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vedic scripture, buddha
vedic scripture, buddha

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1. Introduction
In this paper I would like to join the discussion about transmigration in Vedic times. It is generally assumed that the ideas of transmigration were introduced by the kßatriyas, as attested in the Upanißads (BΩhadåra∫yaka, Chåndogya, Kaußœtaki) 1. The BΩhadåra∫yaka Upanißad and Chåndogya Upanißad present the ‘knowledge of five fires’ (pañcågnividyå) together with the division into the pitΩyåna and devayåna, paths taken by the dead according to their past deeds. The model of five fires is used to explain how the world works also in the Jaiminœya Bråhma∫a (1.45-46, 49-50). This Bråhma∫a too presents two possible ways the dead can take, depending on their knowledge. A lot of scholars maintain that no belief in transmigration had existed before the Upanißads 2. However, Killingley presented evi1. BΩhadåra∫yaka Upanißad 6.1.9 ff and Chåndogya Upanißad 5.4 ff and Kaußœtaki Upanißad 1.2. 2. Apart from classic approaches such as Keith A. B. The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanishads. 2 Vols. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass 1989 (First Edition 1925); Frauwallner E. Historia filozofii indyjskiej. 2 Vols. Warszawa: PWN, 1990 (Polish translation of Geschichte der indischen Philosophie, Otto Mueller Verlag, Salzburg 1953); see Butzenberg K. “Ancient Indian Conception on Man’s Destiny After Death. The Beginnings and the Early Development of the Doctrine of Transmigration. I”. Berliner Indologische Studien. 9/10, 1996, pp. 55-118, partly refuted by Bodewitz H. W. “Yonder world in the Atharvaveda”. Indo-Iranian Journal, 42, 2, 1999, pp. 107-120.


Indologica Taurinensia, 34 (2008)

dence that shows that the topics of the pañcågnividyå and deva-/ pitΩyåna have their antecedents in the earlier Brahminic texts 3. He claims that theories of karma and rebirth are made up of several ideas already present in Vedic thought. Also Tull shows that the conceptual framework of the Upanißadic idea of transmigration had been established already in the Bråhma∫as with their idea of sacrifice during which the sacrificer symbolically experiences death and rebirth during his journey to heaven 4. Oberlies goes even further back and tries to reconstruct a possible Àgvedic belief according to which the dead came back to earth to be reborn in their progeny 5. We can put this belief into broader conceptual frames as it is very close to the beliefs characteristic of ‘small scale’ or ‘tribal’ societies. Obeyesekere maintains that the belief in rebirth after death is quite widespread and varies in different cultures 6. Contrary to the mature Upanißadic form of the rebirth eschatology, the rebirth eschatologies characteristic of small scale societies are not linked to ethical causation. Obeyesekere believes that the kßatriyas in the Upanißads who expound their views about transmigration implicitly are in discussion with traditions that ‘seem to believe that after death one can be reborn in the human world or in a subhuman one’ 7. Instead of inventing a new theory, the kßatriyas incorporate views that are already known to them. In order to explain this, Obeyesekere claims that
‘because rebirth eschatologies are empirically widespread and perhaps prior to karmic eschatologies, India might well have had similar (rebirth) eschatologies before it developed its karmic ones. (…) After all, India was nothing but a conglomerate of small-scale societies (villages and
3. Killingley D., “The paths of the dead and the five fires”. In: P. Connolly, S. Hamilton (Eds.). Indian Insights: Buddhism, Brahmanism and Bhakti. Papers from the Spalding Symposium on Indian Religions. London: Luzac Oriental, 1997, pp 1-20. 4. Tull H. W. The Vedic Origins of Karma. Cosmos as Man in Ancient Indian Myth and Ritual. New York: State University of New York Press, 1989 5. Oberlies T. Die Religion des Àgveda. Erster Teil. Das Religiöse System des Àgveda. Wien: Gerold, Delihi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1988, pp. 478-483. 6. Obeyesekere G. Imagining Karma. Ethical transformation in Amerindian, Buddhist, and Greek Rebirth. Berkeley/Los Angeles/London: University of California Press, 2002 7. Obeyesekere G., Imagining…, p. 13.

p.. concerning both the interpretation of some Àgvedic stanzas and the development of the concept of rebirth. Then Obeyesekere creates – what he calls ‘a theoretical possible model’ to explain the problem. 11. p. 8. Like many other scholars. but also on the consistency of the whole reconstruction and its power to explain many unclear issues. I would like to show that there are at least three stanzas in the Àgveda (RV) from which the belief in rebirth can be reconstructed. Obeyesekere G. Theories of rebirth of small scale societies and the RV Obeyesekere describes the rebirth eschatology of small scale societies in the following way: ‘The fundamental idea of reincarnation is that at death an ancestor or close kin is reborn in the human world whether or not there has been an intermediate sojourn in another sphere of existence or afterworld (…) The most obvious place [of rebirth] is in one’s own family or group’ 11. 14. ‘It is true – he says – that there is no way to trace the history of the theory of rebirth backward. 18 9. Imagining….Joanna Jurewicz. 15-16. but there is a methodological way out by examining how it might have originated’ 9. p. 2. The argument is based not only on the philological data. Imagining…. I would like to thank Richard Gombrich for paying my attention to this book. . Obeyesekere G. I may add that I had managed to find the evidence supporting my argument before I became acquainted with Obeyesekere’s book 10. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 185 tribes) prior to the period of Buddhism. 10.. My paper will support this model with textual evidence.. Obeyesekere G. which was also the period of its second urban transformation’ 8. Imagining…. Obeyesekere maintains that we lack evidence for such a belief before the Upanißads but he thinks that the preserved texts do not necessarily represent the whole religious situation in ancient India.

Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. I accept the principles of cognitive linguistics. . In my opinion this interpretation is too narrow.186 Indologica Taurinensia. 1981. pp 117-137. attests the belief in rebirth characteristic of small scale societies is RV 10. The word meaning includes ‘not only designating meaning (dictionary meaning). O’Flaherty W. Ya. Der Rig-Veda. An anthology. which is brilliantly constructed.16. Pamie ˛ tnik Literacki 81. 1999. in my opinion. while the more abstract and general senses are derived from them 15. Thus understood. “Prototypy i konotacje.5) The stanza expresses a request to the cremation fire to do – the question is what? The form pitΩ ´ bhyas in pada a can be either dative or ablative. Cambridge. In reconstructing the meaning of the Àgvedic words. 13.16. Geldner K. F. the elements of which are internally bounded and rationally motivated 14. the meaning is a complex structure. From etymology to pragmatics.A. All translators take it as dative and interpret this verse as a request to Agni to send the dead person again to his fathers 12. i. Bartmin ´ ski J. 9-27. 12. but also features which are referred to as cultural connotation. Moskva: Nauka. pp. Doniger.16. London: Penguin Books. Etnolingwistyka 16.5 The first stanza which. according to which language is grounded in human cognition and words reflect what people think about entities. Sweetser E. Usually the concrete senses that refer to everyday experience are primary. features which encode historical and cultural experience of a speech community’ 13. 1957. relations or states named by them. I quote from the English version of the article (Basic assumptions of Slavic ethnolinguistics) made me available by Professor Jerzy Bartmi√ski. A brief survey of the semantic range of the verb áva sΩj. The Àgveda.will show that both cases should be accepted here in order to get the full meaning of the stanza.e. Rigveda. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Elizarenkova T. Vol III. 1990. 15. 34 (2008) 2. Mandaly IX-X. Metaphorical and cultural aspects of semantic structure. 14. “Etnolingwistyka slowia√ska – próba bilansu”.5: áva sΩja púnar agne pitΩ ´bhyo yás ta ~hutaƒ cárati svadh~bhiΔ | ` jåtavedaΔ || ~yur vásåna úpa vetu ƒéßaΔ sáº gachatåº tanvå (10. Tokarski R. 2004. O semantycznej analizie slowa w tekƒcie poetyckim”. No 2. RV 10. 1990.

