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The last observation, however, is not quite proved by the example taken by Bopp from the Zend, man- ihra, speech. For although the Sanskrit mantra is derived from man^ to think, it receives its causal meaning by the termination ira, and has therefore the signification of prayer, hymn, advice, Bpeech (i. e. what makes us think). If iUm& come from a root aA, the meaning of this root is more likely that of breathing, which would account for Gothic ahma (irvev/ia), as well as for Sanskrit ahOf Greek ^ and 4x^> Latin ajo and nego^ and similar words. If we derive Aimd^ spirit, soul, sel^ from this root aA, we may also derive from it a^ham, I (cuneiform inscript. adam^ egc^ cyi^, ich)* But there always remains a difficulty as regards the elision of a in the old Vedic form ^d, instead of dtmct, and the Zend Mma- nanghf which, according to Prof. Bumoufs conjecture, is thie Sansk. tmanas (Conmientaire sur le Ya^na, p. 509.) ; a diffi- culty which neither European etymologists (Pott, Etymologische Forachungen, i. 196.; Benfey, Griechiscbes Wurzellexicon, i. 265.) nor Indian A^unadik scholars (Unadi S4tras> 4. 152.) have yet explained. c a 22 yAjnavalkya and MAIXBirt. metaphysical meaning. How largely this idea of the Atman, as the Divine Spirit, entered into the early religious and philosophical speculations of the Indians, may be seen from the following dialogue between Y&jnavalkya and MaitrSyi, which forms part of the Brihadar&nyaka. " Maitr^yiV said Y&jnavalkya, "I am going away from this my house (into the forest). Forsooth, I must make a settlement between thee and my other wife K&ty&yant." MaitrSyi said, " My Lord, if this whole earth full of wealth belonged to me, should I be immortal by it?" " No," replied Y&jnavalkya; "like the happy life of rich people will be thy life. But there is no hope of immortality by wealth." And Maitr^yi said, " What should I do with that by which I do not become immortal? What my Lord knoweth (of immortality) may he tell that to me.'* Ydjnavalkya replied, "Thou, who art truly dear to me^ thou speakest dear words. Sit down, I wUl explain it to thee, and listen well to what I say." And he said, " A husband is loved, not because you love the husband, but because you love (in him) the 1 Brihad&ranjaka, 2d Adhjaya, 4th Brfthmana, p. 28. edit. Polej; 4th Prapftthaka, 4th Brfthmana, p. 444. edit B5er. * Instead of f}{M[ 4r||< W* ^<^ ^* Foley reads fi|€(|- 4|r||<^ ^: 9^ which he may have meant for << thoa Avatar^ or incarnation of our love." Not to speak, however, of the gram- matical difficulties of this construction, the Commentary leaves no doubt that we ought to read, fvim (XWT) IfTf ((tt| j4i- yIjnavalkta and maixr^yL 23 Divine Spirit (fttrnd., the absolute Self). A wife is loved, not because we love the wife, but because we love (in her) the Divine Spirit. Children are loved, not because we love the children, but because we love the Divine Spirit in them. This spirit it is which we love when we (seem to) love wealth, Brahmans, Kshatriyas, this world, the gods, all beings, this uni- verse. The Divine Spirit, 0 beloved wife, is to be seen, to be heard, to be perceived, and to be medi- tated upon. If we see, hear, perceive, and know him, O MaitrSyi, then this whole universe is known to us." ^^ Whosoever looks for Brahmahood elsewhere than in the Divine Spirit, should be abandoned by the Brahmans. Whosoever looks for the Kshatra-power elsewhere than in the Divine Spirit, should be aban- doned by the Eshatras. Whosoever looks for this world, for the gods, for all beings, for this universe, elsewhere than in the Divine Spirit, should be aban- doned by them all. This Brahmahood, this Kshatra- power, this world, these gods, these beings, this uni- verse, all is the Divine Spirit." '^ Now, as we cannot seize the sounds of a drum externally by themselves, but seize the sound by seizing the drum, or the beating of it, — as we cannot seize the sounds of a conch-shell by themselves, but seize the sound by seizing the conch-shell, or the shell- blower, — as we cannot seize the sounds of a lute by themselves, but seize the sound by seizing the lute, or the lutanist, — so is it with