Vol: V, No. 4.] The Hero-Gods of the Rigveda. 137 
[N.S.] 
2° This is the most me question, and it is also the 
difficult to answer. Let me first recall the points that 
ave been proved by the Seitleiea ‘of the Rigveda itself. (a) 
Tinst that Yama was a man. This follows at once from the 
fact that he died. frat ane wifttetq (ge | 22) 2)! Then 
Vivasvan was his father. 
aa | 
fared Fa a faaT THe 1 Awl wD 
And Trita was one of their descendants. He has been called 
a@uqq the son or descendant of fayag: who can be no other than 
faurag: as: i.e. faatai These three persons therefore belonged 
to the same family. 
(6) After their —. they were all deified. Vivasvan was 
identified with the su Yama with the Pitris founded a 
kingdom—the Paradise of the Vedic Risis—in the disc of the sun, 
and wig became the king of the mid-region 
he position of these deities was lowered. Indra dis- 
lana Trita who had to go to the nether world—the place of 
Nirriti. Yama became. the god of Death in place of Nirrit. 
Vivasvan the sun goes to the place of Nirriti daily and dies. 
But he is born as often as he dies yat: | His degradation has, in 
the eee taken another form. Indra is said to hav 
defeated him 
Aas Wa RA GRATUIT BHAT! e 1 yOu s 
Being the lord of sre, by your power, O sage (= Indra) ae 
forcibly took away 0 o- the wheels of the sun—I, 175- 
(See also IV, 30-4; X, ig 5. 
The degradation of these gods—especially of T’rita—in_ one 
form or other appears in all the later Vedas and the Brah- 
rg What the historical fact underlying this degradation 
Yast. 
According to the latter, ‘‘ The awful kingly glory clave 
unto the bright Yimo, the good shepherd, sa a long time while 
e ruled over the seven Karshvares of the earth. ... . 
In hig reign food and drink never r failed for feeding 
ety 
hee Eh gtk, eee! 