. the word’s meaning is motivated by mental operations such as metonymy and metaphor. Tannen D. p. 20. “Repetition in conversation: Towards a poetics of talk”. Metonymy is a mental strategy which gives access to a whole conceptual domain via its salient point (e. Berlin/New York: Mouton de Gruyter. Amsterdam. Langacker R. Johnson M. we conceive time in terms of money) 20.. a word’s meaning in a particular usage can highlight rare or unexpected aspects.Joanna Jurewicz. pp.. A Field Guide to Poetic Metaphor. 1989. 1989.. Whenever I use the words ‘metonymy’ and ‘metaphor’. and Semantics: A United Dynamic Approach”. Lakoff G. are not included in the designating meaning of the word. Johnson M. As a cognitive phenomenon. 16. In: A. Toward a cognitive theory of literature”. understood as above. Dirven R. 1980. Turner M. pp. 574-605.) Metaphor and Metonymy at the Crossroads. Minchin E. which finally realizes itself in the particular context of a given expression 16. Metaphors…. Lakoff G. pp. 17. Cognitive…. Philadelphia: Benjamins.. A Cognitive Perspective. pp. Dirven R. van. is an open.) Job 28: Cognition in Context. “head” is a salient point of “person”) 19. More than Cool Reason. dynamic structure. Metaphor is a mental strategy which allows humans to think about a conceptual domain in terms of another domain (e. 253-281. 16. . 2006. 2001. 19. Radden G. Language 63. Poetry in particular is a linguistic creation which plays with words and their meanings by modifying and elaborating the context 17. (Ed. “Poetry and the scope of metaphor. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press. 80ff. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press. 16. 36ff. “Context. Lakoff G. p. Oxford: Oxford University Press. The demands of orality seem further to prompt such an activation of the wide semantic range of words because of the need to express as much as possible in a relatively short linguistic message.. often. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 187 The word’s meaning.g. which.. 2000. I understand them in this way. In this way. Metaphors we live by. 18. Cognitive English Grammar. Radden G. Barcelona (Ed. The use of a word in a particular context evokes the images and concepts stored in the memory of recipients 18. H. p. Some applications of cognitive theory to the Iliad and the Odyssey. 179-230.. 2003.g. Cognition. Homer and the resources of memory. Freeman M. In: Wolde E. Leiden and Boston: Brill. 1989.

5). on the other hand.16.13.in the åprœ interpreted by scholars as evoking the meaning of freeing an animal from a cord and expressing sending a sacrificial victim to the gods 22. This meaning is even clearer in the åprœ 1.10: vánaspate ‘va sΩjópa dev~n agnír ján dev~nåm p~tha Ωtuth~ havœ .13.10=7.86. a calf). In: R. In all these instances dative is not used 10.10: vánaspátir avasΩjánn úpa sthåd agnír havíΔ sædayati prá dhœbhíΔ |. it is fire that is freed from captivity. van den. ‘to free someone from captivity’ (5. on the one hand.11: avasΩjánn úpa tmánå dev~m ˘ yakßi vanaspate |. D.A. to express offering cattle ´ hymn as an oblation to fire.4. N. This is the most abstract meaning of ava sΩj-. Navathe (Eds. 34 (2008) 2. havíΔ ƒamit~ sædayåti |.28. In the stanzas that instantiate this latter meaning. 5.12).instantiated in the RV is ‘to let (someone) go’ (5.6). Minchin E.91. The most general meaning of áva sΩj.14.5.108. 138. This is the explanatory function of the simile 21.a.15. evoked in 7.11ab (áva sΩjå vanaspate déva devébhyo havíΔ). See Bosch L.) Proceedings of the Vth World Sanskrit .3. In a ritual context. as in 10. 1. The meaning of áva sΩj.2. 21. is the source domain of a simile of which the target domain is the abstract idea of forgiving sins and absolving from them (7. the concrete meaning ‘to untie an animal’ is extended to the meaning ‘to offer an animal oblation’. In a similar way. 10.142. 22.2.(Part I) The concrete meaning of áva sΩj. other usages of áva sΩj. whereas its common Àgvedic conceptualization as a bull (vΩ ´ ßan) motivates this meaning even further.11) and. 2. 3. “Some reflections on the Åprœ hymns of the Àgveda and their interpretation”.is ‘to untie a human being or an animal’ (a thief. p. Homer….86. 10. which means ‘to untie a human being or an animal’.188 Indologica Taurinensia. More general meanings are construed on the basis of the concrete meaning of untying.65.is used together with ~ hæ-. áva sΩj.110.30. In 10. Dandekar. P. These are.10: up~vasΩja tmányå samañ´ ºßi |. The concepts evoked as the source domains of similes are often conventionalized and serve as the model enabling the recipient to understand the target domain better: by referring to what is more familiar one can grasp what is more abstract.5 as the source domain of the simile.85.13) and ‘to give (someone to someone)’ (10.5. ‘to give cattle to someone’ (10.2. Áva sΩj-. where devébhyo is to be interpreted as the dative because the gods are the recipients of the ´ hymns are sacrifice.

Etudes védiques et på∫inéennes. the main idea conConference. which are relevant to this paper. 65-77. Vol. used in 10. Doniger. Most scholars in their translations choose words denoting will.164.b Svadh~ and the sun as the abode of the dead Like áva sΩj. the interpretation of the verse áva sΩja púnar agne pitΩ ´ bhyo would be ‘release him to his fathers’. The word svadh~ qualifies the movement of the dead in two other stanzas as well (1. Renou L.5b) and then sent by it to his ancestors like other oblations. One could presume that this meaning too is motivated by the idea of a cord present in the first concrete meaning. pp. I: ‘po svoej vole’. Taking into consideration the meanings reconstructed above. too.A. A study and theory”. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 189 The second concrete meaning of áva sΩj . according to 10. R. 1967: ‘autonomie’.164. to activate the image of the dead person being shot to his fathers like an arrow. New Delhi: Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan. F. Ya. 27-57 interprets vánaspáti as referring to Agni and does not interpret the verses in which vánaspáti is evoked as referring to the animal sacrifice.5b (yás ta ~hutaƒ cárati svadh~bhiΔ). 1985. This is so because bowstring could be viewed as a kind of cord binding an arrow until it is released. Varanasi. In this case. 26-42.16. October 21-26. Geldner K. “Åprœ hymns in the Àgveda.Joanna Jurewicz. 1981.38: eti svadháyå gΩbhœtó).16). however. Vol. Cambridge. XVI. Rigveda. has a wide semantic range in the RV. but accepts the idea of binding and releasing the oblation as expressed by áva sΩj-.16. 1. . Mandaly I-IV. One could wonder if the meaning of shooting an arrow is not evoked here. In my opinion. Moskva: Nauka 1989. The Àgveda…: ‘as his nature wills’. Paris: Editions de Boccard. Elizarenkova T. pp. ‘to untie’. the word svadh~.is ‘to shoot an arrow’ (6. right or autonomy 23.30: carati svadh~bhir. Vol I: ‘nach eigenem Ermessen’. 23. ‘durch Eigengesetz’. Here I will outline only those semantic aspects. Potdar K. Massachusetts: Harvard University Press 1951. 1944-46. Journal of the University of Bombay 13/14. ‘svoim obychaem’. ‘as his own nature wills’. this conceptualization is evoked by the semantic range of áva sΩj-. O’Flaherty W. 2. which – on the general level – expresses various activities the object of which is cattle.75. Der Rig-Veda . the dead person is conceptualized as the animal oblation. The dead person is placed in the cremation fire as the oblation (he is ~huta.

