Prajapati's relations with Brahman, Brhaspati and Brahma - DWC

patible with the explanation furnished by TB. 3, 7, 3, 7: Agni is the placer
of semen (retodhä; also TB. 2, 1, 2, 11; in SB. 4, 4, 2, 18 quoting VS. 8,
10 (see above) Prajäpati fulfils that function), viz. in the patron ; Indra
places indriya, i. e. faculties, in him; Tva!?tar makes the forms ... ; "Brhaspati
among the gods is Bráhman. (Consequently,) it is by means of Bráhman
that he (the adhvaryu) causes creatures to procreate for the benefit
of him (the patron ) " .
When, in th~ first age of the gods, the cosmos (sat, the really existing)
arose from the chaos (asat) it was Brahmat;}aspati who, according to IJV.
10, 72, 2, produced "these two" (i.e., in all probability, heaven and
earth 35) like an artisan (blacksmith etc. ). Accordingly, he is in 2, 26, 3
called the father of the gods. However, from 10, 97, 15 and 19 (brhaspátiprasiitä1))
it may not be concluded that he was the creator of plants and
fruits 36 •
As an originator who orders, disposes or arranges Brhaspati makes his
appearance in RV. 4, 50, 1, where he has, with overwhelming force, fixed
asunder the encts of the earth; 4, where, when he was born, he has for
the first time blown away the intense darkness; 7, 97, 7, where he (as
Brahmat;}aspati), "the vigorous one who wields a golden axe", is the one
who wins the light of heaven (in TB. 2, 8, 4 Indra is described in the
same way); 10, 67, 1 he (Brhaspati) is called "our father" and said to
have found this vision or inspired poem (dhïry) which is "born from IJta
and firm (brhatïm) " 37; in st. 5 he foun!,! dawn, sun, cow and hymn (arka) ;
in 10, 68, 9 dawn, sun and fire; in A VS. 14, 1, 55 he has as the first
dressed the hair of Süryä, the prototype of the human bride; in 18, 3, 41
he performed the funeral sacrifice; in AVP. 15, 6, 1 he gave King Soma a
protective garment. In AVS. 10, 6, 6 ff. he is described as having bound on
an amulet in primaeval antiquity. The fact mentioned in RV. 2, 24, 8, that
Brahmat;}aspati's bowstring is IJta, the UniversalOrder, 'seems to testify
to the poet 's conviction that the god works his effective weapon - with
which he is probably supposed to enforce obedience - by means of that
important principle 38 • This implies that Rta is subservient to him. In 2,
23,17 he is said to maintain Order (Rta); in 6, 73,1 he is rtävä which
must express the same meaning 39 (cr: also 2, 23, 15; 10, 47; 6). In 2, 23,
3 he is described as driving the luminous chariot of IJta, which destroys
the enemies , kills the demons and discovers the light of heaven.
It is, on the other hand, interesting to notice that Prajäpati is said to
have created the amulet (AVS. 10,6,19; AVP. 16,44, 1 prajäpatis~ta1))
which Brhaspati in the preceding stanzas 10, 6, 11-17 has bound on for
the swift wind, the amulet that gives (re-)creative power, with which the
Asvins defend agriculture and Savitar conquered heaven, by which the
waters run always unexhausted and so on, and which in Kaus. 19, 22 ff.
35 Cf. W. Norman Brown, in JAOS 85, p. 29; Renou, E.V.P. XVI, p. 142.
36 As is Miss Bhattacharji's opinion (Theogony, p. 319): the god instigates them
to deliver those speaking from distress by their particular virtue.
37 This adjective "évoque Ie nom man quant du dieu" (Renou, E.V.P., XV, p. 70).
Cf. also l!-V. 10, 130, 4; AiB. 8, 6, 3: Brhaspati and the metre brhati.
38 I have grave doubts about the correctness of the interpretation "Die Waffe
ist eben die Wahrheit des Kuitliedes, das Rta" (H. Lüders, Varuna, Göttingen
1951-1959, p. 515, fn. 4); Renou, E.V.P. XV, p. 57: "dont la cor·de (est conforme
à) I 'Ordre" .
39 Cf. Renou, E.V.P. XV, p. 65.
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