https://tinyurl.com/y6ozorsz
-- R̥gveda links with Indus Script. parīśāsau, pair of tongs, of ṛśya,'antelope' horns used in Pravargya
This monograph demonstrates that the orthography of one-horned young bull should be seen as composed of ligatures and there ain't any intimation of a 'unicorn' as an imaginary animal or a variant of emūṣa varāha; nor is there any intimation of an antelope Ṛiṣya; the ligature of śṛnga, 'horn' is read rebus as koḍ 'horn' rebus: koḍ 'workshop' in Indian sprachbund 'language union' of spoken dialects or spoken (mispronounced) forms of Meluhha/Mleccha. The engraver's clear intent is to signify a youthful, young bull-calf,distinct from a grown-up or aged, adult bovine. The choice of koḍ 'horn' rebus: koḍ 'workshop' is a semantic determinative of the coremessage of youth of the bull-calf: khōṇḍa
m. A young bull, a bullcalf(Marathi).
The horn of the 'one-horned young bull' (the so-called unicorn) is with two curves, like the horn of an antelope, with two curves. The rebus reading in Meluhha for the horn ligatured to the young bull is: koḍ 'horn' rebus: koḍ
'workshop'. Ta. kōṭu (in cpds. kōṭṭu-) horn, tusk, branch of tree, cluster, bunch, coil of hair, line, diagram, bank of stream or pool; kuvaṭu branch of a tree; kōṭṭāṉ, kōṭṭuvāṉ rock horned-owl (cf. 1657 Ta. kuṭiñai). Ko. ko·ṛ (obl. ko·ṭ-) horns (one horn is kob), half of hair on each side of parting, side in game, log, section of bamboo used as fuel, line marked out. To. kwï·ṛ (obl. kwï·ṭ-) horn, branch, path across stream in thicket. Ka. kōḍu horn, tusk, branch of a tree; kōr̤ horn. Tu. kōḍů, kōḍu horn. Te. kōḍu rivulet, branch of a river. Pa. kōḍ (pl. kōḍul)horn. Ga. (Oll.) kōr (pl. kōrgul) id. Go. (Tr.) kōr (obl. kōt-, pl. kōhk) horn of cattle or wild animals, branch of a tree; (W. Ph. A. Ch.) kōr (pl. kōhk), (S.) kōr (pl. kōhku), (Ma.) kōr̥u (pl. kōẖku) horn; (M.) kohk branch (Voc. 980); (LuS.) kogoo a horn. Kui kōju (pl. kōska) horn, antler. Cf. 2049 Ta. koṭi. (DEDR 2200).
A pair of such horns can constitute a pair of tongs for handling Mahāvīra ayasmaya, metal pot used in Veda performance of Pravargya. This sacred performance may explain the unique orthography of the one-horn with two curves, ligatured to the young bull. Other ligatures are: rings on neck and pannier. Both these hieroglyphs reinforce the underlying semantics of the young bull: koḍiyum 'rings on neck'. kāru-kōḍe. [Tel.] n. A bull in its prime. खोंड [ khōṇḍa ] m A young bull, a bullcalf. (Marathi) खोंडा 'cowl' or 'pannier' rebus: khōṇḍī 'pannier sack' खोंडी (p. 216) [ khōṇḍī ] f An outspread shovelform sack (as formed temporarily out of aकांबळा , to hold or fend off grain, chaff &c.) खोंडा khōṇḍā m A कांबळा of which one end is formed into a cowl or hood.कोंड [kōṇḍa] A circular hamlet; a division of a मौजा or village, composed generally of the huts of one caste. खोंड khōṇḍa m A young bull, a bullcalf. కారుకోడె kārukōḍe kāru-kōḍe. [Tel.] n. A bull in its prime.కోడియ kōḍiya Same as కోడె .