Sacred Texts Hinduism Satapatha Brahmana Index Previous Next
Buy this Book at Amazon.com
Satapatha Brahmana Part V (SBE44), Julius Eggeling tr. [1900], at sacred-texts.com
12:8:2:11. Pragâpati created the (Soma-)sacrifice. He took it and performed it. When he had performed it, he felt like one emptied out. He saw this sacrificial performance, the Sautrâmanî, and performed it, and then he was again replenished; and, indeed, he who performs the Soma-sacrifice is, as it were, emptied out, for his wealth, his prosperity is, as it were, taken from him.
12:8:2:22. Having performed a Soma-sacrifice one ought to perform the Sautrâmanî: as a cow that has been milked would replenish again, even so, indeed, does he replenish himself,--he replenishes himself by offspring and cattle; and, verily, he who, knowing this, performs the Sautrâmanî, or he who (even) knows this, establishes himself in this world, and wins the heavenly world.
12:8:2:33. As to this Suplan Sârñgaya asked Pratîdarsa Aibhâvata 2, 'Seeing that neither does one
become initiated, nor are Soma-shoots 1 thrown down (to be pressed), how then does the Sautrâmanî become a Soma-sacrifice?'
12:8:2:44. He replied, 'The observance of the fast, assuredly, is the head of the sacrifice, and the initiation its body. And the truth, doubtless, is of the form of the fast-observance, and faith of that of the initiation. And mind is of the form of the Sacrificer, and speech of that of the sacrifice.'
12:8:2:55. Thus, when he enters upon the fast-observance, he thereby restores the head to the body of the sacrifice, and he puts truth into faith, and the Sacrificer into the sacrifice.
12:8:2:66. Therefore at this sacrifice (the Sautrâmanî) the fast-observance 2 is the initiation. Now, the fast-observance is a male, and the initiation a female; and the truth is a male, and faith a female; and the mind is a male, and speech a female; and the Sacrificer is the male to his wife, whence wherever there is a husband there is a wife: and at the very outset of the sacrifice he thus sets up couples with a view to production.
12:8:2:77. 'And, indeed, those (materials) are the Soma-shoots at this sacrifice,' they say, 'to wit, the malted rice, the malted barley, and the fried rice.'
12:8:2:88. The malted rice 3, indeed, is of the form of the
morning-pressing, for the morning-pressing is this (terrestrial) world, and the latter relates to the Asvins, and Âsvina milk he pours (into the Surâ-liquor) the first night: he thus provides him (the Sacrificer 1) with the morning-pressing--with its own world, with its own deity, with its own form 2.
12:8:2:99. And the malted barley is of the form of the midday-pressing, for the midday-pressing is the air, and the latter relates to Sarasvatî 3, and the Sârasvata milk he pours (into the Surâ) the second night: he thus provides him with the midday-pressing--with its own world, with its own deity, with its own form.
12:8:2:1010. And the fried rice is of the form of the evening-pressing, for the evening-pressing is the sky, and the latter relates to Indra, and Aindra milk he pours (into the Surâ) the third night: he thus provides him with the evening-pressing--with its own world, with its own deity, with its own form.
12:8:2:1111. The milk of one (cow) he pours (into the Surâ) the first night, the milk of two the second
night, and the milk of three the third night: he thus provides him with the pressings, in accordance with their forms, and in accordance with their deities.
12:8:2:1212. With (Vâg. S. XIX, 2), 'Hereof pour ye to the juice,' he pours in (the milk) for the sake of (conformity with) the Soma-pressing;--'(to) the Soma who is the supreme offering,'--for this, to wit, Soma, is indeed the supreme offering (-material): he thus makes it 1 to be the supreme offering;--'the manly one who hath rushed into the waters,' for both with water and between it is he (Soma) indeed pressed out;--'I have pressed out Soma by stones,' for by means of stones Soma is indeed pressed out: it is thus by means of stones he presses it out for the sake of (conformity with) the Soma-pressing.
