I-x-1: When the crops in the Kuru country had been destroyed by hailstorms, there lived Usasti, the son of Cakra with his young wife in a deplorable condition in the village of elephant-drivers.
I-x-2: He begged food of an elephant-driver, while he was eating beans of an inferior quality. The driver said to him, ‘There is no other food than what is set before me’.
I-x-3: ‘Give me some of them’, said Usasti. The driver gave them to him and said, ‘Here is drink at hand, if you please 1’ ‘Then I shall be drinking what is defiled’, said Usasti.
I-x-4: ‘Are not these beans also defiled ?’ ‘Unless I ate them, I would surely not have survived’, said Usasti, ‘but drinking is at my option’.
I-x-5: Usasti, after he had eaten, brought the remainder to his wife. She had already obtained her food by alms; so after receiving it she kept it by.
I-x-6: Next morning while leaving the bed he said, ‘Alas, if I could get a little of food, I could earn a little wealth. There a king is going to institute a sacrifice; he would appoint me to all the priestly offices’.
I-x-7: His wife said to him, ‘Well, lord, here are the beans (given by you).’ Having eaten them he went off to that sacrifice which was being performed.
I-x-8: Seeing the singing priests seated there, he sat down near the singers in the place for singing the Stotras. And then he addressed the Prastotir priest.
I-x-9: ‘O Prastotir, if you sing the Prastava without knowing the deity that belongs to the Prastava, your head will fall down’.
I-x-10: In the same manner he addressed the Udgatir priest, O Udgatir, if you sing the Udgitha without knowing the deity that belongs to the Udgitha, your head will fall down’.
I-x-11: In the same manner he addressed the Pratihartir priest, ‘O Pratihartir, if you sing the Pratihara without knowing the deity that belongs to the Pratihara, your head will fall down’. Then they all sat down silently suspending their duties.
I-xi-1: Then the principal of the sacrifice said to him, I should like to know you, revered sir, ‘I am Chakrayana Usasti’, said he.
I-xi-2: He said, ‘I searched for you, revered sir, for all these priestly offices, but not finding you, sir, I have chosen others.’
I-xi-3: ‘Revered sir, you yourself take up all the priestly offices for me’. ‘Be it so; then, let these same priests sing the hymns, being permitted by me. But you should give me as much wealth as you give them.’ ‘Very well’, said the sacrificer.
I-xi-4: Then the Prastotir priest approached him and said, ‘Revered sir, you said to me: ‘O Prastotir, if you sing the Prastava without knowing the deity that belongs to the Prastava, your head will fall down”. Which is that deity ?’
I-xi-5: ‘Prana’, said Usasti, ‘all these movable and immovable beings merge in Prana (during dissolution) and rise out of Prana (during creation). This is the deity that belongs to the Prastava. If you sang the Prastava without knowing him, after your having been warned thus by me, your head would have fallen down.’
I-xi-6: Then the Udgatir priest approached him and said, ‘Revered sir, you said to me: ‘O Udgatir, if you sing the Udgitha without knowing the deity that belongs to the Udgitha, your head will fall down”. Which is that deity ?’
I-xi-7: ‘The sun’, said Usasti, ‘all these movable and immovable sing the praise of the sun when he has come up. This is the deity that belongs to the Udgitha. If you sang the Udgitha without knowing him, after your having been warned thus by me, your head would have fallen down.’
I-xi-8: Then the Pratihartir priest approached him and said, ‘Revered sir, you said to me: ‘O Pratihartir, if you sing the Pratihara without knowing the deity that belongs to the Pratihara, your head will fall down”. Which is that deity ?’
I-xi-9: ‘Food’, said Usasti, ‘all these movable and immovable beings live by partaking of food only. This is the deity that belongs to the Pratihara. If you sang the Pratihara without knowing him, after your having been warned thus by me, your head would have fallen down.’
I-xii-1: Therefore next begins the Udgitha seen by the dogs. Once Dalbhya Baka, called also Maitreya Glava, went out (of the village) for the study of the Vedas.
I-xii-2: Before him a white dog appeared and other dogs gathered around it and said, ‘Revered sir, please obtain food for us by singing; we are hungry.’
I-xii-3: The white dog said to them, ‘Come to me over here tomorrow morning.’ (The sage named) Dalbhya Baka and Maitreya Glava kept watch there for them.
I-xii-4: Just as those who recite the Stotras singing the Bahispavamana hymn move along clasping one another’s hand, even so did the dogs move along. Then they sat down and began to pronounce ‘him’.
I-xii-5: ‘Om, let us eat ! Om, let us drink ! Om, may the (sun who is) god, Varuna, Prajapati and Savitir bring us food here. O Lord of food, bring food here, yea bring it, Om !’
