Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v1.c3.s7.24

v1.c3.s7.24

Eta in the plural (etāḥ) denotes the steeds of the Maruts, being a swift species of deer, which are mentioned several times in the Rigveda,¹ and the skins of which are also said to be worn by the Maruts on their shoulders.² The epithet pṛthu-budhna, once applied to them in the Rigveda,³ and variously interpreted as ‘broad-hoofed,’⁴ ‘broad-chested,’⁵ and ‘broad in the hinder part,’⁶ seems to indicate that they were not gazelles.⁷