Digitized by
1 4 DATAPATH A-BRAHMAiVA.
them with evil, and owing to this it was that they
were overcome ; whence people say, * Not true is
that regarding (the fight between) the gods and
Asuras which is related partly in the tale and partly
in the legend ; for it was even then that Pra^Apati
smote them with evil, and it was owing to this that
they were overcome.'
10. Therefore it is with reference to this that the
y?/shi has said, * Not for a single day hast thou
fought, nor hast thou any enemy, O Maghavan :
illusion is what they say concerning thy battles ; no
foe hast thou fought either to-day or aforetime/
11. Now what daylight, as it were, there was for
him, on creating the gods, of that he made the
day ; and what darkness, as it were, there was for
him, on creating the Asuras, of that he made the
night : they are these two, day and night.
12. Pra^Spati bethought himself, * Everything
(sarva), indeed, I have obtained by stealth (tsar)
who have created these deities : ' this became the
* sarvatsara,' for ' sarvatsara,' doubtless, is the same
as 'sawvatsara (year).' And, verily, whosoever
thus knows * sawvatsara ' to be the same as * sarvat-
sara^,' is not overcome by any evil which, by
magic art, steals upon him (tsar) ; and whosoever
thus knows *sawvatsara' to be the same as *sar-
vatsara,' overcomes against whomsoever he practises
magic art.
13. Pra^pati bethought himself, * Verily, I have
created here a counterpart of myself, to wit, the
year ; ' whence they say, * Pra^Apati is the year ; '
for he created it to be a counterpart of himself:
' Or, whosoever knows the * all-stealing ' power of the year.
Digitized by VjOOQ IC
XI kAnda, I adhyAya, 6 brAhmajva, 17. 15
inasmuch as * sa^vatsara (year)/ as well as ' Pr^fA-
pati/ consists of four syllables, thereby it (the year)
is a counterpart of him.
14. Now, these are the deities who were created
out of Pra^apati, — Agni, Indra, Soma, and
ParameshMin Prd^Apatya.
15. They were born with a life of a thousand
years: even as one would see in the distance the
opposite shore, so did they behold the opposite
shore of their own life.
16. They went on singing praises and toiling.
Then Paramesh/^in, son of Pra^pati, saw that
sacrifice, the New and Full-moon offerings, and
performed these offerings. Having performed them,
ht desired, ' Would I were everything here ! ' He
became the waters, for the waters are everything
here, inasmuch as they abide in the furthest place ;
for he who digs here on earth finds indeed water ;
and, in truth, it is from that furthest place, to wit,
from yonder sky that he ^ rains, whence the name
Paramesh/^in (abiding in the furthest, highest place).
17. Paramesh/^in spake unto his father Prs^-
pati, * I have discovered a sacrifice which fulfils
wishes : let me perform this for thee ! ' — ' So be it ! '
he said. He accordingly performed it^ for him.
Having sacrificed, he (Prs^pati) desired, 'Would
I were everything here!' He became the breath
(vital air), for breath is everything here : Pra^pati
is that breath which blows here (the wind) ; and
whatsoever knows that it is thus he blows is his
(Pr^Apati's) eyesight; and whatsoever is endowed
* Viz. Par^nya, the rain-god, according to SiyanSL, ^ Viz. officiating as his, Prs^pati's, priest.
Digitized by
1 6 ^ATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
with breath is Pra^pati. And, verily, whosoever
thus knows that eyesight of Pra^pati becomes,
as it were, manifest.
1 8. Pra/4pati spake unto his son Indra, * Let me
perform for thee this wish-fulfilling sacrifice which
ParameshMin has just performed for me.' — * So be
it ! ' he said. He accordingly performed it for him.
Having sacrificed, he (Indra) desired, * Would that
I were everything here ! ' He became speech (vdi),
for speech is everything here; whence they say,
' Indra is YU!
19. Indra spake unto his brothers Agni and
Soma, * Let me perform for you this wish-fulfilling
sacrifice which our father Pra^pati has just per-
formed for me.' — ' So be it T they said. He accord-
ingly performed it for them. Having sacrificed,
those two desired, 'Would that we were every-
thing here!' One of them became the eater of
food, and the other became food: Agni became
the eater of food, and Soma food ; and the eater of
food, and food, indeed, are everything here.
