The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanishads v2.c39.s2.4

v2.c39.s2.4

It is, however, clear that in Prajāpati the Brāhmaṇas do not find complete satisfaction for their view of the construction of the universe. The Atharvaveda, which in these matters must be ranked with the Brāhmaṇas, in its version of the great hymn of the Rigveda, which, as later expanded,¹ mentions him as all-creator, leaves out the last line giving his name and the Brāhmaṇa of that Veda, which is certainly late, replaces him by the Brahman and Atharvan.² In the Brāhmaṇas, therefore, we find efforts made to arise to a principle above and beyond him: in the Rigveda he produced from himself—the idea of world creation is always in the Vedic literature regarded in the light of the sending out of something already there rather than of mere bringing into being—the waters, and then entered them in the form of Hiraṇyagarbha, the golden germ. In the Taittirīya Saṁhitā,³ we find in the spirit of the hymn of creation the waters treated in two places as the *prius*, and Prajāpati as arising as wind on them, and the Çatapatha Brāhmaṇa⁴ goes one step farther in attributing to the waters as Prajāpati's predecessors as first in order the act of fervour, which is primarily his activity in creation. A farther step is taken in the Taittirīya Āraṇyaka,⁵ in which the waters come first, then Prajāpati, in whose mind desire arises⁶ and who practises fervour; then his body he throws off: from the sap is born the tortoise, who is Puruṣa, who, however, asserts his priority to Prajāpati himself, and from the flesh the seer Aruṇaketu, to whom further creative activity is assigned. Yet another step is reached in the Çatapatha Brāhmaṇa,⁷ where the first thing is stated to be not-being, then arises Prajāpati, who is the same as Puruṣa, and then the Brahman, the holy science, the threefold Veda, with which he enters the waters as a creative principle. Thus sprang up the world egg, whence came forth first the Brahman itself, and then Prajāpati in the form of Agni. But in another account¹ the priority of the Brahman over Prajāpati is made absolute, not merely empirical: the first entity is not-being, then springs into life mind, i. e. the Brahman, and then Prajāpati. Later still the Brahman produces Prajāpati, but without face or sight; then it enters him, as breath, and makes him mortal, to arise as a generator of beings.