Brihadaranyak

Whoever wishes to attain greatness (i.e., wealth for performing sacrificial rites) should act as follows - On an auspicious day of the fortnight in which the moon waxes, under a constellation bearing a masculine name, during the northward journey of the sun, he should undertake for twelve days a vow connected with the Upasads (live on milk), gather in a cup or a bowl made of fig wood all the herbs and their grains, sweep and plaster the ground, lay the fire, spread the kusa grass, purify the offering (clarified butter) according to the rules, place between himself and the fire the mantha (the paste made of those herbs etc.) and offer oblations with the following mantras - "O Fire, to all those gods under you who spitefully slay men's desires, I offer their share. May they be satisfied and satisfy me with all the objects of my desire! Svaha! "To that deity who turns out to be spiteful under your protection, thinking that she is the support of all, I offer this stream of clarified butter. Svaha!"

Svaha to the oldest, svaha to the greatest!" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste (mantha). "Svaha to the vital breath (prana), svaha to the vasishtha (the most excellent)!" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste (mantha). "Svaha to the organ of speech, svaha to that which has steadiness!" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste (mantha). "Svaha to the eye, svaha to prosperity!" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste (mantha). "Svaha to the ear, svaha to the abode!" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste (mantha). "Svaha to the mind, svaha to procreation (prajati)!" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste (mantha). "Svaha to the organ of generation!" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste (mantha).

"Svaha to fire" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to the moon" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to the earth" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to the sky" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to heaven" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to earth, sky and heaven" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to the brahmin" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to the kshatriya" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to the past" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to the future" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to the universe" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to all" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste. "Svaha to Prajapati" - uttering these words, he offers an oblation in the fire and lets the remainder adhering to the ladle drip into the paste.

Then he touches the paste, uttering the mantra - "You move as the vital breath; you bum as fire; you are infinite as Brahman; you are unshaken as the sky. You are the meeting-place of all. You are the sound "Him" and are uttered as "Him" in the sacrifice by the prastotri. You are the Udgitha and are chanted by the udgatri. You are recited by the adhvaryu and recited back by the agnidhra. You are fully ablaze in the moist cloud. You are omnipresent and the ruler. You are food as the moon and light as fire. You are death and you are that in which all things merges."

Then he raises the paste, saying - "As the vital breath you know all; we too are aware of your greatness as the vital breath. The vital breath is the king, the ruler, the sovereign. May it make me king, ruler and sovereign."

Then he eats the paste, saying - 'Tat saviturvarenyam' ('That adorable light') - 'The winds blow sweetly (madhu), the rivers pour forth sweetness (madhu); may the herbs be sweet (madhu) unto us!' 'Svaha to the earth (Bhuh). 'Bhargo devasya dhimahi' - ('Of the radiant sun, we meditate upon') - 'May the nights and days be sweet (madhu), may the dust of the earth be sweet (madhu), may heaven, our father, be sweet (madhu)!' 'Svaha to the sky (Bhuvah).' 'Dhiyo yo nah prachodayit' ('May He stimulate our intellect') - 'May the soma creeper be sweet (madhu) unto us, may the sun be sweet (madhu), may the quarters be filled with sweetness (madhu) for us!' 'Svaha to heaven (Svah).' Then he repeats the whole Gayatri and all the verses about sweetness (madhumati) and says at the end - "May I be all this! Svaha to earth, sky and heaven. Then he eats all that is left of the paste, washes his hands and lies down behind the fire with his head to the east. In the morning he salutes the sun saying: "You are the one non-dual and best lotus of the quarters; may I be the one lotus among men. Then he returns the way he went, sits behind the fire and repeats the line of teachers.

Uddalaka, the son of Aruna, taught this to his pupil Vijasaneya Yajnavalkya and said - "Should One pour it (the paste) even on dry stump, branches would grow and leaves spring forth."

Then Vajasaneya Yajnavalkya taught this to his pupil Madhuka, the son of Paingi and said - "Should one pour it even on a dry stump, branches would grow and leaves spring forth."

Then Madhuka, the son of Paingi, taught this to his pupil Chula, the son of Bhagavitta and said - "Should one pour it even on a dry stump, branches would grow and leaves spring forth."

Then Chula, the son of Bhagavitta, taught this to his disciple Janaki, the son of Ayasthuna and said - "Should One pour it even on a dry stump, branches would grow and leaves spring forth."

Then Janaki, the son of Ayasthuna, taught this to his pupil Satyakama, the son of Jabala and said - "Should one pour it even on a dry stump, branches would grow and leaves spring forth."

And Satyakama, the son of Jabala, taught this to his pupils and said - "Should one pour it even on a dry stump, branches would grow and leaves spring forth." One must not teach this to anyone but a son or a pupil.

Four articles are made of fig wood - the sacrificial ladle, the bowl, the fuel and the two mixing-rods. The cultivated grains are ten in number - Rice, barley, sesamum, beans, millet (anu), panic seeds (priyangu), wheat, lentils, pulse and vetch. They should be crushed and soaked in curds, honey and clarified butter and offered as an oblation.