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The Satapatha Brahmana: Eighth Kânda, Third Adhyâya
The third layer.
First Brâhmana
1. He lays down the third layer. For the gods, having laid down the second layer, now ascended it; but, indeed, they thereby completed and ascended to what is above the earth and below the atmosphere.
2. They spate, 'Meditate ye!' whereby, indeed, they meant to say, 'Seek ye a layer! Seek ye (to build) upwards from hence!' Whilst meditating, they saw the great third layer, even the air: that world pleased them.
3. They said to Indra and Agni, 'Lay ye down for us this third layer!'--'What will accrue unto us therefrom? Ye two shall be the best of us!'--'So be it!' Accordingly Indra and Agni laid down for them that third layer; and hence people say, 'Indra and Agni are the best of gods.'
4. He accordingly lays it down by means of Indra and Agni, and settles it by means of Visvakarman1, for indeed Indra and Agni, as well as Visvakarman, saw this third layer: this is why he lays it down by means of Indra and Agni, and settles it by means of Visvakarman.
5. And, again, as to why he lays it down by means of Indra and Agni, and settles it by means of Visvakarman. When Pragâpati had become relaxed (disjointed), the deities took him and went off in different directions. Indra and Agni, and Visvakarman took his middle part, and kept going away from him.
6. He said to them, 'Come ye to me and restore ye to me wherewith ye are going from me!'--'What will accrue unto us therefrom?'--'That (part) of my body shall be sacred unto you!'--'So be it!' So Indra and Agni, and Visvakarman restored that (part) unto him.
7. Now that central Svayam-âtrinnâ (naturally-perforated brick)2 is that very (part) of his body;--when he now lays down that (brick), he thereby restores to him that (part) of his (Pragâpati's) body which this (brick represents): this is why he now lays down that (brick).
8. [Vâg. S. XIV, 11], 'O Indra and Agni, make ye fast the brick so as not to shake!' as the text so the sense;--'with thy back thou forcest asunder the earth, and the sky, and the air;' for with its back this (brick) indeed forces asunder the earth, and the sky, and the air.
9. [Vâg. S. XIV, 12], 'May Visvakarman settle thee,' for Visvakarman saw this third layer;--'on the back of the air, thee the wide, the broad one!' for this (brick) indeed is the wide and broad back of the air;--'support thou the air, make fast the air, injure not the air!' that is, 'support thou thine own self (body), make fast thine own self, injure not thine own self!'
10. 'For all up-breathing, and dawn-breathing, and through-breathing, and out-breathing!' for the naturally-perforated (brick) is the vital air, and the vital air serves for everything here;--'for a resting-place and moving-place!' for the naturally-perforated (brick) is these worlds, and these worlds are indeed a resting-place and a moving-place;--'May Vâyu shelter thee!' that is, 'May Vâyu protect thee!'--'with grand prosperity!' that is, 'with great prosperity;'--'with most auspicious protection!'--that is, with what protection is most auspicious.' Having settled it3, he pronounces the Sûdadohas4 over it; the meaning of this has been explained. He then sings a sâman: the meaning of this (will be explained) further on5.
11. He then lays down (five) Disyâ (regional bricks)6. Now the regional ones, doubtless, are the regions: it is the regions he thus bestows (on the air-world). And these are those same regions not separated (from the air) wherewith Vâyu on that occasion7 stepped nigh: it is them he thereby bestows. But prior to these same (bricks) he lays down8 both the bunch of Darbha grass and the clod-bricks; and these (disyâs) being yonder sun9, he thus places yonder sun over the regions, and builds him up upon (or, in) the regions. But were these (laid down) at the same time (as the bunch of grass and the clod-bricks), they would be outside (of the altar); and outside of the womb (foundation), indeed, is that sacrificial work regarding the fire-altar which is done prior to the lotus-leaf10. When he now brings and lays down these (bricks), he thereby establishes them in the womb, on the lotus-leaf, and thus these (bricks) are not outside (the fire-altar). He lays them down so as not to be separated11 from the naturally-perforated one; for the middle12 naturally-perforated one is the air: he thus places the regions so as not to be separate from the air. Subsequently13 (to the central brick he lays them down): subsequently to the air he thus sets up the regions. In all (four) directions he places them: he thus places the regions (quarters) in all directions, whence the regions are in all (four) directions. [He places them] on all sides so as to face each other: he thereby makes the regions on all sides face each other, and hence the regions on all sides face each other14.