At the same time.6. The meaning of contradictoriness is conveyed in the stanzas where svadh~ qualifies the miraculous birth of mother from calf (1. the sun or its shining (svàr) is there together with everlasting light (jyótir ájasram). Svadh~ qualifies the movement of the sun also in 10.190 Indologica Taurinensia.30ab: chaye turágåtu… éjad dhruvám).38a).164. 9. it is high up in the sky (tri∫aké tridivé diváΔ. 25. One can ask now where this movement takes place.5.95. there are shining spaces there (lok~ jyótißmantaΔ). such passages betray the beginning of formation of the meaning of svadh~ as the ‘food for the dead’: the mysterious power which enables the dead to move begins to be conceptualized in terms of the special food which. Svadh~ itself is internally contradictory: it is a power that enables entities to move. At the same time. He moves towards and backwards (ápå√ pr~√ eti: 1. in these two stanzas the word svadh~ expresses the mysterious power that enables the dead person to remain in a contradictory state.7.26. 9).14. there is sufficient evidence in the RV to accept the view that the sun was conceptualized as the abode of the dead. This place is undecaying (ákßita) and immortal (ámΩta).37. He breathes. I would argue then that in 10. the Creator’s ability to breathe without breath (10. So.5.2). enabled the dead to live and move. and he is dead (anác…jœvó mΩtásya 1. this is the place ruled by Yama. analogically to the human food. which would enable him to move.5b the expression carati svadh~bhiΔ evokes the idea of contradictory movement of the dead person whose body is burnt by the cremation fire 25. .30a.164.10. In my opinion. who is here 24.113.5) 24. but it is wheelless (4. The fourth respect is not explicitly expressed in the stanzas. in the hymn describing the place obtained under the influence of Soma.4. 4. The place described in this way evokes the idea of the sun understood not as the heavenly body but as the embodiment of extra-terrestrial happiness gained in Somic exaltation. 34 (2008) veyed by svadh~ in these two stanzas is that of contradictoriness. The word svadh~ is used in 9.4). This is not an isolated example of such meaning of svadh~. but can be easily inferred: the dead person moves although he has no vehicle.13.c).113.19). The movement of the dead person is contradictory in four respects. he is alive.27. the mysterious power of the sun to move high in the sky without falling down (4. 10.164. He moves and does not move at the same time (1. because his body has been cremated.129.

in a shining place.5b.2 expresses the same idea in its description of the liberated: tasya sarveßu bhæteßu kåmacåro bhavati.6. 28. 10. In these two cases (as in 10.2) and where Indra and Agni exalt with svadh~ too (1. 1897.. Truebner. who was the first to die and to show the way to all mortals. In 4. 9. its burning gives the dead person the possibility to move freely. which is conceptualized as the sun.10. Fathers are described as being together with the step of Viß∫u (vikráma∫aº víß∫oΔ. 43. There is more evidence that supports this thesis..e. the accomplishment of all the wishes one can have.139. If the limitations of the human organism come from the body.113 too svadh~ ensures tΩ ´ pti. . and hymn 9. i. 38. as has been just shown) it is svadh~ that ensures such movement.25.30. the convergence of the place gained under the influence of Soma and of the place where the King of The Dead is does not necessarily mean that the poet asks Soma to ensure him well being after his death.. Thus the poet experiences an internally contradictory state: the state of a living person in the world of the dead is opposite to the state described as jœvó mΩtásya but the contradictoriness is the same. 9. 11). without Soma drunk during the sacrifice. 26.12). can be gained only after death.113. The ability to move according to one’s will (anukåmáº cára∫aº.15. k~masya…åpt~Δ k~måΔ.108. 10. went back to his father’s place.16.14). We may presume that King Yama.9) 28 also expresses the total freedom of a person who is in that shining place: in everyday life on earth one cannot move about as one wants. Macdonell A. 27. i.3). which. p. A Vedic Mythology . which is the place where the sun is (10.164. svadh~ means the ability that enables one to realise one’s desire.113 reveals the location of this contradictory situation: it is high in the sky. A. or to move and not to move at the same time – as described in 1. Taking into account that the hymn begins with the description of everyday sacrifice I would argue that the poet asks Soma to take him alive to the place. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 191 called King Vaivasvata (r~jå vaivasvatáΔ.33.8).15. In my opinion. 9. The hymn mentions svadh~ together with various kinds of wishes and desires (k~ma nikåm~Δ) and with the possibility of their accomplishment (tΩ ´ pti. even in various directions simultaneously.113. to the sun 27.e. and one could assume that in 9. This very name makes us think about the sun because vivásvant is explained as the sun in the RV 26. Strassburg: Verlag von Karl J.Joanna Jurewicz.113. The fathers are said to exalt with svadh~ in the middle of the sky (mádhye dívaΔ. CU 7.

108-119 shows symmetry between the Agnicayana and the ˙maƒanacayana. W. 573-582.g.e. In one stanza.1. pp. Tull H. which denotes operations done upon animals.14. i.154. That a dead person was treated as an oblation has already been mentioned above: it is implied by the meaning of áva sΩj-. 1.7). B. Bodewitz H. “Life after death in the Àgvedasaºhitå”. 42. Mandaly V-VIII. more precisely upon cattle. Bodewitz H. 1994. The Vedic…. pp.. Aru∫á often qualifies dawn (e.192 Indologica Taurinensia. then we will see a symmetry between everyday iß™i and the final iß™i. pitfalls und the underworld in the Veda”. Indo-Iranian Journal. 33.. Rigveda.22. Bodewitz H. 211-226. 1995. i.. It is possible then that the afterlife track of the dead was conceived as follows: first they went to the nether world and then they were raised to the sky by the rising sun. 31. 30. 1964. 23-41. F. 1. in the nether world identified with night 31.20-21. antyeß™i: the fire of cremation – like the fire of everyday sacrifice. 471-473. W.3 it is Agni. Wiener Zeitschrift zur Kunde des Sued.3. 2. My interpretation that the abode of the dead persons is on the sun is not necessarily incompatible with Bodewitz’s theory that the dead go to the subterranean world 30. W. 1999. 1999. Der Rig-Veda… Vol. Elizarenkova T. “The bliss of A`a”. Die Religion…. p.. “Yonder world in the Atharvaveda”. at least. 96129. Ya. 107-120.und Ostasiens. The third step of Viß∫u as the sun: 1. The close connection between the dead and the sun is also expressed in 10.16. pp. Geldner K. II. 178.3. In RV 5.1. 7. 1.5. Ya.154. as sitting in the womb of the reddish ones (~sœnåso aru∫œ 10. If we agree that the dead were in the sun. who is present in the third step of Viß∫u. Moskva: Nauka. This was the way. pp. . 29. pp. 555. see Elizarenkova T. 34 (2008) which is usually interpreted as the third step of Viß∫u identified with the sun at its zenith 29. 62/63. W. for those who were properly cremated. 10. Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute . p.6. the fathers are presented ´ ∫åm upásthe. See also Macdonell. so to sit ‘in the womb of dawns’ means to sit in the place where the dawns are born. 38. and with Agni ([ap~º] napát). J. It is possible that the rest remained in the nether world forever 32. 3.3).112.5. Vedic…. See: Oberlies. Vol. 32.3. ‘To the meaning of the Àgvedic harmyá-/harmiá-’.155. Indo-Iranian Journal. 1991-199. 2. “Pits.e. brings the dead to the sun – as it brings the oblation 33. pp. 4. 4.15. I: 22. according to which the dead are expected to go to the poets who guard the sun.19. 42. Indo-Iranian Journal. Kuiper F. pp.

314.16. Usually. pp. According to Macdonell A. but rarely the flesh of the cow’. 1967 (First Edition 1912). Keith A. “The Cosmic. 372. In. Srinivasan D. 1986. W. 330. 35.7a as referring to the milk too.g. 1979.16.1 where fire into which the oblation is poured is qualified as ‘finding the sun’ (svarvíd) and ‘touching the sky’ (divispΩ ´ƒ) which implies that fire filled with oblation goes up to the sky in order to touch it and to identify itself with the sun.7a (agnér várma pári góbhir vyayasva) 34.2. On transformation of fire into the sun see also Bodewitz H. The validity of this activation is supported by that there was a custom of covering a dead person with some milky food if a cow was not killed during the cremation rite 36. Phil. solar form. 37. 9. Cyclical Dying (parimara)”. 234) the word gó ‘frequently means milk. 1979. p. It was believed in the RV that the earthly fire has its cosmic form. D. Thesis. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.University of Oxford.16. being an animal or a Somic oblation. Vol. was poured (~huta) into the cremation fire. 331. The belief that the oblation was poured into the fire identified with the sun is explicitly expressed in 10.134. 438-443. (Vedic Index of Names and Subjects. 61 ff. 3. . May 23-30. 1.3. Taking this into consideration. 36.8. This common Àgvedic usage makes the recipient activate the meaning of góbhir in 10. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 193 Conceptualization of the dead person as an animal oblation finds its ritual expression in the protection of the dead body against fire by cowhide.. p. Thus the symmetry between everyday sacrifice and cremation is clear: the dead person. A. as it happened with every oblation poured into the fire 37. pp. The cremation fire took the dead to its cosmic. E. In this way.) Sanskrit and world culture. Morgenroth (Ed. Indian…. B.7a is the only place in the RV where the word gó in plural refers to cow hide.35. 2 Vols. this word is used to denote the milk with which Soma is mixed 35.88.103. However.Joanna Jurewicz. W. pp. in its metaphorical sense. 34.8.32. 9. it is worth noticing that 10. which is expressed in 10. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. Weimar. 1989. one can assume that the intention of the poet was to create the image of the dead identified not only with an animal oblation but also with the Somic oblation mixed with milk.2. See Evison G. 324. which is the sun.74. Indian death rituals: the enactment of ambivalence. I. 9. Concept of cow in the Veda.16. See Evison G. Proceedings of the IVth World Sanskrit Conference of the International Association of Sanskrit Studies. Berlin: Akademie-Verlag. the only example they give is 10.7a. the concept of afterlife would be incorporated into the Àgvedic model of sacrifice.

