Brihadaranyaka Upanishad | Part 1 Ch 1 Meditation on the Horse-Sacrifice

The fore part of the horse is the rising sun and the hinder part the setting sun.

1. Om, verily, the head of the sacrificial horse is the dawn, its eye the sun, its vital breath the wind, its open mouth the Vaisvanara fire and the trunk of the sacrificial horse is the year.

The back is heaven, the belly the intermediate region, the hoof the earth, the sides the four quarters, the ribs the intermediate quarters, the limbs the seasons, the joints the months and half-months, the feet the days and nights, the bones the stars, the flesh the clouds.

Its half-digested food is the sand, the blood-vessels the rivers, the liver and lungs the mountains, the hair the herbs and trees.

The fore part of the horse is the rising sun and the hinder part the setting sun. Its yawn is lightning, its shaking of the body is thunder, its water is rain and its neighing is indeed voice.

2. The day, verily, is the golden cup called mahiman, in front of the horse, which arose pointing it out. Its source is the eastern sea.

The night, verily, is the silver cup called mahiman, behind the horse, which arose pointing it out.

Its source is the western sea. These two vessels appeared at either end of the horse.

As a racer the horse carried the gods; as a stallion, the gandharvas; as a runner, the demons; as a horse, men.

The sea is its stable and the sea, its source.

The Upanishads translated by Swami Nikhilananda

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