bustle of this noisy world; but there the sky was still, as bright and calm as ever. The All-Father must be there, unchangeable in the unchanging heaven; bright, and pure, and boundless like the heavens; and like the heavens, too, silent and far off.

'So they named him after the heaven, Tuisco—the God who lives in the clear heaven, the heavenly Father. He was the Father of gods and men; and man was the son of Tuisco and Hertha-heaven and earth.'

462

LECTURE XI.

A

MYTHS OF THE DAWN.

FTER having, in my last Lecture, gathered toge

ther the fragments of the most ancient and most exalted deity worshipped once by all the members of the Aryan stock, I shall, to-day, examine some of the minor deities, in order to find out whether they too can be referred to the earliest period of Aryan speech and Aryan thought-whether they too existed before the Aryans broke up in search of new homes; and whether their memory was preserved more or less distinctly in later days in the poems of Homer and the songs of the Veda. These researches must necessarily be of a more minute kind, and I have to ask for your indulgence if I here enter into details which are of little general interest, but which, nevertheless, are indispensable, in order to establish a safe basis for speculations very apt to mislead even the most cautious inquirer.

I begin with the myth of Hermes, whose name has been traced back to the Vedic Saramâ. My learned friend Professor Kuhn, who was the first to analyse the meaning and character of Saramâ, arrived at the conclusion that Saramâ meant storm, and that the Sanskrit word was identical with the Teutonic

seq.

* In Haupt's Zeitschrift für Deutsches Alterthum, vi. p. 119

storm, and with the Greek hormé. No doubt the root of Saramâ is sar, to go, but its derivation is by no means clear, there being no other word in Sanskrit formed by ama, and with guna of the radical vowel. But admitting that Saramâ meant originally the runner, how does it follow that the runner was meant for storm? It is true that Saranyu, masc., derived from the same root, is said to take in later Sanskrit the meaning of wind and cloud, but it has never been proved that Saranyû, fem., had these meanings. The wind, whether as vâta, vâyu, marut, pavana, anila, &c., is always conceived as a masculine in Sanskrit, and the same applies generally to the other Aryan languages. This, however, would be no insurmountable objection, if there were clear traces in the Veda of Saramâ being endowed with any of the characteristic qualities of the wind. But if we compare the passages in which she is mentioned with others in which the power of the storm is described, we find no similarity whatever. It is said of Sarama that she espied the strong stable of the cows (i. 72, 8), that she discovered the cleft of the rock, that she went a long journey, that she was the first to hear the lowing of the cows, and perhaps that she led the cows out (iii. 31, 6). She did this at the instance of Indra and the Angiras (i. 62, 3); Brihaspati (i. 62, 3) or Indra (iv. 16, 8) split the rock, and recovered the cows, which cows are said to give food to the children of man (i. 62, 3; 72, 8); perhaps, to the offspring of Sarama herself (i. 62, 3). Saramâ appears in time

* See Unâdi-Sûtras, ed. Aufrecht, iv. 48. Sármaḥ, as a substantive, running, occurs Rv. i. 80, 5. The Greek ὁρμή, corresponds with this word in the feminine, but not with saramâ.

before Indra (iv. 16, 8), and she walks on the right path (iv. 45, 7 and 8).

This is about all that can be learnt from the RigVeda as to the character of Saramâ, with the exception of a hymn in the last book, which contains a dialogue between her and the Panis, who had robbed the cows. The following is a translation of that

hymn:

The Panis said: 'With what intention did Saramâ reach this place? for the way is far, and leads tortuously away. What was your wish with us? How was the night?* How did you cross the waters of the Rasâ?' (1.)

Sarama said: 'I come, sent as the messenger of Indra, desiring, O Panis, your great treasures; this preserved me from the fear of crossing, and thus I crossed the waters of the Rasâ.' (2.)

The Panis: What kind of man is Indra, O Saramâ, what is his look, he as whose messenger thou camest from afar? Let him come hither, and we will make friends with him, and then he may be the cowherd of our cows.' (3.)

Sarama: 'I do not know that he is to be subdued, for it is he himself that subdues, he as whose messenger I came hither from afar. Deep streams do not overwhelm him; you, Panis, will lie prostrate, killed by Indra.' (4.)

The Panis: Those cows, O Saramâ, which thou desirest, fly about the ends of the sky, O darling.

* Paritakmyâ is explained in the Dictionary of Boehtlingk and Roth in the sense of random travelling. It never has that sense in the Veda, and as Saramâ comes to the Panis in the morning, the question, how was the night, is perfectly natural.

Who would give them up to thee without fighting? for our weapons too are sharp.' (5.)

Saramâ. Though your words, O Panis, be unconquerable, though your wretched bodies be arrowproof, though the way to you be hard to go, Brihaspati will not bless you for either.' (6.

เ

The Panis: That store, O Saramâ, is fastened to the rock; furnished with cows, horses, and treasures. Panis watch it who are good watchers; thou art come in vain to this bright place.' (7.)

Saramâ: Let the Rishis come here fired with Soma, Ayasya (Indra§) and the ninefold Angiras; they will divide this stable || of cows; then the Panis will vomit out this speech.' (8.)

The Panis: Even thus, O Saramâ, thou art come hither driven by the violence of the gods; let us make thee our sister, do not go away again; we will give thee part of the cows, O darling.' (9.)

Saramâ: I know nothing of brotherhood or sisterhood; Indra knows it and the awful Angiras. They seemed to me anxious for their cows when I came; therefore get away from here, O Panis, far away.'**(10.)

'Go far away, Panis, far away; let the cows come out straight; the cows which Brihaspati found hid away, Soma, the stones, and the wise Rishis.' (11.)

In none of these verses is there the slightest indication of Saramâ as the representative of the

asenyá, not hurtful, B. R.

tanishavyá, not to be destroyed, B. R.

Ubhaya, with the accent on the last syllable, is doubtful.

§ Cf. i. 62, 7, and B. R. s. v.

ûrva is called drilha, Rv. i. 72, 8.

Will be sorry for their former speech.

** varîyah, in das Weite.

HH