Upabrmhana and Rgveda Interpretation

Author(s): T G Manikar
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad

Page 38

The Hymn of Mudgala Bharmyaśva (X. 102)
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Mudgalānı as desiring the enjoyment of wealth. 'mithūkstam' is a problem. Sāyana takes it as mīthah kriam asahāyam krtam' and adds 'athayā mithuriti mithyanāma' since there are no horses etc, 'aśvādibhiḥ śünyam kệtam'. Velankar translates imposing' and understands 'mithu' as connected with fraud. Griffith regards the meaning uncertain and renders that works on either side. Geldner understands the word as meaning 'false'. It is possible that the word has some connection with ‘mithuna' 'mithaḥ' mith-ra' pairing or binding is involved rather than with 'mithya or mithu' connected with fraud, For here is no fraud but there is indeed a unique pairing: Mudgala and Mudgalāni, a male warrior and a female driver, a strong bull and the wooden mace, the drughana and finally the all-powerful Indra and the weak, vadhri Mudgala. We have 'vrşabhasya yuñjam' (9) and 'vadhriņā yuja' (12). Hence Indra is to protect boldly' dhțşnuya'.
uta sma vāto vahati vāso asyā adhiratham yadajayat sahasram/ rathirabhūnmudgalani gayistau bhare kstam vyacedindrasena 11 (2)
And the wind made her garment flow (flutter) when she through the chariot won a thousand. In this search of the cows the wife of Mudgala was the chief in the chariot; Indrasenā collected the spoils in the war.
(*vāto vahati vāso asya' is a beautiful description of the female driver. This is obviously due to the speed of the chariot, as Sāyaṇa observes sīghrarathadhāyanajanito vāyuh amśukam calayali'. When a woman moves in some speed this is but natural. In the Mahābhārata Virāta parvan, Goharana 38. 31. we have a situation where Arjuna as Bịhannala, a female drives the chariot of Uttara and in the context we get dirgham venim vidhunyānah sadhu rakte ca vāsasi, vidhūya venim dhāvantam' etc. In the Mịcchakațikam Šūdraka describes Vasantasenā moving about as 'raktāmsukam pavanalolada sam vahanti'. This graphic description therefore cannot with justifcation be taken to suggest the lady to be 'scantily' clad or "quasi-naked' for the agricultural ritual as Dange understands. Whatever is casual is regarded by Dange as the central fact, 'bhare kặtam' is to be contrasted with 'bhare hitam'; uncertain booty collected in war as against the prize announced and fixed for a race, Indrasenā is the proper name of Mudgalāni. Griffith translates 'Indra's dart', the lady being sped swiftly on her way by Indra. Bloomfield understands as 'Indra's wife', a female personification of Indra's forces. As Pargiter has shown Indrasena in the Purāņic geneology is a daughter-in-law of Mudgala. Here the grammatical construction clearly indicates that Mudgalāni and Indrasena are one and the same and word mud galant suggests her relation with Mudgala. Similar help by the wife is to be seen later in the Daśaratha-Kaikeyi episode where she put her hand in place of the axis broken. The cattlelifting occurs in the Mabābhārata where the Kauravas try to take away the cattle-wealth o the Matsya King Virāța. 'adhiratham sahasram gavām' wouid mean a thousand