12:8:2:1313. As to this they say, ‘That Sautrâmanî, surely, is of the form of both effused (extracted) and infused 2 (Soma);--to wit, that essence of both water and plants, the milk, is of the form of the effused (Soma); and that essence of food, the liquor, is of the form of infused (Soma): by both (kinds of) pressings he thus expresses it, by both pressings he secures it.
12:8:2:1414. As to this they say, 'Seeing that the Soma-juice is pressed out by stones, how as to the Sautrâmanî?' Let him reply, 'By the directions 3 and the
[paragraph continues] Âprî-verses;' for the directions (praisha) are in the Brihatî (metre), and the pressing-stones are of bârhata nature: by means of stones the Soma-juice is indeed pressed out, and by means of stones he now presses it out for the sake of (conformity with) the Soma-pressing.
12:8:2:1515. All (the praishas) contain (the word) 'payas' (milk), for in the form of milk Soma is (here) pressed 1; they all contain (the word) 'Soma,' for the sake of (conformity with) the Soma-pressing; they all contain (the word) 'parisrut' (spirituous liquor), for in the form of spirituous liquor Soma is (here) pressed; they all contain (the word) 'ghrita' (ghee), for this--to wit, ghee--doubtless is manifestly a form of the sacrifice: he thus makes it to be manifestly a form of the sacrifice; they all contain (the word) 'madhu' (honey), for this--to wit, honey--is manifestly a form of Soma: he thus makes it to be manifestly a form of Soma.
12:8:2:1616. They all refer to the Asvins 2, for the sake of healing-power 3; they all refer to Sarasvatî, for the obtainment of food; they all refer to Indra, for the obtainment of energy, or vital power.
12:8:2:1717. And, again, as to why they all refer to the Asvins, all of them to Sarasvatî, and all of them to Indra,--these, indeed, were the deities who first
prepared this sacrifice (the Sautrâmanî); with the help of these deities he thus prepares it; and, besides, he also provides these deities with a share.
12:8:2:1818. The invitatory and offering formulas are made continuous 1, and relate to the same deities,--for the sake of continuity and uninterruptedness of the race (offspring). All of them relate to the Asvins, all of them to Sarasvatî, and all of them to Indra: the significance of this is the same as before.
12:8:2:1919. The Âprî-formulas 2 are anushtubh verses; for the Anushtubh is speech, and with speech Soma is pressed: he thus presses it with speech, for the sake of (conformity with) the Soma-sacrifice. All of them relate to the Asvins, all of them to Sarasvatî, and all of them to Indra: the significance of this is the same as before.
12:8:2:2020. The anupraishas 3 (after-directions) are in the
gâgata metre; for the Gagatî is this (earth), and by means of her Soma is pressed: by means of her he thus presses it for the sake of (conformity with) the Soma-pressing. All of them relate to the Asvins, all of them to Sarasvatî, and all of them to Indra: the significance of this is the same as before.
12:8:2:2121. This Sautrâmanî, then, is manifestly a Soma-sacrifice; and were the Sacrificer alone to drink (the liquor), it would be either an ishti-offering, or an animal sacrifice; but, for the sake of conformity of the liquor) to the Soma, all the priests drink thereof, for all the priests drink of the Soma-juice.
12:8:2:2222. The Adhvaryus 1 drink (the contents of) the Âsvina (cup), for the Asvins are the Adhvaryus of the gods: they thus consume each his own share in his own abode.
12:8:2:2323. The Hotri, Brahman, and Maitrâvaruna (drink that) of the Sârasvata (cup), for the Hotri is the voice of the sacrifice, the Brahman its heart, and the Maitrâvaruna its mind: they thus consume each his own share in his own abode.
12:8:2:2424. The Sacrificer drinks (that of) the Aindra (cup), for this sacrifice, the Sautrâmanî, belongs to Indra, and even now he who sacrifices has his abode along with Indra: he thus consumes his own share in his own abode.
12:8:2:2525. The Âsvina cup, indeed, is the eye, the Sârasvata one the vital air, and the Aindra one
speech. From the Âsvina (cup) he pours (the remains) into the Sârasvata one, whereby he combines his eye with the vital airs; from the Sârasvata cup) into the Aindra one, whereby he combines his vital airs with his speech, and also establishes his vital airs in (the channel of) speech, whence all the vital airs are established on speech.
