1 That is, only two additional trish/ubh verses are to be inserted between the 1 1 (or 1 5) gayatri ones.
VI KANDA, 2 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMAiVA, 12. I 75
Mahitthi once said, — 'which the Aarakas say is in the victim to Pra^apati.'
11. And as to why the victim belongs to Vayu,
and the animal cake to Pra^'apati ; — one half of
Pra^apati doubtless is Vayu, and one half is Pra^a-
pati : thus, wer6 they both to belong to Vayu, or
both to Pra^apati, then only one half of him
(Prafapati) would be made up, and one half would
not (be made up). But in that the victim belongs
to Vayu, and the animal cake to Pra^apati, thereby
he puts together (restores) him, Pra^apati, wholly
and entirely.
12. And, again, why the victim belongs to Vayu,
and the animal cake to Pra^apati ; — when the gods
restored the relaxed Pra^apati, they, by means of
this victim, put into him that out-breathing which
had gone out of him ; and by means of this cake
they restored that body (trunk) of his. And as to
why it belongs to Pra^apati, it is because the body
(self) is Pra^apati; and (why it is) one on twelve
potsherds, — twelve months are a year, and Pra^apati
is the year. One of the offering prayers and one
of the invitatory prayers 1 contain (the word) ' ka/
for Pra^apati is Ka.
1 The three chief oblations of the Animal Sacrifice, requiring each an invitatory prayer (anuvakya) and an offering prayer (ya^ya), are the omentum-oblation (vapa), the animal cake (pa.ru- puro^a^a), and the meat oblations (pa^u-havis). This is the order on the present occasion, whilst usually the cake-oblation succeeds the offering of meat portions. Now the first of the three invitatory prayers (that of the omentum), viz. Vag\ S. XXVII, 26 (i?z'k S. X, 121, 8), and the last of the three offering prayers (that of the meat portions), viz. Va£\ S. XX VII, 25 (Rik S. X, 121, 7), end with the refrain, ' what god (or, the god Ka) should wre serve with offering.' Thus, then, the first and the last of the six formulas would be
1 76 SATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
13. Now when in the first place he offers the
omentum, he thereby puts into him (Pra^apati) that
vital air which is here in front. And when they
proceed with that (cake) in the middle, it is because
this trunk is in the middle. And when they proceed
thereafter with the (meat) oblation, he thereby puts
into him that vital air which is behind. The (re-
maining) offering and invitatory prayers should
contain the word 'bright,' with the view of the
obtainment of bright forms ; and the word ' niyut '
(team), for the obtainment of that form which has
a team \
addressed to Pra^apati; and to him is also exceptionally offered the animal cake, which is here assigned the central position, and which, in the normal sacrificial order, would belong to the recipient of the animal sacrifice itself, or in the present case, to Vayu Niyut- vat. Sayarca, on the other hand, makes the above two verses, con- taining the word Ka, the invitatory and offering prayers of the cake-offering, as the MS. makes him say, — kadvatyau ya^yanuvakye puroG&yasya, 'apo ha yad brzhatir' (jRik S. X, 121, 7), 'yaj/ftd apo' (X, 121, 8) ity ete. This, indeed, would also seem to be the opinion of Katyayana, whose rules (XVI, 1, 39-43) are> — 39- To Pra^-apati belongs the animal cake at both (animal sacrifices) ; 40. The offering and invitatory formulas of the Pra^apatya (animal sacrifice) contain the word 'Ka;' 41. Those of the Vayavya con- tain the word ' bright ;' 42. Optionally so, those of the omentum (but not at the meat portion, commentary); 43. The remainder is equal in all (three views). — Now it would indeed be the most natural, that the formulas of the cake-offering, here exceptionally assigned to Pra^apati, should be made to correspond to that deity ; but the order in which the formulas are given in the V%. S. XXVII, 23-28 (cf. Ajval. Ill, 8, 1), as well as paragraph 13 above, seems to favour the first view; though the next paragraph shows that there were differences of opinion on this point. Cf. next note.
1 The form of Pra^apati which has a team of horses is Vayu, the god of wind ; while his bright forms are represented by Agni, the fire (VI, 1, 3, 20, 'Agni is all bright things').— Va^. S. XXVII, 29-34 gives six verses for use as invitatory and offering formulas
VI KAiVDA, 2 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMA.VA, I 5. I 77
14. As to this they say, ' It is rather the two
(prayers) of the Omentum that should contain (the
word) " bright," for so far as the two (prayers) of the
omentum containing (the word) " bright " extend,
extends what is bright in the animal (sacrifice) ; and
the two (prayers) of the (meat) oblation should con-
tain (the word) " team," for the obtainment of that
form of him (Pra^apati) which has a team.'
