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hymns, and the moon, by his own folk-name, is hardly praised except in mechanical conjunction with the sun. The floods of which soma is lord are explained in IX. 86. 2425: "The hawk (or eagle) brought thee from the sky, O drop (Indu[25]), ... seven milkstreams sing to the yellow one as he purifies himself with the wave in the sieve of sheep's wool. The active strong ones have sent forth the wise seer in the lap of the waters." If one wishes to clear his mind in respect of what the Hindu attributes to the divine drink (expressly drink, and not moon), let him read IX. 104, where he will find that "the twice powerful god-rejoicing intoxicating drink" finds goods, finds a path for his friends, puts away every harmful spirit and every devouring spirit, averts the false godless one and all oppression; and read also ix. 21. 1-4: "These soma drops for Indra flow rejoicing, maddening, light-(or heaven-) finding, averting attackers, finding desirable things for the presser, making life for the singer. Like waves the drops flow into one vessel, playing as they will. These soma drops, let out like steeds (attached) to a car, as they purify themselves, attain all desirable things." According to IX. 97. 41^2 and ib. 37. 4 (and other like passages, too lightly explained, p. 387, by Hillebrandt), it is soma that "produced the light in the sun" and "makes the sun rise," statements incompatible with the lunar) Soma's functions, but quite in accordance with the magic power which the poets attribute to the divine drink. Soma is 'king over treasure.' Soma is brought by the eagle that all may "see light" (IX. 48. 3-4). He traverses the sky, and guards order-but not necessarily is he here the moon, for soma, the drink, as a "galloping steed," "a brilliant steer," a "stream of pressed soma," "a dear sweet," "a helper of gods," is here poured forth; after him "flow great water-floods"; and he "purifies himself in the sieve, he the supporter, holder of the sky"; he "shines with the sun," "roars," and "looks like Mitra"; being here both "the intoxicating draught," and at the same time "the giver of kine, giver of men, giver of horses, giver of strength, the soul of sacrifice" (IX. 2).
Soma is even older than the Vedic Indra as slayer of Vritra and snakes. Several IndoIranian epithets survive (of soma and haoma, respectively), and among those of Iran is the title 'Vritra-slayer,' applied to haoma, the others being 'strong' and 'heaven-winning,' just as in the Veda[26]. All three of them are contained in one of the most lunar-like of the hymns to Soma, which, for this reason, and because it is one of the few to this deity