Text 25: Other requirements are utensils, grains, clarified butter, honey, gold, earth, water, the Ṛg Veda, Yajur Veda and Sāma Veda and four priests to perform the sacrifice.
Text 26: Other necessities include invoking the different names of the demigods by specific hymns and vows of recompense, in accordance with the particular scripture, for specific purposes and by specific processes.
Text 27: Thus I had to arrange all these necessary ingredients and paraphernalia of sacrifice from the personal bodily parts of the Personality of Godhead. By invocation of the demigods’ names, the ultimate goal, Viṣṇu, was gradually attained, and thus compensation and ultimate offering were complete.
Text 28: Thus I created the ingredients and paraphernalia for offering sacrifice out of the parts of the body of the Supreme Lord, the enjoyer of the sacrifice, and I performed the sacrifice to satisfy the Lord.
Śrīdhara Svāmi-kṛtā Bhāvārtha-dīpikā Vyākhyā
The names are the jyotiṣṭomas and others. Since the ṛks and others are mentioned, the mantras are the svāhākāras and others. The sequence of deities is the enumeration. The kalpa is a text on the procedure of rituals such as the baudhāyana. The resolution is "I shall perform the sacrifice with this." The tantra is the method of performance. (25)
The gatis are viṣṇukrama and others. The matis are the meditations on deities. The prāyaścitta is the offering to the Lord of what is done with bhūr bhuvaḥ svar and others. (26)
I, by whom the materials are procured, with that very sacrifice. The meaning of the mantra "They sacrificed to the sacrifice with the sacrifice" is indicated. (27)
He shows the meaning of "The gods sacrificed with that" in detail with the two verses beginning with "tata". Manifested in the form of Indra and others, unmanifested naturally. The meaning of "The man born from the undifferentiated" is shown. (28)
Śrī Vaṃśīdhara-kṛtā Bhāvārtha-dīpikā Prakāśa Vyākhyā
The sacrifice is Viṣṇu. Because of the śruti "The sacrifice is indeed Viṣṇu." The meaning of "yatpuruṣeṇa haviṣā" is suggested. (27) (28) (29)
Śrī Rādhā Ramaṇa dāsa Gosvāmi Viracitā Dīpanī Vyākhyā
[The mantras are the three Vedas mentioned as ṛcas, yajuses, and sāmans. (25)] Of the deities, i.e., of Agni and others. (26)
viṣṇukrama and others, i.e., viṣṇukrama is a specific subsidiary rite of the sacrifice or circumambulation of Viṣṇu. [These, i.e., the materials are procured, prepared by me. (27)]
In the mantra "They sacrificed to the sacrifice with the sacrifice." The mantra is indeed "The gods sacrificed to the sacrifice with the sacrifice. Those were the first dharmas. They, the great ones, reached heaven where the ancient Sādhyas, the gods, are." [16] The commentary of Sāyaṇa on this - He briefly shows here the meaning stated earlier in detail. The gods in the form of Prajāpati's prāṇas sacrificed, i.e., worshiped, with the sacrifice, i.e., with the mentioned mental resolution, the sacrifice, i.e., Prajāpati, the form of the sacrifice. Due to that worship, those well-known dharmas, the supporters of the modifications of the world, became the primary ones. With this, the meaning of the portion of the sūkta teaching creation is summarized. Now, the meaning of the portion dealing with the result of worship is summarized. Where, i.e., in which heaven consisting of the attainment of Virāṭ, the ancient Sādhyas, the ancient gods who are the worshipers of Virāṭ, are, they, the great souls, the worshipers of that, reach that heaven, the attainment of Virāṭ. [16] (28)
Śrīmad Vīrarāghava Vyākhyā
The names [of the sacrifices] such as Jyotiṣṭoma etc. are mentioned, since the Ṛg and other [Vedic texts] are stated. The mantras are [of two types:] those ending with svāhā etc. The vow is the diet of only milk etc. The sequence of deities is not mentioned - the sequence of deities is a separate word, and that sequence is the recitation order or succession. Kalpa is the procedure of performance. Saṅkalpa is the determination of what is to be done. Tantra is the set of rituals. (25)