A Àgvedic Word-Concordance.A.5. 1997.47.18.in the RV is to denote freeing of waters by Indra 38. The meanings presented above do not exhaust the whole semantic range of this verb. Paris: Editions de Boccard.to denote freeing waters. 1. New Haven.23 = 4. 1.(Part II) The above reconstruction of the afterlife does not solve one problem: why does the poet say that the dead person should be sent to his fathers ‘once again’ (púnas) ? The answer can be found in other semantic aspects of áva sΩj-.4: ár∫ó ’våsΩjo apó áchå samudrám. sΩjád ár∫åºsy áva. 1.c.32. 34 (2008) 2. áva.1. The most frequent usage of áva sΩj. nimnéna.11. so the meaning ‘to untie an animal’ strengthens the rationale lying behind the usage of áva sΩj. The idea of movement downwards is obviously present in the idea of rain. 1966 intepret nimnám in 4. 6. It is also present in the idea of rivers which have their sources in the mountains and flow down to the ocean (3.78.7 as the expression of the place where waters are and not as the direction of their movement. This allows us to treat this image as conventional and the direction downwards as the essential feature of the movement of waters 41.. Connecticut.4: sΩj~.6: [á]va … sártav~ apáΔ sΩjat.174.12: av~sΩjat sártave saptá síndhæn.194 Indologica Taurinensia. Waters freed by Indra symbolise waters that make the existence of the world possible: these are rivers and rain.33. 10. 41. 1.. nimnám. 10. Expressed explicitly thousands years later by ˙åºkara in his famous example explaining the nature of the false knowledge.30.61.5. 10. I think however that one can interpret ..43. 9. Renou L. 9.51. im~ apó.2. nimnaíΔ : 5. See also 7.1. ‘to untie’: there is a similarity between a snake and a cord 39 and the waters are tied by the snake VΩtra as a calf or a thief is tied by a cord. There are 38.2.57. 8.148.6: ávåsΩjo nívΩtåΔ sártav~ apáΔ. 40.80. waters are often conceptualized as cows.4: áva sasyádaΔ sΩjad. 1. The meaning of áva sΩj. 6. There is a group of hymns that use the noun nimná to express the direction downwards 40. This semantic extension too seems to be motivated by its first concrete meaning.55. Vol.15.17.. In these hymns the idea of waters conceived as flowing downwards is evoked in the source domain of similes explaining the movement of Soma (most frequently). 7. 5. 9.12. Lubotsky A.2..97.32. 39.113. XV. American Oriental Society.97.33.2). The idea of the direction downwards is inherent in the range of this semantic aspect of áva sΩj-. 2. Etudes védiques et på∫inéennes. 1.7.57. What is more.12: ávåsΩjaΔ sártave saptá síndhæn. Parts I-II.

expresses the movement downwards in 1. the idea of rain strengthens the idea of movement downards. Japan. 12. explicit in padas c-d. The direction downwards is also evoked in 7.133. sitting on the barhis. 8. behind their young leaders. ´m udnáΔ phaligám bhinán nyàk síndhæ ˘ r av~sΩjat.5).62.3 áva sΩj.expresses raining 43. 4) translates phaligá as ‘a robust rock’ which blocks the cave in which the sun is hidden.151. ‘from [his] fathers’. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 195 two stanzas that explicitly express the downward movement with the use of áva sΩj. Witzel M. Yonder world…. Universitätsverlag. This interpretation allows one to assume that púnaΔ evokes the idea of a repeated homecoming. the ideas of sin and of what is down are combined in the RV (Bodewitz H.32.. (“Vala and Ivato. I would argue that the intention of the poet of RV 10.16 was to activate the whole semantic range of áva sΩj. and beyond”.62. . and the pada a understood in this way expresses a request to Agni to release the dead person downwards.32. together with its meaning of freeing (waters) downwards. The Myth of the Hidden Sun in India. downwards’. but also fall down on the earth. so they make waters flow down too. The idea of being down is evoked in the image of the old people who not only remain backwards. Kurzgefasstes etymologisches Woerterbuch des Altindischen.is used to denote freeing of waters.is used to express the sinful state (1.laurasianacademy. their creative act sets the model for the future entities and their behaviour. similarly in the Atharvaveda.com. pitfalls…).6c (áva tmánå sΩjátaº pínvataº dhíyo) of the gods who come to the sacrifice to eat and drink the oblations.25. W. the possibility to interpret phaligá as the container both for water and the sun results from Àgvedic conception of the sun which is the container and the source of water.B. Electronic Journal of Vedic Studies. It is also possible that áva sΩj. 1963) but the context evokes the idea of rock (which encloses the cows) and of the vessel (which encloses the rain).189.Joanna Jurewicz. see Bodewitz H.25ab: yá .to describe the release of waters by Indra (8.2) 42. There is no doubt. In this case pitΩ ´ bhyo should be interpreted as an ablative. ´m 42. Two more usages of áva sΩj seem to be motivated by the idea of ‘down’ conveyed by áva. 43.3: y~ te didyúd ávasΩß™å divás pári kßmay~ cárati.133. In 4. W. 1. 1956.2ab: tvám síndhæ ˘ r ávåsΩjo’dhar~co áhann áhim. vardháyatam óßadhœΔ pínvataº g~ áva vΩß™íº sΩjatam jiradånæ || 5. Heidelberg: Carl Winter. see below 2.3 cd. In 5. 3 Vols. A Concise Etymological Sanskrit Dictionary .19. Pits.46.2 the gods who remain behind Indra are compared to the old people. http:www. áva highlights its basic meaning ‘down. it also as expressing the movement: the stanza describes creation of the world done by Àbhu-s who they make everything as it should be. 10. 10. that when áva sΩj. which modifies the meaning of the verb. . so the meaning of stanza is creation of rivers and of rain.ejvs. In the second use áva sΩj. 2005. The word phaligá is uncertain (Mayrhoffer M. p. then.

