English
From the earth rice was produced and rice "vvas offered in the form of purolft6a, in lieu of the sacirificial animal. The other beings which had formerly t*^^^ offered and then been dismissed, are supposed **^ ^*^® l>ecome changed into animals unfit for sacrifi*^* ™*'* into a savage, the. horse into a Uos Gaua***^® *^® °^ into a Gayal ox, the sheep into a camel ( vm^t™) the goat int< a 6arabha. All these animais ^^^ amedhya or unclean, and should not be eaten. - /• xl The a*^** ^ .^ story is most likely that in former times all the^e victims had been offered. We know it for cert**'* ^° the case of horses and oxen, though afterw.r<J^ *^®®® sacrifices were discontinued. As to sheep 0S^ ^^*f ^^^y ^^^ considered proper victims to a still 1*®^ *^™®- "When vegetable ofierings took the pla-oe of bloody victims, it was clearly the wish of the ax*****''" °^ °"^ passage to show that, for certain sacrifices* *^ese rice-cakes were as efficient as the flesh of a^^'^aifl. ^® ^*''"®* °"* ** argument still further, "^ tries t,o sliow that in the rice the beard correspoD* to the i^^"^"" °^ ^"'"'^^ 5 the husk to the BRAHUANAS. 421 skin ; the phalikaranas to the blood ; the meal to the flesh ; the straw to the bones. The next story, from the l^atapatha-br&hmana ^ serves to illustrate the relations between the priestly and royal families in the early history of India, and allows us an insight into the policy of the Brah^ mans in their struggle for political influence. ^^ Janaka of Yideha once met with some Brahmans- who had just arrived. They were l§vetaketu Aru- neya, Somai^ushma S&tyayajni, and Y&jnavalkya. He said to them : * How do you perform the Agnihotra ?' Svetaketu replied : * 0 king, I sacrifice to two heats in one another, which are ever shining, and pervading the world with their splendour.' * How is that ?' said the king. Svetaketu replied: * Aditya (the sun) is heat ; to him do I sacrifice in the evening in the fire (Agni). Agni is heat ; to him do I sacrifice in the morning in the sun (Aditya)/ * What becomes of him who sacrifices thus ? ' said the king. Th^ Brahman replied: *He becomes evershining with happiness and splendour, and has his dwelling with these two gods and is one with them.' Then Somasushma began : ^0 king, I sacrifice to light in light.' * How is that ? ' said the king. Soma- i^ushma replied: * Aditya is light, to him do I sacrifice in the evening in Agni. Agni is light, to him do I sacrifice in the morning in Aditya.' * What becomes of him who sacrifices thus?' said the kin^r. The Brahman replied: *He becomes full of light and splendeur in this life, and has his dwelling with these two gods and is one with them.' ' Satapatha-brahmano, Madhjandina-i^lja, xi. 4. 6. The same Btory is alluded to in the Bfihadaranyakai iv. 8. 1. >> 3 422 ^ ^ ^^^*^Ay^. '^^f^^ ^"* **^^ fire f?' *I offr the Ac u fi^l^^/iS^*^'J '***11 deli ^^'^ J'aving milked .^^"'S ^-^"^a,^ *^7^me Z^**^ then,, ^hen I s^^^ *^ very -%^* '^-nZt^'n^^l^-^ingiyetulT T""*^ eveo^g^ ^. ^' then mounted hZ ^ ^^ ^^ent *^^^est8 said: c ^u- ^^ d "^ W^*' '^' " calf V* ^^"^'^ °^ KA/an. . insulted all h,^ ^^^^^^ ^anya has ^^"^ felU>^ ^ Kaianv '^^' ' W ^^^B^'"'^^^ 'Jji^-^^ ^^ -y -e^:;d '^ -^?"^^^h"^hr' T J vaoq^^ Brah^ ***<i sajof us that a Ra- ^® They al A^^ -^at he ^??- Bo not think of^",^.^- Ws ir, *? followed thTvl^^ ^"•^"^^^^'^ya mounts;, tlTa the kix^g said to hU '^fyiin'-f ed the M^"/ O king, reP^^ t^J^^Valfcya n ^^* ^Snihotra, Here the kmg begins t ^ own view of the two nZ ''^^''' }"* Yajnavalfcy- , . rise into the air, and axTfl!' * '!''^ ^T^ ^^^ifi^J wind being the fuel ar^i^""® ^'" performed - V?^ Then he goes pn ^.^Zn'C^T '"'* ^^*>-tw" after having delight^ "h'^^ ?^^ *^^ ^'^^ ^^HfieT* they are perfon^ed by ,' "^T' ***' '1^^' ^W ^ °y sun and moon; how V^^ they BRAHMANAS. 