30 E. IV. Hopkins, 



(19. 8. 1 and 9. if; 10. 11, etc.), to "cast off sin as Arbuda the 

 snake casts his skin" (4. 9. 5; 9. 8. 8), are to be found. ^ But untruth 

 is reproved ; the " hant " pursues the slayer, and if one " takes (too) 

 much," he is a " swallower of poison," as is one who eats what he 

 ought not. Gausukti and Asvasukti are especially mentioned as 

 having " taken much " and they " regarded themselves as poison- 

 swallowers," so that they had to discover the Gausukta and Asva- 

 SLikta Samans as expiation, 19. 4. 10 ; cf ib. 2, the Punahstoma rite, 

 for him who should " regard himself as a poison-swallower," yo 

 manyeta garagtr iva. JUB. 4. 16. 1, mentions this Gausukti as the 

 third diadochos after Indra and as the tenth from the author or 

 his time, the later seers in this list being unknown to the Brah- 

 mana, which would imply an interval of three centuries between 

 the compositions, a not unreasonable assumption and one which is 

 indicated by the fact that the morality of the Upanisad is higher 

 than that of the Brahmana. The Brahmaiia in many ways reflects 

 the earlier period of thought, religiously and ethically. 2 



' Snakes are Adityas and the earth is " queen of snakes," so that the 

 T\^orsliip of snakes, though practised, is more or less mj'stic. Compare 

 the hst in 25. 15. 1-4; 4. 9. 6 = SB. 4. 6. 9. 17; 9. 8. 7; and AB. 6. 

 1 ; SB. 2 5. 2. 47 ; 1.3. 4. 3. 9 (snakes as the people of Arbuda Kadi-aveya). 



- The sociological conditions are also early. The " eight men who con- 

 trol the state," 19. 1. 4, are a shorter list than the corresponding lists at 

 TS. 1. 8. 9 and SB. 5. 3. 1. The eight are the king's son and 'brother 

 and chaplain and queen ; the master of horse (also serving as a chronicler) ; 

 the headman of the village ; the chamberlain ; and the '' controller." The 

 last is explained as either treasurer or charioteer (by different scholiastsj, 

 but since " the chaplain in old days was charioteer " (we are expressly 

 told so in the old storj^ of Vrsa Jana, where a chaplain-charioteer speeded 

 and ran over a boy, 13. 3. 12 ; JB. 3. 94), the treasurer is prolably meant 

 by '• controller." The Upanisad moreover, has an arithmetical series which 

 is somewhat later than that of the Brahmana. As the latter indicates 

 rewards expected \>j the priest, it may be given here : (a decimal 

 series, to begin at) thousand, ten thousands ; one hundred thousands, 

 prayiita ; million, ttiyida ; ten millions, arbuda ; one hundred millions, nyar- 

 bitda ; thousand millions, vikharvaka (sic) ; ten thousand millions, badva ; 

 one hundred thousand millions, akiiita ; and ten hundred thousand millions 

 go {gaus) [?|. In JUB. 1. 10, 28, 29, the regular nikharva takes the 

 place of nikharvaka ; padiiia stands for badva ; and the last two numbers 

 are given as aksitir vyomaniah (where perhaps should be read goman or 

 anta, as in TS. 7. 2. 20. 1 ; VS 17. 2 ?) Here badva is the form of AB. 8. 

 22, and padmn is a later equivalent. Compare Ind. Streifm, 1. 96, where 

 other lists of Bnlhmana numerals are given. 



