Pramāṇa · Search · About · API

Aitareyabrahmana 7

English (machine translation) 7

Language
English

7.1

Now follows the division of the sacrificial animal; we shall explain its division: the two jaws with the tongue belong to the prastotṛ; the eagle-shaped breast to the udgātṛ; the neck and the palate to the pratihartṛ; the right hip to the hotṛ priest; the left to the brahman; the right thigh to the maitrāvaruṇa; the left to the brāhmaṇācchaṃsin; the right flank with the shoulder to the adhvaryu; the left to the sub-singers; the left shoulder to the pratiprasthātṛ; the right lower foreleg to the neṣṭṛ; the left to the potṛ; the right upper thigh to the acchāvāka; the left to the āgnīdhra; the right upper foreleg to the ātreya; the left to the sadasya; the seat and the spine to the master of the house; the two right feet to the master of the house's giver of fast-milk; the two left feet to the master of the house's wife's giver of fast-milk; the lip belongs to both in common, [and] the master of the house should apportion it. They carry the tail to the wives; they should give it to a brahmin. The neck-vertebrae and the three ribs belong to the grāvastut; and three ribs and half of the brisket belong to the unnetṛ; and half of the brisket and the lung belong to the slaughterer; if he is not a brahmin, he should give it to a brahmin. The head belongs to the subrahmaṇyā; the hide to him who announces the day's pressing on the morrow; the sacrificial portion belongs to all, or to the hotṛ priest. These thirty-six single parts indeed convey the sacrifice. The bṛhatī consists of thirty-six syllables; the heavenly worlds are connected with the bṛhatī. They thus attain breaths and the heavenly worlds; establishing themselves in breaths and in the heavenly worlds they go forth. This is the animal that leads to heaven when they divide it in this way. Now, as for those who do otherwise, it is just as if thieves or wrongdoers were to tear the animal apart: such is that. Devabhāga, son of Śruta, knew this division of the animal, and without having taught it he departed from this world. A non-human being then taught it to Girija, son of Babhru. From that point onward mortal men study it.

7.2

As to this, they say: If an āhitāgni should die on the upavasatha day, how should his sacrifice proceed? They say: One should not perform the sacrifice for him, for he has not attained the sacrifice. As to this, they say: If an āhitāgni should die when the agnihotra is set on the fire, or when the sāṃnāyya, or the sacrificial offerings are [on the fire], what is the expiation there? One should throw them in alongside [his body] right there, so that all may be consumed together. That is the expiation there. As to this, they say: If an āhitāgni should die when the sacrificial offerings have been set down, what is the expiation there? With ‘Svāhā to the deities’ for which those sacrificial offerings were taken, one should offer them into the āhavanīya fire as a complete offering. That is the expiation there. As to this, they say: If an āhitāgni should die while away from home, how should his agnihotra be [conducted]? One should offer with the milk of a cow whose calf is fostered by another. This milk is, as it were, different, which belongs to a cow with a foster calf; this agnihotra is, as it were, different, which belongs to the deceased. Or else they should offer with milk from wherever it comes. Furthermore, they say: Just so they should kindle these [fires], continuously without offering, until the bones are brought back. If the bones cannot be found, having fetched three hundred and sixty palāśa stalks and made of them an effigy, as it were, of the man, they should perform that rite on it. Then, having touched them with the bones when fetched, they should consign them [to the fire]: one hundred and fifty in the trunk, fifty in each thigh and twenty in [the shanks], twenty-five in each of the upper arms, and the rest he should place upon the head. That is the expiation there.

7.3

As to this, they say: If someone's agnihotra cow, having been let loose [to the calf], should sit down while being milked, what is the expiation there? He should address her with the formula: / 'From whatever fear you sit down, from that make us free from fear; / protect all our cattle; homage to the bountiful Rudra.' / He should make her stand up with: / 'The goddess Aditi has arisen; she has placed life in the lord of the sacrifice, / making a portion for Indra, and for Mitra and Varuṇa.' / Then he should hold a water-pot near her udder and mouth, and then give her to a brāhmaṇa. That is the expiation there. As to this, they say: If someone's agnihotra cow, having been let loose, should low while being milked, what is the expiation there? Perceptive indeed of the sacrificer's hunger, she lows. He should feed her food for appeasement, for food is appeasement: / 'May you, fortunate one, graze on rich pasture.' / That is the expiation there. As to this, they say: If someone's agnihotra cow, having been let loose, should kick while being milked, what is the expiation there? Whatever she spills there, having touched it he should recite: / 'What milk today has crept over the earth, what has crept over the plants, what over the waters, / may milk be in the houses, milk in the cow, milk in the calves, milk in me.' / What remains there, with that he should offer, if it is sufficient for the oblation. But if all of it is spilled, then having called another cow and milked her, he should offer with that; for indeed an offering must be made for the sake of faith. That is the expiation.

7.4

As to this, they say: If someone's evening-milked sāṃnāyya should become spoiled or be stolen, what is the expiation there? Having divided the morning milk into two parts and having curdled one of the portions, he should sacrifice with that. That is the expiation there. As to this, they say: If someone's morning-milked sāṃnāyya should become spoiled or be stolen, what is the expiation there? Having set out in its place a sacrificial cake for Indra or for Mahendra, he should sacrifice with that. That is the expiation there. As to this, they say: If someone's entire sāṃnāyya should become spoiled or be stolen, what is the expiation there? A [cake] for Indra or for Mahendra—it is the same. That is the expiation there. As to this, they say: If all someone's sacrificial offerings should become spoiled or be stolen, what is the expiation there? Having assigned these from melted butter according to each deity, he should sacrifice with that offering of melted butter as the sacrificial offering, and thereafter perform another faultless rite. Sacrifice is the expiation of sacrifice.

