1 While the bricks generally measure a pada or foot square, the cubit measures about two feet.
392 S AT APATH A-BRAHMA2VA.
heaven's rain favour thee ! ' this he says in order that the rain of heaven may favour him.
9. He then makes it move1, with, /Over the
heaven-reaching three oceans he crept/ the
three heaven-reaching oceans doubtless are these
worlds, and over them he crept in the shape of a
tortoise; — 'the lord of waters, the bull of the
bricks/ for he (the tortoise) indeed is the lord of
waters, and the bull of the bricks ; — 'induing the
covering of him, the well-made, in the world/
the covering (purlsha) means the cattle : thus, enter-
ing the (form of the) cattle of the well-made (Agni)
in the world; — 'go thither whither the former
have passed away!' that is, go thither whither
by this performance former (tortoises) went.
10. 'The mighty sky and the earth/ that is,
the great sky and the earth ; — ' shall mix (prepare)
this our sacrifice !' that is, shall favour this sacri-
fice;— 'they shall fill us with nourishments!'
that is, they shall nourish us with nourishments !
With the last (verse) relating to heaven and earth
he puts it down, for the tortoise represents heaven
and earth.
11. With three (formulas) he puts it on (the
altar); — three are these worlds, and threefold is
Agni : as great as Agni is, as great as is his mea-
sure, by so much he thus puts it on. With three
(formulas) he anoints it ; that makes six : the signi-
ficance of this (number) has been explained. There
are avakci-plants 2 below and avaka-plants above (the
1 He sets the tortoise down with three verses ; and in muttering the second verse he makes it move while he still holds it in his hand.
2 Blyxa octandra, a grassy plant growing in marshy land (' lotus- flower/ Weber, Ind. Stud. XIII, p. 250).
VII KANDA, 5 ADHYAYA, I BRAHMAiVA, 1 4. 393
tortoise), — the avaka-plant means water : he thus
places it in the midst of water. Having * settled ' it,
he pronounces the Sftdadohas upon it : the signi-
ficance of this has been explained.
12. He then puts down a mortar and pestle.
Vishnu desired, ' May I be an eater of food ! ' He
saw these two bricks, the mortar and pestle. He
placed them on (the altar) ; and by placing them
thereon, he became an eater of food. In like man-
ner, when the Sacrificer now places a mortar and
pestle thereon, (he does so) thinking, ' I want to be
an eater of food by the same means (rtapa), by per-
forming the same rite by which Vishnu became an
eater of food.' Now the mortar and pestle mean
all (kinds of) food ; for by the mortar and pestle
food is prepared, and by means of them it is eaten.
13. He puts them down at the distance of the
two reta^sL£ *, — the reta^si/£ being the ribs, and the
ribs being the middle : he thus puts food into the
middle of him (Agni) ; — on the north (upper) side (of
the central brick) : he thus puts the food upon him ;
— at the distance of a cubit, for from a cubit's dis-
tance food is (taken by the hand and) eaten.
14. They measure a span, for Vishnu, when an
embryo, was a span long ; and these (mortar and
pestle) being food, he thus puts food into him (Agni-
Vish^u) proportionate to his body. And indeed the
food which is proportionate to the body satisfies,
1 The mortar and pestle are to be placed as far north of the central (naturally-perforated) brick, as the two reta^si£ lie in front (towards the east) of it. This distance is ascertained by means of a cord stretched across the bricks hitherto laid down (from the Svayamatrz/z//a to the AshadM), and knots made in the cord over the centre of the respective bricks.
394 DATAPATH A-BRAHMA2VA.
and does no harm ; but that which is excessive does harm ; and that which is too little does not satisfy.
15. They are made of Udumbara wood; — the
Udumbara (ficus glomerata) being strength, life-sap,
he thus puts strength, life-sap into him. And, again,
the Udumbara being all the trees, by putting on
those two, he puts all trees on (the altar). At the
distance of the two reta^si/6 (bricks, he places the
mortar and pestle), — the ' seed-shedders ' being these
two (worlds1), he thus puts the trees in these two
(worlds), and hence there are trees in these two
(worlds). It (the mortar) is four-cornered, — there
being four quarters, he thus places trees in all the
quarters ; whence there are trees in all the quarters.
