1. The gods then said, 'Meditate ye!' whereby doubtless they meant to say, 'Seek ye a layer!' Whilst they were meditating, Savitri saw those Sâvitra (formulas); and inasmuch as Savitri saw them, they are called Sâvitra. He offered that eightfold-taken libation; and when he had offered it, he saw this eightfold-appointed Ashâdhâ 1, which had been created aforetime.
3. Now that same (libation of ghee), while being a single one, he offers as an eightfold one 1 with eight formulas: whence this ('invincible' brick), while being a single one, is eightfold appointed.
4. He offers while raising upwards (the spoon);--he thereby raises this earth upwards by means of its forms 2: whence this earth is raised (above the water) by its forms.
5. He offers it continuously;--for at that time the gods were afraid lest the Rakshas, the fiends, should come thither after them! They saw that continuous libation for preventing the Rakshas, the fiends, from coming after them: hence he offers it continuously.
6. And, again, why he offers that libation;--this Agni is Savitri, and him he gratifies at the outset by this libation; and having sacrificed to, and gratified, him (Agni), he then puts him together. And inasmuch as by this (libation) he gratifies Savitri, they (the formulas are called) Sâvitra: that is why he offers this libation.
8. Both an offering-spoon (sruk) and a dipping-spoon (sruva) are used thereat; for the offering-spoon is speech, and the dipping-spoon is breath; and with speech and breath the gods sought this sacred rite at the beginning: hence there are an offering-spoon and a dipping-spoon.
9. And, again, why there are an offering-spoon and a dipping-spoon,--what Pragâpati was, that indeed is this dipping-spoon, for the dipping-spoon is the breath, and the breath is Pragâpati. And what Vâk (speech) was, that is this offering-spoon; for Vâk is a female, and the offering-spoon (sruk, f.) is a female; and those waters which went forth from the world of Vâk (speech) 1, they are this (ghee) which he offers (in) this libation.
10. He offers it continuously, for those waters flowed continuously. And inasmuch as that Pragâpati entered the waters with the threefold science 2, that is these prayers (yagus) with which this (priest) now offers.
11. The first three which there are, are these (three) worlds; and what fourth prayer there is that
13. 'Savitri, stretching out the thoughts,'--for Savitri is the mind, and the thoughts are the vital airs;--'gazing reverently at Agni's light,'--that is, having seen Agni's light;--'bore up from the earth;' for upwards from the earth he indeed bears this (offering).
14. [Vâg. S. XI, 2] 'With harnessed mind we,'--he thereby harnesses the mind for this work, for with unharnessed mind one cannot now do anything;--'at the impulse of the god Savitri,'--that is impelled (sped) by the god Savitri,--'with power (we strive) for the heavenly;'--'that by this holy work he may go to the heavenly world,' he thereby means to say; 'with power,' he says, for by power (energy) one goes to the heavenly world.
15. [Vâg. S. XI, 3] 'Savitri, having harnessed the gods,'--Savitri is the mind, and the gods are the vital airs;--'going by thought to the light, to heaven,'--for as such as are going to the heavenly world by thought (devotion) he has harnessed them for this holy work;--'going to produce a mighty light,'--the mighty light assuredly is yonder sun, and
17. [Vâg. S. XI, 5 Rik S. X, 13, 1] 'By devotions I harness your old inspiration,'--the old inspiration (brahman) doubtless is the vital air, and devotion is food, and that food is this oblation: by means of this oblation, by means of this food, he harnesses the vital airs for this holy work,--'May the praise spread abroad on the lord's path,'--this he says in order that there may be for the Sacrificer the praise of fame among both gods and men;--'may all sons of the immortal hear!'--the immortal one doubtless is Pragâpati, and his sons are all the gods;--'who have resorted
19. [Vâg. S. XI, 7] 'God Savitri, speed the sacrifice, speed the lord of sacrifice unto his share!'--the god Savitri is yonder sun, and his share is the sacrifice, that he means to say when he says 'speed the sacrifice, speed the lord of sacrifice!'--'May the heavenly, thought-cleansing Gandharva cleanse our thought!'--the heavenly Gandharva is yonder sun, and thought is (sacrificial) food; thus, 'May the food-cleanser cleanse our food!'--'May the lord of speech render agreeable our speech!'--this sacred rite is speech, and the lord of speech is the breath: thus, 'May the breath render agreeable this rite of ours!!
20. [Vâg. S. XI, 8] 'Further, O god Savitri, this our sacrifice!'--the god Savitri is yonder sun, and whatever sacrificial rite he furthers, that
22. This libation having been offered, Agni went away from the gods. The gods said, 'Agni is the
23. They said, 'Surely, if we search with all of them, they will become used up and affording no livelihood; and if not with all, we shall get him (Agni) incomplete.' They saw one animal (as a substitute) for two animals 2, namely, the ass (as a substitute) for the cow and the sheep; and because they saw that one beast (would do) for two beasts, therefore that one (the he-ass), whilst being one, doubly impregnates 3.
