Yajur Veda on Pride

a Move I forward, O lord of the world, To all thy stations. Let no opponent find thee, Let not robbers find thee; Let not the evil-working wolves (find) thee; Nor the Gandharva, Viçvavasu, injure thee. b Become an eagle and fly away to the place in the house of the sacrificer which have prepared with the gods (for thee). Thou art the good luck of the sacrificer. c We have reached the path Which leadeth to bliss, without a foe, Whereby a man defeateth all his foes and winneth wealth. d Honour to the radiance of Mitra and Varuna. This worship, this reverence offer to the god; To the far seeing, god-born, the banner, The son of the sky, the sun, do ye sing. c Thou art the pillar of Varuna. f Thou art the prop of Varuna's pillar. g Varuna's noose is loosened. a Thou art the hospitality of Agni. For Visnu thee! Thou art the hospitality of For Visnu thee! Thou art the hospitality of the stranger. For Visnu thee! For Agni giver of wealth, for Visnu thee; for the eagle, bringer of the Soma, thee, for Visnu b Thy powers which they honour with oblation, May they all envelop the sacrifice! Giver of wealth, impeller, rich in heroes, Slaying not heroes, O Soma, enter the dwellings. c Thou art the seat of Aditi; sit on the seat of Aditi [1]. d Thou art Varuna who guardeth law; thou art of Varuna. e Be prosperity ours from our friendship with the gods. May we be not severed from our service of the gods. f For him who rushes on I seize thee; for him who rushes around I seize thee; for Tanunapat I seize thee; for the mighty I seize thee; for the mightiest in strength I seize thee. g Thou art unapproached, the unapproachable might of the gods, guarding from imprecations, impervious to imprecations. h May the lord of consecration approve my consecration, the lord of penance my penance. Speedily may I attain truth. Place me in good fortune. a May thy every shoot, O god Soma, swell, For Indra who gaineth the chiefest wealth; May Indra swell for thee; Do thou swell for Indra.

e Fare along the broad atmosphere. f Hail! Thee, of kindly nature, to the sun! g To the gods that drink the rays thee! h This is thy birthplace; to inspiration thee! a O Vayu, drinker of the pure, come to us; A thousand are thy teams, O thou that hast all choice boons. For thee this sweet drink hath been drawn, Whereof, O god, thou hast the first drink. b Thou art taken with a support; to Vayu thee! c O Indra and Vayu, these draughts are ready; Come ye for the libations, For the drops desire you. d Thou art taken with a support; to Indra and Vayu thee! This is thy birthplace; to the comrades thee! a This Soma is pressed for you, O Mitra and Varuna, Who prosper holy order; Hearken ye now to my supplication. b Thou art taken with a support; to Mitra and Varuna thee! This is thy birthplace; to the righteous thee! a That I whip of yours which is rich in sweetness And full of mercy, O Açvins, With that touch the sacrifice. b Thou art taken with a support; to the Açvins thee! This is thy birthplace; to the sweet thee! a Ye that yoke early be unloosed O Açvins, come ye hither, To drink this Soma. b Thou art taken with a support; to the Açvins thee! This is thy birthplace; to the Açvins thee! a Vena hath stirred those born of Prçni, He enveloped in light, in the expanse of the Him in the meeting-place of the waters, of the sun, Like a child, the priests tend with their songs. b Thou art taken with a support; to Çanda thee! This is thy birthplace; guard the a Him, as aforetime, as of old, as always, as now, The prince, who hath his seat on the strew and knoweth the heaven, The favouring, the strong, thou milkest with thy speech, The swift who is victor in those among whom thou dost wax. b Thou art taken with a support; to Marka thee! This is thy birth. place; guard offspring. a Ye gods that are eleven in the sky, Eleven on the earth, Who sit mightily in the waters, eleven in number, Do ye accept this saerifice.

