Vlll INTRODDCTEON 



These twins are named Asvinl-Kumdr, or Sons of tlie Mare : they are 

 the physicians of the Gods. 



The sage 8alihotra^ was the first to discover veterinary science, 

 but Nakula, the half-brother of Raja Yudisthira,^ was the first to 

 compile a book on the subject, and he was one of the twin sons of the 

 twins Asvlni-Kumdr, his mother being Madri, the second wife of the 

 impotent king Pandu.^ Nakula lived in the time of the Maha- 

 bharata, and must have compiled his work about 1200 B.C. : his 

 sayings are much quoted in Hindu writings on the horse. 



HoESE Originally a Winged Animal. — According to Hindu 

 legends, the horse was created a winged ^ animal, one that could fly 

 and run, and no man or God could snare it. Indra wanted horses 

 for his chariots, and requested the sage Salihotra to deprive the 

 horses of their wings. ^ Accordingly Salihotra, by his yoga or 

 supernatural power, derived by his austerities, accomplished Indra's 

 wish. The horses, now deprived of the ability to visit far-off 

 jungles in search of medicinal herbs, approached Salihotra and 

 entreated him to write a book on the treatment of their diseases. 

 Salihotra consented, and composed the first work on veterinary 

 science known to the Hindus. This work was called Salihotra after 

 him; gradually this Sanskrit word came to mean veterinary science 

 in general and also a horse. To-day every regiment of Native 

 Cavalry has its Sdlotris. 



Raja Nala of the Mahabharata, who rode from Oudh to the 

 Deccan in one night, was also a noted judge of horses and famed 

 for his skill in their management. 



The Horse-sacrifice. — Besides its use in war, the horse was 

 important in Hindu eyes as an animal of sacrifice.^ Descriptions 

 of the asvamedha or horse sacrifice are found in the Rigveda, 

 1400 B.C. 



1 He spent much time with Indra, and was probably in charge of his 

 stables. 



^ The Suzerain King of India at the time of the Mahabharata. 



^ The so-called father of Yudhisthir. 



* Hence one of the Sanskrit names of the horse is paksM-rdja, or " king 

 of birds." 



^ Indian saises, Muslim and Hindu, call the castors or chesnuts 

 " wings," and believe they mark the scars of the old wounds. 



^ The horse for this sacrifice had to be sydma-karna or " black-eared," 

 I.e., all white with black ears. 