From what has been said above it follows that the expression áva sΩja púnar agne pitΩ ´ bhyo activates the full semantic range of áva sΩjoutlined above. Der Rig-Veda….14. III maintains that the dead comes back during the sacrifices to the manes. This word appears once. The word ~yus found in the expression ~yur vásåna is consistently used in the RV to denote human life evaluated in a very positive way. in the RV the word definitely means ‘offspring’ and there is no reason why this meaning should not be activated. And I think that this common meaning should be evoked first. 45.d. we can safely assume that these padas express the return of the dead to their relatives to be reborn among them 44. (Der RigVeda…. A. before other ´ in the RV denotes ‘the possible meanings. O’Flaherty W. Renou L.2. only here.113. F. Finally. 1873 interprets both words as ‘der verschlossene Ort.8. Vol. F. XVI.30: jœvó mΩtásya carati svadh~bhiΔ) and his movement downwards. Ya.4. but in four other places the expression åródhanaº diváΔ is used (three stanzas describe the function of Agni which brings the oblations to gods in his solar form. Wörterbuch zum Àgveda. Grassmann H. 1961) in their translation of åródhana follow Såya∫a who understands it as årohana. das innerste Heilightum’.8).8. Leipzig: F. Paris: Editions de Boccard. The Àgveda… considers a possibility that the padas c-d express the return of the dead to the earth. then avaródhana can also be interpreted in the same way: as avaróhana. (Rigveda…. having burnt the body of the dead person and having taken the person to the world of his fathers. 44. 4.196 Indologica Taurinensia. the place through which the people come back to the . which is used in RV 9. The meaning of padas c-d In my opinion.7. 4. If Såya∫a is right. D. is requested to release him back to his offspring.e. back to earth. (Etudes védiques et på∫inéennes.A. Vol. the self’ and this meaning matches the whole image which is – in my opinion – created in the stanza: the cremation fire. Geldner K. Thus the poet could express the bi-directional movement of the dead person: his movement upwards where he could experience the contradictory state of the existence of the dead (compare 1. in two Agni knows åródhanaº diváΔ. III). i. the person. Brockhaus.8). III). the word tanæ body. 4. Geldner K. This cycle of rebirth is very close to what Obeyesekere describes as the rebirth theory in small scale societies 45. Even though ƒéßas can mean burnt remains of a human body (it is so interpreted by Såya∫a). I will discuss his view below (analysis of 10. Vol. Elizarenkova T. 34 (2008) 2.164. in whom he can be brought back to life again.8. I would like to pay attention to the expression avaródhanaº diváΔ. Vol.

water plants (kiy~mbu. Let him join his body. And similarly the real dead could wish to come back to his family (as Obeyesekere writes.113. 15-16.5: ‘Release him to his fathers and again down from them. Let him. I would propose the following interpretation of RV 10. It is very consistent then that Agni in its form of messenger should know the åródhana to the sky. this image implies the connection between yahvátœr ~paΔ and åródhana. come to his offspring. Jåtavedas!’ 2. travels according to his will. who wears life. There is no doubt that the poet exalted with Soma.10. contrary to the human beings who – dead or alive – would like to know the avaródhana from the sky. Kosmogonia Rygwedy. while he is alive (see Note 27). I have discussed this important part of the Àgvedic cosmology in my book (Jurewicz J.11 which creates the image of birds which sit at the ascent to heaven (åródhane diváΔ) and which chase away the wolf who crosses young waters. ´ r ~pas is svàrvatœr ~pas: the celestial or solar waters are A very similar to yahvatœ gained by Indra (1. [him] who. 1990. Myƒl i metafora.11).105. påkadærv~. if he reached the heavenly place during the sacrifice.40. the abode of the dead. is expressed also in RV 9. RV 10.is regularly used to denote the release of waters allows one to presume that it was believed that the dead come back to earth in the form of rain. 2001) which is now being translated into English.13ab: yáº tvám agne samádahas tám u nír våpayå púnaΔ. 8. This expression also implies the presence of waters on the sun. .Joanna Jurewicz. According to padas c-d of the stanza. earth. 1989). Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 197 So finally.16.2.10-11) or by the poets (5. pp. The waters are young because they are ‘those young waters’ (amæ very close to their heavenly source.B. 46. The expression yahvátœr ~paΔ is once more used in 1. vyàlkaƒå) are supposed to grow on the cremation ground. O. That the water is on the sun. Delhi: Sri Satguru Publication. would really wish not to stay in the world of dead but to come back to his family (for dangerous character of the sacrificial journey and the wish of the sacrificer to come back to the earth see Smith 1985. poured into you. such wish is very strong and constitutes the emotional rationale for the rebirth eschatologies). which presents it as the place where there ´ r yahvátœr ~pas) are. The belief can also be reconstructed from RV 10. This belief is consistent with cosmological assumptions because already in the RV the sun was thought of as the source of rain 46.8. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Semper. Kaelber W.113.13-14 The fact that in the RV áva sΩj.8. Asceticism and initiation in Vedic India. implied also by 9. Tapta Mårga.16.16.

5. O’Flaherty W.2) as itaΔ sthånåt niΔ såraya. Taittirœya Åra∫yaka 4.58. however. during the cooling ceremony milk and water were sprinkled with a branch. 49.) the form nír våpaya comes from vå-.. cit. On the other hand.10. 11.. and it is possible that nír våevokes the idea of fanning with a wet branch.1. On a Vedic….” The American Journal of Philology. All of them understand nir våpaya as expressing the extinction of fire with the aid of a fluid. Rigveda…. D.. Vol. 1877 Der Rigveda oder die heiligen Hymnen der Bråhmana. p. but also express the cosmic and eschatological dimension of the ritual activity. ‘to scatter. water is poured on it and then water plants are sown.4). the poet could not only refer to what actually happened on the cremation ground. to throw. O’Flaherty (ad loci). Geldner. Elizarenkova T.) and Lubotzky (op.2.148. can also come from the verb nír vap-. In the RV vå. making it with stick. cit. 4. 47..4. water plants are requested to join with a female frog to gladden the fire. ‘Make [him] flow from this place’. who interpreted nír våpaya to express sowing. It was Ludwig 50. like milk (˙åºkhåyana ˙rautasætra.3. One has to blow on fire. Bloomfield M. The Àgveda….).is used to express the spreading of fire caused by the wind (1. The form nír våpaya. Bloomfield M.7) 49. 26. 34 (2008) In the next stanza. III.198 Indologica Taurinensia. In traditional societies the fire was not extinguished at night but kept in the warm ashes and in the morning it was lit again by blowing on it. These readings find their confirmation in ritual practice: the cremation ground is “cooled”. 50.142. i. cit. Ya. Tempsky. 7. 10. According to Bloomfield. Contributions to the Interpretation of the Veda.141. to blow’. By activating of the idea of sowing. 1. 1894.14-15 48. No 3. Ludwig A. Såya∫a glosses nír våpaya (ad. . According to Evison (op. Bloomfield quotes some later texts that comment on this Àgvedic verse. p. 48. Baltimore 1890. 426. sow’. Prag: Verlag von F.7. fanning or blowing on fire enkindles rather than extinguishes it (this is expressed by the RV itself which qualifies fire as v~tacodita in 1.e. this ritual practice is evoked in 10. According to Grassmann (op. Taittirœya Åra∫yaka) and/or honey (Kauƒika GΩhyasætra). It is similarly interpreted by Elizarenkova. Åƒvalåyana GΩhyasætra. and I think that in this context this interpretation is fully justified. “On a Vedic group of charms for extinguishing fire by means of water-plants and a frog. nir våpaya means ‘simply <extinguish>’ 47. ‘to fan.

Geldner K.3. See especially RV 3.37 vap. which inseminates the earth. Der Rig-Veda.B.72. the description however evokes descriptions of ploughßyå ing and sowing the earth conceived as a woman (compare 4.is used to express activity of the Maruts. the verb vap. Vol. Cambridge. Raining As Sowing (Barley) Metaphor Like other Àgvedic words.57. III. Elizarenkova T.5. 3. 52. In some stanzas a more specific domain of sowing barley is evoked in order to express the sunrise and raining. in 5. 10.94. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 199 2.4 rain is conceived in terms of Parjanya’s semen. (sasásya cárman).3.5. used as the source domain in 4. On the other hand. Vol.. In two places (8. in the RV barley is presented as a 51. In 10.7: ´ tåº ní gΩh∫åtu t~m pæß~nu yachatu). Ya.3.‘to sow’ is attested explicitly in the first and tenth ma∫∂alas (1. according to him the rain clarifies ornaments.5) vap. . Paris: Editions de Boccard.21. The golden colour of barley links it with rays of the sun. needs a separate anlysis. Etudes védiques et ´ as ‘ornapå∫inéennes.Joanna Jurewicz.68.101.72. 3. ´ dhan). 10.g.16.44. taking into account their rainy character.as ‘to scatter drops of rain’ 51. such usage evokes the idea of creation of something. 1. which is wet and consists of drops.has a wide semantic range.3).: ‘Reinigungsmittelns’ but adds in note: ‘ Den Regentropfen’.7 (sasásya æ metaphoric mappings. The image of the bag with grain. There is one stanza in which vap. that the RV uses the concept of container full of grain as referring to the sun 52. 3. F.7.176.a. it is possible to interpret vap.7.expresses creation of fog. X. in this context.83.expresses ´ jam manuinsemination (t~m pæßañ chivátamåm érayasva yásyåm bœ ` vápanti).6 (sasásya cárma ghΩtávat). Vol II. Sowing involves scattering grain and then watering it either by human beings or by rain. Rigveda…. The life-giving character of the sunrise is expressed in the RV also in that it is the moment when the food appears.38. It is also significant.3 abhí vap. the full analysis of which would go beyond the scope of this paper. The meaning of vap.8.7.56. 4.9. 1951. Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. It is possible to activate índraΔ sœ the concept of rain in the description of insemination because in the RV the idea of insemination was the basis for metaphorical conceptualization of raining: e.2. 10.13.is used in such a context that it may evoke the idea of rain: in 7. Renou L. 10.73. 1962.3). see RV 1.8.13b. I will mention here only those aspects of its meaning which are relevant for understanding RV 10. the food is sometimes identified with the sun (RV 1. interprets the svapæ ments-luisants’ but he also thinks that the idea of rain is evoked in this description.