12. And, again, as to why he lays down the regionals. The regions, doubtless, are the metres--the eastern region being the Gâyatrî, the southern the Trishtubh, the western the Gagatî, the northern the Anushtubh, and the upper region the Paṅkti;--and the metres are animals15, and the middlemost layer is the air: he thus places animals in the air, and hence there are animals that have their abode in the air16.
13. And, again, as to why he lays down the regionals. The regions, doubtless, are the metres, and the metres are animals, and animals are food, and the middlemost layer is the middle: he thus puts food in the middle (of the body). He places them so as not to be separated (by special bricks) from the naturally-perforated one; for the naturally-perforated one is the vital air: he thus places the food so as not to be separated from the vital air. Subsequently (to the central brick he lays them down): subsequently to (or upon) the vital air he thus places food. On the range of the Retahsik (he places them): the Retahsik being the ribs, and the ribs being the middle (of the body), he thus places the food in the middle of this (Agni's body). On every side he places them: from everywhere he thus supplies him with food.
14. [He lays them down, with, Vâg. S. XIV, 13], 'Thou art the queen, the Eastern region! Thou art the far-ruler, the Southern region! Thou art the all-ruler, the Western region! Thou art the self-ruler, the Northern region! Thou art the supreme ruler, the Great region!' these are their names: he thus lays them down whilst naming them. Separately he lays them down, separately he settles them, and separately he pronounces the Sûdadohas over them, for separate are the regions.
Second Brâhmana
1. He then lays down a Visvagyotis (all-light brick). Now the middle Visvagyotis is Vâyu17, for Vâyu (the wind) is all the light in the air-world: it is Vâyu he thus places therein. He places it so as not to be separated from the regional (bricks): he thus places Vâyu in the regions, and hence there is wind in all the regions.
2. And, again, as to why he lays down the Visvagyotis,--the Visvagyotis, doubtless, is offspring (or creatures), for offspring indeed is all the light: he thus lays generative power (into that world). He places it so as not to be separated from the regional ones18: he thus places creatures in the regions, and hence there are creatures in all the regions.
3. [He lays it down, with, Vâg. S. XIV, 14], 'May Visvakarman settle thee!' for Visvakarman saw this third layer19;--'on the back of the air, thee the brilliant one!' for on the back of the air that brilliant Vâyu indeed is.
4. 'For all up-breathing, down-breathing, through-breathing,'--for the Visvagyotis is breath, and breath indeed is (necessary) for this entire universe;--'give all the light!'--that is, 'give the whole light;'--'Vâyu is thine over-lord,'--it is Vâyu he thus makes the over-lord of that (layer and the air-world). Having settled it, he pronounces the Sûdadohas over it: the significance of this has been explained.
5. He then lays down two Ritavyâ (seasonal20 bricks);--the two seasonal ones being the same as the seasons, it is the seasons he thus places therein.[Vâg. S. XIV, 15], 'Nabha and Nabhasya, the two rainy seasons,' these are the names of those two (bricks): it is by their names he thus lays them down. There are two (such) bricks, for a season consists of two months. He settles them once only: he thereby makes (the two months) one season. He places them on avakâ-plants and covers them with avakâ-plants21; for avakâ-plants mean water he thus bestows water on that season, whence it rains most abundantly in that season.
6. Then the two upper ones, with (Vâg. S. XIV, I6), 'Isha and Ûrga, the two autumnal seasons,'--these are the names of those two (bricks): it is by their names he thus lays them down. There are two (such) bricks, for a season consists of two months. He settles them only once: he thereby makes (the two months) one season. He places them on avakâ-plants, for the avakâ-plants mean water: he thus bestows water before that season, whence it rains before that season. He does not cover them afterwards, whence it does not likewise rain after (that season).
7. And as to why he places these (four bricks) in this (layer),--this fire-altar is the year, and the year is the same as these worlds, and the middlemost layer is the air (-world) thereof; and the rainy season and autumn are the air (-world) thereof: hence when he places them in this (layer), he thereby restores to him (Agni) what (part) of his body these (formed),--this is why he places them in this (layer).
