Page 430 - Lokmanya Tilak Samagra (khand 2)

VEDIC MYTHS-THE CAPTIVE WATERS 211

as •· unrolling the two regions (rajas£), which border on each other
( samante ), revealing all things." Now the dawn always appears
on the horizon and the two rajas, which it unrolls and which are
said to border on each other, must meet on thi horizon. They
can therefore only represent the lower and the upper celestial
sphere. But Wallis would have us believe that both these r~;asi
are above the earth, and that narrowing down together towards
east and west they meet on the horizon like two arched curves
over one's head ! The artificial character of this explanation is
self-evident, and I see no reason why we should adopt it in pre-
ference to the simple and natural explanation of Zimmer, unless
we start with a preconceived notion that references to the regions
below the earth ought not to be and cannot be found in the ~ig­
Veda. The third passage pointed out by Zimmer is V, 81, 4, which
says ·• 0 Savit~i ! Thou goest round (par£yase) the night, on both
sides ( ubhayataf:l ). " Here Wallis propose to translate par£yase
by 'encompassest '; but par£yase ordinarily means 'goest round,'
and there is no reason why the idea pf motion usually implied by it
should be here abandoned. It will thus be een that the conclusion
of Wallis is based upon the distortion of passages which Zimmer
interprets in a simpler and a more natural way; and that Zimmer's
view is more in accordance with the natural meaning of these texts.
But if an express passage be still needed to prove conclusively that
the region below the earth was known to the Vedic bards, we refer
to VII, 104, 11, where the bard prays for the destruction of his
enemies and says, " Let him ( enemy ) go down below the three
earths ( tisra!J Prithivif:l adhaf:l ). " Here the region below the three
earths is expressly mentioned; and since the enemy is to be
condemned to it, it must be a region of torment and pain like the;
Hades. In X, 152, 4, we read, "One who injures us, let him be sent to
the nether darkness ( adharam tama/:J ), '' and, comparing this with
the last passage, it is evident that the region below the earth was
conceived as dark. In III, 53, 21, we have, " Let him, who hates
us, fall downwards ( adhara!J ), " and in II, 12, 4, the brood of the
Dasyu, whom Indra killed, is said to be "sent to the unknown
nether world ( adharam guhdka!J ). " These passages directly show
that region below the earth was not only known to the Vedic
bards, but was conceived as filled with darkness and made the
scene of Indra's fight with Vritra. It may, however, be alleged
that " below the three earths " may simply mean underneath