^ The Ka7zva text (Sa?;?hita and Br.) has as me instead of me.
2 See St. Petersb. Diet. s. v. totas. The Ka«va text explains it similarly : ' tvayi tvayi pa^ava/^.' The Taitt. S. VI, i, 8, 5 has 'Tote raya/i' — " Thine (.?) is wealth" thus for the wife, for she, the wife, is one half of himself.'
62 i-ATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
not my life from me, neither will I take
thine; may I obtain a hero^ in thy sight!'
She thereby asks a blessing : a hero meaning a son,
she thereby means to say, * May I obtain a son in
thy sight ! '
13. One that is brown, with red-brown eyes, is
(fit to be) a Soma-cow. For when Indra and Vish/^u
divided a thousand (cows) into three parts, there
was one left 2, and her they caused to propagate
herself in three kinds ; and hence, even now, if any
one were to divide a thousand by three, one would
remain over.
14. The brown one, with red-brown eyes, is the
Soma-cow ; and that ruddy one is the Vmra-killer's
(Indra's) own, whom the king here chooses for him-
self =^ after winning the battle; and the ruddy one
with reddish-white eyes * is the Fathers' own whom
they slay here for the Fathers.
15. Let, then, the brown one, with red-brown
eyes, be the Soma-cow. And if he be unable to
obtain a brown one with red-brown eyes, let it
be a dark-red^ one. And if he be unable to obtain
a dark-red one, let it be a ruddy one, one of the
^ The Kawva text reads ' may I obtain heroes.'
' This arithmetical feat of Indra and Vish;m is apparently already referred to in Rig-vedaVI, 69, 8, though nothing is said there as to the difficulty regarding the odd cow. The threefold division seems to refer to Vishwu's three steps, by which (as the sun) he measures the sky ; or to the division of the universe into the three worlds (?). See also Ait. Br. VI, 15.
' Or, drives forth (from the enemy's stables). The red cows are compared with the red clouds, which appear after the thunder- storm (i. e. after king Indra's battle with Vr/tra).
* Sayawa takes ' ^yetakshi ' as ' black-eyed (knshwalo/^and).'
5 ' Aru«a;' the Ka«va text adds, ' for that one nearest to it (the brown one, or Soma-cow proper) in appearance.'
Ill KAA^DA, 3 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMAiVA, 2. 6t^
Vmra-killer's own. But let him nowise turn his fancy upon a ruddy one with reddish-white eyes.
1 6. Let it be one that is not impregnated. For
that Soma-cow is in reaHty Vak, and this Va-^
(speech) is of unimpaired vigour ; and of unimpaired
vigour is one not (yet) impregnated : let it therefore
be one not impregnated. Let it be one that is
neither tailless, nor hornless, nor one-eyed, nor ear-
less \ nor specially marked, nor seven-hoofed ^ ; — for
such a one is uniform, and uniform is this speech.
THE BUYING OF SOMA.
Second Brahmajva.
1. Having thrown the (earth of the) foot-print
(into the pan), he (the Adhvaryu) washes his hands.
Now as to why he washes his hands ; — clarified
butter being a thunderbolt, and the Soma being
seed, he washes his hands lest^ he should injure
the seed. Soma, with the thunderbolt, the ghee.
2. Thereupon he ties the piece of gold to this
(finger^). Now, twofold indeed is this (universe), —
there is no third, — the truth and the untruth : the
gods are the truth and men are the untruth. And
gold having sprung from Agni's seed, he ties the
gold to this (finger), in order that he may touch the
twigs (of the Soma) with the truth, that he may
handle the Soma by means of the truth.
^ 'Akar«a;' the Ka«va text has ' anuparsh/akar«a (one whose ears are not perforated ?),' and instead of 'alakshita (not specially marked),' it reads ' asrona. (a^lowa), not lame.'
^ That is, with one hoof undivided (seven-toed).
' The construction in the original is as usual in the oratio directa.
* Viz. to the nameless (or ring) finger. Katy. VII, 6, 27.
64 5ATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
3. He then orders (the sacrificer's men), 'Bring
thou the Soma-cloth ! bring thou the Soma-wrapper !
bring thou the head-band !' Let some shining (cloth)
be the Soma-cloth ; for this is to be his (king Soma's')
garment, and shining indeed is his garment: and
whosoever serves him with a shining (garment), he
truly shines. But he who says, ' (Bring) anything
whatsoever,' he will indeed be anything whatsoever :
let the Soma-cloth, therefore, be some splendid
(cloth), and the Soma-wrapper one of any kind. .
