high altar, both are of the same size or cubic content. The pit is to measure thirty-two ahgulas (about two feet) on each side. As to the exact distance of the pit from the north-east peg, this is to be left to the discretion of the Adhvaryu, provided it be in front of the utkara, or heap of rubbish formed in making the large altar (on which the high altar is raised), and a passage be left between the utkara and the pit. The latter is contiguous to the north edge of the large altar. As described in the succeeding paragraphs, the west side is marked off first {by drawing the wooden sword along the inner side of the yoke-pin), then successively the front, the south, and the north sides.
^ For ' nathitat ' and ' vyathitat,' the Kawva text, as the Taitt. S. VI, 2, 7, 2, has the readings ' nathitam' and ' vyathitam.'
I I 8 fi-ATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
means this (earth): 'wherever there is affliction, from that preserve me !'
31, He then flings (the wooden sword) ^ ; at the
place where he flings 2, the Agnidh sits. He flings
while mentioning the names of the Agnis^ For
those (three) Agnis whom the gods at first chose for
the office of Uotri passed away: they crept into
these very earths, — namely, into this one and the
two beyond it. It is really with this one* that he
now flings.
32. He flings with the texts, 'May the Agni
called Nabhas^ know (thee) ! Go thou, O Agni,
Ahgiras, with the name of Ayu (life)!' What
life they passed away from'' that he bestows, that
he re-animates. Having with, 'Thou who art in
this earth,' taken (the loose soil dug up by the
wooden sword), he puts it down (on the altar '^),
with, 'Whatever inviolate, holy name of thine,
^ Compare the Stambaya^ur-harawam (which has also to be per- formed on the present occasion, in preparing the large altar), I, 2, 4, 8 seq.
2 That is, at the place where the uttaravedi is to be raised, whence the Adhvaryu throws the sphya to where the pit is to be dug. While he throws (or thrusts in) the wooden sword, the sacrificer has to take hold of him from behind.
=* See I, 2, 3, I.
* I. e. with the Agni who entered into this earth.
^ Apparently ' vapour, welkin.' The Kawva rec. reads, ' Mayest thou know Agni's name Nabhas ' (Vider Agner, &c.). The Taitt. S., on the other hand, reads 'vider Agnir nabho nama,' which Saya??a explains by 'the Agni of the vedi (!) is Nabhas by name.'
" Yat pradhanva?/^s tad ayur dadhati. Perhaps we ought to read with the Ka«va text, Yat pradhanvat tad asminn ayur dadhati tad ena?« samirayati, ' the life which passed away(?), that he bestows on him, therewith he re-animates him.'
' He throws it on the fore-part of the altar, close to the peg marking the middle of the front side, where the 'high altar ' is to be raised on it.
Ill KANDA, 5 ADHYAYA, I BRAHMAiVA, 34. II9
therewith I lay thee down!' whereby he means
to say, 'whatever holy name, unviolated by the
Rakshas, is thine, thereby I lay thee down^.' — With
'Thee, moreover, for the delight of the gods,'
he takes (earth) a fourth time^ ; whereby he means
to say, ' I take thee well-pleasing to the gods.' He
takes that (high altar) from a quadrangular pit, for
there are four quarters : thus he takes it from all
the four quarters.
33, Thereupon he shifts (the earth) asunder, with
the text (Va^. S. V, lo), ' Thou art a lioness, over-
coming the enemies; be thou meet for the
gods !' Inasmuch as, on that occasion, she became
a lioness and roamed about unappeased, therefore
he says to her, 'Thou art a lioness;' and by 'over-
coming the enemies' he means to say, ' Through thee
may we worst our enemies.' ' Be thou meet for the
gods' he says, because the high altar is a woman :
her he thus renders meet for the gods.
34. He makes it on each side either of the size of the yoke, or ten feet of the sacrificer's ^ ; for the
^ He repeats the same ceremony a second and a third time with the same texts, except that, instead of 'Thou who art in this earth,' he says, ' Thou who art in the second (third) earth.'
