AsuraVaruna PDF

Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
"ASURA VARUṆA"
Author(s): R. N. Dandekar
Source: Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Vol. 21, No. 3/4 (1939-40),
pp. 157-191
Published by: Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
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Annals of the
Bhandarkar Oriental
Research Institute
Vol. XXI] April -July 1940 [ Parts III-IV
" A8ÜRA VARUNA " *
BY
R. N. Dandekar, M.A., Ph.D.
Paradoxical as it may seem, one will all the same be justified

in saying that the Vedic researches have been the earliest and
the richest among the indological researches and still the unsol-
ved Vedic problems are greatest in number among the indologi-
cal problems. Particularly the field of Vedic mythology cannot
be said even now to have been fully and satisfactorily exploited.
The asura Varuna, for example, is the most august and greatly
elevated divinity in the pantheon of Vedic gods and still his
essential character remains enigmatic. This paradox may
appear to be still more striking ! What is it that gave Varuna
the exalted position which he holds in the Rgveda ( RV. ) ? Why,
inspite of the comparatively smaller number of hymns dedicated
to his praise, is he regarded, by the side of Indra, as the great*
est of the gods of the RV ? Why, again, in certain cases, is he
represented to be far superior to Indra - sometimes even as the
God among gods ?
Broadly speaking any hypothesis regarding the essential
nature of a Vedic god, in order to be proper and correct, must
fulfil the following conditions •*
( 1 ) We ought to be in a position to present, on the basis of
that hypothesis, a complete picture of that god as far as possible
* Paper read at the B. O. R. Institute on 26th September 1940.
158 Annaìs of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
consistent with his essential characteristics, as described in the

Veda, his peculiar relation with other Vedic gods and thç main
conceptions with which he is associated, in a special way, in
the Veda.
( 2 ) From the point of view of the history of religion, the
hypothesis must normally make it possible to connect that god
satisfactorily with the indo-germanic ( idg ) religious thought.
If, however, the conception underlying that god were to be
regarded as the result of foreign influence or purely as an in-
digenous growth, that fact too must be historically explainable.
( 3 ) The hypothesis must further make it possible to acc-
ount reasonably for the later modifications in the nature of that
god in the classical Indian mythology.
( 4 ) Finally the hypothesis must be based on sound philolo-
gical grounds. Since 4 mythology is but an old form of language'
all conclusions regarding the god's personality ought to be cor-
roborated by definite linguistic facts. .
It is intended here to make a fresh approach to the Varuna-
problem on these lines.
Let us first try to present, in a general way, a connected,
picture of Varuna and his greatness, through a constructive
analysis of the Vedic hymns directly addressed to him as well
as other Vedic references. 1
Varuna is preeminently called the asura ( I. 35. 7 ; II. 27. 10 ;
VII. 65.2; VIII. 42.1) and is often glorified as the upholder of the
cosmic law - ria ( I. 23.5). He is rtasya gopã or rtavãn par excell-
ence. His ordinances are constantly said to be fixed, which fact
gives him the significant iitls-dhrtavrata. He is the regulator of
waters ( II. 28.4 5 V. 85. 6 ; VII. 64. 2 ) ; indeed all natural phe-
nomena are controlled and directed by this god. The gods them-
selves follow Var una's law ( VIII. 41. 7 ) and are incapable of
obstructing in any way the proper conduct of that law. The
divine dominion of Varuna is often referred to with the word
maya , occult power. On account of this maya, Varuna wields
1 The following Vedio referenoes, among others, are particularly repre-
sentative of Varuça's personality and true nature : -
I. 24 ; I. 25 ; V. 67. 1-2 ; VII, 86 ; VII. 87 ; VII. 88 ; VIII. 41 ; VIII. 42 ;
X. 124. 3-4 ; AV. 16. About AV. IV. 16, Roth remarks : • There is no hymn
in the whole Vedic literature whioh expresses the divine omniscience in such
foroeful terms as this ' ; Macniool adds : ' and it would not be easy to find
in any literature many passages to surpass it in this respect. '
Asura Varuna 159
supreme sovereignty over the whole universe, which is said to

have been originally created by him. He is the imperial ruler,
samrãj , of all, both gods and men ( X. 132.4 ; II, 27.10 ), of the
whole world ( V. 85.3 ) and of all that exists. Not even the
slightest activity in nature and in human and animal life passes
unnoticed by him. The rising and the setting of the sun, the
falling of rains, the growth of vegetation, the flowing of rivers,
the flying of birds, even the winking of the eye are governed by
the subtly working law of Varuna. In his capacity of the world-
sovereign, Varuna is said to be commanding a large band of
spies (I. 24.13 ; VI. 67.5; VII. 61.3 ; VII. 87.3), who being
undeceived, undismayed and wise, observe keenly all the happen-
ings in the universe and report to their master, without delay,
any cases of lapse against and transgression of that law. The over-
lord, Varuna, himself has the sun for his eye. ( I. 115.1 ; VI. 51.
1 ; VII. 61.1 ), so that he can supervise unobstructedly the
happenings in the universe and the activities of human beings.
Varuna's golden abode is in the highest heaven ( V. 67.2 ) ; there
he occupies his seat, which is great, very lofty, and firm on
account of a thousand columns. It is the duty of the all-seeing
sun, together with other spies, to go to the dwelling of Varuna
and report the deeds of men ( VII. 60.1 ). Varuna is the un-
failing witness of men's truth and falsehood ( VII. 49.3 ). He
perceives all that exists within heaven and earth and all that is
beyond ; none can escape from Varuna by fleeing even far be-
yond the sky ( AV. IV. 16. 4-5 ).
This vast expanse of the world is not an irregular chaos. It
is bound down by the pãsa of Varuna into a well-regulated
whole. It is cosmos. The law of Varuna - rta - works in a subtle
but most effective manner throughout the universe. This is
indeed the mãyã of the great asura ! And if any perpetrator of
crime against this cosmic law- and, by logical extension, also
against the moral law - is found, he is forthwith punished with
the pãsa of Varuna. The pãsa of Varuna, which thus seems to
be serving a double purpose, is positively an exclusive feature
of that god. The great asura is, therefore, approached in great
awe, and prayers for mercy are addressed to him. But this world-
sovereign, characterised by all the glory of an oriental ruler, is
often very relentless in matters pertaining to the proper conduct
i6o Annals oj the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
of his law. It is Varuna who creates the universe and guards

the cosmic law. As a moral governor also Varuna stands far
above any other deity. He is the strongest barrier against every
type of falsehood. This ethical idealisation is perhaps the most
outstanding feature of Varuna's personality. His epithets, asura
mãyin , dhrtavrata , rtavãn etc. point to the same essential nature.
Another significant peculiarity of Varuna is his special asso-
ciation with Mitra and the Ädityas. Mitra and Varuna are often
inseparably bound to each other ; and Varuna is represented, in
the Veda, as the highest among the Ädityas. Together with them
he forms an independent circle of Vedic divinities, to whom is
principally entrusted the guardianship of law - cosmic and moral.
Their main characteristic is not the achievement of enormous
exploits, as in the case of Indra ; they govern the law which
regulates the whole universe. A very striking parallel of this
circle of Vedic gods is found in the Avestan religion where
Ahura Mazdah, Mithra and Amesa Spentas also form a similar
group. They too represent the supreme heavenly sovereignty.
The eminence of Varuna as the creator of the universe, as the
world-sovereign, as the protector of law, andas the moral go-
vernor of mankind, had developed, in the Veda, to such an enor-
mous extent that there naturally arose a unique rivalry for
supremacy between him and Indra, the other paramount god of
the Vedic pantheon. Several Vedic references are indicative of
this rivalry which forms unquestionably one of the most impor-
tant features of the Vedic mythology. It may be mentioned, in
this context, that in marked contrast with Indra and many other
Vedic gods, Varuna has no myths related of him ; consequently
the anthropomorphism of his personality is more fully developed
on the spiritual rather than the physical side.
The personality of Varuna is shrouded, in the Veda, with a
mysterious and majestic grandeur. His unapproachable magni-
ficence and awe-inspiring power, his inexorable austerity and
incomprehensibly divine wisdom inspire the Vedic seer to a A
anxious but commanding worship and self-abnegation rather
than to expressions of frank and friendly confidence. All traces
of human weakness that are clearly perceptible in the character
of Indra are conspicuously absent in Varuna's character. The seer
of & Vedio passage seems to have summarised substantially the
Asura Varuna i6i
true Vedic character of Varuna when h