This is thy birthplace; to Surya the radiant thee! a Swell, O sweetest Soma, With all thy aids, Be fullest of help for us. a Departed are those mortals who in days gone by behold An earlier dawn of morning; Dawn now hath become visible to us; They come who shall behold her in days to come. a I place thee that hast light. b I place thee that makest light. c I place thee that findest light. d I place thee that shinest. e I place thee that burnest. f I place thee that flashest. g I place thee that art aflame. h I place thee that blazest. i I place thee that art immortal. k I place thee that hast great light. l I place thee that awakenest. m I place thee that art awake. a To energy hail! To effort hail! To distraction hail! To attempt hail! To endeavour hail! To striving hail! To heat hail! To burning hail! To heating hail! To the hot hail! To the slaying of a Brahmin hail! To all hail! a Çitta with the sinew, Bhava with the liver, Rudra with the taniman, Paçupati with the thick heart, Agni with the heart, Rudra with the blood, Çarva with the kidneys, Mahadeva with the intestinal flesh, him that slayest most quickly with the a Mount thy car, O slayer of Vrtra; Thy steeds are yoked by our prayer; May the pressing-stone with its voice Incline thy mind towards us. b Thou art taken with a support; to Indra of the Sodaçin thee! This is thy birthplace; to Indra of the Sodaçin thee! a Indra his two steeds bear, Him of unequalled strength, To the praises of the Rsis and the sacrifice of men. b Thou art taken with a support; to Indra of the Sodaçin thee! This is thy birthplace; to Indra of the Sodaçin thee! a The Soma hath been pressed for thee O Indra; O most strong, O impetuous one, come hither; Let power encompass thee, Even as the sun encompasses the atmosphere with its rays. b Thou art taken with a support; to Indra of the Sodaçin thee! This is thy birthplace; to Indra of the Sodaçin thee!

t Aryaman goeth, the mighty bull, The giver of wealth, much invoked, deserving; With a thousand eyes, opening the cow-pens, with the thunderbolt in his arm, May the god bestow upon us wealth. u Thy many paths, O Aryaman, on which the gods go, O king, which come from the sky [4], With these, O god, grant us great protection; Be auspicious to our bipeds, to our quadrupeds. v From the depth to the top, sung by the Angirases, He moved asunder the firm places of the mountains; He burst their cunningly-made obstructions; These things did Indra in the joy of the Soma. w From the depth with the top he meted with measures, With the thunderbolt he crushed the hollows of the streams; Lightly he freed them with paths of long wanderings; These things did Indra in the joy of the Soma [5]. x Who was born knowing his connexion, The god declareth all births, From the middle of holy power he bore out holy power, From low on high he arose at his will. y Born in greatness, he established apart the great ones, The sky as a seat and the atmosphere of earth; From the depth be hath won to the top with his race, Whose deity is Brhaspati, the sovereign. z Him who with might riseth from the depth to the top, Brhaspati the gods desire to win; He broke Vala, he rendeth the forts, Thundering he won the heaven and the waters.

As the Rbhus bend the felly (of the chariot) [I] f To him, the heavenly, Now with constant voice, O Virupa, To the strong one urge the hymn of praise. g What Pani shall we lay low among the kine With the missile of this Agni Who seeth from afar? h May not the clans of the gods forsake us, Like the dawns entering the waters, As cows a poor man. i Let not the assault Of any ill-minded foe smite us, As a wave a ship. k Homage to thee, O Agni, for might, The people sing, O god; With strength [2] trouble thou the foe. l Wilt thou not, O Agni, Bring us wealth for our quest for cattle? O room maker, make room for us. m Cast us not aside in this great contest, Like a bearer his burden; Gather wealth and conquer it. n May this terror, this misfortune, O Agni, fasten on another than us; Increase our impetuous strength. o The reverent or generous man In whose offering he hath delighted, Agni aideth indeed with furtherance. p From a far [3] region Come hither to these lower ones, Favour those in the region where I am. q Since we have known of old Of thy help, O Agni, as a father's, Now we seek thy favour. r Thou, who art like a mighty man who slayeth with the dart Or a sharp-horned bull, O Agni, hast rent the forts. s O friends, together (offer) fit Food and praise to Agni, Highest over the folk, The son of strength, the mighty. t Thou gatherest, O strong one, All that belongeth, O Agni, to the niggard; Thou art kindled in the place of offering; Do thou bear us good things. u O Prajapati. v He knoweth. w O Soma and Pusan. x These gods. a Eagerly we hail thee, Eagerly would we kindle thee; Eager bring the eager, The fathers, to eat the offering. b Thou, O Soma, art pre-eminent in wisdom; Thou movest along the straightest path; Through thy guidance, O drop, our fathers wisely divided The treasure among the gods.