^ He takes with the spade as much as is required to make the high altar of the proper size.
2 This statement seems to have greatly puzzled the later ritualists, as Katy. V, 3, 32-35 and the comments thereon show. In rule 32 it is laid down, in accordance with paragraph 26 above, that the Adhvaryu is to make the high altar of the size of the yoke-pin and the pit, i.e. about two feet square. The next rule then leaves an option between four other measurements, viz. he may make it either one third of the area of the large altar, or of unlimited size, or of the size of the yoke (86 ahgulas=c. 5—54 feet) or of ten of the sacrificer's feet. This latter measurement is explained rather in- geniously by Harisvamin, as meaning that the high altar is to form
I20 i-ATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
Vira^ consists often syllables, and the Vira^is speech,
and the sacrifice is speech. In the middle^ he makes,
as it were, a navel, thinking, ' Seated in one and the
same place, I shall sprinkle (ghee) all round 2.'
35. He sprinkles it with water : inasmuch as, on
that occasion, she became a lioness and roamed about
unappeased — water being (a means of) appease-
ment— he appeases her with water. And, the high
altar being a woman, he thereby fits her for the
gods : this is why he sprinkles it with water.
36. He sprinkles it with, 'Thou art a lioness,
overcoming the enemies: get thee pure for
the gods!' He then bestrews it with gravel.
Now gravel certainly is an ornament, because gravel
is rather shining. And that gravel being the ashes
of Agni Vaii-vanara, he is now about to place Agni
thereon, and so Agni does not injure it : this is
why he bestrews it with gravel. He bestrews it
with, 'Thou art a lioness, overcoming the
enemies: array thee for the gods!' He then
covers it^ and thus covered it remains during that
night.
an oblong of three feet by one foot, when, in counting the number of sides of the three squares thus obtained, we obtain ten sides of one foot each. However, the repetition of ' dai'a ' in our text — which can only mean ' ten feet on each side ' — does not favour this explanation. The last two alternatives, according to rules 34-35, only apply to the Soma-sacrifice, because otherwise the altar (as in the case of the ' northern altar ' at the i^aturmasya, cf. part i, p. 392) would not be large enough to contain a ' high altar ' of that size.
^ The Ka«va text wants it to be made at the back (o-aghanena).
2 When he makes the libation of ghee on the high altar (III, 5, 2,9-11), he pours it on the four corners of the 'navel 'and thereby, as it were, on the whole ' high altar.'
' Viz. with branches of udumbara or plaksha (see III, 8, 3, 10), or with darbha grass.
Ill KANDA, 5 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMAiVA, 2. 121
THE AGNI-PRAA^AYANA, or LEADING FORWARD OF THE FIRE^ TO THE HIGH ALTAR.
Second BRAHMAivA.
1. They put fire-wood on (the Ahavaniya fire),
and prepare the underlayer (of graveP). He (the
Adhvaryu) puts the butter on (the Garhapatya to
melt), and cleans both the dipping-spoon and the
offering-spoon. Having then clarified the ghee,
he ladles five times thereof (into the offering-spoon).
When the fire-wood is ablaze —
2. They lift the (burning) fire-wood, and place it
on the underlayer ^ Thereupon he says (to the
Hotr^), ' Recite for Agni as he is taken forward^ !'
(and to the Pratlprasthatrz), ' Come up after me
with the single sword(-line) !' The Pratiprasthatre
goes up after him with the single sword(-line) as far
' The transferring of the Ahavaniya fire to the high altar takes place in the forenoon of the last tJpasad day (that is, on the day preceding the pressing day, and called upavasatha, or preparation day). It is preceded by the double or combined performance of the Upasad offerings (one of which took place in the afternoon on the two preceding days).