15. And, again, why he slaughters this animal ; —
in this animal doubtless the form of all (the five kinds
of) animals is (contained) : inasmuch as it is hornless
and bearded, that is the form of man, for man is
hornless and bearded ; inasmuch as it is hornless and
furnished with a mane, that is the form of the horse,
for the horse is hornless and furnished with a mane ;
inasmuch as it is eight-hoofed, that is the bull's form,
for the bull is eight-hoofed; inasmuch as its hoofs
are like those of the sheep, that is the form of the
at the ish/akapa.m to Vayu. Five of these contain the word ' niyut/ team, but only the first two contain the word ' .rukra' (bright): these two are presumably to be used on the present occasion ; though I am at a loss to see what other two verses containing the word ' bright ' are to be used ; unless indeed ' ^uklavatya^ ' in the text means ' verses containing some word for bright/ in which case the ordinary verses used at an animal offering to Vayu Niyutvat, viz. Vag. S.XXVII, 23 and 24 (Ri\ S.VII, 91, 3; 90, 3) which contain the word ' weta ' (white, light), might be used. The MS. of Saya^a's commentary is unfortunately very corrupt in this place ; it alludes to the latter two verses, but whether to recommend them, or set them aside, for the present occasion, is not clear. He does, however, specially except the formulas of the animal cake from being included in the above specification. In the view put forth in paragraph 14, the above-mentioned two verses would apparently have to be used for the omentum-oblation, the two verses contain- ing * Ka ' for the cake-oblation, and (any) two verses containing the word 'team' (either the ordinary ones, Rik S. VII, 92, 5; VI, 49, 4 ; or some of the special ones) for the meat-oblation. [41] N
1 78 SATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
sheep ; and inasmuch as it is a he-goat, that is that
of the goat. Thus when he slaughters this one,
thereby indeed all those (five) animals are slaughtered
for him. Whichever of these may suit him — either
those five animals, or that (he-goat) for Pra^apati,
or that one for (Vayu) Niyutvat 1 —
16. Let him slaughter it at full moon. ' Let him
slaughter at new moon/ so say some, ' for Pra^apati
is yonder moon : during that night (of new moon)
he dwells here (on earth) 2, and it would be just as
if he slaughtered him while staying near/
17. But, indeed, this (takes place) at full moon,
for the victim is yonder moon, and him the gods
slaughter at full moon 3 : ' I will slaughter him at
the time when the gods slaughter him/ thus he
thinks, and therefore (he does so) at full moon.
And, again, why at full moon ; — the full moon no
1 Saya«a here supplies ' let him perform that/ — esham karma- nam madhye yat karmasya sampadyeta tat kuryad iti seshati ; but he then adds, that the pronoun * it ' (tarn) at the beginning of the next paragraph is caused by proximity of the Niyutvatiya.
2 See I, 6, 4, 5. ' Now this king Soma, the food of the gods, is no other than the moon. When he (the moon, masc.) is not seen that night either in the east or in the west, then he visits this world, and here he enters into the waters (f.) and plants (£).' Thus Pra^-apati is here identified with Soma, the moon, and food.
3 Cp. I, 6, 4, 1 2-1 3. 'The full-moon oblation, assuredly, be- longs to the Vr/tra- slayer, for by means of it Indra slew Vr/'tra ; and this new-moon oblation also represents the slaying of Vntra, since they prepared that invigorating draught for him who had slain Vrz'tra. An offering in honour of the Vrztra-slayer, then, is the full-moon sacrifice. Vr/tra, assuredly, is no other than the moon ; and when during that night (of new moon) he is not seen either in the east or in the west, then he (Indra) finishes in destroy- ing him by means of that (new-moon sacrifice), and leaves nothing remaining of him/
VI KANDA, 2 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMAJVA, 2 2. I 79
doubt was the first to shine forth, hence also (the sacrifice takes place) at full moon.
18. And furthermore, at the Phalguna (full moon),
for that full moon of Phalguna, that is, the second
(Phalguna)1, is the first night of the year ; and that
first (Phalguna) is the last (night of the year) : he
thus begins the year at the very mouth (beginning).
19. Now, as soon as he has performed the full-
moon offering, let him slaughter the victim. For
Indra, having driven away Wztra, evil, by means of
the full-moon offering, thus freed from evil entered
upon this sacrificial performance; and in like manner
the Sacrifice^ having driven away VWtra, evil, by
means of the full-moon offering, thus freed from evil
now enters on this (sacred) performance.
20. This is (performed) in a low voice, for by
means of these victims Pra^apati sought to obtain
this (sacred) work 2 ; but that (work) was then, as it
were, uncertain, indistinct : hence in a low voice.
21. And, again, why in a low voice; — this per-
formance assuredly belongs to Pra^apati, for it is
Pra^apati he enters upon by this performance ; and
Pra^apati is undefined.
22. And, again, why in a low voice ; — there is seed here in the sacrifice, and seed is cast silently — the
1 In the older division of the year the first or spring season (vasanta) begins with the month of Phalguna, that is the month when the moon is in conjunction with the nakshatra of the Uttare Phalguni, whence that full moon, in the Kaush. Br. 5, i, is called the mouth, and that of the first Phalguni the tail, of the year. See A. Weber, Nachrichten von den Naxatra, II, p. 329. In the above, some- what bold figure, we are, Sayarca reminds us, to understand the fifteenth or last day (of the dark fortnight) of the first Phalguni, and the pratipad, or first day of the second Phalguni.
2 That is, the construction of the fire-altar.
l8o SATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
omentum, the animal cake, and the chief oblation, for of that much consists the animal sacrifice.
23. On the eighth day (after full moon) he collects
(the materials for) the fire-pan ; for sacred to Pra^a-
pati is that day, the eighth (after full moon), and
sacred to Pra^apati is this (sacred) piece of work,
the fire-pan : on a day sacred to Pra^apati he thus
performs the work sacred to Pra^apati.
24. And as to why (it is performed) on the eighth
day; — that eighth day no doubt is a joint of the year,
and that fire-pan is a joint of Agni (the fire-altar) :
he thus makes joint upon joint.
25. And, again, why on the eighth day ; — eightfold
doubtless is the pan1 — the bottom part, the two side-
parts, the horizontal belt (or rim), that makes four ;
and four upright (bands), that makes eight : he thus
makes the eightfold on the eightfold (or eighth).
26. He performs the initiation on the day of new
moon ; for from out of the new moon the sacrifice is
spread : ' Whence the sacrifice is spread, thence will
I generate the sacrifice/ so he thinks.
27. And, again, why he (does so) at new moon; —
when he performs the initiation, he verily pours out
his own self, as seed, into the fire-pan, the womb ;
and when he becomes initiated, he makes for it (his
self) that world (or place) beforehand2, and he is