17. The king's brother hands it either to the
1 That is, increaser of the prosperity of himself and his people.
V KANDA, 4 ADHYAYA, 4 BRAHMAiVA, 21. Ill
Stita (minstrel and chronicler), or to the Governor,
with, * Indra's thunderbolt thou art : therewith
serve me ! ' Thereby the kings brother makes the
Stita, or the Governor, to be weaker than himself.
18. The Suta, or the Governor, hands it to the
Grama^i (village-headman *), with, 'Indra's thun-
derbolt thou art : therewith serve me ! ' There-
by the Suta, or the Governor, makes the headman
to be weaker than himself.
19. The Grama^i hands it to a tribesman 2, with,
'Indra's thunderbolt thou art: therewith
serve me!' Thereby the headman makes the
tribesman to be weaker than himself. And as to
why they mutually hand it on in this way, they do
so lest there should be a confusion of classes, and
in order that (society) may be in the proper order.
20. Thereupon the tribesman and the Prati-
prasthatrz 3, with that sacrificial sword, prepare the
gaming-ground, (close) by the original fire 4, with the
puroru/£ verse of the 6ukra 5. The 6ukra is the
eater : he thereby makes (him) the eater.
21. With the purorui verse of the Manthin6 they then put up a shed (vimita). The Manthin cup is
1 See p. 60, note.
3 The sa^-ata would seem to be one of the peasant proprietors or ' sharers' constituting the village ' brotherhood ' ruled over by the headman, and often actually belonging to the same family as the latter (Gaugenosse, clansman).
3 The first assistant of the Adhvaryu.
4 That is, north of the Ahavaniya fire, where the cart stands, containing the original (hall-door) fire.
5 For this verse (Va£-. S. VII, 12; Rik S. V, 44, 1), preceding the ordinary formula with which the Soma-cups are drawn, see IV, 2, 1, 9 (part ii, p. 280).
6 Va^. S. VII, 16; Rtk S. X, 123, 1; see IV, 2, 1, 10.
112 SATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
he that is to be eaten, — thus having first made (him)
the feeder, they now make for him one to be fed
upon : that is why they put up a shed with the
puroru/£ verse of the Manthin cup.
22. The Adhvaryu then takes clarified butter in
four ladlings, places a piece of gold on the gaming-
ground, and offers with (Va^*. S. X, 29), * May
ample Agni, the lord of rites, delighted, — may
ample Agni, the lord of rites, accept of the
butter, hail !'
23. He (the Adhvaryu) throws down the dice,
with, ' Hallowed by Svaha, strive ye with
Surya's rays for the middlemost place among
brethren!' For that gaming-ground is the same
as ' ample Agni/ and those dice are his coals, thus
it is him (Agni) he thereby pleases ; and assuredly
in the house of him who offers the Ra^asuya, or
who so knows this, the striking1 of that cow is
approved of. On those dice he says, ' Play for the
cow ! ' The two draught oxen of the original
(hall-door) fire are the sacrificial fee.
24. He then says, ' Pronounce the invitatory
prayer to Agni Svish/akrzt ! ' And as to why that
ceremony is performed between two oblations, —
verily, Pra^apati is that sacrifice which is here
performed, and from which these creatures have
been produced, — and, indeed, they are even now
produced after this one ; — thus he places him (the
Sacrificer) in the very middle of that Pra^apati, and
consecrates him in the very middle : that is why
that ceremony is performed between two oblations.
1 Thus (not the slaying) according to the commentary on Katy. St. XV, 7, 20, hanti^ /fcahananamatro na marawartha^. — The cow is the one staked by the tribesman (sa^ata).
V KANDA, 4 ADHYAYA, 5 BRAHMAiVA, 2. I I 3
Having called for the .Srausha^, he says, ' Pronounce
the offering-formula to Agni Svish/akrzt,' and offers
as the Vasha/ is uttered.