A. There are the following correspondences between the similes: sacks in the source domain correspond to the mountains in the target domain. Trynkowska (Eds. Indie w Warszawie. ´ rya nír g~ æpe may be directly The expression párvatebhyo vitæ understood as describing the creation of the morning on the basis of the conventionalized metaphorical conceptualization of dawns in terms of cows 54.) India in Warsaw. .6.. having led the cows from the mountains. The simile compares two conceptual metaphors expressing raining. well and Bucket in the Àgveda”. In this case. Concept… 56. Jurewicz J. so there is a conceptual link of cause and effect between the concepts of rain and barley. 54.3.85. pp. which includes raining. 252-276. activates the Àgvedic concept of rain metaphorically conceived as pouring water from a container (called útsa.3cd BΩhaspati. 10. Concept… 55.200 Indologica Taurinensia. 2.. “Spring. 34 (2008) plant which needs rain to grow properly 53. kávandha) 56.43.. and this metaphor should be evoked in this context too 55. The metaphor in the simile’s source domain conceptualizes drops of rain in terms of grains of barley and clouds in terms of sacks. which appears in the simile’s source domain.5. sowed them like barley from sacks. dΩ ´ ti. Stasik. But in the RV also streams of waters are metaphorically conceptualized in terms of cows.68. Warszawa: Dom Wydawniczy Elipsa. For data see Srinivasan D. grains of barley correspond to the cows. The word nír æpe activates the scenario of sowing. I will analyse one example which reveals the metaphoric mapping Raining Is Sowing Barley: ´ rya nír g~ æpe yávam iva sthivíbhyaΔ || bΩhaspátiΔ párvatebhyo vitæ 10. For data see Srinivasan D. In: D. 53. The metaphor in the simile’s target domain conceptualizes drops of rain in terms of cows and clouds in terms of mountains. The word sthiví. kóƒa.. 5. Tom upamie ˛ tniaja ˛ cy 50lecie powojennej historii indologii na Uniwersytecie Warszawskim (2003/2004). avatá.7. ‘the mountains’ refers not only to the nocturnal sky but also to rain-clouds.

Vol. Renou L. ‘to impel. 504. C.. Rigveda…. to shave’ are phonetically identical and their inflection is the same too. The following stanza will show the mastery with which a context is created to evoke the meanings of shearing and sowing: yé te ƒukr~saΔ ƒúcayaΔ ƒucißmaΔ kß~º vápanti víßitåso áƒvåΔ | ádha bhramás ta urviy~ ví bhåti yåtáyamåno ádhi s~nu pΩ ´ƒneΔ || 6. The ancient Indian royal consecration. Winter. Ya. II. Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag C. And your whirling flame shines widely. Die ‘I. to shave’ In the RV another verbal root. Goto T. vap. here pΩ ´ƒni refers to the cow identified with the earth. Vol. the poets could use this identity to express a wider sense construed on the basis of both verbs 58. I will just claim that since vap. The horses of fire are its flames that go around the earth and ‘shear’ the hair of the earth.. ‘to press’.‘to hear. sow’ and vap.‘to shave. Is this the place named by åródhana diváΔ? . Vol. and according to Mayrhoffer this root is distinct from the root vap. Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen. 287. p. Der Rig-Veda….b. ‘s-Gravenhage: Mouton and Co. sunoti. to throw. However see Mayrhofer M. to shear’. II.. Pada d of the stanza presents fire as being ‘on the summit of the dappled one’ (ádhi s~nu pΩ ´ƒneΔ).e.Joanna Jurewicz. sæte. Paris: Editions de Boccard. II. 58.. 59. XIII. One can assume that the summit of the earth is the place from which the sky can be reached 60. p. suvati. p. on the peak of which the fiery horses run 59. set loose.‘to sow’ 57. F. 1957. ‘to procreate’ (Heestermann J. One can also assume that – in order to express the cosmic form of fire. 72-73. sæ-. As suggested by other scholars. is used to express the activity of fire. Präsensklasse’ im Vedischen. 1992. which is the rising sun – the 57.‘to shear. Wien: Verlag der österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften 1987. The aim of the following argument is not to challenge that opinion. Vol. vap. burn the grass and plants. Like they do with su-. Geldner K. i.B. shear the earth.‘to sow’ and vap. 1964 60. The råjasæya described according to the yajus texts and annoted. Etudes védiques et på∫inéennes. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 201 2. Elizarenkova T. sæ-. arranged on the summit of the dappled one.6.4ab Your bright. 1957.‘to scatter. pure horses.

7. Panther K. In my opinion. 215-219.108. ‘to sow’.64. “Towards a Theory of Metonymy”. ‘to open riches streaming with cows’. horses are set loose after a long march. 34 (2008) stanza evokes the image of horses ascending the cosmic mountain 61.6. 17-59.-U. Elizarenkova’s translatation of bhramá as ‘vodovarot’ activates the idea of rain expressed by this word. 6. As in everyday life.14). i.‘to bite the water of rivers’. Kövecses Z. becomes part of the earth 65. 63. Elizarenkova.‘to bore cows’. Tapta Mårga…. p.38.. But at the same time.12. C. one will get the meaning of the sun burning the earth 62.6) 64. similarly the fiery horses are set loose after a long run up to the peak of the earth. 10. which is the natural direct object of vap-.2: ví vΩ-. because seed.g. p. 8. the phonetic resemblance between vap.1: rad. when sown.58. Rigveda…. and of sowing. Metonymy in Language and Thought. all these contexts of víßita are evoked in 6.‘to shear’ and vap.33. For conceptual metonymy PART FOR WHOLE / WHOLE FOR PART see Radden G. 1999.83.6: nír kΩt-: ‘to cut out cows’. pp. It is also possible that the idea of urination is evoked here. is replaced here by ‘the earth’ (kßám-). But it is also used to express a gourd with rain that is opened in order to set rain free as well as the streams of rain themselves (5. 10.4 in order to highlight the rain-making function of fire 64.17.202 Indologica Taurinensia. Then. 22.3: abhí tΩd. in the RV “rain” was conceived in terms of “the urine” too (1. Vol II.58.7: varßáº svédaº cakrire rudríyåsaΔ) 63. If the idea of rain can be evoked in the stanza.e.. 61.5.27. burning. p. they not only eat grass.63.6.. A similar image is created in 1. the horses of Agni are víßitåsaΔ – ‘set loose’. 9. In this case.. The conceptual metonymy (which activates the concept of a whole when we think of its part) would justify the expression kß~º vápanti: ‘seed’. 111.as ‘to shear’.8). their direct objects describe the contents of the enclosure instead of the enclosure: e. It is worth noticing that the participle víßita is used in the RV to qualify horses running freely (3.‘to sow’ is activated and the vapanti may convey both meanings: of shearing.1) and the quick fire (6. The same metonymy motivates the usage of many verbs expressing the opening or destruction of an enclosure.2. Amsterdam: Benjamins. but are tired and sweating too. 5. 65. raining.7. Kaelber W. which usage is confirmed in 6. if one understands vap. Heestermann J.e.83. i. The ancient ….4. like ordinary horses. 62. ‘to open cows’.3: ápa vΩ-.. O.49. In the RV sweat (svéda) is the basis for conceptualizing rain (5. . 576. In: Radden G.