12:8:2:2626. Three (men) drink the Âsvina (cup), to wit, the Adhvaryu, Pratiprasthâtri, and Agnîdh; for this eye is threefold--the white, the black, and the pupil: he thus bestows on him the eye in accordance with its form.
12:8:2:2727. Three (drink) the Sârasvata (cup), the Hotri, Brahman, and Maitrâvaruna; for threefold divided is this vital air--the in (and out)-breathing, the up-breathing, and the through-breathing: he thus bestows on him the vital air in accordance with its form.
12:8:2:2828. Singly the Sacrificer drinks the Aindra (cup), for single is that distinction of the vital airs, speech: singly and solely to himself does he take that distinction, speech; whence he who has performed the Sautrâmanî becomes singly and solely the most distinguished among his own people, and so does even he who knows this.
12:8:2:2929. The officiating priests (ritvig), doubtless, are the seasons (ritu), and the draughts (of liquor) are the months;--six priests drink, for there are six seasons: by means of the priests he thus secures the seasons.
12:8:2:3030. There are twelve draughts 1, and twelve
months: by means of the draughts he thus secures the months. The priests drink again and again by turns, whence the seasons and months succeed one another by turns.
12:8:2:3131. The thirteenth draught the Sacrificer takes, for, indeed, that thirteenth month is manifestly the year itself: it is this he secures by obtaining (that draught). And, indeed, the Sautrâmanî is the same as the year, and by means of this he wins everything, and secures everything for himself.
12:8:2:3232. There are three victims, for three in number are these worlds: it is these worlds he thereby secures,--to wit, this (terrestrial) world by that of the Asvins, the air by that of Sarasvatî, and the sky by that of Indra: he thus wins and secures these worlds for himself in accordance with their (peculiar) form and deity.
12:8:2:3333. There are three sacrificial cakes, for there are three seasons: it is the seasons he thereby secures,--to wit, the summer by that of Indra, the rainy season by that of Savitri, and the winter by that of Varuna: he thus wins and secures the seasons for himself in accordance with their (peculiar) form and deity.
12:8:2:3434. There are six cups (of milk and liquor), for there are six seasons: it is the seasons he thereby secures,--to wit, the spring and summer by the two Âsvina (cups), the rainy season and autumn by the two Sârasvata ones, and the winter and dewy season by the two Aindra ones: he thus wins and secures the seasons for himself in accordance with their form and deity.
12:8:2:3535. The invitatory and offering formulas are made continuous, and relate to the same deities--
for the sake of the continuity and uninterruptedness of the seasons. They are all of them invitatory-formulas and all offering-formulas 1, whence all the seasons pass onwards, and all of them return. All (the formulas) are first, all of them intermediate, and all of them last, whence all the seasons are first, all of them intermediate, and all of them last. All the cups have two (formulas, an) invitatory and (an) offering-formula,--this is of the form of day and night: it is the day and the night he thus secures for himself; whence both the seasons and the months are established on day and night.
12:8:2:3636. The Sautrâmanî, truly, is the same as the year, and the same as the moon; and the Sacrificer is manifestly the sun: his vedi (altar-ground) is this earth, his uttara-vedi the air, his barhis the sky, his officiating priests the quarters, his fuel the trees, his ghee the waters, his oblations the plants, his fire Agni himself, his samsthâ (the particular form of sacrifice) the year--and, indeed, everything here, whatever there is, is the year; whence he who has performed the Sautrâmanî wins everything, and secures everything for himself.
239:2 Cf. II, 4, 4, 3-4, where the latter is called Pratîdarsa Svaikna (king of the Svikna), whilst the former, after studying with him, is said to have been called Sahadeva Sârñgaya.
240:1 The 'Somâmsava iva' would seem to have here the force of 'Soma-shoots proper,' only substitutes (milk and liquor) being used instead.
240:2 That is to say, the observance of the fast--by which the Sacrificer during the four days of the performance of the Sautrâmanî, lives solely on the remains of the Agnihotra--takes the place of the ordinary initiation of the Soma-sacrifice, there being no Dîkshâ at the Sautrâmanî.