25. He then puts the \dk on (the fire). After the
invocation of I^a, he touches water and draws the
M&hendra cup. Having drawn the M&hendra cup,
he sets the chant agoing. He urges him (the
Sacrificer) forward to the chant : he gets down (from
the throne-seat) ; he is in attendance at the chant
(stotra), in attendance at the recitation (^astra).
THE DASAPEYA.
Fifth Brahmajva.
1. Now when Varu/za was consecrated, his lustre
departed from him, — lustre means vigour : that
Vishnu, the Sacrifice, it was he that departed from
him, — probably that collected essence of the waters
wherewith he is anointed on that occasion, drove out
his lustre.
2. He stole after it with those deities1, — witl?,
Savitrz, the impeller (prasavitrz) ; with Sarasvatl,
speech ; with Tvash/r/, the forms of being ; with
Ptishan, cattle; with Indra, on the part of him2 (the
Sacrificer) ; with Brz'haspati, holiness ; with Varu^a,
might ; with Agni, fiery spirit ; with Soma, the King ;
1 In the Black Ya^us ritual the order of deities to whom the 1 samsrip&m havi/rcshi ' are offered is as follows, — Agni, Sarasvati, Savitrz', Pushan, Brzliaspati, Indra, Varuwa, Soma, Tvash/rz', Vishmi. Cf. Taitt. S. I, 8, 17; Taitt. Br. I, 8, 1.
2 Or, with Indra, for (the lost vigour) itself. Hardly, ' for us.' The Ka«va text has ' indreraasmai,' and so Sayarca (MS. I. O. 657): asmai apasr/taya viryaya tadadhinakarawartham indrewa; yad va" vibhaktivyatyaya^, anena viryewa viryavata indrewa.
I 14 DATAPATH A-BRAHMAiVA.
— but only through Vishmi \ the tenth deity, he found it.
3. And because he there stole after (anu-sam-sr/p)
with those deities, hence the name Sa^sr/pa^.
And because he becomes consecrated on the tenth
day, therefore (this ceremony is called) Da^apeya2.
And because each time ten (men) steal along 3 after
each cup, therefore also it is called Dasapeya.
4. Here now they say, — ' Let him steal forth after
enumerating ten Soma-drinking grandfathers 4 : it
is thus that he obtains for himself the Soma-
draught of this (Da^apeya), for it is a " drinking of
ten." ' But that is an overburdening 5, for people (will
1 It seems rather strange that Varu/za and Vishmi should be included amongst the deities, with whose help Varuwa sought to recover his vigour, or Vishnu the sacrifice ; but — 'Twere to con- sider too curiously, to consider so.
2 That is, da^a (ten) and peya (drink, beverage).
3 For an explanation of the noiseless mode of moving with bent bodies, called sarpawam, 'creeping/ see part ii, pp. 299, 450. It is in this way they are to move when they betake themselves to the respective fire-places for performing the sa^sr/p oblations ; as they also do when betaking themselves to the Sadas to drink the cups of Soma at the Soma-feast on the next day. When libations of Soma- juice are made from the ten cups (^amasa, see part ii, p. 287), each cup is to be followed by ten Brahmans who then take part in con- suming the liquor in the Sadas — there being thus altogether one hundred Brahmans taking part in these potations. The contents of the Sacrificed cup, on the other hand, may be drunk by ten Ra^-anyas (i. e. himself and nine others). See Katy. XV, 8, 18-20; Taitt. S., vol. ii, p. 179.
4 Sayawa takes this literally as meaning that he is to call out the name of the Sacrificer's grandfather, then the grandfather of that one and so on. The commentary on Katy. XV, 8, 16, on the other hand, apparently takes it to mean ten forefathers of the Sacrificer who have performed Soma-sacrifices, from the grandfather upwards.
5 That is, an excessive demand, or, a weighing down, or crush- ing of the Sacrificer, making it impossible for him to perform the ceremony at all.