7.5

They say: / When a person's agnihotra [milk] has been set on the fire and an impure thing falls into it, / what is the expiation for it? / Pouring it all out into the ladle, stepping forward toward the east, he puts this piece of kindling-wood onto the āhavanīya fire; / then, having swept aside hot ash to the north of the āhavanīya, he should offer it / either mentally or with a verse addressed to Prajāpati. / That is both offered and not offered. / Whether one [ladleful] has been drawn or two, this is the very rule. / If he should be able to remove it, / having poured out this defiled [part] and poured over the undefiled [milk], / he should offer it in whatever manner it was drawn. / That is the expiation there. / They say: / When a person's agnihotra [milk] set on the fire spills or boils over, / what is the expiation for it? / He should pour water upon it for pacification, for water is pacification. / Then, touching it with his right hand, he mutters: / 'A third of the sacrifice has gone to heaven, to the gods; thence has wealth reached me. A third of the sacrifice has gone to the intermediate space, / to the fathers; thence has wealth reached me. / A third of the sacrifice has gone to earth, to men; thence has wealth reached me.' / He mutters the verse addressed to Viṣṇu and Varuṇa: 'By whose vital power the spaces were propped up.' / Viṣṇu indeed protects what is ill-offered in the sacrifice, Varuṇa what is well-offered, / for the pacification of both of them. / That is the expiation there. / They say: / When a person's agnihotra [milk] has been set on the fire, and as he steps forward eastward he stumbles or drops it, / what is the expiation for it? / If he were to turn back, he would turn the sacrificer away from the heavenly world. / Right there, while he is seated, they should bring him this remnant of the agnihotra, / and he should offer it in whatever manner it was drawn. / That is the expiation there. / They say: / Now if the ladle should break, what is the expiation for it? / Having fetched another ladle, he should offer; / then he should put this broken ladle on the āhavanīya fire with its handle to the east and its bowl to the west. / That is the expiation there. / They say: / When a person's fire is found in the āhavanīya, but the gārhapatya goes out, / what is the expiation for it? / If he were to bring [fire] forward to the east, he would fall away from his place; / because he would perform the sacrifice westward like the Asuras; / because if he were to churn [fire], he would generate a rival for the sacrificer; / because if he were to let it go out, the vital breath would leave the sacrificer. / Having collected all of it together with the ashes and placed it in the fireplace of the gārhapatya, / he should then bring forward the āhavanīya to the east. / That is the expiation there.

7.6

They say: / When they take out a fire into a fire, / what is the expiation for it? / If he perceives it, having swept aside the previous one, he should place the second. / But if he does not perceive it, he should distribute a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni possessor of fire. / Its offering verse and invitatory verse are: / 'By fire fire is kindled', and 'For thou, O Agni, by fire'. / Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya: / 'To Agni possessor of fire, svāhā!' / That is the expiation there. / They say: / When a person's gārhapatya and āhavanīya fires blend together, what is the expiation for it? / He should distribute a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni the enjoyer. / Its offering verse and invitatory verse are: / 'O Agni, come to the feast', and 'Who [kindles] Agni for the feast of the gods'. / Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya: / 'To Agni the enjoyer, svāhā!' / That is the expiation there. / They say: / When all the fires of a person blend together, / what is the expiation for it? / He should distribute a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni the separator. / Its offering verse and invitatory verse are: / 'Our light at the break of dawn has shone forth', and 'Thee, O Agni, the human clans implore'. / Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya: / 'To Agni the separator, svāhā!' / That is the expiation there. / They say: / When a person's fires blend with other fires, / what is the expiation for it? / He should distribute a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni possessor of scorched [ground]. / Its offering verse and invitatory verse are: / 'Agni has roared like the thundering sky', and 'Then as our ancient fathers'. / Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya: / 'To Agni possessor of scorched [ground], svāhā!' / That is the expiation there.

7.7

They say: / When a person's fires are burned together with a village fire, / what is the expiation for it? / He should distribute a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni the absorber. / Its offering verse and invitatory verse are: / 'Surely well for our quest for kine', and 'Do not in this great contest'. / He should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya: / 'To Agni the absorber, svāhā!' / That is the expiation there. / They say: / When a person's fires blend with celestial fire [lightning], / what is the expiation for it? / He should distribute a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni possessor of waters. / Its offering verse and invitatory verse are: / 'In the waters, O Agni, is thy seat', and 'He gives delight, the wise, of purified skill'. / Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya: / 'To Agni possessor of waters, svāhā!' / That is the expiation there. / They say: / When a person's fires blend with a corpse-fire [funeral pyre], / what is the expiation for it? / He should distribute a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni the pure. / Its offering verse and invitatory verse are: / 'Agni, most pure in observance', and 'Upward, O Agni, thy pure [flames]'. / He should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya: / 'To Agni the pure, svāhā!' / That is the expiation there. / They say: / When a person's fires are burned together with a forest fire, / what is the expiation for it? / He should cause [the fires] to ascend [into himself or] into the two churning sticks, or release a firebrand, whether from the āhavanīya or from the gārhapatya. / If he cannot, he should distribute a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni the absorber. / The offering verse and invitatory verse for it have been stated. / He should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya: / 'To Agni the absorber, svāhā!' / That is the expiation there.

