04-04-2007, 09:58 AM
Thank you very much Bodhi. But with your excellent explanation, some confusion has arisen in my mind.
Sanskrit is suppose to be free of ambiguity. However, the multiple meanings for certain words brings ambiguity. Is the word "go" sat or cow. Aurbindo says that go might mean light, he offers the explanation that Aditi is described as a cow(go) therefore go means light.
Govinda is apparently the name given to Shri Krishna because he brought satisfaction to cows. Another interpretation I've seen is "Cow finder" formed from go(cow) and vinda(finder) and also "Lord Of the Cows"
Gopala, another name given to Shri Krishna, supposedly means "cow protecter"
Here is a list of words using go in the Srimad Bhagvatam Purana: http://www.vedabase.net/g/go
From these, these are the most interesting to me: gocarah(visible) gopatih(sun) gopati(the sun god) gocarna(can be known) gocarah(perceptible) gocar(fit to be practiced) indirya-go-car(the object of the senses)
The rest all have something to do with cows. I have read that Sanskrit is based on Dhatu(root words) each with their own denotative meaning and the morphology is perfect. However in the words above, if go by itself is taken to mean cow, and go-patih is the sun, having no cowness, then the morphology is not perfect.
Simiarily, cow-dung in this list is called Go-maya. However, maya means illusion. So shouldn't it mean cow illusion? It would make more sense if go is taken to be light here, so it would mean illusion of light. However, in the context of SB, it may not make sense.
How do we explain the ambiguity here? Could it be, that the Srimad Bhagvatam uses less than perfect Sanskrit? If this is the case, do the Vedas only have one meaning for Go?
I did some research for the occurence of go or cow in the Griffith's translation: here is one occurence:
<i>THEY who are glancing forth, like women, on their way, doers of mighty deeds, swift racers, Rudra's Sons,
The Maruts have made heaven and earth increase and grow: in sacrifices they delight, the strong and wild.
2 Grown to their perfect strength greatness have they attained; the Rudras have established their abode in heaven.
Singing their song of praise and generating might, they have put glory on, the Sons whom Prsni bare.
3 When, Children of the Cow, they shine in bright attire, and on their fair limbs lay their golden ornaments,</i>
Children of the cow? The Maruts are described as Rudras children. They assist Indra. They are interpreted to be storm gods. Then how of a sudden are they children of cow? If we subtitute Aurbindo's translation of go as light, it makes much more sense:
When, <b>children of the light</b>, they shine in bright attire, on their fair limbs lay their golden ornaments.
The original sanskrit translitration is:
gómaataro yác chubháyante añjÃbhis tanuúSu shubhraá dadhire virúkmataH
baádhante vÃshvam abhimaatÃnam ápa vártmaani eSaam ánu riiyate ghRtám
The word that means children of light is gomaatro. Go(light) and maatro(children of mother?)
So would it be right to take every occurence of go to mean light in the Vedas? Suddenly by understanding that the Maruts are born of light, we can understand what the Maruts are: waves. They are described as "shining" they are born of agni/rudra. There are apparently 40 types of them.
I read this interpretation in another translation of the Vedas I found in the Library(it was beautiful) and it provided supporting evidence to prove this.
Another verse from Grrifths translation supports the Maruts are waves:
<i>Who with their bright beams spread them forth over the ocean in their might
O Agni, with those Maruts come.</i>
The original sanskrit transliteration is:
aá yé tanvánti rashmÃbhis tiráH samudrám ójasaa
marúdbhir agna aá gahi
The Maruts are obviously associated with Agni, and travel on/in beams of light.
This supports that go means light(light can also mean sat) and not cow at least in this context.
Does it translate to other contexts though? If Sanskrit really is perfect and denotative, then go should always mean light. If there is a word for cow, it should be something else:
There is only one chapter in the Rig Veda on cows(RV.6.28)
A verse from Griifth's translation:
To me the Cows seem Bhaga, they seem Indra, they seem a portion of the first-poured Soma.
These present Cows, they, O ye Indra. I long for Indra with my heart and spirit.
The sanskrit transliteration is:
gaávo bhágo gaáva Ãndro me achaan gaávaH sómasya prathamásya bhakSáH
imaáH yaáH gaávaH sá janaasaH Ãndra ichaámi Ãt hRdaá mánasaa cit Ãndram
In this section on cows, the word <b>Gaavo</b> is the most used word. Interesting how the only section on cows in the Rig Veda uses a different word.
The only occurences of "go" are: goSThé, gopathi(means sun in the SB, in Monier Williams dictionary it means abode of cows) and Gosupa.
The contexts in which they are used are
Gosthe:
aá gaávo agmann utá bhadrám akran siÃdantu goSThé raNáyantv asmé
prajaávatiiH pururuúpaaH ihá syuH Ãndraaya puurviÃH uSásaH dúhaanaaH
Ãndro yájvane pRNaté ca shikSaty úpéd dadaati ná svám muSaayati
bhuúyo-bhuuyo rayÃm Ãd asya vardháyann ábhinne khilyé nà dadhaati devayúm
Gopathi:
ná taá nashanti ná dabhaati táskaro naásaam aamitró vyáthir aá dadharSati
devaáMsh ca yaábhir yájate dádaati ca jyóg Ãt taábhiH sacate gópatiH sahá
Gosupa:
úpedám upapárcanam aasú góSuúpa pRcyataam
úpa RSabhásya rétasi d úpa indra táva viiryè
They are obvioudly translated as something cow related. However, I suspect that they have nothing to do with cows. But my Sanskrit is not good enough to prove that. I hope you can help.
Adding Medha. If It means intellect, in which case gomedha yagna, would be a sacrifice for light of intellect.
