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these properties.
To easily grasp the spirit of mantra the following translation will be
helpful.
We shall describe here the energy generating virtues of the powerful
horses(planets),added with brilliant properties of the vigorous force of heat.
The learned never dispute these properties.
There is vast difference in the above quoted translations. Obviously
the wrong seeds were sown by Sayan and Mahidhar who were the models
adopted by the western scholars, namely Max Muller, Griffith , Wilson etc.
Sw.Dayanand Saraswati in his book "An Introduction to the Vedas" has
adversely criticised the commentaries of Sayan and Mahidhar in context of
some of their interpretations of the Vedic hymns. They could be held
responsible for the horrible and horried interpretations which suggest as if
the Vedas were the texts to lay down the modes of sacrifices. Is it not a
tragedy for the Dharamacharyas/Sanskrit scholars of this country that they
also could not pursue the path shown by Dayanand and got bogged down
only in the rituals of worship in the temples and no attention was paid to the
sources of knowledge which were the guiding principles of Aryans, our worthy
ancestors and sons of the mother India (Aryavarta) as the Vedas proclaimed
man as 'amritasya putras' and we need to follow this path if we want to be
proud of our heritage and hold our head high or otherwise we are going to
be labelled with the legacy of butchers and animal killers who desired to
please different gods by various sacrifices performed in the yajnas.
Eighth mantra of this Sukta is translated as follows:
The fleet of horses is controlled by holding of bridles and saddles
placed thereon. To make them strong, the grass and cereals are fed to
them. Like wise, the learned people control and regulate their power of
senses and taking nourishing diet.
Wilson's translation is as follows:
May the halter and the heel-ropes of the fleet courser, and the head-
ropes, the girths, and any other (part of the harness); and the grass that has
been put into his mouth; may all these be with you,(horse),amongst the
gods. (THIS IS NOTHING BUT LITERAL AND MECHANICAL
TRANSLATON BEREFT OF THE SUBSTANCE & SPIRIT OF THE
MANTRA)
Ninth mantra was again wrongly interpreted by Max Muller, Wilson
and Griffith to translate the word 'kravishah' as the flesh. It is an adjective of
'ashvasya' and derived from kramu-padavikshepe. Hence it means ' the
pacing horse' and not of the flesh. 'shamituh' has been translated by Prof.
Max Muller and Wilson as of the immolator. Griffith has translated it as 'of a
slayer'. But etymologically `sam-alochane' means `to look at' (with love and
peace) and should mean ' a person who looks at the living beings with love
and peace and not slayer'.
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