1 Mahidhara, in accordance with Nigh. Ill, 18 (priest), explains ' bharata ' as the one who brings (bhar) offerings ; and, with Saya#a, identifies the Bharata with the Sacrificer.
VI KANDA, 8 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMAiVA, 3. 293
kindling-stick, that makes five, — of five layers consists
the fire-altar, five seasons are a year, and the year is
Agni : as great as Agni is, as great as is his measure,
so great does this become.
Second Brahmajva.
1. Now, then, as to the taking down of the ashes
(to the water a). Now, the gods at that time threw out
the ashes (from the pan). They said, l If we make
this, such as it is, part of our own self, we shall become
mortal carcases, not freed from sin ; and if we cast it
away, we shall put outside of Agni what therein is
of Agni's nature : find ye out in what manner we
shall do this ! ' — They said, ' Meditate ye (/£it) ! '
whereby, indeed, they said, 'Seek ye a layer (or
altar, k\t\). Seek ye in what manner we shall do
this!'
2. While meditating, they saw this, — c Let us take
it down to the water ; for the water is the foundation
of this universe : having settled it on that wherein
is the foundation of this universe, we shall reproduce
from out of the water what there is of Agni's nature
in this (heap of ashes)/ They then took it down
to (and threw it into) the water ; and in like manner
does this (Sacrificer) now take it down to the water.
3. [V&£\ S. XII, 35] * O divine waters, receive
ye these ashes, and put them in a soft and
fragrant place!' — that, being consumed (matter),
has run its course (is useless) : regarding that he
says, ' Put it ia the most fragrant place ! ' — * May
1 The ashes removed from the ' ukha ' or fire-pan are put in a bag made of leaves of some sacred tree, and are then thrown into the water in two portions. As they are floating on the water, a small por- tion is taken from them again with the little finger and put in the pan.
2 94 DATAPATH A-BRAHMAiVA.
the wives, wedded to a good lord, bow down to
him/ — the wives, doubtless, are the waters, for from
the waters this universe is produced ; and in Agni
the waters have indeed a good lord; — 'bear it on
the waters, even as a mother (bears) her son ! '
— that is, ' as a mother would bear her son on her
lap, so bear ye this ! '
4. \\fdg. S. XII, 36; Rik S. VIII, 43,9] < In the
waters, O Agni, is thy seat/ — that is, 'in the
waters, O Agni, is thy womb ; ' — 'as such thou
clingest to the plants/ — for he does indeed cling
to (love) the plants, — 'being in (their) womb thou
art born again/ — when he is in the womb he is
indeed born again. — [Va£\ S. XII, 37] 'Thou art
the child of the herbs, the child of the trees,
the child of all that is, O Agni, thou art the
child of the waters;' — he thus makes him (Agni)
the child of this entire (universe).
5. With three (verses) he throws (the ashes into
the water), — threefold is Agni : as great as Agni is,
as great as is his measure, by so much he thus throws
them down. First with one (prayer), and then with
two ; or first with two, and then with one, — but at two
separate times he throws them down : he thus throws
them down by means of the two-footed animals.
6. He then takes some (of the ashes) therefrom :
he thereby reproduces from the waters what there is
of Agni's nature in that (heap of ashes). [He takes
it] with that (nameless or little finger), for with that
(finger) medicine is prepared : it is with that one he
thus puts him (Agni) together. [Va£*. S. XII,
38-41] 'Having settled1 in the womb, as
1 ' Pra-sad'(=pra-ap, Mahidhara) seems here really to have the
VI KAiVDA, 8 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMAiVA, 8. 295
ashes, in the waters, and the earth, O Agni/ —
by his ashes he is, indeed, settled in the womb, that
is, both in the waters and in the earth; — * having
united with the mothers, thou hast again,
brightly shining, seated thee;' — that is, 'Having
joined thy mothers, thou, the shining one, hast again
seated thyself (in thy home)/ — 'Having again
seated thee in thy seat, the waters and the
earth, O Agni, thou liest in her (the earth,
or pan) most happy, as in a mothers lap/
— ' Return again with sustenance, again, O
Agni, with food and life; guard us again from
trouble! — With wealth return, O Agni, over-
flow with the all-feeding stream on every
side ! ' — that is, * With all this return thou to me ! '
7. With four (verses) he takes (some of the
ashes) ; — he thereby supplies him (Agni) with four-
footed animals ; and animals being food, it is with
food he thus supplies him. With three (verses) he
takes (the ashes) down (to the water), — that makes
seven, for of seven layers consists the fire-altar1,
seven seasons are a year, and the year is Agni : as
great as Agni is, as great as is his measure, so great
does this become.
