Philosophy and Religion / Satapatha Brahmana

The Satapatha Brahmana: Thirteenth Kânda, Sixth Adhyâya

First Brâhmana

The Purushamedha, or human sacrifice.

1. Purusha Nârâyana desired, 'Would that I overpassed all beings! would that I alone were everything here (this universe)!' He beheld this five-days’ sacrificial performance, the Purushamedha, and took it¹, and performed offering therewith; and having performed offering therewith, he overpassed all beings, and became everything here. And, verily, he who, knowing this, performs the Purushamedha, or who even knows this, overpasses all beings, and becomes everything here.

2. For this (offering) there are twenty-three Dîkshâs, twelve Upasads, and five Sutyâs (Soma-days). This, then, being a forty-days’ (performance), including the Dîkshâs and Upasads, amounts to a Virâg², for the Virâg consists of forty syllables: [Vâg. S. XXXI, 5.] 'Thence ³ Virâg (f.) was born, and from out of Virâg the Pûrusha.' This, then, is that Virâg, and from out of that Virâg he (the Sacrificer) generates the Purusha, the Sacrifice.

3. Now these (forty days) are four decades; and as to there being these four decades, it is for the obtainment of these worlds, as well as of the regions: by the first decade they⁴ obtained even this (terrestrial) world, by the second the air, by the third the sky, and by the fourth the regions (quarters); and in like manner does the Sacrificer, by the first decade, obtain even this (terrestrial) world, by the second the air, by the third the sky, and by the fourth the regions--and, indeed, as much as these worlds and the regions are, so much is all this (universe); and the Purushamedha is everything: thus it is for the sake of his obtaining and securing everything.

4. On the Upavasatha⁵ (day) there are eleven victims sacred to Agni and Soma: the performance for these is one and the same. There are eleven stakes,--the Trishtubh (verse) consists of eleven syllables, and the Trishtubh is a thunderbolt, and the Trishtubh is vigour: with the thunderbolt, with vigour, the Sacrificer thus from the first repels evil.

5. On the Sutyâ (days) there are the (Savanîya) victims of the set of eleven⁶ (stakes),--the Trishtubh consists of eleven syllables, and the Trishtubh is a thunderbolt, and the Trishtubh is vigour: with the thunderbolt, with vigour, the Sacrificer thus from the first repels evil.

6. And, again, as to why there are (the victims) of the set of eleven (stakes): it is for the sake of his obtaining and securing everything, for the set of eleven (stakes) is everything, since the set of eleven (stakes) is Pragâpati, and Pragâpati is everything, and the Purushamedha is everything.

7. Now this Purushamedha is a five-days’ sacrificial performance--the sacrifice is fivefold, the victim is fivefold, and five seasons are a year: whatsoever of five kinds there is, either concerning the deity or the self (body), all that he thereby obtains.

8. The first day thereof is an Agnishtoma; then (follows) an Ukthya, then an Atirâtra, then an Ukthya, then an Agnishtoma: this (sacrifice) thus has light (gyotis⁷) on both sides, and an Ukthya on both sides (of the central Atirâtra).

9. It is a five-days’ (sacrifice), like a barley-corn in the middle⁸; for the Purushamedha is these worlds, and these worlds have light on both sides--through Agni (the sacrificial fire) on this side, and through Âditya (the Sun) on the other: therefore it has light on both sides. And the Ukthya is food, and the Atirâtra the body (self); and because there are these Ukthyas on both sides of the Atirâtra, therefore this body is surrounded by food. And that Atirâtra which is the largest of them is in. the middle, it is thereby that it (the body, or sacrifice) is like a barley-corn (yava) in the middle; and, verily, whosoever knows this repels (yu) his hateful enemy: 'He alone exists, not his hateful enemy,' thus they say of him.

10. The first day is for it this same (terrestrial) world, and the spring season⁹ also is this its (terrestrial) world; and the second day is what there is above this (terrestrial) world and below the air, and the summer season also is that (part) of it; and the central day is its air, and the rainy and autumn seasons also are its air; and the fourth day is what is above the air, and below the sky, and the winter season also is that (part) of it; and its fifth day is the sky, and the dewy season also is its sky: thus as to the deities.

