{"collection":"Hinduism","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/hin/av/av09006.htm","path":"hin/av/av09006.htm","source_url":"https://sacred-texts.com/hin/av/av09006.htm","text":"Hymns of the Atharva Veda, by Ralph T.H. Griffith, [1895]\n1Whoso will know Prayer with immediate knowledge, whose mem-\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0bers are the stuff, whose spine the verses:\n 2Whose hairs are psalms, whose heart is called the Yajus, whose\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0coverlet is verily oblation\u2014\n 3Verily when a host looks at his guests he looks at the place of\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0sacrifice to the Gods.\n 4When he salutes them reverently he undergoes preparation for\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0a religious ceremony: when he calls for water, he solemnly\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0brings sacrificial water.\n 5The water that is solemnly brought at a sacrifice is this same\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0water.\n 6The libation which they bring; the sacrificial victim dedicated\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0to Agni and Soma which is tied to the post, that, verily, is\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0this man.\n 7When they arrange dwelling-rooms they arrange the sacred\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0chamber and the shed for housing the Soma cars.\n 8What they spread upon the floor is just Sacrificial Grass.\n 9With the couch that the men bring, he wins for himself the\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0world of Svarga.\n 10The pillow-coverings that they bring are the green sticks that\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0surround the sacrificial altar.\n 11The ointment that they bring for injunction is just clarified\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0liquid butter.\n 12The food they bring before the general distribution represents\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0the two sacrificial cakes of rice meal. p. a374\n 13When they call the man who prepares food they summon the\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0preparer of oblation.\n 14The grains of rice and barley that are selected are just filaments\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0of the Soma plant.\n 15The pestle and mortar are really the stones of the Soma press.\n 16The winnowing-basket is the filter, the chaff the Soma dregs,\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0the water, the pressing-gear.\n 17Spoon, ladle, fork, stirring-prong are the wooden Soma tubs;\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0the earthen cooking-pots are the mortar-shaped Soma\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0vessels; this earth is just the black-antelope's skin.\n 18Or the host acts in this way to a Yajam\u0101na's Br\u0101hman: when\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0he looks at the furniture and utensils he says, More here t\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0yet more here.\n 19When he says, Bring out more, he lengthens his life thereby.\n 20He brings oblations: he makes the men sit down.\n 21As the guest of the seated company he himself offers up\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0sacrifice.\n 22With ladle, with hand, in life, at the sacrificial post, with cry of\n \u00a0\u00a0Ladle! with exclamation of Vashat!\n 23Now these guests, as priests beloved or not beloved, bring one\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0to the world of Svarga.\n 24He who hath this knowledge should not eat hating, should not\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0eat the food of one who hates him, nor of one who is doubt-\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0ful, nor of one who is undecided.\n 25This man whose food they eat hath all his wickedness blotted\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0out.\n 26All that man's sin whose food they do not eat remains unblot-\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0ted out.\n 27The man who supplies food hath always pressing stones adjusted,\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0a wet Soma filter, well prepared religious rites, and mental\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0power to complete the arranged sacrifice.\n 28The arranged sacrifice of the man who offers food is a sacrifice\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0to Praj\u0101pati.\n 29The man who offers food follows the steps of Praj\u0101pati.\n 30The fire of the guests is the \u0100havaniya, the fire in the dwelling\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0is the G\u0101rhapatya, that whereon they cook food is the South-\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0ern Sacrificial Fire.\n 31Now that man who eats before the guest eats up the sacrifice\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0and the merit of the house.\n 32He devours the milk and the sap: p. a375\n 33And the vigour and prosperity.\n 34And the progeny and the cattle:\n 35And the fame and reputation.\n 36The man who eats before the guest eats up the glory and the\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0understanding of the house.\n 37The man should not eat before the guest who is a Br\u0101hman\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0versed in holy lore.\n 38When the guest hath eaten he should eat. This is the rule for\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0the animation of the sacrifice and the preservation of its\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0continuity.\n 39Now the sweetest portion, the produce of the cow, milk, or\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0flesh, that verily he should not eat.\n 40The man who having this knowledge pours out milk and offers\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0it wins for himself as much thereby as he gains by the perfor-\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0mance of a very successful Agnishtoma sacrifice.\n 41The man who having this knowledge pours out clarified butter\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0and offers it wins for himself thereby as much as he gains by\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0the performance of a very successful Atir\u0101tra sacrifice.\n 42He who pours out mead and offers it wins for himself thereby\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0as much as he gains by the performance of a very successful\n \u00a0\u00a0Sattrasadya sacrifice.\n 43He who having this knowledge besprinkles flesh and offers it\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0wins for himself thereby as much as he gains by the perfor-\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0mance of a very successful Twelve-Day sacrifice.\n 44The man who having this knowledge pours out water and offers\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0it obtains a resting-place for the procreation of living beings\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0and becomes dear to living beings, even the man who having\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0this knowledge pours out water and offers it.\n 45For him Dawn murmurs, and Savitar sings the prelude; Brihas-\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0pati chants with vigour, and Tvashtar joins in with increase;\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0the Visve Dev\u0101h take up conclusion. He who hath this know-\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0ledge is the abiding-place of welfare, of progeny, and of\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0cattle.\n 46For him the rising Sun murmurs, and Early Morning sings the\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0prelude; Noon chants the psalm, Afternoon joins in; the\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0setting Sun takes up the conclusion. He who hath this know-\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0ledge is the abiding place of welfare, of progeny, and of\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0cattle.\n 47For him the Rain-cloud murmurs when present, sings the pre-\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0lude when thundering, joins in when lightening, chants the p. a376\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0psalm when raining, and takes up the conclusion when it stays\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0the downpour. He who hath this knowledge is the abiding-\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0place of welfare, of progeny, and of cattle.\n 48He looks at the guests, he utters a gentle sound; he speaks, he\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0signs the prelude; he calls for water, he chants the psalm; he\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0offers the residue of the sacrifice, he takes up the conclusion.\n 49When he summons the door-keeper he gives instruction.\n 50He (the door-keeper) pronounces the sacrificial formula in his\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0answer to what he hears.\n 51When the attendants with vessels in their hands, foremost and\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0hindmost, come in, they are just the priests who manage the\n \u00a0\u00a0Soma cups.\n 52Not one of them is incompetent to sacrifice.\n 53Or if the host, having offered food to his guest, goes up to the\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0house, he virtually enters the bath of purification.\n 54When he distributes food he distributes priestly fees; what he\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0performs he asks as favour.\n 55He having been invited on earth, regales, invited in that, which\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0wears all various forms on earth.\n 56He, having been invited in air, regales, invited, in that which\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0wears all various forms in air.\n 57He having been invited in the sky, regales, invited, in that which\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0wears all various forms in the sky.\n 58He, having been invited among the gods, regales, invited in that\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0which wears all various forms among the Gods.\n 59He, having been invited in the worlds, regales, invited, in that\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0which wears all various forms in the worlds.\n 60He, having been invited hath been invited.\n 61He gains this world and the world yonder.\n 62He who hath this knowledge wins the luminous spheres.","title":"Atharva Veda: Book 9: Hymn 6: A glorification of hospitable reception of guests","type":"page"}