Though we haven't covered ashwamedha. Ash means swift or possessing dynamism. So how does adding wa/va to it change its meaning?
Sanskrit is suppose to be free of ambiguity. However, the multiple meanings for certain words brings ambiguity. Is the word "go" sat or cow. Aurbindo says that go might mean light, he offers the explanation that Aditi is described as a cow(go) therefore go means light.
Govinda is apparently the name given to Shri Krishna because he brought satisfaction to cows. Another interpretation I've seen is "Cow finder" formed from go(cow) and vinda(finder) and also "Lord Of the Cows"
Gopala, another name given to Shri Krishna, supposedly means "cow protecter"
Here is a list of words using go in the Srimad Bhagvatam Purana: http://www.vedabase.net/g/go
From these, these are the most interesting to me: gocarah(visible) gopatih(sun) gopati(the sun god) gocarna(can be known) gocarah(perceptible) gocar(fit to be practiced) indirya-go-car(the object of the senses)
The rest all have something to do with cows. I have read that Sanskrit is based on Dhatu(root words) each with their own denotative meaning and the morphology is perfect. However in the words above, if go by itself is taken to mean cow, and go-patih is the sun, having no cowness, then the morphology is not perfect.
Simiarily, cow-dung in this list is called Go-maya. However, maya means illusion. So shouldn't it mean cow illusion? It would make more sense if go is taken to be light here, so it would mean illusion of light. However, in the context of SB, it may not make sense.
How do we explain the ambiguity here? Could it be, that the Srimad Bhagvatam uses less than perfect Sanskrit? If this is the case, do the Vedas only have one meaning for Go?
I did some research for the occurence of go or cow in the Griffith's translation: here is one occurence:
<i>THEY who are glancing forth, like women, on their way, doers of mighty deeds, swift racers, Rudra's Sons,
The Maruts have made heaven and earth increase and grow: in sacrifices they delight, the strong and wild.
2 Grown to their perfect strength greatness have they attained; the Rudras have established their abode in heaven.
Singing their song of praise and generating might, they have put glory on, the Sons whom Prsni bare.
3 When, Children of the Cow, they shine in bright attire, and on their fair limbs lay their golden ornaments,</i>
Children of the cow? The Maruts are described as Rudras children. They assist Indra. They are interpreted to be storm gods. Then how of a sudden are they children of cow? If we subtitute Aurbindo's translation of go as light, it makes much more sense:
When, <b>children of the light</b>, they shine in bright attire, on their fair limbs lay their golden ornaments.
The original sanskrit translitration is:
gómaataro yác chubháyante añjÃbhis tanuúSu shubhraá dadhire virúkmataH
baádhante vÃshvam abhimaatÃnam ápa vártmaani eSaam ánu riiyate ghRtám
The word that means children of light is gomaatro. Go(light) and maatro(children of mother?)
So would it be right to take every occurence of go to mean light in the Vedas? Suddenly by understanding that the Maruts are born of light, we can understand what the Maruts are: waves. They are described as "shining" they are born of agni/rudra. There are apparently 40 types of them.
I read this interpretation in another translation of the Vedas I found in the Library(it was beautiful) and it provided supporting evidence to prove this.
Another verse from Grrifths translation supports the Maruts are waves:
<i>Who with their bright beams spread them forth over the ocean in their might
O Agni, with those Maruts come.</i>
The original sanskrit transliteration is:
aá yé tanvánti rashmÃbhis tiráH samudrám ójasaa
marúdbhir agna aá gahi
The Maruts are obviously associated with Agni, and travel on/in beams of light.
This supports that go means light(light can also mean sat) and not cow at least in this context.
Does it translate to other contexts though? If Sanskrit really is perfect and denotative, then go should always mean light. If there is a word for cow, it should be something else:
There is only one chapter in the Rig Veda on cows(RV.6.28)
A verse from Griifth's translation:
To me the Cows seem Bhaga, they seem Indra, they seem a portion of the first-poured Soma.
These present Cows, they, O ye Indra. I long for Indra with my heart and spirit.
The sanskrit transliteration is:
gaávo bhágo gaáva Ãndro me achaan gaávaH sómasya prathamásya bhakSáH
imaáH yaáH gaávaH sá janaasaH Ãndra ichaámi Ãt hRdaá mánasaa cit Ãndram
In this section on cows, the word <b>Gaavo</b> is the most used word. Interesting how the only section on cows in the Rig Veda uses a different word.
The only occurences of "go" are: goSThé, gopathi(means sun in the SB, in Monier Williams dictionary it means abode of cows) and Gosupa.
The contexts in which they are used are
Gosthe:
aá gaávo agmann utá bhadrám akran siÃdantu goSThé raNáyantv asmé
prajaávatiiH pururuúpaaH ihá syuH Ãndraaya puurviÃH uSásaH dúhaanaaH
Ãndro yájvane pRNaté ca shikSaty úpéd dadaati ná svám muSaayati
bhuúyo-bhuuyo rayÃm Ãd asya vardháyann ábhinne khilyé nà dadhaati devayúm
Gopathi:
ná taá nashanti ná dabhaati táskaro naásaam aamitró vyáthir aá dadharSati
devaáMsh ca yaábhir yájate dádaati ca jyóg Ãt taábhiH sacate gópatiH sahá
Gosupa:
úpedám upapárcanam aasú góSuúpa pRcyataam
úpa RSabhásya rétasi d úpa indra táva viiryè
They are obvioudly translated as something cow related. However, I suspect that they have nothing to do with cows. But my Sanskrit is not good enough to prove that. I hope you can help.
Adding Medha. If It means intellect, in which case gomedha yagna, would be a sacrifice for light of intellect.
Though we haven't covered ashwamedha. Ash means swift or possessing dynamism. So how does adding wa/va to it change its meaning?