Page:The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa (1884).djvu/99



Sauti said:—"The god of fire enraged at the curse of Bhrigu, thus addressed the Rishi:—'What meaneth this rashness, O Brahmana, that thou hast displayed towards me? What transgression can be imputed to me who was laboring to do justice and speak the truth impartially? Being asked I gave the true answer. A witness who when interrogated respecting a fact of which he hath knowledge representeth otherwise than it is, ruineth his ancestors and descendants both to the seventh generation. He too, who, being fully informed of all the circumstances of an affair, doth not disclose what he knoweth when asked, is undoubtedly stained with guilt. I also can curse thee, but Brahmanas are held by me in high respect. Although these be known to thee, O Brahmana, I will yet speak of them, so please attend! Having by ascetic power multiplied myself, I am present in various forms, in places of the daily homa, in sacrifices extending for years, in places where holy rites are performed (such as marriage, &c.), and in other sacrifices. With the butter that is poured upon my flame according to the ordinances declared in the Vedas, the Devas and the Pitris are appeased. The Devas are the waters; the Pitris are also the waters. The Devas have with the Pitris an equal right to the sacrifices called the Darshas and The Devas therefore are the Pitris; and the Pitris, the Devas. They are identical beings, worshipped together and also separately at the changes of the moon. The Devas and the Pitris eat what is poured upon me. I am therefore called the mouth of the Devas and the Pitris. At the new moon the Pitris, and at the full moon the Devas, are fed through my mouth, eating of the clarified butter that is poured on me. Being, as I am, their mouth, how am I to be an eater of all things (clean and unclean)?'

"Then Agni, after reflecting for a while, withdrew himself from all places; from places of the daily homa of the Brahmanas, from all sacrifices, from places of holy rites, and from other ceremonies. Without their Oms and Vashats, and deprived of their Swadhās and Swāhās (sacrificial mantras of great mystery), the whole body of creatures became 9