The paths are [such as] the steps of Viṣṇu etc. The views are the meditations on deities. Faith is the subject of what ought to be done. Repentance is the rectification of deficiency. Dedication is the offering to deities. The materials are the means of sacrifice such as the body parts of the Puruṣa [and] the materials are procured, i.e., obtained. (26)
Thus, the materials are procured, i.e., obtained, by whom, I worshipped with that very sacrifice Viṣṇu, the controller, the sacrifice, the Puruṣa Himself. The meaning of the mantra "they worshipped the sacrifice with the sacrifice" is stated. (27)
He explains the meaning of "by that the gods worshipped" elaborately in the next two [verses]. There, those brothers, the nine Prajāpatis such as Marīci and others, with well-concentrated minds, worshipped the Puruṣa, the Supreme Puruṣa, manifestly in the form of Indra and others [and] unmanifestly from the Vedas. (28)
Śrīmad Vijayadhvaja Tīrtha-kṛtā Pada Ratnāvalī Vyākhyā
The Ṛks are bound by fixed meters, the Yajuses are endowed with unfixed metrical compositions, the Sāmans are dominated by singing, and the ritual is performed by the four [priests] headed by the Adhvaryu. The names are "Indra" etc. or the Agnihotra, Darśa etc. The mantras are of two types: bīja (seed) and mālā (garland). The bīja mantras consist of twenty letters or less. Those exceeding that are called mālā mantras. They reveal the deities, substances, etc. The bīja mantras have their heads adorned with a dot like the digit of the moon. The mālā mantras are distinguished by names such as Indra and end with namaḥ, svāhā, phaṭ. Both have an upper limit for japa (recitation), not a lower limit. (25)
Dakṣiṇās are the donations of substances to the Hotṛ and others, through which they enhance the ritual. Vratas are [observances] such as celibacy etc. The deities are those expressed by the respective mantras, such as Agni and others. Anukrama is their hierarchy, characterized by succession or recitation order or the sequence of rituals. Kalpa is [a text] such as Baudhāyana which teaches the procedure of performance. Saṅkalpa is the remembrance and declaration by mind and speech in the form of "I shall do this". Sūtra refers to the Mīmāṃsā-sūtras. In the Śabda-sūtra and the Devatā-mīmāṃsā-sūtras, karma (action) is grasped. Gatis are the results such as heaven etc. Matas are the knowledge or the differences based on the views of sages. Śraddhā is the conviction of the existence [of deities, rituals, etc.]. It is of the form: "This is true. It is conducive to our goals". Prāyaścitta is the means to accomplish the result of the prescribed action by way of removing the obstacles that have occurred or may occur. Samarpaṇa is the dedication of the action to Brahman. (26)
The word iti indicates the beginning. I, who have thus procured the means of sacrifice, worshipped that very Puruṣa of sacrifice with the parts of the Puruṣa that are arranged, such as the animals etc., being impelled by Him who has entered me, having placed my sight in the means such as place, time, animals etc. or being impelled by the object of worship. By [the word] īśvara, he indicates the greatness of what is to be worshipped by oneself. (27)
There, he describes the pervasiveness of the sacrifice performed by him with the two [verses] beginning with tata. By this, the superiority of oneself and the authoritativeness of one's own action are shown. He specifies "your brothers, the Prajāpatis such as Marīci and others", not Sanaka and others. The manifest is what is accessible. The unmanifest is what is inaccessible. By this, a certain nature of Hari is shown through the means and the materials. Samāhitāḥ means the qualities of the mind such as single-pointedness [with the thought] "this alone is better, not anything else". (28)
Śrīmaj Jīva Gosvāmi-kṛtā Krama Sandarbha Vyākhyā
I, who have gathered the ingredients in the previously mentioned forms of animals and so on, [worship] with those very limbs of the Puruṣa which are the cause of gathering the respective sacrificial ingredients, and which are manifested from those [limbs] in their respective forms. || 28 || 29 || 30 ||
