History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v6.c81.23

v6.c81.23

It is now necessary to examine the contention of Prof. Apte that *vrata* means in the Ṛgveda the tracks or routes that the various luminaries trace in the heavens Vratas are spoken of not only in relation to Agni, Indra, Mitra, Soma, Uṣas, Savitṛ and Ādityas but also in relation to Varuṇa (in Ṛg I. 25. 1, III. 54. 18, V. 69 4, VII 83. 9), Bṛhaspati (in II 23.6), Indra and Brahmaṇaspati (II. 24. 12), Aditi (I. 144. 12, VII 87 9), Parjanya (V. 83. 5) and Aśvins (I 183 3) Conceding for a moment that by some stretch of imagination or some linguistic acrobatics one can speak of the vratas of Agni, Ādityas, Mitra, Indra, Savitṛ and Uṣas as referring to the tracks of luminaries in the heavens, the mid regions and on the earth, one should like to know whether Aditi, Aśvins, Varuṇa, Bṛhaspati or Brahmaṇaspati are luminaries and what tracks they were supposed to trace in the heavens or elsewhere. Scholars are not agreed as to the meaning of Aditi or as to the physical or celestial phenomena Varuṇa or the Aśvins were supposed to represent. Aditi is a riddle, being identified with the heaven and the mid regions and also spoken of as the father, mother or the son or as the mother of Dakṣa and also his daughter; vide Ṛg. I. 89. 10, II 27. 1, X 72. 4-5 and Nirukta XI 23 as to Aditi and Ṛg. II 1 11 where Agni is identified with Aditi Long before the times of the Nirukta there was difference on the question of the nature of Asvins, some identifying them with Heaven and Earth, or day and night, or the Sun and the Moon or two meritorious kings (Nirukta XII 1), while some Western scholars hold them to be the Morning and the Evening star or Castor and Pollux The endeavour of interpreters of the Ṛgveda should be to assign such a derivation and meaning to the word vrata as would be appropriate in all cases where the word vrata is brought in relation to some gods. In my opinion the only meanings that can be well construed with all passages in which the vratas of the several gods mentioned above are referred to is ‘commands or ordinances, religious or moral practices or worship or vows’ One does not understand what Prof. Apte means when he remarks at (p. 442) in a tone of ridicule that observing or obeying the ‘ordinances or religious worship of gods’ is a soft job and looking after the paths or the tracks of luminaries is a strenuous one If anything, the reverse of this should be true