Willig gab einstmals Vâjashravasa [bei einem Opfer] seine ganze Habe dahin.
Ihm war ein Sohn mit Namen Naciketas. #PD
Vâgasravas 1, desirous (of heavenly rewards), surrendered (at a sacrifice) all that he possessed. He had a son of the name of Naciketas. #MM
| 1: | Vâgasravasa is called runi Auddâlaki Gautama, the father of Nakiketas. The father of Svetaketu, another enlightened pupil (see Khând. Up. VI, 1,1), is also called runi (Uddâlaka, comm. Kaush. Up. 1, 1) Gautama. Svetaketu himself is called runeya, i.e. the son of runi, the grandson of Aruna, and likewise Auddâlaki. Auddâlaki is a son of Uddâlaka, but Sankara (Kâth.Up. I, 11) takes Auddâlaki as possibly the same as Uddâlaka. See Brih. r. Up. III, 6, 1. |
\\dak.si.naasu niiyamaanaasu (s + v) (loc abs) während die Priestergaben dargebracht worden sind
“sraddh= “sraddhaa (s f | nom sg) [“sraddhaa] Vertrauen, Zuversicht, Glaube; Treue, Aufrichtigkeit
vive”sa_ aavive”sa (v | 3p perf act) [avi”s] es trat ein, es drang ein, es kam herein
|
so_ sa.h (pron | 3p m nom sg) [tad] er
'manyata_ amanyata (v | 3p imp sg) [man] er dachte, er bedachte
||2||
Den, obgleich er erst ein Knabe war, überkam, als die Opferlohnkühe [zur Verteilung an die Brahmanen] hergetrieben wurden, der Glaube [an die Wirksamkeit des Allhabeopfers], und er bedachte: #PD
When the (promised) presents were being given (to the priests), faith entered into the heart of Naciketas, who was still a boy, and he thought: #MM
"Wasser trinkend und Gras essend,
Ausgemolken und lendenlahm!
– Ach! diese Welten sind freudlos,
In die er, solche spendend, geht." #PD
"Unblessed 2, surely, are the worlds to which a man goes by giving (as his promised present at a sacrifice) cows which have drunk water, eaten hay, given their milk 3, and are barren."
| 2: | As to ânanda, unblessed, see Brih. r. Up. IV, 4, 1 1 ; Vâgas. Samh. Up. 3 (Sacred Books of the East, vol. i, p. 311). |
| 3: | nandagiri explains that the cows meant here are cows no longer able to drink, to eat, to give milk, and to calve. |
Und er sprach zu seinem Vater [sich selbst anbietend, um das Allhabeopfer vollständig zu machen]:
"Mein Vater, wem wirst du mich geben?" – #PD
He (knowing that his father had promised to give up all that he possessed, and therefore his son also) said to his father: "Dear father, to whom wilt thou give me?" #MM
so sprach er, [in ihn dringend] zum zweitenmal und drittenmal.
Ihm antwortete [von Zorn über diese Unterschätzung seiner Opfergaben ergriffen] der Vater:
"Dem Tode gebe ich dich." #PD
He said it a second and a third time. Then the father replied (angrily):
"I shall give thee 4 unto Death."
(The father, having once said so, though in haste, had to be true to his word and to sacrifice his son.) #MM
| 4: | Dadâmi, I give, with the meaning of the future. Some MSS. write dâsyâmi. |
Naciketas spricht:
"Zwar bin ich besser als viele,
Doch viele sind an Wert mir gleich; Was mag wohl Yama vorhaben,
Daß er jetzt schon nach mir begehrt?" #PD
The son said: "I go as the first, at the head of many (who have still to die); I go in the midst of many (who are now dying). What will be the work of Yama (the ruler of the departed) which to-day he has to do unto me5?