( VII. 87.6. ).
What conclusions regarding the pe
nature of Varuna can be drawn from the Vedic evidence adduced
above ? Does Varuna, like many other Vedic gods, represent
any power of nature and, if so, which ? Can we trace the concep-
tion underlying this god to other idg. religions ? How did the
personality of this god develop in the later Hindu mythology ?
Before directly approaching these problems regarding the
Vedic god, Varuna, in a constructive manner, we may begin by
critically examining the several earlier theories about Varuna by
applying to them the tests mentioned above.
The most common view, put forth by soBolars like Eoth,
Darmesteter, Hopkins, Bohnenberger, L. von Schröder and Bloom-
field, is to regard Varuna as the sky-god. Even Hillebrandt
had originally subscribed to this view, though he later on
revised his opinion. This theory is mainly based on the name
Varuna, which is derived by these scholars from the root vf, 4 to
cover ' or 4 to encompass To ťtífc simple minds of the ancient
peoples, it was argued by them, the sky actually seemed to be
covering or encompassing the earth and all that it contained.
Those ancient people accepted unhesitatingly the impressions
conveyed to them by their senses and the blue vault of the sky
was for them actually a vault, solid and immutable, covering
everything. It was further believed that this theory was sub-
stantially corroborated by the apparent identity, from the philo-
logical point of view, of the two names, Varuna and Ouranos,
the Greek sky-god. Varuna was, according to these scholars,
none other than the Vedic counterpart of Greek Ouranos. There
was, however, already one sky-god in the Vedic pantheon,
namely Dyauö. This god can be shown, on the strength of
philological and mythological evidence, to have been common
to almost all idg. religions. What then was the necessity of a
second sky-god ? Schröder explains this contingency by saying
that Dyaus and Varuna represent two different aspects of the
sky. Dyaus represents the bright and shining day-sky, while in
Varuna, the pervading and the all-encompassing nature of the
sky is particularly emphasised. Varuna may be said to be the
4 firmament 1 in contrast to Dyaus, which is the 4 shining sky. '
1 62 Annals of the Bhandarkat Oriental 'Research Institute
Since this encompassing or pervading nature is conspicuously

realisable through the starry vault of the night-sky, Varuna is
closely associated with the night in RV-hymns. It was sugges*
xed by Schroder that when Indians and Iranians lived together
as one common cultural group, they glorified a sky-god as the
creator of the universe. Varuna and Ahura Mazdah, whose
common mythological heritage can hardly be questioned, are the
two independent developments of this original Aryan god. RV.-
passages like
*T <TT* WPT7T ^
*r fsr»gr i
ïtw a?r 3«n$rerf
sir n ( VIII. 41.3 )
sis snpcrm»r% 11 ( VIII. 41.7 )

ťrteřt *rrâr ffrifřrr
řrj# irikro: I
*T5ŤT q#
fèrnipi gir M ( VII. 87.5 )
however would clearly indicate that the Vedic Varuna is defini-
taly closer in conception to that original sky-god of the Aryans.
Ahura Mazdah, on the other hand, was, in later times, greatly
spiritualised and idealised by Zarathusthra in his reform-move-
ment. Bortholomae, Darmesteter, Eggers, and Spiegel maintain,
all the same, that Ahura Mazdah also is the abstraction of the
idea of sky. In Avesta, varem is the name of a mythological
land which is said to be cathrugaosha. The linguistic affinity
between the words, Varuna and vařena, is, supposed to be quite
evident. This mythological locality is, according to some scho-
lars, to be identified with the expanse of the sky ' with its four
corners. ' It may be remembered, in this connection, that, in the
Veda, Varuna too is said to be caturanika. This was considered
as another piece of evidence in favour of the sky-theory. Attem-
pts have also been made to connect the word Varuna philologi-
cally with Armenian ( Arm. ) garuna which means the bright
sky. In the course of time, however, there began, in the evolu-
tion of the Vedic religious thought, the process of spiritualisa-
tion, which all nature-gods had to undergo at some stage of their
Asura V atutía 1 6$
career, Varuna thus rose from the 4 sky 9 to be

sky ,' presiding over all the natural phenomena o
is the foundation and the scene ; and in the later
was finally regarded as the supreme embodimen
well as the maker of the law, which controlled t
of nature. The transition from the guardianship of the cosmic
order to that of the moral order was then merely a matter of
logical extension* It is even boldly suggested that such a deve-
lopment of the Varuna-conception might have been in the
mind of Kant when he said : 4 Zwei Dinge erfüllen das
Gemüt mit immer neuer und zunehmender Bewunderung,
je öfter und anhaltender sich das Nachdenken damit bes-
chäftigt : Der bestirnte Himmel über mir und das moralische
Gesetz in mir ! ' The sun is described, in the Veda, to be thé
eye of Varuna ( 1. 115.1 ; VI. 51.1 ; VII. 61.1 ), which can be best
understood if Varuna were regarded as the sky-god. Max Müller
recognises, in the physical Varuna only the 4 starry ' night-side,
while Knauer, who connects the name Varuna with varria , 'black
colour/ emphasises ' darkness 9 as the main characteristic of that
god and therefore identifies Varuna with the 4 night-sky 9 of the
ur-idg. period.
It must be said with regard to this theory, which primarily
identifies Varuna with Greek Ouranos and thus regards him as
a sky-god, that it is based on a fundamentally incorrect ety-
mology. It will be found that all derivatives, in the ^-themes,
from the root vr% 4 to cover, ' with which the Gk. word, Ouranos,
is usually philogically connected, always show a long vowel ;
for instance, Sk. varütar , varutra , varütha , as also Gk. rutõr , rütér
eruto. If therefore the word Varuna were to be derived from the
root vr, 4 to cover,' one would naturally expect to find 4 varuria
with long ru. Even Schroder, who is a strong protagonist of the
sky-theory, himself confesses that there are objections, based
also on phonetic grounds, to the acceptance of the equation,
Varuna = Ouranos. Macdonell quotes in his Vedic Mythology the
view of Joh. Schmidt, namely, that it was not so easy, as it
would seem, to connect Varuna linguistically with Ouranos.
Lately the French scholar, Dumézil, has again assumed the
identity of Varuna and Ouranos, but he derives those two words
from quite a different root and consequently draws quite a differ-
ent conclusion regarding the personality of Varuna. As regards
164 Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
the suggestion that Vedio Varuna may be connected with Arm.

gar una, Hübschmann has clearly shown that those words háve
hardly anything to do with each other from the philological
point of view. Moreover, the original meaning of the word,
gar urn , is the ' spring 9 and not the 4 sky. '
Apart from this basic etymological flaw, the sky-theory
further suffers from another grave defect, namely, that it cannot
fully and rationally explain the special characteristics of Varuna
as described in the Veda. The foremost difficulty in this con-
nection arises from Varuna's close association with Mitra and;
the Ãdifcyas. Even in the Boghazköi inscription the reference
to Varuna is made as ù-ru-wa-iia-as-si-el9 meaning 'Varuna
together with his group. ' So also, Ahura Mazdah is praiöed in
the Avesta as being constantly associated with Mithra and the
Amesa Spentas. This conception of a special circle of divinities
over which Varuna seems to have presided, would not fit properly
in the sky-theory. Further even on the assumption that Mitra
primarily represents the sun-god - this assumption will be latex
on shown to be positively wrong- the pairing of Mitra
and Varuna would appear to be without any special significance.
The plea put forfch by Schröder, in this connection, namely that
the sun and the sky always appear together and may therefore
form a pair of constant companions, is not at all convincing.
Further how can one explain, in that case, the contrast between
Mitra and Varuna, so emphatically implied in a large number
of Vedic passages, such as,
fìnrt 3TfTsnnT5?rîrt *rràr>s( T. S. IV. 4.8.3 ) ?
Moreover nowhere else in the Vedic literature does one find any
indication of a dual divinity like dyãvãmryau, which would
correspond completely with miträvarüfuiu. It is interesting to
note here that Schröder himself later on feels inclined to give
up the hypothesis that Mitra represents the sun-god.
The rivalry between Indra and Varuna, which certainly was
a favourite theme of the Vedic poets, is also rendered meaningless
if Varuna were made to represent the sky-god. Whether, in the
naturalistic interpretation of the Vedic mythology, which is, by
the way, not necessarily always correct, Indra were to be regard-
ed as the sun-god, or as the storm-god, one fails to understand'
why there should be any rivalry between him and the sky-god !
Asura Varuna 165
Further the Vedic passages adduced in sup

theory, such as,
fNřt srrir r%i%ar srffRŘíH ( VII. 87. 5
sfir "T Ti%^r ( IX. 73. 8 )
etc are of suoh a general tenor that one comes across similar
passages with reference to Parjanya ( VII. 102.4 ) or the Ãdityas
(AV. XIII. 2.3). On the other hand, one may consider , with
advantage the following Vedic passages referring to Varuna ;
sa* ^roir srKN1 wra:
«T ( VII. 87 .6)
fr *rg*r aráteregÍT îm^r
fr nnrr srrëmr q^ôrracïrraïw&ss...
Are the phrases dyiuriva sthãd, drapso na švelah, d

and riãkam ãruhat , in any way indicative of th
sky be called apicyah samudrab. ? How is it furt
explain, with the sky-hypothesis, the Vedic
Varuna is connected with Yama ( X. 14.7 ), with
7 ), with papa ( I. 24. 11 ), and with dhürti ( I. 1
No other idg. religion has elavate d the sky-god
position of the g jardianship of the cosmic and mo
is one of the essential characteristics of Varuna in the Veda and
of Ahura Mazdah in the Avesta. The ' father-sky ' - dyaus-pitar,
Jupiter,- is no doubt represented in every idg. mythology but he
has his own restricted domain ancUhis own place, albeit sufficien-
tly high in the pantheon. It is further not clear why Varuna,
the sky-god, should be idealised in the peculiarly ethical dir-
ection and not Dyaus, the sky-god ? The conceptions of rtíãyã
and ria, with which the Vedic Varuna is associated in a special
manner, lose all their essential significance on the assumption
of Varuna' s being identical with the sky. What again are we to
understand by the pãèa of Varuna, according to this theory Î It
must be remembered at the same time that in later Indian liter-
ature we do not find any trace of Varuça representing the sky.
It will thus be seen that none of the above-mentioned four con-
ditions is even slightly fulfilled by the sky-theory, which fact
therefore renders it unacceptable. Other modifications of this
"theory, such as, that Varuna represents the ur-idg. ' night-sky '
( Knauer ), or that he represents the ' starry vault of the sky '
2 [ Atiaals, B. O. R. I. ]
I¿f Annals oj the Èhandarkar Oriental Řesearch Institutè
( Max Müller ) may now be dismised without any further

