Aitareyabrahmana 1.4: ADHYĀYA IV

Rigveda Brahmanas: The Aitareya and Kauṣītaki Brāhmaṇas of the Rigveda (HOS 25) 1.4

Language: English

ADHYĀYA IV

i. 18 (iv. 1). The sacrifice went away from the gods (saying), 'I shall not be your food.' 'No', replied the gods, 'Verily thou shalt be our food.' The gods crushed it; it being taken apart was not sufficient for them. The gods said 'It will not be sufficient for us, being taken apart; come, let us gather together the sacrifice.' (They replied) 'Be it so'. They gathered it together; having gathered it together they said to the Açvins, 'Do ye two heal it', the Açvins are the physicians of the gods, the Açvins the Adhvaryus; therefore the two Adhvaryus gather together the cauldron. Having gathered it together they say, 'O Brahman, we shall proceed with the Pravargya offering; O Hotṛ, do thou recite.'

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i. 19 (iv. 2). With 'The holy power born first in the east' he begins; Bṛhaspati is the holy power; verily thus with the holy power he heals him. 'This royal one goeth in front to the father' (he says ); the royal one is speech; verily thus he places speech in him. 'The great one hath established the two great ones, when born' is addressed to Brahmaṇaspati; Bṛhaspati is the holy power; verily thus with the holy power he heals him. 'Towards the god Savitṛ in the bowls' is addressed to Savitṛ; Savitṛ is breath; verily thus he places breath in him. With 'Sit thou down; thou art great' they make him sit down. 'Whom they anoint, the sages, as it were extending' is (the verse ) appropriate for the anointing; that which is appropriate in the sacrifice is perfect. 'The bird anointed by the skill of the Asura', 'The foe who secretly may attack us, O Agni', and 'Be thou well disposed to us, O Agni, at our approach' are sets of two appropriate (verses ); that which in the sacrifice is appropriate is perfect. 'Make thou thy brilliance like a broad net', (these) are

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five (verses ) referring to the slaying of Rakṣases, for the smiting away of the Rakṣases. ‘Round thee, O singer, the songs’, ‘In the two hast thou placed the word of praise’, ‘Pure is one of them, worthy of sacrifice one’ and ‘I saw the guardian never resting’ are four isolated (verses ). They make up twenty-one; man here is twenty-onefold, ten fingers, ten toes, and the body as the twenty-first; this twenty-onefold self he prepares.

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i. 20 (iv. 3). ‘They of the sounding deep have sounded at the rim’ are nine (verses ) for Soma the purifying; the breaths are nine; verily thus he places the breaths in him. ‘May Vena impel those born of Pṛśni’ (he says ); Vena is (this breath) here; above this here some breaths circulate (*venanti*), below others; therefore is it Vena; ‘the breath being here hath not feared (*nābheḥ*)’ (they say); therefore is it the navel; that is why the navel has its name; verily thus he places breath in him. ‘Thy strainer is outspread, O lord of holy power’, ‘The strainer of the scorcher is outspread in the expanse of sky’ and ‘What time the Dhiṣaṇās spread out the strainer’ (he says ); these breaths are connected with (the word) ‘strained’; those breaths below are connected with seed, urine, and excrement; them verily thus he places in him.

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i. 21 (iv. 4). ‘Thee lord of hosts we invoke’ is addressed to Brahmaṇaspati; Bṛhaspati is the holy power; verily thus with the holy power he heals him. ‘Of which extending and far extending are the names’ are the bodies of the cauldron; verily thus he makes him possessed of body and form. ‘The Rathantara Vasiṣṭha hath brought’; ‘Bharadvāja hath fetched the Bṛhat of Agni’ (he says ); verily thus he makes him possessed of the Bṛhat and the Rathantara. ‘I saw thee deep in thought’ (he says ); it contains (the word) ‘offspring’ and is addressed to Prajāpati; verily thus he confers offspring upon him. ‘What offering will win your favour, O Açvins’ are nine (verses ) in different metres; that is the entrails of the sacrifice; the entrails are mixed as it were, some smaller some thicker; therefore are they in different metres. With these Kakṣīvant went to

