9. Strength-giving (ishkr/'ti) is the name of your mother, hence ye are healing powers (nishkr/ti) : winged furrows ye are ; what ye make sick, ye heal.
10. All obstacles have they overcome, even as the thief the cow- pen ; the herbs have expelled whatever defect of the body there was.
1 1 . When, to give strength, I take these herbs in my hand, the self of Yakshman (consumption) perishes, as from the clutches of the living (? i. e. from death, Ludw.).
12. Whose every limb, whose every joint ye, O herbs, flow through, from him ye chase away (the demon) Yakshman, — mighty (he is) and, as it were, abiding in the core.
13. Fly forth, O Yakshman; together with the garrulous jay; vanish with the gliding of the wind, with the whirlwind (?) !
14. May one of you help the other, may ye lend help to one another ! Of one mind, help ye forward this word of mine !
15. Those bearing fruit, and those without fruit, the flowerless and the flowering, urged forward by Br/haspati, may they preserve us from trouble !
The Va£\ S. also gives the remaining verses of the hymn, which are not, however, required on the present occasion.
342 SATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
unlimited. Now whatever he does with prayer
thereby he restores that form of his which is defined,
limited ; and whatever he does silently, thereby he
restores that form of his which is undefined, un-
limited,— verily, whosoever, knowing this, performs
thus, restores this whole and complete Pra^apati.
The outer forms are defined, and the inner ones are
undefined ; and Agni is the same as an animal :
hence the outer forms of the animal are defined, and
the inner ones undefined.
Third Adhyaya. First Brahma2va.
i . Built is the Garhapatya, unbuilt the Ahavaniya ;
he then buys the king (Soma) : the Garhapatya
being this (terrestrial) world, the Ahavantya the sky,
and Soma he that blows yonder, he thus places him
(Vayu, the wind) between these two worlds ; and
hence he blows between these two worlds.
2. And as to why he buys the king when the
Garhapatya is built, and the Ahavaniya unbuilt, —
Agni is the body, and Soma the vital air : he thus
places the vital air in the middle of the body, and
hence that vital air is in the middle of the body.
3. And, again, why he buys the king when the
Garhapatya is built, and the Ahavaniya unbuilt, —
Agni is the body, and Soma is the life-sap : he thus
supplies the body with life-sap, and hence this body
(of ours) is supplied with life-sap from end to end.
4. Having bought the king, and driven him about,
he then takes out the material for the guest-meal.
With the Havishkrzt of that (ceremony) he releases
speech. And in this way1 he interlinks the per-
1 That is, in performing the various rites of the Soma-sacrifice,
Vii Kanda, 3 Adhyaya, I Brahma2va, 9. 343
formance of the (Soma) sacrifice and the perform-
ance of the fire (altar) for the purpose of unity of
performance, thinking, ' Uniform shall be this per-
formance ! '
5. And, again, why he interlinks them, — Agni (the
fire-altar) is the body, and the (Soma) sacrifice is the
vital air : he thus places the vital air in the midst of
the body, and hence that vital air is in the middle
of the body.
6. And, again, why he interlinks them, — Agni is
the body, and the (Soma) sacrifice is the vital sap :
he thus supplies the body with vital sap, and hence
this body is supplied with vital sap from end to end.
He then returns to the site of the Ahavaniya.
7. Now some sweep with the pala^a branch on
both occasions *, saying, ' Surely, on both occasions
he builds (an altar)/ Let him, however, not do so ;
for by (building) the Garhapatya he settles, and by
the Ahavaniya he rises upwards : therefore let him
not do so.
8. And only on the Garhapatya (site) he throws
saline soil, not on the Ahavaniya; for the Garha-
patya is this (terrestrial) world, and saline soil means
cattle : he thus bestows cattle on this world, whence
there are cattle in this world.
9. And only on the Ahavaniya (site) he places a
lotus leaf, not on the Garhapatya ; for the lotus leaf
means water, and the Ahavaniya the sky: he thus
places the waters (vapours) in the sky. On both he
and at the same time doing all that is necessary for the building of the fire-altar, on which the Soma-orTering itself is ultimately to be performed.
