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

106 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS.
a perpendicular plane, like the wheel of a chariot, or in a
horizontal plane like the potter’s wheel. But the first of these
two motions cannot be predicated of the dawn anywhere on the
surface of the earth. The light of the morning is, everywhere,
confined to the horizon, as described in the Ṛig-Veda, VII, 80, 1,
which speaks of the dawn as “unrolling the two rajasî, which
• border on each other (samante), and revealing all things.” * No
dawn, whether in the frigid, the temperate, or the tropical zone
can, therefore, be seen travelling, like the sun, from east to west,
over the head of the observer in a perpendicular plane. The only
possible wheel-like motion is, therefore, along the horizon, and
this can be witnessed only in regions near the Pole. A dawn in
the temperate or the tropical zone is visible only for a short time
on the eastern horizon, and is swallowed up, in the same place, by
the rays of the rising sun. It is only in the Polar regions that we
see the morning lights revolving along the horizon for some day-
long periods of time, and if the wheel-like motion of the dawn,
mentioned in III, 61, 3, has any meaning at all, we must take it to
refer to the revolving splendours of the dawn in the Arctic re-
gions previously described. The expressions “reaching the ap-
pointed place (niṣh-kṛitam) day by day” (I, 123, 9), and “wending
ever and ever to the same goal” (III, 61, 3) are also ill-suited
to describe the dawn in latitudes below the Arctic circle ;:
but if we take these expressions to refer to the Polar
dawn they become not only intelligible, but peculiarly
appropriate, as such a dawn in its daily circuits must come
to the point from which it started every twenty-four hours.
All these passages taken together, therefore, point only to
one conclusion, and that is that both the Ṛig-Veda and the

• Ṛig. VII, 80, 1,—विवर्तयंती रजसी समंते अविष्कृण्वती भुवनानि
  विश्वा । See Wallis’ Cosmology of the Ṛig-Veda, p. 116.

THE VEDIC DAWNS. 107
Taittirîya Saṁhitâ describe a long aud continuous dawn divided
into thiry dawn-days, or periods of twenty-four hours each, a char-
acteristic found only in the Polar dawn.
There are a number of other passages where the dawn is
spoken of in the plural, especially in the case of matutinal deities,
who are said to follow or come after not a single dawn, but dawns in
the plural, (I, 6, 3; I, 180, 1; V, 76, 1; VII, 9, 1; VII, 63, 3). These
passages have been hitherto understood as describing the ap-
pearance of these deities after the consecutive dawns of the year.
But now a new light is thrown upon them by the conclusion esta-
blished above from the examination of the different passages about
the dawn in the Ṛig-Veda, the Taittirîya and the Atharva Veda
Saṁhitâ. It may, however, be mentioned that I do not mean to
say that in the whole of the Ṛig-Veda not a single reference can
be found to the dawn of the tropical or the temperate zone. The
Veda which mentions a year of 360 days is sure to mention the
evanescent dawn which accompanies these days in regions to the
south of the Arctic circle. A greater part of the description of
the dawn is again of such a character that we can apply it either
to the long Polar dawn, or to the short-lived dawn of the tropics.
Thus both may be said to awaken every living being (I, 92, 9), or
disclose the treasures concealed by darkness (I, 123, 4). Similarly
when dawns of different days are said to depart and come, a new
sister succeeding each day to the sister previously vanished (I, 124, 9),
we my either suppose that the consecutive dawns of different days
are intended, or that a number of day-long dawns, which succeed
one another after every 24 hours at the Pole, were in the mind
of the poet. These passages do not, therefore, in any way affect the
conclusion we have arrived at above, by the consideration of the
special characteristics of the dawns mentioned in the hymns. What

108 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS.
we mean to prove is that Uṣhas, or the Goddess of dawn, the first
appearance of which was so eagerly and anxiously looked to, and
which formed the subject of so many beautiful hymns in the
Vedic literature, is not the evanescent dawn of the tropics, but the
long, continuous and revolving dawn of the pole; and if we have
succeeded in proving this from the passages discussed above, it
matters little if a passage or more are found elsewhere in the
Ṛig-Veda, describing the ordinary tropical dawn. The Vedic
Ṛiṣhis, who sang the present hymns, must have been familiar with
the tropical dawn, if they now and then added a 13th month to
secure the correspondence of the lunar and the solar year. But
the deity of the Dawn was an ancient deity, the attributes of
which had become known to the Ṛiṣhis by orally preserved
traditions, about the primeval home; and the dawn-hymns, as we
now possess them, faithfully describe these characteristics. How
these old characteristics of the Goddess of Dawn were preserved
for centuries is a question to which I shall revert after
examining the whole of the Vedic evidence bearing on the Polar
theory. For the present we may assume that these reminiscences
of the old home were preserved much in the same way as we
have preserved the hymns, accent for accent and letter for letter,
for the last three or four thousand years.
It will be seen from the foregoing discussion that if the dawn-
hymns in the Ṛig-Veda be read and studied in the light of modern
scientific discoveries and with the aid of passages in the Atharva-
Veda and the Taittirîya Saṁhitâ and Brâhmaṇa, they clearly
establish the following results:—
(1) The Ṛig-Vedic dawn was so long that several days
elapsed between the first appearance of light on the
horizon and the sunrise which followed it, (VII, 76, 3,); or,

