132 Birds in Sanskrit Literature blance, both in structure and coloration, to the common Black Drongo. It differs from all other Cuckoos in the shape of the tail, which is very long and forked......". "Its call is a most human whistle of six notes in ascend- ing scale and it also utters a very plaintive double note, sounding like "wee-whip" and very like a breeding call of the common Black Drongo. Its flight also is generally dipping and buoyant, much like the flight of that bird...." (Ibid). faus (fa fa ), therefore being a synonym of would seem to have been very appropriately chosen for the Drongo Cuckoo. It also means a musical instrument, perhaps some sort of a whistle, so named after the bird's voice: cf. and ear, both as birds and musical instruments. 10. The Hawk Cuckoo is one of the commonest birds of India and some of its names, given in the have already been men- tioned above. The older names for it are ag and as seen in the list of age birds in and respectively. The name ge is of frequent occurrence. in Puranic and other literature and at times it becomes difficult to say what bird is exactly meant, for the term also means at least a couple of water-birds. The Lexicons also give quite a number of so-called names for the Hawk Cuckoo which are really in the nature of descriptive epithets, and qualified with one of them at a time should be specific for a particular bird. In poetry, however, where 'brevity is the soul of wit' or, perhaps, of mystification, the epithets are dropped and the bare homonym is given. ("मादक वाल्यूहे"माञ्चति वर्षागमे हृष्यतीति – शब्दकल्पद्रुम) one of such epithets and as it means 'exhilarating, gladdening', it should refer to the Hawk Cuckoo whose voice is appre- ciated in India and therefore figures very largely in erotic poetry. Referring to these birds calling all around in the Himalayas Herbert Stevens characterises the chorus a "pandemonium which reigns all day long and throughout the long hours of the night" which may be contrasted with a healthy appreciation of the same by the hardy ancients of India: “दात्यूहव्यूहकेलीकलितकुहकुहा रावरम्या वनान्ताः।” "सलीलदात्यूहसमूहनिस्वनाः।" The voice of the Hawk Cuckoo never caused 'brain-fever' to the nature- loving except, of course, the love-lorn: बालरामायण, 1.63 विक्रमाङ्कदेवचरित, 11.15 "अशंकितैः पक्षिगणैः प्रगीतैरिव च प्रभो । केकाभिर्नीलकण्ठानां दात्यूहानां च कूजितैः" म. भारत, 15.27.9 7. F.B.I. 2nd Edition. 8. Other epithets are considered in Art. 58: Cf. rart for the Kocl. 9. Journal of B.N.H.S.: XXH.680. Cuckoos “प्रमत्तदात्यहस्तैश्च वल्गुभि:"-मत्स्यपुराण, 68.1 "एष दात्यूहको इष्टो रम्ये मां वननिर्झरे । प्रणदन् मन्मथाविष्टं शोचविष्यति लक्ष्मण ॥” रामायण, 4.1.24 and the name It was also a favourite cage-bird as ter is represented in the , wishing an affectionate goodbye to her pet-birds including a दात्यूही (Act. 6.27); Cf. also the idiomatic phrase, "कक्षा पञ्जर दात्यूह" (Act.8.72) for a person completely under one's control. 11. वर्षाहू is a bird in "वर्षाहू ऋतूनाम्" वाज. सं. 24.38 means 'rain-invoker'. It is evidently one of the Câtakas. An alternative form 'af' occurs in the bird-list quoted from a by weer in his commentary on fgr 85.28. This name is on a par with names like fr and considered above, and all three remind one of probably a bird answered back by another bird, ff in the aft hymn of RV.:- "वृषाखाय वदते यदुपावति चिच्चिक: 10 आघाटीभिरिव धावयन् अरण्यानिर्महीयते।" RV. 10.146 are also would therefore appear to be a kind of , and having regard to the loud and persistent call of the Hawk Cuckoo, it is probably entitled to claim all these names (except ifa) in its own right. 133 12. From amongst the different birds going under the name of only two appear to be the favourites of Sanskrit Poets, the Hawk Cuckoo, always mentioned as चातक and rarely as art, and the larger Pied Crested Cuckoo, called more correctly as ar than as a though it is the of many a verse in af and other poetry. To the poets any is simply a and they do not seem to worry what particular kind of bird they are actually referring to. In this way even the name er has lost its identity. frre, however, would seem, for once at least, to have observed the distinction. Two examples from the age should suffice:- (i) "मन्दं मन्दं नुदति पवनचानुकूलो यथा त्वां वामयायं नदति मधुरं चातकस्ते सगन्धः ।" ( v.J. सगर्व:) "नीपं द्वष्ट्वा हरितकपिशं केसरैरर्धरूढैः आविर्भूतप्रथममुकुलाः कन्दलीश्र्वानुकच्छम् । दग्धारण्येष्वधिकसुरभि गन्धमाघ्राय चोर्व्याः सारङ्गास्ते जललवमुचः सूचयिष्यन्ति मार्गम् ॥" In the first example is most probably the Hawk Cuckoo with its powerful and persistent call justifying the use of the epithet : or 10. For fuf see Art. 45.