1 Viz. in consecrating the site of the Ahavaniya, as well as that of the Garhapatya altar (see VII, 1,1, 1).
344 SATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
scatters sand ; for sand means seed, and in both
(fire-altars) fashioning (of Agni) takes place : ' May
he be fashioned from out of that seed ! ' thus he
thinks.
10. He scatters it with two different formulas;
for the Garhapatya is the world of men, and the
Ahavaniya is the world of the gods, and different
indeed are the divine and the human. With the
longer formula he scatters it on the Ahavaniya, and
with the shorter one on the Garhapatya, for longer
is the life of the gods, and shorter the life of men.
On the Garhapatya he scatters the sand before (the
setting up of) the enclosing-stones ; for sand is seed :
' May these be fashioned from out of that seed !' thus
he thinks.
ii. As to this they say, ' If the enclosing-stones
are the womb, and the sand is seed, and the sand is
strown on the Garhapatya before (the setting up of)
the enclosing-stones, how, then, is that seed of his not
shed aside, (but) is received (by the womb) ? ' Well,
the saline soil is the amnion, and inasmuch as he
strews first the saline soil, that seed of his is not shed
aside, but is received by that amnion. He now
addresses the enclosing-stones on the Ahavaniya :
the meaning of this has been explained \ He then
scatters sand : sand being seed, that seed of his is not
shed aside, but is received also by that womb.
12. And only on the Ahavaniya he strokes it
(even) with two (verses) containing (the verb) 'to
grow V not on the Garhapatya ; for the Garhapatya
is this (terrestrial) world, and the Ahavaniya is the
heavenly world ; and this Sacrificer, being indeed
1 VII, i, i, 14. 2 See paragraphs 45, 46.
VII KANDA, 3 ADHYAYA, I BRAHMAiVA, I 7. 345
born in this world, is really intended to be born in
the heavenly world : when he strokes (the sand)
even on the Ahavaniya with two (verses) containing
(the verb) * to grow/ and not on the Garhapatya,
he causes him to be born in the heavenly world.
13. He now puts clod-bricks thereon1, — that fire-
altar is these worlds, and the clod-bricks are the
regions : he thus places the regions into these
worlds ; whence there are those regions in these
worlds.
14. He takes them from outside the (site of the)
fire-altar ; for those regions which are in these
worlds are already possessed by him (Agni) ; and he
now bestows on him those regions which are beyond
these worlds.
15. From outside the Vedi (he takes them) ; — the
Vedi being this (earth), and those regions which are
on this (earth) being already possessed by him, he
now bestows on him those regions which are beyond
this (earth).
16. And, again, why he puts clod-bricks thereon, —
when Pra^apati was disjointed, his vital sap flowed
over all the regions (or, in all directions) ; and when
the gods restored him 2 they, by means of these clod-
bricks, put into him that vital sap ; and in like
manner does this one now put that vital sap into
him.
17. He takes them from outside (the site of) the
fire-altar ; for the vital sap which is in these worlds
is already possessed by him (Agni), and he now puts
1 He places a clod of earth on each end of the two ' spines/ that is to say, in the middle of each of the four sides of the square constituting the ' body ' of the altar-site.
2 Or, when they put him together (by building the fire-altar).
346 SATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
into him that vital sap which flowed away beyond these worlds x.
1 8. From outside the Vedi (he takes them), — the
Vedi being this (earth), and that vital sap which is in
this (terrestrial) world being already possessed by
him, he now puts into him the vital sap which flowed
beyond this (earth).
19. He takes them with the sacrificial (wooden)
sword, — the sword is a thunderbolt, and the thunder-
bolt means force, and this (earth) means wealth : by
force he thus obtains wealth.
