Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v1.c3.s20.596

v1.c3.s20.596

Niṣka is frequently found in the Rigveda¹ and later² denoting a gold ornament worn on the neck, as is shown by the two epithets *niṣka-kaṇṭha*³ and *niṣka-grīva*,⁴ ‘having a gold ornament on the neck.’ A Niṣka of silver is mentioned in the Pañcaviṃśa Brāhmaṇa.⁵ As early as the Rigveda⁶ traces are seen of the use of Niṣkas as a sort of currency, for a singer celebrates the receipt of a hundred Niṣkas and a hundred steeds: he could hardly require the Niṣkas merely for purposes of personal adornment. Later the use of Niṣkas as currency is quite clear.⁷ Cf. also Kṛṣṇala.