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 286 The Religion of the Veda

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second birth, or regeneration. The little mortal becomes a man in a higher sense, because his teacher teaches him the Veda, syllable by syllable, word by word, stanza by stanza. During the period of his disciplehood he is the devoted servant of his teacher who, throughout Hindu tradition, is regarded as even better entitled to respect than his own parents. No matter how rich and powerful his own family, he now lives obedient to his teacher, taking care of his wants to the point of gathering his firewood and begging for him in the village, humble and chaste in his own life. In return he obtains from his teacher the sacred knowledge, the Veda. Especially, the sacrosanct Savitri', that famous brief stanza’ which at an early time carries Within it the presentiment of the deep theosoPhy that is to come, by placing in the relation of cause and effect the physical and spiritual essences of the universe:

“ r"What lovely glory of Savitar, The heavenly god, we contemplate : Our pious thoughts he shall promote.”

After he has absolved the study of the Veda he becomes a full-grown man. The teacher, according to the beautiful account of the T aittir‘i’ya Upanishad (I. II), dismisses his pupil with the following last

1 Rig—Veda 3. 62. 10; see above, p. 86.