Krishna Yajur Veda

ii. 6. 9.

He takes a portion for the Agnidh; verily he delights the seasons whose mouth is Agni. He takes a kindling-stick, for the support of the subsequent offerings; verily he pours on that which has a kindling stick. He rubs the enclosing-sticks; verily he purifies them. He rubs each once, for the sacrifice there is as it were turned away. It makes up four, cattle are four-footed; verily he wins cattle. ‘O Brahman, will we set out?’ he says; there indeed is the sacrifice placed [1], where the Brahman is; where the sacrifice is placed, thence does he commence it. If he were to instigate him with his hand, he would shiver; if with his head, he would have a headache; if he were to sit in silence, the sacrifice would not proceed; he should say, ‘Set out! In speech the sacrifice is placed; where the sacrifice is placed, thence does he bestow it. ‘O god Savitr, that he [2] hath proclaimed to thee’, he says, for impelling. ‘Brhaspati is the (priest) Brahman’, he says, for he is fullest of the holy power (Brahman). ‘Do thou guard the sacrifice, guard the lord of the sacrifice, guard me’, he says; for the sacrifice, the sacrificer, and himself, for these he thus invokes a blessing, to prevent misfortune, Having caused (him) to call out, he says, ‘Utter the verse for sacrifice to the gods.’ The theologians say, ‘The gods have been sacrificed to; what gods are they?’ ‘The metres’, he should reply, ‘Gayatri Tristubh [3], and Jagati.’ Then they say, ‘The metres are the Brahmans’; verily he sacrifices to them. The deities were sacrificed to by the gods; then Agni did not burn forth; the gods found him by the offerings in the after-sacrifices; in that he offers the after-sacrifices verily thus one kindles Agni. There was an Asura, named Etadu. He then appropriated the blessing of the sacrifice. If one were to say, ‘That indeed (etád u) hath been glorious, O sky and earth’ [4], one would cause Etadu to attain the blessing of the sacrifice. ‘This (idám) has been glorious, sky and earth’, he should say; verily he makes the sacrificer attain the blessing of the sacrifice. ‘We have won the utterance of prayer and homage’, he says; ‘we have won this’, he says in effect. ‘It resteth on sky and earth’, he says, for the sacrifice rests on the sky and earth. ‘Helpful for thee in this sacrifice, O sacrificer, be sky and earth’ [5], he says; verily he invokes this blessing. If he were to say, ‘easy of access and easy to dwell on’, the sacrificer would be likely to perish, for when he perishes he has recourse to this (earth). ‘Easy of approach, and easy to move on’, he should say; verily he invokes for him a wider sphere, and he is not likely to perish. ‘In the knowledge of these two Agni hath rejoiced in this offering’, he says; ‘the gods we have sacrificed to [6], we have made them to prosper’, he says in effect. If he were not to indicate (the sacrificer), the blessing of the sacrifice would go to his neighbour. ‘This sacrificer imploreth (a blessing) N. N.’, he says; verily by indicating him he makes him attain the world of heaven. ‘He imploreth length of days, he imploreth a noble offspring, he says; verily he invokes this blessing. ‘He imploreth superiority over his equals’, he says; his equals are the breaths; verily he does not obstruct his breaths [7]. ‘Agni shall win, god, from the gods, we men from Agni’, he says, ‘Agni wins from the gods, we from men’, he says in effect. ‘Here is the path of favour, and this our homage to the gods’, he says; to both the gods whom he sacrifices to and those to whom he does not sacrifice, he pays homage, for his own security.

ii. 6. 10.

The gods could not find any one to utter the call Svaga at the sacrifice. They spoke to Çamyu Barhaspatya, ‘Perform the Svaga call at this sacrifice for us.’ He said, ‘Let me choose a boon; if a faithless man sacrifice, or a man sacrifices without prescription, let the blessing of such a sacrificer be mine.’ Therefore if a faithless man sacrifices, or a man sacrifices without prescription, the blessing of such a sacrifice goes to Çamyu Barhaspatya. ‘That is mine’, he said, ‘What is to belong to my offspring? [1].’ ‘Him, who reviles him, he shall fine with a hundred; him, who strikes him, he shall fine with a thousand; he, who draws blood from him, shall not behold the world of the Pitrs for as many years as are the grains of dust which the blood in its fall seizes upon’, (they replied). Therefore one should not revile a Brahman, nor strike him, nor draw blood from him; for so great is his sin. ‘That health and wealth we choose’, he says; verily he utters the call Svaga, over the sacrifice. ‘That [2] health and wealth we choose’, he says; verily he gives Çamyu Barhaspatya his portion. ‘Success to the sacrifice, success to the sacrificer’, he says; verily he invokes this blessing. He sacrifices to Soma; verily he places seed; he sacrifices to Tvastr; seed is placed and Tvastr moulds forms; he sacrifices to the wives of the gods, to make a pair; he sacrifices to Agni, lord of the house, for support. There is sameness in the sacrifice [3] in that the fore-sacrifices are offered with butter, and the sacrifices to the wives (are offered) with butter. Having repeated the Rc, of the sacrifices to the wives he offers with a Rc, to prevent sameness, and to make a pairing. The sacrifice has a fivefold prelude and a fivefold end; there are offered five fore-sacrifices; there are four sacrifices to the wives, the fifth is the Samistayajus by they make up five as a prelude, and five as an end.