11. Then as to the body¹⁰. The first day is its feet, and the spring season also is its feet; and the second day is what is above the feet, and below the waist, and the summer season also is that (part) of it; and the central day is its waist, and the rainy and autumn seasons also are its waist; the fourth day is what is above the waist and below the head, and the winter season also is that (part) of it; and the fifth day is its head, and the dewy season also is its head:--thus these worlds, as well as the year and the (sacrificer's) self, pass into the Purushamedha for the obtainment and securing of everything, for, indeed, these worlds are everything, and the year is everything, and the self is everything, and the Purushamedha is everything.

Second Brâhmana

1. And as to why it is called Purushamedha:--The stronghold (pur) doubtless is these worlds, and the Purusha (spirit) is he that blows here (the wind), he bides (sî) in this stronghold (pur): hence he is the Purusha. And whatever food there is in these worlds that is its 'medha,' its food; and inasmuch as this is its 'medha,' its food, therefore (it is called) Purushamedha. And inasmuch as at this (sacrifice) he seizes¹¹ men (purusha) meet for sacrifice (medhya), therefore also it is called Purushamedha.

2. He seizes them on the central day, for the central day is the air, and the air is the abode of all beings; and, indeed, these victims are also food, and the central day is the belly: he thus puts food in the belly.

3. He seizes them by decades¹² for the obtainment of all food, for the Virâg consists of ten syllables, and the Virâg is all food¹³.

4. Eleven decades¹⁴ he seizes;--the Trishtubh consists of eleven syllables, and the Trishtubh is the thunderbolt, and vigour: with the thunderbolt, with vigour, the Sacrificer thus repels evil from within him.

5. Forty-eight he seizes at the central stake;--the Gagatî consists of forty-eight syllables, and cattle are of Gâgata (movable) nature: by means of the Gagatî he (the priest) secures cattle for him.

6. Eleven at each of the others;--the Trishtubh consists of eleven syllables, and the Trishtubh is the thunderbolt, and vigour: with the thunderbolt, with vigour, the Sacrificer thus repels evil from about him.

7. Last of all he seizes eight;--the Gâyatrî consists of eight syllables, and the Gâyatrî is the Brahman (n.): he thus makes the Brahman to be the ultimate thing of this universe, whence they say that the Brahman is the ultimate thing of this universe.

8. These (eight) are sacred to Pragâpati, Pragâpati assuredly is the Brahman, for Pragâpati is of the nature of the Brahman¹⁵: therefore they are sacred to Pragâpati.

9. When about to bring up the victims, he offers those three oblations to Savitri, with (Vâg. S. XXX, 1-3), 'God Savitri, (speed the sacrifice, speed the lord of sacrifice unto his share)!'--'May we obtain that glorious light of the God Savitri, (who shall inspire our prayers)!'--'All troubles remove thou from us, O God Savitri: bestow unto us what is auspicious!' He thus pleases Savitri, and thus pleased with him, he (Savitri) impels (speeds) those (sacrificial) men, and he seizes them impelled by that (Savitri).

10. For the priesthood he seizes a Brâhmana, for the Brâhmana is the priesthood: he thus joins priesthood to priesthood¹⁶;--for the nobility he seizes a Râganya, for the Râganya is the nobility: he thus joins nobility to nobility;--for the Maruts (he seizes) a Vaisya, for the Maruts are the clans (peasants): he thus joins peasantry to peasantry;-- for (religious) toil (he seizes) a Sûdra, for the Sûdra is toil: he thus joins toil to toil;--according to their particular form he thus supplies these divinities with victims, and, thus supplied, they supply him with all his objects of desire.

11. He makes offering with ghee, for ghee is fiery mettle: by means of fiery mettle he thus endows him (the Sacrificer) with fiery mettle. He makes offering with ghee, for that--to wit, ghee--is the dear resource of the gods: he thus supplies them with their dear resource, and, thus supplied, they supply him with all his objects of desire.