8. And, again, as to why he places them in this (layer),--this Agni (the fire-altar) is Pragâpati, and Pragâpati is the year. Now the middlemost layer is the middle of this (altar), and the rainy season and the autumn are the middle of that (year): hence when he places them in this (layer), he thereby restores to him (Agni-Pragâpati) what part of his body these (formed),--this is why he places them in this (layer).
9. There are here four seasonal (bricks) he lays down in the middlemost layer; and two in each of the other layers,--animals (cattle) are four-footed, and the middlemost layer is the air: he thus places animals in the air, and hence there are animals that have their abode in the air.
10. And, again, why there are four,--animals are four-footed, and animals are food; and the middle-most layer is the middle (of Agni's body): he thus puts food in the middle.
11. And, again, why there are four,--'antariksha' (air) consists of four syllables, and the other layers (kiti) consist of two syllables; hence as much as the air consists of, so much he makes it in laying it down.
12. And, again, why there are four,--this Agni (altar), doubtless, is an animal: he thus makes the animal biggest towards the middle; whence an animal is biggest towards the middle.
13. There are here four Ritavyâs, the Visvagyotis being the fifth, and five Disyâs,--this makes ten: the Virâg consists of ten syllables, and the Virâg is food, and the middlemost layer is the middle;--he thus puts food in the middle (of the body). He lays them down so as not to be separated from the naturally-perforated one22, for the naturally-perforated one is the vital air: he thus places the food so as not to be separated from the vital air. Subsequently (to the central brick) he lays them down: subsequently to (or upon) the vital air he thus places food.
14. He then lays down the Prânabhrit23 (bricks);--the Prânabhrits (breath-holders), doubtless, are the vital airs: it is the vital airs he thus lays into (Agni's body). There are ten of them, for there are ten vital airs. He places them in the forepart (of the altar),--for there are these vital airs in front,--with (Vâg. S. XIV, 17), 'Protect my vital strength! protect mine up-breathing! protect my down-breathing! protect my through-breathing! protect mine eye! protect mine ear! increase my speech! animate my mind! protect my soul (or body)! give me light!'--He lays them down so as not to be separated from the seasonal ones, for the vital air is wind: he thus establishes the wind in the seasons.
Third Brâhmana
1. He then lays down the Khandasyâ24 (metres’ bricks). Now the metres are cattle, and the middle-most layer is the air: he thus places cattle in the air, whence cattle have their abode in the air.
2. And, again, as to why he lays down Khandasyâs,--the metres are cattle, and cattle are food, and the middlemost layer is the middle (of Agni, the altar): he thus places food in the middle (of Agni's body).
3. He lays them down by twelves,--for the Gagatî consists of twelve syllables, and the Gagatî is cattle, and the middlemost layer is the air: he thus places cattle in the air, whence cattle have their abode in the air.
4. And, again, why (he lays them down) by twelves,--the Gagatî consists of twelve syllables, and the Gagatî is cattle, and cattle is food, and the middlemost layer is the middle: he thus places food in the middle. He places them so as not to be separated from the Prânabhrits: he thus places the food so as not to be separated from the vital airs subsequently (to them he places them): he thus bestows food after (bestowing) the vital airs.
5. [He lays down the right set, with, Vâg. S. XIV, 18], 'The metre Measure;'--the measure (mâ), doubtless, is this (terrestrial) world, for this world is, as it were, measured (mita);--'the metre Fore-measure!'--the fore-measure (pramâ), doubtless, is the air-world, for the air-world is, as it were, measured forward from this world;--'The metre Countermeasure,'--the counter-measure (pratimâ), doubtless, is yonder (heavenly) world, for yonder world is, as it were, counter-measured25 in the air;--'The metre Asrîvayas,'--'asrîvayas,' doubtless, is food: whatever food there is in these worlds that is 'asrîvayas.' Or, whatever food (anna) flows (sravati) from these worlds that is 'asrîvayas.' Hereafter, now, he puts down only defined metres.