కోడె kōḍe kōḍe. [Tel.] n. A bullcalf. కోడెదూడ . A young bull. కాడిమరపదగినదూడ . Plumpness, prime. తరుణము. జోడుకోడయలు a pair of bullocks. కోడె adj. Young. కోడెత్రాచు a young snake, one in its prime. "కోడెనాగముం బలుగుల రేడుతన్ని కొని పోవుతెరంగు " రామా . vi. కోడెకాడు kōḍe-kāḍu. n. A young man. పడుచువాడు . A lover విటుడు .I suggest that an early Munda word to signify a cattlepen is: goṭ = the place where cattle are collected at mid-day (Santali); goṭh (Brj.)(CDIAL 4336). goṣṭha (Skt.); cattle-shed (Or.) koḍ = a cow-pen; a cattlepen; a byre (G.) कोठी cattle-shed (Marathi) कोंडी [ kōṇḍī ] A pen or fold for cattle. गोठी [ gōṭhī ] f C (Dim. of गोठा) A pen or fold for calves. (Marathi) A one-horned young bull which comes out of such a cattlepen is a rebus rendering of a lapidary working with fine gold: कोंद kōnda ‘young bull' कोंद kōnda ‘engraver,turner'. कुलालादिकन्दुः
f. a kiln; a potter's kiln; kō̃da कोँद 'potter's kiln' (Kashmiri) Thus, an iron turner (in smithy/forge).Rebus: Ta. kuntaṉam interspace for setting gems in a jewel; fine gold (< Te.). Ka. kundaṇa setting a precious stone in fine gold; fine gold; kundana fine gold. Tu. kundaṇa pure gold. Te. kundanamu fine gold used in very thin foils in setting precious stones; setting precious stones with fine gold. (DEDR 1725). [ kun̐da ] n a (turner's) lathe kundār 'workshop of metals turner (mixer of metals to create alloys) or artisan working in a smithy/forge.'
परी--शास m. ( √ शस्) anything cut out , an excision AV.; a kind of tongs used for lifting a kettle from the fire (Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa) ऋश्य ऋश्य or (in later texts ऋष्य) m. the male of a species of antelope , the painted or white-footed antelope RV. viii , 4 , 10 AV. v , 14 , 3 VS. AitBr. Sus3r. &c (Monier-Williams) The expression ṛśyasyeva parīśāsaṃ in AV 5.14.3 can be interpreted as the horn of an antelope; thus the dual, parīśāsau, signifies a pair of tongs made of the horn of an antelope. ṛśya ऋश्य a. [ऋश्-कर्मणि-क्यप्] To be killed. -श्यः A white-footed antelope; ऋश्यो न तृप्यन्नवपानमा गहि Rv.8.4.1. वराहमृश्यं पृषतं महारुरुम् Rām.2.52.12. -श्यम् Killing, hurt, violation. -Comp. -केतुः, -केतनः 1 N. of Aniruddha, son of Pradyumna. -2 N. of the god of love. -दः a pit for catching antelopes. -पद् a.having the feet of an antelope. -मूकः N. of a mountain; ṛṣyḥ ऋष्यः [ऋष्-क्यप्] 1 A white-footed antelope. see ऋश्य. -ष्यम् A kind of leprosy. -Comp. -अङ्कः, -केतनः, -केतुः N. of Aniruddha. -गता the plant Asparagus Racemosus (= ऋष्यप्रोक्ता). -गन्धा the plant ऋक्षगन्धा. -जिह्वम् a kind of leprosy. -प्रोक्ता N. of several plants; शूकशिंबी, अतिबला, शतावरी. -मूकः a mountain near the lake Pampā which formed the temporary abode of Rāma with the monkey-chief Sugrīva; ऋष्य- मूकस्तु पम्पायाः पुरस्तात् पुष्पितद्रुमः. -शृङ्गः N. of a sage. [Hewas the son of Vibhāṇdaka. According to mythical account he was born of a female deer, and had a small horn on his forehead, and hence called 'Ṛiṣya- śṛnga', or 'deerhorned'. He was brought up in the forest by his father, and he saw no other human being till he nearly reached his manhood. When a great drought well nigh devastated the country of Aṅga, its king Lomapāda, at the advice of Brāhmaṇas, caused Ṛisyaśriṅga to be brought to him by means of a number of damsels, and gave his daughter Śantā ॠ .