the Divine Spirit." ^* As clouds of smok6 rise out of a fire kindled with dry fuel, thus, 0 Maitr^yi, have all the holy words been breathed out of that Great Being." ^^ As all the waters find their centre in the sea, o 4 24 tAjNAVALKTA and MAIXB^Yt. 80 all sensations find their centre in the skin, all tastes in the tongue, all smells in the nose, all colours in the eye, all sounds in the ear, all thoughts in the mind, all knowledge in the heart, all actions in the hands, and all the Holy Scriptures in speech." " It is with us, when we enter into the Divine Spirit, as if a lump of salt was thrown into the sea ; it becomes dissolved into the water (from which it was produced), and is not to be taken out again. But wherever you take the water and taste it, it is salt. Thus is this great, endless, and boundless Being but one mass of knowledge. As the water becomes salt, and the salt becomes water again, thus has the Divine Spirit appeared from out the elements and disappears again into them. When we have passed away, there is no longer any name. This, I tell thee, my wife," said Y&jnavalkya. Maitrfeyi said, " My Lord, here thou hast bewildered me, saying that there is no longer any name when we have passed away." And YAjnavalkya replied, " My wife, what I say is not bewildering, it is sufficient for the highest know* ledge. For if there be as it were two beings, then the one sees the other, the one hears, perceives, and knows the other. But if the one Divine Self be the whole of all this, whom or through whom should he see, hear, perceive, or know ? How should he know (himself), by whom he knows every thing (himself) ? How, my wife, should he know (himself) the knower?* Thus thou hast been taught, Maitr^yi; * This last sentence is taken from the fifth Brahmana of the fourth Adhjaja, whete the same story is told again with slight modifications and additions. THE INDIAN MIND. 25 this is immortality.'* Haying said this Ydjnavalkya left his wife for ever, and went into the solitude of the forests. It must be observed that the work from which this dialogue is taken belongs to a later period of Yedic literature. In the earlier times which are represented to us in the hymns of the Yeda, these mystic ten- dencies are not yet so strongly developed. In the songs of the Rig-veda we find but little of philosophy, but we do occasionally meet with wars of kings, with rivalries of ministers, with triumphs and defeats, with war-songs and imprecations. The active side of life is still prominent in the genuine poetry of the Rishis, and there still exists a certain equilibrium between the two scales of •human nature. It is only after the Aryan tribes had advanced southward, and taken quiet possession of the rich plains and beautiful groves of Central India, that they seem to have turned all their energies and thoughts from the world without them to that more wonderful nature which they perceived within. Such was their state when the Greeks first became acquainted with them after the discovery of India by Alexander. What did these men, according tx) Megasthenes, most think and speak about? Their most frequent conversations, he says, were about life and death. This life they considered as the life of an embryo in the womb ; but death as the birth to a real and happy life for those who had thought, and had prepared themselves to be ready to die.^ Good and * Strabo^ zv. 69. : HXe/^rovc 2* ahroic clvai X<Syovc irepl tov ^ararov* vofuiiiy yap 2^ rdr iiiv kvQMi, fiioy Ac ir iucftilr Kvoftiywy cTrai* roy ^i ^ararov yiytair c2c roy Syr^c fiioy kcu roy ihlaifioya roic ^tXo^of ifcram ' Zio rp (urK^tra rXii^jf xp^^^i wpot to Iroifio* 26 THE INDIAN MIND bad was nothing to them ; not that they denied the distinction between good and bad in a moral sense* They recognised law and virtue, as we see in their sacred poetry^, as well as in their codes of law. But they denied that anything that happened to men in this life could be called either good or bad, and they maintained that philosophy consisted in removing the affections of pleasure as well as of pain. Liking pain and hating pleasure was what they considered the highest state of indifference that man could arrive at.^ Odvaroy.