A History of Ancient Sanskrit Literature, so far as it illustrates the Primitive Religion of the Brahmans c9.s2.55

c9.s2.55

The 13th book is chiefly concerned with the Aśvamedha, and its first three Adhyâyas may again be considered as a kind of commentary on the Sanhitâ. Towards the end some sacrifices, beginning with the Purushamedha, which the Sanhitâ treats in its Khila portion, are explained, but other ceremonies also are mentioned, for which there is no precedent in the Sanhitâ. The Brihadâranyaka, the last book of the Śatapatha, contains in its first three Adhyâyas, a close commentary on the Pravargya of the Sanhitâ, but becomes quite independent afterwards. Its object is no longer the sacrifice, but the knowledge of Brahman, without any particular reference, however, to the last Adhyâya of the Sanhitâ, which, as we saw, was equally devoted to the doctrine of the Upanishads.