It is contracted in the middle, to give it the form
of a (real) mortar.
1 6. And, again, why he places a mortar and pestle
thereon. From Pra^*apati, when relaxed, the breath
wanted to go out from within. He kept it back by
means of food : hence the breath is kept back by
food, for he who eats food, breathes.
1 7. The breath being kept back, the food wanted
to go out of him. He kept it back by means of the
breath : hence food is kept back by the breath, for
he who breathes, eats food.
18. Those two being kept back, strength wanted
to go out of him. He kept it back by those two :
hence strength is kept back by those two ; for he who
eats food, breathes ; and to him it gives strength.
19. Strength being kept back, those two wanted
1 I do not see what else could here be referred to than the
heaven and the earth (cf. VII, 4, 2, 22), though in that case one
might rather expect 'imau (lokau)' instead of 'iine.' Possibly, however, the earth and atmosphere may be intended.
VII KANDA, 5 ADHYAYA, I BRAHMAiVA, 2 2. 395
to go out of him. He kept them back by means of
strength : hence those two are kept back by strength ;
for he to whom one gives strength, breathes and eats
food.
20. Those (energies) thus were kept back by one
another. Having kept them back by one another,
he (Pra^apati) caused them to enter his own self;
and that food having entered, all the gods entered
along with it ; for everything here lives on food.
21. It is thereto that this verse applies, — ' Then,
indeed, he became that breath,' — for that breath
he then indeed became; — 'having become the
great Pra^apati/ — for great he indeed then be-
came, when those gods entered him; — * having
obtained the benefits, the beneficial/ — the
benefits doubtless are the vital airs (breaths), and the
beneficial are the food : thus, having obtained all that ;
— 'when he breathed the breaths in the strong-
hold ; ' — the stronghold doubtless is the self (body),
and inasmuch as he breathed the breaths, the gods
are the breaths ; and inasmuch as Pra^apati breathed,
the breath also is Pra^apati ; and verily he who is
that breath, he is that Gayatri ; — and as to that food,
that is Vish/m, the deity ; and as to that strength,
that is the Udumbara (tree).
22. He said, 'Verily this one has lifted me from
out of all evil ; ' and because he said ' he has lifted
me out (udabharshit),' hence (the name) ' udum-
bhara ; ' — ' udumbhara' doubtless being what is mys-
tically called Udumbara, for the gods love the mystic.
1 Wide space (uru) shall it make (karat) for me ! ' he
said, hence ' urukara ; ' ' urukara ' doubtless being
what is mystically called ' ultikhala ' (the mortar) ;
for the gods love the mystic. Now that mortar is
396 SATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
the birth-place of all breaths ; and the birth-place of the breaths being the head —
23. It (the mortar) is of the measure of a span, for
the head is, as it were, of the measure of a span ; —
four-cornered, for the head is, as it were, four-
cornered ; — contracted in the middle, for the head is,
as it were, contracted in the middle.
24. Now when the gods restored him (Pra^apati-
Agni), they put all that inside him — breath, food,
strength ; and in like manner this (Sacrificer) now
puts that into him. At the distance of the two
reta/£si/£ (he places it),— the reta^si/^ being the ribs,
and the ribs the middle, it is thus in the middle of
(or, inside) him that he puts all that.
25. [He sets them down \ with Va£\ S. XIII, 33 ;
Rik. S. I, 22, 19] 'See ye the deeds of Vish/m' —
deed doubtless means power : thus, see ye the
powers of Vish/m ; — 'whereby he beheld the
sacred ordinances/ — ordinance means food: thus,
whereby he did behold the food ; — ' Indra's allied
friend/ for he is indeed Indra's allied friend. With
a (verse) relating to two deities he sets them down,
for the mortar and pestle are two. Once he ' settles '
them : he thereby makes them one and the same ;
for one and the same is that food. Having * settled*
it, he pronounces the Sudadohas on it : the signifi-
cance of this has been explained.
