1. Now, Indrota Daivâpa Saunaka once performed this sacrifice for Ganamegaya Pârikshita, and by performing it he extinguished all evil-doing, all Brahman-slaughter; and, verily, he who performs the Asvamedha extinguishes (the guilt incurred by) all evil-doing, all Brahman-slaughter.
2. It is of this, indeed, that the Gâthâ (strophe) sings,--'In Âsandîvat 1, Ganamegaya bound for the gods a black-spotted, grain-eating horse, adorned with a golden ornament and with yellow garlands.'
3. [There are] those same first two days 2, and a Gyotis 3 Atirâtra: therewith (they sacrificed) for Bhîmasena;--those same first two days, and a Go Atirâtra: therewith (they sacrificed) for Ugrasena;--those same first two days, and an Âyus Atirâtra: therewith (they sacrificed) for Srutasena. These are the Pârikshitîyas 4, and it is of this that the Gâthâ sings,--'The righteous Pârikshitas, performing horse-sacrifices, by their righteous work did away with sinful work one after another.'
5. Those same first two days, and a Visvagit 1 Atirâtra,--therewith Purukutsa, the Aikshvâka king, once on a time performed a horse (daurgaha)-sacrifice, whence it is of this that the Rishi sings (Rig-v. IV, 42, 8),--'These, the seven Rishis, were then our fathers when Daurgaha 2 was bound.'
6. Those same first two days, and a Mahâvrata 3 Atirâtra,--therewith Marutta Âvikshita, the Âyogava king, once performed sacrifice; whence the Maruts became his guards-men, Agni his chamberlain, and the Visve Devâh his counsellors: it is of this that the Gâthâ sings,--'The Maruts dwelt as guards-men in Marutta Âvikshita's house, Agni as his chamberlain, and the Visve Devâh as his counsellors.' And, verily, the Maruts become the guards-men, Agni the chamberlain, and the Visve Devâh the counsellors of him who performs the horse-sacrifice.
7. Those same first two days, and an Aptoryâma 4 Atirâtra,--it was therewith that Kraivya, the Pâñkâla king, once performed sacrifice,--for Krivis they formerly called the Pañkâlas: it is of this that the Gâthâ sings,--'At Parivakrâ, the
9. The Agnishtoma in the Trivrit (stoma); the Ukthya in the Pañkadasa; and the third day, with the Uktha (stotras), in the Saptadasa; the Shodasin (stotra) in the Ekavimsa, the night (stotras) in the Pañkadasa, and the Sandhi (stotra) in the Trivrit,--this is the (sacrifice) resulting in the Anushtubh 1: it is therewith that sacrifice was performed by Dhvasan Dvaitavana, the king of the Matsyas, where there is the lake Dvaitavana; and it is of this that the Gâthâ sings,--'Fourteen steeds did king Dvaitavana, victorious in battle, bind for Indra Vritrahan, whence the lake Dvaitavana (took its name).'
10. The (three) Pavamâna (stotras) in the Katurvimsa (stoma), and (those performed) by repetitions 2 in the Trivrit; the Pavamânas in the Katuskatvârimsa (44-versed stoma), and (those performed) by repetition 3 in the Ekavimsa; the Pavamânas in
12. And a second (Gâthâ),--'Having bound a hundred and thirty-three horses, meet for sacrifice, king Saudyumni, more shifty, overcame the other shiftless ones.'
13. And a third,--'At Nâdapit 2, the Apsaras Sakuntalâ conceived Bharata, who, after conquering the whole earth, brought to Indra more than a thousand horses, meet for sacrifice.'
14. And a fourth 3,--'The greatness of Bharata neither the men before nor those after him attained, nor did the five (tribes of) men, even as a mortal man (does not touch) the sky with his arms.'
15. With the Ekavimsa-stoma 4 Rishabha Yâgñatura,
17. And a second (Gâthâ),--'At the sacrifice of thee, Koka's father, the Trayastrimsa (stomas) come forth, each as six times six thousand 2 (horses), and six thousand mail-clad men.'
18. And a third,--'When Sâtrâsâha, the Pâñkâla king, was sacrificing, wearing beautiful garlands, Indra revelled in Soma, and the Brâhmanas became satiated with wealth.'
19. Satânîka Sâtrâgita performed the Govinata (form of Asvamedha), after taking away the
21. It is of this that the Gâthâ sings,--'Satânîka Sâtrâgita seized a sacrificial horse, in the neighbourhood, the sacrifice of the Kâsis, even as Bharata (seized that) of the Satvats.'
22. And a second,--'The mighty Satânîka, having seized, in the neighbourhood, Dhritarâshtra's white sacrificial horse, roaming at will in its tenth month, Satânîka 2 performed the Govinata-sacrifice.'