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the dear home of the Açvins; he won the highest world; he goes to the dear home of the Açvins, he wins the highest world who knows thus. ‘Agni shineth as the forefront of the dawns’ is a hymn. ‘O Açvins, to the swelling cauldron’ is appropriate; that which in the sacrifice is appropriate is perfect. It is in Triṣṭubh verses; the Triṣṭubh is strength; verily then he places strength in him. ‘Like the two pressing-stones for the one purpose ye sing’ is a hymn; by enumerating the members in ‘Like the two eyes, like the two ears, like the two nostrils’, verily thus he places the senses in him. It is in Triṣṭubh verses; the Triṣṭubh is strength; verily thus he places strength in him. ‘I praise sky and earth for first inspiration’ is a hymn and ‘Agni, the cauldron, the shining, for hastening on the way’ is appropriate; that which in the sacrifice is appropriate is perfect. It is in Jagatī verses; cattle are connected with the Jagatī; verily thus he confers cattle upon him. ‘By which ye did help N. N., by which ye did help N. N.’ (he says); so many desires do the Açvins see in it; them verily thus does he place in him; verily thus with them he makes him successful. ‘The tawny one, the chief, hath made the dawns to glow’ is (a verse) containing (the word) ‘glow’; verily thus he confers glowing upon him. ‘With days and with nights guard us around’, with the last (verse) he concludes, ‘With those unharmed and bringing good fortune, O Açvins; may this Mitra and Varuṇa accord us; Aditi, Sindhu, earth and sky’; verily thus with these desires he makes him successful. Such is the first section.

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i. 22 (iv. 5). Then comes the second (section). ‘I hail this fair milking cow’, ‘Making *hiṅ*, the lady of riches’, ‘Towards thee, O god Savitṛ’, ‘Like a calf with the mothers’, ‘With the mothers like a calf’, ‘Thy teat, exhaustless spring of pleasure’, ‘The cow hath lowed after the blinking young one’, ‘With homage approach’, ‘In unison have they sat down kneeling’, ‘By the ten of Vivasvant’, ‘Seven milk one’, ‘Enkindled Agni, O Açvins’, ‘Enkindled Agni by the strong, the harbinger of heaven’, ‘This is his most evident deed’, ‘The living cloud is milked of ghee and milk’, ‘Rise up, O Brahmaṇaspati’, ‘He hath milked the swelling drink’, ‘Come up with the milk, milker of cows, swiftly’, ‘In the passed pour the admixture’, ‘Assuredly of the Açvins the seer’, and ‘Together these mighty waters’ are twenty-one appropriate (verses), that which in the

