RE: [Y-Indology] "Bull among men" was o toro fra gli uomini :-)

[Guest guest]

Phillip Ernest wrote:

>I heard today that compounds like narapumgava are definitely not to be

>translated

>as 'bull among men',

 

For verse 1 book 1 of the Valmiki Ramayana

 

tapaHsvAdhyAyanirataM tapasvI vAgvidAM varam

nAradaM paripapraccha vAlmIkir munipuMgavam

 

Robert Goldman translates munipuMgavam as "bull among sages"

 

Valmiki, the ascetic, questioned the eloquent Narada, bull among sages,

always devoted to asceticism and study of the sacred texts.

 

Harry Spier

371 Brickman Rd.

Hurleyville, New York

USA 12747

[Guest guest]

It might be of help

to consider analogous to

 

narapumgava

 

compounds, like

 

munIndraziromani -- crestjewel of inspired men

 

and take pumgava in metaphorical sense,

in which case

it will be tatpuruSa compound with meaning

"eminent among men" or,

if context warrants, more bluntly as

"alpha-male among men"

 

Regards,

Dmitri.