'Herein the dread (ones) have moved themselves' [1], he says; that is as in the text. 'The lofty form of the bull shineth on high,' he says; the rain is in its lofty form; verily by the form he wins the rain. 'That undeceived, watchful, name of thine, O Soma', he says; he indeed offers an oblation with an oblation who drawing the Adabhya (cup) offers it to Soma. The life and breath him [2] who draws the Ançu depart; 'Come breath to us from afar', he says; verily he bestows life and breath upon himself. 'Thou art ambrosia; for breath thee!' (with these words) he breathes over the gold; the gold is ambrosia, breath is life; verily with ambrosia he bestows life upon him self. It is of a hundred (Krsnalas) in weight; man has a hundred years of life, a hundred powers; verily he finds support in life and power. He touches the waters; the waters are medicine; verily he makes medicine. a Thou art the wind, expiration by name, in the lordship of Savitr give me expiration. b Thou art the eye, the ear by name, in the lordship of Dhatr give me life. c Thou art the form, colour by name, in the lordship of Brhaspati, give me offspring. d Thou art holy order, truth by name, in the lordship of Indra, give me lordly power. e Thou art the past, the future by name, in the lordship of the Pitrs, expugnate the waters and the plants. f Thee for the realm of holy order! g Thee for the might of holy order! [1] h Thee for the circumference of holy order! i Thee for the truth of holy order! k Thee for the light of holy order! Prajapati saw the Viraj; by it he created the past and the future; he concealed it from the Rsis; by penance Jamadagni beheld it, and by it he created various delights; that is why the various (cups) have their name. In that the various (cups) are drawn, so the sacrificer wins various delights. 'Thou art the wind, expiration [2] by name', he says; verily he wins expiration and inspiration.' 'Thou art the eye, the ear by name', he says; verily he wins life.

With the Anustubh metre I grasp thee in the manner of Angiras. a This bond of order they grasped At their assemblies in ages gone by, the sages; Therewith the gods mastered the pressed (juice)-- In the Saman of order proclaiming the stream. b Swiftly run hither, O steed, Along the most extended space; In the sky is thy highest birth, In the atmosphere thy navel, on the earth thy birthplace. c Yoke ye two the ass, In this course, O ye of mighty wealth, Which beareth Agni, serving us. d In each need more strong, In each contest, we invoke, As friends, Indra to aid us. e Hastening [1] come hither, trampling the enemy, Come with wondrous skill from the leadership of Rudra; Fare along the broad atmosphere, With happy pastures, bestowing security. f With Pusan as fellow, from the abode of the earth do thou approach Agni of the dust in the manner of Angiras. g We approach Agni of the dust in the manner of Angiras. h We will bear Agni of the dust in the manner of Angiras. i We bear Agni of the dust in the manner of Angiras. k Agni gazed along the forefront of the dawns, Along the days first, the all-knower, And in many ways along the rays of the sun [2], He hath extended along sky and earth. I The steed coming from the way Driveth every foe; He is fain to gaze with his eye On Agni in his great abode. m Coming to earth, O steed, Do thou seek Agni with thy radiance; Turning from earth I tell us Whence we shall dig him up. n Thy back is the sky, thy abode earth, Thy breath the atmosphere, thy birthplace the ocean; Discerning with thine eye, Do thou overcome [3] the enemy. o Arise for great prosperity From this abode, giving wealth, O steed; May we enjoy the loving favour of earth, That are about to dig fire in her lap. p The strong steed hath stepped forward, giving wealth; He hath made the place of earth well wrought; Thence let us dig Agni of fair aspect, Mounting the heaven on the top of the vault.

