What is more spacious than the Earth? What thing is that which naught can mete?

48 Brahma is lustre like the Sun. Heaven is a flood to match

the Sea.

Indra is vaster than the Earth. Beyond all measure is the
Cow.

49 Friend of the Gods, I ask, for information, if thou in spirit hast obtained the knowledge,

Hath Vishnu this whole Universe pervaded in the three steps wherein the God is worshipped

-50 I also am in those three steps of Vishņu wherewith this Universe he permeated.

The earth and heaven I circle in a moment and this heaven's summit with a single organ.

51 What are the things which Purusha hath entered? What things hath Purusha contained within him?

This riddle we propound to thee, O Brahman. Why dost thou give no answer to my question?

52 Within five things hath Purusha found entrance: these Purusha hath within himself connected.

This is the thought which I return in answer.
not my superior in wisdom.

Thou art

53 What was the antecedent thought? etc., as in verse 11. 54 Heaven was the antecedent thought, etc., as in 12.

55 Who, tell me, is the yellowish she? Who is the darklyyellowish?

Who moves with rapid spring and bound? Who glides and winds along the path?

48 Brahma: holy lore in the shape of the three Vedas, according to Mahidhara. The Cow: as supplying the elements of sacrifice.

49 The Brahman questions the Udgâtar, the priest who chants the Simans. Three steps: or places; earth, air, and sky, over and through which he strode as the Sun; according to Mahidhara, the Girhapatya, Âhavaniya, and Dakshina fires are intended.

50 The Udgâtar replies. Single organ: my mind.

51 The Udgitar questions the Brahman. Purusha: the Person; Personality; the Cosmic Man, or Embodied Spirit, âtmâ, the soul or self, according to Mahidhara.

52 The Brahman replies. Five things: the five vital breathings. These: the senses; the substrata of hearing, etc.

53 The Hotar questions the Adhvaryu. The question and the answer are repeated from verses 11 and 12.

55 The Adhvaryu questions the Hotar. Yellowish... darkly-yellowish: the precise colours intended are uncertain.

56 The she-goat, Sir, is yellowish, dark-yellowish is the porcu

pine.

The hare moves swift with leap and bound: the snake creeps winding on the path.

57 How many different forms hath this, how many syllables, burnt-oblations, brauds for kindling?

Here, of the rites of sacrifice I ask thee. How many Hotars in due season worship?

58 Sixfold its form, its syllables a hundred, eighty burnt-offerings, just three brands for kindling.

To thee I tell the rites of sacrificing. Seven Hotars worship in appointed season.

59 Who knoweth this world's central point? Who knoweth the heaven, the earth, and the wide air between them?

Who knows the birthplace of the mighty Sûrya? Who knows the Moon, whence he was generated?

60 I know the centre of the world about us. earth, and the wide air between them.

I know heaven,

I know the birthplace of the mighty Sûrya. I know the
Moon, whence he was generated.

61 I ask thee of the earth's extremest limit, where is the centre of the world, I ask thee.

I ask thee of the Stallion's genial humour, I ask of highest heaven where Speech abideth.

62 This altar is the earth's extremest limit; this sacrifice of ours is the world's centre.

This Soma is the Stallion's genial humour, this Brahman highest heaven where Speech abideth.

56 The Hotar replies. The she-goat: ajd here is explained by Mahîdhara (who takes the word in the sense of birthless) as Mâyâ, Illusion, phenomenal Nature; or Night.

57 The Brahman questions the Udgatar. Forms: according to Mahidha-ra, viands or kinds of food. This sacrifice.

58 Sixfold: according to Mahidhara, referring to the six principal tastes, sweet, bitter, salt, etc. Syllables: of the sacred metres, twenty-four of the Giyatri, etc. Burnt oblations: meaning kinds of victims for such offerings. Eighty: four tied to each of twenty stakes. Seven Hotars: the Hotar, Maitrâvaruṇa, Achchhâvâka, Grâvastat, Brahmanâchchhamst, Agnîdhra. Potar. 59 The Udgåtar questions the Brahman, who replies in the following

verse.

61 The Sacrificer questions the Adhvaryu. The verse is taken from R. V. I. 161. 34.

62 This altar: as the place nearest heaven, the place where the Gods. visit men. The Stallion: Dyaus or Heaven, whose genial humour is the fertilizing rain which impregnates the earth. This Brahman: who recites. the texts of the Veda represents the abiding-place of Speech or the Word

63 The Strong, the Self-existent One, the First, within the mighty flood

Laid down the timely embryo from which Prajapati was born. 64 Let the Hotar sacrifice to Prajapati from the Mahiman-Soma. Let him accept. Let him drink the Soma. Hotar, sacrifice.

65 Prajapati, thou only, etc., as in X. 20.

63 At the end of the Brahmodyam the Adhvaryu draws the Mahiman libation for Prajapati iu a golden cup. The First: Purusha; the Self.

64 The Hotar: the Hotar of the Gods. Mahiman-Soma: contained in the gold cup called Mahiman, Glory, see verse 1, note,

Hotar, sacrifice: the human Hotar is addressed.