ṛśyasyeva parīśāsaṃ parikṛtya pari tvacaḥ / kṛtyāṃ kṛtyākṛte devā niṣkam iva prati muñcata // ( Atharvaveda 5.14.3)
Whitney's translation: “Having cut around out of [his] skin a strip (parīśāsa), as if it were of a stag, fasten, O gods, upon the witchcraft-maker the witchcraft, like a necklace.”
Bloomfield's translation: “Cutting out from the skin (of the enemy) as if (from the skin) of an antelope, do, ye, O gods, fasten the spell upon him that prepares it, as (one fastens) an ornament!”
Eggeling's translation: “If it [the Mahāvīra vessel also called Gharma] were made of wood, it would be burnt; and if of gold, it would dissolve; and if of copper, it would melt; and if of stone, it would burn the two handling-sticks [parīśāsau]; and that (Gharma) itself submitted to that (earthen vessel): therefore it is by means of an earthen one that he offers it.” (Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa 14. 2. 54).
parīśāsau is an implement, a pair of tongs, used in Pravargya to handle the Mahāvīra vessel. परी (परि- √इ) P. पर्य्-ेति (Impv. परी*हि MBh. ; Pot. प्/अर्त्याम् TS. ; impf. पर्यैत् S3Br. ; pf. प्/अरी*याय TS. ; fut. पर्य्-ेता ChUp. ; ind.p. परी*त्य
Pa1rGr2. ; पर्य्-ायं Br. ; inf. प्/अर्य्-ेतवे RV. ) , to go about , move in a circle ;
(trans.) to go or flow round (acc.) , circumambulate , surround , include , grasp , span RV. &c ; to run against or into , reach , attainAV. S3Br. ChUp. ; (with or sc. मनसा) to perceive , ponder MBh. R. : Intens. A1. प्/अरी*यते , to move round or in a circle RV. परी means 'to move around in a circle';thus, parīśāsau परी--शासौ means a pair of tongs which move around in a circle to hold the heated pot. Pravrj means 'heating and boiling' and hence, the Pravargya process results in a heated and boiled pot which vessel according tos Ṛgveda 5.30.15, was made of metal (ayasmaya) and was called Gharma. To hold this pot, a pair of tongs called parīśāsau implement is used. Gharma is also the word for the milk poured into the Pravargya heated vessel or pot. Śatapatha Bṛāhmaṇa 14, 2, 1, 16, notes that the heated vessel symbolized the solar disc and the main significance of the Pravargya ritual was to create solar heat.
“The ‘parīśāsau (also called ‘śaphau,’ XIV, 2, 1, 16) are two pieces of wood or laths apparently fastened together by a kind of clasp (or a cord) at one end, so as to serve the purpose of a pair of tongs (parīśāsau saṃdaṃśakarau, comm. on Kātyā. XXIV, 2, 10) for taking up the Mahāvīra pot, which must not be handled in any other way… at the end of the sacrifice, the Adhvaryu, by means of them, turns the pot upside down so as to pour the remainder of its contents into the offering spoon (see Kātyā. XXIV, 6, 17 with comm.)” (Julius Eggeling (trans.), The Śatapatha-Brāhmaṇa According to the Text of the Mādhyandina School, Delhi: Motilal Banarasidas, reprint 1972, part 5, p. 458-459.
Note: parīśāsau saṃdaṃśakarau, comm. on Kātyā. XXIV, 2, 10; sandaṃśḥ संदंशः 1 A pair of tongs; अयस्मयैरग्निपिण्डैः संदंशैस्त्वचि निष्कुषन्ति Bhāg.5.26.19.
