iv. 6. 7.
a. When first thou didst cry on birth,
Arising from the ocean or the dust,
The wings of the eagle, the limbs of the gazelle,
That is thy famed birth, O steed.
b. The steed given by Yama hath Trita yoked,
It Indra first mounted,
The bridle of it the Gandharva grasped;
O Vasus, from the sun ye fashioned the steed.
c. Thou art Yama, O steed, thou art Aditya;
Thou art Trita by secret ordinance;
Thou art entirely separated from Soma [1];
Three, they say, are thy bonds in the sky.
d. Three, they say, are thy bonds in the sky,
Three in the waters, three within the ocean
And like Varuna to me thou appearest, O steed,
Where, say they, is thy highest birthplace.
e. These, O swift one, are thy cleansings,
These the placings down of thy hooves in victory;
Here I have seen thy fair ropes,
Which the guards of holy order guard.
f. The self of thee with my mind I perceived from afar,
Flying with wings from below through the sky [2];
Thy head I saw speeding with wings
On paths fair and dustless.
g. Here I saw thy highest form,
Eager to win food in the footstep of the cow;
When a mortal man pleaseth thy taste,
Then most greedily dost thou consume the plants.
h. Thee follows the chariot, thee the lover, O steed,
Thee the kine, thee the portion of maidens;
Thy friendship the companies have sought;
The gods have imitated thy strength [3].
i. Golden his horns, iron his feet;
Swift as thought, Indra was his inferior;
The gods came to eat his oblation
Who first did master the steed.
k. Full haunched, of slender middle,
The heroic divine steeds,
Vie together like cranes in rows,
When the horses reach the divine coursing-place
l. Thy body is fain to fly, O steed;
Thy thought is like the blowing wind;
Thy horns are scattered in many places,
They wander busy in the woods.
m. To [4] the slaughter the swift steed hath come,
Pondering with pious mind;
The goat, his kin, is led before,
Behind him come the sages to sing.
n. To his highest abode hath the steed come,
To his father and his mother;
To-day do thou go, most welcome, to the gods;
Then boons shall he assign to the generous.
iv. 6. 8.
a. Let not Mitra, Varuna, Aryaman, Ayu,
Indra, Rbhuksan, the Maruts disregard us,
When we shall proclaim before the assembly
The might of the strong god-born steed.
b. When they bear before him, covered with a garment and with wealth
The gift they have seized,
The goat, all-formed, bleating,
Goeth straight to the dear stronghold of Indra and Pusan.
c. This goat is led before the strong steed
As share of Pusan, connected with the All-gods,
When Tvastr impels him as an acceptable sacrifice
Together with the steed for fair renown [1].
d. When men thrice lead round in due season
The steed going to the gods as an acceptable offering
Then first goeth Pusan’s share,
The goat announcing the sacrifice to the gods.
e. Hotr Adhvaryu, atoner, fire kindler,
Holder of the stone, and skilled reciter,
With this well-prepared sacrifice
Well offered do ye fill the channels.
f. The cutters of the stake, the bearers of the stake,
And they that fashion the top piece for the stake for the horse,
And they that collect the cooking-pot for the steed [2],
May their approval quicken us.
g. He hath come forth–efficacious hath been my prayer–
To the regions of the gods, straight backed;
In him the sages, the seers, rejoice,
For the prosperity of the gods a good friend have we made.
h. The bond of the strong one, the tie of the steed,
The head stall, the rope of him,
And the grass placed in his mouth,
May all these of thine be with the gods.
i. Whatever of the horse’s raw flesh [3] the fly eateth,
Whatever on the chip or the axe hath stuck,
Whatever is on the hands, the nails of the slayer,
May all these of thine be with the gods.
k. The refuse that bloweth forth from the belly,
The smell of raw flesh,
Let the slayers see that in order
Let them cook the fat to a turn.
l. Whatever flieth away from thy limb
As it is cooked by the fire when thou art spitted,
Let it fall not on earth, nor on the grass;
Be that given to the eager gods.
iv. 6. 9.
a. Those who watch for the cooking of the strong one,
And call out, ‘It is fragrant; take it out,’
And who wait to beg for the meat of the steed,
May their approval quicken us.
b. The trial spoon of the meat-cooking pot,
The vessels to hold the juice,
The coverings of the dishes for warming,
The hooks, the crates, attend the steed.
c. The starting-place, the sitting down, the turning,
The hobbles of the steed,
What it hath drunk, what it hath eaten as fodder [1],
May all these of thine be with the gods.
d. May Agni, smoke smelling, not make thee crackle;
May not the radiant pot be broken, smelling;
Offered, delighted in, approved, offered with the Vasat cry,
The gods accept the horse.
e. The garment they spread for the horse,
The upper garment, the golden (trappings),
The bond of the steed, the hobble,
As dear to the gods they offer.
f. If one hath smitten thee, riding thee driven with force,
With heel or with whip [2],
As with the ladle the parts of the oblation in the sacrifice,
So with holy power all these of thine I put in order.
g. The four and thirty ribs of the strong steed,
Kin of the gods, the axe meeteth;
Skilfully do ye make the joints faultless;
Declaring each part, do ye cut it asunder.
h. One carver is there of the steed of Tvastr
Two restrainers are there, so is the use;
Those parts of thy limbs that I place in order,
Those in balls I offer in the fire.
i. Let not thy dear self distress thee [3] as thou comest;
Let not the axe stay in thy body;
May no greedy skilless carver,
Missing the joints, mangle thy limbs with the knife.
k. Thou dost not die, indeed, thou art not injured,
On easy paths thou goest to the gods;
The bays, the dappled ones, have become thy yoke-fellows;
The steed bath stood under the yoke of the ass.
l. Wealth of kine for us, may the strong one (grant), wealth in horses,
Men and sons, and every form of prosperity;
May Aditi confer on us sinlessness;
Kingship for us may the horse rich in offering gain.