12. By means of the Purusha Nârâyana (litany), the Brahman priest (seated) to the right (south) of them, praises the men bound (to the stakes) with this sixteen-versed (hymn, Rig-v. X, 90, Vâg. S. XXXI, 1-16), 'The thousand-headed Purusha, thousand-eyed, thousand-footed¹⁷ . . .;'--thus (he does) for the obtainment and the securing of everything, for everything here consists of sixteen parts, and the Purushamedha is everything: in thus saying, 'So and so thou art, so and so thou art,' he praises and thereby indeed magnifies him (Purusha); but he also thereby speaks of him, such as he is. Now, the victims had had the fire carried round them, but they were not yet slaughtered,--

13. Then a voice¹⁸ said to him, 'Purusha, do not consummate (these human victims¹⁹): if thou wert to consummate them, man (purusha) would eat man.' Accordingly, as soon as fire had been carried round them, he set them free, and offered oblations to the same divinities²⁰, and thereby gratified those divinities, and, thus gratified, they, gratified him with all objects of desire.

14. He makes offering with ghee, for ghee is fiery mettle: with fiery mettle he thus bestows fiery mettle upon him.

15. He concludes with those of the set of eleven (stakes),--the Trishtubh consists of eleven syllables, and the Trishtubh is the thunderbolt, and vigour: with the thunderbolt, with vigour, the Sacrificer thus repels evil from within.

16. The Udayanîyâ (concluding oblation) having been completed, he seizes eleven barren cows, sacred to Mitra-Varuna, the Visve Devâh, and Brihaspati²¹, with the view of winning these deities. And as to those of Brihaspati being last,--Brihaspati truly is the Brahman (n.), and thus he finally establishes himself in the Brahman.

17. And as to why there are eleven of them,--the Trishtubh consists of eleven syllables, and the Trishtubh is the thunderbolt, and vigour: with the thunderbolt, with vigour, the Sacrificer thus repels evil from within. The Traidhâtavî is the final offering (Udavasânîyâ): the mystic import is the same (as before²²).

18. Now as to the sacrificial fees. What there is towards the middle of the kingdom other than the land and the property of the Brâhmana, but including the men, of that the eastern quarter belongs to the Hotri, the southern to the Brahman, the western to the Adhvaryu, and the northern to the Udgâtri; and the Hotrikas share this along with them.

19. And if a Brâhmana performs the sacrifice, he should bestow all his property in order to obtain and secure everything, for the Brâhmana is everything, and all one's property is everything, and the Purushamedha is everything.

20. And having taken up the two fires within his own self²³, and worshipped the sun with the Uttara-Nârâyana (litany, viz. Vâg. S. XXXI, 17-22), let him betake himself to the forest without looking round; and that (place), indeed, is apart from men. But should he wish to live in the village, let him take up again the two fires in the churning-sticks, and having worshipped the sun with the Uttara-Nârâyana (litany) let him dwell at his home, and let him offer such sacrifices as he may be able to afford. But, indeed, this (sacrifice) is not to be imparted to any and every one, lest one should impart everything to any and every one, for the Purushamedha is everything; but one may only impart it to one who is known to him, and who is versed in sacred writ, and who may be dear to him, but not to any and every one.