BOOK THE TWENTY-FOURTH.

HORSE, hornless goat, Gomriga, these belong to Prajapati. A black-necked goat, devoted to Agni, (is to be bound) in front to the forehead (of the horse); Sarasvatî's ewe below his jaws; two goats belonging to the Asvins, with marks on the lower parts of the body, to his fore-legs; dark-coloured goat, Soma's and Pûshan's, to his navel; a white and a black, sacred to Soma and Yama, to his sides; Tvashtar's two, with bushy tails, to his hind feet; Vâyu's white goat to his tail; for Indra the Good Worker a cow who slips her calf; a dwarf belonging to Vishnu.

2 The red goat, the smoky-red, the jujube-red, these belong to Soma. The brown, the ruddy-brown, the parrot-brown, these are Varuna's. One with white ear holes, one with partly white, one with wholly white, belong to Savitar. One with fore-feet white, partly white, wholly white, belongs to Brihaspati. She goats speckled, with small spots, with big spots, these belong to Mitra-Varuna.

3 The bright-tailed, the wholly bright-tailed, the jewel-tailed, these belong to the Asvins. The white, the white-eyed, the reddish, these are for Rudra Lord of Beasts. Longeared goats are for Yama; proud ones for Rudra; cloudcoloured ones for Parjanya.

This Book contains an exact enumeration of the animals that are to be tied to the sacrificial stakes and in the intermediate spaces, with the names of the deities or deified entities to which they are severally dedicated. The principal stake, the eleventh and midmost of the twenty-one, called the Agnishtha because it stands nearest to the sacrificial fire, is mentioned first. About fifteen victims are bound to each of these stakes, all domestic animals, the total number being 327. In the spaces between the stakes 282 wild animals, from the elephant and the rhinoceros to the bee and the fly, are temporarily confined, to be freed when the ceremony is concluded, bringing the total number of assembled animals up to 609. There is, perhaps, some exaggeration in the number, and some almost impossible animals are mentioned, but it must be remembered that the Aswainedha was a most important tribal solemnity of rare occurrence and that no effort would be spared to assure its performance with all possible splendour.

Several of the wild animals cannot be identified. Some of the names are conjecturally rendered and some are left in their native forms. The Commentator is not of inuch assistance in doubtful cases, 'a kind of beast' or ‘a kind of bird' being all the information that he has to give.

1 Gomriga: the Gayal or Bos Gavaeus. Dwarf: with reference to Vishnu's Dwarf Inearnation.

3 Bright-tailed: 'goat' is to be understood with this and similar epithets.

4 Goats speckled, transversely speckled, upward speckled are for the Maruts. The reddish she-goat, the red-haired, the white, these belong to Sarasvatî. The goat with diseased ears, the short-eared, the red-eared are Tvashṭar's. The black-necked, the white-flanked, one with bright-coloured thighs belong to Indra and Agni. Those with black marks, small marks, large marks belong to Dawn.

5 Parti-coloured female victims belong to the All-Gods; redcoloured, eighteen mouths old to Vâk; victims without distinguishing marks to Aditi; those of one same colour to Dhâtar; weaned kids sacred to the Consorts of the Gods. 6 Black-necked victims for Agni; white browed for the Vasus; red for Rudra; bright ones for the Adityas; cloud-coloured for Parjanya.

7 The tall goat, the sturdy, the dwarf, these are Indra-Vishpu's; the tall, the white fore-footed, the black-backed, Indra-Brihaspati's; parrot-coloured the Vâjins'; speckled Agui-Maruts'; dark-coloured Pushan's.

8 Variegated, Indra-Agni's; two-coloured, Agni-Soma's; dwarf oxen, Agni-Vishnu's; barren cows, Mitra-Varuna's ; partly variegated, Mitra's.

9 Black-necked ones, Agni's; brown, Soma's; white. Vâyu's; undistinguished, Aditi's; self-coloured, Dhâtar's; weanlings, the Gods' Consorts'.

10 Black ones for Earth; smoke-coloured for Firmament; tall oues for Sky; brindled ones for Lightning; blotched oues for Stars.

11 Smoke-coloured ones he sacrifices to Spring; white to Summer; black to the Rains; red ones to Autumn; speckled to Winter; reddish-yellow to the Dewy Season. 12 Calves eighteen months old to Gâyatrî; steers of two and a half years to Trishṭup; two year old steers to Jagatî; three year olds to Anushṭup; four year olds to Ushnih. 13 Four year old steers to Virâj; full grown bulls to Brihatî; strong bulls to Kakup; draught oxen to Pankti; milchcows to Atichhandas.

7 Vajins: the deified Coursers of the Gods; a class of divinities, according to Sâyana.

11 Sacrifices: literally, takes and ties up; a euphemistic expression. 12, 13 The sacred metres are deified as being 'the embodiment of supreme harmony and the efficacy of prayer.'-Eggeling, S. B. E. XII. 80.