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PitWs or Manes of the gods, who when living upon earth did not maintain their domestic fires or offer burnt-sacrifices. According to some authorities they were descendants of Marichi. They are also identified with the seasons. See Pitris. AGNIYE5A. A sage, the son of Agni, and an early writer on medicine. ATIALYA. Wife of the jRishi Gautama, and a very beautiful woman. In the RfimayaTza it is stated that she was the first woman made by Bralimii, and that he gave her to Gautama. She was seduced by Indra, Avho had to suffer for his adultery. One version of tlie Ramayay^a represents her as knowing the god and being flattered by his condescension ; but anotlicr ver- sion states that tlic god assumed the form of her husband, and AHI—AJA. 9 so deceived her. Another story is that Iiidra secured the help of the moon, who assumed the form of a cock and crowed at midnight. This roused Gautama to his morning's devotions, when Indra went in and took his place. Gautama expelled Ahalya from his hermitage, and deprived her of her prerogative of being the most beautiful woman in the world, or, according to another statement, he rendered her invisible. She was restored to her natural state by Rama and reconciled to her husband. This seduction is explained mythically by Kumarda Bha^/a as Indra (the sun's) carrying away the shades of night — the name Ahalya, by a strained etymology, being made to signify 'night.' AHI. A serpent. A name of Vritra, the Vedic demon of drought : but Ahi and Vritra are sometimes " distinct, and mean, most probably, differently formed clouds." — WiUon. AHI-CHHATRA, AHI-KSHETRA. A city mentioned in the Maha-bharata as lying north of the Ganges, and as being the capital of Northern Panchala. It is apparently the Adisadra of Ptolemy, and its remains are visible near Eam-nagar. AINDRI. ' Son of Indra.' An appellation of Arjuna. AIRAYATA. 'A fine elephant.' An elephant produced at the churning of the ocean, and appropriated by the god Indra. The derivation of this name is referred to the word Iravat, signifying 'produced from water.' He is guardian of one of the points of the compass. See, Loka-pala. AITAREYA. The name of a Brahma??a, an Ara?iyaka, and an XJpanishad of the -K/g-veda. The BrahmaTia has been edited and translated by Dr. Haug ; the text of the Ara^z-yaka has been published in the B'lhliotheca Indica by Rajendra Lala, and there is another edition. The Upanishad has been translated by Dr. Roer in the same series. " The Aitareya Ara^iyaka consists of five books, each of which is called Ara?^yaka. The second and third books form a separate Upanishad, and a still further subdivision here takes place, inasmuch as the four last sections of the second book, which are particularly consonant with the doctrines of the Vedanta system, pass as the Aitareyopanishad."^/F(gZ)gr. A J A. 'Unborn.' An epithet applied to many of the gods. A prince of the Solar race, sometimes said to be the son of Raghu, at others the son of Dilipa, son of Raghu. He was tlie husband chosen at her swayam-vara by IndumatI, daughter of the Raja of Vidarbha, and was the father of Dasaratha and lo AJAGAVA—ALAKA. grandfather of Rama. The Raghu-van^a relates how on his way to the swayam-vara he was annoyed by a wild elephant and ordered it to be shot. "Wlien the elephant was mortally wounded, a beautiful figure issued from it, which declared itself a gand- harva who had been transformed into a mad elephant for derid- ing a lioly man. The gandharva was delivered, as it had been foretold to him, hy Aja, and he gave the prince some arrows which enabled him to excel in the contest at the swayam-vara. AMien Dasaratha grew up, Aja ascended to Indra's heaven. AJAGAVA. The ' primitive bow ' of ^'iva, which fell from heaven at the birth of Pr?'thu. AJA]\IILA. A Brahman of Kanauj, who married a slave and had children, of whom he was very fond. AJATA->SfATRU. 'One whose enemy is unborn.' i. A king of Kusi, mentioned in the Upanishads, who was very learned, and, although a Ivshatriya, instructed the Brahman Gargya-balaki. 2. A name of >Siva. 3. Of Yudhi-shfliira. 