h Thee, O Agni [2], the Angirases found When hidden in secret, resting in every wood; Thou when rubbed art born as mighty strength; Son of strength they call thee, O Angiras. i Banner of the sacrifice, first domestic priest, Agni men kindle in the three stations; With Indra and the gods conjoined on the strew Let him sit, as Hotr, well skilled for sacrificing. k Thee of most resplendent fame Men invoke in their dwellings, With flaming hair, O dear to many, O Agni, to bear the oblation. 1 O friends, together (offer) fit [3] Food and praise to Agni, Highest over the folk, The son of strength, the mighty. m Thou gatherest, O strong one, O Agni, all that belongeth to the niggard; Thou art kindled in the place of offering; Do thou bear us good things. n With this homage Agni, Son of strength, I invoke, Dear, most effectual messenger, the good sacrificer, The envoy of all, immortal. o He, the ruddy, shall yoke (his steeds) all cherishing, He shall hasten when well adored; The sacrifice hath good prayer and strong effort [4], Of the Vasus, the divine gift of men. p The radiance of the bounteous offerer Hath mounted on high, The ruddy smoke (riseth) touching the sky; Men in unison kindle Agni. q O Agni, lording it over strength rich in kine, Youthful son of strength, Bestow upon us, O all-knower, great fame. r Being kindled, bright, sage, Agni, to be praised with song, Do thou shine with wealth for us, O thou of many faces. s O Agni, lord of the night, And of the morning, and of the dawn, Do thou burn against the Raksases with sharp jaws [5]. t May we kindle thee, O Agni, Radiant, O god, and unaging; When this most desirable Kindling-stick maketh radiance for thee in the sky, Do thou bear food to thy praisers. u With the song, O Agni, the oblation, O lord of brilliant light, Bright shining, wonderworker, lord of the people, O bearer of the oblation, is offered to thee; Do thou bear food to thy praisers.

The Preparation of the Fire a The strength resting on the stone, the bill, On the wind, on Parjanya, on the breath of Varuna, Brought together from the waters, from the plants, from the trees; That food and strength do ye, O Maruts, bounteously bestow upon us. b In the stone is thy hunger; let thy pain reach N. N., whom we hate. c With the wind of the ocean We envelop thee, O Agni; Be thou purifying and auspicious to us. d With the caul of winter We envelop thee, O Agni; Be thou purifying and auspicious to us. e Down upon earth [1], upon the reed, Upon the waters lower (do thou descend); Thou, O Agni, art the bile of the waters, f O female frog, with these come hither; Do thou make this sacrifice of ours Pure in hue and auspicious. g Pure, with radiance wonderful, On earth he hath shone as with the light of dawn. h Who (cometh) to battle, Moving with strength as on Etaça's course, In the heat unathirst, immortal. i O Agni, the purifying, with thy light, O god, with thy pleasant tongue, Bring hither the gods [2], and sacrifice. k Do thou, O shining and purifying one, O Agni, bring hither the gods To our sacrifice and our oblation. 1 This is the meeting of the waters, The abode of the ocean; May thy bolts afflict another than us; Be thou purifying and auspicious to us. m Homage to thy heat, thy blaze Homage be to thy light; May thy bolts afflict another than us; Be thou purifying and auspicious to us. n To him that sitteth in man, hail! [3] To him that sitteth in the waters, hail! To him that sitteth in the wood, hail! To him that sitteth on the strew, hail! To him that findeth the heaven, hail! o Those gods among gods, worshipful among the worshipful, Who await their yearly portion, Who eat not oblations, in this sacrifice Do ye delight yourselves with honey and ghee. p The gods who above the gods attained godhead, Who lead the way to this holy power, Without whom no place whatever is pure, Neither on the heights of sky or earth are they.

