In the parallel texts, our vs. 7 stands at the beginning of the hymn. They also combine differently the material of our vss. 1 and 2, making one verse of our 1 a, b and 2 c, d, and another of our 2 a, b and 1 c, d; and in this Ppp. agrees with them. RV. and VS. (xxiii. 3) read in c ī́çe asyá. The comm. renders ātmadās "who gives their soul (or self) to all animals"; of course, with the native authorities everywhere, he explains kásmāi in d as "to Prajāpati." The Anukr. ignores the jagatī-character of c. ⌊RV.TS.MS.VS. omit the second yás of our c. MS. has ī́çe yó asyá; TS. has yá ī́çe asya at iv. 1. 8, but asyá at vii. 5. 16. Pādas a-c recur at xiii. 3. 24.—In view of the history of this hymn in Hindu ritual and speculation (cf. SBE. xxxii. 12; AB. iii. 21), it might be better to phrase the refrain thus: 'Who is the god that we are to worship with oblation?'⌋
2. He who by his greatness became sole king of the breathing, winking animal creation (jágat); of whom immortality (amṛ́tam), of whom death [is] the shadow—to what god may we pay worship with oblation?
RV.VS. (xxiii. 3) TS. rectify the meter of b by adding íd after ékas; VS. has the bad reading nimeṣatás. MS. gives a different version: nimiṣatáç ca rā́jā pátir víçvasya jágato b-; and Ppp. agrees with it, except as substituting vidhartā for ca rājā. "His shadow" (in c), the comm. says, as being dependent upon him, or under his control. The Anukr. passes without notice the deficiency in b.
3. He whom the (two) spheres (krándasī) favor when fixed; whom the terrified firmaments (rodasī) called upon; whose is yon road, traverser of the welkin (rájas)—to what god may we pay worship with oblation?
The translation implies in b áhvayetām, as read by the comm., and by one of SPP's mss. that follows him; all the other mss., and both editions, have -ethām. The first half-verse is a damaged reflex of RV. 6 a, b, with which VS. (xxxii. 7 a, b) and TS. agree: yáṁ krándasī ávasā tastabhāné abhyāíkṣetām mánasā réjamāne; MS. and Ppp. have yet another version: yá imé dyā́vāpṛthivī́ tastabhāné (Ppp. -nā) ádhārayad (Ppp. dhāred) ródasī (Ppp. avasā) réjamāne. For c, Ppp. gives yasminn adhi vitata eti sūraḥ, and MS. the same (save sū́ra éti); our c agrees most nearly with RV. 5 c (TS. and VS. xxxii. 6 the same): yó antárikṣe rájaso vimā́naḥ. The comm. apparently takes ávatas as ava-tás = avanāt "by his assistance fixed"; he offers no conjecture as to what "road" may be meant in c, but calls it simply dyulokasthaḥ.
4. [By the greatness] of whom the wide heaven and the great earth, [by the greatness] of whom yon wide atmosphere, by the greatness of whom yon sun [is] extended—to what god may we pay worship with oblation?
The translation follows the construction as understood by the comm.; it might be also "whose [is] the wide heaven etc. etc., extended by his greatness." "Extended" applies better to earth etc. (a and b) than to sun; comm. says vistīrṇā jātā etc. The verse resembles only distantly RV. 5, with which, on the other hand, Ppp. nearly agrees, reading yena dyāur ugrā pṛthivī ca dṛça (RV.VS.MS. dṛḍhā́, TS. dṛḍhé) yena sva stabhitaṁ yena nākaṁ (the rest -kaḥ): yo antarikṣaṁ vimame varīyaḥ (so MS.; the others as reported above, under vs. 3). Our third pāda most resembles RV. 6 c: yátrā́ ’dhi sū́ra údito vibhā́ti (so also VS. xxxii. 7; TS. úditāu vyéti). ⌊Cf. MGS. i. 11. 14 and p. 154, yena dyāur ugrā.⌋ The Anukr. ignores the marked irregularity of b.