Śrīmad Viśvanātha Cakravarti-kṛtā Sārārtha darśinī Vyākhyā
The substances are the vessels and so on. The herbs are rice and so on. The oils are ghee and so on. The juices are the sweet and so on. The metals are gold and so on. The cāturhotra is the act of the hotā priest and others. || 25 || Oṁ, oṁ are the names like jyotiṣṭoma and so on. The sequence of deities is the enumeration. The kalpa is the manual of procedures like the Baudhāyana. With this, I shall perform sacrifice is the resolution. The tantra is the method of performance. || 26 || The courses are the steps of Viṣṇu and so on. The opinions are the meditations on the deities. The offering is the dedication of what has been done to the Lord. || 27 || Because of the śruti statements "The sacrifice is Viṣṇu" and "Sacrifice is indeed Viṣṇu," and because it is indicated by the mantra in statements like "The Puruṣa sacrifices with the oblation" and "One is born consisting of sacrifice through sacrifice." || 28 ||
Śrīmac Chukadeva-kṛta Siddhānta Pradīpaḥ
The substances, vessels, and other items, the medicinal herbs, the objects like puroḍāśa, rice, etc., the oil like ghee, etc., the juice like soma juice, etc., the metal like gold, etc., the deceased four priests - the mantra consecrated by the four priests, the ritual to be performed publicly. || 25 ||
The names like Jyotiṣṭoma, etc., the mantras like svāhākāra, etc., since the animals like deer, etc., are mentioned, the dakṣiṇā, the vratas like fasting, etc., the sequence of deities - the list, the kalpa - the method of performance, the saṅkalpa - the resolution of what is to be done, the various methods of performing the rite. || 26 ||
The courses like the steps of Viṣṇu, etc., the thoughts - the meditations on deities, the prāyaścitta - the rectification of deficiencies. The dedication - the dedication of what has been done to the Lord. The materials that have been procured and collected. || 27 ||
Thus, I, who have procured and collected these materials, have worshipped that very person, the lotus-naveled Viṣṇu, who is the sacrifice itself, with that very sacrifice itself. The mantra "anena yajñena yajñam ayajanta" has been cited to support this. || 28 ||
Śrīmad Vallabhācārya Viracitā Subodhinī Vyākhyā
The names [of the sacrificial components] are jyotiṣṭoma, etc. The mantras are svāhākāra, etc. The recitations are mentioned by the word "ca". The dakṣiṇās are cows. The word "ca" refers to the sacrifices, vratas like ḍī, etc. The word "ca" also refers to the prohibitions like eating meat, etc. The sequence of deities is the order of the deities to be worshipped, like āgneya, kṛṣṇagrīva, etc. Kalpa is the Kalpa Sūtra. Saṅkalpa is the object of desire. Sūtra is the Nyāya Sūtra. Paddhati is the procedure. Gati refers to the strides of Viṣṇu. Mati refers to the meditations on deities. The word "ca" up to the fourth refers to the actions like abhisamīkṣaṇa, etc. Prāyaścitta refers to anājñāta, etc. Samarpaṇa is dedication. Nivedana is offering. These are the components required for a sacrifice. They are all made from the limbs of the Puruṣa, as stated: "by the limbs of the Puruṣa". The arrangement of the limbs, etc. will be explained in the third chapter. These components are gathered only by the limbs of the Puruṣa. The word "maya" suggests that an ordinary person cannot do this. (25-26)
What is said next? "iti sambhṛtasambhāra". Having gathered the components in this way with the limbs of the Puruṣa, worship that very Puruṣa with that sacrifice. The sacrifice is not for [personal] gain, but for the sake of Īśvara. That is why it is said: "īśvaram". Just as I have performed the sacrifice, it is proper to do so. The sacrificial objects should be produced from the limbs of the Lord with devotion, and then used to perform the acts for the Lord's pleasure alone. The Lord indeed has some purpose of His own. Just as all actions of a person are for his own purpose, all sacrifices are for the purpose of the Lord. If they produce the animals etc. that originated from the Lord's body and