8. Having taken some of the ashes, and returned,
he throws it into the fire-pan, and stands by (the fire)
worshipping it ; for when he throws Agni into the
water he does what is improper; he now makes
amends to him so that he may not injure him.
With two (verses) relating to Agni (he worships), —
for it is to Agni that he makes amends, — and with such
meaning of ' abhiprasad ' or ' anuprasad,' as the accusative can
scarcely be taken along with ' asada^/
1 See p. 249, note 3.
296 SATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
as contain (the verb) ' budh ' (to attend to, awake), in order that Agni may attend to this speech of his.
9. \Vbg. S. XII, 42-3 ; Rik S. I, 147, 2 ; II, 6, 4]
' Attend thou to this word of mine, O youngest!'
— that is, ' attend to this word of mine, O young-
est!'— 'put forth most plentifully, O faithful
one!' — that is, 'put forth most abundantly, O faith-
ful one!' — 'this one revileth thee, and that one
singeth thy praises/ — that is, 'one (man) reviles
thee, and another sings thy praises;' — •' reverently
I revere thy body, O Agni!' — that is, 'I, thy
reverer, revere thy body, O Agni!' — 'Be thou
a munificent patron of offerings, O lord of
wealth, the bestower of wealth, keep off from
us the haters!' this he says in order that he may
keep off haters from him. With two (verses) he
worships the fire, a Gclyatri and a TrishAibh verse :
the significance of this has been explained.
10. These make nine (verses), — there are nine
regions 1, and Agni is the regions ; nine vital airs,
and Agni is the vital airs : as great as Agni is, as
great as is his measure, so great does this become.
1 1. He then performs two expiations ; for it is for
(the obtainment of) all his desires that he sets up
that (fire) ; — thus whatever part of his desires is here
cut off when the fire is thrown into the water, that
he thereby joins together and restores. He performs
both expiations which (are performed) when the fire
has gone out 2 : the significance of this has been
explained.
1 Viz. the four cardinal points, and the four intermediate points, of the compass, and the upper region. To these paragraph 12 adds, as a tenth, the lower region.
2 VI, 6, 4, 10 seq.
VI KANDA, 8 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMAiVA, 12. 297
12. This makes ten (performances), — the Vira^*
consists often syllables, and Agni is the Vird^*1; there
are ten regions, and Agni is the regions ; ten vital
airs, and Agni is the vital airs : as great as Agni is,
as great as is his measure, so great does this be-
come.
1 That is, the wide-shining, or wide-ruling one.
298 SATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
SEVENTH KANDA.
THE GARHAPATYA HEARTH.
First Adhyaya. First Brahma^a.
1 . Being about to build the Garhapatya (fire-place),
he sweeps (its site) with a Palasa (butea frondosa)
branch. For when he builds the Garhapatya1 he
settles on that place ; and whatsoever builders of
fire-altars (there have been), they are indeed settled
on this earth ; and when he sweeps (that place) he
thereby sweeps away those settled (there before
him), thinking, * Lest I should settle on those already
settled (here)/
2. [He sweeps, with Va£\ S. XII, 45] ' Off with
you ! away with you! crawl away from here2!' —
that is, * Go off, go away, and crawl away from here ! '
he says this to those that crawl on their belly ; — 'Ye
that are here of old and of late ! ' that is, ' both ye
who were here of yore, and ye of the present day/
3. 'Yama hath given the settlement on
earth (to this Sacrificer) ;' — for Yama indeed rules
over the settling on this earth, and it is he who
grants to this (Sacrificer) a settlement on this earth.
