Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v2.c4.379

v2.c4.379

Poṭṛ is the name of one of the priests (Ṛtvij) of the sacrificial ritual. Already known to the Rigveda,¹ he is frequently mentioned later in the Brāhmaṇas.² But as Oldenberg³ observes, the Poṭṛ is not in the later literature a priest of any importance, but is practically a mere name. Judging by the derivation of the name from the root pū, ‘purify,’ it would seem that he was properly engaged in the purification of the Soma pavamāna, ‘Soma purifying itself,’ and was perhaps employed to sing hymns to this Soma. Potra⁴ denotes both the office and the Soma vessel of the Poṭṛ.⁵