The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanishads v1.c16.s4.29

v1.c16.s4.29

As the sacrifice Viṣṇu is the subject of a strange myth:² through comprehending the issue of the sacrifice, Viṣṇu became the highest of the gods: but this result caused Viṣṇu to be unduly puffed up with glory, and yet his greatness was such that no god dared attack him. He was apart from them all with his bow and three arrows, leaning his head on the end of his bow. The ants then undertook, on the promise of the reward of being able to find water even in the desert, to bring him to ruin, and this they accomplished by gnawing the bow string, so that the bow sprang asunder with great vehemence, and the head of Viṣṇu was cut off, becoming the sun. The Taittirīya Āraṇyaka adds that the Açvins as physicians replaced the head of the sacrifice, and, as the gods were now able to sacrifice with it in its complete form, they conquered heaven. The myth is an odd and curious one, but to ascribe to it any symbolic sense would doubtless be a mistake.