218 Birds in Sanskrit Literature the yellow-eyed' Hawks as पाटलाक्ष श्येन, the गुलचश्मबाज, and enumerates them as under :- (i) Female Falcons अतोऽनुवध्ये श्येनानां पृथग्जातिविवेचनम् ॥ कृष्णाक्षा पाटलाक्षा च जाती द्वे प्रस्फुटान्तरे । तयोचावान्तरा भेदा लक्ष्यन्तेऽन्येऽपि भूरिशः ॥ तेषां नामानि कथ्यन्ते जातानां जातिमुख्ययोः । कुही, शशाद, चरक, बहरी, लगरास्तथा ॥ तथान्या पक्षकलिका तथा तुरमती परा । पुंव्यक्तयश्च तत्संख्या: कृष्णाक्षाजातिजो गणः | Page 18. The male birds are just referred to in the last line but their names are not given in the book.. (ii) Female Hawks : वाजा, बासा, बेसराध सिचानाच चतुविधाः || Page 19. (iii) Male Hawks : जूरावटाः धूति टुनास्तथा पुंव्यक्तयस्त्वमी | उभयोगंणयोषां स्त्रीणां प्राधान्यमूजितम् । संस्थाने, साहसे, मूल्ये पक्षपातादिसौष्ठवे ॥ बाजाद्याश्च प्रधानत्वात् पुंलिङ्गे व्यपदेशिताः ॥ Page 20. The last three lines stress the well known fact that the female of these birds is definitely superior in size, strength, speed, and sporting qualities and are therefore always preferred to the males for purposes of hawking. This superiority is the foundation of a convention among Falconers accord- ing to which the name of the female bird is always in the asculine gender. This, incidentally explains why गायत्री, the famle Golden Eagle ( the सुपर्ण,), is supposed to be a श्येन (masculine) when she goes up to bring down the सोम:- यद्गायत्ती श्येनो भूत्वा दिवः सोममाहरत्तेन सा श्येनः । शत० ब्रा० 3.4.1.12 and if this explanation is correct the above tradition is very ancient indeed. 4. Foreign birds were often imported by Indian Falconers during the Muhammadan period and these were what are known as "the great nor- thern" Falcons (Hierofalco, the sacred falcons), viz., (i) the Gyrfalcon of Scandinavia, resembling in colouration the Blue Hawk (the Peregrine ) but of a much larger size; (ii) the Icelander from Iceland with a paler colouring and a decidedly longer body; and (iii) the Greenland Falcon with a predominantly pure white plumage. Among Indian Hawks the female Goshawk stands out as the most powerful and the largest of all the Falcons and Hawks taken together though the Peregrine and the Shaheen excel in dash and spced. The Peregrine and the Shaheen which head the Eagles, Falcons and Allied Birds 219 list of Falcons in size do not exceed 18 or 19 inches in length whereas the Goshawk measures up to fully 24 inches. The "great northern" Falcons which come nearer in size and strength to the Goshawk were naturally looked upon by the author of श्यैनिक शास्त्र as foreign varietics of the Hawk and he accordingly placed them with the adult and young Goshawks in a separate group, the arf: i.e. the Hawks par excellence. वाजिनः पञ्चधा तेषां पृथक् लक्षणमुच्यते । कृशाकृतिर्बलाकाक्षः श्वेतः कृष्णकपदकः ।। भवत्यङ्गे तथोर्वोत्र सुखसाध्यः प्रकीर्तितः । यचक्रवाकसंस्थानञ्चकाङ्गः स च कीर्तित ॥ प्रलम्बः कृष्णसंस्थानः कङ्काभ: कालकः स्मृतः । चिराद्विश्रम्भमभ्येति सुरक्तोऽपि विरज्यते ॥ यः सर्वाङ्गे हिमप्रख्यो हंसवाजः स कथ्यते । स यत्र पूजितस्तिष्ठेत् कल्याणं तत्र जायते ॥ तं प्रयत्नेन रक्षेत्तु वाखेटादिषु योजयेत् । तस्य स्पर्धेन नश्यन्ति ज्वराचातुर्थिकादयः ॥ यस्याश्वत्थदलप्रख्या लेखा पुच्छच्छदादिषु । जायते वाजराजोऽसौ महारावणसंज्ञकः ।। 34 35 36 37 38 39 Tbid. p. 20. the The second line of verse 34 and verse 35 in the above passage refer to the slim looking (because of its very long tail), yellow-eyed or the powerful Goshawk 2 with a black and white spotted plumage (कपदक fr. कपर्द a spotted sea-shell; cf. कपदक for the pied Kingfisher, Art 41). It is the बलाकाङ्क्षवाज. The पत्रावाज is a young Goshawk with rufous lower parts (चक्रवाक संस्थान having a body resembling that of the Brahminy Duck). The third line refers to the case with which the Goshawk can be trained. The कालक वाज of verse 36 and the महारावण वाज of verses 39 and 40 appear to be the Gyrfalcon and the Icelander respectively. The former has an elonga- ted body (प्रलम्ब) and more of the bluish colour than in the Blue Hawk (the Peregrine) so that the descriptive phrase कृष्णसंस्थान also suits it betters. The हंसवाज of verses 37-38 is almost certainly the practically all-white Greenland Falcon. This was considered to be a great possession and as the risk of its loss could not be taken it was never to be used for hawking. No wonder, a superstition grew around it, viz., the mere touch of it cured 1. कडू in the context is the Grey Heron. 2. Cf the technical term "Red Hawk" for a Hawk of the first year in young plumage -Ency. Brit., 11th edition, vol. 10, p. 143a. 3. The three 'great northern' Falcons "are very difficult to back to the hood and to manage in the field". Ency. Brit, ibid, p. 145ff. This goes to support what is stated about the कालक बाज in verse 36, viz. that takes longer to train and even though well disposed towards its owner it often becomes wild.
