Vedic Mythology c8.s2.2

c8.s2.2

The above evidence seems to point to Śuṣṇa having been a demon of drought from the beginning rather than a reminiscence of some historical human foe. This view is supported by the etymological meaning which must be either ‘hisser’ (from the root *śvas*, *śuṣ*) or ‘scorcher’ (from *śuṣ*, ‘to dry’).