Vedic Hymns, Part II (SBE46), by Hermann Oldenberg [1897], at sacred-texts.com

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MANDALA V, HYMN 18.

ASHTAKA IV, ADHYÂYA 1, VARGA 10.

1. May Agni, beloved of many, the guest of the house 1, be praised in the morning, the immortal who delights 2 in all offerings among the mortals.

2 1. To Dvita who by the liberal power of his dexterousness carries away injury 2, this praiser of thine, O immortal, prepares Soma in the due way.

3. I call for your sake Him who flames through long life, with the speech that belongs to the liberal patrons 1 whose chariot moves uninjured, O giver of horses 2;

4. And in whom (dwells) brilliant thought, who guard the hymns of praise in their mouth, (whose) sacrificial grass is spread in the realm of the sun: they have invested themselves with glory.

5. On the liberal patrons who have given me fifty horses for my song of praise 1, bestow brilliant, mighty, high glory, O Agni; on those men (bestow glory) with (valiant) men, O immortal!

NOTES.

The Rishi is Mriktavâhas Dvita Âtreya (see verse 2); the metre is the same.—Verse 1 = SV. I, 85. Verse 5 = TB. II, 7, 5, 2.

Verse 1.

Note 1. Visáh … átithih: cf. above, V, 3, 5.

Note 2. On ran with the accusative, compare Gaedicke, p. 76.

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Verse 2.

Note 1. Compare on this verse Macdonell, Journal Roy. As. Soc., 1893, p. 463 seq.

Note 2. Dvita, who seems to be identified with Agni, is, in the same way as Trita (see Bloomfield, Proceedings Amer. Or. Soc., March, 1894, p. cxix seqq.), supposed to take away human sin and all sorts of mischief and misfortune (cf. VIII, 47, 16. Tritâ´ya ka Dvitâ´ya ka ûshah dushvápnyam vaha). Thus he is invoked here as carrying away mriktá, i. e. injury.

Verse 3.

Note 1. The speech of the priest belongs to the sacrificer who has engaged him.

Note 2. This seems to be Agni, with an evident allusion to the human giver of horses (see verse 5).

Verse 5.

Note 1. Sadhástuti seems to be instrumental. Cf. Lanman, p. 381.