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( 168 ) festivity in peace ; communal festivity before the beginning of war and communal festivity after the victory in war was an important feature of the Samana festival. They were all Yajñas for the primitive Aryans.
'Yoşā' is mentioned together with her ‘Sakhā' in Samana. The bowstring, drawn tight upon the bow, and making way Yoga : Uşa: in battle, repeatedly approaches the ear (of
Urvaşī the warrior), as if embracing its friend (the arrow), and proposing to say something agreeable, as a Yoşā whispers to her Sakhas. The voluptuous Āryans even in battle could derive the strongest stimulus to fight unto death from their Samanic reminiscences of sexual delights. Sāyaṇa wrongly translates "Sakhā'as Pati. It simply means “a male friend' which very well fits in this context. Sāyaṇa translates Samana as battle. Battle was equally a source of joy to the primitive Aryans as it was preceded and followed by masses in merrymakings. Sāyaṇa, at least at one place, corroborates our interpretation. Wilson translates the particular Rc as “As a woman who shows no partiality wins her lovers to her, so Indra confers periods of time on mankind (mark, manuşaḥ, not Janānām); It is Indra who has performed that knowledge-giving achievement, therefore he is renowned ; Indra's gifts are worthy of praise.” Yoşā's conduct was an ideal conduct to the primitive Aryan. She is not to show special favour or isolated love to any one particular individual. She has to show impartial love to all the Gaņamembers congregated together in the Gaņa-Sadana or GaņaHall. Sāyana translates “Samaneva" as "Samānamanaskā Yoşidiva's in the sense of 'woman having similar mindedness for all the lovers' which Wilson translates as above. This reference unambiguously testifies that Samana was an insti. tution of communal festivity where all the males and all the
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