓क एषाम्
समानं᳓ ना᳓म बि᳓भ्रतो वि᳓रूपाः
पुरुत्रा᳓ वा᳓चम् पिपिशुर् व᳓दन्तः

07 ब्राह्मणासो अतिरात्रे - त्रिष्टुप्

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ब्राह्मणा᳓सो अतिरात्रे᳓ न᳓ सो᳓मे
स᳓रो न᳓ पूर्ण᳓म् अभि᳓तो व᳓दन्तः
संवत्सर᳓स्य त᳓द् अ᳓हः प᳓रि ष्ठ
य᳓न् मण्डूकाः प्रावृषी᳓णम् बभू᳓व

08 ब्राह्मणासः सोमिनो - त्रिष्टुप्

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ब्राह्मणा᳓सः सोमि᳓नो वा᳓चम् अक्रत
ब्र᳓ह्म कृण्व᳓न्तः परिवत्सरी᳓णम्
अध्वर्य᳓वो घर्मि᳓णः सिष्विदाना᳓
आवि᳓र् भवन्ति गु᳓हिया न᳓ के᳓ चित्

09 देवहितिं जुगुपुर्द्वादशस्य - त्रिष्टुप्

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देव᳓हितिं जुगुपुर् द्वादश᳓स्य
ऋतुं᳓ न᳓रो न᳓ प्र᳓ मिनन्ति एते᳓
संवत्सरे᳓ प्रावृ᳓षि आ᳓गतायां
तप्ता᳓ घर्मा᳓ अश्नुवते विसर्ग᳓म्

10 गोमायुरदादजमायुरदात्पृश्निरदाद्धरितो नो - त्रिष्टुप्

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गो᳓मायुर् अदाद् अज᳓मायुर् अदात्
पृ᳓श्निर् अदाद् ध᳓रितो नो व᳓सूनि
ग᳓वाम् मण्डू᳓का द᳓दतः शता᳓नि
सहस्रसावे᳓ प्र᳓ तिरन्त आ᳓युः