HYMN XVI. Agni.
1. Burn him not up, nor quite consume him, Agni: let not his body or his skin be scattered.
O Jatavedas, when thou hast matured him, then send him on his way unto the Fathers.
2. When thou hast made him ready, Jatavedas, then do thou give him over to the Fathers.
When he attains unto the life that waits him, he shall become the Deities’ controller.
3. The Sun receive thine eye, tne Wind thy spirit; go, as thy merit is, to earth or heaven.
Go, if it be thy lot, unto the waters; go, make thine home in plants with all thy members.
4. Thy portion is the goat: with heat consume him: let thy fierce flame, thy glowing splendour, burn him
With thine auspicious forms, o Jatavedas, bear this man to the region of the pious.
5. Again, O Agni, to the Fathers send him who, offered in thee, goes with our oblations.
Wearing new life let him increase his offspring: let him rejoin a body, Jatavedas.
6. What wound soe’er the dark bird hath inflicted, the emmet, or the serpent, or the jackal,
May Agni who devoureth all things heal it and Soma who hath passed into the Brahmans.
7. Shield thee with flesh against the flames of Agni, encompass thee about with fat and marrow,
So will the Bold One, eager to attack thee with fierce glow fail to girdle and consume thee.
8. Forbear, O Agni, to upset this ladle: the Gods and they who merit Soma love it.
This ladle, this which serves the Gods to drink from, in this the Immortal Deities rejoice them.
9 .1 send afar flesh eating Agni, bearing off stains may he depart to Yama’s subjects.
But let this other Jatavedas carry oblation to the Gods, for he is skilful.
10. I choose as God for Father-worship Agni, flesh-eater, who hath past within your dwelling,
While looking on this other Jatavedas. Let him light flames in the supreme assembly.
11. With offerings meet let Agni bring the Fathers who support the Law.
Let him announce oblations paid to Fathers and to Deities.
12. Right gladly would we set thee down, right gladly make thee burn and glow.
Gladly bring yearning Fathers nigh to cat the food of sacrifice.
13. Cool, Agni, and again refresh the spot which thou hast scorched and burnt.
Here let the water-lily grow, and tender grass and leafy herb.
14 .O full of coolness, thou cool Plant, full of fresh moisture, freshening Herb,
Come hither with the female frog: fill with delight this Agni here.
HYMN XVII. Various Deities.
1. TVASTAR prepares the bridal of his Daughter: all the world hears the tidings and assembles.
But Yama’s Mother, Spouse of great Vivasvan, vanished as she was carried to her dwelling.
2. From mortal men they hid the Immortal Lady, made one like her and gave her to Vivasvan.
Saranyu brought to him the Asvin brothers, and then deserted both twinned pairs of children.
3. Guard of the world, whose cattle ne’er are injured, may Pusan bear thee hence, for he hath knowledge.
May he consign thee to these Fathers’ keeping, and to the gracious Gods let Agni give thee.
4. May Ayu, giver of all life, protect thee, and bear thee forward on the distant pathway.
Thither let Savitar the God transport thee, where dwell the pious who have passed-before thee.
5. Pusan knows all these realms: may he conduct us by ways that are most free from fear and danger.
Giver of blessings, glowing, all-heroic, may he, thewise and watchful, go before us.
6. Pusan was born to move on distant pathways, on the road far from earth and far from heaven.
To both most wonted places of assembly he travels and returns with perfect knowledge.
7. The pious call Sarasvati, they worship Sarasvati while sacrifice proceedeth.
The pious called Sarasvati aforetime. Sarasvati send bliss to him who giveth.
8. Sarasvati, who camest with the Fathers, with them rejoicing thee in our oblations,
Seated upon this sacred grass be joyful, and give us strengthening food that brings no sickness.
9. Thou, called on as Sarasvati by Fathers who come right forward to our solemn service,
Give food and wealth to present sacrificers, a portion, worth a thousand, of refreshment.
10. The Mother Floods shall make us bright and shining, cleansers of holy oil, with oil shall cleanse us:
For, Goddesses, they bear off all defilement: I, rise up from them purified and brightened.
11. Through days of earliest date the Drop descended on this place and on that which was before it.
I offer up, throughout the seven oblations, the Drop which still to one same place is moving.
12. The Drop that falls, thy stalk which arms have shaken, which from the bosom of the press hath fallen,
Or from the Adhvaryu’s purifying filter, I offer thee with heart and cry of Vasat!
13. That fallen Drop of thine, the stalk which from the ladle fell away,
This present God Brhaspati shall pour it forth to make us rich.
14. The plants of earth are rich in milk, and rich in milk is this my speech;
And rich in milk the essence of the Waters: make me pure therewith.
