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Satapatha Brahmana Part V (SBE44), Julius Eggeling tr. [1900], at sacred-texts.com
12:8:3:11. Tvashtri, seeing his son slain, brought Soma suitable for witchery, and withheld from Indra. Indra, committing a desecration of the sacrifice, by main force drank off his (Tvashtri's) Soma juice. He went asunder in every direction,--from his mouth and vital airs his excellence and fame passed
away, and entered the cattle, whence cattle are one's fame: and famous, indeed, is he who, knowing this, is consecrated 1 by the Sautrâmanî.
12:8:3:22. The two Asvins and Sarasvatî then prepared for him this sacrifice, the Sautrâmanî, for the purpose of healing him, and thereby consecrated him: thereby he became the highest of gods, and so does he who is consecrated by that (offering) become the highest among his own people.
12:8:3:33. He consecrates him on a black antelope skin; for the black antelope skin is the sacrifice 2: it is at the sacrifice he thus consecrates him; on the hairy side (of the skin), for the hair is the metres: it is on the metres (or sacred writ) he thus consecrates him.
12:8:3:44. On a throne-seat he consecrates him, for imperial dignity is seated (established) on a throne-seat: by means of imperial dignity he thus causes him to attain imperial dignity.
12:8:3:55. It is made of udumbara wood, for the udumbara (ficus glomerata) is strength: for the sake of strength he thus is consecrated. It is knee-high, for knee-high is this (terrestrial) world, and it is for (the rule of) this world that the Kshatriya is consecrated; and the ruler (kshatra) indeed he becomes who is consecrated by the Sautrâmanî: therefore it is knee-high, and of unlimited size horizontally (in width and depth),--
12:8:3:66. For the throne-seat means royal dignity, and of unlimited prosperity is royal dignity. It is covered with plaited reed-work, for reed-grass is meet for sacrifice. Two of its feet stand on the
northern, and two on the southern altar-ground 1, for the northern vedi is this (terrestrial) world, and the southern one the world of the Fathers: he thus consecrates him for both worlds.
12:8:3:77. Concerning this, Gaurîviti Sâktya, knowing this, once said, 'Like rulers 2, assuredly, we shall be in yonder world!' Perhaps 3 it was Rishabha Yâgñatura, king of the Svikna, who had told him so.
12:8:3:88. He places the throne-seat, with (Vâg. S. XX, 1), 'Thou art the womb of the Kshatra, thou art the navel of the Kshatra!' for it indeed is the womb and navel of the Kshatra (ruling power).
12:8:3:99. He then spreads the black antelope skin thereon, with, 'May it not injure thee! do not
injure me!' for the black antelope skin is the sacrifice: (thus it is spread) for the safety of the sacrifice and his own self.
12:8:3:1010. He then mounts it, with a verse to Varuna (Vâg. S. XX, 2), for Varuna is the king of the gods: by means of his own deity he thus consecrates him 1,--'He hath sat down, the upholder of the sacred law, Varuna, in the home-steads, for supreme rule, he the wise!'
12:8:3:1111. He then throws down a gold and a silver plate (beneath his feet, the silver one beneath the left foot) with, 'Protect (me) from death!' (the gold one beneath the right foot 2 with,) 'Protect (me) from lightning!' The Virâg, doubtless, is the rain, and of this there are these two terrible forms, lightning and hail; of these the gold plate is of the form of lightning, and the silver one of that of hail: against these two deities he affords protection to him, whence he who has performed the Sautrâmanî has no fear of these two deities, as he also who thus knows this.
12:8:3:1212. He consecrates him by sprinkling him with the fat gravy of the sacrificial animals, for the gravy of the animals means excellence: with that excellence, the essence of cattle, he thus sprinkles him. But that gravy is also the highest kind of food: with the highest kind of food he thus sprinkles him.
12:8:3:1313. There are hoof-cups (of gravy), for on hoofs cattle support themselves: he thus causes him to obtain a support. There are thirty-three (such)
cupfuls, for thirty-three in number are all the deities: by means of all the deities he thus consecrates him. He offers them with gagatî verses, for animals are of gâgata (movable) nature: by means of the Gagatî he thus secures cattle for him. With sixteen verses (Vâg. S. XIX, 80-94) he offers, for animals are of sixteen parts: he thus bestows excellence (or prosperity) on him part by part.