discussion.
J. J. Meyer has suggested, in his work on legal literature of
ancient India, that Varuna is principally the god of night. 1 The
sins and crimes are usually perpetrated during the night-time
and as the god of night, it is Varuna's function lo prevent them.
It is in this way, argues Meyer, that Varuna becomes the moral
governor of mankind. Another quite a novel theory about
Varuna is put forth by Johansson in his very thought-provoking
monograph on the Vedic goddess, Dhisanã. He believes that
the names Varuna and Vrtra are derived from the same idg.
form *uel-lu , 1 to bind ' 4 to keep under chains. ' This fact would
indicate the commonness of their nature. According to Johans-
son, Varuna and Vrtra are the two aspects of ' winter, * which
keeps the waters of rivers in bondage, one divine aspect and the
other demonaic ! Bergaigne too claims an especially tenebrious
character for Varuna. He sees in him a clear identity with
Vptra, who is the ' restrainer 9 of waters. Varuna's pãéa is, acc-
ording to Bergaigne, indicative of the tying down of waters.
The rivalry between Varuna and Indra is therefore only another
aspect of the conflict between Vrtra and Indra. Varuna's pãéa
is the symbolical representation of the power of winter by means
of which the waters are fettered. Certain stray references like
hemanto hi varuyah ( M. S. 1. 10.12 ), or such possible conjectures
as that the varuriapraghasa sacrifice was performed on the eve of
winter, are adduced by Johansson in support of his theory.
As Sörensen has rightly pointed out, while contradicting the
identification of Varuna with Vrtra, Varuna is represented, in
the Veda* as the lord and friend of waters and not even the
slightest hint is given to the effect that he prevents them from
flowing, as Vrtra does. Further a critical examination of the
Vedic hymns would indicate that Vrtra and Indra on the one
hand and Mitra and Varuna on the other belong to two distinct
i • The conception of Varuça as the god of night seems to be the more

primary conception
each other...
-~J. J. Meyer : Uber das

altindischen Rechtschrifte
Asura Varum 167
types of mythologies. Though therefore the

Varuna may possibly have been derived from
conceptions underlying them have to be thoro
ed from each other, from the point of view of
the history of religion. Moreover a mere ref
the outstanding features of Varuna, as descr
would suffice to disprove completely such v
put forth by Meyer and Johansson. The ver
either the god of night or the winter-god could
an exalted position in any religion is prepost
such other theories 1 seem to disregard comp
l A reference may be made, in this context, to other
the true nature of the Vedio god, Varuna, advanc
Meyer themselves ;
* The most prominent god of fertility in ancient India was Varu$a
this respect he was regarded as the god of the whole

cularly of the Ksatriyas
element of royal power

of seasons and was therefore the god of the year, possess
Varuça and Dyaus ( Mitra ? ). Where he is not represent
phic&lly, he is represented as a horse
Varuiia is mother earth- Aditi or Ppthvl..,

the wife of Varuria
-Johansson : Über die al

DhisartS and Verwandte
• Varuna was primarily chthonic vegetation-god and phallic divinity
his connection with waters which cause growth and life is
phasised
earth he is the king and therefore also the god of law and puoishiment
In EV he ascends to the sky ( not necessarily first then

of atmospheric ocean and makes the rain-waters stream down
turned into the heavenly sovereign-lord of the universe

the T*a
he is the lord of night, and because, on the other, he and So
ties of water and vegetation, are identical
ghtful nature and his lordship over the dead seem to

his original chthonic nature
to have evolved in India
-J. J. Meyer : Trilogie d

Mächte und Feste der Veg
Evidently both Joharsson and Meyer
tial nature and personality of Varuiia.
picture of the Vedic Varuria in a synt
esolusive attributes of that god. Particu
( Continued on next page )
i <68, Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
of the Veda ; they do not take into account the logical develop-
ment of the religious thought among the idg. people in general
and among the Vedic Aryans in particular ; and finally they are
not confirmed by linguistic facts, which those scholars claim
to be supporting their theories.
Oldenberg ( Die Religion des Veda ) comes forth, as usual,
with a refreshingly original theory in this regard. The physical
representations of Varuna, Mitra and the Ãdityas bear, accord-
ing to him, several distinct attributes of light. The same is the
case with regard to the corresponding circle of divinities in the
Avesta, namely, Ahura Mazdah, Mithra and the Amesa Spentas.
Oldenberg starts with the assumption that the fact that Mithra
of the Avesta definitely represents the sun-god is unchallenge-
able. The Vedic counterpart of Mithra, namely Mitra, must
therefore necessarily be the sun-god. Though independent
references to Mitra are not many in the RV, still Oldenberg
claims to find faint traces of his identity with the sun-god even
in the existing material. In III. 59, for instance, general expres-
sions have been used which indicate, acoording to Oldenberg,
without any specific mention, the connection of Mitra with the
sun. More direct references in this connection are found in the
AV:
sr sreor vwih
* ftr^r wfir ' ('AV. XIII. 3.13 )
sn HT cçssrg 1 ( AV. IX. 3.18 ).
In the Brahmaria literature there are numerous passages of a
similar tenor, where Varuna is said to belong to the night and
( continued from the previous page )

to have been considerably influenced by the vegetation-fertility-conception.
In his reoent book. ' Trilogie der altindisohen Mächte etc, * he represents
KSma, Bali and Indra as anoient Indian gods of vegetation and fertility.
Mention may also be made of the theory put forth by N. N. Ghose
( Aryan trail in India and Iran ) that Mitra and Varuna were originally
an inseparable pair like the Aávins and that they represented the same
twin principles of Light and Moisture. According to Ghose these twin prin-
ciples were worshipped under, different designations amongst different
tribes of Proto-Aryan grass-land nomads. He further maintains that
through fusion of tribes, Mitra and Varuna beoame maintainors of Law.
Obviously the Vedic evidence çannot be said to be, in any way, substantiating
{his theory.
Asura Varuna 169
Mitra. to the day. Ritualistically Varuna is co
animal and Mitra with bright-coloured animals. The common
concept of day and night- "Corresponding with Mitra and Varuna,
respectively- repeats itself very often in the sacrificial formulas.
The essential nature of Mitra as the sun-god is thus confirmed,
according to Oldenburg, by Vedic as well as Avestan literary
and ritualistic evidence. Varuna is the constant companion of
Mitra ; the association of Mitra with Varuna iš so predominant
that only one single hymn of the RV is addressed to Mitra alone.
Oldenberg's line of argumentation is as follows: There is in
the Vedic mythology a compact group of seven, mutually-con-
nected gods, namely, the Ãdityas, who are conspicuously dep-
endent upon sky and light. Two from among them, Mitra
and Varuna, have assumed more preeminent forms. One of
these two, namely Mitra, is definitely the sun-god, while the
other one, Varuna, has the features of a god of light with special
reference to night, over whioh he is said to rule. What else can
he possibly represent if not the moon ? The logical extension of
the hypothesis that Mitra is the sun-god, and Varuna is the
moon-god naturally was that the Ãdityas represent the planets.
Besides this hypothesis there is also another side to Oldenberg's
theory. The glorification of the sun, the moon, and the planets
as a compact group of mutually-connected gods, which is to be
seen in the Veda and the Avesta, cannot be traced baok to any
other idg. religion. There are therefore two possibilities regard-
ing the genesis of this religious conception. Either the Indo-
Iranians themselves oreated this group of gods in their own
common religious fervour, or they borrowed those divinities
from a foreign religion. Oldenberg believes that the rather
unique circle of the Ãdityas, with Varuna and Mitra as the
foremost among them, is múre or less foreign to the pantheon of
Vedio gods, whioh is presided over by the Aryan national war-
god, Indra. According to him the Indra-Vrtra-mythology is
genuinely Aryan while the Varuna-Mitra-mythology has been
implanted, in the Vedic religion, from outside. Is it possible,
he asks, that this unique group of gods has been borrowed by
the Indo-Iranins from the Semitic people ( or the Akkadians )
and that from the very beginning it was only half understood
by the borrowers ? The fact that the Semitio people were well-
1 70 Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
versed in the science of astronomy and of numbers, from the

very ancient times, seems to support considerably this conjec-
ture. Moreover there is much other evidence to show that the
Semitic people had developed a sufficiently high type of civilisa-
tion before the Indo-Iranians came in contact with them. The
god Varuna, whom the Aryans are supposed to have borrowed
from the Semitic mythology, does appear, by the side of the
Aryan national god, Indra, as a representative of an older and
distinctly higher culture.
The apparent reasonableness and soundness of this moon-
theory of Oldenberg made even Hillebrandt ( Vedische Mythologie)
revise his original judgment in the matter of the Varuna-pro-
blem. His method of approach to this question was however
different from that of Oldenberg. He attempts to bring forth
evidence in support of his theory from within rather than from
without. One fact must all the same be clearly recognised in
both these cases - and that is certainly a defect in the process of
theorisation - namely that Oldenberg and Hiliebrandt first form
some idea about Varuna's original nature and then try to adduce
evidence in support of that idea. They seem to start with con-
clusions rather than end with them. Hillebrandt considers the
Vedic passages, such as,
ara srîtr srrfor
«T » ( VII. 87.6 )
<er ^rgir *t?t%
*r wrar
as clearly indicative o
cyah samudrah is accor
But more convincing
in the ninth mandala of the RV. In the passage,
Tifft g à gční»r
ff a; »pftf «ra tftw «Tm I
fTOÎfr: 3TT% finir *
11 ( I. 91.3 )
Soma is compared with Mitra and Aryaman ; the juxtaposition
of te and varuqasya in the first pada, on the other hand, clearly
implies that Soma is here considered to be identical with Varuna.
Sometimes even the name Varuna seems to have been used as a
synonym pf Soma ; for instance,
Ášura Varuná ifî
á U^5TT«T 5T fTRT
ří srpr^rnŤ waT g^ÌT