use them for the Lord's work, then the result is for the Lord's sake. Not otherwise. Even though the worldly objects are also produced in the same way, they serve all purposes. They are not the exclusive means to the result of sacrifice. The intermediate aspirants, knowing them to be for the sacrifice, obtain the result by procuring those objects and performing the sacrifice. But that result should be dedicated. When, however, one performs the sacrifice with those objects out of ignorance, the Lord does not accept that result. The Lord does not accept what is done with objects belonging to others. When the objects are not procured for the sake of sacrifice but are ordinary, then no result is produced at all. Or, if produced, it is lost like the logic of the crow and the palm fruit. If those objects were for that [sacrifice], then the objects procured for the sacrifice would yield fourfold results: best, middling, inferior and fruitless. Among them, the animals originated from the thighs of the Lord. The trees from the hairs. The kuśa grass along with sweat. The altar from the feet. Time from the eyelashes. The substances from the lips, etc. The oils from the eyes. The tastes from the tongue. The clays from the breath. The waters from the nāḍīs. The Ṛks and Yajus mantras from the ears and the head. The cāturhotra rite from the arms. The names from the mouth. The mantras from the parts of the head. The dakṣiṇā cows from the left thigh. The vratas from the mind. The sequence of deities from the joints. The Kalpa from the strength. The saṅkalpa from the intellect. The Sūtra from the prāṇas. Or in the form of exercise and yoga. The gatis from the strides. The matis from the organs of knowledge. The prāyaścitta from the organs of action. The samarpaṇa of the self. The other sacrificial objects are also to be understood accordingly. That is why in the Veda all the sacrificial objects are directly perceived by the devotees. First, the objects are brought from the respective limbs. Then the sacrifice is performed. Otherwise, the statements "not seeing", "brought", "sacrifices" would be meaningless. (27)
Thus, just as I did, after doing so, these brothers Marīci and others, the lords of creatures, themselves sacrificed in nine ways for the nine types of creatures. Then the Lord became manifest in the sāttvika entities for the sāttvika persons, unmanifest in the tāmasa for the tāmasa. For the middling, both. That is why it is said: "vyaktam avyaktam". "Susamāhitāḥ" means attentive, for the purpose of combining objects for another, for the sake of knowledge or production. (28)
Śrīmad Gosvāmi Śrī Puruṣottama Caraṇa Viracitaḥ Śrī Subodhinī Prakāśaḥ
The meanings of 'iti saṃbhṛta' here are not for the sake of [attaining] results. In the stage of contemplating worship, even when contemplating on that for the sake of results, [the seeker] gives up such thoughts after seeing the materials [for worship]. This is the meaning of 'tathā'. In this way, they clearly explain the primacy of the means [of worship] starting with 'yathā'. Otherwise, [the text] would not mention the word 'īśvara'. This is the implication. They clarify the proper method starting with 'yajñīyām' up until 'padārthān'. [The materials] are related with [the phrase] 'utpādya'.
There is some effect [to be produced]. When wondering what that is, it appears to be the nourishment of the entire world through nourishing the deities who are parts of himself, based on statements like "In the beginning of creation, the deities conceived of the Lord Hari as the enjoyer of sacrifices. The deities enjoying the portions of the sacrifice were [in turn] conceived by Him." 'Te' refers to the living beings.
The practitioners of average caliber state the second method as 'madhyamādhikāriṇa'. This is a usage in the genitive case. 'Tathājñātvā' means knowing the creation of the materials [for worship]. They state the third method starting with 'yadā punar'. There, 'ajñānāt' means not knowing that the materials are meant for sacrifice. They state the fourth method starting with 'yat punar'.