12:8:3:1414. 'With lead the wise, with wool and thread 1 the sages weave the web, the sacrifice: the Asvins, Savitri, Sarasvatî, and Varuna healed the form of Indra 2.' Each time he has offered two (cupfuls) together, he pours the residue into a bowl (sata): he thereby establishes the days and nights, the half-months, the months, and the seasons in the year, and hence these days and nights, half-months, months, and seasons are established (contained) in the year.
12:8:3:1515. The bowl is made of reed, for the reed has its birth-place in the waters, and the waters are all the deities: by means of all the deities he thus consecrates him.
16. A rubbing down (of the Sacrificer) with all manner of sweet-smelling substances takes place (before sprinkling him with fat), for such a rubbing down with all manner of sweet-smelling substances means supreme fragrance: with fragrance he thus consecrates (anoints) him.
12:8:3:1717. He sprinkles him (with the fat gravy) in front while (himself) looking towards the back (west), for
from the front food is visibly eaten. On. every side (he sprinkles him) whilst moving round: he thus bestows food on him from all quarters, whence food is secured from all quarters by him who has performed the Sautrâmanî, or even by him who thus knows this.
12:8:3:1818. With a formula to the Asvins he sprinkles him first 1, then with one to Sarasvatî, then with one to Indra: it is by means of these deities he thus consecrates him. Now, some consecrate him by means both of these deities and those utterances, 'bhûh bhuvah, svar,' 'for,' say they, 'these utterances ("earth, air, heaven") mean all this (universe) it is by means of all this (universe) we thus consecrate him.' Let him, however, not do so, but let him only consecrate him by means of those deities, for those deities, indeed, are all this (universe).
12:8:3:1919. He consecrates him prior to the Svishtakrit (offering), for the Svishtakrit is the Kshatra: he thus consecrates him by means of the Kshatra (or, by a Kshatriya). And he consecrates him between (the oblation to) the Lord of the Forest 2 and the
[paragraph continues] Svishtakrit, for the lord of the forest (or the tree) is Soma, and the Svishtakrit (maker of good offering) is Agni: he thus consecrates him after encompassing him by Agni and Soma; whence both those who know, and those who do not, say, 'A Kshatriya is the consecrator of a Kshatriya 1.'
12:8:3:2020. They then lift him up 2 knee-high, then navel-high, then as high as the mouth; for the Vâgapeya doubtless is the same as the consecration, and the Sautrâmanî is a consecration; and even as there, at the Vâgapeya, he (the Sacrificer) mounts the sacrificial stake 3, like that is this rite.
12:8:3:2121. As to this they say, 'But, surely, he who is consecrated by the Sautrâmanî moves away from this world.' Well, he descends again upon the black antelope skin, and, the black antelope skin being the sacrifice, he thus finally establishes himself on the sacrifice.
12:8:3:2222. [He descends 4, with Vâg. S. XX, 10,] 'Firmly 5 I establish myself in the Kshatra (lordship), in royal sway,'--in lordship and royal sway he thus establishes himself so as not to lose lordship and royal sway;--'firmly in horses I establish
myself, and in kine,'--in the midst of horses and kine he thus establishes himself so as not to lose horses and kine;--'firmly in the limbs I establish myself, and in the body,'--in the limbs and in the body he thus establishes himself so as not to lose his limbs and his body;--'firmly in the vital airs I establish myself, and in prosperity,'--in the vital airs and in prosperity he thus establishes himself so as not to lose the vital airs and prosperity;--'firmly in heaven and on earth I establish myself, and in the sacrifice,'--he thus establishes himself in these two, heaven and earth, within which is all this (universe).
12:8:3:2323. He 1 then sings a Sâman (hymn-tune), for the Sâman means lordship (kshatra): with lordship he thus consecrates him; or the Sâman means imperial sway: by means of imperial sway he thus causes him to attain imperial sway. And, indeed, the Sâman is the essence of all the Vedas: he thus consecrates him with the essence of all the Vedas.