íkar nws ôř li ( IX. 95.4).
Further Soma and Varuna are emphatically described as kavi in
the Vedic hymns. The following stanzas addressed to Varuna
and to Soma exhibit an astounding similarity of contents and
expression :
( to Varuna ) r% *r TT%^r gr? ( IX. 73.8 )
( to Soma ) #fsT "TT%5rr fàçRTròro ( IX. 95.55 )
( to Varuna ) ?n^T ^01 vtrojt rsçws
( to Soma ) fà «nsremr írçtff
In ritual also, at the beginning of the agnisth

is treated as Varuna. The sovereignly of Var
identical with that of Soma. A considerable amount of Vedic
literary and ritualistic evidence can thus be adduced to indicate
that in the minds of the Vedio thinkers, Varuna and Soma were
quite identical. Hillebrandt claims to have proved, finally and
convincingly, that Soma represents the moon. The logical con*
elusion therefore is that Varuna also represents the moon. This
fact is amply corroborated, according to Hillebrandt, by the
wealth of material, indicative of the contrast between Mitra and
Varuna, in the Vedic hymns as well as in the Vedio ritual ( A.
B. III. 4.6 ; T. S. VI, 6.3.5 ). It must be remembered that Hill-
ebrandt unhesitatingly accepts the identification of Mitra with
the sun-god. He however believes that Ahura Mazdah of the
Avesta has nothing to do with Varuna. Otherwise, he argues,
the name Varuna would have been retained in the Iranian lan-
guage in some form or another. The probable question with
regard to the moon-theory, namely, why Ahura Mazdah does
not show, in the Avesta, even the faintest traces of the moon-
god, has thus been anticipated and answered away by Hillebr-
andt. Much emphasis has been placed by him on the sSťra-passage
where Varuna is supposed to be described as ' bald, yellow-eyed,
whitish man, who stands among the waters and receives the
offerings on his head. ' Can there be, he asks, a more picture-
sque representation of the moon than this one ? Varuna' s asso-
ciation with the night is too evident to need special discussion.
A further peculiarity of Varuna is that he is connected with
i ya Annals o f the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
waters as well as with winter. Is the moon not described in a

Vedic passage as the sender of rains ( A. B. VIII. 28.5 ) ? There
are thus three most prominent characteristics in the nature of
Varuna - his connection with the night, his connection with
waters, and his connection with winter. The essential features
of all these three are to be found together in only one entity,
namely, the moon. Further the 4 dismal, ' ' dreary ' and ' dark '
features in Varuna 's personality can be adequately accounted
for, according to Oldenberg and Hillebrandt, only on the mpon-
hypothesis, The unique idealisation of Varuna into a sovereign
-lord of the universe holding sway ovQr all aspects of natural as
well as human life need not surprise anyone. As indicated by
H. Lommel in Ms 4 Die alten Arier ' the moon is glorified to the
same extent, in many primitive religions, as Varuna in the Veda.
Oldeoberg mentions, in this connection, the indigenous Ame-
rican religions as well as the Finnish mythology, wherein the
moon is considered as the almighty god. Even the hymn to
Nannar - the moon-god of Ur - quoted by Sayce, would remind
one of a prayer addressed to Varuna by the Väsisthas !
This theory, namely that Varuna primarily represents the
moon, first propounded by Oldenberg, in his distinctive manner,
and later on so very ably supported by Hillebrandt and accepted
by Hardy and others, is apparently quite sound and therefore
may not be lightly set aside as of no account. But it cannot
certainly stand a keen and critical examination. Attention has
already been drawn to the fundamentally defective method of
approach on the part of Oldenberg and Hillebrandt. It is not
the evidence of the Veda itself that has led these scholars to
the hypothesis which they have put forth ; their theory princi-
pally depends upon extraneous circumstances and they have only
later on tried to adduce such evidence from the Veda as would
fit in with their hypothesis. Apart from this, it must be said
that the very first assumption, namely that Mitra represents the
jsun-god, which is the starting point of this theory, can be shown,
on the strength of the evidence of comparative philology and
•comparative mythology, to be positively wrong. Let us pause
i>ere a little to consider the name Mitra and the conception
underlying it. Only one full hymn in RV., III. 59, is dedicated
to the praise of this god exclusively. The Vedic evidence on the
Asura Varuna
whole seems to show that Mitra did not possess any individua-
lity on the physical side. His special characteristic feature is
expressed, in the Veda, through the words *
ftrir zwi&mmk yrror ( III- 59- 1 )
4 Mitra places the men, through his commands, in their proper
places. ' A clear hint is hereby given that Mitra has something
to do with 4 right 7 and 4 law. ' He is primarily the yãtayajjana.
This idea is further confirmed by other Vedic passages, which
connect Mitra very significantly with dharman and ria :
mír TOŘT i ( V. 81.4 )
<T3T 3*7 THST** WPT: I ( VIII. 52.3)
5R*rq; rasr i ( X. 8.4 ).

As against this, there is not the slightest evidence in the Veda
to indicate that Mitra was originally the Sun-god. Etymologi-
cally the original form of the word Mitra seems to have been
mitram ( neuter ) formed with the suffix- tra, which, in its turn,
is the modification of the idg. instrumental suffix - tro . Other
formations of a similar character are vrtram from the root vr ,
yotram from the root yu, and yantram from the root yam. The
base of the original idg. form *mi-tro-m was the idg. root
4 to bind ' The game root is clearly perceptible in the words,
Sk. mekhalã , Lett, meimuri , Gk. mitos , mitre, 4 girdle of the body7.
The word mitram thus originally indicates a 4 bond ' or * binding
together,' and secondarily a 4 friendly bond ' A further modi-
fication from this was mitrah ( masc. ) meaning the agent of
bondage or the 4 binder Uhlenbeck derives mitra from mayate ,
while some scholars are inclined to connect mitra with Lat.
milis 4 mild,' Lit. mylimas , 'beloved'. These suggestions are
definitely unacceptable, as shown by Brugmann and Eisler, since
the suffix - tro clearly goes against them. The Avestan expres-
sions like mithrem jan, mithrem drvj also indicate that the ori-
ginal conception underlying the word mithra was that of binding
together or of the binder. Mitra, and also Mithra in his original
nature, may therefore be looked upon as a god essentially con-
nected with 4 contract, ' 4 treaty ' ' agreements. 9 Had Mitra
really anything to do with the sun-god, the RV-hymns, which
often sing very enthusiastically about light and splendour^
3 [ Annals B. O. R. I. ]
174 Annaìs of the Bhandarkat Oriental Research institute
would have certainly bestowed upon him, before anything else,