7.8

Regarding this they say:
If one who has established the sacred fires should shed tears on the fast day,
what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni Vratabhṛt.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"You, O Agni, bearing vows, pure" [and] "Bearing vows, protector of vows, unbeguiled."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To Agni Vratabhṛt, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.
Regarding this they say:
If one who has established the sacred fires should fall into an unvowed act on the fast day,
what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni Vratapati.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"You, O Agni, are protector of vows" [and] "Whatever vows of yours we transgress."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To Agni Vratapati, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.
Regarding this they say:
If one who has established the sacred fires should let the New Moon or the Full Moon day pass by,
what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni Pathikṛt.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"For you know, O disposer, the paths" [and] "We have reached the pathway of the gods."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To Agni Pathikṛt, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.
Regarding this they say:
If all the fires of one should go out,
what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni Tapasvat Janadvat Pāvakavat.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"Come with ascetic heat among the people" [and] "Come to us with ascetic heat among the people."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To Agni Tapasvat Janadvat Pāvakavat, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.

7.9

Regarding this they say:
If one who has established the sacred fires should eat fresh grain without having sacrificed with the āgrayaṇa rite,
what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on twelve potsherds to Agni Vaiśvānara.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"Vaiśvānara brought forth" [and] "Agni was sought in heaven, sought on earth."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To Agni Vaiśvānara, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.
Regarding this they say:
If a potsherd of one who has established the sacred fires should be lost, what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on two potsherds to the Aśvins.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"O Aśvins, [turn] your course toward us" [and] "O Nāsatyas, with a cattle-rich chariot."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To the Aśvins, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.
Regarding this they say:
If the strainer of one who has established the sacred fires should be lost,
what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni Pavitravat.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"Your strainer is spread out, O Brahmaṇaspati" [and] "The strainer of the heated one is spread over the station of heaven."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To Agni Pavitravat, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.
Regarding this they say:
If gold of one who has established the sacred fires should be lost,
what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni Hiraṇyavat.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"The golden-haired one, traversing the expanse" [and] "Unto you the fair-winged ones, not transgressing with their courses."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To Agni Hiraṇyavat, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.
Regarding this they say:
If one who has established the sacred fires should offer the agnihotra in the morning unbathed,
what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni-Varuṇa.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"You, knowing Varuṇa for us, O Agni" [and] "So do you, O Agni, be closest to us with your protection."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To Agni-Varuṇa, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.
Regarding this they say:
If one who has established the sacred fires should eat food associated with childbirth impurity,
what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni Tantumat.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"Weaving the thread, follow the light of the aerial space" [and] "Fasten the axle-pins, O Soma-gatherers."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To Agni Tantumat, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.
Regarding this they say:
If one who has established the sacred fires should hear a report of his own death while still alive,
what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on eight potsherds to Agni Surabhimat.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"Agni sat down as hotṛ, the more worthy of sacrifice" [and] "He made good our feast for the gods today."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To Agni Surabhimat, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.
Regarding this they say:
If the wife or cow of one who has established the sacred fires should give birth to twins,
what is the expiation in that case?
He should offer a sacrificial cake on thirteen potsherds to Agni Marutvat.
Its invitatory and offering verses are:
"For in whose abode the Maruts..." [and] "Like spokes [of a wheel], none is behind, surely."
Or he should offer an oblation into the āhavanīya fire:
"To Agni Marutvat, svāhā!"
That is the expiation in that case.
Regarding this they say:
Should one without a wife also perform the agnihotra, or should he not perform it?
"He should perform it," they say.
If he should not perform it, he is a man of unfaith.
Who is a man of unfaith?
One who [serves] neither the gods, nor the ancestors, nor men.
Therefore, even one without a wife should perform the agnihotra.
Regarding this this sacrificial verse is sung:
"Even one without a wife, even one who does not drink Soma, should sacrifice in the Sautrāmaṇī;
because of the revelation from the injunction, 'Sacrifice for the sake of freedom from debt to mother and father.'"
Therefore one should make him perform the sacrifice with Soma.

7.10

(Regarding this they say:
How does a man without a wife offer the agnihotra with speech?
When a man has set up household and his wife dies or disappears, how does he offer the agnihotra?
Sons, grandsons, great-grandsons—they say:
in this world and in yonder world, and in this world
he mounted the heavenly world, this heavenly one with what is not heavenly.
He maintains the continuity of that very world, [in case] someone among these does not desire a wife.
Therefore they perform the establishment of fires for one without a wife.
How does one without a wife offer the agnihotra?
Faith is the wife, truth is the sacrificer.
Faith and truth—that is the highest copulative pair;
by means of the copulative pair of faith and truth he wins heavenly worlds.)

7.11

Regarding this they say: When he fasts on the New- and Full-Moon sacrifices, the gods indeed do not eat the sacrificial offering of one who is not keeping a vow. Therefore he fasts, [thinking,] "May the gods eat my sacrificial offering." One should fast on the earlier full-moon day, says the Paiṅgya [doctrine]; on the later one, says the Kauṣītaka. The earlier full-moon day is Anumati; the later is Rākā. The earlier new-moon day is Sinīvālī; the later is Kuhū. That lunar day is the one on which it sets or rises. One should fast on the earlier full-moon day. When, not discerning [it] beforehand on the new moon, he approaches the moon and sacrifices, by that they buy Soma, by that the later [day]. One should fast on the later [day]. For Soma sacrifices later offerings following Soma as deity. This indeed is divine Soma, namely the moon; therefore he should fast on the later [day].