^ Some gravel is put in a pan for the burning wood to lie upon, when it is to be transferred from the Ahavaniya to the new altar. The Taittiriyas mix with the gravel one-fourth part of the dust of the foot-print of the Soma-cow (III, 3, i, 6), the other three parts being used respectively for anointing the axle of the Soma-cart (III, 5, 3, 13), for the underlayer of the Agnidhra fire (III, 6, 3, 4), and for scattering about behind the Garhapatya (III, 6,
^ Lit. they lift the underlayer underneath (the burning wood).
* For the eight verses (or twelve, the first and last being recited
thrice each) which the Hotn has to repeat while the fire is carried
eastward and laid down on the high altar, see Ait. Br. I, 28; Asv.
St. II, 17. For the Brahman's duties, see Katy. XI, i, 9.
12 2 5'ATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
as that middle peg on the hind-part of the altar^ :
whatever part of the Garhapatya^ is cut off from
the altar by that intermediate (peg), that he thereby
carries on to (connects with) it.
3. Now some walk up behind (and draw a line)
as far as the high altar ; but let him not do that :
let him walk up only as far as that middle peg.
They proceed and come up to the high altar ^
4. The Adhvaryu takes the sprinkling-water. He
first sprinkles (the high altar) in front, while stand-
ing (south of it) facing the north, with the text (Va^.
S. V, 11), 'May Indra's noise^ shield thee in
front with the Vasus!' whereby he means to say,
' May Indra's noise protect thee in front with the
Vasus.'
5. He then sprinkles it behind with, 'May the
Wise^ shield thee from behind with the Ru-
dras!' whereby he means to say, 'May the Wise
One protect thee from behind with the Rudras !'
6. He then sprinkles on the right (south) side
with, 'May the Thought-swift shield thee with
the Fathers on the right!' whereby he means
^ See III, 5, 1, 1.
^ The Ahavaniya or offering fire being now transferred to the new altar, the old Ahavaniya hearth is henceforward used as Garha- patya ; and a line is drawn from it up to the anta//pata, marking the middle of the west side of the great altar.
^ In 'leading forwards' the fire they proceed along the north side of the large altar.
* Indraghosha, perhaps 'Indra's name;' Mahidhara and Saya/?a take it as 'he who is noised abroad as Indra' (i. e. called Indra), which, however, would require the accent 'indraghosha.' Perhaps 'the noise of Indra' means Agni, the roaring fire: for Agni and the Vasus, see III, 4, 2, I.
° Pra-^etas, here Varuwa according to Mahidhara and Saya»a. Cf.III, 4, 2, I.
Ill KANDA, 5 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMAA^A, lO. I23
to say, ' May he swift as thought^ protect thee on the right with the Fathers!'
7. He then sprinkles on the left side with, 'May
Vij-vakarman (the All-shaper) shield thee with
the Adityas on the left!' whereby he means to
say, ' May Vi^vakarman protect thee on the left with
the Adityas!'
8. The sprinkling-water which is left he pours
outside the altar close to where is the southern of
those two front corners (of the high altar) with,
'This burning- water I dismiss from the
sacrifice.' Because she (Vak — the altar) on that
occasion became a lioness and roamed about unap-
peased-, he thus dismisses from the sacrifice that
sorrow of hers, — if he do not wish to exorcise. But
should he wish to exorcise, let him indicate it by
saying, ' This burning water I dismiss from the
sacrifice against so and so 1' He then smites him with
that sorrow, and sorrowing he goes to yonder world.
9. Now as to why he pours ghee on the high
altar, while the fire is held (over it). Because the
gods said to her on that occasion, ' The offering
shall reach thee before Agni,' therefore the offer-
ing now does reach her before (it reaches) Agni.
And because she said to the gods, ' Whatsoever
blessing ye will invoke through me, all that shall
be accomplished unto you ! ' therefore the priests
now invoke through her that blessing upon the
sacrificer, and it is fully accomplished unto him.