Gautama V. Vajracharya suggests that the pair of tongs could have consisted of two horns of 'unicorns' which have two curves and presents a conjectural image of such a pair of tongs which may be signified by the phrase, parīśāsau. The synonym is śaphau explained as 'a wooden implement formed like a claw or hook (for lifting an iron pot or pan from the fire) (ब्राह्मण; लाट्यायन)(Monier-Williams)
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1. Harappa H-99 4064 Indus Period 3c 2000-1900 BCE Fired steatite 5 cmX5.2cm JM Kenoyer, 2013, Chapter 6 in Connections and Complexity, New Approaches to the Archaeology of South Asia, Left Coast Press, Walnut Creek, California, 2013.https://www.harappa.com/content/iconography-indus-unicorn-origins-and-legacy
https://www.harappa.com/sites/default/files/pdf/Kenoyer2013%20Indus%20Unicorns-1.pdf
2. Mohenjo-daro HR 743 Copyright JM Kenoyer,Courtesy Dept. of Archaeology and Museums,Govt. of Pakistan
3. H-9 After Asko Parpola, Deciphering the Indus Script, 1994, p.231
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(After Fig. 3 in: Gautama V. Vajracharya, Unicorns in Ancient India and Vedic ritual, in: EJVS, Vol. 17 (2010),Issue 2) https://crossasia-journals.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/index.php/ejvs/article/view/322
For a contemporary pair of tongs, made of wood, see T. N. Dharmadhikari, Yajñāyudhāni, Pune: Vaidika-Samśodhana-maṇḍalam, 1989, P. 42.
-- R̥gveda links with Indus Script. parīśāsau, pair of tongs, of ṛśya,'antelope' horns used in Pravargya
This monograph demonstrates that the orthography of one-horned young bull should be seen as composed of ligatures and there ain't any intimation of a 'unicorn' as an imaginary animal or a variant of emūṣa varāha; nor is there any intimation of an antelope Ṛiṣya; the ligature of śṛnga, 'horn' is read rebus as koḍ 'horn' rebus: koḍ 'workshop' in Indian sprachbund 'language union' of spoken dialects or spoken (mispronounced) forms of Meluhha/Mleccha. The engraver's clear intent is to signify a youthful, young bull-calf,distinct from a grown-up or aged, adult bovine. The choice of koḍ 'horn' rebus: koḍ 'workshop' is a semantic determinative of the coremessage of youth of the bull-calf: khōṇḍa
m. A young bull, a bullcalf(Marathi).
The horn of the 'one-horned young bull' (the so-called unicorn) is with two curves, like the horn of an antelope, with two curves. The rebus reading in Meluhha for the horn ligatured to the young bull is: koḍ 'horn' rebus: koḍ
'workshop'. Ta. kōṭu (in cpds. kōṭṭu-) horn, tusk, branch of tree, cluster, bunch, coil of hair, line, diagram, bank of stream or pool; kuvaṭu branch of a tree; kōṭṭāṉ, kōṭṭuvāṉ rock horned-owl (cf. 1657 Ta. kuṭiñai). Ko. ko·ṛ (obl. ko·ṭ-) horns (one horn is kob), half of hair on each side of parting, side in game, log, section of bamboo used as fuel, line marked out. To. kwï·ṛ (obl. kwï·ṭ-) horn, branch, path across stream in thicket. Ka. kōḍu horn, tusk, branch of a tree; kōr̤ horn. Tu. kōḍů, kōḍu horn. Te. kōḍu rivulet, branch of a river. Pa. kōḍ (pl. kōḍul)horn. Ga. (Oll.) kōr (pl. kōrgul) id. Go. (Tr.) kōr (obl. kōt-, pl. kōhk) horn of cattle or wild animals, branch of a tree; (W. Ph. A. Ch.) kōr (pl. kōhk), (S.) kōr (pl. kōhku), (Ma.) kōr̥u (pl. kōẖku) horn; (M.) kohk branch (Voc. 980); (LuS.) kogoo a horn. Kui kōju (pl. kōska) horn, antler. Cf. 2049 Ta. koṭi. (DEDR 2200).
A pair of such horns can constitute a pair of tongs for handling Mahāvīra ayasmaya, metal pot used in Veda performance of Pravargya. This sacred performance may explain the unique orthography of the one-horn with two curves, ligatured to the young bull. Other ligatures are: rings on neck and pannier. Both these hieroglyphs reinforce the underlying semantics of the young bull: koḍiyum 'rings on neck'. kāru-kōḍe. [Tel.] n. A bull in its prime. खोंड [ khōṇḍa ] m A young bull, a bullcalf. (Marathi) खोंडा 'cowl' or 'pannier' rebus: khōṇḍī 'pannier sack' खोंडी (p. 216) [ khōṇḍī ] f An outspread shovelform sack (as formed temporarily out of a
f. a kiln; a potter's kiln; kō̃da कोँद 'potter's kiln' (Kashmiri) Thus, an iron turner (in smithy/forge).Rebus: Ta. kuntaṉam interspace for setting gems in a jewel; fine gold (< Te.). Ka. kundaṇa setting a precious stone in fine gold; fine gold; kundana fine gold. Tu. kundaṇa pure gold. Te. kundanamu fine gold used in very thin foils in setting precious stones; setting precious stones with fine gold. (DEDR 1725). [ kun̐da ] n a (turner's) lathe kundār 'workshop of metals turner (mixer of metals to create alloys) or artisan working in a smithy/forge.'
