Fetching
One moment.
Fetching
One moment.
Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1Stud. IV, p. 8. 3K. B. III, 25; cf. Weber, Ind. Stud. II, 313. 4 Cf. Max Miiller, Upanishads, I, p. 39 note. 5 See, for instance, Sat. Br. II, 4, 3, 1, where a legend of this kind seems to be directly ascribed to Yagiavalkya. INTRODUCTION, XXV positions—and, assuredly, it cannot be a very high one— to the Sanskrit student these works (together with their supplements, the Aravyakas; and their metaphysical appendages, the Upanishads) are of the highest importance as the only genuine prose works which the Sanskrit, as a popular language, has produced. For the comparative study of syntax, which has been taken up with such signal success by Professor Delbriick and other scholars, the Brahmamas offer a rich field of enquiry. Nor is the style of these compositions—with its compact grammatical forms and expressive particles, and its habitual employment of the oratio directa instead of dependent clauses—without a certain rough beauty of its own, which, however, almost entirely evaporates in a rendering into modern analytical speech. And notwithstanding the general emptiness of the speculations of the Indian theologians, ‘there are,’ as Professor Max Miiller observes, ‘passages in the Brahmazas full of genuine thought and feeling, and most valuable as pictures of life, and as records of early struggles, which have left no trace in the literature of other nations,’ Although the Adhvaryus, who had to perform ali the manual work connected with the sacrifice, were originally looked upon as a subordinate class of priests, their office seems to have risen in the general estimation with the increasing importance that was attributed to the endless details of the ceremonial. In a passage of the Taittiriya Upanishad (2, 3), the Yagus is said to be the head, the Rik the right side, the Saman the left side, the Adesa? the soul, and the Atharvangiras (Atharva-veda) the tail. With better reason the Yagur-veda might be called the body of the sacrifice, since it contains almost the entire apparatus of sacrificial formulas, while the other ritualistic works are concerned, either chiefly or entirely, with the Soma-sacrifice. As a matter of fact, no other Veda has given rise to so large a number of schools as the Yagur- ' History of Ancient Sanskrit Literature, p. 408. 2 That is, the Brahmana, according to Sankara. In Sat. Br. IV, 6, 7, 6, the Rik and Séman are identified with Speech, and the Yagus with the Mind. xxvi SATAPATHA-BRAHMANA.
2408. 2 That is, the Brahmana, according to Sankara. In Sat. Br. IV, 6, 7, 6, the Rik and Séman are identified with Speech, and the Yagus with the Mind. xxvi SATAPATHA-BRAHMANA. veda'. The numerous subdivisions of the Adhvaryus trace their origin to either of two principal schools, an older and a younger one, the latter of which is itself an offshoot of the former. The oral transmission of the large body of exegetic and legendary matter attached to the sacrificial formulas could hardly fail, in course of time, to produce considerable variations, in different localities, both as regards the wording and the arrangement of these works. Different schools would naturally arise,—each with its own approved recension of the traditional texts,—which in their turn would sooner or later become liable to the same process of disintegration. Such, indeed, has been the case, more or less, with all the Vedic texts, until mechanical means were devised to arrest this process of change. The names of many such subdivisions of the older Yagur-veda are recorded ; but hitherto the recensions of only three of them have come to light,—viz. the Ka¢aka, the Maitrayawi-samhita, and the Taittiriya-samhité. The two former texts belong to subdivisions of the Ka¢has and Maitrayaztyas, two branches of the old school of the Karakas or Karak4dhvaryus. The Taittiriyas, on the other hand, seem to have been an independent branch of the old Yagus?, the origin of which is ascribed to a teacher named Tittiri. Their text has come down to us in the recension of one of its subdivisions 3, the Apastambins. The chief characteristic of the old Yagus texts consists, as has already been indicated, in the constant inter- ' Except, perhaps, the Sdma-veda, which, in the Karanavy(iha, is said to have counted a thousand schools; though that work itself enumerates only seven schools, one of them with five subdivisions, The number of teachers mentioned in connection with this Veda is, however, very considerable. ? As such, at least, the Taittirlyas are mentioned in the Karanavyfha. The term Karaka, however, is also (e. g. in the Pratigna-siitra) applied to the schools of the Black Yagus generally. If the Berlin MS. of the Kathaka professes, in the colophon, to contain the Karaka text of the work (which Professor Weber takes to refer to the Kardyaniyas), the Karaka-sakha of the Kachaka has perhaps to be understood in contradistinction to those portions of the Karzaka which have been adopted by the Taittiriyas and incorporated into their Brahmana. 3 The Taittirtyas divide themselves into two schools, the Aukhfyas and the Khindikiyas; the Apastambins are a subdivision of the latter branch. We have also the list of the contents (anakramazf) of the Atreyas, a subdivision of the Aukhiyas. INTRODUCTION. XXVil
