Rasa (rásā रसा) is the name of a western tributary of the Indus in the Rigveda (verse 5.53.9). The word rasa means "moisture, humidity" in Vedic Sanskrit.
In RV 9.41.6, RV 10.108 and in the Nirukta of Yaska, it is the name of a mythical stream supposed to flow around the Earth and the atmosphere (compare Oceanus), also referring to the underworld in the Mahabharata and the Puranas (compare Styx).
The corresponding term in Avestan is Ranha/Raŋhā. In the Vendidad, Ranha is mentioned just after Hapta-Həṇdu, and may possibly refer to the ocean.[1]
Witzel makes the case that the verse is a remembrance of distant emigration and denotes the river Volga in the steppe homeland of the aryans :- "IIr. river *Raså corresponds in name to the Vedic Raså (RV, JB), the E.Ir. (Avest.) Rahå, and the N.Ir. *Rahå that ispreserved in Greek as Rhå and designates the R. Volga".[2][3]
See also
edit- Rasa, dew in Lithuanian
References
edit- ^ Sethna, K D (1992). The problem of Aryan origins from an Indian point of view. New Delhi: Aditya Prakasana. ISBN 9788185179674.
- ^ Witzel, Michael (11 October 2016). "Autochthonous Aryans? The evidence from Old Indian and Iranian texts". Electronic Journal of Vedic Studies. 7 (3): 1–93. doi:10.11588/EJVS.2001.3.830. ISSN 1084-7561.
- ^ See also Witzel, Michael (17 April 2008), Addendum to EJVS 7-3, notes 45-46 (PDF), doi:10.11588/XAREP.00000118
Further reading
edit- Talageri, Shrikant: The Rigveda: A Historical Analysis, 2000. ISBN 81-7742-010-0 (chapter 4)
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