^ Viz. dividing them in the manner explained at p. 34, note i, and beginning (south)-east, and moving around from left to right (i. e. following the course of the sun). Mr. Ralph Griffith (Trans- lation of the Ramdyan, I, p. 90) has compared this Hindu rite of pradakshiwa or dakshi«ikara«a with the Gaelic deasil, as described in the following passage of Sir W. Scott's The Two Drovers : ' " But it is little I would care for the food that nourishes me, or the fire that warms me, or for God's blessed sun itself, if aught but weel should happen to the grandson of my father. So let me walk the deasil round you, that you may go safe out into the far foreign land, and come safe home." Robin Oig stopped, half embarrassed, half laughing, and signing to those near that he only complied with the old woman to soothe her humour. In the meantime she traced around him, with wavering steps, the pro- pitiation, which some have thought has been derived from the Druidical mythology. It consists, as is well known, in the person, who makes the deasil, walking three times round the person who is the object of the ceremony, taking care to move according to the course of the sun.' Cf. note at p. 45. Note also the etymolo- gical connection between dakshiwa and deiseil (Old Ir. dessel, from dess, Gael, deas, south or right side). For the corresponding rite (dextratio) at the Roman marriage ceremonies see Rossbach, Romische Ehe, pp. 315, 316; Weber, Ind. Stud.V, p. 221.
^-ATAPATHA-BRAHMAA^A.
Ahgiras^ !' for it is indeed the brightest Hght, that
of the Bhr/gus and Angiras. He covers them with
the view that ' they shall be well heated.'
14. Now he ^ who puts the two mill-stones on
(the black antelope skin), (in the first place) takes
up the black antelope skin, with the text (Va^. S. I,
19) : ' Bliss-bestowing art thou ! ' He shakes it, with
the text (ib.) : ' Shaken off is the Rakshas, shaken
off are the enemies ! ' the import and application of
which is the same (as above, I, 1, 4, 4). He spreads
it (on the ground) with the neck-part turned towards
west, whilst muttering the text (ib.) : ' The skin of
Aditi (the inviolate or boundless earth) art thou !
MayAditi acknowledge (receive) thee! ' the import (of
this formula) being the same (as before, I, i, 4, 5).
15. He then puts the lower mill-stone on it,
with the text (Va^. S. I, 19) : 'A rock-bowl art thou !
May the skin of Aditi acknowledge thee ! ' for it is
a bowl (dhisha;^a) and a rock too ; and by saying,
' May the skin of Aditi acknowledge thee,' he esta-
blishes an understanding between it and the black
antelope skin, so that 'they will not hurt each other.*
This one (the lower mill-stone) represents the earth.
16. He now puts upon (the west side of) it the wedge 3 with its point turned towards north, whilst
' The old families of the Bhr/gus and Angiras are frequently mentioned together, and often also in conjunction with the Athar- vans: it is indeed to these three families that the native authori- ties attribute the texts and ritual of the Atharva-veda, or fourth Veda, which is generally referred to in the later Vedic writings under the designation Atharvangirasas. It is probable that the Bhrz'gu- Angiras in the above formula of the Va^^as. Sa/w- hita are intended as equivalent to the latter term. Cf. Weber, Omina et Portcnta, p. 346.
^ Viz. the Adhvaryu ; cf. I, 2, i , i .
^ According to the corresponding rule of Katyayana (II, 5, 4)
I Kanda, 2 Adhyaya, I Braiimaa^a, 1 8. 39
muttering the text (Va^. S. I, 19) : ' The stay of
the sky art thou!' that is to say, it represents the
atmosphere ; for by means of the atmospheric
region those two, the sky and the earth, are firmly
kept asunder ; and for this reason he says, ' The
stay of the sky art thou ! '
17. He then puts the upper mill-stone on {the
lower one), with the text (Va^. S. I, 19) : 'A rock-
born bowl art thou ! May the rock acknowledge
thee ! ' For this one being smaller is, as it were, the
daughter (of the lower mill-stone) ^ ; for this reason
he calls it ' rock-born.' ' May the rock acknow-
ledge thee ! ' he says, because one of the same kin
acknowledges (receives the other) : thereby he esta-
blishes an understanding between those two mill-
stones, thinking ' they will not hurt one another ! '
This one, as it were, represents the sky ; (or) the
two mill-stones are, as it were, the two jaws, and
the wedge is the tongue : that is why he beats
(the mill-stones) with the wedge ^ for it is with the
tongue that one speaks.