Thus, after stating the four methods, in order to show the distinction of the materials suitable for sacrifice from the common materials, they indicate the differences in their sources in accordance with other scriptures and Puranas, starting with 'tatra'. 'Yathāyathamūhyā' means those suitable in each respective place should be procured, understanding the stated method. Here, to convey the Vedic basis of the primary method, they say 'tata eva' up until 'vaiyarthyāpattiḥ'. An example should be written here after consulting the Saṃhitā [scripture]. And thus, this method is established by the implications of the meaning of the Vedas. (27)
Continuing from 'tatas te', they state the successive propagation of these methods starting with 'evam'. 'Anyathā' etc. - these three should also be understood respectively in relation to sāttvika and other [methods]. (28)
Śrī Giridhara-kṛtā Bāla Prabodhinī
Nāmaveyāni: Jyotiṣṭoma and other [Vedic rituals]. Mantrāḥ: Svāhākāra and other [invocations], since the Ṛg [Veda] etc. have been mentioned. Dakṣiṇā: Cows etc. Vratāni: Observances like subsisting on milk. Devatānām anukramaḥ: The sequence of deities and such. Kalpaḥ: Ritual procedure texts authored by Baudhāyana and others. Saṅkalpaḥ: Resolving that "I will perform the sacrifice for this purpose." Tantram: The method of performing rituals. (25)
Gatayaḥ: The strides of Viṣṇu etc. Matayaḥ: Meditations on deities. Prāyaścittam: Resolving obstacles. And offering the performance to the Lord. (26)
The meaning is: I worshipped, as it were, that very Person who is the embodiment of sacrifice, with the sacrifice for which the materials were procured by none other than the Person through His own body parts. The intention is that such worship is indispensable for the Lord. This indicates the meaning of the Vedic mantra: "They worshipped the sacrifice with the sacrifice."
Therein, [the materials were gathered] from the thighs of the Lord for the animals; from the hair for the trees; from the hair with sweat for the Kuśa grass; from the feet for the altar; from the eyelashes for time; from the chest etc. for the Vasus; also from the hair for the herbs; from the eyes for the oils; from the tongue for the essences; from the nails for the metals; from the life-breath for the clays; from the nerves for the waters; from the ears for the Ṛg [Veda] etc.; from the arms for the cāturmāsya [rituals]; from the mouth for the Nāmaveyāni; from the head for the mantras; from the left thigh for the cows offered as fees; from the mind for the creepers; from the joints for the sequence of deities; from the strength for the Kalpa [texts]; from the intellect for the resolve; from the life-force for the Tantra [texts]; from the strides for the Gati [movements]; from the cognitive senses for the Mati [thoughts]; from the active senses for the expiations; from the self for the dedication. In this way, the procurement of the other materials of sacrifice from the respective body parts [of the cosmic Person] is to be understood. (27)
The meaning of "tena devā ayajanta" is elaborately shown in two [verses] starting with 'tataḥ'. The meaning is: Thereafter, these nine Prajāpatis, your brothers, beginning with Marīci, being composed in mind, worshipped the manifest form of the unmanifest divine Person in the form of Indra and others, for the sake of progeny and for propagating the sacrifice among them. (28)
Hindī Anuvāda
I gathered all the yajña materials - the names of yajñas, mantras, dakṣiṇā, vrata, names of deities, procedure texts, saṅkalpa, tantra (method of ritual), gati, mati, śraddhā, prāyaścitta, and samarpaṇa - from the limbs of the Virāṭ Puruṣa. || 25-26 ||
In this way, after collecting all the materials from the limbs of the Virāṭ Puruṣa, I performed the yajña of that Supreme Being, who is the embodiment of yajña, using those very materials. || 27 ||
Thereafter, your elder brothers, these nine Prajāpatis, completely concentrated their minds and worshipped that Puruṣa situated in the Virāṭ and Antaryāmī. || 28 ||
SB 2.6.25-28
