abhyāvartincāyamāna

Abhyā-vartin Cāyamāna appears in a Dānastuti (‘Praise of

Gifts’) in the Rigveda,¹ and as conqueror of the Vṛcīvants

under the leader Varaśikha. It is probable though not abso-

lutely certain, that he is identical with the Sṛñjaya Daivavāta,

mentioned in the same hymn² as having the Turvaśas and

Vṛcīvants defeated for him by Indra. In this case he would

be prince (samrāj) of the Sṛñjayas. Daivavāta is mentioned

elsewhere³ as a worshipper of Agni.

Abhyāvartin is also referred to as a Pārthava. Ludwig⁴ and

Hillebrandt⁵ maintained that he is thus a Parthian, the latter

using the evidence of the two places mentioned in the descrip-

tion⁶ of Daivavāta's victories, Hariyūpīyā and Yavyāvatī, as

proofs for the western position of Abhyāvartin's people in

Arachosia, in Iran. But Zimmer⁷ is probably right in holding

that the name Pārthava merely means ‘a descendant of Pṛthu,’

and that its similarity to the Iranian Parthians is only on a par

with the numerous other points of identity between the Indian

and Iranian cultures. [Footnote] 1) vi. 27, 8. 5. [Footnote] 2) vi. 27, 7. [Footnote] 3) iv. 15, 4. [Footnote] 4) Translation of the Rigveda, 3, 198

et seq. [Footnote] 5) Vedische Mythologie, 1, 105; 3, 268,

n. 1. Cf. Grierson, Journal of the Royal

Asiatic Society, 1908, 604 et seq. [Footnote] 6) Rv. vi. 27, 5. 6. [Footnote] 7) Altindisches Leben, 133 et seq., 433;

Bergaigne, Religion Védique, 2, 362.