6. 'The Paṅkti metre! the Ushnih metre! the Brihatî metre! the Anushtubh metre! the Virâg metre! the Gâyatrî metre! the Trishtubh metre! the Gagatî metre!' these eight defined metres, including the Virâg, he puts down.--[The back set, with, Vâg. S. XIV, 19], 'The metre Earth! the metre Air! the metre Heaven! the metre Years! the metre Stars! the metre Speech! the metre Mind! the metre Husbandry! the metre Gold! the metre Cow! the metre Goat! the metre Horse!' he thus puts down those metres which are sacred to those particular deities.--[The left set, with, Vâg. S. XIV, 20], 'The deity Fire! the deity Wind! the deity Sun! the deity Moon! the deity Vasavah! the deity Rudrâh! the deity Âdityâh! the deity Marutah! the deity Visve Devâh! the deity Brihaspati! the deity Indra! the deity Varuna!'--these deities, doubtless, are metres: it is these he thus lays down.
7. He lays down both defined and undefined (metres). Were he to lay down such as are all defined, then the food would have an end, it would fail; and (were he to lay down) such as are all undefined, then the food would be invisible, and one would not see it at all. He lays down both defined and undefined ones: hence the defined (certain) food which is eaten does not fail.
8. These then are those (sets of) twelve he lays down,--that makes thirty-six, and the Brihatî consists of thirty-six syllables: this is that same Brihatî, the air, which the gods then saw as a third layer. In that (brihatî set of bricks) the gods come last (or, are highest).
9. And, again, as to why he lays down these bricks. When Pragâpati became relaxed, all living beings went from him in all directions.
10. Now that same Pragâpati who became relaxed is this very Agni (fire-altar) that is now being built up; and those living beings which went from him are these bricks: hence when he lays down these (bricks), he thereby puts back into him (Pragâpati-Agni) those same living beings which went from him.
11. Now when he first lays down ten (Prânabhrits), they are the moon. There are ten of these,--the Virâg; consists of ten syllables, and the Virâg is food, and the moon is food. And when subsequently he lays down thirty-six (Khandasyâs), they are the half-months and months--twenty-four half-months and twelve months: the moon, doubtless, is the year, and all living beings.
12. And when the gods restored him (Pragâpati-Agni), they put all those living beings inside him, and in like manner does this one now put them therein. He lays them down so as not to be separated from the seasonal (bricks): he thus establishes all living beings in the seasons.
Fourth Brâhmana
1. He then lays down the Vâlakhilyâs;--the Vâlakhilyâs, doubtless, are the vital airs: it is the vital airs he thus lays (into Agni). And as to why they are called Vâlakhilyâs,--what (unploughed piece of ground lies) between two cultivated fields is called 'khila;' and these (channels of the) vital airs26 are separated from each other by the width of a horsehair (vâla), and because they are separated from each other by the width of a horse-hair, they (the bricks) are called Vâlakhilyâs.
2. He places seven in front, and seven at the back. When he places seven in front, he thereby restores to him those seven (organs of the) vital airs here in front.
3. And those seven which (he places) behind he thereby makes the counter-breathings to those (first breathings); and hence by means of (the channels of) these breathings he passes over the food which he eats with those (other) breathings.
4. And, again, as to why he places seven in front,--there are seven (channels of the) vital airs here in the front part (of the animal)27--the four upper and lower parts of the fore-feet, the head, the neck, and what is above the navel that is the sixth, for in each limb there is a vital air: this makes seven vital airs here in front; it is them he thus lays into him (Agni-Pragâpati).
5. And as to what seven (bricks) he places behind,--there are seven vital airs here in the back part--the four thighs and knee-bones, the two feet, and what is below the navel that is the seventh, for in each limb there is a vital air: this makes seven vital airs here at the back; it is them he thus lays into him.
6. [He lays them down, with, Vâg. S. XIV, 21,22], 'The head thou art, the ruler! steady thou art, steadfast! a holder thou art, a hold!'--'A guider, a ruler! a guider thou art, a guide! steady thou art, a steadier!' he truly bestows steady vital airs unto him.
7. And, again, as to why he lays down the Vâlakhilyâs,--it was by means of the Vâlakhilyâs that the gods then ranged over these worlds, both from hence upwards and from yonder downwards; and in like manner does the sacrifice now, by means of the Vâlakhilyâs, range over these worlds, both from hence upwards and from yonder downwards.
