440 ON THE VEDAS, 



Here the commentators explain death to be the 

 intellectual being who sprung from the golden 

 mundane egg : and the passage before cited from 

 the Rigveda*, where the primeval existence of 

 death is denied, may be easily reconciled with 

 this, upon the Indian ideas of the periodical de- 

 struction and renovation of the world, and finally 

 of all beings but the supreme one. 



The first selection by Vidya'ran'ya, from this 

 Upaniskad, is the fourth article (brahman a,) of the 

 third lecture of the Vrihad araiiyaca. It is de-^ 

 scriptive of Vira'j, and begins thus : 



* Tliis [variety of forms] was, before [the pro- 

 duction of body], soul, bearing a human shape. 

 Next, looking around, that [primeval being] saw 

 nothing but himself; and he, first, said " I am I." 

 Therefore, his name was "I:" and, thence, even 

 now, when called, [a man] first answers " it is I," 

 and then declares 3,ny other name which apper- 

 tains to him. 



* Since he, being anterior to all this [which 

 seeks supremacy], did consume by fire all sinful 

 [obstacles to his own supremacy], therefore does 

 the man, who knows this [truth], overcome him, 

 who seeks to be before him. 



* He felt dread ; and, therefore, man fears, when 

 alone. But he reflected, *' Since nothing exists 

 besides myself, why should I fear?" Thus his 

 terror departed from him ; for what should he 

 dread, since fear must be of another? 



♦ Pace 404. 