the epithets indicative of light and splendour 1 That is however
not the case, since, as seen above, RV connects Mitra mainly
with law and order. The sun is itself said to be the eye of
Mitra. The later development of the Avestan Mithra into a
sun-god is due to several causes. He has inherited the features
of several mythologies. As Geiger has pointed out there are in
him some distinct features of the Vedic Indra ; so too some in-
fluence of the Semetic sun-god, gamas, is clearly perceptible in
the later development of Mitra. Zarathushtra seems to have
changed the old original god and forced upon him new religious
conceptions. The Vedic Mitra, on the other hand, has remained
true to the Aryan prototype - namely that of the god presiding
over contracts and agreements, and thus preserving law and
order mainly among human beings. The analysis of the Vedic
references to Mitra, made by Schröder ( Arische Religion ) clearly
indicates that he never represents the sun-god in the Vedic
religion. It is in his capacity of the divine guardian of truth
and law among men that, in the Boghazköi inscription, mi-id -
ra-as-si-él , 4 Mitra together with his group, ' is invoked to bear
witness to the treaty which was concluded between Subbililiuma ,
the king of the Hittites and Mattiuaza , the king of Mittanni.
Mitra must have also been the god by whom people used to
swear, as is indicated by Gk. ma ton Mithren . The essential
nature of Mitra thus being that of a god of holy law, guarding
the truth in word and deed, every hypothesis based upon the
equation, Mitra = sun-god, necessarily falls to the ground.
The very foundation of the Moon-theory is thus utterly unten-
able. The evidence adduced by Oldenberg and Hillebrandt from
the ritualistic literature, which seems to connect Mitra exclusi-
vely with the day and Varuna exclusively with the night clearly
seems to have been an afterthought and cannot therefore be
regarded as in any way conclusive in regard to the problem of
the personality of the Vedic Varuna. In the history of the re-
ligious thought of the Aryans, light-symbolism would appear
to have come in, in an emphatic manner, at a later stage only.
Apart from this basic flaw, the moon-theory is not at all
supported by the evidence of the Vedîc hymns. Attention has
already been drawn to the absurdity of the sun being mentioned
Asura Varuna 175
as the eye of the moon ( I. 50.6 ). Particular
cal image of the moon was present to the ey
such reference cannot be regarded even as poetical fantasy.
Further it would be very difficult to explain, on the basis of
the moon-hypothesis, why Varuna, the moon, is regarded, in
the Vedic hymns, as enormously more important than Mitra,
the sun. Indeed so much richness of material, as we
find with regard to the Vedic Varuna, should be impossible
in the case of the moon. To justify this contingency
on the strength of the evidence of some primitive religions,
where the moon is apparently regarded as the almighty god, is
to completely misunderstand the whole spirit of the Varuna-
religion. Does the Varuna-religion, as presented in the Veda,
betray even the slightest traces of such primitive character ? In
Varuna, we have not to see a primitive conception such as is
implied by H. Lommel. On the contrary, by the side of Indra,
the national Aryan god, Varuna gives the impression of a re-
presentative of an older, and a more refined culture. Can Var-
una' s counterpart in the Avesta, Ahura M'azdah, be ever regard-
ed as representing the moon ? The unique kind of ethical ide-
alisation from the cosmic point of view, which is the most out-
standing feature of the essential nature of the Vedic Varuna,
as well as of Ahura Mazdah, becomes utterly meaningless in the
moon-theory. Varuna's close association with ría and the rivalry
between Varuna and Indra also cannot then be satisfactorily
accounted for. Do we further not find that in the Vedic mytho-
logy there exist the proper sun-god, Sůrya, and the proper
moon-god, Candramas Î What then is the necessity of this
peculiar glorification of Mitra and Varuna, as representing the
sun and the moon respectively ? Had Mitra and Varuna pri-
marily represented the two natural phenomena of the sun and
the moon, the physical side of those gods would have been more
distinctly emphasised in the Veda. But as a matter of fact that
is not at all the case I Further it may be pointed out, in this
connection, that Varuna does not play, in the Vedic mythology,
the same role as the moon in the classical Hindu mythology.
What is the significance of the mention of Mitra and Varuna in
the Boghazköi inscriptions, if they merely represented the sun-
god and the moon-god respectively ? They have been invoked
with a special purposp ßpd must have been considered 39
V] 6 Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
having something to do with treaties and agreements. The

pãêa, which forms an exclusive feature of Varuna, would
create quite a major difficulty in the moon-theory. Soma
is merely an intoxicating drink, which fact would be quite
clear from the Vedic references. The identification of Soma with
the moon can only be of a secondary character, and may be
regarded as the product of poetical fancy. So Hillebrandt's
assertion that Soma is primarily identical with the moon is
quite unconvincing. Moreover Varuna's apparent identity with
Soma, which seems to form the mainstay of Hillebrandt's hypo-
thesis, can be more adequately explained by assuming that it
was a conscious attempt on the part of the later Soma-priests to
glorify foma by bringing him in a line with Varuna, the world-
sovereign. Finally the moon-theory would appear to be utterly
unacceptable when one would take into consideration the Vedic
passage where Varuna and Candramas are brought together as
the governor and the governed :
3^rrR WW armÍH
JfiEwfa I ( I. 24. i o ).
It is interesting to note that the etymology of the name
Varuna has been completely overlooked by the protagonists of
the moon-theory. No other idg. religion has glorified the
moon-god to such a great extent as is done, according to
Oldenberg and Hillebrandt, in the Aryan religion. Historically
too this fact would become unaccountable. Oldenberg assumes
that the whole circle of the Vedic gods-Mitra, Varuna and the
Ãdityas - representing respectively the sun, the moon and the
planets, as well as the corresponding circle of the Avestan divin-
ités, Mithra, Ahura Mazdah, and the Amesa Spentas, have been
borrowed by the Aryans from the Semitic people. If the Ãditya-
oircle as a compact group were supposed to have been borrowed
from the Semitic religion, there should have originally been such
a group of divinities in that religion. As a matter of fact how-
ever there is no such group ! The planet-divinities in Babylon
do not appear at all as a group of seven. Moreover the single
planet-divinities of the Semitic people, such as, Ninib, Nergal,
Nèbo etc. have absolutely nothing in common with the Vedic
&ditjras, such as, Afyaman, Daksa, Bhaga, or with the Ayesta^
Asura Varuna 177
Amesa Spentas, such as, Vohu manah , Asa vahišta
the planets as such are regarded, in the Iranian
or less as evil spirits on the side of Ahnman. The fatalism
which is implied by the planets is again unknown to the Aryans.
According to the hypothesis of Oldenberg, Varuna should have
been identical with Sin , the moon-god of the Semitic people,
and Mitra with Samas , their sun-god. In the Babylonian my-
thology Sin , in contrast to the Vedic Varuna, plays a very minor
role; Varuna's personality, on the other hand, exhibits many
features, which are common to Samas . These facts clearly go
against Oldenberg's theory. One conclusion therefore seems to
be quite unchallengeable, namely, that the circle of the Ädityas
cannot have been borrowed from the Semitic mythology, since
there is no such compact group of divinities in the Semitic
mythology. Semitic influence on the Varuna-religion of the
Veda is further out of question in view of the fact that abstract
thought in the direction of the 4 invisible, 1 'indefinite 'mystical*
is foreign to the Semitic outlook on life. It seems to be an
exclusively Aryan heritage. The Semitic people, on the other
hand, are satisfied with 4 concrete ' things, with 4 numbers 7 and
are rarely seen to go beyond them.
The soundest method of understanding and evaluating the
unknown Vedic mythological facts is, according to Pischel, to
start from the known classical Hindu mythology. This method
proposed by Pischel is correct but it is certainly not the only
method. On the strength of the evidence of the classical Hindu
mythology Pischel has put forth the theory, namely, that Varuna
represents in the Veda, the god of ocean, as he does in later my-
thology. 1 Varuna 's connections with waters are many and
varied in the Vedic literature ( I. 181.14 ; VII. 49.3 ; IX. 90.2 ;
AV. VII. 83.1 ). This fact would also confirm, according to him,
the hypothesis that Varuna is primarily the lord of waters. The
following Vedic passage,
1 Wilkins ( Hindu Mythology ) says, in this connection, that in the Vedio
literature, Varuna was not represented chiefly as the god of the ocean;
rather Vedic hymns show him as one of the gods of light, 'yet there are
passages which describe him as being connected with the waters of the
atmosphere and on the earth, which afford some foundations for the l^te?
conceptions of l*is kingdom.'
J 78 Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
3Tc^èf TTsrac ^nr mïïvm fasr

CTÍT ^rsrr miï ^TwrR 1 ( AV. VII. 83.1 )
clearly pointed to the abode of Varuna being among waters. In
this connection a reference may also be made to the linguistic
connection, proposed by Hopkins, between the words, Varuna,
on the one hand, and vari, ť a river ? and vari , ' water, ' on the
other. Lüders seems to have modified the ocean-theory by re-
garding Varuna as representing originally the ocean surround-
ing the world.
Apart from the faulty etymology suggested by Hopkins, it
must be said regarding this theory, that, according to the Vedic
evidence, 4 waters ' or * ocean ' represent only one region of
Varuna's supreme sovereignty. It may also be pointed out that
in no idg. religion is the ocean glorified as the world-sovereign.
Moreover it is positively doubtful whether the sea was at alj
regarded by the Vedic Aryans as of such great "importance as to
make its god the most august and the most paramount god of
the Vedic pantheon. It is consequently quite impossible to
accept the theory put forth by Pischel.
A critical examination of the Vedic hymns would clearly in-
dicate that the mythology dominated by Varuna, Mitra, the
Ädityas, and Aditi does not exhibit even the faintest traces of
'naturalism - 9 that is to say, of the worship of the Powers of
Nature as Divine Beings. 1 It has already been shown that the
Vedic Varuna cannot be said to be primarily representing the
sky-god, or the winter-god or the moon-god, or the god of ocean.
What then is his essential nature ? Let us approach this problem
in a constructive way by clearly analysing the principal concep-
tions with which Varuna is associated in a special and exclusive
manner.
Among all the Vedic gods the title asura seems to belong
specially to Varuna. A large number of passages from the Veda
would make this fact abundantly clear :
ÇTO5TWW S%rTT
1 ( I. 24.14 )
1 Macnicol ( Indian Theism ) seems to make an overcautious statement
in this conneotioQ : 4 As we discern his figure, Varuna seems to be in the
act of passing beyond physical limitations to take his place as a moral lord*
over the consciences of man.*
Asura Varum 179
fèrrei ôrrfa Trsrr

