वेदों की प्राचीनता एवं काल-निर्णय / ओरायन (लोकमान्य बाल गंगाधर तिलक - खगोलीय वैदिक शोध)

VEDIC MYTHS—THE MATUTINAL DEITIES. 323
(Arapāṁsi)." Omitting the first two words, viz., dasha and pra-
pitve, the second hemistich may, therefore, be rendered, "Thou
hast stolen the wheel of Sûrya and hast destroyed calamities."
We have now to ascertain the meaning of dasha prapitve.
Sâyaṇa takes dasha as equivalent to adashaḥ (lit., bittest,
from daṁsh, to bite), and prapitve to mean "in the battle"
—and translates, "Thou bittest him in the battle." But
this is evidently a forced meaning, and one that does not
harmonise with other passages, where the same legend is describ-
ed. Thus in IV, 16, 12, we are told that Shuṣhṇa was
killed at ahnaḥ prapitve, and the last phrase evidently denotes
the time when Shuṣhṇa was defeated; while in V, 31, 7,
Indra is described as having checked the wiles of Shuṣhṇa
by reaching prapitvam. By the side of the expression dasha
prapitve, we thus have two more passages in the Ṛig-Veda,
referring to the same legend, and in one of which Shuṣhṇa
is said to be killed at the prapitva of the day (ahnaḥ
prapitve), while in the other, the wiles of the demon are said
to be checked by Indra on reaching prapitvam. The three
expressions, dasha prapitve, ahnaḥ prapitve, and Prapitvam yan,
must, therefore, be taken to be synonymous; and whatever
meaning we assign to prapitve, it must be applicable to all
the three cases. The word prapitve is used several times in
the Ṛig-Veda, but scholars are not agreed as to its mean-
ing. Thus Grassmann gives two meanings of prapitva. The
first denoting "advance," and the second "the beginning
of the day." According to him ahnaḥ prapitve means "in
the morning" (IV, 16, 12). But he would render prapitvam
yan simply by "advancing." In VI, 31, 3, he would also
take prapitve as meaning "in the morning." The word
prapitve also occurs in I, 189, 7, and there Prof. Olden-
berg translates it by "at the time of the advancing day,"
and quotes Geldner in support thereof. Sâyaṇa in VIII, 4, 3,
translates âpitve by 'friendship' and prapitve by 'having ac-
quired,' (cf. Nir. III, 20). Under these circumstances it is, I