8. By 'The head thou art, the ruler!' they stepped on this (terrestrial) world; by 'Steady thou art, steadfast!' on the air-world; by 'A holder thou art, a hold!' on that (heavenly) world.--'For life-strength (I bestow) thee! for vigour thee! for husbandry thee! for prosperity thee!' There are four (kinds of) four-footed (domestic) animals, and (domestic) animals are food: by means of this food, these four four-footed animals, they (the gods) established themselves in yonder world; and in like manner does the Sacrificer now by means of this food, these four four-footed animals, establish himself in yonder world.
9. That was, as it were, an ascent away from hence; but this (earth) is a foothold: the gods came back to this foothold; and in like manner does the Sacrificer now come back to this foothold.
10. By 'A guider, a ruler!' they stepped on that (heavenly) world; by 'A guider thou art, a guide!' on the air-world; by 'Steady thou art, a steadier!' on this (terrestrial) world.--'For sap (I bestow) thee! for strength thee! for wealth thee! for thrift thee!'--There are four four-footed (domestic) animals, and (domestic) animals are food: by means of this food, these four four-footed animals, they (the gods) established themselves in this world; and in like manner does the Sacrificer, by means of this food, these four four-footed animals, establish himself in this world.
11. Now as to the restoration (of Pragâpati-Agni). Those eleven bricks he lays down28, which (constitute) that first anuvâka29, are the air and this body (of Agni, the altar). And as to why there are eleven of these, it is because the Trishtubh consists of eleven syllables, and the air is of the trishtubh nature. And the sixty subsequent (bricks) are Vâyu, Pragâpati, Agni, the Sacrificer.
12. Those which he places in front are his head: there are ten30 of them, because there are ten vital airs, and the head is (the focus of) the vital airs. He places them in front, because the head (of an animal) is here in front.
13. And those which he places on the right (south) side are that (part) of him which is above the waist and below the head. And those at the back are that (part) of him which is above the feet and below the waist. Those on the left (north) side are the feet themselves.
14. And the seven (Vâlakhilyâs) which he places in front are these seven vital airs here in the forepart (of an animal): it is these he thus puts into him (Agni). He places them so as not to he separated from those ten (Prânabhrits): he thereby puts in vital airs that are not separate from the head.
15. And the seven he places at the back (of the altar) are those seven vital airs behind: it is these he thereby puts into him. He places them so as not to be separated from those twelve (Khandasyâs): he thereby puts into him vital airs that are not separate from the body. That same Vâyu-Pragâpati is turned round in all directions in this trishtubh-like air; and when he lays down the third layer, having made up both Vâyu (the wind) and the air, he thereby adds them to himself. He then puts down two Lokamprinâ (space-filling bricks) in that corner31: the significance of them (will be explained) further on32. He throws loose earth (on the layer): the significance of this (will be explained) further on33.
Footnotes
1. For the connection of these deities with the third layer, and the air, see also VI, 2, 3, 3. Visvakarman is likewise the deity by which the Visvagyotis-brick, representing Vâyu (the wind), the regent of the air-world, is settled; see VIII, 3, 2, 3.
2. See part iii, p. 155, note 8.
3. Viz. by the concluding formula, 'With the help of that deity, Aṅgiras-like, lie thou steady!' see part iii, p. 302, note 3.
4. Viz. Vâg. S. XII, 55 (Rig-veda S. VIII, 69, 3), 'At his birth the well-like milking, speckled ones mix the Soma, the clans of the gods in the three spheres of the heavens.' See part iii, p. 307, note 2.
5. VIII, 7, 4, 1 seq.
6. The five Disyâs are placed on the spines in the four directions at the retahsik range, just over where the five Vaisvadevî bricks were placed in the second layer (see the sketch, p. 24). Between them and the central (naturally-perforated) brick there is thus an empty space a foot square, and the two southern Disyâs are half-bricks lying north and south of each other.
7. See VI, 2, 3, 4. The second naturally-perforated brick represents the air-world with which Vâyu, the wind, is most closely associated.
8. That is to say, he laid them down on the site of the altar, before the first layer was commenced, viz. the darbha-bunch in the centre of the 'body' of the altar, where the two spines (anûka) intersect each other (VII, 2, 3, 1 seqq.); and the clod-bricks (logeshtakâ) on the four ends of the two spines (VII, 3, 1, 23 seqq.), that is, in the middle of each of the four sides of the square of which the body' consists.
