Artic Home of the Aryans by Lokamanya Bal ... - Mandhata Global

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next two verses we have the phrases Devânâm pûrve yuge and
Devânâm prathame yuge clearly referring to the later and earlier ages
of the gods. The word Devânâm is in the plural and yuga is in the
singular, and it is not therefore possible to take the phrase to mean
“generations of gods.” The context again clearly shows that a
reference to time is intended, for the hymn speaks of the creation and
the birth of the gods in early primeval times. Now if we interpret
Devânâm yugam to mean “an age of gods,” why should mânushyâ
yugâni or mânushâ yugâ be not interpreted to mean “human ages,” is
more than I can understand. There are again express passages in
the يig-Veda where mânushâ yugâ cannot be taken to mean
“generations of men.” Thus in V, 52, 4, which is a hymn to Maruts, we
read Vishve ye mânushâ yugâ pânti martyam rishah. Here the verb
pânti (protect), the nominative vishve ye (all those), and the object is
martyam (the mortal man), while rishah (from injury), in the ablative,
denotes the object against which the protection is sought. So far the
sentence, therefore, means “All those who protect man from injury”;
and now the question is, what does mânushâ yugâ mean? If we take
it to mean “generations of men” in the objective case it becomes
superfluous, for martyam (man) is already the object of pânti
(protect). It is, therefore, necessary to assign to mânushâ yugâ the
only other meaning we know of, viz., “human ages” and take the
phrase as an accusative of time. Thus the interpreted the whole
sentence means “All those, who protect man from injury during
human ages.” No other construction is more natural or reasonable
than this; but still Prof. Max Müller translates the verse to mean “All
those who protect the generations of men, who protect the mortal
from injury,”* in spite of the fact that this is tautological and that there
is no conjunctive particle in the texts (like cha) to join what according
to him are the two objects of the verb “protect.” Mr. Griffith seems to
have perceived this difficulty, and has translated, “Who all,
* See S. B. E. Series, Vol. XXXII, p. 312.