Book Title: Satapatha Brahmana
Author(s): Max Muller, Julius Eggeling
Publisher: Oxford

View full book text
Previous | Next

Page 316
________________ 290 SATAPATHA-BRAHMANA. above the (mortal) beings he created Death as their consumer. 2. Now, one half of that Pragâpati was mortal, and the other half immortal: with that part of him which was mortal he was afraid of death; and, being afraid, he became twofold, clay and water, and entered this (earth). 3. Death spake unto the gods saying, 'What has become of him who has created us?'—' Being afraid of thee, he has entered this (earth),' they said. He spake, ' Let us search for him, let us gather him up for I shall not injure him.' The gods gathered him from out of this (earth): that part of him which was in the water, they gathered as water, and that which was in this (earth, they gathered) as clay. Having gathered together both clay and water, they made a brick, whence a brick consists of both clay and water. 4. And, indeed, these five forms (bodily parts) of him are mortal—the hair on the mouth, the skin, the flesh, the bone, and the marrow; and these are immortal—the mind, the voice, the vital air, the eye, and the ear. 5. Now, that Pragâpati is no other than the Firealtar which is here built up, and what five mortal parts there were of him, they are these layers of earth ; and those which were immortal they are these layers of bricks. 6. The gods spake, 'Let us make him immortal!' Having encompassed that mortal form by those immortal forms of his, they made it immortal-the layer of earth by means of two layers of bricks: in like manner the second, the third, and the fourth (layers of earth).

Loading...

Page Navigation
1 ... 314 315 316 317 318 319 320 321 322 323 324 325 326 327 328 329 330 331 332 333 334 335 336 337 338 339 340 341 342 343 344 345 346 347 348 349 350 351 352 353 354 355 356 357 358 359 360 361 362 363 364 365 366 367 368 369 370 371 372 373 374 375 376 377 378 379 380 381 382 383 384 385 386 387 388 389 390 391 392 393 394 395 396 397 398 399 400 401 402 403 404 405 406 407 408 409 410 411 412 413 414 415 416 417 418 419 420 421 422 423 424 425 426 427 428 429 430 431 432 433