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II ÂRANYAKA, 2 ADHYAYA, 3 KHANDA, 4.
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By means of this he went to the delightful home of Indra (Svarga).
2. Indra said to him : 'Rishi, thou hast come to my delightful home. Rishi, repeat a second hymn ?.' Visvâmitra (guessing that Indra wanted food) said to him, 'This (the verses of the hymn) is food,' and repeated the thousand Brihati verses. By means of this he went to the delightful home of Indra (Svarga).
3. Indra said to him : 'Rishi, thou hast come to my delightful home. Rishi, repeat a third hymn.' Visvâmitra (guessing that Indra wanted food) said to him, 'This (the verses of the hymn) is food,' and repeated the thousand Brihatt verses. By means of this he went to the delightful home of Indra (Svarga).
4. Indra said to him : 'Rishi, thou hast come to my delightful home. I grant thee a boon.' Visvamitra said: 'May I know thee.' Indra said: 'I am Prâna (breath), O Rishi, thou art Prâna, all things are Prâna. For it is Prâna who shines as the sun, and I here pervade all regions under that form. This food of mine (the hymn) is my friend and my support (dakshina). This is the food prepared by Visvâmitra. I am verily he who shines (the sun).'
Though they consist of many metres, yet, when one counts the syllables, they give a thousand Brihatî verses, each consisting of thirty-six syllables.
Although the Nishkevalya is but one hymn, consisting of eighty trikas, yet as these eighty trikas were represented as three kinds of food (see Ait. Âr. II, 1, 2, 2–4), the hymn is represented as three hymns, first as eighty Gâyatrí trikas, then as eighty Brihatî trikas, lastly as eighty Ushnih trikas.
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