A History of Ancient Sanskrit Literature, so far as it illustrates the Primitive Religion of the Brahmans c10.93

c10.93

In order to prove that the hymns which are now thrown together into one body of sacred poetry, were not the harvest of one single generation of poets, we have only to appeal to the testimony of the poets themselves, who distinguish between ancient and modern hymns. Not only has the tradition of the Brahmans, which is embodied in the Anukramanîs, assigned certain hymns to Rishis, who stand to each other in the relation of father and son, and grandson, but the hymns themselves allude to earlier poets, and events which in some are represented as present, are mentioned in others as belonging to the past. The argument which Dr. Roth¹ has used in order to prove the comparatively modern date of the Atharvana, applies with equal force to some of the hymns of the Rig-veda. Here, also, the names of Purumîlha, Vasishtha, Jamadagni, and others, who are known as the authors of certain hymns, are mentioned in other hymns as sages, who in former times enjoyed the favour of the gods.