4. If he can get a head-band, let there be a head-
band ; but if he cannot get a head-band, let him cut
off from the Soma-wrapper a piece two or three
fingers long, to serve as the head-band. Either the
Adhvaryu or the Sacrificer takes the Soma-cloth,
and some one or other the Soma-wrapper.
5. Now, in the first place, they pick the king
(Soma). A pitcher of water is placed close to him,
and a Brahman sits beside him 2. Thither they (the
priests and sacrificer) now proceed eastward.
6. While they go there, he (the Adhvaryu) makes
^ I do not think *asya' could refer to the sacrificer, in opposition to ' etasya' (Soma) ; nor can the latter be construed with the following relative clause ' sa yo . . .' The Ka«va text reads, Tad yad eva jobhanatama/?2 tat somopanahanawz syad, vaso hy asyaitad bhavati ; sa yo haita/^ /^y^obhanatamaw kurute, jobhate haiva szh, &c.
^ The Pratiprasthatrz', in the first place, takes the Soma-plants (from the seller) and puts them on an ox-hide, dyed red and spread on the ground at the place (in the east of the hall) where the 'sounding-holes' will be dug (see III, 5, 4, i seq.). The seller of the Soma, who is to be either of the Kutsa tribe or a 6'udra, then picks the Soma, breaking the plants at the joints. A jar filled with water is placed in front of the Soma, and a Brahman (or the assistant of the Brahman, viz. the Brahma«a/^//a;//sin) sits down by the (right or south) side of the Soma. Katy. VII, 6, 1-6.
Ill KANDA, 3 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAIIMAiVA, 8. 65
(the sacrificer) say the text (Va^. S. IV, 24), 'Say
thou, for me, unto Soma, " This is thy gayatri-
part (bhaga)^!" Say thou, for me, unto Soma,
" This is thy trish/ubh-part!" Say thou, for me,
unto Soma, "This is thy ^ayati-part !" Say
thou, for me, unto Soma, " Obtain thou the su-
preme sovereignty of the names of metres !" '
Now, when he (king Soma) is bought, he is bought
for one (destination ^) — for the sovereignty of the
metres, for the supreme sovereignty of the metres ;
and when they press him, they slay him : hereby now
he says to him, * It is for the sovereignty of the
metres, for the supreme sovereignty of the metres
that I buy thee, not for slaying thee.' Having gone
there, he sits down (behind the Soma) with his face
towards the east.
7. He touches (the Soma-plants), with, 'Ours
thou art,' — thereby he (Soma), now that he has
come (as a guest), becomes as it were one of his
(the sacrificer's) own (people): for this reason he says,
' Ours thou art;' — 'Thy pure (juice) is meet for
the draught,' for he will indeed take therefrom the
'pure draught^' 'Let the pickers pick thee!'
this he says for the sake of completeness.
8. Now some, on noticing any straw or (piece of)
wood (among the Soma-plants), throw it away. But
let him not do this ; for — the Soma being the nobility
and the other plants the common people, and the
' The three parts refer to the three Savanas, at which the respective metres are used. See IV, 3, 2, 7 seq.
2 Bhagam appears to have been lost here, since a play on that word seems to be intended, which might perhaps be reproduced by ' lot.' It is given both at the Kawva text and at III, 4, 1, 7.
^ For the .Sukra-graha, see IV, 2, i, i seq. [263 F
66 5ATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
people being the nobleman's food — it would be just
as if one were to take hold of and pull out some
(food) he has put in his mouth, and throw it away.
Hence let him merely touch it, with, ' Let the pickers
pick thee ! ' Those pickers of his do indeed pick it.
9. He then spreads the cloth (over the ox-hide),
either twofold or fourfold, with the fringe towards
the east or north. Thereon he metes out the king
(Soma) ; and because he metes out the king, there-
fore there is a measure, — both the measure among
men and whatever other measure there is.
10. He metes out, with a verse to Savit^/; for
Savitre is the impeller of the gods, and so that
(Soma) becomes for him impelled by Savitr? to the
purchase.