24. The sham-man 4 (they saw to be a substitute) for man,--a sham-man doubtless is he who pleases neither the gods, nor the fathers, nor men. Thus they searched by means of all the beasts, and yet they (the beasts) did not come to be used up and affording no livelihood.
25. With three he searches,--Agni is threefold: as great as Agni is, as great as is his measure, with so much he thus searches for him. They are five
26. They are fastened with halters of reed-grass to guard (Agni) against injury 2;--Agni went away from the gods; he entered into a reed, whence it is hollow, and whence inside it is, as it were, smoke-tinged: (thus) that, the reed, is Agni's womb, and Agni is these cattle; and the womb does not injure the child. For 3 it is from a womb that he who is born is born: 'from the womb he (Agni) shall be born when he is born,' thus he thinks.
27. They (the halters) are triple (strings), for Agni is threefold. They are made like a horse's halter, for the horse's halter lies all round the mouth, and the womb lies all round the child: thus it is made like the womb.
28. They (the animals) stand facing the east, first the horse, then the ass, then the he-goat; for this
29. They stand on the south side;--for the gods at that time were afraid, lest the Rakshas, the fiends, should smite their sacrifice from the south. They saw that thunderbolt, yonder sun; for this horse is indeed yonder sun; and by means of that thunderbolt they drove off the Rakshas, the fiends, from the south, and spread this sacrifice in a place free from danger and devilry. And in like manner does the Sacrificer now by this thunderbolt drive off the Rakshas, the fiends, from the south, and spread this sacrifice in a place free from danger and devilry.
30. On the right (south) side is the Âhavanîya fire, and on the left (north) lies that spade; for the Âhavanîya (m.) is a male, and the spade (abhri, f.) a female, and the male lies on the right side of the female 2. [It lies] at a cubit's distance, for at a cubit's distance the male lies by the female.
31. It should be made of bamboo. Agni went away from the gods. He entered into a bamboo-stem; whence that is hollow. On both sides he made himself those fences, the knots, so as not
33. It may be a span long, for the voice here speaks but as far as a span's distance 2. It is, however, a cubit long, for the cubit is the arm, and strength is exerted by the arm: it thus becomes equal to his strength.
34. It may be sharp on one side only, for on one of the two sides is there a keen edge to this speech of ours 3. But indeed it is one that is sharp on both sides, for on both sides is there a keen edge to this speech of curs, inasmuch as it speaks both what is divine and what is human 4, and both truth and untruth: therefore it is one that is sharp on both sides.
36. And, again, why it is sharp on both sides,--when the gods had there discovered him (Agni), they dug him out from these worlds; and in like manner does he now, after discovering him, dig him out from these worlds.
37. When it digs thus (downwards), then it digs him out from this world; and when it moves upwards, then from yonder world; and when it moves about between the two, then from the air-world: it thus digs him out from all these worlds.
38. He takes it up, with (Vâg. S. XI, 9), 'At the impulse of the god Savitri, I take thee by the arms of the Asvins, by the hands of Pûshan, by the Gâyatrî metre, Aṅgiras-like!' By means of those deities he thus takes it up, impelled by Savitri; by the Gâyatrî metre: he thus imparts the Gâyatrî metre to it. 'From the Earth's seat, Aṅgiras-like, bring thou Agni Purîshya 1!'--
40. With three (formulas) he takes it up,--threefold is Agni: as great as Agni is, as great as is his measure, by so much he thus takes it. Having taken it up with three (formulas), he addresses it with a fourth; for the gods having thus taken it with three (formulas), then laid vigour into it by means of a fourth; and in like manner does he now, after taking it up with three (formulas), lay strength into it with the fourth.
41. [Vâg. S. XI, 11] 'Having taken into his hand, Savitri,'--for it has indeed been taken into his (the Adhvaryu's) hand,--'bearing the spade,'--for he indeed bears it,--'the golden,'--for golden indeed is the one that consists of the metres (the Veda);--'beholding Agni's light,'--that is, seeing Agni's light,--'lifted it up from the earth,'--for he indeed lifts it up from the earth;--'by the Anushtubh metre, Aṅgiras-like;'--he thus takes
43. He takes it up with four (formulas), for all speech consists of four syllables: 'vâk' (speech) is one syllable, and 'aksharam' (syllable) consists of three syllables. Now that monosyllable 'vâk' is the same as this last one, the Anushtubh; and that trisyllable 'aksharam' is the same as those former formulas: he thus digs up Agni by the whole speech, and equips it with the whole speech,--hence with four (formulas).