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sacrifice is appropriate is perfect. With ‘Up this god Savitṛ with the golden’ he rises up after (the others); with ‘Let Brahmaṇaspati move forward’ he follows after; with ‘The Gandharva here guardeth his abode’ he looks at the Khara; with ‘The eagle flying in the vault’ he takes his place; in the forenoon he uses as offering verses ‘The heated cauldron reacheth you, self-offerer’ and ‘Both drink, O Açvins’. At ‘O Agni, enjoy’ he says the second vaṣaṭ, taking the place of the Sviṣṭakṛt. ‘The ghee the milk offered in the cows’ and ‘Drink of this, O Açvins’ he uses as offering verses in the afternoon; at ‘O Agni, enjoy’ he says the second vaṣaṭ, taking the place of Sviṣṭakṛt. Of these three oblations they do not take portions for the Sviṣṭakṛt, Soma, the cauldron, and the strengthening drink. In that he says the second vaṣaṭ, (it is) to avoid omitting Agni Sviṣṭakṛt. ‘Through all the regions, seated in the south’ the Brahman mutters; ‘The pure cauldron among the gods over which the call of Hail! is uttered’, ‘From the ocean the wave Vena sendeth forth’, ‘The drop that goeth over the ocean’, ‘O friend, do thou turn towards the friend’, ‘Upright to our aid’, ‘Upright do thou protect us from tribulation’, and ‘Him indeed his worshippers’ are appropriate (verses); that which in the sacrifice is appropriate is perfect. With ‘O thou of pure brilliance, around thy dwelling’ he desires food. With ‘The oblation offered, the sweet oblation, on the fire that is most full of Indra, may we eat of thee, O divine cauldron, full of sweetness, full of nourishment, full of strength, full of the Aṅgirases; homage to thee; harm me not’ he partakes of the cauldron. ‘Like an eagle its nest, the seat wrought with prayer’ and ‘In which the seven Vāsavas’ he recites for him when being deposited. ‘The oblation, O thou rich in oblation, the great divine seat’ (he says) on the day on which they are going to remove (the cauldron). ‘From the good pasture mayst thou be of good fortune’, with the last (verse) he concludes. The cauldron is a divine pairing; the cauldron is the member, the two handles the testicles, the spoon the thigh bones, the milk the seed; this seed is poured in Agni as the birthplace of the gods, as generation; the birthplace of the gods is Agni; he comes into existence from Agni as the birthplace of the gods, from the libations; having come into existence as composed of the Ṛc,

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the Yajus, and the Sāman, and of the Veda, and of the holy power, and as immortal, he attains to the deities who knows thus and who knowing thus sacrifices with this sacrificial rite.

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The Upasads.

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i. 23 (iv. 6). The gods and the Asuras strove for these worlds; the Asuras made these worlds as citadels, just as those who are more mighty and forceful. They made this (earth) an iron (citadel), the atmosphere one of silver, and the sky one of gold; thus they made these worlds as citadels. The gods said, ‘The Asuras have made these worlds as citadels, let us make these worlds as citadels in opposition.’ ‘Be it so’ (they replied). They made out of this (earth) as a counterpoise the Sadas, the Agnīdh’s altar from the atmosphere, the two oblation holders from the sky. Thus they made these worlds as citadels in opposition. The gods said, ‘Let us have recourse to the Upasads; by siege (Upasad) they conquer a great citadel.’ ‘Be it so’ (they replied). With the first Upasad which they performed they repelled them from this world; with the second from the atmosphere, with the third from the sky. Thus from these worlds they repelled them. The Asuras, repelled from these worlds, had recourse to the seasons. The gods said, ‘Let us have recourse to the Upasads.’ ‘Be it so’ (they replied). These three Upasads they performed one by one twice each; they made up six; the seasons are six; them they repelled from the seasons; they, repelled from the seasons, the Asuras, had recourse to the months. The gods said, ‘Let us have recourse to the Upasads.’ ‘Be it so’ (they replied). These Upasads being six they performed one by one twice each; they made up twelve; the months are twelve; them they repelled from the months. The Asuras, repelled from the months, had recourse to the half-months. The gods said, ‘Let us have recourse to the half-months.’ ‘Be it so’ (they replied). These Upasads being twelve they performed one by one twice each; they made up twenty-four; the half-months are twenty-four them they repelled from the half-months. The Asuras, repelled from the half-months, had recourse to day and night. The gods said, ‘Let us have recourse to the two Upasads.’ ‘Be it so’ (they replied). With the Upasad which they performed on the forenoon they repelled them from the day, by that on the afternoon, from the night; thus from both they excluded them. Therefore one should proceed with the first Upasad early

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in the forenoon, with the second early in the afternoon. So much only of space does he leave to his enemy.

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i. 24 (iv. 7). The Upasads are called victories; by them the gods won an unrivalled victory; an unrivalled victory does he win who thus knows. The victory which the gods won over these worlds, the seasons, the months, the half-months, the day and night, that victory he wins who knows thus.