18. He now pours the rice on (the lower stone),
with the text (Va^. S. I, 20): 'Grain (dhanyam)
art thou ! do thou gratify (dhi) ^ the gods !' for it is
and to his commentators (and Mahidhara on Va^'. S. I, 19) and the Black Yagur-veda, he does not lay the wedge on the lower mill- stone, but inserts it under the west or back-part of the stone, so as to make the latter incline towards east and to steady it.
1 In the GobhiliyaGrzliya-sutrall, i , 1 6 the upper stone is similarly called 'the son or child' of the lower one [drzshatputra], which the editor, ^andrakanta, interprets as 'drz'shad and its son;' or option- ally, 'the son of the d/vshad.' Cf. Weber, Ind. Stud. V, p. 305 note.
2 See I, I, 4, 13-
3 Mahidhara derives dhanya from the root dhi; and appa-
rently allows to it here the double meaning ' corn or grain,' and
' that which satisfies or pleases.'
40 5ATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.
grain ; and it is with the intention ' that it may gratify the gods ' that the rice-oblation is taken.
19. He then grinds it, with the text (Vac^. S. I,
20) : ' For out-breathing (I grind) thee ! for in-breath-
ing thee ! for through-breathing (pervading vital
air) 1 thee ! May I impart a long duration to the
life (of the sacrificer) ^ ! ' He pours it (the ground
rice on the skin), with the text (ib.) : ' May the
divine Savitr/, the golden-handed, receive thee with
a flawless hand ^ ! ' ' For his (the sacrificer's) eye
(I look at) theeM'
20. The reason why he thus grinds it, is that
the sacrificial food of the gods is living, is amr/ta
(ambrosia, or not dead) for the immortals. Now
with the mortar and pestle, and with the two mill-
stones they kill this rice-offering (havirya^^?la).
21. When he now says : 'For out-breathing thee !
for in-breathing thee ! ' he thereby again imparts
out-breathing and in-breathing (to it), and by saying
' for through-breathing thee ! ' he imparts through-
breathing (to it). By ' may I impart a long duration
to the life !' he bestows life on it. By 'may the divine
Sa.vitrz, the golden-handed, receive thee with a flaw-
^ On the three kinds of breathing, see I, i, 3, 2-3.
2 According to Katyayana (II, 5, 7) and Mahidhara, this last formula (' INIay I,' &c.) should be joined to the one that follows, and pronounced by the Adhvaryu whilst he pours the ground rice on the skin. INIahidhara interprets it thus : ' I put thee, (O rice ! on the black antelope skin) for (increasing) the life (of the sacri- ficer) with a view to a long continuance (of the sacrificial work) ; ' or ' I place thee along the long expanse (i. e. the skin) for thy (the rice's) long life 1'
^ See I, I, 4, 23.
* Thus, according to Katy. or INLihidh., whilst he looks at the ground rice on the skin.
I KANDA, 2 ADHYAYA, I BRAHMAA^A, 2 2. 4 1
less hand ! ' he says : ' May they be well received ! '
By ' for the eye thee ! ' he bestows eye-sight on it.
Now these (attributes) are those of a living being ;
and thus that sacrificial food for the gods is indeed
living, is amr/ta (ambrosia, or not dead) for the im-
mortals. This is the reason why he thus grinds (the
rice). (Whilst) they are grinding the (ground) grains \
(and whilst) they are heating the potsherds, —
22. Some one ^ pours clarified butter (into the
a^asthili, or butter-pot). Now whatever oblation,
in being taken, is announced to a (particular) deity,
that belongs to the respective deity, that he takes
with a special prayer ; but in taking this oblation,
to wit, the butter, he does not announce it to
any particular deity, and therefore takes it with an
undefined formula, viz. with (Va^. S. I, 20) : 'Juice
of the great ones art thou ! ' For ' the great ones '
some (take to be) a name for the cows ; and their
juice indeed it is : for this reason he says, ' The
juice of the great ones art thou!' And thus, more-
over, is some of that (butter) taken with a sacrificial
formula : and for this reason also he says, 'The juice
of the great ones art thou !'