26. He then places the fire-pan thereon, — the fire-
pan is a womb : a womb (birth-place) he thus gives
to him (Agni). He places it on the mortar, — the
mortar is the air, and everything that is above this
1 The mortar, according to the commentaries to Katy., is partly dug into the ground, with the open part upwards ; the pestle being then placed to the right (south) of it.
VII KANDA, 5 ADHYAYA, I BRAHMAiVA, 28. 397
earth is air ; and the air is the middle : he thus
places the womb in the middle; whence the womb
of all beings, even of trees \ is in the middle.
27. And, again, why he places the fire-pan there-
on ; — that same Pra^apati who became disjointed
doubtless is this same fire-pan, for the fire-pan is
these worlds, and Pra^apati is these worlds. He
places it on the mortar : he thereby establishes him
(Pra^apati) in all that — breath, food, strength ; and
thus he places him so as not to be separated from
all that.
28. Thereupon, having pounded the remainder
(of the clay), and having put the fire-pan in its place,
he throws (the pounded clay) in front of the fire-pan ;
for this is the place of that (remainder 2), and thus
that (remainder) is not separated therefrom 3.
1 Viz., according to Saya#a, because they spring from the germ in the centre of the fruit.
2 ? Or, of it (the fire-pan). There is some uncertainty regarding this item of the ceremonial. Katy ay ana's rule (XVII, 5, 4) — ' Having placed the Ukha (pan) on the mortar, pounded the remainder of clay, and thrown it down in front, with the text " Dhruva asi," (of) the Ukha ' — is evidently intentionally vague. Mahrdhara (on Va£\ S. XIII, 34) gives the following interpretation of it, — ' Having first silently placed the Ukha on the mortar, then pounded the remaining clay, and thrown it down on the ground in front of the Ukha, let him place the Ukha thereon with two formulas/ According to this, the Ukha would only temporarily be placed on the mortar, its proper and permanent place (loka) being on the powdered clay in front (to the east) of the mortar. The text of the Brahma^a, as it stands, however, cannot possibly be construed so as to accord with Mahidhara's interpretation. This would require some such reading as, — athopa^ayam pish/va, purastad ukhaya upanivapya lokabhag-am ukham karoti. See, however, paragraph 38 below, which evidently applies to the permanent position of the pan.
3 For the genitive ' asya ' (viz. lokasya) with ' antarita ' — instead
398 SATAPATHA-BRAHMA2VA.
29. Here now they say, ' How does that (re-
mainder) of his come to be put on as cooked, as
baked ? ' — In that it is prepared with a sacrificial
formula ; and, moreover, whatever comes in contact
with Agni Vaisvanara even thereby comes to be
put on as something cooked, as baked.
30. [He sets the fire-pan down, with Va£*. S. XIII,
34-35] 'Steady thou art, supporting/ the mean-
ing of this has been explained1; — 'from here he
was at first born, from these wombs, the
knower of beings;' for from these wombs the
knower of beings (Agni) was indeed born at first ; —
'by the Gayatri, the TrishAibh, and the Anu-
sh/ubh, may he, the knowing, bear the offer-
ing to the gods!' — by means of these metres he,
the knowing, indeed bears the offering to the gods.
31. 'For sap, for wealth, do thou rest, for
might in glory, for strength, for offspring!'
that is, for all that do thou rest ! — ' all-ruling thou
art, self-ruling thou art ! 9 for both all-ruling and
self-ruling he (Agni) indeed is; — 'may the two
Sarasvata wells cheer thee!' Sarasvat (m.) is the
Mind, and Sarasvati (f.) Speech, — these two are the
Sarasvata wells : thus, may these two cheer thee !
With two (formulas) he sets it down : the significance
of this has been explained ; and, moreover, twofold
is that form, (consisting as it does of) clay and water.
Having 'settled' it, he pronounces the Stidadohas
on it : the significance of this has been explained.