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The gods were afraid, ‘Through our disagreement the Asuras will wax great here.’ Having gone apart they took council; Agni went out with the Vasus, Indra with the Rudras, Varuṇa with the Ādityas, Bṛhaspati with the All-gods. Having thus gone apart they took council; they said, ‘Come, our dearest bodies let us deposit in the house of king Varuṇa; with them may he not be united who shall transgress this, who shall seek to cause trouble.’ ‘Be it so’ (they replied). They deposited their bodies in the house of king Varuṇa; that became their bodily covenant; that is why the bodily covenant (Tānūnaptra) has its name. Therefore they say, ‘One should not show treachery to one united by the bodily covenant.’ Therefore the Asuras do not wax great here.

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i. 25 (iv. 8). The guest reception is the head of the sacrifice, the Upasads the neck; they are performed on the same strew, for the head and the neck are the same. In the Upasads the gods fashioned an arrow; of it the point was Agni, the socket Soma; the shaft Viṣṇu, the feathers Varuṇa. It they discharged, using the butter as a bow; with it they kept piercing the citadels; therefore these have butter as the oblation. At the Upasads he has first recourse to four teats for the fast milk, for the arrow is composed of four elements, point, socket, shaft, and feathers; three teats he has recourse to for the fast milk in the Upasads, for the arrow is composed of three elements, point, socket, and shaft; two teats he has recourse to for the fast milk in the Upasads, for the arrow is composed of two elements, the socket and the shaft only; one teat he has recourse to for the fast milk in the Upasads, for it is called the one thing ‘arrow’, by one is strength exercised. These worlds are broader above and narrower below; he performs the Upasads from the top downwards, for the conquering of these worlds. ‘To the generous to be adored’, ‘This kindling stick of mine, O Agni, this waiting upon thee do thou accept’ are sets of three kindling

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verses, perfect in form; that in the sacrifice is perfect which is perfect in form, that rite which as it is being performed the verse describes. He should use (verses) containing (the word) ‘slay’, as invitatory and offering verses, ‘Let Agni slay the foes,’ ‘Who is dread, as it were, a slayer with darts,’ ‘Thou, O Soma, art very lord,’ ‘Bestowing prosperity, slayer of disease,’ ‘Over this Viṣṇu strode,’ ‘Three steps he strode apart,’ these are they. He sacrifices in the afternoon with (the verses) inverted. With these in the Upasads the gods kept slaying and destroying the citadels. They should be of the same metre, not of different metres; if he were to make them of different metres, he would cause swelling on the neck; he would produce boils; therefore should they be made of the same metre, not of different metres. Now as to this Upāvi Jānaçruteya used to say, that is in his explanation of the Upasads, ‘In that the face of even an ugly Çrotriya is seen as joyous as it were and as singing, (it is) because the Upasads have butter as the oblation, and (it is) a face placed on the neck’; therefore was he wont to say this.

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i. 26 (iv. 9). The fore-offerings and the after-offerings are divine armour; (this rite) is without fore-offerings and after-offerings, to sharpen the arrow and to prevent rending. Having once stepped over he makes (him) proclaim, to master the sacrifice and to prevent its departure. They say, ‘A cruel thing do they in the neighbourhood of Soma the king, in that they offer the ghee in his neighbourhood, for by ghee as a thunderbolt Indra slew Vṛtra,’ in that they make the king to swell, (saying) ‘May every shoot of thine, O god Soma, swell for Indra who obtaineth the chief share; may Indra swell for thee; do thou swell for Indra; make us as comrades to swell; with gain, with insight, prosperously may I attain the conclusion in the pressing of thee, O God Soma’; verily thus they make whole whatever cruel as it were they do in his neighbourhood; moreover they cause him to grow. Soma the king is the embryo of sky and earth; in that, (saying) ‘Sought by sacrifice is wealth, sought are good things, for strength, for prosperity; holy order to the speakers of holy order; homage to sky,

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homage to earth!’ they make (their amends) on the strew, verily thus they pay homage to sky and earth; moreover they cause them to grow.

Linked texts (1)

Aitareyabrāhmaṇa — Mahidāsa Aitareya, Sanskrit