| 5: | I translate these verses freely, i.e. independently of the commentator, not that I ever despise the traditional interpretation which the commentators have preserved to us, but because I think that, after having examined it, we have a right to judge for ourselves. Sankara says that the son, having been addressed by his father full of anger, was sad, and said to himself: "Among many pupils I am the first, among many middling pupils I am the middlemost, but nowhere am I the last. Yet though I am such a good pupil, my father has said that he will consign me unto death. What duty has he to fulfil toward Yama which he means to fulfil to-day by giving me to him? There may be no duty, he may only have spoken in haste. Yet a father's word must not be broken." Having considered this, the son comforted his father, and exhorted him to behave like his forefathers, and to keep his word. I do not think this view of Sankara's could have been the view of the old poet. He might have made the son say that he was the best or one of the best of his father's pupils, but hardly that he was also one of his middling pupils, thus implying that he never was among the worst. That would be out of keeping with the character of Nakiketas, as drawn by the poet himself. Nakiketas is full of faith and wishes to die, he would be the last to think of excuses why he should not die. The second half of the verse may be more doubtful. It may mean what Sankara thinks it means, only that we should get thus again an implied complaint of Nakiketas against his father, and this is not in keeping with his character. The mind of Nakiketas is bent on what is to come, on what he will see after death, and on what Yama will do unto him. "What has Yama to do," he asks, "what can he do, what is it that he will to-day do unto me?" This seems to me consistent with the - ancient story, while Sankara's interpretations and interpolations savour too much of the middle ages of India. |
Sieh auf die Froheren rückwärts,
Sieh vorwärts auf die Folgenden; Zur Ernte reift der Mensch korngleich,
Korngleich ersteht er wieder neu. #PD
Look back how it was with those who came before, look forward how it will be with those who come hereafter. A mortal ripens like corn, like corn he springs up again6. #MM
| 6: | Sasya, corn rather than grass; -, -, Benfey; Welsh haidd, according to Rhys; different from sash-pa, ces-pes, Benfey. |
Ein Brahmane als Gast eintritt
Ins Haus gleichwie ein Feuerbrand; Ihn zu löschen, bring her eilig
Das Fußwasser, Vaivasvata! #PD
(Nakiketas enters into the abode of Yama Vaivasvata, and there is no one to receive him. Thereupon one of the attendants of Yama is supposed to say:) . "Fire enters into the houses, when a Brâhmana enters as a guest7. That fire is quenched by this peace-offering; — bring water, O Vaivasvata8! #MM
| 7: | Cf. Vasishtha XI, 13; Sacred Books of the East, vol. xiv, p. 51. |
| 8: | Vaivasvata, a name of Yama, the ruler of the departed. Water is the first gift to be offered to a stranger who claims hospitality. |
Um Hoffnung, Aussicht,
Freundes Verkehr und Zuspruch, Um Opfer, fromme Werke,
Kinder und Herden, – Um alles dieses bringt den unverständigen Mann
Ein nicht von ihm bewirteter Brahmanengast. #PD
A Brâhmana that dwells in the house of a foolish man without receiving food to eat, destroys his hopes and expectations, his possessions, his righteousness, his sacred and his good deeds, and all his sons and cattle9."
(Yama, returning to his house after an absence of three nights, during which time Nakiketas had received no hospitality from him, says:) #MM
| 9: | Here again some words are translated differently from Sankara. He explains âsâ as asking for a wished-for object, pratikshâ as looking forward with a view to obtaining an unknown object. Sangata he takes as reward for intercourse with good people; sûnritâ, as usual, as good and kind speech; ishta as rewards for sacrifices; pûrta as rewards for public benefits. |
#MM
Yama:
"Weil du, Brahmane, der als Gast zu ehren,
Drei Nächte ungespeist bei mir geweilt hast, – Verehrung dir! und Heil sei mir, Brahmane! –
Darum, entsprechend, wähle dir drei Wünsche!" #PD
"O Brâhmana, as thou, a venerable guest, hast dwelt in my house three nights without eating, therefore choose now three boons. Hail to thee! and welfare to me!" #MM
Naciketas:
"Beruhigten Gemüts und wohlgesinnt sei,
Verwichnen Grolles, Gautama, mir wieder; Froh grüß' er mich, den du, o Tod, entlassen! –
Das wähle ich als ersten der drei Wünsche." #PD
Nakiketas said: "O Death, as the first of the three boons I choose that Gautama, my father, be pacified, kind, and free from anger towards me; and that he may know me and greet me, when I shall have been dismissed by thee." #MM
Yama:
"Auddâlaki runi wird wie vordem
Froh werden, seines Worts von mir entbunden; Verwichnen Grolles schlaf er sanft die Nächte,
Befreit dich sehend aus des Todes Rachen." #PD
Yama said: "Through my favour Auddâlaki runi, thy father, will know thee, and be again towards thee as he was before. He shall sleep peacefully through the night, and free from anger, after having seen thee freed from the mouth of death."