1 That is, ' the householder's fire/ which represents the Sacri- ficed domestic hearth.
2 This first pada is taken from Rik S. X, 14, 9. The four padas of the verse are muttered by the Adhvaryu while sweeping the four sides of the site respectively, beginning in the east and ending in the north. On this place when swept the circular site of the Garhapatya is then marked off by saline soil being scattered over it (cf. Taitt. S. V, 2, 3, 2-3).
VII KANDA, I ADHYAYA, I BRAHMAiVA, J. 299
4. 'The Fathers have prepared this place
for him !' for Yama is the Kshatra (nobility, or
ruling power), and the Fathers (deceased ancestors)
are the clansmen ; and to whomsoever the chief
(kshatriya), with the approval of the clan, grants a
settlement, that (settlement) is properly given : and
in like manner does Yama, the ruling power, with
the consent of the Fathers, the clan, now grant to
this (Sacrificer) a settlement on this earth.
5. With a palasa branch he sweeps; for the
Pallra tree is the Brahman 1 : it is by the Brahman
he thus sweeps away those already settled ; — with a
prayer (he does so), for the prayer is the Brahman :
it is by the Brahman he thus sweeps away those
already settled. He throws it (the branch) out
towards the north 2.
6. He then scatters saline soil (over the hearth-
site) ; for the Garhapatya is this world, and salt
means cattle : he thus bestows cattle on this world, —
hence those cattle here in this world.
7. And again why he scatters saline soil. Pra^a-
pati created creatures ; he created them with different
kinds of amnions : they did not agree together. He
desired, * May they agree together ! ' He made
them to be of the same (kind of) amnion : hence
even to this day, being of equal amnions, they agree
together. And he who offers, offers thinking, ' May
I be (born) with the same (kind of) amnion as the
gods ! ' and when he scatters saline salt (in the hearth-
site) he thereby becomes of equal amnion with the
gods.
1 For the identification of the Pala^a with the Brahman (sacred writ, or the holy spirit embodied therein), see part i, p. 90, note 1.
2 ' He throws it upwards/ Delbriick, Synt. F. V, 79.
300 SATAPATHA-BRAHMAtfA.
8. [He does so, with V^. S. XII, 46] ' Concord
thou art ! ' for thereby they agreed together1 ; — 'ful-
filment of desire ; ' for salt is cattle, and fulfilment
of desire means cattle ; — ' In me may there be the
fulfilment of thy desire !' that is, ' May there be
on me cattle for thee ! ' — He covers with it the whole
(circular) Garhapatya ; for the Garhapatya altar is
the womb, and the saline soil is the amnion : he thus
covers the whole womb with the amnion.
9. He then scatters sand to keep (the saline soil,
or amnion) from being scorched 2 ; — for sand is
nothing else than the ashes of Agni Vaisv&nara, and
him, Agni Vaisvanara, he is indeed about to build
up ; and Agni does not scorch his own self.
10. And again why he scatters sand, — sand is
nothing else than the seed of Agni Vaisv&nara 3, and
him, Agni Vaiw&nara, he is about to build up ; but
nothing is fashioned from out of the seedless : ' May
he (Agni) be fashioned from out of this seed ! ' so he
thinks.
1 1. [He scatters it, with \%\ S. XII, 46] ' Agni's
ashes thou art ! Agni's soil thou art ! ' for Agni's
ashes are useless, and the sand is not useless : he
thus makes it (the Garhapatya hearth) to be useful.
He covers with it the whole Garhapatya ; for the