12:8:3:2424. He sings it on a brihatî verse 2, for established on the Brihatî, as his excellence and foundation,
that sun shines 1: he thus establishes him on the Brihatî, as his excellence and foundation.
12:8:3:2525. He sings it on a brihatî verse relating to Indra, for this sacrifice, the Sautrâmanî, belongs to Indra, and even now he who sacrifices has Indra for his support: he thus consecrates him on his own support (or resting-place).
12:8:3:2626. And as to why (these hymns) are called 'bracers 2;' it is because by means of these Sâmans the gods braced Indra up to energy, or vital power: in like manner do the officiating priests, by means of these Sâmans, brace the Sacrificer up to energy, or vital power. 'Samsravase, visravase, satyasravase, sravase 3'--these are the Sâmans: they proclaim
him in these worlds. There are four finales, for there are four quarters: they thus establish him in all the quarters. All (the priests) join in the finale: with one mind they thus bestow excellence upon him.
12:8:3:2727. As to this they say, 'Seeing that this Sâman is sung, wherein then does the recitation (uktha) of this Sâman consist, and what is its foundation; for unsuccessful is what is chanted unless it be followed by a recitation?'
12:8:3:2828. 'Thrice eleven are the gods;' this, indeed, is the recitation 1 belonging to that Sâman, this its foundation.
12:8:3:2929. Or he (the Adhvaryu) takes a thirty-third cupful (of gravy), with (Vâg. S. XX, 11-12 1), 'Thrice
eleven are the gods,'--for there are indeed thrice eleven gods;--'three-and-thirty, bountiful,'--for there are thirty-three gods; 'with Brihaspati for their Purohita,'--Brihaspati is the Brahman (n.): he thus means to say, 'With the Brahman for their Purohita (family-priest);'--'at the impulse (sava) of the god Savitri,'--that is, 'impelled by the god Savitri;'--'may the gods protect me through the gods!' for the gods indeed consecrate him through the gods.
12:8:3:3030. 'The first with the second,'--for the first (gods, on earth) consecrate him along with the second ones (in the air);--'the second with the third,'--for the second ones consecrate him along with the third ones (in the sky);--'the third with 1 the truth,'--for the third ones consecrate him with the truth;--'the truth with the sacrifice,'--for the truth consecrates him with the sacrifice;--'the sacrifice with sacrificial texts,'--for the sacrifice consecrates him with sacrificial texts;--'sacrificial texts with hymn-tunes,'--for sacrificial texts (yagus) consecrate him along with hymn-tunes 'hymn-tunes with hymn-verses,'--for hymn-tunes consecrate him along with hymn-verses (rik):--'hymn-verses with invitatory verses,'--for hymn-verses consecrate him along with invitatory verses;--'invitatory verses with offering-verses,'--for invitatory verses consecrate him along with offering-verses;--'offering-verses with Vashat-calls,'--for offering-verses consecrate him
along with Vashat-calls;--'Vashat-calls with oblations,'--for Vashat-calls consecrate him along with oblations;--'May the oblations render successful my wishes! bhûh! svâhâ!'--having thus consecrated him by means of those deities from first to last, he thus, by means of oblations, renders all his wishes successful. Having then solicited an invitation from the officiating priests, he (the Sacrificer) drinks 1 (the remains of the cup of vasâ), for the officiating priests are the seasons: it is thus in the seasons that he solicits art invitation.
12:8:3:3131. He drinks it, with (Vâg. S. XX, 13), 'My hair is endeavour 2, my skin submission and approach 3, my flesh inclination, my bone wealth, and my marrow submission,'--for he who is consecrated by the Sautrâmanî enters the worlds and among the deities; he now has himself, invited amongst them 4, and thus he arises (in the other world) complete, with a whole body, and with (all) limbs.
249:1 Literally, sprinkled, i.e. anointed, with the 'vasâ,' or fat gravy obtained from the cooking of the sacrificial animals.
249:2 See part i, p. 23, note 2.
250:1 For the two special Vedis, see p. 225, note 1.
250:2 'A kind of Kshatriyas,' Delbrück, Altind. Synt., p. 494.