423 come back to the earth, and are performed by fire (warmth) and plants ; how they enter the man, and are performed by his tongae and food ; how they enter the woman, and a son is bom. ^^^This is the true Agnihotra, 0 Ydjnavalkya,' said the king ; ^ there is nothing higher than this/ Y&jnavalkya granted him a boon ; and the king said, ^ May I be allowed, Ydjnavalkya, to ask thee what I wish/ Since then Janaka became a Brahman." The two following stories are of a more mytho- logical character, and contain curious traditions about Manu, the supposed ancestor of mankind. The first is from the Aitareya-br&hmana, v. 14. ^^ N&bh&nedishtha, the son of Manu, had been de- prived of his paternal share by his brothers, while he was pursuing his studies (in the house of his Guru). When he came home, he said, * What is my share ?' They replied (pointing to Manu), * The father, who is our governor and arbitrator.' (Therefore sons call now their father, governor (nishth4va^) and ar- bitrator (avavaditri) ). He went to his father and said, * Father, they have made thee to be my share.' The father replied, * Do not believe it, my son, by The commentary explains, PtFT?; hy y^^^MlMl^^A" xs 4 424 brAumanas. any means. The Angiras' there perform a sacrifice in order to go to heaven, but every time they come to the sixth day, they get confused. Let them recite these two hymns (of thine ^) on the sixth day, and when they go to heaven they will give thee all the great riches which they have brought together for the sacrifice.' The son said, * Yes ;' went to them, and spoke : * Ye sages, receive me, the son of Manu.'* They replied, * What is thy wish that thou speakest thus ?' He answered, ^ I shall teach you this sixth day, and you shall give me, when you go to heaven, all these great riches which you have brought together for the sacrifice.' They agreed, and he recited for them these two hjrmns on the sixth day. Thus the Angiras' understood the sacrifice and the life in heaven. Therefore, when the Hotri priest recites these two hymns on the sixth day, it leads to an un- derstanding of the sacrifice and of the life in heaven. When the Angiras' were going to heaven they said, " All these great riches are thine, 0 Brah- man."* While he was putting them together, a man^ in dark dress came up from the north, and said, ' Tvro hjmns ascribed to Nablianedislitha, occur in the Rig- veda, Mandala, x. 5. 1. & 2. ' These words are taken from the second hymn of Nabha- nedisb^ha. s The text is IpT^ 'SfTOPr H^lrff^fHl but the commentator says, it is to be understood of a thousand cows or animals, left on the spot of the sacrifice^ and that in a different iSakha of this Brah- mana the text is ^ ^^ ^5^% ^WV ^ THTt ^H^ ^- * The commentator says, that this is Rudra, the lord of animal^ and that this is clearly indicated in a different Sakha, where the text is ?f M94f^f|<d ^mRT^ ^ SHI^f^fdll BHAHMANAS. 425 ^ This is mine, mine is what is left on the sacred spot.' N&bhflnedishtha replied, *They gave it to me/ The man said, *Then let us ask thy father about it.' He went to his father, and the father said, * Have they giv^n thee nothing, my son ?' N&bhd.ne dishtha replied, * They gave me a portion, but then a man in dark dress came up from the north, and said, " This is mine ; mine is what is left on the sacred spot," and took it.' The father said, ^ It belongs to him, in- deed, my son, but he will give it to thee.' There- upon N&bh&nedishtha went back and said, ^ This is thine indeed, 0 reverend sir ; thus spoke my father.' *Thi8 I give to thee,' replied the man, *who hast spoken the truth. Therefore the truth must be spoken by a man who knows it. These verses of N&bh&nedishtha give great riches. They give great riches ; and he understands on the sixth day the life in heaven who knows this.' " The next extract is taken from the Satapatha- brfthmana, i. 8. 1. 1. (Prap. vi. 3. 1.): — " To Manu they brought in the morning water to wash. As they bring it with their hands for the washing, a fish comes into the hands of Manu as soon as he has washed himself. He spoke to Manu the word : — * Keep me, I shall preserve thee.' Manu said, *From what wilt thou preserve me?' The fish said, *The flood will carry away all these creatures. I shall preserve thee from it.' * How canst thou be kept ?' said Manu. The fish replied, ^ As long as we are small there is much destruction for us ; fish swallows fish. First, then, thou must keep me in a jar.