p O lord of the forest, be strong of limb, Our comrade, efficacious, of great strength; Thou art tied with cowhide, be thou strong; Let him that mounteth thee conquer what is to be conquered. q From sky, from earth [5] is might collected, From trees is strength gathered; The might of the waters surrounded with the kine, Indra's thunderbolt, the chariot, do thou adore with oblation. r The thunderbolt of Indra, the face of the Maruts, The embryo of Mitra, the navel of Varuna, Do thou, accepting this our sacrifice, O chariot divine, take to thyself the oblations. s Roar to earth and sky; Let the scattered world be ware of thee in many places; Do thou, O drum, in unison with Indra and the gods [6], Drive away the foe further than far. t Roar thou! Grant us force and might. Thunder, overthrowing obstacles; Snort away, O drum, misfortune hence; Indra's fist art thou; show thy strength. u Drive to us those, and these make to come to us; The drum speaketh aloud for a signal (of battle) Our heroes winged with steeds meet together; Be our chariotmen victorious, O Indra. a When first thou didst cry on birth, Arising from the ocean or the dust, The wings of the eagle, the limbs of the gazelle, That is thy famed birth, O steed. b The steed given by Yama hath Trita yoked, It Indra first mounted, The bridle of it the Gandharva grasped; O Vasus, from the sun ye fashioned the steed. c Thou art Yama, O steed, thou art Aditya; Thou art Trita by secret ordinance; Thou art entirely separated from Soma [1]; Three, they say, are thy bonds in the sky. d Three, they say, are thy bonds in the sky, Three in the waters, three within the ocean And like Varuna to me thou appearest, O steed, Where, say they, is thy highest birthplace. e These, O swift one, are thy cleansings, These the placings down of thy hooves in victory; Here I have seen thy fair ropes, Which the guards of holy order guard.

f The self of thee with my mind I perceived from afar, Flying with wings from below through the sky [2]; Thy head I saw speeding with wings On paths fair and dustless. g Here I saw thy highest form, Eager to win food in the footstep of the cow; When a mortal man pleaseth thy taste, Then most greedily dost thou consume the plants. h Thee follows the chariot, thee the lover, O steed, Thee the kine, thee the portion of maidens; Thy friendship the companies have sought; The gods have imitated thy strength [3]. i Golden his horns, iron his feet; Swift as thought, Indra was his inferior; The gods came to eat his oblation Who first did master the steed. k Full haunched, of slender middle, The heroic divine steeds, Vie together like cranes in rows, When the horses reach the divine coursing-place 1 Thy body is fain to fly, O steed; Thy thought is like the blowing wind; Thy horns are scattered in many places, They wander busy in the woods. m To [4] the slaughter the swift steed hath come, Pondering with pious mind; The goat, his kin, is led before, Behind him come the sages to sing. n To his highest abode hath the steed come, To his father and his mother; To-day do thou go, most welcome, to the gods; Then boons shall he assign to the generous. a Let not Mitra, Varuna, Aryaman, Ayu, Indra, Rbhuksan, the Maruts disregard us, When we shall proclaim before the assembly The might of the strong god-born steed. b When they bear before him, covered with a garment and with wealth The gift they have seized, The goat, all-formed, bleating, Goeth straight to the dear stronghold of Indra and Pusan. c This goat is led before the strong steed As share of Pusan, connected with the All-gods, When Tvastr impels him as an acceptable sacrifice Together with the steed for fair renown [1]. d When men thrice lead round in due season The steed going to the gods as an acceptable offering Then first goeth Pusan's share, The goat announcing the sacrifice to the gods.

Thou art the helper, the worshipper, blow over me with healing, with wonder-working; hail! a Agni I yoke with glory, with ghee, The bird divine mighty in strength; Therewith may we fly to the expanse of the ruddy one, Mounting the heaven above the highest vault. b These are wings unaging of thee, the winged, Wherewith thou dost smite away the Raksases, O Agni; With these may we fly to the world of good men, Where are the seers, the first-born, those of yore. c Thou art piling, born of the ocean, the drop, The skilled one, the eagle, the righteous, The golden-winged busy bird, mighty, That hath sat down firmly in its place [1]. d Homage be to thee; harm me not, Thou dost stand resting on the head of all; Within the ocean is thy heart, thy life; Sky and earth are placed on the worlds. e Give of the water, cleave the holder of the water; from the sky, from Parjanya, from the atmosphere, from the earth, thence do ye help us with rain; thou art the head of the sky, the navel of earth, the strength of waters and plants, protection of all life, extending; homage to the way! f With that devotion wherewith the seers performed the session of sacrifice [2], Kindling Agni, bearing aloft the heaven, I set on this vault that Agni Whom men call him for whom the spread is strewed. g Him with our wives let us pursue, O gods, With our sons, our brothers, or by gold, Seizing the vault in the world of good action, Above the third firmament, in the light of the sky. h To the middle of speech hath the busy one arisen, Agni here, lord of the good, the wise; Established on the back of the earth, the radiant one, He casteth beneath his feet [3] the combatants. i Let Agni here, the most manly, strength-bestowing, Of a thousand shapes, shine unwearying, Radiant in the midst of the ocean; Do ye approach the abodes divine. k Move ye forward, go ye long together; Make ye the paths gods travelled, O Agni; In this highest abode O All-gods, sit ye with the sacrificer.

