The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanishads v1.c16.s3.21

v1.c16.s3.21

Pūṣan is a curious and enigmatic figure: he is the subject of eight hymns only, five of them in book vi. He has, like Rudra, braided hair, and a beard. He carries not only a spear, but an awl, and a goad. He differs from other deities in that his chariot is drawn by goats, and that he eats mush, either because he is toothless as the Çatapatha Brāhmaṇa⁵ declares him to be, or, as is much more likely, for some cause unknown to us, in which case the ascription of lack of teeth to the god is due no doubt to transfer from the habits of men.