________________
184
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
[ JUNE, 1931
%3
This is a significant passage to which attention was first drawn by Tilak. It is in the far northern latitudes that the seven Rishis appear high up in the heavens and form the most prominent constellation visible to the dwellers of the far north.
७) सं पूषनभनस्तिर ब्यही विमुचो नपात् ।
सक्षा देव प्रणम्पुरः। वो नः पूषनवी वृको दुःशेव भादिदेशति । अप स्म पथो जहि ॥ अप स्यं परिपंथिनं मुषोग हुरश्चितं । दूरमधि बुरज ॥ स्वं तस्य इवाविनोऽघसस्थ कस्वचित् । पाभि तिष्ठ तपुषि॥ भासवे दम मंतुमः पधूनवो वृणीमहे । । येन पितृनचोदयः॥ अधा नो विश्वसौभग हिरण्यवाधीमत्तम | धनानि सुपणा कृधि । अति नः सश्चतो नय सुगा नः सपथः कृणु। पृषनिह क्रतुं विदः ॥ भभि सूबवसं नय न नवग्वारो अध्यने ।
पूषनिह क्रतुं विदः ॥ Oh ! Pashan, take us safely (lit. completely) to our destination, destroy the enemies on the way, thou who art the offspring of the clouds. Lead us on our way.
Oh! Pashan, remove from our path our enemies who hurt us, steal our wealth and delight in evil deeds and order us to go along a particular way.
Oh ! Pashan, send these crooked thieves who endanger our journey far away from our path.
Oh ! Pashan, place thy foot on the body of the thief who steals our things openly as well as secretly and who desires to do us ill.
Oh! Pashan, who art wise and handsome, we pray for such pirotection from thee as thou hast vouchsafed to our fathers.
Oh! Pashan, who art extremely wealthy and possesses golden arms, after this our prayer give us plenty of riches.
Oh ! Pashan, take away from our path the enemies that stand in our way. Take us along paths which are easy and delightful. Thou knowest how to protect us on this road.
Oh ! Pashan, lead us to lands full of delightful grass and let there be no new trouble on the way.]
These prayers are full of reminiscences of a time when the Indo-Aryans had to move from place to place in search of fresh pastures through countries beset with dangers, long before they commenced a life of settled cultivation in a fertile valley.
The following passage brings back to us the memory of a time when the Vedic Aryans were living in the upper valley of the Indus where it has a northerly course :
(a) 35"सोदचं सिंधुमरिणान्माहत्या वजापान पसः संपिषष। A अजवसो अपिनीभिर्विाचनृसोमस्य तामद धिकार"।
36 Rigveda, Mandala, II, sakta 15, Rik. 6.