such qualification of Agni activates its rainy aspect and.13ab aims at activation of both roots.B.13b From what has been said above. sow again the one you burnt [before]!’ 66.16. The stanza is construed so masterly that the meaning of shaving is activated immediately after the recognition of the pada c of the stanza. s) and words like with udváto niváto … v~to anuv~ti… vápteva … vapasi. with a metonymic bhæ government of the direct object like that in kß~º vápanti in 6. vå. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 203 The only place in the RV where vap.and vå. it follows that it is justified to interpret nír våpaya as a form coming rather from vap. rather than ‘to shave’ with its extension of burning 67.‘to scatter. prá vap. 2. to blow’ 68. The recipient. having construed the scenario of raining. which presents Agni being a driver whose mouth is flame. The only other Àgvedic usage of vap. may also understand nír våpaya as coming from from vå. b.with the preposition prá is at 10. which refers to Agni qualified as pravápantam ar∫avám.should be interpreted as ‘to sow’ with its extension of raining. .16.115. So I propose to render 10. 67.too. This would confirm my thesis that 10.4cd: ´ ma || yad~ te v~to anuv~ti ƒocír vápteva ƒmáƒru vapasi prá bhæ When your wind blows after your flame you shave the earth. Since ar∫avá means ‘waving water’. They are complementary and not mutually exclusive.142. It is possible that the aim of this play is to bring closer the meanings of vap.13ab in the following way: ‘O Agni. v. Final interpretation of RV 10. in this context. it is based on the phonetic play of few consonants (p.4b.d. The construction of the stanza is beautiful. Here the verb vaphighlights its meaning of sowing.16.3.Joanna Jurewicz. I use the word ‘rather’ consciously because I think that both meanings can be evoked by the recipient. ƒ.6. ‘to fan. like a shaver [shaving] a beard 66. It is possible then that vapasi prá ´ ma is meant to evoke the idea of sowing too.and activate the idea of wind that accompanies rain.clearly denotes ‘to shave’ is 10. to throw.and vap-. 68. to sow’ than from vå-.

16. “Aspects of ritual ploughing in India and its possible external affinities. 1986. The conceptualization of the dead as a Somic oblation makes the above suppositions even more probable.5. 8. this possibility is strengthened by the fact that Agni and BΩhaspati are identified in the RV.C.83. . As in 10. Agni is very close to Parjanya fecundating the earth with rain.11. i. RV 10.” The Mankind Quarterly.2.16. properly cremated.e. It is possible that the form nír våpaya prompts the recipient to construe an image similar to that of 10. is not only the cremation fire but also fire in its cosmic form. because in the RV Soma is compared to barley (2. In this function.13. One should remember that Agni.5 and 10. If my reconstruction of RV 10.16. No 2.16.68. 69..13 to express the recurrent return of the dead.14. as the recipient of the requests expressed at 10. At the same time.3) and identified with rain. 27. which inseminates the earth with the dead person as seed so that he can be reborn from it. pp. This opens the way to the later belief that the dead are reborn in plants. so the request to Agni for transforming the dead into rain and pouring it back to the earth is consistent with the Àgvedic cosmology. the cooling ceremony and the ritual sowing would be the external manifestation of the cosmic process just reconstructed 69. the adverb punáΔ is used in 10. 34 (2008) The cremation fire.16. 2. the sun.8). And as it was believed that the sun was the source of rain.13b is correct.204 Indologica Taurinensia. About ritual ploughing at funeral and its sexual and procreative meaning see Wojtilla G.18 Let us recapitulate the rebirth eschatology reconstructed on the basis of the Àgvedic evidence: the dead person.3 and to create the image of Agni. who sows the dead person like barley from sacks. 193-199.14. In that case. having burnt the dead person. is now requested to sow him. the figurative meaning of sowing to express insemination allows the recipient to create the image of Agni. then we can even see the closeness between the images construed in this stanza and those in the descriptions of Parjanya: Agni throws away barley from his sack as Parjanya empties his bucket of water (5.

come home again.. This would anticipate the later ethicised versions of rebirth eschatology (see Conclusion).143. W.32.10..2). The Maruts are ´ who creates shaped in the highest heaven: RV 7. 71.41-42). 6. yáº tvám agne samádahas tám u nír våpayå púnaΔ) to be reborn among his relatives (~yur vásåna úpa `). Kosmogonia… 72.4. the earth and the truth (Ωtá) (1. O [you].18: sáº gachasva pitΩ ´bhiΔ sáº yaméneß™åpærténa paramé vyòman | ` suvárcåΔ || hitv~yåvadyám púnar ástam éhi sáº gachasva tanvå (10.15. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 205 was poured as a Somic oblation into the cremation fire (yás ta ~hutaƒ). Verses a-b express the request that the dead should go up to the sky to meet not only Yama but also his fathers.8) Unite with fathers.5.7.82. pitΩ ´bhyo as ablative. Life after death…. 5.62. He reached the sun (áva sΩja púnar agne pitΩ ´bhyo.2. This agrees with the common belief that the world where the dead go is the world of their ancestors (Obeyesekere 2002).Joanna Jurewicz.14.7. Indra drinks Soma in the highest heaven: RV 3. unite with Yama. pitΩ ´bhyo as dative). unite with sacrifices and good deeds in the highest heaven. it did not exist before the creation. This cycle can also be reconstructed vetu ƒéßaΔ sáº gachatåº tanvå on the basis of RV 10. . Indra grows up in the first (prathamá) heaven: RV 8.1. pp.129.129. beautifully shining. The highest heaven is the place where the gods are born and grow up 72. Having left [everything that is] blameable. 35-36. According to 10. For a full reconstruction of the concept of paramá vyòman. see Jurewicz J.2.2. Birth of BΩhaspati in the highest heaven: RV 4. Paramá vyòman is a place situated somewhere at the borders of the universe. Bodewitz H. Birth of Agni in the highest heaven: RV 1. where he enjoyed the contradictory afterlife state (cárati svadh~bhiΔ).2.13. In the highest heaven a gaurœ the world remains (1. It is also the place that supports the sky.164.8. iß™åpærtá is a hapax legomenon and one can only presume that good deeds done during the lifetime positively influence the situation in the afterlife 70. Then he was sent back by the sun in the form of rain (áva sΩja púnar agne pitΩ ´bhyo.7 adds that this is the place where the eye-witness of the world remains 71.50. 10. Although there is no direct evidence in 70.14. 7. unite with your body.

which gives him freedom from any blame or shame. The influence of Soma is also expressed by the epithet suvárcas. Compare Potdar K. origin and growth). Die religion…. In the sense of mixing and meeting. the dead person should ‘come home again’. there is no reason why we should not agree with Renou.48. Bombay: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.23.5. the most obvious place of rebirth was one’s own family. 310-312. Oberlies T. 6). it would be difficult to state which self they are expected to unite with. Paris: Gallimard. see especially mixing Soma with milk expressed in terms of a bull’s meeting cows 9. we know from the RV that Soma influenced its drinker in such a way that he became shining (e. compare Oberlies T. In view of the preceding analysis. ‘the body. . Geldner maintains that it happens during sacrifice to the manes. Hymnes spéculatifs du Véda. which he drank on the sun.2. pp. which highlights perfection gained by the dead person thanks to cremation fire and Soma. This transformation is activated by hitv~yåvadyám. ´ . Renou observes the equivocality of the phrase and believes that it may have expressed a request to the dead to come back to the earth 74. the idea of rebirth expressed here is more probable than the return of the dead for the sacrifice to the manes because.3. This is discussed in Jurewicz J. in my opinion this is the most probable interpretation. Especially that we do not know much about the Àgvedic sacrifice to the manes 76. R. Die Religion…. Kosmogonia…. Obeyesekere G.2. p. 480-481.9.206 Indologica Taurinensia. 10. 34 (2008) the RV that this place was identified with the sun. influence.16.There is one aspect of the Àgvedic belief about afterlife which is not discussed here (due to lack of space and because it is less relevant to the topic of transmigration). 16. 76. compare Oberlies T.g. 1953: pp. Kosmogonia… 74. 8. What is more. 128-130. see also 1. Die Religion…. 1956. Renou L. According to the second hemistich. ‘shining’. just as he had drank it at the sacrifices during his life (see Jurewicz J. Taking this into account.93. 10.9. the person. In my opinion. I would like to point out that the verbal root saº gam. Imagining…. Sacrifice in the Àgveda (Its nature. 10. It was believed that the dead person underwent transformation thanks to the influence of the cremation fire and Soma.used with a noun in the instrumental form very clearly expresses the idea of uniting. p.23. As we have seen. we ` suvárcåΔ (like the phrase will see that the phrase sáº gachasva tanvå ` sáº gachatåº tanvå jåtavedaΔ. 474 ff). in the latter case. the self’ activates the idea of visthe word tanæ 73. 75. Even the very name of this place suggests that it is a sphere situated somewhere high up in the sky 73.5d) expresses the wish that the dead person should unite with themselves when they come back home. in some contexts. pp.