q- =5T 3Tg* q- ^ ïTcTT- ( II. 27. IO )
3ï^¥itt3Î 3T§*T
sfrîftfïrT sfornir sfèrsqr: I ( VIII. 42.1
çrr ir 9%: 3 w q- «T i#r
Ç*: Û^cT 3TWT OTní^T I ( II. 28.7 )
A thorough philological and anthropolog
clearly indicate that the primitive concep
power underlies the word asura . 1 The V
older than the classical Sk. word sura ; asura does not represent
the opposite of sura , (=god). That word was originally used in
the Vedic literature in the sense of a being possessing the highest
occult power. Its meaning, namely ' demon', belongs semasiolo-
gically to a later date and it was then that the word sura , 'a god'
was artificially coined throgh a misunderstanding of the a in
asura as a prefix of negation. Philologically the word asura
is derived from asu by the addition of the possessive termi-
nation-ra. I have shown elsewhere ( Der Vedische Mensch ,
p. 25), on the basis of philological and anthropological evid
enee, that asu must have been originally regarded as a
supernatural fluid like the primitive Mana . This fluid invested
upon a being some supernatural occult power, which belongs
to the realm of the 4 invisible ' and which is quite distinct
1 It is interesting to note that Ghose ( Aryan trail in India and Iran)
emphasises upon Varuna's resemblance to Assara Mazãs and his Igigi of the
Hommel inscription (left by Assurbanípal, the Assyrian Imperial king)
and to Ahura of the Magians. Assur was the local deity of the metropolis
of the first kingdom of Assyria. Ghose believes that Assara Mazãs was the
original of Ahura Mazdah. * The real link/ hê goes on to say, 4 to connect
Varuça with Ahura is not to be found in a common etymological source
from which the two names may be supposed to have derived. The name
Ahura, if it had any etymological base of any kind at all and was not simply
taken from a quite arbitrarily fixed place-name, had without doubt a Semlitio
or Elamatic and not an Aryan origin.' The process of borrowing %was thus,
according to Ghose, ( quite strangely, indeed !) : Assur ( Semitic) - Ahura
( Iranian ) - Asura ( Vedic ).
Macnicol says : * If there was indeed any debt on the part of Varurja or
Ahura Mazdah to the Semites, that debt was repaid later : M. Cumont
points out that without doubt at the period of the Achaemenides a rapproa-
chment took place between the Semitic Baalsamin and the Persian Ahura
Mazdah, the ancient deity of the vault of heaven but now become the
supreme physical and moral power/
iŠo Ânnaîs of the Bhandarkar Oriental Řesearch Institute
from physical strength. The occult power which comes from

Mana may be utilised both for good as well as bad purposes. To
possess and tö control the largest quantity of that all-penetra-
ting magic fluid was the greatest achievement ever thought of.
It should be remembered in this connection that the magic fluid
postulated by the primitives is not what we may call ' spirit, '
4 mind ' or 4 soul. ? It is a power-substance which fills the living
beings ; but even the lifeless can have it magically filled up in
them. The Balak call such power-substance Tondi , while the
Huron-Indians call it Orenda. The conception of Orenda , Tondi,
Mana is the ultimate solution offered by the primitive to the
riddle of life and being. What is true of the Melanesians,
Polynesians, Australian tribes, American Indians, African
Negroes etc. must also be true of the earliest idg. peoples. The
primitive religions assumed the subtle working of Orenda in all
the invisibly working abd changing forces of nature, in the
organic * becoming ' and ' growing 7 of man, indeed in all per*
fectly-regulated cosmic activities. The main function of the
primitive religious magic is, on the one hand, to collect and
increase, as much as possible, this occult fluid in oneself, and, on
the other, to reduce it in others substantially. The as¿¿-conception
in the Veda may as well be styled the 4 Vedic orendism. ? The
asura accordingly is the being who possesses the highest amount
of asu9 the occult power-substance, and therefore commands
the greatest occult power. Varuna is asura par excellence. On
account of his enormous magic power he creates the universe,
regulates it into an orderly whole, and wields the most supreme
sovereignty over it. This unique power of the asura is .called
mãyã ; Varuna is therefore associated in a special way with the
conception of mãyã .
Geldner derives the word mãyã from miyate , minãti , or minoti ,
1 to lessen/ 4 to hinder', 4 to injure ' This etymology would give
that word a more or less negative sense, which however cannot be
confirmed by the Vedic evidence. Vedic references indicate that
the fundamental conception underlying the word mãyã is that
of a secret, mysterious power, possessed by good as well as evil
spirits, and the capacity to achieve miracles, which are incom-
prehensible from the point of view of normal beings. The regular
Asura Varuna loi
working of the enormous natur

resulting from the maya of Va
fore to be derived from mimati o
only mean 4 to measure, ' but als
Mãyâ thus represents the capaci
in the spiritual sense rather
Neisser has pointed out, many
the word maya with the root mä
čHETRr
1% mfaÍT ÏTÎÎÎ* I ( HI. 38.7 )

wraiísŘt *rw> SRT WTIT I ( IX. 83.3 )
à rnfaít gròíW 1 ( I. 1 59-4 )•
The word is philologically connected with Gk. métis ' clever', Lit.
monai ' magic, ' Lett, man' i ' roguery, ' Obg. manili ' deceive, '
Slav. mátoha ' spectre ' ' ghost ' etc.
The conceptions underlying the words, asura and mãyã , throw
a good deal of light upon the true personality of Varuna. As the
creator and the constructor of the universe, Varuna is regarded
as the awe-inspiring and miracle-working magician. Many
Vedic passages will amply corroborate this assumption :
smi g fàrfara
ütÉ I
STfflR
li (I. 24.10 )
3T%: SI trTS^r PŤ
íWt niq-qr i ( V. 63.3 )
H «nrcnr
1%: sntncarr 1
wpr * írtt..
f%ar otto- t%^ U ( VII. 87.4 ).
In VII. 86.6, Varuna is directly called yaksin, a magici
in V. 85.2-6 the whole working of the magic of asura
picturesquely described. The hymn, VIII. 41, is again
to the glorification of the incomprehensible miracle
shed by Varuna. The sun traversed his path in the hig
punctually every day ; the changing phases of the moo
ed in the sky at night according to a definite plan ; the i
4 [ Annali, B. Û. R. !• ]
i §2 Annals of the Èhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
able stars twinkled. The Vedic Aryan saw and marvelled at all
these natural phenomena, which appeared to him to be controlled
and guided by some invisible hand. He wondered at the shi-
ning vault of the heavens; he observed with dismay the regular
change of seasons ; he imagined the night to be spreading a
gigantic cover over the heavenly dome ; he was indeed dumb-
founded by the riddle of the origin and growth of life. He soon
realised that there must have been some ' law ' which regulated
the workings of nature and the activities of human beings ; but
for him that 4 law ' was shrouded in darkness and mystery. He
could accordingly put forth the only workable hypothesis in this
regard, namely, to consider the creation and the working of the
cosmos as the achievement of a tremendously powerful magician.
The starting point of this hypothesis was naturally his own ex-
perience of the tribal medicineman who, by virtue of the pos-
session of the occult fluid, Mana , Orenda , asu , accomplished
some magic tricks which remained a veritable mystery to the
ordinary man. This popular belief naturally led to the assum-
ption, in ancient religion, of a cosmic-magician, who possessed
the highest amount of the occult-power asu - who was, in other
words, asura par excellence - and could therefore accomplish
through his maya the most enormous and the most magnificent
miracle of the universe. The two currents of thought underly-
ing the words, asura and mãyã, which may be anthropologically
traced back to almost every ancient religious belief, make the
essential personality of Varuna in the Veda quite clear. Varuna
is the great asura , possessing the largest amount of the occult
power-substance, asu , and bis maya, resulting from this fact, is
the creation of the incomprehensibly majestic miracle of the
oosmos. He is the magician-creator of the world as well as its
supreme sovereign. This particular characteristic of the essen-
tial nature of Varuna is most picturesquely represented in his
other aspect, namely the Vedic god, Savifcr ( vide my paper,
New Light on the Vedic God , Savitr ). As'Güntert (Der arische Welt -
Jcônig ) has pointed out the conception of a sovereign world-
magician creating, supervising and controlling the working of
the cosmic law is common to many ancient religions. The
Australian tribes have postulated, in their religious belief,
As ura Yarwm 183
Bäjami , the Algonkin Indians of North Ame

Irokes Joskeha , the Tzendals Votan , the No vah
the North- western races Fč/íZ, to play the
does in the early Vedic religion. It is evident
to try to identify Varuna with some power of
How does Varuna control the cosmic law ? The etymology
of the name Varuna would considerably enlighten us on this
question. Attention has already been drawn to the fact that to
derive Varuna from the root vr, 4 to cover 9 is impossible from the
philological point of view. Meillet derives the word Varuna
from the idg. root *Uer-Ure 4 to speak ' The word vrata is also
derived from that root. The possible connection between god
Varuna and his commands - vrata - is hereby linguistically
suggested. Varuna is accordingly the commander-god. Meillet
further connects the word Varuna with Obg. ròta 4 oath ' Gk,
rëtor etc. It will however be seen that there is no deriva-
tive from * uer-Ure in w-themes, which fact would render the
derivation of the word Varuna from it unacceptable. The word
Varuna is best derived from - * to bind. 7 Other "derivatives
from that root are Lett, weru wert 4 bind down/ Obg. veruga
4 chain, ' Lat. urvum etc. It will thus be seen that there are also
«¿-derivatives from that root. It may therefore be definitely
concluded, as Petersson has done, that the name Varuna is
derived from the idg. *Ueru-n-os 4 the binder. ' This etymology
is amply corroborated by Varuna 's pãsa and the whole religious
thought dominated by them. The whole cosmic phenomenon is
held in bondage by this supreme binder through his pãéa, which
produced, so to say, a net of magic. The idea of a magic net
woven round the mankind and the world is quite common in
the RV :
I ( I. l 5 9-4 )
fa; rasrrcrfa sňgn i (¡VI. 9.2 ).
Further the following Vedic passages may be considered in this
connection '• T. 92.2 ; III. 3.6 ; Vil. 10.2 ; VIII. 43.20 : X. 57.2 ;
X. 82.1 ; X. 129.5 ; AV. X. 8.37 ; AV. XIII. 1.6 etc. The words
like yãtu, yukti, yoga , ycUar, vayas, vayuna etc. belong to the same
ideology. As a logical extension of this idea, Varuna, in his
capacity of the world-sovereign, of the upholder of the cosmic
184 Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
law, and of the moral governor is represented to be employing