9. The symbolic interpretation here seems somewhat confused, inasmuch as the Disyâs, which are now apparently identified with the sun, have just been stated to represent the regions. At VI, 7, 1, 17 the sun was represented as the central point of the universe to which these three worlds are linked by means of the quarters (as by the strings of a scale). The clod-bricks, on the other hand, were indeed, in VII, 3, I, 13, identified with the regions (quarters); and the bunch of grass, being laid down in the centre, might be regarded as marking the fifth region, that upwards from here. Cf. IX, 5, 1, 36.
10. The lotus-leaf is placed in the centre of the altar when the first layer is about to be laid down. See VII, 4, 1, 7 seqq., where it is explained as representing the foundation of the fire-altar, or rather, the womb whence Agni is born.
11. That is, not separated therefrom by other special bricks; though the full space of one brick is left between the Disyâs and the central brick. Perhaps, however, 'anantarhita' here means 'immediately after.'
12. That is, the second of the three svayam-âtrinnâs, the one in the third layer.
13. Uttara seems here and elsewhere to have a double meaning, viz. that of subsequent, and upper, or left, inasmuch as looking towards these bricks from the centre of the altar, they are placed to the left of the particular section of the anûkas.
14. See p. 26, note 3.
15. The metres are commonly represented as cattle.
16. That is all (four-footed) animals that dwell on, not in, the earth. The Gâyatrî metre, at any rate, is also represented as a bird which fetches the Soma from heaven, but it is not the air as such that is intended here, but the face of the earth.
17. The three Visvagyotis bricks, placed in (the fourth easterly place from the centre of) the first, third and fifth layer respectively, are supposed to represent the regents of the three worlds--earth, air and sky--which these three layers represent, viz. Agni, Vâyu and Âditya (Sûrya). See VI, 3, 3, 16.
18. Though, properly speaking, the Visvagyotis lies close to only one of the Disyâs, viz. the eastern one, it may at any rate be said to lie close to the range of the Disyâs. Here, too, the sense 'immediately after, not separated from them in respect of time,' would suit even better.
19. See VIII, 3, 1, 4 with note.
20. 
The central part of the third layer.
These two Ritavyâs are placed beside (east of) the Visvagyotis, one north of the other, just over those of the first and second layers, that is to say, in the fifth space from the centre. In the present case, however, these bricks are only of half the usual thickness; two others, of similar size; being placed upon them.
21. As in the case of the live tortoise, in the first layer; see VII, 5, 1, 11 with note--'Blyxa octandra, a grassy plant growing in marshy land ("lotus-flower," Weber, Ind. Stud. XIII, p. 250).
22. That is to say, the three sets of bricks are not separated by any others from the Svayamâtrinnâ.
23. The ten Prânabhrits are placed--five on each side of the spine--either along the edge of the altar, or so as to leave the space of one foot between them and the edge, to afford room for another set of bricks, the Vâlakhilyâs.
24. The thirty-six Khandasyâ bricks are laid down, in three sets of twelve each, along the edge of the body of the altar where the two wings and the tail join it; six bricks being placed on each side of the respective spine. At the back the bricks are not, however, placed close to the edge separating the body from the tail, but sufficient space is left (a foot wide) for another set of bricks to be laid down behind the Khandasyâs.
25. That is, made a counterfeit, or copy, of the earth.
26. Or, these bricks representing the vital airs.
27. Or, in the upper part of man.
28. That is to say, the first eleven bricks of the third layer, viz. one svayamâtrinnâ, four disyâs, one visvagyotis, and four ritavyâs.
29. The formulas used with these bricks, Vâg. S. XIV, 11-16, constitute the first anuvâka of the texts relating to the third layer (XIV, II-22).
30. Viz. ten Prânabhrits, see VIII, 3, 2, 14.
31. Whilst, in laying down the Lokamprinâs of the first and second layers, he started from the south-east and south-west corners respectively, in the third layer he starts from the left hip (or north-west corner) of the altar, filling up the available spaces in two turns, in sunwise fashion. Cf. p. 22, note 1; and p. 41, note 1.
32. See VIII, 7, 2, 4 seq.
33. See VIII, 7, 3, 1 seq.
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