20. From the front side he brings one, with (Vd£\
S. XII, 102), ' May he not injure me who is the
begetter of the Earth I'-— the begetter of the
Earth doubtless is Pra^apati (the lord of creatures
and generation) : thus, ' May Pra^apati not injure
me ! ' — 'Or he of true ordinances who hath per-
vaded the sky/ that is, i Or he of true ordinances
who has created the sky;' — ' Or he who first
begat the shining waters/ — the shining waters
doubtless are the men : thus, i he who first created
men;' — 'To the god Ka (who?) let us do
homage by offering ! ' Ka doubtless is Pra^apati,
thus, * To him let us do homage by offering ! ' Having
brought it he puts it on the body (of the altar-site)
inside the enclosing-stones : he thereby puts into
him (Agni) what vital sap had flowed away from him
in the eastern direction, and also the eastern region
itself he bestows upon him.
21. Then (he fetches a clod) from the south, with (V&g: S. XII, 103), 'Turn hither, O Earth, with
1 Viz. when these worlds were plunged into the water, see VI, 1, 1, 12.
VII KANDA, 3 ADHYAYA, I BRAHMAiVA, 23. 347
sacrifice, with milk ! ' as the text, so the meaning ;
— 'Agni, sent forth, hath mounted thy skin;'
whatsoever is on this (earth) that is her skin ;
and that (skin) Agni mounts, when sent forth,
when blazing forth. Having brought it he puts it
on the body (of the altar) inside the junction of
the (right) wing (and the body) : he thereby puts
into him (Agni) what vital sap had flowed from
him in the southern direction, and also the southern
region itself he bestows upon him.
22. Then from behind (he fetches one, with Va^.
S. XII, 104), 'O Agni, what in thee is pure,
what brilliant, what clean, what meet for sacri-
fice/— Agni doubtless is this (earth) : of her he says
this; — 'that do we bring to the gods/ that is,
' that we bring for this divine work/ Having brought
it he puts it on the body (of the altar) inside the
junction of the tail (and the body) : he thereby puts
into him what vital sap had flowed away from him
in the western direction, and also the western region
itself he bestows upon him. Let him not take it
exactly from the back (west) lest he should take the
vital sap from the path of the sacrifice : he takes it
from about there \
23. Then from the north, with (V&f. S. XII, 105),
'Sap and strength have I taken from here2/ —
that is, ' Sap and strength I take from here ; ' — ' the
womb of sacred law/ the sacred law doubtless is
the truth: thus, 'the womb of the truth;' — 'the
stream of the mighty/ the mighty (buffalo, or
1 Viz. from some place towards north-west from the middle of the western side of the body of the altar.
2 Mahidhara takes ' adam ' here as the regular imperfect of ' ad,' I ate.
34§ SATAPATHA-BRAHMA2VA.
mahisha) doubtless is Agni, for he, being born here
great (mahat), animated everything; — * May it
accrue to me in the cows, in the bodies,' — the
body is the self : thus, ' May it accrue to me both in
the cows and in (my own) self;' — ' I leave behind
decline, weakness, sickness!' therewith he spreads
the sand (by stroking) : he thereby consigns to
that (northern) region whatever decline, weakness,
and sickness there is ; whence hungry people (live)
in that region. Having brought that (clod), he puts
it on the body (of the altar) on the middle of the
junction of the (left) wing (and the body) : he thereby
puts into him (Agni) what vital sap flowed away in
the northerly direction ; and also the northern region
itself he bestows upon him.
24. These same (clods) are the regions ; he places
them on all sides : he thus places the regions on all
sides ; whence the regions are on every side. [He
places the clods so] as to face each other from every
side : he thereby places the regions to face each
other from every side, and hence the regions face
each other from every side. He places them separ-
ately, ' settles * ' them separately, and separately
pronounces the Sudadohas upon them ; for separate
from each other are the regions. Standing he places
them, for the regions, as it were, stand ; and stronger,
indeed, one is whilst standing.
25. These same (clods) are bricks having special
prayers (ya^ushmati 2) : on the body (of the altar)
he places them, not on the wings and tail ; for bricks
having special prayers are placed on the body, not
on the wings or tail.