his paia to put the sinners against his law into bondage by way
of punishment. The two currents of thought indicated above seem
to have been blended together into the conception of the paia of
Varuna.
An analysis of the conception of rta would prove very helpful
at this stage. It was Brugmann who started the linguistic in-
vestigations in this connection. According to him Gk. eirénë
( or trana ) is the reduplicated derivative from the idg. %r-ť to
bind/ ' to unite/ 8 to join together/ The Ok. word eirêriè means
' well-joined together ' holy bond/ 4 clever bringing together/
Some further derivatives from that root, in different directions,
are Sk. arah , aram , arpayati , Lat. arma , artus etc. There are
still other derivatives from the idg. *ar-, with an additional t
in the base, such as Mhd. art , Sk. rta , Arm. ardar ' right ' 'law-
ful, 9 Gk. artios etc. These latter words will be seen to possess
primarily special ethical significance. The Vedic rta thus re-
presents the holy bond - the unbreakable, invulnerable law -
which is the foundation of all natural phenomena and which
binds them down into a well-ordered whole. The Vedic references
to rtasya tantu ( AV. IL 1.5 ; AV. XIII. 3.19 ) would seem to
support this explanation of the Vedic r/a-conception. The path
of rta is often said to have been spun out by means of threads of
light :
<T«ir skhw wrèi

TRwfa: I ( I. 136.2 ).
The Vedic conception of rta thus represents the abstraction of
the same idea which is more or less concretely personified
through Varuna. The Iranian counterpart of rta will be clearly
seen in a$a ? it would be particularly interesting to compare Wham
rtasya with asahê xãm ( Y. 10.4 ), rtasãp with ašem...hapti (y.31.32)
and vedhâ rtasya with àsavazdah. B. Geiger has shown that asa
and druj of the Avesta have been represented through the Vedic
rta and drh9 which latter are clearly contrasted with each other
( 1, 122.9 ). Günterfc believes that the conceptions of rta and
4 cosmos ' are semasiologicplly connected with each other since
the word cosmos itself can be traced back to a root ( *kent ) mean-
ing * to bind together, '
Asura Varuqa 185
It has already been pointed out that an

of the Varuna-religion is Varuna's connec
and Aditi. Here too one would find the same conception of
* binding 9 underlying ;these two words. The words aditi and
ãditya are derived from the idg. - Sk. dã ' to bind ' and are
philologically connected with the words like Sk. daman 4 bond-
age. ' The whole world may be bound down by the fetters of
Varuna, the world-sovereign, but the Ãdityas, who are hia
favoured followers, and who represent the different powers of
the great asura Varuna, are naturally unbound and free. They
are not involved into the net of magic created by the world
magician ( 11.27.10; V. 62.3; V. 63.2; VII. 52.1; VIII. 47.6;
VIII. 67.18 ). It may be incidentally pointed out that Bloom-
field's suggestion that the word ãditya may be connected with
the word adi ' beginning,' and that thus the primeval character
of those gods may be assumed is philologically unsound. The
Ädityas belong to the entourage of asura Varuna; they may,
under his behest, bind down others, but are themselves free from
bondage. It will thus be seen that Mitra 4 the binder, ' Varuna
' the binder, ' rta ť holy bond,' ť holy law/ Ãdityas ť the unbound
ones' and Aditi ' the unboundness 9 belong to one and the same
religious conception which forms the fundamental basis of the
Varuna-religion in the Veda. Their unique mutual connection
often referred to in the Vedic hymns can be very satisfactorily
accounted for on the strength of the hypothesis discussed above.
The whole circle of Mitra and Varuna seems to have been quite
an ancient feature of the Vedic religion, since, in the Boghazköi
inscription of 14th century B. C., Varuna and Mitra are invoked
not singly like Indra, but * together with their groups'. Incident-
ally it may be mentioned, in this connection, that in the Edda
of the ancient Islanders, the god is called bond ( binder ),
and that the name of the god of the Thrakians is Barz-
ales, which word may be philologically connected with the
Avestan darezyeiti * bind down. 9 The Thrakians and the Phry-
gians also worshipped a goddess named Bendis ' one who binds
down.' It is thus particularly interesting from the point of view
of the history of the idg. religious thought, to note that the
unique religious conception of the * holy bondage 9 and of the
' binder/ seems to have originated in prehistoric times in somç
i86 Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
compact locality where the later Germanic, Thrakian and Indo-

Iranian tribes must have once lived together.
Varuna may therefore be said to be representing the concep-
tion of the world-sovereign who is characterised by those distinct
features which are implied by the words, asura, rriãyã, rta, mitra,
ãâitya, aditi etc. This world-sovereign further possesses all the
attributes of an Oriental ruler. 'He is the rajan ( I. 24.7 ), the
svaraj, but more* predominantly the samrãj. The attribute of
ksatra is specially appropriated to him. He wears a golden
mantle and puts on a shining robe ( I. 25.13 ). The spies-apasa/i
-of Varuna make his supreme sovereignty complete. His impe-
rial ordinances - vratani-are unchallenged and so he is dlirla-
vrata. The moral law of humanity with which Varuna is often
associated is but a part of his guardianship of the cosmic law.
This regal aspect of Varuna's personality may throw some light
on the Vedic ideal of kingship. Johansson believes that the con-
ception of Kingship is itself personified as a god in Varuna. Some
scholars even go to the extent of deriving the word Varuna -from
the root vr ' to choose ' and presume on the strength of that evi-
dence that the king was, in the Vedic period, chosen or elected !
The essential nature of Varuna is necessarily all-compre-
hensive. Varuna's domain is therefore vast and he is often
severally represented as being almost identical with other Vedic
divinities such as Soma, Yama etc. It must however be remem-
bered that Varuna is not identical with any one of these ; he
includes and transcends them all. In another paper ( New Light
on the Vedic God, Savitr ) I have shown that, through the per-
sonality of Savitr, a special aspect of Varuna - Varuna as a
magician and Varuna as a commander- has been glorified by
the Vedic poets. A comparison between the circle of the Vedic
gods, Varuna, Mitra and the Ãdityas on the one hand, and the
corresponding circle of the Iranian divinities, Ahura Mazdah,
Mithra, and the Amesa Spentas on the other, which however is
beyond the scope of this paper, will amply corroborate every
detail regarding Varuna's essential character.
' The number of hymns dedicated to Varuna's praise, ' writes
Macdonell, ' is not a sufficient criterion to his exalted character.
Hardly a dozen hymns celebrate him exclusively. ' In two
Asura Varuna 187
dozen more hymns, however, Varuna is invoked along with
his double, Mitra. These hymns, addressed to Miträvarunau
as a dual-divinity, present Mitra and Varuna as two gods
supplementing each other; sometimes a slight contrast
between the two is also implied. A. critical study of the Miträ-
varuna - hymns, however, often makes one feel inclined to
accept the suggestion of Bohnenberger that Mitra and Varun^
formed originally one single godhead, which was later on split
up into two and that even then Mitra was merely used as an
attribute of Varuna. On etymological grounds it has been shown
that the essential character of both the gods is the same. But
there are certain points in this connection which cannot be
overlooked. Firstly Mitra alone is celebrated only in one hymn;
secondly in the hymns addressed to Miträvarunau, Varuna is
more preeminently glorified than his understudy, Mitra ; and
thirdly, even inspite of his essential character of a 4 binder, 9
Mitra does not possess any pasa, while Varuna's paia , whicl}
serve a double purpose, are often glorified ( I. 24.15 ; I. 25.21 ;
VII. 88.7; AV. IV. 16.6ff. ). On the basis of this evidence a
plausible hypothesis regarding the distinct domains of Mitra
and Varuna may be hazarded. Bondage is of two types - by
means of the bonds of friendship and by means of the bonds of
slavery. The first type of bondage is usually brought about
between equals, while the second type of bondage implies the
unchallengeable superiority of the binder. Mitra presides over
the bonds of friendship - agreements, contracts and treaties.
Varuna produces through his pasa an invisible net of
magic, in which the whole creation is held in bondage,
and also punishes the sinners against the cosmic and the moral
law through his pasa . As Güntert has pointed out, Mitra, as
a friendly divinity, helps to bring about friendly bondage bet-
ween man and man, and between god and man ( IV. 44.5 ) ; he
is particularly the guardian of human laws. Varuna, on the
other hand, presides over an all-inclusive domain ; his Law
includes all laws. Moreover it is also suggested in the Vedic
hymns that one is conscious when one breaks the law of Mitra.
Varuna's law works in a very subtle way and there are often
unconscious lapses against it ( V. 85.8 ; VII. 89.3 ). It must how-
ever be remembered that this distinction between the domain^
1 88 Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
of Varana and Mitra is never strongly emphasised in the Veda.

