^ Aid hi ; see p. 222, note i.
^ Or perhaps, ' I will take it while I see the sap of the sacrifice.'
' -Vasativari' seems to mean ' aflfording dwelling;* or perhaps, ' that (water)' which abides, remains (over night).' Cf. par. 16.
* ' Ninahya ' (ninahya// kumbhdy^, Kawva rec. each time) ; a vessel or cistern, dug into the ground for keeping water cool.
2 24 i-ATAPATHA-BRAHMAATA.
that (water) of his has been taken before (sunset)
by day. But should he not have offered before, if
there be one who has offered (Soma) settled close
by or somewhere thereabout \ let him take it from
his tank, since that (water) of his has been taken
before, by day.
9. But if he cannot obtain either kind (of water),
let him seize a firebrand and betake himself (to the
flowing water), and let him take thereof while hold-
ing that (firebrand) close above it ; or let him take
it while holding a piece of gold close above it : thus
it is made like yonder burning (sun).
10. He takes therefrom with the text (Va^. S.
VI, 23), 'Rich in havis are these waters,' — for
the sap of the sacrifice entered into them, wherefore
he says, ' Rich in havis (sacrificial food) are these
waters;' — 'One rich in havis wooeth for (them),'
for the sacrificer, rich in havis, woos for (wishes
to obtain) them ; wherefore he says, ' One rich in
havis wooeth for (them).'
1 1. ' Rich in havis (may be) the divine cult ;'
cult, namely, means the sacrifice ; thus he makes the
sacrifice for which he takes it rich in sacrificial food,
therefore he says, ' Rich in havis is the divine cult.'
12. 'May Surya be rich in havis!' For he
takes it for yonder burning (sun), since he takes it
for all the gods, and all the gods are his (the sun's)
rays of light ; therefore he says, ' May Surya (the
sun) be rich in havis!'
13. Having fetched it, he deposits it behind the Garhapatya 2, with (Vaf. S.'VI, 24), 'I seat you in
^ Upavasito va paryavasito (prativejo, Ka«va text instead) va. '^ That is, behind the old Ahavaniya of the VrUmavams^, where the altar would be prepared at the ordinary havirya^iia.
Ill KAA'DA, 9 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMAiVA, 1 6. 225
the seat of Agni, the safe-housed;' whereby he
means to say, ' I seat you (waters) in the seat of
Agni, whose house is unimpaired.' And when the
animal offering to Agni and Soma comes to a close,
then he carries (the Vasativari water) round. He
says (thrice), 'Disperse!' The sacrificer is seated
in front of the Soma-carts (holding Soma on his
lap'). He (the Adhvaryu) takes it (the water stand-
ing behind the Garhapatya).
14. He walks out (of the hall) by the south (door),
and puts it down on the south hip (of the high altar),
with, 'Ye (waters) are Indra and Agni's share!' for
he takes it for all the gods, and Indra and Agni are
all the gods. He takes it up again and puts it down
in front of the lady (who, seated behind the Garha-
patya, touches the water-jar). Walking round behind
the lady he (again) takes it.
15. He walks out (of the hall by the east door),
along the north side (of the altar), and puts down
(the water) on the north hip (of the high altar),
with, 'Ye are Mitra and Varu/^a's share!' Let
him not put it down in this way-, that is redundant,
and no fitting conclusion is thus attained. Let him
rather (here also) say, 'Ye are Indra and Agni's
share!' only thus there is nothing redundant, and
so a fitting conclusion is obtained.
16. That (Vasativari water) is carried round for
the sake of protection ; Agni is in front (of the sacri-
ficial ground), and now that (water) moves about
all round, repelling the evil spirits. He puts it
^ According to Katy. VIII, 9, 16.
2 ' Some put it down with this (formula), but let him not put it down so, for thus completeness is left behind (or, has a surplus, sampad ri/^yate).' Ka7/va text.
