The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanishads v1.c18.s3.25

v1.c18.s3.25

Soma is a plant, and the most lordly of all the plants, and therefore he is king of the plants : he is also the king of the gods, of the whole earth and of men, but the Yajurveda¹ shows that the Brahmans had asserted that he was the only king of the Brahmans : at the royal consecration the other men might recognize the king, but to the Brahmans he was not announced as their king, who was Soma alone. Doubtless at this most sacred and trying moment of their inauguration kings had to accept theoretical claims of immunity from their control, which they knew how to value at their true worth for practical affairs.