^ Pi;?zshanti pish/ani; the grinding of the ground or grinding of flour (pish/a-pesha«a) is a common expression in later Sanskrit for doing a useless work (' carrying owls to Athens,' or ' coals to Newcastle '). In the present passage, however, the phrase has to be understood, according to Saya«a, as meaning ' whilst they (the sacrificer's people) carry on the work of grinding begun by the Adhvaryu.'
2 The Agnidhra or somebody else, according to Sayawa ; but according to the Schol. on Katy. II, 5, 9, it is done by the sacrificcr himself, who thereupon prepares the veda or bunch of sacrificial grass, tied in the middle, and cut straight at each end, and used for sweeping, &c. Cf. Katy. I, 3, 21-22 ; II, 5, 9.
42 DATAPATH A-BRAIIMAA^A.
Second BRAHMAiVA.
1. He pours (the ground rice) into that which
contains the strainers — viz. into a dish (patri) on
which he has laid the two strainers — with the text
(Va^. S. I, 21) : 'At the impulse of the divine Savi-
tr/ I pour thee out, with the arms of the A^vins, with
the hands of Pushan !' The import of this formula
is the same (as before, I, i, 2, 17).
2. He now sits down somewhere inside the altar
(vedi) ^ Then some one (viz. the Agnidhra) comes
with the kneadino^-water 2 and brings it to him. He
(the Adhvaryu) receives it through the strainers,
with the text (Va^. S. I, 21): 'Let the waters
mingle with the plants ! ' for thereby the water unites
with the plants, viz. with the ground rice, — ' The
plants with the sap ! ' for the plants thereby unite
with the sap ; viz. that ground rice with the water,
for water is their sap, — ' The shining (or wealthy
ones) with the moving!' for the shining ones are the
waters, and the moving ones are the plants, and
these two are thereby mixed together, — ' Let the
sweet mingle with the sweet!' whereby he says, 'let
the savoury be mixed with the savoury ! '
3. He then mixes (the two) together, with the
text (Va^. S. I, 22) : ' For generation I unite thee ! '
for, in order that it (the dough or the sacrificial cake
prepared from it) may bring offspring to the sacri-
* ' He sits down (with the dish) either behind the cooking fire, or inside the altar,' Katy. II, 5, 11. According to Mahadeva, the former alternative is the one favoured by the Kawvas.
"^ According to Katy. II, 5, i, the kneading-water (or mixing- water, upasar^^ani) has been put on the (Garhapatya) fire (by the Agnidh) at the time of, or previously to, the spreading of the black antelope skin.
I KANDA, 2 ADHYAYA, 2 BRAHMAiVA, 6. 43
ficer, for his prosperity, for food, and so on, — for
these reasons he mixes them together. And he also
mixes them together with the intention of placing
it (the dough) on (the fire) : hence, in order that it
(the sacrificial cake) may be produced over the fire,
for that purpose also he mixes them together.
4. He now divides it into two halves, if there be
two oblations : at the full-moon sacrifice there really
are two oblations. He then touches them, — where
(by so doing) he would not again mix (the two)
together, — with the (respective) formulas (Va^.
S. I, 22): 'This to Agni!' 'This to Agni-Soma!'
Separately indeed they take that sacrificial food
(from the cart) in the first place ^ ; then they thresh
it together, then they grind it together, then he
aeain divides it : for this reason he thus touches
(them separately). The one (the Adhvaryu)^now
places the cake over (the fire), the other (the Agni-
dhra) puts the clarified butter on :
5. These two acts are done simultaneously. The
reason why these two acts are done simultaneously
is that one half of the body of the sacrifice no doubt
is that butter, and the other half is this rice-offering.
' That half and this half, these two let us now take
to the fire!' thus (they think): for this reason those
two acts are done simultaneously, and thus this body
of the sacrifice is joined together.
6. That one (the Agnidhra) puts the butter on.
with the text (Va^. S. I, 22) : 'For sap — thee!' When
he says ' for sap thee ! ' he says it for the sake of
rain ; therefore he takes it off again, with the text
(Va/. S. I, 30) : ' For juice— thee!' What juice is