THE VEDIC DAWNS. 109
as described in II, 28, 9, many dawns appeared one after another
before they ripened into sunrise.
(2) The Dawn was addressed in the plural number not
honorifically, nor as representing the consecutive dawns of the
year, but because it was made up of thirty parts (I, 123, 8;
VI, 59, 6; T. S, IV, 3, 11, 6).
(3) Many dawns lived in the same place, acted harmoniously
and never quarrelled with each other, (IV, 51, 7-9; VII, 76, 5;
A. V. VII, 22, 2).
(4) The thirty parts of the dawn were continuous and insepar-
able, forming 'a closely gathered band,' or 'a group of dawns,'
(I, 152, 4; T. Br. II, 5, 6, 5; A. V. VII, 22, 2).
(5) These thirty dawns, or thirty parts of one dawn
revolved round and round like a wheel, reaching the same goal
every day, each dawn or part following its own destined course,
(I, 123, 8, 9; III, 61, 3; T. S. IV, 3, 11, 6).
These characteristics it is needless to say are possessed only
by the dawn at or near the Pole. The last or the fifth especially
is to be found only in lands very near the North Pole and not
everywhere in the Arctic regions. We may, therefore, safely
conclude that the Vedic Goddess of Dawn is Polar in origin. But
it may be urged that while the Polar dawn lasts from 45 to 60
days, the Vedic dawn is described only as made up of thirty day-
long parts, and that the discrepancy must be accounted for before
we accept the conclusion that the Vedic dawn is Polar in
character. The discrepancy is not, however, a serious one. We
have seen that the duration of the dawn depends upon the powers
of refraction and reflection of the atmosphere; and that these
again vary according to the temperature of the place, or other me-
teorological conditions. It is, therefore, not unlikely that the
duration of the dawn at the Pole, when the climate

110 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS.
there was mild and genial, might be somewhat shorter than what
we may expect it to be at present when the climate is severely
cold. It is more probable, however, that the dawn described
in the Ṛig-Veda is not exactly such a dawn as may be seen by an
observer stationed precisely at the North Pole. As observed pre-
viously, the North Pole is a point, and if men lived near the Pole
in early days, they must have lived somewhat to the south of this
point. Within this tract it is quite possible to have 30 day-long
dawns revolving like a wheel, after the long Arctic night of four
or five months; and, so far as astronomy is concerned, there
is, therefore, nothing improbable in the description of the
dawn found in the Vedic literature. We must also bear in mind
that the Vedic Dawn often tarried longer on the horizon,
and the worshippers asked her not to delay lest the
sun might scorch her like an enemy (V, 79, 9). This shows
that though 30 days was the usual duration of the Dawn it
was sometimes exceeded, and people grew impatient to see the
light of the sun. It was in cases like these, that Indra, the God
who created the dawns and was their friend, was obliged to break
the car of the dawn and bring the sun above the horizon (II, 15, 6;
X, 73, 6).* There are other places in which the same legend
is referred to (IV, 30, 8), and the obscuration of the Dawn by a
thunderstorm is, at present, supposed to be the basis of this myth.
But the explanation, like others of its kind, is on the face of it
unsatisfactory. That a thunderstorm should occur just at the
time of the dawn would be a mere accident, and it is
improbable that it could have been made the basis of a legend.
Again, it is not the obscuration, but the delaying of the Dawn,

• Ṛig. II, 15, 6,—वज्रेणान उषसः सं पिपेष । Ṛig. IV, 30, 8,—
  एतद् घेदुत वीर्य॑मिंद्र चकर्थ पौंस्यम् । स्त्रियं यद्दुह॑णायुवं वधीर्दु हितरं दिवः॥

