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234
SATAPATHA-BRAHMANA.
Now, Narâsamsa is the air. Man (nara), namely, means (human) being; and these same beings move about in the air speaking aloud. And when he (man) speaks, they say 'he chants (sams);' and therefore Narâsamsa is the air1. But the trishtubh also is the air 2, and for this reason they have placed the trish/ubh second.
13. Then Agni is the last (to whom offering is made). Agni assuredly is the gâyatri; and therefore they placed the gâyatri last. In this way they established the metres in complete and proper order; and hence no confusion here takes place.
14. The Adhvaryu3 says (to the Hotri), 'Pronounce the offering-prayer (yâgyâ) to the gods!' and the Hotri (begins his prayer) at all (the three offerings) with 'The divine.... For the metres assuredly are the gods of the gods, since they are their cattle, and cattle means a home, and a home is a safe resting-place. The after-offerings, doubtless, are the metres: therefore the Adhvaryu says, 'Pronounce the offering-prayer to the gods!' and at all of them the Hotri begins with 'The divine....'
1 That is, because man (nara) speaks, chants (sam sati) in it.
Either because both are in the middle (viz. the trishubh of the three chief metres, and the air between heaven and earth), or because they consist of eleven parts (viz. the trishubh of eleven syllables, and the air having ten directions, Sat. Br. VI, 2, 2, 34; VIII, 4, 2, 13, with itself as the eleventh), or because they are both connected with Rudra. Comm.
As on previous occasions, the Adhvaryu first calls on the Âgnîdhra, 'Bid (Agni) hear (o srâvaya)!' and the latter responds by 'Yea, may (he) hear (astu srausha)!' This is repeated before each of the two other after-offerings. See I, 5, 2, 16.
The drift of the argument of this paragraph is not quite clear to me. The after-offerings have for their deities the metres, and hence the latter are apparently called the deities of the deities, that is, of the
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| SR No. | 007670 |
| Book Title | Upnishad |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | Max Muller |
| Publisher | Oxford |
| Publication Year | 1879 |
| Total Pages | 1835 |
| Language | English |
| Classification | Book_English |
| File Size | 35 MB |