250:3 For this or some such meaning ('probably'--German, 'wohl' or 'vielleicht') which seems to me to suit best the use of 'sasvat' in the Brâhmanas, see part iii, p. 98, note 2.--Thus, at I, 2, 3, 2, I would now translate 'and perhaps it was Trita who slew him,--Indra at all events was exonerated from that (guilt), for he is a god.' Similarly, I, 8, 1, 4, 'perhaps it was a ghasha, for that (fish) grows best (fastest);' II, 2, 1, 2, 'If, on the other hand, that oblation were not offered up in him, he would perhaps burn either the Adhvaryu, or the Sacrificer.' Somewhat peculiar is the passage, I, 6, 3, 10, where sasvat occurs both in the relative and in the demonstrative clause, and where we can hardly translate otherwise than 'If, perchance, he had said, "Grow thou, the foe of Indra!" he (Vritra) would perhaps have slain Indra.'--Hätte er vielleicht (etwa) gesagt: 'Wachse, du Feind Indras!' so würde er (Vritra) vielleicht (? gewiss) Indra erschlagen haben.--If this be the right interpretation of these passages, they would have td be transferred, in the St. Petersb. Dict., from meaning b (?) to c, where 'vielleicht' would have to be added, as it certainly suits better than 'gewiss' (most likely) the last of the foregoing passages, at all events. The comm. explains 'sasvat' by 'bahukritvah.'
251:1 Cf. V, 4, 4, 5, where the verse is explained.
251:2 Or, on the head, according to others. The plates are of the usual round shape.
252:2 Only the first pâda of this, the first of the sixteen verses, is given in the text. Regarding the allusions in this verse, see XII, 7, 1, 10 seqq.; 2, 17; 7, 3, 3.
253:1 According to Katy. Sr. XIX, 4, 14-17, he sprinkles him up to the mouth, letting it flow down on all four sides; and with each sprinkling he pronounces one of the formulas, first, the Sâvitra one, Vâg. S. XX, 3, 'At the impulse of God Savitri (I consecrate) thee by the arms of the Asvins, and the heads of Pûshan!' followed by the Âsvina one, 'with the healing medicine of the Asvins I sprinkle thee for energy and holy lustre!' and the Sârasvata one, 'with the healing medicine of Sarasvatî I sprinkle thee for vigour and food!' Then a fourth time with a formula referring to all the deities (or with the three great utterances), or with the Aindra text, 'With Indra's power I sprinkle thee for strength, for excellence, and for fame!'
253:2 For this oblation, see III, 8, 3, 33; IV, 5, 2, 11; in both cases it is followed immediately by the oblation to Agni Svishtakrit.
254:1 Kshatriyo râgñoऽbhishektâ bhavati, pûrvam hi râgaiva vriddhah kumâram kâbhishiñkatîty arthah; comm.
254:2 According to Kâty. Sr. XIX, 4, 19-2I, the Adhvaryu first touches him, with (Vâg. S. XX, 4), 'Thou art Ka, thou art Katama,--to Ka thee!' and the Sacrificer replies, 'O thou of good fame! O most propitious one! O true king!' and touches his limbs one after another with XX, 5-9.
254:3 See part iii, p. 32 (V, 2, 1, 9 seqq.).
254:4 That is, when the throne-seat has been lowered again, he rises from it and stands on the deer-skin.
254:5 The function of 'prati' here seems to be to strengthen the preposition in the verb 'prati-tishthâmi.'
255:1 According to the commentator on Kâty. XIX, 5, 1, the Brahman sings, whilst Lâty. V, 4, 16-19 gives directions from which the Udgâtri would seem to be expected to perform this duty. When the Sacrificer is being anointed, the Udgâtri is to step between the (northern and southern) fires and, as soon as he is called upon by the Adhvaryu, he is to commence the Sâman. It would probably depend on the Brahman's previous studies, whether or not he was sufficiently conversant with the complicated details of the hymnology.
255:2 Viz. Vâg. S. XX, 30 (Riks. VIII, 89, 1), 'To Indra, O Maruts, sing ye the great (hymn), most destructive to Vritra, whereby the promoters of sacred rites produced the light, the wakeful god for the god.'