HYMN XVIII. Various Deities.
1. Go hence, O Death, pursue thy special pathway apart from that which Gods are wont to travel.
To thee I say it who hast eyes and hearest: Touch not our offspring, injure not our heroes.
2. As ye have come effacing Mrtyu’s footstep, to further times prolonging your existence,
May ye be rich in children and possessions. cleansed, purified, and meet for sacrificing.
3. Divided from the dead are these, the living: now be our calling on the Gods successful.
We have gone forth for dancing and for laughter, tofurther times prolonging our existence.
4. Here I erect this rampart for the living; let none of these, none other, reach this limit.
May they survive a hundred lengthened autumns, and may they bury Death beneath this mountain.
5. As the days follow days in close succession, as with the seasons duly come the seasons,
As each successor fails not his foregoer, so form the lives of these, O great Ordainer.
6. Live your full lives ap! find old age delightful, all of you striving one behind the other.
May Tvastar, maker of fair things, be gracious and lengthen out the days of your existence.
7. Let these unwidowed dames with noble husbands adorn themselves with fragrant balm and unguent.
Decked with fair jewels, tearless, free from sorrow, first let the dames go up to where he lieth.
8. Rise, come unto the world of life, O woman: come, he is lifeless by whose side thou liest.
Wifehood with this thy husband was thy portion, who took thy hand and wooed thee as a lover.
9. From his dead hand I take the bow be carried, that it may be our power and might and glory.
There art thou, there; and here with noble heroes may we o’ercome all hosts that fight against us.
10. Betake thee to the Iap of Earth the Mother, of Earth far-spreading, very kind and gracious.
Young Dame, wool-soft unto the guerdongiver, may she preserve tbee from Destruction’s bosom.
11. Heave thyself, Earth, nor press thee downward heavily: afford him easy access, gently tending him.
Cover him, as a mother wraps her skirt about her child, O Earth.
12. Now let the heaving earth be free from motion: yea,- let a thousand clods remain above him.
Be they to him a home distilling fatness, here let them ever be his place of refuge.
13. I stay the earth from thee, while over thee I place this piece of earth. May I be free from injury.
Here let the Fathers keep this pillar firm for thee, and there let Yama make thee an abiding-place.
14. Even as an arrow’s feathers, they have set me on a fitting day.
The fit word have I caught and held as ’twere a courser with the rein.
HYMN XIX. Waters or Cows.
1. TURN, go not farther on your way: visit us, O ye Wealthy Ones.
Agni and Soma, ye who bring riches again, secure us wealth.
2. Make these return to us again, bring them beside us once again.
May. Indra give them back to us, and Agni drive them hither-ward.
3. Let them return to us again: under this herdsman let them feed.
Do thou, O Agni, keep them here, and let the wealth we have remain.
4. 1 call upon their herdsman, him who knoweth well their coming nigh,
Their parting and their home-return, and watcheth their approach and rest.
5. Yea, let the herdsman, too, return, who marketh well their driving-forth;
Marketh their wandering away, their turning back and coming home.
6. Home-leader, lead them home to us; Indra, restore to us our kine:
We will rejoice in them alive.
7. 1 offer you on every side butter and milk and strengthening food.
May all the Holy Deities pour down on us a flood of wealth.
8. O thou Home-leader, lead them home, restore them thou who bringest home.
Four are the quarters of the earth; from these bring back to us our kine,
HYMN XX. Agni.
1. SEND unto us a good and happy mind.
2. 1 worship Agni, Youthfullest of Gods, resistless, Friend of laws;
Under whose guard and heavenly light the Spotted seek the Mother’s breast:
3. Whom with their mouth they magnify, bannered with flame and homed in light.
He glitters with his row of teeth.
4. Kind, Furtherer of men, he comes, when he hath reached the ends of heaven,
Sage, giving splendour to the clouds.
5. To taste man’s offerings, he, the Strong, hath risen erect at sacrifice:
Fixing his dwelling he proceeds.
6. Here are oblation, worship, rest: rapidly comes his furtherance.
To sword-armed Agni come the Gods.
7. With service for chief bliss I seek the Lord of Sacrifice, Agni, whom
They call the Living, Son of Cloud.
8. Blest evermore be all the men who come from us, who magnify
Agni with sacrificial gifts.
9. The path he treads is black and white and red, and striped, and brown, crimson, and glorious.
His sire begat him bright with hues of gold.
10. Thus with his thoughts, O Son of Strength, O Agni, hath Vimada, accordant with the Immortals,
Offered thee hymns, soliciting thy favour. Thou hast brought all food, strength, a prosperous dwelling.