7.12

Regarding this they say: For whomsoever the sun should rise or set when the fire has not been taken out [from the gārhapatya], or if having been brought forward it should be extinguished before the oblation, what is the expiation there? Having placed gold in front, he should take it out in the evening. Light indeed is white gold, light is that white [sun] yonder; thus looking at that very light, the white, he takes it out. Having placed silver between, he should take it out in the morning; this is the form of the night. He should take out the āhavanīya fire before the mingling of shadows. Death indeed is darkness, a shadow; by that very light he crosses over death, darkness, and shadow. That is the expiation there. Regarding this they say: If a cart, or a chariot, or a dog should pass between his gārhapatya and āhavanīya fires, what is the expiation there? "One should not take it to heart," they say, "for [the fires] are established within himself." If he should take it to heart, he should carry an unbroken stream of water from the gārhapatya fire up to the āhavanīya, [reciting,] "Weaving the thread, follow the light of the atmospheric realm." That is the expiation there. Regarding this they say: How, while setting up the fires, should he bring the anvāhāryapacana fire, or should he not bring [it]? "He should bring [it]," they say. He indeed establishes the breath within himself, who establishes the fires. Among them, that which is the anvāhāryapacana is the greatest consumer of food. In it he offers this oblation: "To Agni, the consumer of food, the lord of food, svāhā!" He becomes a consumer of food, a lord of food, [and] enjoys food together with his offspring, who knows thus. About to offer [the oblation], he should move between the gārhapatya and āhavanīya fires. By this, as he moves, the fires know: "He will offer in us." By this, as he moves, the gārhapatya and āhavanīya fires strike away his evil; with evil struck away, he goes up to the heavenly world. So they quote a Brāhmaṇa. Regarding this they say: How should one revere the fires when about to go abroad, or having returned from abroad, or day after day? "In silence," they say. Silently indeed they hope for superior benefit. And they also say: Day after day these [fires] fear the sacrificer's lack of faith, [fearing] being put out, or being floated away. He should revere them simply with: "May there be fearlessness to you; may there be fearlessness to me!" Fearlessness indeed comes to him; fearlessness indeed comes to him.

7.13

Hariścandra, the son of Vedhas, of the lineage of Ikṣvāku, was a king without a son. He had a hundred wives, but obtained no son by them. Parvata and Nārada lived in his house; he asked Nārada: / "This son whom they desire, both those who understand and those who do not— / what indeed does one gain by a son? Tell me that, O Nārada!" / Asked with one [verse], he replied with ten: / "A father transfers a debt to him and attains immortality, / if he should see the face of a son born alive. // As many enjoyments as there are on earth, as many in the All-Knower fire, / as many as there are of living beings in the waters—greater than those is the [enjoyment] in a son for a father. // Always by means of a son have the fathers crossed over the deep darkness; / for he is born self from self, a raft laden with food, carrying [him] across. // What [use is] dirt, what the antelope skin, what the beard, what ascetic heat? / Desire a son, O brahmins; he is indeed an unblemished world. // Bread is breath, clothing is shelter, / gold is beauty, cattle are marriages; / a wife is a friend, a daughter is a misery, / and a son is a light in the highest heaven. // The husband enters the wife; becoming an embryo, he [enters] the mother; / becoming new again within her, he is born in the tenth month. // Therefore a wife is a wife, because he is born again in her; / she is a creation, this is a creation; this seed is placed [in her]. // The gods and the seers brought together great splendour for her; / the gods said to men: 'This is your mother again.' // 'There is no world for a sonless man'—that all beasts know; / therefore indeed a son mounts his mother and his sister. // This is the wide-striding, kindly path, / which those who possess sons tread, free from sorrow; / that [path] beasts and birds see, / therefore they mate even with the mother." / Having told this to him,

7.14

Then he said to him:
‘Approach King Varuṇa: "May a son be born to me; with him let me sacrifice to you."’
‘So be it,’ [he agreed]. He approached King Varuṇa:
‘May a son be born to me; with him let me sacrifice to you.’ ‘So be it.’
A son was born to him, named Rohita.
He said to him: ‘A son has indeed been born to you; sacrifice to me with him.’
He said:
‘When a sacrificial animal is past ten days [old], then it becomes fit for sacrifice.
Let him be past ten days, then let me sacrifice to you.’ ‘So be it.’
He became past ten days [old].
He said to him:
‘He has indeed passed ten days; sacrifice to me with him.’
He said:
‘When the teeth of a sacrificial animal grow, then it becomes fit for sacrifice.
Let his teeth grow, then let me sacrifice to you.’ ‘So be it.’
His teeth grew.
He said to him: ‘His teeth have indeed grown; sacrifice to me with him.’
He said:
‘When the teeth of a sacrificial animal fall out, then it becomes fit for sacrifice.
Let his teeth fall out, then let me sacrifice to you.’ ‘So be it.’
His teeth fell out.
He said to him: ‘His teeth have indeed fallen out; sacrifice to me with him.’
He said:
‘When the teeth of a sacrificial animal grow again, then it becomes fit for sacrifice.
Let his teeth grow again, then let me sacrifice to you.’ ‘So be it.’
His teeth grew again.
He said to him: ‘His teeth have indeed grown again; sacrifice to me with him.’
He said:
‘When a kṣatriya can put on armour, then he becomes fit for sacrifice.
Let him reach armour[-bearing age], then let me sacrifice to you.’ ‘So be it.’
He reached armour[-bearing age]. He said to him:
‘He has reached armour[-bearing age]; sacrifice to me with him.’
Having said ‘So be it,’ he addressed his son:
‘Dear son, he gave you to me; come, let me sacrifice to him with you.’
Saying ‘No!’, he took his bow and set out for the wilderness.
He wandered in the wilderness for a year.