20. These five deities, then, performed that wish-
fulfilling sacrifice; and for whatever wish they
sacrificed, that wish of theirs was fulfilled; and,
verily, for whatever wish one performs that sacrifice,
that wish of his is fulfilled.
21. When they had sacrificed they beheld (dis-
covered) the eastern quarter, and made it the
eastern (front) quarter ; as it now is that eastern
(front) quarter: therefore creatures here move in
a forward direction, for they (the gods) made that
the front quarter. ' Let us improve it ^ from here ! '
* Or, perhaps, raise it, bring it nearer. The St. Petersb. Diet.
Digitized by VjOOQ IC
XI KANDAy I ADHYAyA, 6 BRAhMAJVA, 23. I7
they said, and made it to be strength. *May we
see ^ this strength !* they said ; and it became yonder
sky*.
22. They then beheld the southern quarter,
and made it the southern quarter ; and it now is
diat southern (right, dakshi;^) quarter : whence
the dakshiifi (cows) stand to the south (of
the altar) *, and are driven up from the south, for
they made that the southern one (dakshi«4). * Let
us improve it from here!' they said, and made it
to be space. *May we see this space!' they said; and
it became this air, for that (air) is space ; for even
as the resting-place here in this world is clearly the
earth, so the resting-place there in yonder world
is clearly this air ; and because, whilst being here on
earth, one does not see that space, therefore people
say, 'That space (or, yonder world) is invisible.'
23. They then beheld the western quarter, and
made it (to represent) hope, — ^wherefore it is only
when*, after going forwards (to the east), one
takes ' upa-kurute ' here in the sense of ' to cherish (hegen, pflegen) ;' Professor DelbrOck, Aitind. Syntax, p. 238, doubtfully in that of 'worship, revere (verehren);' — enim pri^tw dlfam upetya itaA para;n kurvimahi kiryantanun sri^mahi, Say.
* The particle ' khalu ' might perhaps be rendered by * really,' or — ' could we but see it,' * were it but (really) visible to us.'
* That is, it was moved up to them. » See IV, 3, 4, 14.
* It seems hardly possible to take * yad — tena ' here in the usual causal sense, — it is only because (or, inasmuch as) one obtains (one's object) after going forwards that one goes to the western quarter. What is implied, in any case, is that first some hope, or desire, is conceived the accomplishment of which is only brought about by a forward movement, or by action ; and that success in attaining the object sought for is followed by the conception of fresh desires. For the same force of * yad— tena' (when — then) see XI, 3, 3, 4-6.
Digitized by
1 8 iSATAPATHA-BRAHMAJSTA.
obtains (his object) that he goes (back) to that
(western) quarter; for they (the gods) made that
(quarter to represent) hope. * Let us improve it
from here ! * they said, and made it to be prosperity
(or distinction). ' May we see this prosperity ! ' they
said; and it became this earth, for this (earth) is
indeed (the source of) prosperity; whence he who
obtains most therefrom becomes the most pros-
perous.
24. They then beheld the northern quarter, and
made it the waters. * Let us improve it from here ! '
they said, and made it (to represent) the law, for
the waters are the law : hence whenever the
waters come (down) to this (terrestrial) world
everything here comes to be in accordance with
the law; but whenever there is drought, then the
stronger seizes upon the weaker, for the waters
are the law.
25. These then are eleven deities \ — there are
five fore-offerings, two butter-portions, the Svish/a-
kr/t, and three after-offerings : —
26. These are eleven offerings, — it was, indeed,
by these offerings that the gods gained these worlds,
and these quarters ; and in like manner does this
(Sacrificer), by these offerings, gain these worlds,
and these quarters.
27. And the four PatnlsawyS^s are the four
intermediate quarters; and, indeed, it was by the
four Patntsa^^^y^^s that the gods gained the inter-
mediate quarters; and by means of them this
(Sacrificer) now gains the intermediate quarters.
^ Viz. the four quarters and the objects enumerated as repre- sented by them.
Digitized by
XI kXnda, I adhyAya, 6 brAhmaya, 32. 19
28. And as to the Id^, — thereby the gods gained
food ; and in like manner does this (Sacrificer)
thereby gain food. This, then, is the completeness
of the New and Full-moon sacrifices as regards
the gods.