240:3 The malted rice, malted barley, and fried rice, referred to in p. 241 this and the next two paragraphs, refer to the remnants of these materials, not used at first in the preparation of the Surâ, and amounting to one-third of the original quantity of each; these being added successively during the three nights during which the Surâ has to mature; cf. p. 223, note 2.
241:1 Or, he renders him, the Sacrificer (or, perhaps, it, the sacrifice), successful by means of the morning-pressing.
241:2 The literal translation would seem to be,--he thus provides him with the respective (sva) world, with the respective deity, and with the respective form,--(hence) with the morning-pressing. It may be remarked, however, that the deities here connected with the three services (the Asvins, Sarasvatî, and Indra) are not those elsewhere associated with them (Vasus, Rudras, and Âdityas, IV, 3, 5, 1; or Agni, Indra, Visve Devâh, XI, 5, 9, 7).
241:3 Viz. inasmuch as it is full of moisture (saras).
242:1 The 'enam' must refer to the Surâ-liquor, treated as identical with Soma.
242:2 I do not quite understand the distinction between suta' and 'âsuta '; cf. XII, 8, 1, 6; unless the former be the pure Soma-juice, and the latter that mixed with other ingredients.
242:3 The 'praisha' are the directions by which the Maitrâvaruna calls on the Hotri to recite the offering-formulas (cf. part ii, p. 183, note 2). For the fore-offerings of the three victims, these directions are given, Vâg. S. XXI, 29-40. They all commence with 'Hotâ p. 243 yakshat' (may the Hotri worship!), and end with 'payah somah parisrutâ ghritam madhu vyantv âgyasya hotar yaga' (milk, Soma, with parisrut-liquor, ghee, honey,--may they partake of the butter, Hotri worship!).
243:1 ? Literally, 'by (way of) milk'--or, perhaps, 'by the admixture of milk--Soma is (here, as it were) produced.'
243:2 In all the directions referred to, the three deities are named.
243:3 The two Asvins are the physicians of the gods. Cf. IV, 1, 5, 8 seqq.; XII, 7, 2, 3.
244:1 This refers to the puroऽnuvâkyâs and yâgyâs of the oblations of omentum (vapâ) of the three victims. For these formulas the three verses, Vâg. S. XX, 67-69, are used in such a way that verse 1 forms the anuvâkyâ, and verse 2 the yâgyâ, of the Asvins’ oblation; verse 2 the anuvâkyâ, and verse 3 the yâgyâ, of Sarasvatî's oblation; and verse 3 the anuvâkyâ, and verse 1 the yâgyâ, of Indra's oblation. In each of the three verses all the three deities are mentioned.--In exactly the same way the three verses, XX, 70-72, are used as the anuvâkyâs and yâgyâs of the three pasupurodâsas; and 73-75 as those of the chief oblations (havis) of meat-portions.
244:2 The Âprîs (propitiatory verses, cf. part ii, p. 185) are the offering-formulas (yâgyâ) of the eleven (or twelve) fore-offerings (prayâga) of the animal sacrifice. Those used on the present occasion are the twelve verses given, Vâg. S. XX, 55-66; there being on this occasion (in the second and third places) fore-offerings both to Tanûnapât and Narâsamsa. In each of these verses, again, all three deities are referred to.
244:3 I do not exactly know what formulas are thereby referred to. p. 245 It can hardly be the praishas of the anuyâgas (Vâg. S. XXI, 48-58), as these are not in the gagatî, but in the (ârshî) trishtubh metre; though certainly each of them contains the names of the three deities.
245:1 Viz. the Adhvaryu, and his two assistants, the Pratiprasthâtri and Agnîdh. Cf. XII, 8, 1, 3 seqq.
246:1 Viz. inasmuch as three priests partake of each of the first two cups of milk, and of the first two cups of Surd-liquor, and each priest drinks twice.
248:1 See p. 244, note , where it is shown that each of the three verses serves successively as puroऽnuvâkyâ and as yâgyâ.