2 26 5ATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
down in the Agnidhra (fire-house) with, 'Ye are all
the gods' share!' whereby he makes all the gods
enter it. It is a desirable object (vara) to the dwellers
(vasat), hence the name Vasativari\ and verily he
who knows this, becomes a desirable object to the
dwellers.
1 7. Now there are here seven formulas ; with
four he takes (the water), with one he puts it down
behind the Garhapatya, with one he carries it round,
with one (he puts it down) in the Agnidhra, — this
makes seven. For when the metres were produced
from Ykk (speech), the one consisting of seven feet,
the .S'akvari, was the last (highest) of them ; — that
completeness (he brings about) : hence there are
seven formulas.
THE SOMA FEAST.
Third BRAHMAivA.
A. Pratar-anuvaka (morning-prayer) and Preparatory
Ceremonies.
I. They (the priests) are wakened (towards morn-
ing). Having touched water^, they proceed together
to the Agnidhra (fire-house) and take the portions
of ghee (for the Savaniya animal offerings). Having
taken the portions of ghee, they betake themselves
(to the high altar). When they have deposited the
ghee,—
^ Cf. Taitt. S. VI, 4, 2, 'deva^ . . . abruvan, vasatu nu na idam iti, tad vasativari;/a?« vasativaritvam.'
^ After performing their ablutions they have to perform the pre- liminary work and ceremonies, such as preparing the Garhapatya, fetching and arranging the vessels, cleaning of spoons, &c. up to the depositing of the ghee, near the high altar.
Ill KAA'DA, 9 ADHYAVA, 3 BRAHMAA^A, 5. 227
2. He (the Adhvaryu) takes down the king
(Soma)^ Now this (earth) is a safe resting-place,
and the birth-place of living beings ; it is to this
safe resting-place that he now takes him down ; he
spreads him thereon, produces him therefrom.
3. He takes him down between the shafts ; for
the cart is (a means of) the sacrifice, and thus
alone he does not put him outside the sacrifice. He
puts him on the pressing stones lying there with
their heads (mukha, mouths)^ towards each other;
for Soma is the nobility, and the stones are the
clans (people) ; he thereby raises the nobility over
the clan. And as to why they are lying with their
heads together, — he thereby makes the clan of one
head (or mouth) with, and uncontentious towards,
the nobles ; therefore they are lying with their heads
towards each other.
4. He takes (Soma) down, with (Va^. S. VI, 25),
'Thee for the heart, thee for the mind !' This he
says for the (accomplishment of the) sacrificer's wish,
since it Is with the heart and mind that the sacrificer
entertains the wish for which he sacrifices ; therefore
he says, ' Thee for the heart, thee for the mind!'
5. ' Thee for the sky, thee for the sun !' This,
on the other hand, he says with a view to the world
of the gods. When he says, 'Thee for the sky, thee
^ According to Katy. VIII, 9, 24-25, on the previous evening, — immediately after the carrying round and depositing of the Vasati- vari water, — the Soma is placed on a seat (asandi) in the Agnidhra fire house, where the sacrificer has to watch over it during that night. This is not mentioned in the Brahmawa, and from what follows it would rather seem that the Soma is taken down from the cart (see III, 6,3,17 seq.). Otherwise we might translate, ' He brings him down (from the Agnidhra).'
^ That is, with their broad sides turned towards each other,
2 28 ^ATAPATHA-BRAHMAA^A.
for the sun,' he means to say, ' Thee for the gods!'
'Upwards convey thou to the sky, to the gods,
this cult, these invocations!' Cult, doubtless,
means sacrifice : he thereby means to say, ' Upwards
carry thou this sacrifice to the sky, to the gods!'
6. [Va^. S. VI, 26], 'O Soma, king, descend
unto all thy people!' whereby he brings him
down for the lordship, for the sovereignty of these
people (creatures).