The steed is possessed of the thunderbolt, by its incisors it is more puissant than those with one row of incisors, by its hair than those with two rows; him whom he hates he should conceive as beneath its feet; verily with the thunderbolt he lays him low. 'The strong steed hath stepped forth', with these two (verses) he makes it step forth; (with two) of the same form, therefore cattle are born of the same form. He pours water down; where there are waters, there Plants take root, and where plants take root cattle find support through them, the sacrifice (finds support) in cattle, the sacrificer in the sacrifice, offspring in the sacrificer; therefore he pours water down, for support. If the Adhvaryu were to pour the libation on that which is without fire, the Adhvaryu would be [1] blind, the Raksases would destroy the sacrifice; he puts gold down and offers; verily he pours on what has fire, the Adhvaryu does not become blind, the Raksases do not destroy the sacrifice. 'I touch Agni with mind, with ghee', he says, for with mind man approaches the sacrifice; 'who lordeth it over all the worlds', he says, for he lords it over all; 'broad, vast, with pervading vital power', he says, for he born small becomes great [2]; 'most extensive, impetuous, winning food', he says; verily he makes pleasant food for him; all is pleasant for him who knows thus. 'I touch thee with speech, with ghee', he says; therefore what a man conceives with mind he utters with speech; 'with friendly (mind) he says, to smite away the Raksases; 'with mortal glory, with engaging colour, Agni', he says; verily he bestows beauty upon him; he is possessed of beauty who knows thus [3]. By mind must he obtain that libation which the Adhvaryu offers in that which is without fire; he offers with two verses containing the word 'mind', to obtain the two libations; with two (he offers), for support.

d When on him as on a steed in swift movements, The folk of the sky vie with the sun; Choosing the waters the sage becometh pure, Like a beast the busy guardian that goeth around.

As men being freed from bonds cry aloud, so the sacrificers freed from the bonds of the gods cry aloud, placing food and strength in themselves. The lute has a hundred strings. Man is of a hundred (years) of age, and of a hundredfold strength; verily they find support in age and strength. They run a race, to win what has not yet been won. They beat drums; the voice of the drum is the highest (form of) speech; verily they win the highest (form of) speech. They beat the earth-drum; verily they win that speech which has entered this (earth); verily also they conquer the earth. All (forms of) speech they utter, to gain all (forms of speech). Two strive on a dry hide, to gain strength. One reviles, another extols. He who reviles purifies them, he who extols places food in them after they are purified. They win by the first months what is done by the Rsis and by the gods; in that the Bhutechad Samans are used, both are gained. Those who perform the year rite lose their virility. There are a pair united within the sacrificial ground; verily they lose not virility. vii. 5. 10. They pierce the hide; verily they remove the sin of the (sacrificers). 'Do not miss, do not pierce through', he says; verily they now remove their sin. Slave girls dance round the Marjaliya fire with water-pots on their heads, beating the ground with their feet, and singing 'This is honey.' Honey indeed is the chiefest food of the gods; verily they win the chiefest food. They beat the ground with their feet; verily they endow the (sacrificers) with might. The Horse Sacrifice (continued) vii. 5. 11. To earth hail! To the atmosphere hail! To the sky hail! To that which will stream together hail! To that which is streaming together hail! To that which hath streamed together hail! To that which will cloud hail! To that which cloudeth hail! To that which hath been clouded hail! To cloud hail! To mist hail! To storm hail! To freezing hail! To springing hail! To that which will lighten hail!