2023-02-23 18:48:59 by ambuda-bot
This page has not been fully proofread.
THE SŪRYAŚATAKA OF MAYURA
V.L. (a) JHB -ävakṛṣṭām. (b) VJHB svarvahinyaḥ (with lingual
nasal); H sudraram; VJHB janitajavapayāḥ. (c) V nirvydjan täyamāne,
J nirvyājam tāpamane; VHB haritamani (with lingual nasal); K sphita-
phenasmitasrih. (d) JH samayatu (with dental nasal).
166
48
mārgopānte sumeror nuvati kṛtanatāu nākadhāmnām nikāye
vīkṣya vrīḍānatānām pratikuharamukham kimnarīņām mu-
khāni
sūte 'sūyaty api "șajjaḍagati vahatām kamdharārdhāir valad-
bhir
vāhānām vyasyatād vaḥ samam asamaharer heşitam kalmaṣāṇi
While the assemblage of the gods, [gathered] along the road¹ up
Sumeru, is making obeisance and uttering [hymns of] praise,
The horses [of Sürya], catching sight of the faces of the
Kimnara women, who are modestly bowed at the entrance
of every cavern,
Proceed at a slightly slackened pace, with necks half-turned* [to
look at the Kimnaras], although [such action] angers their
driver."
May the simultaneous neighing of these horses of (Sürya), whose
steeds are uneven [in number], take away your sin!
Notes. 1. Lit. 'on the border of the road.' 2. The Kimnaras were
mythical semi-divine beings, described in Hemacandra's Abhidhānacin-
tamani, 194 (ed. by Sivadatta and Parab, in Abhidhana-Sangraha, part 6,
Bombay, 1896), as turamgavadana, 'horse-faced.' So also in Amarakośa,
I. 1. 71. They are frequently mentioned in the Mahabharata, often in con-
nection with Yakşas, Rākşasas, or other semi-divine beings; cf. Sörensen's
Index, s.v. See also Manu, 1. 39, where they are classed with fish, cattle,
men, etc., as products of Brahma's creative power. For other passages
where it is said that Sürya is praised by the Kimnaras, see stanza 36, note
3. Lit. 'proceeding with a slightly torpid gait.' The term sajja-
dagati is best regarded as an adverb; or else, read işajjaḍagativahatām
as a compound. 4. Lit. 'with turning half-necks,' the instrumental being
one of qualification, without governing preposition; cf. Whitney, Skt.
Grammar, 279, and Speijer, Skt. Syntax, 67. 5. The meaning of the
stanza seems to be as follows: The car of Sürya is being driven up the
slope of Meru through the midst of the gods, who offer praise and obla-
tions as it passes; but when the horses attached to the car catch sight of
the horse-faced Kimnara women, they mistake them for other horses, and
2.
V.L. (a) JHB -ävakṛṣṭām. (b) VJHB svarvahinyaḥ (with lingual
nasal); H sudraram; VJHB janitajavapayāḥ. (c) V nirvydjan täyamāne,
J nirvyājam tāpamane; VHB haritamani (with lingual nasal); K sphita-
phenasmitasrih. (d) JH samayatu (with dental nasal).
166
48
mārgopānte sumeror nuvati kṛtanatāu nākadhāmnām nikāye
vīkṣya vrīḍānatānām pratikuharamukham kimnarīņām mu-
khāni
sūte 'sūyaty api "șajjaḍagati vahatām kamdharārdhāir valad-
bhir
vāhānām vyasyatād vaḥ samam asamaharer heşitam kalmaṣāṇi
While the assemblage of the gods, [gathered] along the road¹ up
Sumeru, is making obeisance and uttering [hymns of] praise,
The horses [of Sürya], catching sight of the faces of the
Kimnara women, who are modestly bowed at the entrance
of every cavern,
Proceed at a slightly slackened pace, with necks half-turned* [to
look at the Kimnaras], although [such action] angers their
driver."
May the simultaneous neighing of these horses of (Sürya), whose
steeds are uneven [in number], take away your sin!
Notes. 1. Lit. 'on the border of the road.' 2. The Kimnaras were
mythical semi-divine beings, described in Hemacandra's Abhidhānacin-
tamani, 194 (ed. by Sivadatta and Parab, in Abhidhana-Sangraha, part 6,
Bombay, 1896), as turamgavadana, 'horse-faced.' So also in Amarakośa,
I. 1. 71. They are frequently mentioned in the Mahabharata, often in con-
nection with Yakşas, Rākşasas, or other semi-divine beings; cf. Sörensen's
Index, s.v. See also Manu, 1. 39, where they are classed with fish, cattle,
men, etc., as products of Brahma's creative power. For other passages
where it is said that Sürya is praised by the Kimnaras, see stanza 36, note
3. Lit. 'proceeding with a slightly torpid gait.' The term sajja-
dagati is best regarded as an adverb; or else, read işajjaḍagativahatām
as a compound. 4. Lit. 'with turning half-necks,' the instrumental being
one of qualification, without governing preposition; cf. Whitney, Skt.
Grammar, 279, and Speijer, Skt. Syntax, 67. 5. The meaning of the
stanza seems to be as follows: The car of Sürya is being driven up the
slope of Meru through the midst of the gods, who offer praise and obla-
tions as it passes; but when the horses attached to the car catch sight of
the horse-faced Kimnara women, they mistake them for other horses, and
2.