7.15

Then Varuṇa seized the Aikṣvāka, and his belly swelled up.
Rohita heard of that; he went from the wilderness towards the village.
Indra, having come around in human form, said to him:
"There is no fortune for one who is not weary—so have we heard, O Rohita;
evil is the man who stays among men; Indra is the friend of the wanderer.
Keep moving!"
Thinking, ‘"Keep moving!" indeed the brāhmaṇa told me,’
he wandered in the wilderness for a second year.
He went from the wilderness towards the village. Indra, having come around in human form, said to him:
"The wanderer's shanks are blossoming, his body thrives and bears fruit;
all his evils lie down, slain on the highway by his exertion.
Keep moving!"
Thinking, ‘"Keep moving!" indeed the brāhmaṇa told me,’
he wandered in the wilderness for a third year.
He went from the wilderness towards the village. Indra, having come around in human form, said to him:
"Sitting sits the fortune of the seated, upright stands that of the standing,
it lies down for him who lies down; the wanderer's fortune moves on.
Keep moving!"
Thinking, ‘"Keep moving!" indeed the brāhmaṇa told me,’
he wandered in the wilderness for a fourth year.
He went from the wilderness towards the village. Indra, having come around in human form, said to him:
"Lying down he becomes Kali; Dvāpara when stretching himself;
rising he becomes Tretā; moving about he achieves Kṛta.
Keep moving!"
Thinking, ‘"Keep moving!" indeed the brāhmaṇa told me,’
he wandered in the wilderness for a fifth year.
He went from the wilderness towards the village. Indra, having come around in human form, said to him:
"Wandering one finds honey, wandering the sweet fig;
behold the excellence of the sun, who, wandering, does not tire.
Keep moving!"
Thinking, ‘"Keep moving!" indeed the brāhmaṇa told me,’
he wandered in the wilderness for a sixth year.
He approached in the wilderness the ṛṣi Ajīgarta Sauyavasi, who was overcome by hunger.
He had three sons:
Śunaḥpuccha, Śunaḥśepa, [and] Śunolāṅgūla.
He said to him:
‘O ṛṣi, I give you a hundred [cows]; let me redeem myself with one of these.’
Holding back the eldest son, he said:
‘Not this one.’ ‘Nor indeed this one,’ [said] the mother about the youngest.
They agreed upon the middle one, Śunaḥśepa.
Having given him a hundred [cows] and taken him, he went from the wilderness to the village.
He approached his father and said:
‘Father, come, let me redeem myself with this one.’
He approached King Varuṇa: ‘With this one let me sacrifice to you.’
‘So be it; a brāhmaṇa is indeed greater than a kṣatriya,’ said Varuṇa.
To him he proclaimed this sacrificial rite, the Rājasūya.
On the day of the sprinkling ceremony, he seized him as the human sacrificial animal.

7.16

At his [sacrifice], Viśvāmitra was the hotṛ priest, Jamadagni the adhvaryu priest, Vasiṣṭha the brahman priest, and Ayāsya the udgātṛ priest. When he had been brought near, they found no one to bind him [to the stake]. Ajīgarta Sauyavasi said: 'Give me another hundred [cows], and I will bind him.' They gave him another hundred; he bound him. When he had been brought near, bound, propitiated, and circumambulated with fire, they found no one to slaughter him. Ajīgarta Sauyavasi said: 'Give me another hundred [cows], and I will slaughter him.' They gave him another hundred. He came forward, whetting his knife. Then Śunaḥśepa considered: 'They will slaughter me just like a non-human! Come, let me run to the deities.' He ran first to Prajāpati among the deities, with this verse: 'Of whom now, of which of the immortals...?' Prajāpati said to him: 'Agni is indeed nearest among the gods; run to him.' He ran to Agni with this verse: 'Of Agni, of the first of the immortals, we...'. Agni said to him: 'Savitṛ indeed rules over impulses; run to him.' He ran to Savitṛ with this triplet: 'Unto thee, divine Savitṛ...'. Savitṛ said to him: 'You are bound for King Varuṇa; run to him.' He ran to King Varuṇa with the subsequent thirty-one [verses]. Varuṇa said to him: 'Agni is the mouth of the gods, the most kindly; praise him now, and then we will release you.' He praised Agni with the subsequent twenty-two [verses]. Agni said to him: 'Praise the All-Gods now, and then we will release you.' He praised the All-Gods with this verse: 'Homage to the great, homage to the small...'. The All-Gods said to him: 'Indra is indeed the most vigorous, strongest, most enduring, best, and most resourceful of the gods; praise him now, and then we will release you.' He praised Indra with the hymn, 'Even if indeed true, O Soma-drinker...' and with the fifteen [verses] of the subsequent [hymn]. Praised by him, Indra, pleased in mind, gave him a golden chariot. He acknowledged it with this [verse]: 'Constantly, O Indra...'. Indra said to him: 'Praise the Aśvins now, and then we will release you.' He praised the Aśvins with the subsequent triplet. The Aśvins said to him: 'Praise Uṣas now, and then we will release you.' He praised Uṣas with the subsequent triplet. As each verse was uttered, a bond was loosed from him, and the belly of the descendant of Ikṣvāku grew smaller; when the very last verse was uttered, the bond was loosed, and the descendant of Ikṣvāku was free of illness.

7.17

The sacrificial priests said to him: 'Find the completion of this day for us yourself.' Then Śunaḥśepa beheld this immediate pressing [of soma]. He pressed it with these four [verses]: 'Even if in house and house...'. Then he poured it out into the wooden trough with this verse: 'Bring what remains in the two platters...'. Then, while [the sacrificer] held on to him from behind, he made oblations with the previous four [verses] ending with the svāhā exclamation. Then he led him down to the purificatory bath with these two [verses]: 'Thou, knowing Varuṇa, O Agni, for us...'. Then from that point on, he made him attend upon the āhavanīya fire with: 'Śunaḥśepa, bound by a thousand...'. Then Śunaḥśepa sat upon the lap of Viśvāmitra. Ajīgarta Sauyavasi said: 'O sage, give me back my son!' Viśvāmitra said: 'No, the gods have given him to me.' He became Devarāta Vaiśvāmitra. From him come these Kāpileyas and Bābhravas. Ajīgarta Sauyavasi said: 'Come, let us call each other.' Ajīgarta Sauyavasi said:
'By birth you are an Āṅgirasa, the famed seer, son of Ajīgarta. / O sage, do not depart from the ancestral lineage; come back to me.'
Śunaḥśepa said:
'They have seen you with a knife in hand, a deed not found even among the Śūdras; / you chose three hundred cows instead of me, O Aṅgiras.'
Ajīgarta Sauyavasi said:
'Indeed, my child, that bad deed done by me torments me; / I make amends for that to you; let the hundreds of cows go back.'
Śunaḥśepa said:
'He who commits an evil deed once would commit another after that; / you have not turned away from the conduct of Śūdras; what you have done cannot be repaired.'
'It cannot be repaired,' Viśvāmitra agreed. Viśvāmitra said:
'Terrible indeed stood the son of Suyavasa, seeking to slaughter with the knife; / do not be his son; come into sonship to me alone.'
Śunaḥśepa said:
'Then tell us, O king’s son, in such a way that he may understand: / how may I, being an Āṅgirasa, enter into sonship to you?'
Viśvāmitra said:
'You shall be the eldest of my sons; your offspring shall be the best; / you shall enter into my divine inheritance; with that indeed do I invite you.'
Śunaḥśepa said:
'Speak [so] with their agreement, for my friendship and prosperity, / so that I, O bull of the Bharatas, may enter into sonship to you.'
Then Viśvāmitra addressed his sons:
'Hear, Madhuchandas, Ṛṣabha, Reṇu, Aṣṭaka, / and whichever brothers there are: yield primacy to him!'

7.18

Now Viśvāmitra had a hundred and one sons: fifty were elder than Madhuchandas, fifty were younger. / Now those who were elder did not consider it proper. / He cursed them: 'May your offspring consume the borders!' / These are the Andhras, Puṇḍras, Śabaras, Pulindas, and Mūtibas, who live in great numbers on the borders; the descendants of Viśvāmitra form the majority of the Dasyus. / Madhuchandas, along with the fifty [younger], said: / 'In what our father agrees, in that we abide; / we all place you at our head; we follow behind you.' / Then Viśvāmitra, gratified, praised his sons: / 'You sons, possessors of cattle and heroes shall you be, / who, honoring my authority, have made me rich in heroes. / Having Devarāta at your head, rich in heroes, O Gāthins, / you are all worthy to succeed, my sons; this is your true declaration. / This hero is your Devarāta, O Kuśikas; follow him! / Receive him into my inheritance and into whatever knowledge we know!' / Unanimous, all the descendants of Viśvāmitra, together with their bounties, / stood by Devarāta for steadfastness and pre-eminence, the Gāthins. / The sage Devarāta was received into both inheritances: / both to the overlordship of the Jahnus and to the divine Veda of the Gāthins. / That is this Śunaḥśepa narrative containing over a hundred verses and songs. / The hotṛ priest recites it to the consecrated king. / Seated on a golden cushion he recites it; seated on a golden cushion [the other] responds. / Gold is splendour indeed; thus he endows him with splendour. / 'Om' is the response to a verse; 'So be it, yes' to a song. / 'Om' is divine indeed, 'so be it' is human. / By both the divine and the human he frees him from evil sin. / Therefore, whatever king should be victorious, / even if not performing sacrifice, he should have this Śunaḥśepa narrative recited; / not even the slightest sin remains in him. / He should give a thousand [cows] to the narrator, a hundred to the responder, and both of these seats; / and a white mule-drawn chariot belongs to the hotṛ priest. / Those desiring sons also should have it recited; they obtain sons, they obtain sons.

7.19

Prajāpati created sacrifice. After sacrifice was created, priesthood and nobility were created. / Following priesthood and nobility, two kinds of creatures were created: the eaters of oblations and the non-eaters of oblations. / Following priesthood, the eaters of oblations; following nobility, the non-eaters of oblations. / These creatures are the eaters of oblations, namely the brāhmaṇas; / and these are the non-eaters of oblations, namely the rājanya, the vaiśya, and the śūdra. / Sacrifice departed from them; priesthood and nobility pursued it. / With whatever were the weapons of priesthood, with those priesthood pursued; with whatever were those of nobility, with those nobility [pursued]. / These are the weapons of priesthood, namely the sacrificial implements; / and these are the weapons of nobility, namely the horse-chariot, the armour, and the bow and arrows. / Nobility turned back without reaching it, turning away, trembling at its weapons. / Then priesthood pursued it; it reached it; having reached it, it stood barring it from beyond. / Reached and barred from beyond, [sacrifice,] recognising its own weapons, approached priesthood. / Therefore, even now sacrifice is established in priesthood, in brāhmaṇas alone. / Then nobility approached it; it said: / 'Invite me to this sacrifice!' / It said: 'So be it; having laid aside your own weapons, having approached sacrifice with the very weapons of priesthood, in the form of priesthood, having become priesthood!' 'So be it!' [nobility replied]. / That nobility, having laid aside its own weapons, approached sacrifice with the very weapons of priesthood, in the form of priesthood, having become priesthood. / Therefore, even now the consecrated sacrificer who is a kṣatriya, having laid aside his own weapons, approaches sacrifice with the very weapons of priesthood, in the form of priesthood, having become priesthood.

