shatapath brahman (english)

I

m^'':

s

PRINCETON,

N.

J.

%

BL 1010

.S3 V.26 Satapathabr ahma na. The satapatha~br ahmana

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;^r-^ respectively.i'oshatta;;^

woof^

(otu),

Praghata, apparently the closely-woven part at both ends of the

cloth

(thrum)," '

from whence the loose threads of the nivi, or unwoven fringe come out. The Black Ya^us ascribes it to the plants.'

Literally,

unbeaten (ahata), unwashed.'if it

That

is

to say,

be not a new garment,

it

should be one&c.), but

that

has not been washed by a washerman (with mautra,daily after bathing.Its

worn*

Or, outward form, tanu.'

meaning sometimes comes veryit

near to that of2,2,

skin,'

assigned to

by the lexicographers. Cf.

Ill,

20

;

4, 3, 9.

Ill

KAiVDA,

I

ADHYAYA,

2

BRAHMAiVA, 21.

11

'fostering a fair appearance;' for evil indeed is that appearance which he has heretofore fostered

while unconsecrated

;

but

now

(he'

fosters)

a

fair

appearance

:

therefore he says,

fostering a

fair

appearance.'

Adhvaryu) then makes him enter the hall. Let him not eat (the flesh) of either the cow or the ox for the cow and the ox doubtless support everything here on earth. The gods spake, Verily, the cow and the ox support everything here come, let us bestow on the cow and the ox whatever vigour21.

He

(the

;

'

:

belongs to other species^!'

Accordingly they bestowed on the cow and the ox whatever vigour belonged to other species (of animals) and thereHence, were one fore the cow and the ox eat most.;

to eat (the flesh) of an

ox or a cow, there would be,or,

as

it

were, an eating of everything,(or,

as

it

were,

a going on to the end

to destruction).

Such

a one indeed would be likely to be born (again) as a strange being, (as one of

whom

there

is)

evil report,

such as

he has expelled an embryo from a woman/ 'he has committed a sin^ ;' let him therefore not eat (the flesh) of the cow and the ox. Nevertheless'

Ya^;}avalkyais

said,

'

I,

for one, eat

it,

provided that

it

tender.'

^ Vayasam, cf. Ill, 3, 3, 3. The Kava vayasaw viryaw yad anyesham pajunam.'

rec.

has yad anyesha;'

^

A different

translation of this passage

is

proposed by Professor

Delbriick (Synt. Forsch. Ill, p. 25); but the Ka?/va text (sa td.ffi hejvaro 'dbhutam abhi^anitor ^ayaya va garbha? niravadhid yadveti tad

isv2iTa.k to the infinitive in tos.

u hova^a) shows that we have here, as frequently, to supply The Ka/zva yad va (*or some such thing ') would also seem to indicate that we ought to translate:

(as of

some such

(iti) sin

one of whom) there is evil report: he has committed as the producing of abortion.''

1

5'ATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.

Third BRAHMAiVA.1.

Having brought water forward^ he takes outfor

(the material for) a cake on eleven potsherds for

Agni and Vish7^u;sinceit

Agni

is

all

the deities,

is

in

the deities.Vish;2uis

Agni that offering is made to all Moreover Agni is the lower half, and' :

the upper half of the sacrificeafter

I

will

become

consecrated

encompassing

all

the

encompassing the entire sacrifice,' thus he thinks, and hence there is a cake on eleven potsherds for Agni and Vish/m. 2. Some then offer a rice-pap to the Adityas. This is referred to (in the passage, Rig-veda X, 72,8),' There are eight sons of Aditi who were borndeities, after

from her body with seven she went to the gods, but Mart^jidsi^ she cast off.' But those that are 3. Now Aditi had eight sons. called the gods, sons of Aditi,' were only seven, for the eighth, Marta;/^a, she brought forth unformed ^ it was a mere lump of bodily matter^, as broad as it;'

was

Some, however, say that he was of the size of a man. That 4. The gods, sons of Aditi, then spake,high.'

*

Viz. the so-called

'praita>^.,'

see part

i,

p. 9 note.

described in the following paragraphs,yesh/i,'

is

called the

The offering, Dikshantusedat the

Consecration offering.'bird, Vishwu, the sun.