44. And, again, why with four (formulas);--there are four quarters: he thus lays speech into the four quarters, whence speech speaks in the four quarters. He takes it up both by metres and by formulas, that makes eight--there are four quarters, and four intermediate quarters: he thus lays speech into all the quarters, whence speech speaks in all the quarters.
190:1 That is, the 'invincible' brick, being the first brick which is made, and that by the Sacrificer's chief wife (mahishî) herself. See VI, 5, 3, seq.--Sâyana remarks,--tâm âhutim hutvâ imâm prithivîm âdhîyagñikîm ashtadhâvihitâm mritsikatâbhih prithivyavairiyam (? prithivyaṅgair imâm) ashtavihitâtmikâm ashâdhâm ishtakâm VI, 1, 1, 13 seq., the earth is rather said to consist of nine different elements, the 'invincible' brick is commonly identified with the earth. See VI, 5, 3, 1. For the (eightfold) compositions of the clay used for the fire-pan and bricks, see VI, 5, 1, 1 seq.
191:1 That is to say, the offering-spoon is filled by eight dippings with the dipping-spoon.
191:2 That is, by means of its constituent elements;--prithivîm ûrdhvâm rûpair mridâdibhir udgamayati, Sây.
192:1 See VI, 1, 1, 9.
192:2 VI, 1, 1, 10.--The construction of the text is somewhat peculiar,--what the author means to say seems to be,--the threefold science (the Veda) with which Pragâpati entered the waters is the same as the prayers now offered up.
194:1 See III, 5, 3, 12, where 'brihat vipaskit' (in the same formula) is explained as referring to the sacrifice.
196:1 Or, the single oblations, as distinguished from the whole continued libation.
196:2 Dîptyâ virâgamânah, Sây.
197:1 That is to say, it shows itself openly, appears fearlessly before others of its kind;--Svâya rûpâyeti tâdarthye katurthî; âvih prakâso bhavati, tadanukârenedânîm api pasuh svâya rûpâya samânagâtîyâyâ prakâso bhavati, Sây.
197:2 That is to say, they saw that one animal might do for two,--pañkamî pratinidhau, Sây. (Pân. II, 3, 11.)
197:3 Viz. the she-ass and the mare.
197:4 Anaddhâ-purusham alîka-purusham purushât pratyapasyan purushasthâne kalitavantas, Sây. Thus probably a counterfeit of a man, a doll or human effigy.
198:1 That is, in order that this item of the sacrificial performance should correspond with the nature of Agni. The number of five is obtained by the three beasts actually led forward,--a horse, an ass, and a he-goat--and the two beasts for which the ass was stated to be a substitute, viz. the cow (or bullock) and the sheep.--Sâyana, whose comment is very corrupt in this place, remarks,--nânaddhâpurusho
198:3 This final clause with 'vai' supplies the reason why Agni entered the womb, viz. because otherwise he could not be born;--just as the preceding clause with 'vai' (the womb does not injure the child) supplies the reason why reed grass is used; whilst the preceding clauses explain how the reed comes to be the womb whence Agni sprung.
199:1 See VI, 1, 1, 11.
199:2 Dakshinato vai vrishâ yoshâm upasete;--compare: uttarato hi strî pumâmsam upasete, I, 1, 1, 20; II, 5, 2, 17.
200:1 For the construction, see p. 198, note 2.
200:2 Prâdesamâtram hîdam mukham abhi vâg vadati, mukham abhi varnâtmikâ vâg vadati vâktâstis (?) tasyâs ka prâdesamâtratvam adhyâtmâvadhâritam ato
200:4 Sâyana identifies the divine speech with Samskrit, and the human speech with the Apabhramsas, or low dialects (? mânusham kâpâtrosam, MS.).
201:1 Mahîdhara says, Agni is called 'purîshya,' because loose soil (purîsha) is put in the fire-pan (ukhâ), on which the fire is then placed. It also doubtless refers to the loose soil which is spread over the different layers of the altar, thus serving as mortar to the bricks. In this epithet of Agni, 'purîsha' seems, however, to be taken in yet another, more subtle sense, the author apparently connecting with it its etymological meaning of 'that which fills, fillings, Germ. Füllung, Füllsel;' whilst the reference to cattle might also seem to point to the later ordinary meaning, 'faeces, manure.' Mahîdhara, on the force of the symbolical identification 'pasavo vai purîsham,' seems straightway to take 'purîsha' as a synonym of 'pasu,' when he says,--purîshebhyah pasubhyo hitah purîshyah. Sâyana's comment here is corrupt,--pasavo vai purîsham pûranâmûhi(?) kâryam pasavah pûrayanti.