परी--शास m. ( √ शस्) anything cut out , an excision AV.; a kind of tongs used for lifting a kettle from the fire (Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa) ऋश्य ऋश्य or (in later texts ऋष्य) m. the male of a species of antelope , the painted or white-footed antelope RV. viii , 4 , 10 AV. v , 14 , 3 VS. AitBr. Sus3r. &c (Monier-Williams) The expression ṛśyasyeva parīśāsaṃ in AV 5.14.3 can be interpreted as the horn of an antelope; thus the dual, parīśāsau, signifies a pair of tongs made of the horn of an antelope. ṛśya ऋश्य a. [ऋश्-कर्मणि-क्यप्] To be killed. -श्यः A white-footed antelope; ऋश्यो न तृप्यन्नवपानमा गहि Rv.8.4.1. वराहमृश्यं पृषतं महारुरुम् Rām.2.52.12. -श्यम् Killing, hurt, violation. -Comp. -केतुः, -केतनः 1 N. of Aniruddha, son of Pradyumna. -2 N. of the god of love. -दः a pit for catching antelopes. -पद् a.having the feet of an antelope. -मूकः N. of a mountain; ṛṣyḥ ऋष्यः [ऋष्-क्यप्] 1 A white-footed antelope. see ऋश्य. -ष्यम् A kind of leprosy. -Comp. -अङ्कः, -केतनः, -केतुः N. of Aniruddha. -गता the plant Asparagus Racemosus (= ऋष्यप्रोक्ता). -गन्धा the plant ऋक्षगन्धा. -जिह्वम् a kind of leprosy. -प्रोक्ता N. of several plants; शूकशिंबी, अतिबला, शतावरी. -मूकः a mountain near the lake Pampā which formed the temporary abode of Rāma with the monkey-chief Sugrīva; ऋष्य- मूकस्तु पम्पायाः पुरस्तात् पुष्पितद्रुमः. -शृङ्गः N. of a sage. [He
ṛśyasyeva parīśāsaṃ parikṛtya pari tvacaḥ / kṛtyāṃ kṛtyākṛte devā niṣkam iva prati muñcata // ( Atharvaveda 5.14.3)
Whitney's translation: “Having cut around out of [his] skin a strip (parīśāsa), as if it were of a stag, fasten, O gods, upon the witchcraft-maker the witchcraft, like a necklace.”
Bloomfield's translation: “Cutting out from the skin (of the enemy) as if (from the skin) of an antelope, do, ye, O gods, fasten the spell upon him that prepares it, as (one fastens) an ornament!”
Eggeling's translation: “If it [the Mahāvīra vessel also called Gharma] were made of wood, it would be burnt; and if of gold, it would dissolve; and if of copper, it would melt; and if of stone, it would burn the two handling-sticks [parīśāsau]; and that (Gharma) itself submitted to that (earthen vessel): therefore it is by means of an earthen one that he offers it.” (Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa 14. 2. 54).