23. And a fourth 3,--'The greatness of the Bharatas neither the men before nor those after them attained, nor did the seven (tribes of) men, even as a mortal man (does not touch) the sky with his flanks.'
25. When the Udayanîyâ (completing offering) is finished, he seizes twenty-one barren cows, sacred to Mitra-Varuna, the Visve Devâh, and Brihaspati, with the view of his gaining those deities. And the reason why those sacred to Brihaspati come last is that Brihaspati is the Brahman (n.), and he thus establishes himself finally in the Brahman.
26. And as to their being twenty-one of them,--the twenty-one-fold is he who shines yonder: twelve months, five seasons, these three worlds, and yonder sun as the twenty-first--this consummation (he thereby obtains).
27. When the Udavasânîyâ (closing offering) is completed, they give, for a sacrificial gift, four women, with a maiden as the fifth, and four hundred female attendants according to agreement.
28. And during the following year he performs the animal sacrifices of the seasons,--six (victims) sacred to Agni in the spring, six to Indra in the summer, six to Parganya, or to the Maruts, in the rainy season, six to Mitra and Varuna in the autumn, six to Indra and Vishnu in the winter, and six to Indra and Brihaspati in the dewy season,--six seasons are a year: in the seasons, in the year, he thus establishes himself. These amount to thirty-six animals,--the Brihatî (metre) consists of thirty-six syllables, and the heavenly world is established
396:1 Lit., (in the city, nagare, Harisvâmin) possessed of a throne. Cf. Ait. Br. VIII, 2 1. 396:2 Viz., as stated before, an Agnishtoma and an Ukthya. 396:3 As to the difference between the Gyotis, Go, and Âyus forms of the Agnishtoma sacrifice, see part iv, p. 287, note 2. 396:4 That is, according to Harisvâmin (and the Gâthâ), the brothers of (Ganamegaya) Pârikshita, though one would rather have thought of his sons, the grandsons of Parikshit. 397:1 Regarding the Abhigit and Visvagit, see part iv, p. 320, note 2. 397:2 Sâyana, differently from our Brâhmana, takes Daurgaha as the patronymic of Purukutsa (son of Durgaha). 397:3 See part iv, p. 282, note 5. 397:4 See part iii, introd. p. xx. 398:1 Viz. inasmuch as, according to Harisvâmin, all the Stotras amount together to 798 verses, which make twenty-five anushtubh verses (of 32 syllables each) or thereabouts. 398:2 That is to say, all the remaining nine stotras of this, the Agnishtoma, day, the so-called Dhuryas, viz. the Âgya-stotras, the Prishtha-stotras, and the Agnishtoma-sâman, in all of which the respective Stoma is obtained by repetitions of the three stotriyâ-verses. 398:3 In this, the Ukthya, day, this includes also the three Uktha-stotras, as being, as it were, the Dhuryas of the Hotri's assistants 399:2 This, according to Harisvâmin, is the name of Kanva's hermitage. Cf. Leumann, Zeitsch. d. D. M. G., XLVIII, p. 81. 399:3 Cf. Ait. Br. VIII, 23; Weber, Ind. Stud. I, p. 202. 399:4 That is, using the 21-versed form throughout the three days. 400:1 This seems to be Harisvâmin's interpretation of the verse:--torvasâ asvâ gyeshthe tam api srigyeran iti (?) trayastrimsâ stomâ udgakkhanti, sa hi Sonas trayastrimsân eva stomân trishv api divaseshu prayuṅkte nânyân iti to udgakkhantîty âha, shat tu sahasrâni varminâm râgaputrânâm kavakinâm asvapâlânâm udîrata iti vartate varshe prâptâ eva drashtavyâh. The St. Petersb. Dict., on the other hand, construes 'trayastrimsâh' along with 'shat sahasrâni' = 6033 (? horses of mail-clad men). This interpretation seems to me to involve serious difficulties. The use of those Stomas doubtless is supposed to result in the advantages here enumerated. 400:2 Koko nâma nâthah, ke te asvâ udîrata iti prathamâyâm gâthâyâm uktam tad atrâpy anuvartate; teshâm tatra parimânam noktam atra shattrimsad asvasahasrâni rakshinâm anukarabhntâny udgakkhantîty âha; trayastrimsâs kodîrate shad dhi(?) varminâm padânetâsu (?) gakkhantîti. Harisvâmin. 401:1 Why these are here put before the Prishthas, is not clear. 401:2 Perhaps we ought here to read 'Sâtrâgita.' 401:3 Unless the Gâthâ in the preceding paragraph (being in the Trishtubh metre) is really counted as two, the author seems here purposely to have omitted a verse. Possibly, however, it may mean, 'the fourth,' viz. referring to paragraph 14.