V KAA7)A, 4 ADHYAYA, 5 BRAHMAiVA, 8. I I 5
be able to) obtain only two or three Soma-drinking
grandfathers : hence let him steal forth after enu-
merating those same deities \
5. For, surely, it was by those same deities that
Varima obtained the Soma-draught of that (Conse-
cration-ceremony) ; and in like manner does this one
now obtain the Soma-draught of that (ceremony) :
let him therefore steal forth after enumerating those
same deities. Now as soon as the completing
oblation2 of that Consecration-ceremony comes to
an end, —
6. He prepares those (saws/'zp) oblations, — a
cake on twelve, or eight, potsherds for Savitrz ;
for Savitrz is the impeller of the gods : impelled by
Savitrz, Varu/za on that occasion stole along ; and in
like manner does this one now steal along impelled
by Savit;x At this (oblation) he presents one lotus-
flower 3.
7. He then prepares a (rice) pap for Sarasvati, —
for Sarasvatt is speech, and it was with speech that
Vanwa on that occasion stole along; and in like
manner does this one now steal along with speech.
At this (oblation) he presents one lotus-flower.
8. He then prepares a cake on ten potsherds for
TvashZ/'z', — for Tvash/rz (the fashioner, creator)
rules over living forms, and with Tvash/rz, the living
forms, Varu/za on that occasion stole along ; and in
1 That is to say, after pronouncing the mantra, Vag. S. X, 30, agreeing partly with paragraph 2 above, viz. beginning, * By Savitrz, the impeller; by Sarasvati, speech,' . . . and ending, 'by Vishmi, the tenth deity, impelled I steal forth/
2 For the Udavasaniya ish/i, see part ii, p. 389.
3 The lotus-flowers presented on this occasion are gold ones, according to Sdyawa, or optionally ordinary white or gold ones, according to Katy. XV, 8, 5-6.
I 1 6 SATAPATHA-BRAHM ANA.
like manner does this one now steal along with
Tvash/rz, the living forms. At this (oblation) he
presents one lotus-flower.
9. He then prepares a pap for Push an; — for
P&shan is cattle, and with cattle Varu/za on that
occasion stole along ; and in like manner does this
one now steal along with cattle. At this (oblation)
he presents one lotus-flower.
10. He then prepares a cake on eleven potsherds
for Indra; — for Indriya means energy, vigour, and
with vigour Vanma on that occasion stole along;
and in like manner does this one now steal along
with energy, with vigour. At this (oblation) he
presents one lotus-flower.
11. He then prepares a pap for Brzhaspati ; —
for EWhaspati means holiness, and with holiness
Varu/za on that occasion stole along; and in like
manner does this one now steal along with holiness.
At this (oblation) he presents one lotus-flower.
12. He then prepares a barley pap for Varu^a ; —
with what vehemence Varu/za seized the creatures,
with that vehemence Varu^a on that occasion stole
along ; and in like manner does this one now steal
along with vehemence. At this (oblation) he pre-
sents one lotus-flower.
13. The deities of the Upasad are the (eighth, ninth, and) tenth 1. At these (oblations) he presents
1 For the Upasad, or preliminary oblations of ghee to Agni, Soma, and Vishmi, to be performed twice daily for (usually) three days preceding an ordinary Soma-sacrifice, see part ii, p. 104. At the Da^apeya, the ten Sa#zs/Yp-oblations take as it were the place of the ordinary Upasads, the latter being performed on the last three preliminary days along with, and to the same deities as, the last three Sa/rcsr/p-oblations ; or, according to some authorities,
V K^NDA, 4 ADHYAYA, 5 BRAHMAiVA, 1 5. I I 7
five lotus-flowers. That wreath of twelve lotus-
flowers he puts on himself; that is the initiation:
by that initiation he initiates himself.
14. And as to why there are twelve (flowers), —
there being twelve months in the year, and the year
being All, it is by the All that he thus initiates him :
what flowers there are of the lotus, they are a form
(an image) of the sky, they are a form of the stars ;
and what seed-stalks there are, they are a form of
the air ; and what suckers there are, they are a form
of this (earth) : thus he initiates him (to rule) over
these worlds.