History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c95.36

v7.c95.36

The Atharvaveda has some hymns on creation. But they are verbose, repetitive and do not possess the depth, philosophy and terse style of the hymns of the Ṛgveda cited above In hymns 7 and 8 of the 10th *kāṇḍa* it puts forward Skambha as the base and as identified with Prajāpati, as the creator and supporter of all worlds and as having all the thirty-three gods in himself; it asks 'by how much did Skambha enter the manifold forms of the highest, lowest and middling type that Prajāpati created; how much is that in which he (Skambha) did not enter'? In Ṛg. IX. 86. 46 Soma made for sacrifice is spoken of as Skambha. Hymn 8 of kāṇḍa X (of Atharvaveda) is styled 'description of Jyeṣṭha-brahma' (the highest or oldest brahma). Two verses from it may be cited 'Obeisance to that *Jyeṣṭha Brahma* that governs all, whether produced or to be produced, and to whom alone heaven pertains. These two, heaven and earth, stand supported by Skambha; all this that has *Ātman*, that breathes and blinks is Skambha Skambha literally means 'support' or 'pillar'. The verbal form '*Skabhnāti*' occurs in Ṛg X. 6. 3 and the word 'Skambha' occurs several times in the Ṛg. but not in the sense of 'creator'. In Atharva X. 8. 2 Skambha is mentioned twice, while in X. 7²⁴⁴⁵ (of 44 verses) it occurs many times. Atharva X. 2 is called Brahmaprakāśana hymn (of 33 verses). Numerous questions are asked in verses one to 19. In verses 20, 22, 24 questions are asked and verses 21, 23, 25 give replies to them. One question and answer may be set out 'By whom was this earth made (or arranged), by whom was the high heaven placed, by whom was the sky placed above and crosswise and in various directions'? 'Brahma made the earth, brahma is the heaven placed high, it is brahma that is the sky placed above, cross-wise and in various directions.' Verse 27 of Atharva X. 8 is the same as Śv. Up. IV. 3 and identifies the creator with young and old, men and women and boy and girl. In Atharva X. 8 several other deities also are mentioned but they are deemed to be comprehended in the Supreme Entity. In Atharva IX. 2 (25 verses) there is apotheosis of Kāma, in the first eighteen verses of which there are prayers to Kāma for vanquishing and driving away enemies, the last quarter of each of the verses 19 to 24 ends 'tasmai te Kāma nama it kṛnomi' (I offer obeisance to you, O Kāma'). These six verses declare that Kāma appeared first, that neither the gods, nor pitṛs nor men reached Kāma who is greater than heaven and earth, waters, Agni, the directions, all beings that blink their eyes, the sea; Vāta, Agni, the Sun and the Moon do not reach Kāma.