ii. 6. 11.

a. Yoke like a charioteer, Agni, The steeds that best invite the gods Set down as ancient Hotr.

b. And, O god, for us do thou the gods, Most wise one, call hither; Make all our wishes true;

c Since thou, O most young, O son of strength, who art sacrificed to, Art righteous and worthy of sacrifice.

d This Agni is lord of a thousandfold,. A hundredfold, strength; The sage, the head of wealth.

e. Bring him hither with common call Lower to our sacrifice, O Angiras. As the Rbhus bend the felly (of the chariot) [I]

f To him, the heavenly, Now with constant voice, O Virupa, To the strong one urge the hymn of praise.

g. What Pani shall we lay low among the kine With the missile of this Agni Who seeth from afar?

h. May not the clans of the gods forsake us, Like the dawns entering the waters, As cows a poor man.

i. Let not the assault Of any ill-minded foe smite us, As a wave a ship.

k Homage to thee, O Agni, for might, The people sing, O god; With strength [2] trouble thou the foe.

l Wilt thou not, O Agni, Bring us wealth for our quest for cattle? O room maker, make room for us.

m.. Cast us not aside in this great contest, Like a bearer his burden; Gather wealth and conquer it.

n. May this terror, this misfortune, O Agni, fasten on another than us; Increase our impetuous strength.

o. The reverent or generous man In whose offering he hath delighted, Agni aideth indeed with furtherance.

p. From a far [3] region Come hither to these lower ones, Favour those in the region where I am.

q. Since we have known of old Of thy help, O Agni, as a father’s, Now we seek thy favour.

r.Thou, who art like a mighty man who slayeth with the dart Or a sharp-horned bull, O Agni, hast rent the forts.

s. O friends, together (offer) fit Food and praise to Agni,m Highest over the folk, The son of strength, the mighty.

t. Thou gatherest, O strong one, All that belongeth, O Agni, to the niggard; Thou art kindled in the place of offering; Do thou bear us good things.

u. O Prajapati.

v. He knoweth.

w. O Soma and Pusan.

x. These gods.

ii. 6. 12.

a. Eagerly we hail thee, Eagerly would we kindle thee Eager bring the eager, The fathers, to eat the offering.

b. Thou, O Soma, art pre-eminent in wisdom; Thou movest along the straightest path; Through thy guidance, O drop, our fathers wisely divided The treasure among the gods. By thee, O Soma Pavamana, our ancient fathers Wisely ordained the offerings;

c. Conquering, untroubled, do thou open the barriers;
Be generous to us in heroes and horses [1].

d. Thou, O Soma, in accord with the fathers, Hast stretched over sky and earth; To thee, O drop, let us make sacrifice with offering; Let us be lords of wealth.

e. O fathers, made ready by Agni, come hither; With good leadership sit ye on each seat; Eat ye the offerings set out on the strew; And give us wealth with many heroes.

f. O fathers that sit on the sacrificial strew, come hither with your aid; We have made these offerings for you; accept them, And then come to us with your most healing aid, Give us [2] health, wealth, and safety!

g. I have found the kindly fathers, The scion and the step of Visnu; They that sit on the sacrificial strew and enjoy the drink That is pressed for them with the Svadha call are most eager to come hither.

h. Invoked are the fathers who love the Soma To their dear homes on the sacrificial strew; May they come hither; may they hear us here May they speak for us; and may they aid us.

i. Let them arise, the lower and the higher And the middle fathers who love the Soma; They who lived their lives [3] in goodness and without sin; May these fathers help us when we call.

k. Be this homage to-day to the fathers, Who went before and who went after; Who are seated in the earthly region Or who are now in abodes with fair dwellings.

l. As our fathers before, Of old, O Agni, furthering right, Sought the pure, the devotion, singing hymns
Cleaving the earth they disclosed the red ones.

m. When, O Agni [4], bearer of oblations, Thou sacrificest to the righteous fathers, Thou shalt bear the oblations To the gods and to the fathers.

n. Thou, O Agni, praised, all-knower, Didst carry the offerings making them fragrant; Thou didst give them to the fathers who ate them at the Svadha call; Eat thou, O god, the offerings set before thee.

o. Matali with the Kavyas, Yama with the Angirases, Brhaspati rejoicing with the Rkvans,, Those whom the gods magnified and those who magnified the gods; Some in the Svaha call, some in the Svadha rejoice [5].

p. Sit on this strew, O Yama, In accordance with the Angirases, the fathers Let the verses made by the poets bring thee hither Rejoice, O king, in this offering. Come with the Angirases who deserve the sacrifice
Yama, rejoice here with the Vairupas; I summon Virasvant who is thy father,
Sitting down on the strew at this sacrifice.

r. The Angirases, our fathers, the Navagvas, Atharvans, Bhrgus, who love the Soma; May we be in the favour of those ones worthy of sacrifice, May we have their kindly good will.