Note 7 — Chapter IV · ANIMAL-WORSHIP.

In the Mahâbhârata, Uchchaihsravas, “he with the long ears,” or “he that neighs loudly,” is the king of the horses, and belongs to Indra. He is swift as thought, follows the path of the sun, and is luminous and white, with a black tail, made so by the magic of the serpents, who have covered it with black hair. In the folk-tales he consorts with mares of mortal birth, and begets steeds of unrivalled speed, like the divine Homeric coursers of Æneas.7 In the tales of Somadeva we find the king addressing his faithful horse, and praying for his aid in danger, as Achilles speaks to his steeds Xanthos and Balios, and in the Karling legend of Bayard.8 We meet also with the horse of Manidatta, which was “white as the moon; the sound of its neighing was as musical as that of a clear conch or other sweet-sounding instrument; it looked like the waves of the sea of milk surging on high; it was marked with curls on the neck, and adorned with the crest jewels, the bracelet, and other signs, which it seemed it had acquired by being born in the race of Gandharvas.”