O mighty tree, you stand before us—strong of limb, a steadfast friend, a sure crossing for those who seek passage, heroic in your bearing. Bound fast with ox-hide, may you stand firm, so that whoever mounts upon you may achieve victory. From the vastness of heaven and the richness of earth comes strength, and from the trees themselves is gathered might. Just as the thunderbolt of Indra, wrapped in ox-hide, so too is the chariot offered as a sacred oblation. Indra’s thunderbolt, the host of the Maruts, the seed of Mitra, and the navel of Varuṇa—all these divine powers are invoked. Accepting this offering, O gods, take hold of the chariot as we call upon you. Let earth and sky resound with your presence, and may your fame be established in every direction. O drum, together with Indra and all the gods, drive far away those who threaten us. Resound, O drum, with strength and vigor! Drive away distress, repel every misfortune, cast off all evil. You are the very fist of Indra—let your sound be mighty and victorious. Let your voice, O drum, ring clear; let it echo again and again, signaling triumph. With Indra’s aid, may our charioteers, victorious in battle, ride forth with swift horses for us. The animals are offered to the gods: the black-necked to Agni, the speckled to Sarasvati, the sheep to Meṣī, the brown to Soma, the dark to Pūṣan, the grey-backed to Bṛhaspati, the spotted to the Viśvadevas, the red to Indra, the dappled to the Maruts, the mixed-colored to Indra-Agni, the two with drooping lips to Sāvitr and Varuṇa, the black to Ekasiti, and the piebald to Petva. To Agni, the red-hoofed bull; to Anīkavat, the red-footed ox; to Sāvitr and Pūṣan, the two with drooping lips; the silver-naved to the Viśvadevas; the two piebald to Tūparu; the dappled to the Maruts; the black to Agni; the goat to Sarasvati; the sheep to Meṣī; the piebald to Varuṇa. The offerings continue: to Agni, the Gāyatrī with three verses; to Rāthantara, the eight-cup offering; to Indra, the Triṣṭubh with fifteen verses; to Barhata, the eleven-cup offering; to all the gods, the Jagatī with seventeen verses; to the Varūpa, the twelve-cup offering; to Mitra and Varuṇa, the Anuṣṭubh with twenty-one verses; to Vairāja, the nourishing; to Bṛhaspati, the Pankti with thirty-nine verses; to Śākvara, the Caru; to Savitar, the Uṣṇih with thirty-three verses; to Raivata, the twelve-cup offering; to Prajāpati, the Caru; to Aditi and Viṣṇu’s spouse, the Caru; to Agni Vaiśvānara, the twelve-cup offering; to Anumati, the eight-cup offering. O divine Savitar, inspire this sacrifice! Inspire the lord of sacrifice toward good fortune. May the celestial Gandharva, bearer of sacred signs, purify our sign; may the lord of speech grant us strength. We contemplate the divine radiance of Savitar, the most excellent; may he inspire our thoughts. O god Savitar, remove all our misfortunes; whatever is auspicious, bring that to us. We call upon Savitar, the distributor of the splendid wealth of Vasu, who sees all men. Each being and station is assigned its place and purpose: for Brahmanhood, the Brahmin; for sovereignty, the Kṣatriya; for the Maruts, the Vaiśya; for austerity, the Śūdra; for darkness, the thief; for hell, the slayer of heroes; for evil, the impotent; for sale, the iron-worker; for desire, the courtesan; for outcastes, the Māgadha. For dance, the bard; for song, the minstrel; for law, the courtier; for misfortune, the jester; for jest, the clown; for laughter, the comic; for joy, the companion of women; for delight, the son of a maiden; for intelligence, the chariot-maker; for steadfastness, the carpenter. For austerity, the potter; for magic, the smith; for beauty, the jeweler; for good fortune, the weaver; for archery, the arrow-maker; for weapons, the bow-maker; for work, the string-maker; for fate, the rope-twister; for death, the hunter; for destruction, the dog-leader. For the rivers, the fisherman; for the bear-hunters, the Nishada; for the tiger among men, the fierce one; for the Gandharvas and Apsarases, the outcaste; for the attendants, the madman; for the serpent-deities, the one without a fixed abode; for gamblers, the cheat; for non-gamblers, the ogre; for the fiends, the one who makes split bamboo; for the sorcerers, the thorn-maker. For union, the adulterer; for the household, the paramour; for distress, the forsaken; for destruction, the betrayer; for misfortune, the husband of a barren woman; for expiation, the skilled worker; for knowledge, the memory-maker; for passionate pursuit, the lover; for color, the one who follows; for strength, the assistant. For deformity, the hunchback; for joy, the dwarf; for the door, the lame; for sleep, the blind; for unrighteousness, the deaf; for purification, the physician; for wisdom, the star-gazer; for instruction, the questioner; for further instruction, the inquirer; for boundaries, the judge. For the elephants, the elephant-keeper; for speed, the horse-keeper; for nourishment, the cowherd; for strength, the shepherd; for energy, the goat-herd; for food, the ploughman; for drink, the brewer; for good