29. Now as to the body : — there are in man these
five breathings, not including the eyes; they are
the five fore-offerings, and the two butter-portions
are the eyes.
30. The Svish/akm is the same as this downward
breathing ; and because he offers that (oblation), as
it were, apart from the other oblations^, therefore
all the breathings recoil from that breathing; and
because for the Svish/akm he cuts portions from all
the sacrificial dishes, therefore everything that enters
these (channels of the other) breathings meets in
(the channel of) that breathing.
31. The three after-offerings are the three male
organs ^ ; and that which is the chief after-offering is,
as it were, the chief organ. ' He should offer it
without drawing breath V they say, 'for thus it
becomes unfailing for him.'
32. He may, however, draw breath once, for that (organ) has one joint; but if it were jointless, it
* See I, 7, 3, 21, where I would now translate, He offers apart (sideways), as it were, from the other oblations, — the oblation to Agni Svish/akr/l being poured out on the north side of the fire, so as not to come in contact with the chief oblations and the butter- portions.
* That is, including the testicles.
' Or, rather, — at the third after-oflfering (viz. that to Agni Svish/akril), — the Hotri* should (according to some authorities) pronounce the offering-formula, which is considerably longer than those of the two other offerings, without making a pause ; whilst others allow him to pause once.
Digitized by
20 ^'ATapatha-brAhmajva.
either would only stand erect, or it would hang
down ; whilst now it both becomes erect and hangs
down : he may therefore draw breath once.
33. The four PatnlsawyS^s are the two arms (or
front legs) and the two thighs — the support, in fact^•
and the IdA is this vital air (in the centre) ; and
inasmuch as that (1^4) is not offered in the fire, but
remains as unbumt, therefore this (central) vital air
is undivided.
34. The invitatory and offering-formulas are the
bone, and the offering-material is the flesh. The
invitatory and offering-formulas are (in) measured
metre, whence the bones of a fat and a lean person
are alike : but inasmuch as he takes now more, now
less, offering-material, therefore the flesh of a fat
person is fat, and the flesh of a lean person is lean.
This sacrifice he performs to any deity he pleases
and for whom there is a sacrificial dish.
35. Now, these are offerings from which nothing
must be omitted ; but were one to omit anything of
them, it would be as if he were to break off some
limb, or knock out some (channel of the) vital air.
Other oblations, indeed, are either added to or
omitted.
36. These, then, are sixteen offerings, for man
consists of sixteen parts, and the sacrifice is the
Man (Purusha) : hence there are sixteen offerings.
Seventh BrAhmajva.
I. Now there, on the occasion of the entering on the fast, it is said \ ' If he does not eat, he becomes
^ B&hudvayam ilrudvaya/n iatvira^ pditntsaimySg^, atas te pra*
tish/Mtmakd^; ayam eva madhjama^ prina i^, S&y.
* See I, I, I, 9. 10.
Digitized by
XI kAnDA, I ADHYAyA, 7 BRAHMAiVA, 4. 21
consecrated to the Fathers ^ ; and if he does eat he
eats whilst passing over the gods ; ' and, in this
respect, they lay down the rule, * Let him therefore
eat what grows in the forest'
2. If he eats cultivated plants he eats the sacri-
ficial essence of the offering-cake ; and if he eats
forest plants he eats the essence of the barhis*; and
if he eats aught of trees he eats the essence of the
fuel (for the sacrificial fire) ; and if he drinks milk he
consumes the essence of the Sdnniyya • ; and if he
drinks water he consumes the essence of the lustra!
waters * ; and if he eats nothing he becomes con-
secrated to the Fathers.
3. As to this they say, ' What course of procedure
is there ?' Well, let him, on those two nights (of full
and new moon), himself offer the Agnihotra : inas-
much as, after offering, he takes food he does not
become consecrated to the Fathers, for that (libation)
is an offering ; and inasmuch as he performs that
offering in his own self he does not eat of those
sacrificial essences.
4. Now all the nights concentrate themselves in
these two nights: all the nights of the waxing moon
concentrate in the night of full moon, and all the
nights of the waning moon concentrate in the night
of new moon ; and, verily, for him who, knowing
this, offers (the Agnihotra) himself on the day of
