२४

जितयो वै नामैता यदुपसदः ।

The Upasads are the goddesses of victory (jitayaḥ).

जितयो वै नामैता यदुपसदः ।

असपत्नां वा एताभिर्देवा विजितिं व्यजयन्त ।

For, by means of them, the gods gained a complete victory, destroying all their enemies.

असपत्नां वा एताभिर्देवा विजितिं व्यजयन्त ।

असपत्नां विजितिं विजयते य एवं वेद ।

He who has such a knowledge, gains a victory, destroying all his enemies.

असपत्नां विजितिं विजयते य एवं वेद ।

यां देवा एषु लोकेषु यामृतुषु याम्मासेषु यामर्धमासेषु यामहोरात्रयोर्विजितिं व्यजयन्त तां विजितिं विजयते य एवं वेद ।

All the victories which the gods gained in these (three) worlds, or in the Ṛitus (seasons), or in the months, or the half-months, or in day and night, will he (also) gain who has such a knowledge.

यां देवा एषु लोकेषु यामृतुषु याम्मासेषु यामर्धमासेषु यामहोरात्रयोर्विजितिं व्यजयन्त तां विजितिं विजयते य एवं वेद ।

ते देवा अबिभयुरस्माकं विप्रेमाणमन्विदमसुरा आभविष्यन्तीति ।

(*The Tânûnapatram[22] ceremony, or solemn oath taken by the priests.)

The Devas were afraid, surmising the Asuras might become aware of their being disunited, and seize their reign.

[22]The Tânûnaptram ceremony which is alluded to and commented on in this paragraph, is to take place immediately after the* Atithya isti* is finished, and not, as it might appear from this passage, after the Upasad. It is a solemn oath taken by the sacrificer and all the officiating priests pledging themselves mutually not to injure one another. It is chiefly considered as a safeguard for the sacrificer who is, as it were, entirely given up to the hands of the priests. They are believed to have the power of destroying him, or cheating him out of what he is sacrificing for, by not performing the ceremonies required in the proper, but in a wrong way. This oath is taken in the following way: The Adhvaryu takes one of the large sacrificial spoons, called Dhruvá, and puts melted butter in it. He then takes a vessel (Kaṁsá, a goblet) into which, after having placed it on the Vedi, he puts by means of a Sruva the melted butter contained in the Dhruvá. He puts five times the Sruva in the Dhruvá, and each time after a piece of melted butter having been taken out, a Yajus (sacrificial formula) is repeated, viz: *âpataye tvá gṛihṇāmi; paripataye tvá gṛihṇāmi; tânûnaptre tvá gṛihṇāmi; śákvarāya tvá gṛihṇāmi; sakmann ojiṣṭhāya tvá grihṇāmi (see Black Yajurveda 1, 2, 10, 2.; VâjasaneyaSaṁh, 5, 5, where grihṇāmi and tvá are only put once). All priests with the sacrificer now touch the vessel (Kaṁsâ) in which the ājya or melted butter thus taken out of the Dhruvā had been put. They may touch, however, the ājya (melted butter) by means of a stalk of Kuśa grass. When touching the butter, they all repeat the formula: anādhṛiṣṭam asi, &c. (Bl. Y. 1, 2, 10, 2.) “thou art inviolable.” All the seven Hotars then put their hands in the madantī, a copper vessel, which is filled with water. This latter ceremony, only performed by the Hotars, is regarded as the symbolical deposition of the priests’ own bodies in the “house of Varuṇa,” which is only a poetical expression for the copper vessel filled with water.

As to the name tânûnaptram, one is induced to refer it to tanûnapât, a name of Agni, by which he is invoked in the Prayâjas and which occurs along with others at this very ceremony. But I doubt whether the name tânûnaptram has here anything to do with Agni tanûnapât. The latter word means only one’s own son, or one’s own relative. By taking this solemn oath, the sacrificer and the officiating priests come as it werenoti the closest contact with one another, bound by ties as strong as family ties. The term, therefore, means only: contracting of the closest relationship, brotherhood.

ते देवा अबिभयुरस्माकं विप्रेमाणमन्विदमसुरा आभविष्यन्तीति ।

ते व्युत्क्रम्यामन्त्रयन्त ।

They marched out in several divisions and deliberated.

ते व्युत्क्रम्यामन्त्रयन्त ।

अग्निर्वसुभिरुदक्रामदीन्द्रो रुद्रैर्वरुण आदित्यैर्बृहस्पतिर्विश्वैर्देवैः ।

Agni marched out with the Vasus, and deliberated. Indra did so with the Rudras; Varuṇa with the Âdityas; Bṛihaspati with the Visve Devas.

अग्निर्वसुभिरुदक्रामदीन्द्रो रुद्रैर्वरुण आदित्यैर्बृहस्पतिर्विश्वैर्देवैः ।

ते तथा व्युत्क्रम्यामन्त्रयन्त ।

Thus all, having severally marched out, deliberated.

ते तथा व्युत्क्रम्यामन्त्रयन्त ।

ते ऽब्रुवन्हन्त या एव न इमाः प्रियतमास्तन्वस्ता अस्य वरुणस्य राज्ञो गृहे संनिदधामहै ।

They said, “Well, let us put these our dearest bodies[23] in the house of Varuṇa, the king, (i.e., water);

[23]Sây. understands by this expression “wife and children.” But this interpretation is doubtful to me.

ते ऽब्रुवन्हन्त या एव न इमाः प्रियतमास्तन्वस्ता अस्य वरुणस्य राज्ञो गृहे संनिदधामहै ।

ताभिरेव नः स न संगछातै यो न एतदतिक्रामाद्य आलुलोभयिषादिति ।

he among us who should, out of greediness, transgress this (oath, not to do anything which might injure the sacrificer), he shall no more be joined with them.”[24]

[24]This is the formula of the oath, which is very ancient in language, as the forms: Saṁgacchatâi, 3rd pers. sing., conjunct., middle voice, and, bhavishâd, conjunct. of the aorist, clearly prove.

ताभिरेव नः स न संगछातै यो न एतदतिक्रामाद्य आलुलोभयिषादिति ।

तथेति ते वरुणस्य राज्ञो गृहे तनूः संन्यदधत ।

They put their bodies in the house of Varuṇa.

तथेति ते वरुणस्य राज्ञो गृहे तनूः संन्यदधत ।

ते यद्वरुणस्य राज्ञो गृहे तनूः संन्यदधत तत्तानूनप्त्रमभवत्तत्तानूनप्त्रस्य तानूनप्त्रत्वम् ।

This putting of their bodies in the house of Varuṇa, the king, became their Tânûnaptram (joining of bodies).

ते यद्वरुणस्य राज्ञो गृहे तनूः संन्यदधत तत्तानूनप्त्रमभवत्तत्तानूनप्त्रस्य तानूनप्त्रत्वम् ।

तस्मादाहुर्न सतानूनप्त्रिणे द्रोग्धव्यमिति ।

Thence they say : none of those joined together by the tânûnaptram ceremony is to be injured.

तस्मादाहुर्न सतानूनप्त्रिणे द्रोग्धव्यमिति ।

तस्माद्विदमसुरा नान्वाभवन्ति ।

Thence the Asuras could not conquer their (the gods’) empire (for they all had been made inviolable by this ceremony).

तस्माद्विदमसुरा नान्वाभवन्ति ।