7.20

Now follows the begging of the place for divine worship. / Regarding this they say: / 'When a brāhmaṇa, a rājanya, or a vaiśya begs a place for divine worship from a kṣatriya who is about to be consecrated, / from whom should the kṣatriya beg it?' / 'He should beg it from the divine nobility,' they say. / The divine nobility is the Āditya; the Āditya is the overlord of these beings. / On whatever day he is about to be consecrated, / on that very day, in the forenoon, he should approach the rising Āditya [with the verse]: 'This best light among lights, supreme / O god Savitṛ, give me a place for divine worship!' Thus he begs a place for divine worship. / When, having been begged there, he moves further upwards, he is saying: 'Om, thus I give.' / There is no harm whatsoever for him who is impelled by the god Savitṛ. Ever-increasing / fortune he attains, he attains lordship and overlordship over offspring, / he who, being a kṣatriya, having thus approached, begged a place for divine worship, and chosen it, becomes consecrated.

7.21

Now follows the non-loss of the merit of sacrifice and pious deeds for the consecrated sacrificer who is a kṣatriya. / Before the consecration, he should offer an oblation of four ladlings of melted butter into the āhavanīya fire for the non-loss of the merit of sacrifice and pious deeds: / 'May Indra the generous give back to us; / may he give back the brahman, the sacrificed and the performed, svāhā!' / Then after the samiṣṭayajus formulas of the anūbandhyā cow: / 'May Agni Jātavedas give back to us; / may he give back the nobility, the sacrificed and the performed, svāhā!' / This is the non-loss of the merit of sacrifice and pious deeds for the consecrated sacrificer who is a kṣatriya, that these two oblations are [offered]; / therefore, these two should be offered.

7.22

Regarding this, indeed, Saujāta Ārāḷhi used to say:
'These two oblations are [meant for] reclaiming what was not lost.'
He may do them as he pleases;
let him who gives instructions from here [rather] offer these:
'I resort to brahman; let brahman protect me from the nobility; svāhā to brahman!'
That is certainly so.
For he who resorts to the sacrifice resorts to brahman.
For the sacrifice is brahman;
and he who is consecrated is born anew from the sacrifice.
Nobility does not impair him who has resorted to brahman.
He says: 'Let brahman protect me from nobility,' so that brahman may protect him from nobility.
'Svāhā to brahman!'—thereby he propitiates it.
Propitiated, it protects him from nobility.
Then, after the samiṣṭayajus offerings of the anūbandhyā [cow]:
'I resort to nobility; let nobility protect me from brahman; svāhā to nobility!'
That is certainly so. For he who resorts to royal power resorts to nobility.
For royal power is nobility.
Brahman does not impair him who has resorted to nobility.
He says: 'Let nobility protect me from brahman,' so that nobility may protect him from brahman.
'Svāhā to nobility!'—thereby he propitiates it.
Propitiated, it protects him from brahman.
It is through these two oblations that there is no loss of sacrifice and pious deeds for the kṣatriya sacrificer;
therefore, precisely these two should be offered.

7.23

Now, the kṣatriya belongs to Indra by deity,
to the triṣṭubh by metre, to the fifteenfold by chant,
to Soma by royal dignity, and to the nobleman by kinship.
When being consecrated, he enters into the state of a brāhmaṇa, in that he puts on the black antelope skin,
in that he observes the vow of the consecrated,
and in that brāhmaṇas gather around him.
When he is being consecrated, Indra takes away his power, the triṣṭubh his virility,
the fifteenfold chant his life-span, Soma his royal dignity, and the ancestors his fame and glory,
saying: 'This one has become different from us, he has become brahman,
he has turned to brahman.'
Having offered an oblation before the consecration, he should attend upon the āhavanīya fire:
'I do not depart from Indra as deity, nor from the triṣṭubh as metre, nor from the fifteenfold chant,
nor from King Soma, nor from my ancestral kinship.
Let not Indra take away my power, nor the triṣṭubh my virility,
nor the fifteenfold chant my life-span, nor Soma my royal dignity, nor the ancestors my fame and glory.
Together with power, virility, life-span, royal dignity, fame, and kinship, I approach Agni,
the gāyatrī metre, the threefold chant, King Soma;
I resort to brahman, I become a brāhmaṇa.'
Indra does not take away his power, nor the triṣṭubh his virility, nor the fifteenfold chant his life-span,
nor Soma his royal dignity, nor the ancestors his fame and glory,
for him who, being a kṣatriya, offers this oblation and attends upon the āhavanīya fire before consecrating himself.

7.24

Now, the consecrated kṣatriya belongs to Agni by deity,
to the gāyatrī by metre, to the threefold by chant, and to the brāhmaṇa by kinship.
When moving out [from the hall], he enters into the state of a kṣatriya.
When he is moving out, Agni takes away his splendour, the gāyatrī his virility,
the threefold chant his life-span, and the brāhmaṇas his brahman, fame, and glory,
saying: 'This one has become different from us, he has become nobility,
he has turned to nobility.'
Having offered an oblation after the samiṣṭayajus offerings of the anūbandhyā [cow], he should attend upon the āhavanīya fire:
'I do not depart from Agni as deity, nor from the gāyatrī as metre,
nor from the threefold chant, nor from kinship with brahman.
Let not Agni take away my splendour, nor the gāyatrī my virility, nor the threefold chant my life-span,
nor the brāhmaṇas my brahman, fame, and glory.
Together with splendour, virility, life-span, brahman, fame, and glory, I approach Indra as deity,
the triṣṭubh metre, the fifteenfold chant, King Soma;
I resort to nobility, I become a kṣatriya.
Gods who are ancestors, ancestors who are gods, being who I am, I sacrifice!
Mine is this sacrifice, mine the pious deed, mine the toil, mine the oblation!
Of mine here, this Agni is the overseer, this Vāyu the overhearer, yonder Āditya the announcer;
here am I, who I indeed am.'
Agni does not take away his splendour, nor the gāyatrī his virility, nor the threefold chant his life-span,
nor the brāhmaṇas his brahman, fame, and glory,
for him who, being a kṣatriya, offers this oblation and attends upon the āhavanīya fire when moving out.