Indeed Mitra falls into the background and may be regarded
merely as one of the Ädityas. Varuna dominates this particular
aspect of the Vedic religion and Mitra is reduced to the position
of his understudy. The later Vedic ritualistic literature deve-
loped the originally slight distinction between the two gods in
quite a different direction, which fact gave rise to a lot a mis-
understanding regarding their primary character. The original
conceptions represented by Varuna and Mitra had no place in
the scheme of the Vedic ritual and consequently their essential
personalities were greatly distorted so as to suit the ritualistic
purpose.
The rivalry between Indra and Varuna forms an outstanding

feature of the Vedic mythology. The most typical instance, in
this connection, is the RV-hymn, IV. 42, which includes a ť War-
talk between the two Gods. ' The Vedic religious thought shows
three very marked phases •
(1) The 1 naturalism 9 pure and simple, when the Vedic

thinker was struck by the vastness, brightness and profuseness
of nature and therefore glorified several powers of nature as
divine beings.
( 2 ) Later on however he realised that this vast existence

was not chaos but that it was cosmos ; there was some law which
regulated and controlled all phenomena of nature, and there was
a sovereign-lord who enforced the proper conduct of that law.
This stage is represented by the Varuna - rta - conception.
(3) This ethical abstraction in religion could not for long

satisfy the fighting and conquering Aryan tribes. The nature
of a god is conditioned by the life of a people. The fighting
Aryans created a warrior-god, Indra, who, for that time, sur-
passed all other gods.
The Vedic hymn, IV. 42, is a characteristic document of a
revolution in the order of rank among gods, which seems to
have taken place during the Vedic period $ it indicates the super-
session of Varuna, who stood at the height of divine glory in the
Aryan period, through Indra, the national war-god of the Vedic
Indians. The old religious order made place for the new one,
Asura Var upa 189
on account of the changing circumstance

This assumption might explain why Varu
Avesta, Ahura Mazdah, was still glorified by the Iranians ;
there was no original counterpart cf Indra to rival him in
that religion. In the Vedic period also there was a group
of Yedic Aryans, particularly the Vãsisthas, who preserved and
considerably glorified the ancient Varuna-religion. Serious
attempts seem to have been generally made at the same
time to bring about a compromise between the Varuna-religion
and the Indra-religiòn, whioh fact is indicated by the Vedic
passages such as,
T%sra;
5TrTT?W. I .
Indra ť conquers ' but it is Varuna who 4

are to be seen, in the Vedic hymns, three
relation between Varuna and Indra, namel
enged superiority to all gods, a compromise between the func-
tions of Varuna and Indra, and finally Varuna' s supersession
through Indra. All the same the spirit of rivalry between asura
Varuna and Indra characterises a large part of the Vedic liter-
ature and ritual. The difference in the essential natures of
these two gods is reflected, as Bergaigne has pointed out, in the
very prayers addressed to them. Indra is the ideal of a fighting
and conquering people ; as his very name would indicate he is
the symbol of manly vigour and physical strength ; he is often
represented in the Veda as an inveterate divine bully, ever in-
dulging in drinking and fighting. He possesses all the virtues
and also the weaknesses of a manly hero. Varuna, on the other
hand, is represented as the highly spiritualised and idealised
protector of law. In contrast to Varuna, Indra, as the national
war-god, was celebrated in a very large number of myths. It
is likely that the rivalry, in the Vedic religion, between the
Aryan war-god, Indra, and the asura was accentuated through
the historical rivalry between the Aryans and the Assyrians,
there being perhaps created in the minds of the people a confus-
ion between the names, asura and Assyrians, as the result of the
linguistic phenomenon of folk-etymology. If this hypothesis
were to be correct it may throw some light upon the question of
5 [ Annals, B. O. R. I. ]
lyö Annaìs of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
the relation between the Yedic civilisation and Indus-valley

civilisation. 1
The rivalry between Indra and Varuna would give us the
necessary starting point for the discussion of how the world-
sovereign Varuna of the RV was transformed into the god of
ocean in the classical Hindu mythology. The deterioration in
Varuna' s religious supremacy began with the ascendancy of
Indra. But the central conception represented by Varuna deve-
loped in quite a different direction. In India metaphysical
thought evolved out of mythological imagery. As Deussen has
pointed out the later Indian metaphysical speculations were
founded on the older religious conceptions. In the mystic
Upanisadic doctrine of brahman , a critical observer would find
the metaphysical development of the Varuna-religion in the
Veda. The teaching of mukti-moksa may also be traced back to
the conception of the pãéa of Varuna. The spiritual side of
Varuna 's personality - or, in other words, the essential nature
of Varuna - was thus preserved and philosophically modified.
What remained of his divine sovereignty, after Indra's rise, was
divided among several gods. An independent god was created to
preside over every region, over which Varuna is represented, in
the Veda, to be ruling. There remained only the ocean, which
came into prominence in later times. The imperial ruler was
reduced to the position of a provincial governor ; Varuna be-
came the god of ocean. Varuna 's special connections with
waters described in the Veda ( II. 28.4 ; II. 38.8 ; V. 85.3 ; V.
85.6 ; VII. 87.1 ; VIII. 41.2 ; X.75.2 5 AV. VII. 83,1 ), the con-
ceptions of the 4 upper 9 ocean and the 'lower' ocean in the Vedic
cosmography, and the usual tendency to regard ocean as the re-
pository of all mysteries, must have facilitated this transition
l A hypothesis may be hazarded in this connection. Indra is often
called pur andar a ( the breaker of cities ) in the Veda. The Indus Valley
civilisation as represented at Mohenjodaro and Harappa is primarily "cha-
racterised by what may be called city-culture. Can it be that the nomadic
Aryans under the leadership of purandara Indra destroyed that culture ?
Indra was also later on regarded as an enemy and the greatest conqueror of
asuras ( the original basis of this conception being the rivalry in the Vedic
religion between asura Varuna and Indra ). Is it therefore further possible
that the Indus civilisation was Assyrian civilisation? Does the evidenoe
of seals discovered in the Indus valley and Central Asia support the above
assumption ?
Asura Varuna 191
to a certain extent. 1 It is very likely, as K

dicated, that a linguistic phenomenon also influ
tion. In one Boghazköi inscription the name of Varuna is
mentioned as a-ru-na-as-si-eL This may have been confused
later on with aruna , which word means * sea 9 in the Hittite lan-
guage. Thé Hittite word, aruna , is linguistically connected
with Sk. arria* arcava. The process of the transformation in the
personality of Varuna may thus have started, perhaps indepen-
dently, in Central Asia.
1 Both says in this connection : 'When, on the one hand, the conception
of Varurta as the all-embracing heaven had been established, and, on the
other hand, the observation of the rivers flowing towards the ends of the
earth and to the sea had led to the conjecture that there existed an ocean
enclosing the earth in it3 bosom, then the way was thoroughly prepared for
connecting Varuna with the ocean/
Whatever the forces which may have dethroned Varuna from his high
ethical eminence to be a mere ruler of the storms and tides, the dethrone-
ment was, according to Macnicol, ' an event in the spiritual history of India
that was at once a symptom and a determinant of the long, succeeding
process of its development. The " Hebraic flavour " that was in Varuça
was then definitely declared to be foreign to the Indian spirit, and since
that day its indications have been rare.'

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Vol. XXI] April -July 1940 [ Parts III-IV

" A8ÜRA VARUNA " *

R. N. Dandekar, M.A., Ph.D.

Paradoxical as it may seem, one will all the same be justified

consistent with his essential characteristics, as described in the

supreme sovereignty over the whole universe, which is said to

of his law. It is Varuna who creates the universe and guards

true Vedic character of Varuna when h

Since this encompassing or pervading nature is conspicuously

sis snpcrm»r% 11 ( VIII. 41.7 )

career, Varuna thus rose from the 4 sky 9 to be

the suggestion that Vedio Varuna may be connected with Arm.

Further the Vedic passages adduced in sup

fr nnrr srrëmr q^^orracïrraïw&ss...

Are the phrases dyiuriva sthãd, drapso na švelah, d

( Max Müller ) may now be dismised without any further

i • The conception of Varuça as the god of night seems to be the more

-~J. J. Meyer : Uber das

types of mythologies. Though therefore the

this respect he was regarded as the god of the whole

element of royal power

Varuiia is mother earth- Aditi or Ppthvl..,

-Johansson : Über die al

In EV he ascends to the sky ( not necessarily first then

turned into the heavenly sovereign-lord of the universe

ghtful nature and his lordship over the dead seem to

-J. J. Meyer : Trilogie d

( continued from the previous page )

versed in the science of astronomy and of numbers, from the

ří srpr^rnŤ waT g^ÌT

( to Soma ) fà «nsremr írçtff

In ritual also, at the beginning of the agnisth

waters as well as with winter. Is the moon not described in a

5R*rq; rasr i ( X. 8.4 ).

would have certainly bestowed upon him, before anything else,

having something to do with treaties and agreements. The

3Tc^èf TTsrac ^nr mïïvm fasr

fèrrei ^orrfa Trsrr

from physical strength. The occult power which comes from

working of the enormous natur

1% mfaÍT ÏTÎÎÎ* I ( HI. 38.7 )

Bäjami , the Algonkin Indians of North Ame

law, and of the moral governor is represented to be employing

<T«ir skhw wrèi

It has already been pointed out that an

compact locality where the later Germanic, Thrakian and Indo-

of Varana and Mitra is never strongly emphasised in the Veda.

The rivalry between Indra and Varuna forms an outstanding

(1) The 1 naturalism 9 pure and simple, when the Vedic

( 2 ) Later on however he realised that this vast existence

(3) This ethical abstraction in religion could not for long

on account of the changing circumstance

Indra ť conquers ' but it is Varuna who 4

the relation between the Yedic civilisation and Indus-valley

to a certain extent. 1 It is very likely, as K

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