Page 138 - Lokmanya Tilak Samagra (khand 2)

~IBHUS AND ~ISHAKAPI 123

Manthin together in ~ig. iii. 32. 2 and ix. 46. 4 ? They seem to
be evident references to the vessels called Shukra and Manthin
used in sacrifices and have been so interpreted by the commen·
tators. But as I have before observed, the vessels in the sacrifice
themselves appear to have derived their names from the heavenly
bodies and deities known at the time. It is generally conceded that
the sacrificial arrangements more or less represent the motions
of the sun • and the chief events of the year. In other words, the
yearly sacrifice is nothing but a symbolical representation or rather
imitation of the sun's yearly course. If so, it is natural to suppose
that some of the sacrificial vessels at least were named after the
Nak~hatras and the planets. In the Taittirtya S8I;lhiti (iii. 1. 6. 3)
the vessels are spoken of as ' the vessels of Shukra ', ' the vessels
of Manthin, ' and so on, which indicates that Shukra and Manthin
were not used as adjectives of the vessels. The only other expla-
nation is to suppose that Shukra, Manthin, Agraya1)a, etc., were
the names of Som'\ juice, and that the vessels used for holding
that juice in its various capacities, were described as the vessels
of Shukra, etc. There is, however, no authority in the sacrificial
literature for holding that Soma really had so many such different
capacities; and I therefore conclude that the mention of Shukra
and Manthin, as applied to vessels in the ~igveda is a clear indi-
cation of t}_le planets being then discovered. There is, however,
in my opinion, a more explicit reference to a planet in the ~ig­
vcda which does not seem to have yet been noticed. In the tenth
Man~ala we have a hymn ( 123) dedicated to Vena which accord-
ing to Yiska denotes a deity of the middle region .. Yaska ( Niru-
kta 10.38) derives the word from ven 'to love', 'to desire, '
.and explains it as denoting as his commentator Durg£chirya says
" loved by all; "t while the hymn itself contains such expressions
as the ·~ son of the sun ", " on the top of rita ", " comes out of
the ocean like a wave, ":1: etc., which have been variously inter-
preted by commentators. But from all these facts I think we have
herein the original Aryan name Venus. The word, or rather the

• See Dr. Haug's Jntr. Alt. Br., p. 46.
t See Mahidhara on Vaj. SaJ!I. 7· 16. Some consider that the
root is Vin and not Vm.
t This reminds one of the tradition' of Aph~odite who, in Greek
mythology, is said to be sprung frcm the foam of the sea.