As

to the formulas

offering, see Ait. Br. I, 4 seq.^ ^

The

Or, the eighth she brought forth undeveloped, as a marta^ kumaraka iva paribhasate. A play on the word kaninaka, which has the double meaning of youth' and pupil of the eye.' The St. Petersburg Diet, assigns also to kumaraka the meaning of 'ball of the eye' in this (the only) passage. The Kava recension reads, Sa esha kumaraka iva kaninakayam (?both 'maiden' and 'pupil of the eye'). ^ Indra slew Vntra, his eye-ball fell away, it became collyrium.''

'

'

Taitt.^

S.VI,

I, I, 5.it

Professor Delbruck, S. F. Ill, 27, takesis

thus,

'

He brushesto'

the

eye with the end of a reed, for the reedrepelling mischief.'

a thunderbolt capable of'

But,

if

'

virakshastayaito

belonged

what pre-

cedes,'nakti,'

it

would probably havewhile, in

be construed with

jareshikaya

the clause with 'vai,';

giving the

reason, being insertedit

parenthetically

an idiomatic rendering,evil spirits, theis

would have

to

be placed

at the

end:

He

anoints the eyes with a reed-stalk in

order to chase away the

reed being a thunderbolt.;

This abstract dative of purposeconstrued with what precedes,5, 3,

very

common

it

being generally

as, for instance, I, i, 4, i;3,

8; 15; III,

I,

2,

13; 19;

3, 2, 8; 6; 8; and, with a parenthetici,

clause with 'vai' intervening, III,

2,

13; IV,

5, 7, 7.

Not

less

common

is

the analogous construction with a clause with 'ned'

1

i-ATAPATHA-BRAHMAiVA.

Rakshas roams along the air even as man here roams along the air^ rootless and unfettered on both sides: theindeed, and unfettered on both sides, the;

reason, then,to chase14.

why

it

is (a

reed-stalk) with a tuft,

is

away the

evil spirits.

The(it is

right eye

he anointsis

first; for infirst,

human

practice the left (eye

anointed)

but with theart the

gods15.

done) thus.anointsit

He

with the text,

'Thou

eye-ball of Vretra,'is;

'

Vmra's eye-ball it indeed Eye-giving thou art give me the eye!'for:

in this there is nothing obscure. 16. The right eye he anoints once with the sacrificial

formula, once silently;

and the

left

one he:

anoints once with the formula, twice silently

thus

he makes the left (or upper) one superior 2. five times, 1 7. And the reason why he anoints:

is

that the sacrifice is of equal measure with the year, and five seasons there are in the year he thus

obtains possession of the latter in five (divisions),

and therefore he anoints five times. 18. He then purifies him with a cleanserstrainer)

(pavitra,is

of sacred grassis

;

forin

impure, indeed,

man

:

truth

within he and sacred grassfoul;

that

he'

speaks

un-

is

pure

:

Having becomecleansing,

pure,

I

shall be consecrated,' thus he thinks;

and the

stalks of sacred grass are a

means of

('

lest

such an event should happen') instead of the dative of the

abstract, cf.1

I

now

IV, 5, 9, 3. I, 2, i, 8 ; 9 take this passage differently from;

my

interpretation of

about the air, 4 ('and, in order that this man may move See also IV, i, i, 20. rootless and unfettered in both directions'). 2 Tad uttaram evaitad uttaravat karoti ;' ' uttaram dvaitad uttaI, I, 2,'

ram

karoti,'

Kava

recension.

Cf. p. 2, note

i.

Ill

KANDA,

I

ADHYAYA,

3 BRAHMAiVA, 2 2.

I

7

he thinks19.It

'Having become cleansed, I shall be consecrated,' thus and therefore he purifies him with a;

cleanser of sacred grass.

may

consist of

one

(stalkis

of grass); for

that blower (or purifier, thein

Wind)

one only, and

accordance with his nature is this (cleanser) hence it may consist of one (stalk).20.

Oris

there

may be

three (stalks)

;

for one, in-