256:1 Professor Weber, Ind. Stud. VIII, p. 42, refers to a parallel passage in Tândya-Br. VII, 4, 7--'By means of the Bahishpavamâna (of the morning service) the gods carried off Âditya, the sun, to heaven; but he did not stop there. At midday they then fixed him by means of the Brihatî, and for this reason the Brihatî metre is used for the Pavamâna-stotra at the midday service.'
256:2 Literally, sharpeners or sharpenings (samsâna).
256:3 These words--apparently meaning 'for fame all round, for fame far and wide, for true fame, for fame' (or, perhaps, for hearing, or, rather, being heard of all round,' &c.)--are used to form the finales (nidhana) in which all the priests are to join; cf. Sâmav., Calc. ed., I, pp. 533-4, where the figured text is given. According to Katy. XIX, 5, 4-5; Lâty. V, 4, 19, the words, 'samgityai, vigityai, satyagityai, gityai' (for complete victory, victory far and wide, &c.), and 'sampushtyai, vipushtyai,' &c. (for complete prosperity, &c.), are to be used instead, in the case of a Kshatriya and Vaisya respectively, either optionally or necessarily. Though these four words are here, and elsewhere, spoken of as so many different Sâmans, only 'the last of them ('sravase') forms the finale of a Sâman in the ordinary sense of the word; the others being merely combined with certain musical ejaculations, or expletives (stobhas). All the four 'Sâmans' begin with the same phrase (varying only in the verb)--'sam tvâ hinvanti (rinanti, p. 257 tatakshur, sisanti) dhîtibhih,' i, e. 'they make thee up (or urge thee on) with prayers,' serving as a kind of prelude (prastâva) the single words of which are given among the Stobhas (Sâmav„ Calc. ed., II, p. 522, last line), as, indeed, the words 'samsravase,' &c., themselves are (ib., p. 520). In the first three Sâmans this phrase is followed by the finale consisting of the respective characteristic word preceded by the Stobha 'auhovâ.' In the last Sâman, on the other hand, the introductory phrase is followed by the choral setting of the verse 'Brihad indrâya gâyata' (see p. 255, n. 2), which, in its turn, is followed again by the first phrase, with a slightly modified modulation, ending with 'auhovâ sravase.' Whilst joining in the finale, the priests, according to Lâty. V, 4, 17, are to lay their hands on the head of the Sacrificer.
257:1 According to Katy. Sr. XIX, 4, 24; 5, 8 seq.; 7, 1 seq., the thirty-third libation of gravy is taken with the text, XX, 32, 'yo bhûtânâm adhipatih (he who is the over-lord of creatures),' &c.; whilst, on the conclusion of the Sastra, or Hotri's recitation, the Sacrificer offers the libation from that last cup with XX, 11-12, and drinks the remainder with XX, 13. The Sastra, recited in response to the Sâman, consists of the section of .eleven verses, Vâg. S. XX, 80-90, the first and last verses of which are recited thrice; whilst the 'âhâva' (somsâvom, 'let us praise, om!') is inserted by him before each triplet of the remaining nine verses. The two verses used whilst the Sacrificer offers (XX, 11-12) are likewise recited by the p. 258 Hotri, as a 'nivid,' being either added at the end of the Sastra, or inserted before the ninth or tenth verse; the whole recitation thus consisting of seventeen verses.
258:1 Mahîdhara takes the instrumental throughout as a sociative (saha satyena).
259:1 According to Kâty. XIX, 5, 9, the priests themselves first smell the remainder of the fat gravy, with the text (XX, 34), 'The protector of my breath thou art,' &c. Cf. also XIV, 2, 2, 42, with note.
259:2 The use of 'prayati' in this sense (here and Vâg. S. XVIII, 1) is peculiar; being apparently derived from 'pra-yam,' one would expect it to have some such meaning as 'offer, gift.' This and the other predicates, according to Mahîdhara, are to show the state of feeling of beings towards the (royal) Sacrificer. The repetition of 'ânati' (bowing, prostration, submission) is strange. A strong alliterative cadence is noticeable in the verse.
259:3 ? Hardly 'return' here; rather, perhaps, 'attaining to (the other worlds),' or, possibly, 'the turning to him, gathering round him (of the people).'
259:4 ? Or, he now calls these to himself in the meantime.