THE VEDIC DAWNS. III
or its tarrying longer on the horizon than usual, that is referred
to in the legend, and we can better account for it on the Polar
theory, because the duration of dawn, though usually of 30 days,
might have varied at different places according to latitude and
climatic conditions, and Indra's bolt was thus needed to check
these freaks of the Dawn and make way for the rising sun. There
are other legends connected with the Dawn and the matutinal
deities on which the Polar theory throws quite a new light; but
these will be taken up in the chapter on Vedic myths, after the
whole direct evidence in support of the theory is examined.
But if the Vedic dawn is Polar in origin, the ancestors of
the Vedic bards must have witnessed it, not in the Post-Glacial,
but in the Pre-Glacial era; and it may be finally asked why a
reference to this early age is not found in the hymns before us ?
Fortuately the hymns do preserve a few indications of the time
when these long dawns appeared. Thus, in I, 113, 13, we are
told that the Goddess Dawn shone perpetually in former days (purâ)
and here the word purâ does not mean the foregone days of this
kalpa, but rather refers to a by-gone age, or purâ kalpa as in the
passage from the Taittirîya Saṁhita (I, 5, 7, 5), quoted and discussed
in the next chapter. The word prathamâ, in the Taittirîya Saṁhitâ,
IV, 3, 11, 1 and the Taittirîya Brâhmaṇa, II, 5, 6, 5, does not
again mean simply ‘first in order,’ but refers to ‘ancient times,’ as
when Indra’s ‘first’ or ‘oldest’ exploits are mentioned in I, 32, 1, or
when certain practices are said to be ‘first’ or ‘old’ in X, 90, 16.
It is probable that it was this import of the word prathamâ that
led Sâyaṇa to propose that the first dawn, mentioned in the Tait-
tirîya, Saṁhita IV, 3, 11, represented the dawn at the beginning
of the creation. The Vedic poets could not but have been conscious

112 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS.
that the Mantras they used to lay down the dawn-bricks were
inapplicable to the dawn as they saw it, and the Taittirîya
Saṁhitâ (V, 3, 4, 7), which explains the Mantras, clearly states
that this story or the description of the dawns is a tradition of old
times when the Gods perceived the thirty dawns. It is not,
therefore, correct to say that there are no references in the Vedic
hymns to the time when these long dawns were visible. We
shall revert to the point later on, when further evidence on the
subject will be noticed and discussed. The object of the present
chapter was to examine the duration of the Vedic dawn, the
Goddess of the morning, the subject of so many beautiful hymns
in the Rig-Veda, and to show that the deity is invested
with Polar characteristics. The evidence in support of this
view has been fully discussed; and we shall, therefore,
now take up the other Polar and Circum-Polar tests previously
mentioned, and see whether we can find out further evidence
from the Ṛig-Veda to strengthen our conclusions.

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THE VEDIC DAWNS.
VEDIC DAWNS
The sun is about 16° below the horizon ; and
the morning lights will go round and round the
horizon (one round being completed in 24 hours)
in the direction of the arrow-heads, until the
sun appears above the horizontal plane.

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Appendix to Chapter V.
THE THIRTY DAWNS.
The following are the passages from the Taittirîya Samhitâ
referred to on page 98:—
TAITTIRÎYA SAMHITÂ, KÂṆḌA IV, PRAPÂTHAKA 3,
ANUVÂKA, 11.
इयमे॒व सा या प्र॑थ॒मा व्यौच्छ॒दन्त॒रस्यां च॑रति॒ प्रवि॑ष्टा ।
व॒धूर्जजान नव॒गज्जनि॑त्री॒ त्रय॑ एनां महि॒मान॑: सचन्ते ॥ १ ॥
छन्द॑स्वती उ॒षसा॒ पेपि॑शाने समा॒नं योनि॒मनु॑ सञ्चर॑न्ती ।
सूर्य॑पत्नी वि च॑रतः प्रजा॒नती के॒तुं कृ॑ण्वाने अ॒जरे॒ भूरि॑-रेतसा ॥ २ ॥
ऋ॒तस्य॒ पन्था॒मनु॑ ति॒स्र आगु॒स्त्रयो॑ घ॒र्मासो॒ अनु॒ ज्योति॑षाऽगुः ।
प्र॒जामेका॒ रक्ष॒त्यूर्ज॒मेका॑ व्र॒तमेका॑ रक्षति दे॒वयू॒नाम् ॥ ३ ॥
च॒तु॒ष्टो॒मो अ॑भव॒द्या तुरी॑या य॒ज्ञस्य॑ पक्षा॒वृष॑यो॒ भव॑न्ती ।
गाय॒त्रीं त्रि॒ष्टुभं॒ जग॑तीमनु॒ष्टुभं॑ बृ॒हदर्के॒ युञ्जा॑नाः सुव॒राभ॑र॒न्निदम् ॥ ४ ॥
प॒ञ्चभि॑र्धा॒ता विद॑धावि॒दं यत्तासां॒ᳵ स्वसॄ॑रजनयत् पञ्च॑पञ्च ।
तासा॑मृ॒ यन्ति॒ प्रय॑वेण पञ्च॒ नाना॑ रू॒पाणि॒ क्रत॑वो वसा॑नाः ॥ ५ ॥
Verse 1,—This verse, with slight modifications, occurs twice in
the Atharva-Veda Samhitâ (III, 10, 4; VIII, 9, 11). It runs thus:—
इ॒यमे॒व सा या प्र॑थ॒मा व्यौच्छ॒दास्व॑न्त॒रासु॑ चरति॒ प्रवि॑ष्टा ।
म॒हान्तो॑ अस्यां महि॒मानो॑ अ॒न्तर्व॒धूर्जि॑गाय नव॒गज्जनि॑त्री ॥
Verses 2, 3, and 4,—The Atharva-Veda reading (VIII, 9, 12—14)
is slightly different:—
छन्द॑:पक्षे उ॒षसा॒ पेपि॑शाने समा॒नं योनि॒मनु॒ सं च॑रेते ।
सूर्य॑पत्नी॒ सं च॑रतः प्रजा॒नती के॒तुम॑ती' अ॒जरे॒ भूरि॑-रेतसा ॥
ऋ॒तस्य॒ पन्था॒मनु॑ ति॒स्र आगु॒स्त्रयो॑ घ॒र्मा अनु॒ रेत॒ आगु॑: ।
प्र॒जामेका॒ जिन्व॒त्यूर्ज॒मेका॑ रा॒ष्ट्रमेका॑ रक्षति दे॒वयू॒नाम् ॥
अ॒ग्निष्टोमोऽव॑दद्यु॒र्या तुरीयासी॑द्य॒ज्ञस्य॑ पक्षा॒वृष॑यः क॒ल्पय॑न्तः ।
गाय॒त्रीं त्रि॒ष्टुभं॒ जग॑तीमनु॒ष्टुभं॑ बृ॒हदर्के॒ यज॑मानाय॒ स्व॑राभ॒रन्तीम् ॥
8