33 The Taittirtyas divide themselves into two schools, the Aukhfyas and the Khindikiyas; the Apastambins are a subdivision of the latter branch. We have also the list of the contents (anakramazf) of the Atreyas, a subdivision of the Aukhiyas. INTRODUCTION. XXVil mingling of the sacrificial formulas and the explanatory or Brahmamza portions. It was with the view of remedying this want of arrangement, by entirely separating the exegetic matter from the formulas, that the new school of Adhvaryus was founded. The name given to this school is Vagasaneyins, its origin being ascribed to Yagiiavalkya Vagasaneya. The result of this new redaction of the Yagus texts was the formation of a Samhita, or collection of mantras, and a Brahmamwa. This re-arrangement was doubtless undertaken in imitation of the texts of the Hotr# priests, who had a Brahmaza! of their own, while their sacrificial prayers formed part of the Rzk-samhita. Indeed, the Taittirtyas themselves became impressed with the desirability of having a Brahmama of their own,—and attained their object by the simple, if rather awkward, expedient of applying that designation to an appendage to their Saszhité, which exhibits the same mixture of mantra and brahmavza as the older work. They also incorporated a portion of the KAastaka text into their Brahmavza and its supplement, the Taittiriy4razyaka. Of all the schools of the old Yagus those of the Taittirfyas seem to have attracted by far the greatest number of adherents ; and in southern India their texts have continued pre-eminently the subject of study till the present day. In northern India, on the other hand, they have been largely superseded by their later rivals. On account of the lucid arrangement of their sacred texts, the Vagasaneyins callcd them the White (sukla) Yagur-veda; the term of Black or Dark (krishza) Yagur-veda being, for the opposite reason, applied to the texts of the older schools, In later times, an absurd story was invented (doubtless by followers of the White Yagus), in which the origin of the name Taittiriya is connected with the word tittiri?, in the sense of ‘ partridge.’ 1 It has come down to us in two different recensions, the Aitareya and the - Kaushftaki (or SAukhAyana) Brahmana. 2 Professor Weber, however, thinks there may be some reason for this derivation; the name of Taittirfya having perhaps been applied to this school on account of the motley (partridge-like) character of its texts. According to the story alluded to, Yagwavalkya, having been taught the old Yagus texts by Vaisampayana, incurred the displeasure of his teacher, and was forced by him to disgorge the sacred science which, on falling to the ground, became soiled XXVIii SATAPATHA-BRAHMANA.,
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1Stud. IV, p. 8. 3K. B. III, 25; cf. Weber, Ind. Stud. II, 313. 4 Cf. Max Miiller, Upanishads, I, p. 39 note. 5 See, for instance, Sat. Br. II, 4, 3, 1, where a legend of this kind seems to be directly ascribed to Yagiavalkya. INTRODUCTION, XXV positions—and, assuredly, it cannot be a very high one— to the Sanskrit student these works (together with their supplements, the Aravyakas; and their metaphysical appendages, the Upanishads) are of the highest importance as the only genuine prose works which the Sanskrit, as a popular language, has produced. For the comparative study of syntax, which has been taken up with such signal success by Professor Delbriick and other scholars, the Brahmamas offer a rich field of enquiry. Nor is the style of these compositions—with its compact grammatical forms and expressive particles, and its habitual employment of the oratio directa instead of dependent clauses—without a certain rough beauty of its own, which, however, almost entirely evaporates in a rendering into modern analytical speech. And notwithstanding the general emptiness of the speculations of the Indian theologians, ‘there are,’ as Professor Max Miiller observes, ‘passages in the Brahmazas full of genuine thought and feeling, and most valuable as pictures of life, and as records of early struggles, which have left no trace in the literature of other nations,’ Although the Adhvaryus, who had to perform ali the manual work connected with the sacrifice, were originally looked upon as a subordinate class of priests, their office seems to have risen in the general estimation with the increasing importance that was attributed to the endless details of the ceremonial. In a passage of the Taittiriya Upanishad (2, 3), the Yagus is said to be the head, the Rik the right side, the Saman the left side, the Adesa? the soul, and the Atharvangiras (Atharva-veda) the tail. With better reason the Yagur-veda might be called the body of the sacrifice, since it contains almost the entire apparatus of sacrificial formulas, while the other ritualistic works are concerned, either chiefly or entirely, with the Soma-sacrifice. As a matter of fact, no other Veda has given rise to so large a number of schools as the Yagur- ' History of Ancient Sanskrit Literature, p. 408. 2 That is, the Brahmana, according to Sankara. In Sat. Br. IV, 6, 7, 6, the Rik and Séman are identified with Speech, and the Yagus with the Mind. xxvi SATAPATHA-BRAHMANA.