The (symbolical) victims of the Purushamedha.²⁴

I. 1. To the priesthood (he consecrates) a Brâhmana--2. To the nobility a Kshatriya--3. To the Maruts a Vaisya--4. To penance (hardship, tapas) a Sidra--5. To darkness a thief--6. To hell a man-slayer--7. To evil a eunuch--8. To barter an unchaste woman (ayobhû²⁵)--9. To desire a harlot (pumskalû)--10. To the shriek (atikrushta) a minstrel (mâgadha)--11. To dancing a herald (bard, sûta)--12. To singing an actor (sailûsha)--13. To the law a counsellor (sabhâkara)--14. To joking a timorous man--15. To fun (narma) a chatterer--16. To laughter (hasa) an artizan (kâri,? singer of praises)--17. To pleasure (ânanda) a woman's friend--18. To enjoyment a maiden's son--19. To skill a wheelwright--20. To perseverance a carpenter--21. To heat (tapas) a potter--22. To craft a mechanic--23. To handsome form a jeweller--24. To beauty a barber²⁶--25. To the arrow-shot an arrow-maker--26. To the weapon a bow-maker--27. To work a bowstring-maker--28. To fate a rope-maker--29. To death a huntsman--30. To the end (antaka) a dog-keeper--31. To rivers a fisherman (pauñgishtha)--32. To the ogress (of waste lands) a Nishâda²⁷--33. To the man-tiger (? werwolf) a mono-maniac--34. To the Gandharvas and Apsaras a roving outcast (vrâtya)--35. To the teams (? prayug) a madman--36. To serpents and demons a blockhead (? apratipad)--37. To dice a gambler--38. To impassibility²⁸ a non-gambler--39. To the devils (pisâkas) a female cane-worker (basket-maker)--40. To the hobgoblins (yâtudhâna) a female worker in thorns--41. To intercourse a gallant--42. To the house a paramour--43. To trouble an unmarried elder brother whose younger brother is married--44. To calamity a younger brother married before his elder brother--45. To failure²⁹ the husband of a younger sister whose elder sister is unmarried--46. To reparation an artiste in embroidery--47. To agreement a female practiser of love-spells--48. To garrulity (prakâmodya) an attendant.

II. 1. To colour a devoted adherent--2. To strength a giver of gifts--3. To excrescences³⁰ hunchback--4. To merriment a dwarf--5. To the doors a lame one³¹--6. To sleep a blind one--7. To injustice a deaf one--8. To the means of purification (? purging) a physician--9. To knowledge a star-gazer--10. To desire of learning one who asks questions--11. To the desire of adding to one's knowledge one given to ask questions about (everything).

III. 1. To the bounds (of land or propriety) an arbitrator--2. To ruins an elephant-keeper--3. To speed a groom--4. To thrift a cowherd--5. To vigour a shepherd--6. To fiery mettle a goatherd--7. To refreshment (? food) a cultivator of the soil--8. To the sweet beverage (? nectar) the distiller of liquor--9. To happiness the guardian of a house--10. To prosperity a possessor of wealth--11. To superintendence an assistant doorkeeper³².

IV. 1. To the light a gatherer of fire-wood--2: To brilliance a fire-kindler--3. To the sun's sphere a sprinkler (anointer of a king)--4. To the highest heaven a distributer (of portions)--5. To the world of the gods a carver (of portions)--6. To the world of men a scatterer (? seasoner³³)--7. To all the worlds a pourer out (of drink³⁴)--8. To decay and murder a churner³⁵--9. To the (animal) sacrifice (or, sacrificial essence) a washer-woman--10. To concupiscence a female dyer--11. To quarrelling one of a thievish disposition.

V. 1. To manslaughter an informer--2. To discrimination a doorkeeper--3. To oversight an assistant doorkeeper³⁶--4. To strength (cf. II, 2) an attendant--5. To plenty a servant--6. To the pleasant one speaking pleasantly--7. To security one mounted on a horse--8. To heaven (svarga loka) a dealer out of portions (cf. IV, 5)--9. To the highest heaven a distributer (of portions; cf. IV, 4)--10. To wrath one who makes iron red-hot--11. To anger an absconder (? a yielder, coward).

VI. 1. To application a yoker--2. To grief one ready to attack--3. To peaceful dwelling an unyoker--4. To up-hills and down-hills one standing on three legs (of firm character)--5. To bodily form a haughty one (?)--6. To virtue a woman who prepares unguents--7. To calamity (cf. I, 44) a woman who makes scabbards--8. To Yama (the god of death) a barren woman--9. To Yama³⁷ one who bears twins--10. To Atharvan one who has miscarried--11. To the samvatsara (the first year of the five years’ cycle) one in her courses.