114 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS.
त्रि॒ꣳ­शत्स्वसा॑र॒ उप॑ यन्ति॒ निष्कृ॒तꣳ समा॒नं के॒तुं प्र॑तिमुञ्च॑मानाः ।
ऋ॒तूंस्त॑न्वते क॒वय॑: प्रजान॒तीर्मध्ये॑छन्दसः॒ परि॑ यन्ति भास्व॑तीः ॥ ६ ॥
ज्योति॑ष्मती॒ प्रति॑ मुञ्चते॒ नभो॒ रात्री॑ दे॒वी सूर्य॑स्य व्र॒तानि॑ ।
वि प॑श्यन्ति प॒शवो॒ जाय॑माना॒ नाना॑रूपा मा॒तुरस्या उपस्थे॑ ॥ ७ ॥
एका॑ष्टका तप॑सा तप्य॑माना ज॒ज्ञान॒ गर्भं॑ महि॒मान॒मिन्द्र॑म् ।
तेन॒ दस्यू॒न् व्य॑सहन्त दे॒वा हन्ताऽसु॑राणामभवच्छची॑भिः ॥ ८ ॥
अना॑नुजामनु॒जां माम॑कर्त स॒त्यं वद॒न्त्यन्वि॑च्छ ए॒तत् ।
भू॒यासं॑मस्य सु॒मतौ यथा॑ यू॒यमन्या वो॑ अ॒न्यामति॒ मा प्र युं॑क्त ॥ ९ ॥
अभू॒न्मम॑ सु॒मतौ वि॒श्ववे॑दा॒ आष्ट॒ प्रति॑ष्ठामवि॒दद्धि गा॒धम् ।
भू॒यासं॑मस्य सु॒मतौ यथा॑ यू॒यमन्या वो॑ अ॒न्यामति॒ मा प्र युं॑क्त ॥ १० ॥
पञ्च॒ व्यु॑ष्टी॒रनु॒ पञ्च॒ दोहा॒ गां प॑ञ्चना॒म्नीमृतवो॒ऽनु पञ्च॑ ।
पञ्च॒ दिश॑: पञ्चद॒शेन॑ कॢ॒प्ताः समा॒नमू॒र्ध्नीर॒भि लो॒कमेक॑म् ॥ ११ ॥
ऋ॒तस्य॒ गर्भ॑: प्रथ॒मा व्यु॑षु॒ष्यपामेका॑ महि॒मानं॑ बिभर्ति ।
सूर्य॑स्यैका॒ चर॑ति॒ निष्कृ॒तेषु॑ घ॒र्मस्यैका॑ सवि॒तैकां नि य॑च्छति ॥ १२ ॥
या प्र॑थ॒मा व्यौच्छ॒त् सा धे॒नुर॑भवद्य॒मे
सा न॑: पय॑स्वती धुक्ष्वोत्त॑रामुत्त॒राꣳ समा॑म् ॥ १३ ॥
शु॒क्रर्ष॑भा॒ नभ॑सा॒ ज्योति॑षा॒ऽऽगा॒द् विश्व॑रूपा श॒बली॑र॒ग्निके॑तुः ।
समा॒नमर्थं॑ स्वप॒स्यमा॑ना बिभ्र॑ती ज॒राम॑जर उ॒ष आगा॑: ॥ १४ ॥
VERSE 8.—This verse is also found in the Atharva. Veda (III, 10
12); but the reading of the second half is as follows:—
तेन॑ दे॒वा व्य॑षहन्त॒ शत्रू॒न् हन्ता दस्यू॑नामभवच्छची॒पति॑: ।
VERSE 11,—Compare A. V. VIII. 9,15. For समा॒नमू॒र्ध्नी: A. V.
reads ता एकमूर्ध्नी: । The rest is the same in both.
VERSE 13,—Compare A. V. III, 10, 1. For या प्रथमा व्यौच्छत्
A. V. reads प्रथमा ह व्युवास । And for धुक्ष्व A. V. has दुहाम् । Com-
pare also Ṛig. IV, 57, 7, where the second line is found as in A. V.

APP. TO CHAP. V—THE THIRTY DAWNS. 115
ऋ॒तूनां पत्नी॑ प्रथ॒मेयमागा॒दह्नां॑ ने॒त्री ज॑नि॒त्री प्र॒जाना॑म् ।
एका॑ स॒ती ब॒हुधोषो॒ व्यु॑च्छ॒स्यजी॑र्णा त्वं ज॑रयसि॒ सर्व॑म॒न्यत् ॥ १५ ॥
TAITTÎRIYA SAMHITÂ KÂNDA V, PRAPÂTHAKA 3,
ANUVÂKA 4, SECTION 7.
न वा इदं दिवा॑ न नक्त॑मासीदव्यावृ॑त्तं ते दे॒वा ए॒ता व्यु॑ष्टीरपश्य॒न् ता
उपा॑दधत॒ ततो॒ वा इदं व्यौ॑च्छ॒द्यस्यै॒ता उप॑धीय॒न्ते व्ये॑वास्मा॑ उच्छ॒त्यथो॒
तम॑ ए॒वाप॑ हते ।
TRANSLATION AND NOTES.
Taitt. Samhitâ IV. 3, 11

1. This, verily, is She that dawned first; (she) moves
   entered into her (i. e. above the horizon). The bride, the
   new-come mother, is born. The three great ones follow her.
2. She that dawned first: evidently meaning the first of a series
   of thirty dawns, mentioned in the following verses. In verse 13 we
   are told that it is the dawn which commences the year. The thirty
   dawns are, therefore, the dawns at the begininng of the year, and the
   first of them is mentioned in the first verse. Sâyaṇa, however, says—
   आदिसृष्टिकाले प्रथमो यः प्रभातकालस्तद्रूपेयम्, meaning that the dawn at the
   beginning of the creation is her intended. But the explanation does not
   suit the context, and Sâyaṇa has himself given different explanations
   afterwards.
   Entered into her; according to Sâyaṇa asyâm ( into her )
   means "into the earth;" compare Ṛig. III, 61, 7, where the sun, the
   speeder of the dawns, is said to have 'entered into the mighty earth
   and heaven.' According to A. V. reading the meaning would be 'en-
   tered into the other (dawns)," shewing that the first dawn is a member
   of a larger group.
   The three great ones: Sûrya, Vâyu and Agni according to Sâyaṇa.
   The three typical deities or Devatâs mentioned by Yâska (VII, 5) are
   Agni, Vâyu or Indra, and Sûrya. In Ṛig VII, 33, 7, the three Ghar-
   mas (fires) are said to attend the dawn, (trayo Gharmâsa ushasam
   sachante); and in VII, 78, 3, the dawns are said to have created Sûrya,
   Yajña (Sacrifice) and Agni. Also compare A. V. IX, 1, 8, and Bloom-
   field's note thereon in S. B. E. Series, Vol. XLII, p. 590. Though the
   three may be variously named, the reference is evidently to the rise
   of the sun and the commencement of sacrifices or the kindling of
   sacrificial fires after the first dawn, (Cf. Ṛig. I, 113, 9).

116 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS.
2. Possessed of songs, decorating ( themselves ), and mov-
ing together in a common abode, the Two Dawns, the ( two )
wives of the sun, unwasting, rich in seed, move about displaying
their banner and knowing well (their way).
3. The Three Maidens have come along the path of Ṛita ;
the three fires ( Gharmas ) with light, have followed. One (of
these Maidens) protects the progeny, one the vigour, and one
the ordinance of the pious.
4. That, which (was) the Fourth, acting as Ṛiṣhis, the
2. Posseessed of songs : Sâyaṇa thus interprets chchandas-vati ;
but the Pet. Lex. translates the word by ' lovely.' I have followed
Sâyaṇa because the A. V. reading chchandas-pakshe, 'having chchandas
for the two wings,' supports Sâyaṇa's meaning. That the morning
atmosphere resounded with the recitation of hymns and songs may be
seen, amongst others, from Ṛig. III, 61, 1 and 6. The phrase madye-
chchandasaḥ, in verse 6 below, denotes the same idea. But the word
chchandas may perhaps be understood to mean ' shine ' in all these
places ; Cf. Ṛig. VIII, 7, 36, where the phrase, chchando na
sûro archishâ is translated by Max Muller to mean " like the shine
by the splendour of the sun," (See S. B. E. Series, Vol. XXXII,
pp. 393, 399.)
Decorating, moving together in the same place, wives of the sun,
un-wasting &c : These and others are the usual epithets of the Dawn
found in the Ṛig-Veda, Cf. Ṛig I, 92, 4 ; VII, 76, 5 ; IV, 5, 13 ; I,
113, 13.
The Two Dawns : Ushasâ does not here mean Ushâsâ-naktâ or
' Day and Night,' as supposed by Mr. Griffith, but denotes two dawns
as such, the third, the fourth &c. being mentioned in the following
verses. Sâyaṇa says द्वे उषसौ, एका सृष्टिकालीना ' प्रथमा' इतिपूर्वमंत्रोक्ता, अपरा
प्रतिदिनसंचारिणी, meaning that the first dawn is the dawn which appeared
at the beginning of the creation and the second the diurnal one, as
we see it. But Sâyaṇa had to abandon this explanation later on. The
couple of Dawns obviously includes the first Dawn mentioned in the
first verse, which, with its successor, now forms a couple. Since groups
of two, three, five or thirty dawns are mentioned as moving together,
they cannot be the dawns of consecutive days, that is, separated by
sunlight, as with us in the tropical or the temperate zone.
3. The Three Maidens : the number of Dawns is now increased to
three ; but Sâyaṇa gives no explanation of the number.
4. The Fourth : Sâyaṇa now says यद्यप्येकैव उषा तथापि जगद्रक्षणाय
यौगैश्वर्यादनेकशरीरस्वीकारे सति बहव उषसो भवन्ति, meaning that the single
Deity of Dawn appears as many different dawns through yogic powers !

APP. TO CHAP. V—THE THIRTY DAWNS. 117
two wings of the sacrifice, has become the four-fold Stoma
(Chatu-shṭoma). Using Gâyatrî, Trishṭup, Jagatî, Anushṭup
the great song, they brought this light.
5. The creator did it with the Five, that he created
five-and-five sisters to them (each). Their five courses (kratavaḥ),
assuming various forms, move on in combination (prayaveṇa).
6. The Thirty Sisters, bearing the same banner, move on
to the appointed place (nish-kṛitam). They, the wise, create
the seasons. Refulgent, knowing (their way), they go round
(pari yanti) amidst songs (madye-chchandasaḥ).
Acting as Ṛishis...four-fold Stoma: The group of four Dawns
appears to be here compared to the Chatu-shṭoma or the four-fold
song. (For a description of the four-fold Stoma see Ait. Br. III, 42,
Haug’s Trans. p. 237). Gâyatrî &c. are the metres used. The light
brought on by the Dawns is the reward of this Stoma. Sâyaṇa inter-
prets suvas to mean ‘heaven,’ but compare Ṛig. III, 61, 4, where the
adjective, svar janantî, ‘creating light,’ is applied to the Dawn.
5. Did it with the Five: after the number of Dawns was in-
creased to five, the creation proceeded by fives; compare verse 11
below.
Their five courses: I construe tâsâṁ pañcha kratavaḥ prayaveṇa
yanti. Sâyaṇa understands kratavaḥ to mean sacrificial rites perform-
ed on the appearance of the dawn; but compare Ṛig. I, 123, 8, which
says “The blameless Dawns (plu.) go round thirty yojanas, each her
own kratu (destined course),” (supra p. 103). Kratavaḥ in the pre-
sent verse must be similarly interpreted.
In combination: We have thirty Dawns divided into five groups
of six each; compare Taitt. Br. II, 5, 6, 5, quoted above (p. 100),
which says tâ devyaḥ kurvate pañcha rûpâ, “the Goddesses (Dawns)
make five forms.” Five groups of thirty Dawns, each group having
its own destined course, are here described; but as each group is made
of six Dawns, the five courses are again said to assume different forms,
meaning that the members of each group have again their own courses
within the larger course chalked out for the group.
6. Thirty Sisters: Sâyaṇa, in his commentary on the preceding
verse says पञ्चसंख्याका ज्येष्ठा उषसः तासां स्वसारः पञ्चविंशतिसंख्याका इत्ये-
कस्मिन् मासि प्रतिपदादिरूपास्त्रिंशदुषसः संपद्यन्ते, meaning that the thirty Dawns
mentioned are the thirty dawns of a month. But Sâyaṇa does not ex-
plain why one month out of twelve, or only 30 out of 360 dawns should
be thus selected. The explanation is again unsuited to the context,.