parīśāsau is an implement, a pair of tongs, used in Pravargya to handle the Mahāvīra vessel. परी (परि- √इ) P. पर्य्-ेति (Impv. परी*हि MBh. ; Pot. प्/अर्त्याम् TS. ; impf. पर्यैत् S3Br. ; pf. प्/अरी*याय TS. ; fut. पर्य्-ेता ChUp. ; ind.p. परी*त्य
Pa1rGr2. ; पर्य्-ायं Br. ; inf. प्/अर्य्-ेतवे RV. ) , to go about , move in a circle ;
(trans.) to go or flow round (acc.) , circumambulate , surround , include , grasp , span RV. &c ; to run against or into , reach , attainAV. S3Br. ChUp. ; (with or sc. मनसा) to perceive , ponder MBh. R. : Intens. A1. प्/अरी*यते , to move round or in a circle RV. परी means 'to move around in a circle';thus, parīśāsau परी--शासौ means a pair of tongs which move around in a circle to hold the heated pot. Pravrj means 'heating and boiling' and hence, the Pravargya process results in a heated and boiled pot which vessel according tos Ṛgveda 5.30.15, was made of metal (ayasmaya) and was called Gharma. To hold this pot, a pair of tongs called parīśāsau implement is used. Gharma is also the word for the milk poured into the Pravargya heated vessel or pot. Śatapatha Bṛāhmaṇa 14, 2, 1, 16, notes that the heated vessel symbolized the solar disc and the main significance of the Pravargya ritual was to create solar heat.
“The ‘parīśāsau (also called ‘śaphau,’ XIV, 2, 1, 16) are two pieces of wood or laths apparently fastened together by a kind of clasp (or a cord) at one end, so as to serve the purpose of a pair of tongs (parīśāsau saṃdaṃśakarau, comm. on Kātyā. XXIV, 2, 10) for taking up the Mahāvīra pot, which must not be handled in any other way… at the end of the sacrifice, the Adhvaryu, by means of them, turns the pot upside down so as to pour the remainder of its contents into the offering spoon (see Kātyā. XXIV, 6, 17 with comm.)” (Julius Eggeling (trans.), The Śatapatha-Brāhmaṇa According to the Text of the Mādhyandina School, Delhi: Motilal Banarasidas, reprint 1972, part 5, p. 458-459.
Note: parīśāsau saṃdaṃśakarau, comm. on Kātyā. XXIV, 2, 10; sandaṃśḥ संदंशः 1 A pair of tongs; अयस्मयैरग्निपिण्डैः संदंशैस्त्वचि निष्कुषन्ति Bhāg.5.26.19.
Gautama V. Vajracharya suggests that the pair of tongs could have consisted of two horns of 'unicorns' which have two curves and presents a conjectural image of such a pair of tongs which may be signified by the phrase, parīśāsau. The synonym is śaphau explained as 'a wooden implement formed like a claw or hook (for lifting an iron pot or pan from the fire) (ब्राह्मण; लाट्यायन)(Monier-Williams)
After Fig. 6.7 in Kenoyer, 2013 Unicorn figurines from Chanhu-daro (a, b), Mohenjo-daro (c), and Harappa (d). The figurines in the round signify that the one-horn is a ligature to a male young bull-calf, distinct from an aged bull or grown-up ox. The youth is called kor̥a,'boy' in Santali. Hence, खोंड khōṇḍa m A young bull, a bullcalf rebus: kō̃da कोँद 'potter's kiln, furnace' (Kashmiri)
.
1. Harappa H-99 4064 Indus Period 3c 2000-1900 BCE Fired steatite 5 cmX5.2cm JM Kenoyer, 2013, Chapter 6 in Connections and Complexity, New Approaches to the Archaeology of South Asia, Left Coast Press, Walnut Creek, California, 2013.https://www.harappa.com/content/iconography-indus-unicorn-origins-and-legacy
https://www.harappa.com/sites/default/files/pdf/Kenoyer2013%20Indus%20Unicorns-1.pdf
2. Mohenjo-daro HR 743 Copyright JM Kenoyer,Courtesy Dept. of Archaeology and Museums,Govt. of Pakistan
3. H-9 After Asko Parpola, Deciphering the Indus Script, 1994, p.231
(After Fig. 3 in: Gautama V. Vajracharya, Unicorns in Ancient India and Vedic ritual, in: EJVS, Vol. 17 (2010),Issue 2) https://crossasia-journals.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/index.php/ejvs/article/view/322http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bsz:16-ejvs-3221 (PDF) In this article, Gautama V. Vajracharya suggests that the expression parīśāsau signifies a pair of 'horns' of the unicorn (one-horned bull), which are uniquely shaped with two curves as shown on many Indus Script seals.