( xii ) 10. The authors of the original Epics would seem to have presente d a more accurate picture of the wild scenery including animals, birds and trees, of palaces known to them, but we cannot say the same of the later interpolations, e.g. the extravagant description of the area of the Himalayas in aer III. 158.44-45 where the tropical trees, coconut and the jack-fruit (aft and e) are said to grow; verses 43-47 of this chapter of the महाभारत have been copied with slight changes in the मार्कण्डेय पुराण ch. VI. 10-22 to describe the jungle surrounding the holy city of arfent so that the Himalayan bird vetc and the tree trert appear to be natural there. 11. The practice of divination from the ways, movements etc. of birds (and animals) was common to all primitive cultures (Ency. Rel. and Ethics, s.v. Augury; Divination; Omens) and India was no exception to it. Books. like the पशि ब्राह्मण, वसन्तराज शकुन and also Puranas (e.g.अग्नि पुराण chs. 230-232, chs. 51.66-72) deal with the subject. 12. The are recommends the protection of auspicious and even other pleasant and cheerful birds and animals in pleasure grounds and the practice of sending information about the enemy by letters tied to homing pigeons carried with him by the king's spy is commended and it is also referred to in बृहत्कथामंजरी. 13. We have a good example of sympathetic magic in the art q where the first solid food commended for a six-month-old baby-boy is, 1) flesh of the female Skylark (wrrt) if his father wants him to be a fluent speaker; 2) the flesh of the auspicious Grey Partridge (fa) associated with field crops for abundance of food; or 3) the flesh of the Little Ringed Plover (w) for long life; or 4) the flesh of the Black Ibis (afe) for holy lustre agriq. The Black Ibis (a holy bird in Egypt) wears a trian- gular patch of crimson warts on the crown of its bare black head, a picture of a conical pile of red embers (af) indicative of its holiness. 14. India being rich in birds, their place in Indian drama is well indicated in the eve of wergft. Chapter II of the book refers to the indication of the features of birds like the Goose, Cock, Pigeon, and the Eagle by an actor or actress with special movements of the hands and fingers; Ch. XI. 58 tells us that the presentation of birds () by gesti- culation is very interesting to watch, and the birds to be indicated in this manner are named in Ch. XXVI, while Ch, XXXII deals with the topic of repetition of a particular voice as a sort of burden, and its modifications in pitch, tune, or quality (sweet, soft, or coarse) are indicative of different call-notes of certain birds and copied by characters of high, middle, or low social status. The art XII.103.10 mentions an expert bird-catcher who 1 invites birds with their call-notes to catch or trap them. 4. In grarer III dhe afar vi consisting of Cha, 80 to 156, would seem to be a later interpolation by its priestly author for the benefit of his own clam. 3. Ibis was "the sacred bird of the God Thoth (God of Wisdom) who was believed to have the form of that bird" (Ency. of Rel. and Ethics, VI, pp. 630b, 651 b). ( xiii ) I have briefly indicated above that the ancient Indians closely observed and studied the ways, calls and songs of birds in nature, and utilized their knowledge to enhance the quality of their literature and drama. They also used them for purposes of secret news transmission. The कौटिलीय अर्थशास्त्र, II, बध्याय 34 mentions the use of royal homing pigeons for carrying news. Apart from differ- ent and alternative meanings often noticed in Sanskrit lexicons, c.g., तित्तिरी and भास in the or the absurd equation 'बक्राङ्गारस से in the werfest I may refer to the variant renderings of bird names like क किकिदीवि, चाष and पुष्करसाव mentioned in the Vedic Index of MacDonell and Keith, which clearly point to the difficulty in identifying the names with their proper owners. is said therein to mean usually a 'heron', but in the same passages it also denotes 'some bird of prey, and in support of the latter references to the afere and arfer are given. The truly my- stic shape of the sacrificial Fire-altar in the form of a particular si (a Hawk) has been vainly extended by the priests to the and even (crematorium) in afer. eifgar V.4. 11.3. This is really the Fishing Eagle, Bird No. 1779 in S. Baker's Fama of British India-Birds still called in Nepal. It is also a carrion eater, including the flesh of soldiers killed in war as is clearly stated in सामवेद II. 1214, where कडू, सुपर्ण (the Imperial Eagle, No. 1747, ib.) and qu (Vulture) are said to find their food on the battlefield. g is one of the birds of prey in ga I. 46, V. 74 and as a sharp-billed, bold and cruel flesh eater in af XVIII, 107. The common Pond Heron, the fish eater, is also a (ib. v. 119), and another water-bird, the g() is the Adjutant Stork who "often con- sorts with kites and vultures to feed at carcasses" (Salim Ali's Book of Indian Birds) and stands about 4 ft. high. In the Vedic Index fefefe and we have been treated as two different birds, the former 'perhaps the blue jay', but according to the commentator 'a partridge', and the latter the blue woodpecker', but in point of fact, however, both and fefefe are one and the same bird, viz. the bluejay, fefefe being its epithet in Rgveda 10.97.13, with reference to the bird's indistinct calls like fe-fe' and its playful flight in the air. That is why the bird is mentioned simply as in VS 24. 23; 25.7; MS 3.14.4; 15.9; and as किकिदीवि in TS 5.6.22.1, and काठक संहिता (अश्वमेध) 10.2. Again, of the phrase, feffar' of RV 10.97.13. has been replaced with win in the parallel san fefeffer' in TS 4.2.6.4, where the ver is the Himalayan Kestrel, a winter visitor to the plains, whose flight and calls are described by Salim Ali: "Chiefly distinguished for its spec- tacular method of hunting. Checks itself in flight now and again and remains poised and stationary in mid-air on rapidly hovering wing tips for many seconds. Call: A sharp fe-fe-fe or farm... uttered on the wing, some- 6. The Heron does not fly very high, and keeps his eyes fixed down on the water for fish, and does not suit the context of TS and VS.