7. Having quitted his hold (of Soma) he sits
down by him, with, 'May all thy people descend
to thee.' Now, in saying, 'Descend unto all thy
people,' he does what is unseemly, for Soma being
the nobility, he thereby, as it were, confounds good
and bad\ — and, indeed, in consequence thereof,
people now confound good and bad. But in this
(formula) he does what is right and according to
order, — in saying, ' May all thy people descend to
thee,' he makes all his subjects go down (on their
knees) before him ; and hence when a noble ap-
proaches, all these subjects, the people, go down
before him, crouch down by him on the ground 2.
Sitting near (Soma), the Hotri is about to recite
the morning-prayer.
8. Then, while putting a kindling-stick (on the fire), he (the Adhvaryu) says, ' Recite to the gods
^ ' He commits a papavasyasawz, i. e. according to Haug, Ait. Br. p. 413, ' a breach of the oath of allegiance ' (where Saya;za explains it by 'exceedingly bad'); or 'an (act of) perversity,' Weber, Ind. Stud. IX, p. 300. Saya«a, to our passage, explains it by ' mixing the bad with the good (or better).' The literal translation is 'a bad-bettering.' What is chiefly implied in the term is evidently the showing of disrespect by an inferior to a superior person.
^ Tasmat kshatrijam upary asinam adhastad vija ima// pra^a upasate. Ka«va text.
Ill KAiVDA, 9 ADHYAYA, 3 BRAHMAiVA, lO. 229
the early-coming!' Now the early-coming gods are
the metres, as the after-offerings are the metres ; and
the after-offerings are performed with, ' Prompt (the
Hot;'/ to recite) to the gods ! Recite (the offering-
prayer) to the gods ! '
9. And so some say, ' Recite to the gods^ !' But
let him not say so ; for the early-coming gods are
the metres, as the after-offerings are the metres, and
the after-offerings are performed with, ' Prompt —
to the gods ! Recite (the offering-prayer) to the
gods ! ' therefore let him say, ' Recite to the gods,
the early-coming!'
10. And when he puts on a kindling-stick, it is
the metres he thereby kindles. And when the
Hotrt recites the morning-prayer ^ he thereby
^ Here now, some say only, ' Recite to the early-coming!' not 'to the . . . gods!' but let him not say this. Ka«va text.
^ The Pratar-anuvaka, or morning-prayer (matin chant), has to be recited by the Hot;V in the latter part of the night before any sound (of birds, &c.) is to be heard. It may begin immediately after midnight, and conclude as soon as daylight appears. When called upon by the Adhvaryu to recite . the morning-prayer, the Hotrt first makes an oblation of ghee on the Agnidhra fire, with the mantra, ' Protect me from the spell of the mouth, from every imprecation, Haill' and then two oblations on the Ahavaniya with appropriate mantras. Thereupon he betakes himself to the Havir- dhana (cart-shed), in entering which, by the east door, he touches successively the front-wreath (rara/a, cf III, 5, 3, 9) and the door- posts, with formulas. He then squats down between the yoke- pieces of the two Soma-carts, and begins his recitation with Rig-veda X, 30, 1 2, 'Ye, O wealthy waters, verily possess good things; ye confer desirable energy and immortality ; ye command riches with abundant offspring : may Sarasvati (the river S., and Speech) bestow on the bard that vital vigour 1' The 'early-coming' deities to whom the recitation is successively addressed, are Agni, Ushas (the dawn), and the two A^vins (the precursors of the sun) ; the prayer thus consisting of three sections, termed kratu (Agni-
JATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
again strengthens the metres, makes them to be
of unimpaired vigour ; for the metres had their
vigour impaired by the gods, since it was through the
metres that the gods reached the heavenly worlds ;
they neither sing praises (chants) nor recite (i'astras)
here. Hereby he now again strengthens the metres
and makes them to be of unimpaired vigour ; and by
means of them, thus unimpaired in vigour, they