I-xiii-1: Verily, this world is the syllable ‘hau’ (which is a Stobha), the air is the syllable ‘hai’, the moon is the syllable ‘atha’, the self is the syllable ‘iha’ and the fire is the syllable ‘I’.
I-xiii-2: The sun is the syllable ‘u’ (which is a Stobha), invocation is the syllable ‘e’ the Visvadevas are the syllable ‘auhoyi’, Prajapati is the syllable ‘him’, Prana is the Stobha ‘svara’, food is the Stobha ‘ya’ and Virat is the Stobha ‘vak’.
I-xiii-3: The undefinable and variable thirteenth Stobha is the syllable ‘hum’.
I-xiii-4: For him, speech yields the milk, which is the benefit of speech; and he becomes richin food and an eater of food, who thus knows this sacred doctrine of the Samans – yea, knows the sacred doctrine of the Samans.
II-i-1: Om. Surely, the meditation on the whole Saman is good. Anything that is good, people call as Saman, anything that is not good, as Asaman.
II-i-2: Thus, when people say, ‘He approached him with Saman’, then they say only this: ‘He approached him with a good motive’. And when they say, ‘He approached him with Asaman’, then they say only this” ‘He approached him with an evil motive.’
II-i-3: Again, people say: ‘Oh, this is Saman for us’, when it is something good; then they say only this: ‘Oh, this is good for us’. Again, they say, ‘Oh, this is Asaman for us’, when it is not good; then they say only this: ‘Oh, this is evil.’
II-i-4: When one who knows it thus meditates on the Saman as good, all good qualities hasten towards him and serve him.
II-ii-1: Among the worlds one should meditate upon the Saman as fivefold. The earth is the syllable him, the fire is Prasrava, the sky is Udgitha, the sun is Pratihara, and heaven is Nidhana. Thus this meditation pertains to the higher worlds.
II-ii-2: Now, among the lower worlds. Heaven is the syllable him, the sun is Prastava, the sky is Udgitha the fire is Pratihara, and the earth is Nidhana.
II-ii-3: The worlds in the ascending and descending lines belong to him. Who, knowing it thus (endowed with the quality of ‘good’) meditates on the fivefold Saman in the worlds.
II-iii-1-2: One should meditate on the fivefold Saman as rain. The wind that precedes is the syllable him, the cloud that is formed is Prastava, the shower is Udgitha, lightning and thunder are Pratihara, and the ceasing is Nidhana. It rains for him – indeed, he causes rain – who, knowing it thus, meditates on the fivefold Saman as rain.
II-iv-1: One should meditate on the fivefold Saman in all the waters. When a cloud gathers, it is the syllable him. When it rains, it is Prastava. Those (waters) that flow to the east, are Udgitha. Those that flow to the west are Pratihara. The ocean is Nidhana.
II-iv-2: He who, knowing it thus, meditates on the fivefold Saman in all the waters, does not drown in water and he becomes rich in water.
II-v-1: One should meditate on the fivefold Saman as the seasons: The spring is the syllable him, the summer is Prastava, the rainy season is Udgitha, the autumn is Pratihara, and the winter is Nidhana.
II-v-2: He, who knowing it thus, meditates on the fivefold Saman in the seasons, him the seasons serve and he becomes rich in seasons.
II-vi-1: One should meditate on the fivefold Saman as the animals. The goats are the syllable him, the sheep are Prastava, the cows are Udgitha, the horses are Pratihara, and man is Nidhana.
II-vi-2: He, who knowing it this, meditates on the fivefold Saman in animals, to him animals belong and he becomes rich in animals.
II-vii-1: One should meditate on the progressively higher and better fivefold Saman as the senses; The organ of smell is the syllable him, the organ of speech is Prastava, the eye is Udgitha, the ear is Pratihara, and the mind is Nidhana. Verily, these are progressively higher and better.
II-vii-2: He who knowing it thus, meditates on the fivefold Saman, progressively higher and better, in the senses, to him belong progressively higher and better lives and he wins ever higher and better worlds. So much for (the meditation on) the fivefold Saman.
II-viii-1-2: Next is the meditation on the sevenfold Saman. One should meditate on the sevenfold Saman as speech. Whatsoever in speech is ‘hum’, that is the syllable him; whatever is ‘pra’, that is Prastava; whatever is ‘a’, that is Adi (the first); whatever is ‘ut’, that is Udgitha; whatever is ‘prati’, that is Pratihara; whetever is ‘upa’, that is Upadrava; and whatever is ‘ni’, that is Nidhana.
II-viii-3: He who knowing it thus, meditates on the sevenfold (whole) Saman as speech, for him speech yields milk i.e. its appropriate benefit, and he becomes rich in food and an eater of food.
