Upabrmhana and Rgveda Interpretation

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

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The Hymn of Agastya and Lopamudra (1. 179)
remote indication, if this verse and the preceeding one were to have any magical powe:. Sāyaṇa taking the 'antevāsi' to be the speaker adds for the word 'agastyah' mad guruh which indeed is not necessary. It is Agastya himself who is the speaker here. One may however take the verse as a report by the poet like the second line of the fourth verse.)
There is thus much work of art to be seen in this hymn. Lopamudrā is no courtezan nor a symbol of anything else. The hymn to me at least represents earlier effort to combine dharma and kama and an argument for normal life. The complaint for old age, the very strenuous character of the life of denial and restraint, the womanly nature in longing for a fulfillment of all her desires, the frank admission of the weakness of flesh and of the man being but a creature of desires - all these are very cleverly delineated and the hymn is to be taken as an admirable piece of composition on the part of a Rgvedic poet. Its connection with 'vegetation magic' or 'a culture drama' or a 'mine' or 'magic for atonement seems to be a farfetched artificial one, and theories asserting such a relation do not carry much conviction. It is true that the different versions about the speakers and the hymn create an atmosphere of obscurity about the hymn; but if the account furnished by the Mahabharata is taken into consideration, many difficulties appear to be solved. The Nirukta and the commentary of Durga, the Brhaddevatā and the Mahābhārata throw welcome light on this hymn and I believe it to be much safer to walk in this light than to grope in sheer darkness. I know full well that against my way of reading the opening verses as being spoken to Lopamudra on the strength of the reading of the Brbaddevatā 'lopamudrām pašasvinīm' would be brought forth the alternative reading 'lopamudrā yasasvini' noted in some manuscripts. My only answer is I prefer to follow the reading accepted by Macdonell. To me the hymn is a sublime one and the struggle as shown between Agastya and Kāma with its essentially human conclusion has a charm of its own. The Buddha later fought a similar battle as indicated in 'nadasya rud hataḥ kama ajatah' (4) and the Buddha defeated Kāma or Māra. Agastya is too human and truly Vedic when he asserts 'pulukāmah hi martyah', a realisation which is the very basis of Vedic social and spiritual organisation.
So far I have been discussing the 'u pabrmhana' of the Rgveda by the Iti-- hāsa and the Purānas. I would like to take up for my discussion now an interesting case from the Itihasa, the Mahabharata, where it is the Rgveda that comes to our help in elucidating a difficult passage. I am referring to the praise of the Asvinau, ašvin-stuti by Upamanyu, a student of the sage Dhaumya. (Adiparvan. Pausya. II). The passage in question has been included in the Critical Edition of the Epic, hence, there could be no doubt about its antiquity and authenticity. Upamanyu has eaten the leaves