The Political Institutions and Theories of the Hindus: A Study in Comparative Politics c16.s2.t2.31

c16.s2.t2.31

According to the *Śatapatha Brâhmaṇa*,² again, the office of the king is the lower and that of the emperor the higher, and therefore one becomes king by offering the *râjasûya*, and by the *vâjapeya* one becomes emperor. But the *râjasûya* is known to be the highest sacrifice in the *Taittirîya Brâhmaṇa*,³ for according to this work, it can be performed only by universal monarchs exercising sovereignty over a large number of princes as the lord of an imperial federation. The *Aitareya Brâhmaṇa*⁴ also says that by virtue of the *râjasûya*, Janamejaya, Saryâta and ten other rulers, “subdued the earth” and became “paramount sovereigns.” In the *Âpastamba Śrauta Sûtra*,⁵ however, *aśvamedha* (horse-killing) sacrifice possesses the greatest dignity, for it can be performed by a *sârva-bhauma* (the ruler of the whole earth).