fortune, the householder; for prosperity, the treasurer; for supervision, the overseer. For light, the wood-gatherer; for brilliance, the fire-kindler; for the slaughtered, the sacrificer; for abundance, the server; for the highest world, the attendant; for the world of the gods, the messenger; for the world of men, the announcer; for all worlds, the assistant; for return, the one who grinds; for intelligence, the cloth-bleacher; for desire, the dyer. For truth, the thief at heart; for slaying enemies, the informer; for discrimination, the steward; for supervision, the overseer; for the child, the attendant; for abundance, the wanderer; for affection, the sweet-speaker; for safety, the horse-tamer; for the heavenly world, the milker; for the highest world, the attendant. To Wrath, the one who burns; to Anger, the one who rushes forth; to Discipline, the one who binds; to Sorrow, the one who pursues; to Well-being, the one who releases; to the wedge, the three-pointed; to Splendor, the one shaped by the mind; to Conduct, the one who applies collyrium; to Destruction, the one who makes the sheath; to Restraint, the thread. To Restraint, the thread; to the Atharvans, the protected ones; to the Year, the revolving one; to the Half-year, the unborn; to the Present Year, the one who passes away; to the Past Year, the one who has departed; to the Year, the worn out; to the Year, the gray-haired; to the Ṛbhus, the one who joins skins; to the Sādhyas, the one who stretches hide. To the lakes, the fisherman; to the stagnant waters, the one who stays; to the marshes, the one who serves; to the reed beds, the one who cuts reeds; to the dry lands, the ferryman; to the crossing, the boatman; to the fords, the one who crosses; to the difficult places, the miner; to the resounding places, the leaf-blower; to the caves, the hunter; to the slopes, the crusher; to the mountains, the Kimpuruṣa. To the repulsive, the Paulkasa; to color, the goldsmith; to the scales, the merchant; to the late evening, the glāvin; to all beings, the ashen one; to prosperity, wakefulness; to adversity, sleep; to distress, the slanderer; to growth, the boaster; to conflict, the divider. To the king of dice, the gambler; to the winning throw, the newly-shown die; to the third throw, the one who arranges; to the fourth throw, the one who arranges further; to the one who leaps, the pillar in the assembly; to Death, the cow-killer; to the Ender, the cow-slayer; to Hunger, the one who stands by the one who cuts the cow; to Evil, the wandering teacher; to Sin, the mountain-dweller. To the echo, the shouter; to sound, the barker; to the end, the talkative one; to the endless, the mute; to noise, the drum-beater; to greatness, the lute-player; to the wailer, the flute-blower; to the lower sound, the conch-blower; to the forest, the forester; to the other wilderness, the fire-maker. To jest, the courtesan; to laughter, the jester; to the Yādava, the speckled one; to the village, the accountant; to the crier, those; to greatness, the lute-player; to the hand-slayer, the flute-blower; to dance and joy, the cymbal-player. To Agni, the fat one; to Earth, the one who spreads the seat; to Vāyu, the outcaste; to the atmosphere, the bamboo-dancer; to the sky, the digger; to Sūrya, the tawny horse; to the stars, the insect; to the Moon, the leprous; to day, the white, tawny-eyed one; to night, the black, tawny-eyed one. Now, there are eight deformed ones: the excessively tall, the excessively short, the excessively stout, the excessively thin, the excessively white, the excessively black, the excessively bald, and the excessively hairy. These are not Śūdras or Brāhmaṇas, but belong to Prajāpati. The Māgadha, the courtesan, the gambler, the impotent—these too are not Śūdras or Brāhmaṇas, but are of Prajāpati. The Person, the Cosmic Being, has a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, a thousand feet. Pervading the earth in every direction, he stands above it by ten fingers’ breadth. All that exists—what has been and what is to be—is truly that Person. He is also the lord of immortality, which grows through food. Such is his greatness, yet the Person is greater still. All beings are but a quarter of him; three quarters are immortal in heaven. Three quarters of the Person rose upward; one quarter was born here again. From that, he spread out in all directions, into what eats and what does not eat. From him was born Virāj, and from Virāj, the Person again. Born thus, he extended beyond, behind the earth and before it as well. From that sacrifice, wholly offered, clarified butter was gathered, and from it he created the animals of the air, the forest, and the village. From that sacrifice, entirely offered, arose the Ṛc and Sāman hymns; from it, the meters were born; from it, the Yajus was born. From it came the horses, and all animals with two rows of teeth; cows came forth, and goats and sheep as well. Upon the sacred grass, they sprinkled that sacrifice, the Person who was born at the beginning. With this, the gods, the Sādhyas, and the seers performed their own sacrifice.