na_ (par |) [na] hier: weder
tatra_ (adv |) [tatra] dort
tvan- tvam (pron | 2p nom sg) [yu.smat] du
na_ (part|) [na] hier: noch
jarayaa_ (s f | inst sg) [jaraa] mit dem Alter, durch das Altern
bibheti_ (v | 3p sg ind pres) [bhI] sich fürchten, sich sorgen machen
|
ubhe_ (s m | nom pl) [ubha] die Beiden
tiirtvaa= (v | abs) [t.rr] aufgegeben habend
“sanaayaa- a”sanaayaa (s f | dv) [a”sanaa] den Hunger
pipaase_ (s f | nom du) [pipaasaa] den Durst
\\”sanaayaapipaase (s f | dv nom du) [a”sanaa,pipaasaa] Hunger und Durst
|
“sokaa= “soka (s m | kd) [“soka] Angst, Sorge, Zweifel
tigo_ atiga.h (adj | m nom sg) [atiga] überwunden, überschritten
modate_ (v | 3p sg in pres) [mud] lustig sein, fröhlich sein, sich freuen
svargaloke_ (s m | tp loc sg) [svargaloka] in der Himmelswelt
||12||
Naciketas:
"In der Welt des Himmels gibt es
keine Furcht mehr, Dort bist nicht du, nicht macht besorgt das Alter; Beiden entrückt, dem Hunger und dem Durste,
Von Leid frei, freut man in der Himmelswelt sich. #PD
Nakiketas said: "In the heaven-world there is no fear; thou art not there, O Death, and no one is afraid on account of old age. Leaving behind both hunger and thirst, and out of the reach of sorrow, all rejoice in the world of heaven. #MM
Du kennst, o Tod, das Feuer, das den Himmel
Erwirbt; mir, der dir gläubig horcht, erklär' es! Unsterblich sind, die dort im Himmel weilen, –
Das wähle ich mir als die zweite Gabe." #PD
Thou knowest, O Death, the fire-sacrificef which leads us to heaven; tell it to me, for I am full of faith. Those who live in the heaven-world reach immortality,- this I ask as my second boon." #MM
Yama:
"Wohlan! ich will das Feuer, das den Himmel
Erwirbt, dir sagen, hör' es mit Verständnis;
– Das Feuer, das der ew'gen Welt Erlangung
Und Grund ist, wisse
im Versteck (vgl. 4,8) verborgen." #PD
Yama said: "I tell it thee, learn it from me, and when thou understandest that fire-sacrifice which leads to heaven, know, O Nakiketas, that it is the attainment of the endless worlds, and their firm support, hidden in darkness 10." #MM
| 10: | The commentator translates: "I tell it thee, attend to me who knows the heavenly fire." Here the nom. sing. of the participle would be very irregular, as we can hardly refer it to bravîmi. Then "Know this fire as a means of obtaining the heavenly world, know that fire as the rest or support of the world, when it assumes the form of Virâg, and as hidden in the heart of men." |
लोकादिमग्निं तमुवाच तस्मै या इष्टका यावतीर्वा यथा वा । स चापि तत्प्रत्यवदद्यथोक्तं अथास्य मृत्युः पुनरेवाह तुष्टः ॥ १
Da lehrt' er ihm das Feuer, das die Welt baut, Die Backsteine, wie groß und wie zu schichten. Er aber wiederholt' es nach der Reihe. – Und wieder nahm der Tod das Wort voll Freude, #PD
Yama then told him that fire-sacrifice, the beginning of all the worlds 11, and what bricks are required for the altar, and how many, and how they are to be placed. And Nakiketas repeated all as it had been told to him. Then Mrityu, being pleased with him, said again: #MM
| 11: | Sankara: the first embodied, in the shape of Virâg. |
तमब्रवीत् प्रीयमाणोमहात्मा वरं तवेहाद्य ददामि भूयः ।
तवैव नाम्ना भविताऽयमग्निः सृङ्कां चेमामनेकरूपां गृहाण ॥ १
Und sprach zu ihm befriedigt, hohen Sinnes:
"Noch ein Geschenk sollst obendrein du haben:
Nach deinem Namen nenne sich dies Feuer;
Dazu nimm dieses Spruchs verschlungne Kette: #PD
The generous 12, being satisfied, said to him: "I give thee now another boon; that fire-sacrifice shall be named after thee, take also this many-coloured chain 13. #MM
| 12: | Verses 16-18 seem a later addition. |