118 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS.
7. Through the sky, the illumined Goddess of Night
accepts the ordinances of the sun. The cattle, of various forms,
(begin to) look up as they rise on the lap of the mother.
8. The Ekâshṭakâ, glowing with holy fervour (tapas),
gave birth to a child, the great Indra. Through him the
(See supra p. 101, and T. S. V, 3, 4, 7, quoted below.) The Dawns are
called sisters also in the Ṛig-veda, (Cf. I, 124, 8 and 9).
Appointed place: nish-kṛitam, (Nir. XII, 7), used in reference to
the course of the Dawns also in Ṛig. I, 123, 9. It is appropriate only
if the Dawns returned to the same point in their daily rounds, (See
supra p. 106).
Go round amidst-songs: pari yanti, 'go round' is also the phrase
used in Ṛig. I, 123, 8. Madye-chchandasaḥ is interpreted by Sâyaṇa
to mean "about the sun, which is always surrounded by songs." But
we need not go so far, for madye-chchandasaḥ may be more simply
taken to mean 'amidst-songs,' that are usually sung at the dawn, (Ṛig.
VII, 80, 1).
7. Through the sky: I take nabhas as an accusative of space.
Sâyaṇa appears to take it as an adjective equivalent to nabhasthasya
and qualifying sûryasya. In either case the meaning is the same, viz.,
that the night was gradually changing into day-light.
The cattle: morning rays or splendours usually spoken of as cows.
In Ṛig. I, 92, 12, the Dawn is described as spreading cattle (pashûn)
before her; and in I, 124, 5, we are told that she fills the lap of both
parents, heaven and earth. I construe, with Sâyaṇa, nânâ-rûpa
pashavaḥ vi pashyanti, taking vi pashyanti intransitively, and nânâ-
rûpa as an adjective. The same phrase is found used in reference to a
woman's children in the Atharva-Veda, XIV, 2, 25. For the intran-
sitive use of vi pashyanti, See Ṛig. X, 125, 4.
8. The Ekâshṭakâ: The birth of Indra is evidently the birth of
the sun after the expiry of thirty dawns. Sâyaṇa, quoting Âpastamba
Gṛihya Sûtra (VIII, 21, 10), interprets Ekâshṭakâ to mean the 8th
day of the dark half of the month of Mâgha (January-February); and in
the Taittirîya Saṁhitâ, VII, 4, 8, quoted and explained by me in Chap-
ter III of Orion, it seems to have same meaning, (See Orion p. 44 ff;
Ekâshṭakâ was the first day, or the consort, of the Year, when the sun
turned towards the north from the winter solstice; and the commencement
of all annual sattras is, therefore, directed to be made on the Ekâshṭakâ
day. This meaning was, however, settled when the vernal equinox had
receded from the asterism of Mṛiga (Orion) to that of the Kṛittikâs
(Pleiades). But in earlier days Ekâshṭakâ seems to have meant the last of
the dawns which preceded the rise of the sun after the long darkness, and

APP. TO CHAP. V—THE THIRTY DAWNS. 119
Gods have subdued their enemies; by his powers (he) has
become the slayer of the Asuras.
9. You have made a companion (lit. the after-born) for
me, who was (before) without a companion. Truth-teller (as
thou art), I desire this, that I may have his good will, just as
you do not transgress each the other.
10. The All-knowing has my good will, has got-a hold
(on it), has secured a place (therein). May I have his good will
just as you do not transgress each the other.
11. Five milkings answer to the five dawns; the five
seasons to the five-named cow. The five sky-regions, made by
thus commenced the year, which began with the period of sunshine. he
word eka in Ekâshṭakâ perhaps denotes the first month, the lastdawn
probably falling on the 8th day of the first lunar month of the year.
A companion for me : that is, Indra or the sun, whose birth is
mentioned in the previous verse ; and the poet now prays that his new
friend, the after-born follower or companion, should be favourable to
him. It should be noted that the birth of the sun is described after
the lapse of thirty dawns, during which the poet had no companion.
Truth-teller: Sâyaṇa seems to take satyam vadanti as a vocative plural;
but it is not in strict accordance with grammar. In the pada text, it
is evidently a feminine form of nom. sing., and I have translated accord-
ingly, though not without some difficulty. In Ṛig. III, 61, 2, the
dawn is called sûnṛitâ îrayantî which expresses the same idea.
Just as you do not trangress each the other: compare the Ṛig-Veda
VII, 76, 5, where we are told that the Dawns, though collected in the
same place, do not strive against or quarrel with each other.
10. The All-knowing : Sâyaṇa takes vishva-vedâh to mean the
Dawn; but it obviously refers to the companion (anujâm) mentioned in
the preceding verse. The worshipper asks for a reciprocity of good will.
The All-knowing (Indra) has his good will; let him, he prays, have now
the All-knowing's good will. The adjective vishva-vedâh is applied in
the Ṛig-Veda to Indra or Agni several times, Cf. Ṛig. VI, 47, 12; I, 147, 3.
11. Five milkings: Sâyaṇa refers to Taitt. Brâh. II, 2, 9, 6-9,
where darkness, light, the two twilights, and day are said to be the five
milkings (dohâh) of Prajâpati. The idea seems to be that all the five-
fold groups in the creation proceeded from the five-fold dawn-groups.
Five-named Cow: the earth, according to Sâyaṇa, who says that the
earth has, five different names in the five seasons, e. g. pushpa-vatî