2408. 2 That is, the Brahmana, according to Sankara. In Sat. Br. IV, 6, 7, 6, the Rik and Séman are identified with Speech, and the Yagus with the Mind. xxvi SATAPATHA-BRAHMANA. veda'. The numerous subdivisions of the Adhvaryus trace their origin to either of two principal schools, an older and a younger one, the latter of which is itself an offshoot of the former. The oral transmission of the large body of exegetic and legendary matter attached to the sacrificial formulas could hardly fail, in course of time, to produce considerable variations, in different localities, both as regards the wording and the arrangement of these works. Different schools would naturally arise,—each with its own approved recension of the traditional texts,—which in their turn would sooner or later become liable to the same process of disintegration. Such, indeed, has been the case, more or less, with all the Vedic texts, until mechanical means were devised to arrest this process of change. The names of many such subdivisions of the older Yagur-veda are recorded ; but hitherto the recensions of only three of them have come to light,—viz. the Ka¢aka, the Maitrayawi-samhita, and the Taittiriya-samhité. The two former texts belong to subdivisions of the Ka¢has and Maitrayaztyas, two branches of the old school of the Karakas or Karak4dhvaryus. The Taittiriyas, on the other hand, seem to have been an independent branch of the old Yagus?, the origin of which is ascribed to a teacher named Tittiri. Their text has come down to us in the recension of one of its subdivisions 3, the Apastambins. The chief characteristic of the old Yagus texts consists, as has already been indicated, in the constant inter- ' Except, perhaps, the Sdma-veda, which, in the Karanavy(iha, is said to have counted a thousand schools; though that work itself enumerates only seven schools, one of them with five subdivisions, The number of teachers mentioned in connection with this Veda is, however, very considerable. ? As such, at least, the Taittirlyas are mentioned in the Karanavyfha. The term Karaka, however, is also (e. g. in the Pratigna-siitra) applied to the schools of the Black Yagus generally. If the Berlin MS. of the Kathaka professes, in the colophon, to contain the Karaka text of the work (which Professor Weber takes to refer to the Kardyaniyas), the Karaka-sakha of the Kachaka has perhaps to be understood in contradistinction to those portions of the Karzaka which have been adopted by the Taittiriyas and incorporated into their Brahmana. 3 The Taittirtyas divide themselves into two schools, the Aukhfyas and the Khindikiyas; the Apastambins are a subdivision of the latter branch. We have also the list of the contents (anakramazf) of the Atreyas, a subdivision of the Aukhiyas. INTRODUCTION. XXVil
33 The Taittirtyas divide themselves into two schools, the Aukhfyas and the Khindikiyas; the Apastambins are a subdivision of the latter branch. We have also the list of the contents (anakramazf) of the Atreyas, a subdivision of the Aukhiyas. INTRODUCTION. XXVil mingling of the sacrificial formulas and the explanatory or Brahmamza portions. It was with the view of remedying this want of arrangement, by entirely separating the exegetic matter from the formulas, that the new school of Adhvaryus was founded. The name given to this school is Vagasaneyins, its origin being ascribed to Yagiiavalkya Vagasaneya. The result of this new redaction of the Yagus texts was the formation of a Samhita, or collection of mantras, and a Brahmamwa. This re-arrangement was doubtless undertaken in imitation of the texts of the Hotr# priests, who had a Brahmaza! of their own, while their sacrificial prayers formed part of the Rzk-samhita. Indeed, the Taittirtyas themselves became impressed with the desirability of having a Brahmama of their own,—and attained their object by the simple, if rather awkward, expedient of applying that designation to an appendage to their Saszhité, which exhibits the same mixture of mantra and brahmavza as the older work. They also incorporated a portion of the KAastaka text into their Brahmavza and its supplement, the Taittiriy4razyaka. Of all the schools of the old Yagus those of the Taittirfyas seem to have attracted by far the greatest number of adherents ; and in southern India their texts have continued pre-eminently the subject of study till the present day. In northern India, on the other hand, they have been largely superseded by their later rivals. On account of the lucid arrangement of their sacred texts, the Vagasaneyins callcd them the White (sukla) Yagur-veda; the term of Black or Dark (krishza) Yagur-veda being, for the opposite reason, applied to the texts of the older schools, In later times, an absurd story was invented (doubtless by followers of the White Yagus), in which the origin of the name Taittiriya is connected with the word tittiri?, in the sense of ‘ partridge.’ 1 It has come down to us in two different recensions, the Aitareya and the - Kaushftaki (or SAukhAyana) Brahmana. 2 Professor Weber, however, thinks there may be some reason for this derivation; the name of Taittirfya having perhaps been applied to this school on account of the motley (partridge-like) character of its texts. According to the story alluded to, Yagwavalkya, having been taught the old Yagus texts by Vaisampayana, incurred the displeasure of his teacher, and was forced by him to disgorge the sacred science which, on falling to the ground, became soiled XXVIii SATAPATHA-BRAHMANA.,
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
No commentary for this page.