| 13: | This arises probably from a misunderstanding of verse II, 3. |
त्रिणाचिकेतस्त्रिभिरेत्य सन्धिं त्रिकर्मकृत्तरति जन्ममृत्यू।
ब्रह्मजज्ञं देवमीड्यं विदित्वा निचाय्येमाँशान्तिमत्यन्तमेति ॥ १
«Drei-Nâciketa-Feuer-haft2, Drei-Bund-haft3,
Drei-Werk-haft4 streift man ab
Geburt und Sterben; Den Gott erkennend, der, was Brahman schuf, weiß5,
Und schichtend6 geht man ein zur Ruh für immer.» #PD
| 2: | Wer dreimal das Feuer Nâciketa (Taitt.Br. 3,11) schichtet. |
| 3: | Wer den Bund mit Vater, Mutter und Lehrer eingeht. |
| 4: | Wer Opfer, Studium und Almosen vollbringt. |
| 5: | Daß brahmaja-jña ein verschleiertes jâta-vedas sei, war meine Meinung, lange bevor ich derselben Ansicht in M.Müller's Übersetzung begegnete. Vgl. auch oben S.109 Anm. |
| 6: | Auch Taitt.Br.3,11 ist immer wieder von diesen beiden Bedingungen, Schichtung und Erkenntnis des Nâciketafeuers, die Rede. |
He who has three times performed this Nâkiketa-rite and has been united with the three (father, mother, and teacher), and has performed the three duties (study, sacrifice, almsgiving) overcomes birth and death. When he has learnt and understood this fire, which knows (or makes us know) all that is born of Brahman14, which is venerable and divine, then he obtains everlasting peace. #MM
| 14: | Gâtavedas. |
Drei-Nâciketa-Feuer-haft, Drei-kundig 7, –
Wer so das Nâciketafeuer schichtet, Stößt vor sich weg des Todesgottes Schlingen;
Von Leid frei freut er in der Himmelswelt sich. #PD
Das ist das Himmelsfeuer, Naciketas,
Das du dir wähltest als der Gaben zweite. Nach deinem Namen wird die Welt es nennen. 8 –
Jetzt, Naciketas, sprich den dritten Wunsch aus." #PD
Naciketas:
"Ein Zweifel waltet, wenn der Mensch dahin ist:
«Er ist!» sagt dieser; «er ist nicht!» sagt jener. Das möchte ich, von dir belehrt, ergründen,
Das sei die dritte Gabe, die ich wähle!" #PD
Yama:
"Auch von den Göttern ward hier einst gezweifelt;
Schwer zu erkennen, dunkel ist die Sache. Wähl' einen andern Wunsch dir, Naciketas,
Bedränge mich nicht, diesen Wunsch erlaß mir." #PD
Naciketas:
"Auch Götter also haben hier gezweifelt,
Und du sagst selbst, daß schwer, es zu erkennen. Kein andrer kann es so wie du erklären,
Kein andrer Wunsch
kommt diesem gleich an Werte." #PD
Yama:
"Wähl' hundertjährige Kinder dir und Enkel,
Viel Herden, Elefanten, Gold und Rosse, Erwähle großen Grundbesitz an Land dir,
Und lebe selbst soviel du willst der Herbste! #PD
Wenn dies als Wunsch du schätzest gleich an Werte,
So wähle Reichtum dir und langes Leben, Ein Großer, Naciketas, sei auf Erden,
Ich mache zum Genießer aller Lust dich. #PD
Was schwer erlangbar ist an Lust hienieden,
Erbitte nach Belieben alle Lust dir, – Schau hier auf Wagen holde Frau'n mit Harfen,
Wie solche nicht von Menschen zu erlangen, #PD
Ich schenke dir sie; daß sie dich bedienen,
Nur frag' nicht, Naciketas, nach dem Sterben!" #PD
Naciketas:
"Was uns, o Tod, gegönnt an Kraft der Sinne,
Die Sorge für das Morgen macht es welken. Auch ganz gelebt, ist doch nur kurz das Leben. – Behalte deine Wagen, Tanz und Spiele. #PD
Durch Reichtum ist der Mensch nicht froh zu machen!
Wen lockte Reichtum, der dir sah ins Auge? Laß leben uns, so lang' es dir genehm ist!
Als Gabe aber wähle ich nur jene. #PD
Wer, der geschmeckt hat, was nicht stirbt, nicht altert,
Hier unten steht und weiß sich altern, sterben, Und wagt die Farbenpracht und Lust und Freuden, –
Wer mag an langem Leben Freude haben! #PD
Worüber jener Zweifel herrscht hienieden,
Was bei dem großen Hingang wird, das sag' uns; Der Wunsch, der forschend dringt in dies Geheimnis,
Den wählt, und keinen andern, Naciketas." #PD