Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v1.c3.s12.248

v1.c3.s12.248

Guggulu, ‘bdellium,’ is referred to in one passage of the Atharvaveda¹ as produced by the Sindhu² and by the sea. The latter source presumably alludes, as Zimmer³ assumes, to sea-borne trade, bdellium being the gum of a tree, not a product of the sea. It is, however, possible that in this passage some other substance may be meant. The word in this form also occurs elsewhere in the Atharvaveda⁴ and later;⁵ it is often⁶ mentioned in the older form of Gulgulu, between which and Guggulu the manuscripts constantly vary.