7.25

Now then, concerning the announcement of the consecration.
Regarding this, they say:
'When they announce the consecration of a consecrated brāhmaṇa with "The brāhmaṇa has been consecrated,"
how should one announce that of a kṣatriya?'
Just as they announce the consecration of a consecrated brāhmaṇa with:
'The brāhmaṇa has been consecrated,'
even so should one announce that of a kṣatriya, by the ṛṣi-lineage of his royal chaplain.
That is certainly so.
For having laid aside his own weapons, equipped with the weapons of brahman,
having assumed the form of brahman, having become brahman, he turns toward the sacrifice.
Therefore, they should announce his consecration by the ṛṣi-lineage of his royal chaplain,
and they should choose his ancestral invocation by the ṛṣi-lineage of his royal chaplain.

7.26

Now next as to the sacrificer's portion:
Regarding this they say: ‘Should a kṣatriya consume the sacrificer's portion, or should he not consume it?’
If he should consume it, he would consume what is offered after what is unoffered, and become the worse for it;
if he should not consume it, he would exclude himself from the sacrifice, for the sacrificer's portion is indeed the sacrifice.
It is to be handed over to the brahman priest.
For this brahman priest is the place of the purohita for the kṣatriya;
indeed, the purohita is half of the kṣatriya's self.
Thus he invisibly attains the form of one who has consumed it;
it does not become visibly consumed by him.
For visibly the sacrifice is this: the brahman priest.
For the whole sacrifice is founded upon the brahman priest, and the sacrificer is founded upon the sacrifice.
Thereby they pour sacrifice into sacrifice, as water into water, as fire into fire.
That indeed does not become an excess; that does not harm him.
Therefore it is to be handed over to the brahman priest.
Some offer it in the fire, saying:
‘There is a world of Prajāpati named Vibhān; therein I place you together with the sacrificer, svāhā!’
One should not do so.
For the sacrificer is the sacrificer's portion; he would cast the sacrificer into the fire.
If anyone were to say of him there:
‘You have cast the sacrificer into the fire; the fire will burn his vital breaths,
the sacrificer will die’—
it would surely be so.
Therefore he should not entertain any hope for it; he should not entertain any hope.

7.27

Viśvantara Sauṣadmana, excluding the Śyāparṇas, performed a sacrifice without the Śyāparṇas.
Learning of this, the Śyāparṇas went to that sacrifice,
and they sat down inside the sacrificial enclosure.
Seeing them, he said:
‘These Śyāparṇas who sit here are doers of an evil deed, speakers of unpurified speech;
make them get up! Let them not sit inside my sacrificial enclosure!’ ‘So be it.’
They made them get up.
As they were being made to get up, they cried out:
‘Those Asitamṛgas who won the Soma-drink from the Bhūtavīras for the Kaśyapas
at the sacrifice of Janamejaya Pārikṣita when the Kaśyapas were excluded—
through them they had heroes there.
Who is that hero of ours who will win this Soma-drink?’
‘Here am I, your hero,’ said Rāma Mārgaveya.
Now Rāma Mārgaveya was learned [in sacred lore], belonging to the Śyāparṇas.
As they were rising, he said: ‘O king, do they make one who knows thus get up from the altar?’
‘What do you know, you wretched brahmin?’ [the king asked].

7.28

‘Where the gods excluded Indra, saying:
“He plotted against Viśvarūpa, son of Tvaṣṭṛ; he struck down Vṛtra;
he gave over the ascetics to the hyenas; he slew the Arurumaghas;
he contradicted Bṛhaspati!”—
there Indra was deprived of the Soma-drink. Following the deprivation of Indra, the ruling class
was deprived of the Soma-drink. Even when Indra came to have a share in the Soma-drink by stealing the Soma from Tvaṣṭṛ,
even today the ruling class remains deprived of the Soma-drink.
He who knows that draught which belongs to the ruling class deprived of the Soma-drink,
by which the ruling class prospers—
how can they make him get up from the altar?’
‘O brahmin, do you know that draught?’ ‘I do know it.’
‘Then tell it to us, O brahmin!’
‘I shall tell it to you, O king,’ he said.

7.29

‘They will bring one of three draughts:
either Soma, or sour milk, or water.
If it is Soma, that is the draught of the brahmins;
with that draught you will delight the brahmins.
A person like a brahmin will be born in your offspring—
a taker [of gifts], a drinker [of Soma], a seeker of food, one who may be removed at will.
When evil befalls a kṣatriya,
a person like a brahmin is born in his offspring;
and the second or the third [generation] from him is liable to pass into the brahmin state,
desiring to live as a wretched brahmin.
Now if it is sour milk, that is the draught of the vaiśyas;
with that draught you will delight the vaiśyas.
A person like a vaiśya will be born in your offspring—
a payer of tribute to another, food for another, one who may be oppressed at will.
When evil befalls a kṣatriya,
a person like a vaiśya is born in his offspring;
and the second or the third [generation] from him is liable to pass into the vaiśya state,
desiring to live by the vaiśya state.
Now if it is water, that is the draught of the śūdras;
with that draught you will delight the śūdras.
A person like a śūdra will be born in your offspring—
the servant of another, to be expelled at will, to be slain at will.
When evil befalls a kṣatriya,
a person like a śūdra is born in his offspring;
and the second or the third [generation] from him is liable to pass into the śūdra state,
desiring to live by the śūdra state.’

First 29 of 35 passages. Read on

Translations (1)

Commentaries (1)

Linked texts (1)