11. He metes out with an ati,^/;andas-verse ; for
that one, viz. the atiy^-^andas \ embraces all metres ;
and so that (Soma) is meted out for him by means
of all the metres : therefore he metes out with an
atii://andas-verse.
12. He metes out, with the text (Va^. S. IV, 25),
'Unto that divine Savitr/ within the two
bowls^ the sage, I sing praises, to him of true
^ Ati^/zandas(' over-metre') is the generic name for the metres which number more than forty-eight syllables : hence it is said to in- clude all the other metres which consist of fewer syllables. See VIII, 6, 2, 13, where the term is explained by ' atti->^/^anda/^ (metre-eater).'
"^ Or, that divine invigorator of the two ' o«i.' According to the St. Petersb. Diet., 'o«i' would seem to refer to two parts of the Soma-press. Professor Ludwig takes it to mean ' press-arm ' and the ' arm ' generally, which suits very well some of the passages in which the word occurs. Here, in the loc. or gen. case, it can scarcely mean ' arms ' (though Savitr^s two arms are often referred to as dispelling the darkness and keeping asunder the spaces, cf Rig-veda II, 38, 2 ; IV, 53, 3 ; 4 ; VI, 71, i ; 5 ; VII, 45, 2), but apparently refers to * heaven and earth ' being thus equivalent to
Ill KANDA, 3 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMAiVA, 1 5. 67
impulse, the bestower of treasures, the wise
and thoughtful friend ; — he at whose impulse
the resplendent light shone high, the golden-
handed sage hath measured the ether with
his form.'
13. Therewith^ he metes out (the Soma) with
all (five fingers), therewith with four, therewith with
three, therewith with two, therewith with one ;
therewith with one, therewith with two, therewith
with three, therewith with four, therewith with all
(fingers); having laid (the two hands) together ^ he
throws (Soma) thereon with the joined open hands.
14. He metes out while bending up and bending
down (the fingers). The reason why he metes out
in bending (the fingers) up and down is that he
thereby makes those fingers of separate existence,
and therefore they are born separate (from each
other); and as to his meting out with all (fingers)
together, these (fingers) are to be born, as it were,
united. This is why he metes out in bending (the
fingers) up and down.
15. And, again, as to his meting out in bending
them up and down, — he thereby renders them of
varied power, and hence these (fingers) are of varied
the two /^amu (originally the two receptacles or bowls into which the pressed Soma flows) in Rig-veda III, 55, 20.
^ Viz. with the same formula, repeating it each time. The meting out of the Soma is done with the fingers of the right hand, first with all five, and then successively turning in one (beginning with the thumb), till the little finger remains with which he takes Soma twice, whereupon he again successively releases the fingers.
^ There is some doubt as to whether this refers to the preceding 'with all (viz. ten fingers);' or whether he is to take for the tenth time some Soma with the five fingers of the right hand, and then once more (without muttering the text) with the joined hands. See Katy. VII, 7, 18, 19. The text seems to be purposely vague.
68 ^ATAPATHA-BRAHMAJVA.
power. That is why he metes out in bending them up and down.
1 6. And, again, as to his meting out in bending
them up and down, — he thereby harnesses a vira^^*
(to ply) thitherwards and hitherwards : going thither-
wards, namely, it conveys the sacrifice to the gods,
and coming hitherwards it assists men. This is why
he metes out in bending (the fingers) up and down.
1 7. And as to his meting out ten times, — the
vira^ is of ten syllables, and the Soma is of vira^
nature : for this reason he metes out ten times.
18. Having gathered up the ends of the Soma-
cloth, he (the Adhvaryu) ties them together by
means of the head-band, with, ' For descendants
(I tie) thee;' — for it is indeed for (the purpose of
obtaining) descendants that he buys it (Soma) : what
(part of man) here is, as it were, compressed between
the head and the shoulders, that he thereby makes
it to be for him (the sacrificer)^.
19. He then makes a finger-hole in the middle (of
the knot), with the text, ' Let the descendants
breathe after thee!' For, in compressing (the
cloth), he, as it were, strangles him (Soma and the
sacrificer) and renders him breathless ; hereby now
he emits his breath from inside, and after him breath-
ing the descendants also breathe : for this reason
he says, ' Let the descendants breathe after thee.'
Thereupon he hands him (Soma) to the Soma-seller.
Now, then, of the bargain.