4. A king of ]\fathura who reigned in the time of Buddha. AJAYA-PALA. Author of a 8ansk>-/t vocabulary of some rejmte. AJIGAKTTA. A Brfdiman 7?/Vlii who sold his son SxavAh- *-ephas to be a sacrifice. AJITA. ' Unconquered. ' A title given to Vish/m, >Siva, and many others. There were classes of gods bearing this name in several Manwantaras. AKRU^RA. A Yadava and uncle of Kr/sh/^. He was son of >S'wa-plialka and Gandini. It was he who took Kr?'sh?ia and Hama to ^Nfathura when the former broke the great bow. He is chiefly noted as being the holder of the Syamantaka gem. AKSHA. The eldest son of RavaTza, slain by Hanuman. Also a name of GarucZa. AKSHA MALA. A name of Arundhati (q.v.). AKULT. An Asura priest. See Kilatfikuli. AKUPARA. A tortoise or turtle. The tortoise on whicli the earth rests. AKUTI. A daughter of Manu Swfiyambhuva and /S'ata-riipa, whom he gave to the patriarch Ruchi. She bore twins, Yajna and Dakshiz/a, who became husband and wife and had twelve pons, tlie deities called Yilmas. AL.MvA. The cajtilal of Jvuvuia and tlic abode of the ALAKA-NANDA~A MARU-SA TAKA. 1 1 gandliarvas on jVIount Mem. It is also called A'asu-dhara, Vasu-sthall, and Prabhii. ALAKA-NAXDA. One of the four brandies of the river Ganga, wliicli flows south to the country of Bharata. This is said by the Vaishwavas to be the terrestrial Gangii which ^S'iva received upon his head. ALAMBUSHA. A great Rakshasa worsted by Satyaki in the great war of the Maha-bharata, and finally killed by Gha/ot- kacha. He is said to be a son of itishyasr/nga. ALAYUDHA. A Rakshasa killed after a fierce combat by Gha/otkacha in the war of the Maha-bharata (Fauche, ix. 278). AMARA-KAA^IAKxi. 'Peak of the immortals.' A place of pilgrimage in the table-land east of the Vindhyas. AMARA-KOSHA. This title may be read in two ways — 'the immortal vocabulary,' or, more appropriately, ' the vocabulary of Amara or Amara Sinha.' " The oldest vocabulary hitherto known, and one of the most celebrated vocabularies of the classical Sanskr/t." It has been the subject of a great number of com- mentaries. The text has been often printed. There is an edition published in India with an English interpretation and amiotations by Colebrooke, and the text with a French transla- tion has been printed by Deslongchamps. AMARA SINHA The author of the vocabidary called Amara-kosha. He was one of the nine gems of the court of Yikrama. (See Nava-ratna. ) Wilson inclines to place him in the first century B.C. Lassen j)laces him about the middle of the third century a.d., and others incline to bring him down later. AMARA V ATI. The capital of Indra's heaven, renowned for its greatness and splendour. It is situated somewhere in the vicinity of Meru. It is sometimes called Deva-pura, ' city of the gods,' and Piisha-bhasa, * sun-splendour.' AMARE^SWARA. 'Lord of the immortals.' A title of Vish?m, 6'iva, and Indra. Name of one of tlie twelve great lingas. See Linga. AMARU-/SATAKA. A poem consisting of a hundred stanzas written by a king named Amaru, but by some attributed to the philosopher ^ankara, who assumed the dead form of that king for the 23urpose of conversing with his widow. The verses are of an erotic character, but, like many others of the same kind, a religious or philosophical interpretation lias been found for them. 12 AMBA—AATRITA. There is a translatiou in Freuch by AjDudy with the text, and a translation in German by RUckert. AMBA. ' ^Mother.' i. A name of Durgi. 2. The eldest /laughter of a king of IsSxsl. She and her sisters Ambika and Ambrdika were carried off by Bhishma to be the wives of Vichitra- vfrya. Amba had been previously betrothed to a Raja of ^alwa, and Bhishma sent her to him, but the Raja rejected her because she had been in another man's house. She retu^ed to the forest and engaged in devotion to obtain revenge of Bhishma. 5'iva favoured \wv, and promised her the desired vengeance in another birth. Then she ascended the pile and was born again as ^ik- hdiudm, M'ho slew Bhishma. A!MBALIKA. The younger Tvidow of Vichitra-virya and mother of V&ndu by Vyasa. See Maha-bharata. AMBARISHA. i. A king of Ayodhya, twenty-eighth in descent from Ikshwaku. {See AS'unaAsephas.) 2. An appellation of >S'iva. 3. x^Tame of one of the eighteen hells. AMBASHTHA.