Aitareyabrahmana 2.16

2.16

When Prajāpati himself, being the hotṛ priest, was about to recite the morning litany, all the deities thought: 'He will commence facing me, facing me!' Prajāpati reflected: 'If I commence addressed to one specific deity, how will the other deities be reached by me?' He saw this verse: 'The waters are wealthy...' All deities indeed are the waters; all deities are the wealthy ones. With this verse he commenced the morning litany. All those deities rejoiced, thinking: 'He has commenced facing me, facing me!' All deities rejoice when the one who knows this recites the morning litany; for him, the morning litany is commenced with all deities. The gods were afraid: 'The Asuras, being stronger and mightier, will take away this morning sacrifice from us.' Indra said to them: 'Do not fear; I will hurl a threefold perfected thunderbolt at them in the morning.' He referred indeed to that verse. It was a thunderbolt in that it is addressed to Apāṁ Napāt; it was a thunderbolt in that it is a triṣṭubh; it was a thunderbolt in that it is speech. He hurled it at them; with it he struck them. Thereupon the gods prospered, the Asuras were defeated. He prospers himself, and his hateful, evil rival is defeated, who knows this. They say regarding this: 'He would indeed be a hotṛ priest who could generate all metres in this verse.' This [verse], recited thrice, becomes all the metres; this is the generation of the metres.