cit). The first oblation is immortality [and] waters (amΩtam åpas). The third usage of suvárcas refers to Særyå (10.14. Brill. and thus his regaining a new body and life. I have shown elsewhere that the first oblation in the model of the pañcågnividyå can be understood as a manifestation of the dead per77.51.11. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 207 ibility 77. On the other hand. The Jaiminœya Bråhma∫a version of the pañcågnividyå does not mention the kßatriyas..8.85.80. the person. Conclusion This rebirth eschatology reconstructed above has all the features of the rebirth eschatology characteristic of small-scale societies described by Obeyesekere (op. the bodies of Agni are visible: 10. Suvárcas too activates this idea in 1. Probably. the activate all the meanings of the word tanæ self’) to express the concept of the rebirth of a dead person in his own family group (at ‘home’). 5. then he becomes rain. The dawn makes her body visible: 1. where it is used to denote Agni visible at night as fire (chukró anyásyåº dadΩƒe duvárcåΔ) 78. It is clear from the sentence closing the description that the five levels of the model are seen as levels of transformation of water: pañcamyåº visΩß™yåº divyå åpaΔ purußavåco vadanti At the fifth creation the divine waters speak with a human voice (1. Leiden: E. Bodewitz’s translation (Bodewitz H. The next oblations are King Soma. semen and a human being. Imagining… shows that a person is a comglomerate of his own individuality and of the individuality of his ancestor. it is referred to in later thought and elaborated in accordance with the needs of its recipients. In my opinion. its view of how the world works is very similar to the Upanißadic model. . the poet intended to ´ (‘the body. food.1-2. 3. Translation and commentary with a study of Agnihotra and Prå∫ågnihotra.4.45) 80.123.95. W. 80. Obeyesekere G. 79.1d. 78. One can presume that idea of visibility is also expressed in 10.d and that the stanza expresses the expectation that the dead person will appear in his visible self. It begins with the sun identified with Agni Vaiƒvånara.Joanna Jurewicz.44b). J. Jaiminœya Bråhma∫a. 1973). preserving at the same time his individuality 79.

. The Conditioned Genesis of the Early Teachings. It is worth adding however that the author of the Jaiminœya Bråhma∫a had al- 81. water is the form under which he comes back to earth. Then the Jaiminœya Bråhma∫a describes two ways the dead person may take.45 is repeated in BΩhadåra∫yaka and Chåndogya Upanißad with some minor changes which do not modify the main idea of how the world works. the Fire and the pañcågnividyå”.49-50). when he shows how the Buddha ethicized the Bråhma∫ic ontology. How Buddhism Began. takes the same direction 82. using the Àgvedic belief that he comes back to earth in a watery form. and the upanißadic pitΩyåna presents this process from the point of view of an individual. the second one disperses in the air. 34 (2008) son who rises from the funeral pyre: his immortal part reaches the sun and becomes water 81. The really new thing is – as Obeyesekere shows it – the ethical dimension of the final form assumed on the pitΩyåna track.8). If the dead person does not understand himself. He stays in the sun and never dies (Jaiminœya Bråhma∫a 1. Viewed from this perspective the similarity between the pañcågnividyå model of Jaiminœya Bråhma∫a and the Àgvedic rebirth eschatology is clear: the sun is the final point of the dead person’s journey. which depends on good and bad deeds. and with the third one the dead person returns to the world. Jurewicz J.46). pp. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass 2004. The model of pañcågnividyå established in JB 1. his good deeds are divided into three: the first part is taken by a guardian of the sun.14. Mejor. The pitΩyåna develops and elaborates the idea of the return of the third part of the dead person. the model of pañcågnividyå describes the world as animated by the dead circulating between heaven and earth. his good deeds are taken by his fathers and grandfathers (compare RV 10. The afterlife situation depends on knowledge (which leads to the devayåna) and on deeds (which leads to the pitΩyåna). M. Gombrich R. Then he dies again (1. P. If the dead person answers the question properly. Thus understood.208 Indologica Taurinensia. Gombrich’s argument. 45-60 82. London & Atlantic Highlands: Athlone 1996 . depending on his understanding of himself. “Prajåpati.) Essays in Indian philosophy. religion & literature. (Eds. In: Balcerowicz.

having died. 217-281 86.8 where the dead is supposed to meet ‘sacrifices and good deeds’ (iß™åpærtá). who asks the question. p. but the future birth depends on deeds too (yathåkarma yathåvidyam 1. The right answer is the same verse as in the Jaiminœya Bråhma∫a. 84. 10.2. of wind. the earlier ma∫∂alas were composed to fulfil the needs of other rituals (such as the New Year’s Festival) 85. I am aware that many of these problems still need a solution. are reborn and again become the food of the death. 4. 10.2). which enables human beings to influence and guide their future. I would add this passage to the evidence gathered by Killingley.15. not the season. Rebirth eschatology in the Àgveda 209 ready made a step towards ethicization: in his model the dead person who does not know himself is not reborn in the family (as implied by the Àgvedic evidence) and the place where he is reborn depends not only on his knowledge but also on his charity 83.14.Joanna Jurewicz. “Ancient Indian verbal contest”. in the times of the RV there may have been various beliefs that influenced the religion attested in the RV. Jaiminœya Bråhma∫a 1. The Kaußœtaki Upanißad’s version is between the Jaiminœya Bråhma∫a and the Upanißadic version: the afterlife lot depends on the dead person’s knowledge.154 . which confirms the Vedic sources of the Upanißadic deva-/ pitΩyåna. the guardian of the sun.18. are reborn again and become immortal.9-10 the immortality can be gained by knowledge (vidy~) or by ritual (kárman). Thus they introduced the idea of personal responsibility and of individual freedom.3. The paths…. The dead person reaches the moon. J. Indo-Iranian Journal. That hymns connected to cremation and death ceremonies appear only in the last ma∫∂ala of the RV 86 reflects a broadening of interests and new needs which could be caused by that influence. 10. It is worth noticing that according to ˙atapatha Bråhma∫a 10.14. both identified with fire-altar (ágni). and not the sun (etad vai svargasya lokasya dvåraº yac candramåΔ 1. 1960. of Indra and of Prajåpati. then he either goes back to the earth or to brahman passing through the worlds of fire. As Kuiper showed. The kßatriyas transformed this into a general concept of an ethical dependence of the afterlife upon deeds 84.). 83. 10. 85. but it is the moon. B. of Varu∫a. According to Obeyesekere. It seems that this step had already been prepared in RV 10. having died. People who have knowledge or perform ritual. One of them is why there are so few references to the rebirth theory in the RV.4.16. Those who do not have knowledge or do not perform ritual. 10. Kuiper F.46: sa yo håsya dånajito loko bhavati.

. 34 (2008) If my interpretation of the three stanzas of the RV is right. p. Obeyesekere G. . Imagining Karma…. then Obeyesekere is wrong in one point. He writes: ‘any attempt to trace the history of the idea of rebirth from texts that exist only through the accident of history is by definition futile’ 87. 87.210 Indologica Taurinensia. I hope that my presentation has shown that even if the texts exist through the accident of history. they may help us to trace the history of the idea of rebirth. 14.

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