History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c95.206

v7.c95.206

Deussen (in Ph. Up p. 318) argues that in the Ṛg verse (X 88. 15) the two ways are really to be understood as day and night and he translates that verse as 'I have heard from my forefathers that there are two ways alike for gods and men', thus giving to the world 'pitṝṇām' the sense of the ablative and holding that 'my' is to be understood before pitṝnām, though not to be understood before the other two words in the genitive in the same verse. The meaning which the Upaniṣad reads in the Ṛg. verse is proper and also the original meaning of the verse. The path called Pitṛyāna²⁵¹⁷ is mentioned in Ṛg. X. 2.7 (Agni knows well the path called pitṛyāna) and Ṛg. X 18 1 runs 'O Death! Follow another path which is your own and different from Devayāna.' These two verses clearly show that the Ṛgvedic sages had arrived at the conception of paths called Devayāna and Pitṛyāna. Therefore, the express mention of two paths in Ṛg. X. 88. 15 in connnection with Pitṛs and Devas should be deemed to refer to Pitṛyāna and Devayāna paths and it is far-fetched to take them as day and night, which are hardly ever referred to in the Ṛgveda as paths. This verse is explained in the Śat. Br. XII. 8. 1. 21²⁵¹⁸ (quoted below) which says that the two ways are those of the gods and pitṛs and the commentary of Dvivedagaṅga explains the first half in the same way. Vide also Śat. Br. I. 9. 3. 1–2 Devayāna is sometimes used in the plural in the Ṛgveda (as in III. 58. 5, VII. 38. 8, VII. 76. 2, X. 51. 5, X. 98. 11). In Ṛg X. 15. 8 Yama is said to enjoy offerings along with the ancient forefathers of the sage and in X. 154. 4 Yama is requested to be united with ancient pitṛs, righteous and full of austerities. The Śat. Br. (XIII. 8 1. 5) states that the door to the world of the Fathers is in the southwest, while Northeast is the direction of Gods and men (I. 2. 5. 17 and XII. 4. 2. 15). The Atharvaveda (XV. 12. 5.) mentions both Pitṛyāna and Devayāna paths. Soma, rain, food, *retas* (semen) may be described as watery, but the question is how the first *āhuti* 'śraddhā' (faith) can be described as an āhuti offered in Agni (viz. the yonder world) by the Gods from which king Soma arises (in Chān. Up V. 4. 2 and Bṛ. Up. VI. 2. 9). This is answered by V. S ²⁵¹⁹ III. 1. 5 and (and at some length) in the Śāṅkarabhāṣya thereon.