Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v1.c3.s15.8

v1.c3.s15.8

1. Chandas in the Rigveda usually denotes a ‘song of praise’ or ‘hymn.’¹ The original sense of the word, as derived from the verb *chand*, ‘to please,’ was probably ‘attractive spell,’ ‘magic hymn,’² which prevailed on the gods. In a very late hymn of the Rigveda,³ as well as in one of the Atharvaveda,⁴ the word is mentioned in the plural (*chandāṃsi*), beside Ṛc (*ṛcaḥ*), Sāman (*sāmāni*), and Yajus, and seems to retain its original meaning, not improbably with reference to the magical subject-matter of the Atharvaveda. From denoting a (metrical) hymn it comes to mean ‘metre’ in a very late verse of the Rigveda,⁵ in which the ‘Gāyatrī, the Triṣṭubh, and all (*sarvā*) the metres (*chandāṃsi*) are mentioned. In the later Saṃhitās three⁶ or seven⁷ metres are enumerated, and in the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa⁸ eight. By the time of the Rigveda Prātiśākhya⁹ the metres were subjected to a detailed examination, though much earlier references are found to the number of syllables in the several metres.¹⁰ Later the word definitely denotes a Vedic text generally, as in the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa.¹¹ 2. Chandas occurs in one passage of the Atharvaveda¹ in the adjectival compound bṛhac-chandas, which is used of a house, and must mean ‘having a large roof.’ Bloomfield² accepts the reading as correct, but Whitney³ considers emendation to Chadis necessary.