120 THE ARCTIC HOME IN THE VEDAS.
the fifteen, have a common head, directed to one world.
12. The first dawn (is) the child of Ṛita, one upholds the
greatness of Waters, one moves in the regions of Sûrya, one
(in those) of Gharma (fire), and Savitṛi rules one.
13. That, which dawned first, has become a cow in Yama's
realm. Rich in milk, may she milk for us each succeeding year.
14. The chief of the bright, the omniform, the brindled,
the fire-bannered has come, with light, in the sky. Working
well towards a common goal, bearing (signs of) old age, (yet) O
unwasting! O Dawn! thou hast come.
15. The wife of the seasons, this first has come, the leader
of days, the mother of children. Though one, O Dawn! thou
shinest manifoldly; though unwasting, thou causest all the rest
to grow old (decay).
(blossomy) in Vasanta ( spring ), tâpa-vatî (heated) in Grîṣhma (Summer),
vṛiṣhṭi-vatî (showery) in Varṣhâ (Rains), jala-prasâda-vatî ( clear-
watered) in Sharad (Autumn), and shaitya-vatî (cold) in Hemanta-Shishira
(Winter). The seasons are taken as five by combining Hemanta and
Shishira into one.
The fifteen: The fifteen-fold Stoma, called pañcha-dasha, ( See
Haug's Trans. Ait. Br. p. 238).
13. Each succeeding year: This shows that the dawn here de-
scribed is the first dawn of the year. In Ṛig. I, 33, 10, light (cows)
is said to be milked from darkness.
14. Working well towards a common goal: compare Ṛig. III, 61,
3, where, the Dawn "wending to one and the same goal" is asked to
"turn on like a wheel."
Bearing (signs of) old age: I construe jarâm bibhratî and yet
ajare. Sâyaṇa takes svapasya-mânâ (working well) as an independent
adjective; and connects bibhratî with artham, and jarâm with agâḥ.
The meaning would then be "Working well, having a common end, O
unwasting Dawn! thou hast reached old age." But it does not make
any appreciable change in the general sense of the verse.
15. Though one...shinest manyfoldly shows that only one con-
tinuous dawn, though made up of many parts, is described in this hymn.
Leader of days, mother of children—the epithets ahnâm netrî
and gavâm mâtâ are also found used in the Ṛig-Veda, VII, 77, 2.

APP. TO CHAP. V—THE THIRTY DAWNS. 121
Taitt. Saṁhitâ V, 3, 4, 7.
It was un-distinguished,* neither day nor night. The Gods
perceived these dawn-bricks (for the laying of which the 15
verses given above are to be used). They laid them. Then it
. shone forth†. Therefore for whom these are laid, it shines forth
to him, destroys (his) darkness.
REMARKS.
It has been previously mentioned that the fifteen verses,
quoted above, are used or recited as Mantras at the time of
laying down, certain emblematical bricks, called Vyushṭi-ishṭakâs,
or dawn-bricks, on the sacrificial altar. But as the Mantras, or
verses, used for sacrificial purposes are often taken from different
Vedic hymns, these verses are likely to be regarded as unconnec-
ted with each other. The account of the thirty dawns, contained
therein, however, shews that these verses must have originally
formed an entire or one homogeneous hymn. Again if the Mantras
had been selected from different hymns, one for each dawn-
brick, there would naturally be 16 verses in all, as 16 dawn-
bricks are to be laid on the altar. The very fact, that the Anuvâka
contains only 15 verses (leaving the sacrificer to select the 16th
from elsewhere), therefore, further supports the same view. It is
true that some of these verses are found in the Atharva-Veda, either
detached or in connection with other subjects. But that does
not prevent us from treating the passage in the Taittirîya Saṁhitâ,
* It was undistinguished : This paragraph, which is found later
on in the Saṁhitâ, explains how the dawn-bricks came to be laid with
the fifteen verses given above. The portions of the Taittirîya
Saṁhitâ, which contain such explanations are called Brâhmaṇa.
† Then it shone forth : This shews that all the thirty Dawns were
understood to have preceded the rise of the sun. I have already quoted
(supra p. 100) a passage from Taitt. Brâh. (II, 5, 6, 5), which says
. that these dawns were continuous and unseparated.