VII. 1. To the parivatsara (the second year) tine who has not yet borne children--2. To the idâvatsara (the third year) one who transgresses (the matrimonial bonds)--3. To the idvatsara (the fourth year) one who oversteps (the bounds of propriety)--4. To the vatsara (the fifth year) one who is worn out--5. To the year a gray-haired one--6. To the Ribhus a furrier--7. To the Sâdhyas a tanner--8. To the lakes a fisherman (dhaivara)--9. To stagnant (waters) a boatsman--10. To pools a Bainda³⁸--11. To reed-marshes one living on dried meat (or fish).

VIII. 1. To the opposite bank a 'mârgâra³⁹'--2. To the near bank a fisherman (kevarta)--3. To shallows an Ânda⁴⁰--4. To uneven (? deep) places a fisher (mainâla)--5. To sounds (svana) a Parnaka⁴¹--6. To caverns a Kirâta (woodman)--7. To mountain-ridges a Gambhaka⁴²--8. To the mountains a Kimpurusha⁴³--9. To loathing a Paulkasa⁴⁴--10. To colour a worker in gold (cf. I, 23)--11. To the balance (pair of scales) a merchant.

IX. 1. To the latter part of the evening one exhausted--2. To all beings (spirits) a leper (sidhmala)--3. To good fortune a wakeful one--4. To ill-fortune a sleepy one--5. To trouble (cf. I, 43) a newsmonger--6. To adversity a spiritless one--7. To collapse a waster⁴⁵--8. To the king of dice a gambler (cf. I, 37)--9. To the Krita (-die) one who takes advantage of mistakes in the game⁴⁶--10. To the Tretâ (-die) one who plays on a (regular) plan⁴⁷--11. To the Dvâpara (-die) one who plans to over-reach⁴⁸ (his fellow-player).

X. 1. To the Âskanda⁴⁹ (-die) a post of the gaming-room⁵⁰--2. (cf. I, 29) one who 'approaches' a cow--3. To the end (antaka, cf. I, 30) a cow-slayer--4. To hunger one who goes begging of one cutting up a cow--5. To evil-doing a Karaka-teacher--6. To evil (cf. I, 7) a robber--7. To the echo a reviler--8. To the noise a growler--9. To the end (anta) a babbler--10. To the endless a dumb one--11. To articulate sound (sabda) a drum-beater.

XI. 1. To festive joy a lute-player--2. To the cry a flute-player--3. To the confused (noise) a conch-blower--4. To the forest a forester--5. To broken woodlands one who watches woods on fire--6. To fun (narma I, 15) a harlot (I, 9)--7. To laughter an artizan (I, 16)--8. To the sea-monster (?) a mottled woman⁵¹ (?)--9-11. To power a village-headman, an astrologer, and a herald (? abhikrosaka).

XII. (Added to those at the second post):--1-3. To dancing (I, 11) a lute-player (XI, I), a hand-clapper, and a flute-player (XI, 2)--4. To pleasure (I, 17) a musician--5. To fire a fat man--6. To the earth a cripple--7. To the wind a Kândâla (outcast)--8. To the air a staff-dancer⁵²--9. To the sky a bald-headed one-to. To the sun a yellow-eyed one-11. To the stars one of variegated colour--12. To the moon a leprous one (kilâsa, cf. IX, 2)--13. To the day a light-coloured one with yellow eyes--14. To the night a black one with yellow eyes.--He then seizes these eight misshapen ones--15. One who is too tall--16. One too short--17. One too stout--18. One too lean--19. One too light-coloured--20. One too black--21. One too bald--22. One with too much hair:--these (are to be) neither Sûdras nor Brâhmanas, and are sacred to Pragâpati;--23. A minstrel (mâgadha, I, 10)--24. A harlot (pumskalî, cf. I, 9)--25. A gambler (I, 37)--26. A eunuch (I, 7):--these (also are to be) neither Sûdras nor Brâhmanas, and are sacred to Pragâpati.

Footnotes

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE