Atharva Veda 19.6

Purusha and his sacrifice

Thousand-armed is Purusha, thousand-eyed, thousand-footed; he, covering the earth entirely, exceeded it by ten fingers' breadth.

With three feet he ascended the sky; a foot of him, again, was here; so he strode out asunder, after eating and non-eating.

So many are his greatnesses; and Purusha is superior (jyā́jān) to that; a foot of him is all beings (bhūtá); three feet of him are what is immortal in the sky.

Purusha is just this all, what is and what is to be; also [is he] lord (īçvará) of immortality, which was together with another.

When they separated (vi-dhā) Purusha, in how many parts did they distribute (vi-kḷp) him? what was his face? what his (two) arms? what are called his (two) thighs [and] feet?

The Brahman was his face; the Kshatriya (rājanyà) became his (two) arms; the Vāiçya [was] his middle; from his (two) feet was born the Çūdra.

The moon [is] born from his mind; from his eye the sun was born; from his mouth both Indra and Agni; from his breath Vāyu was born.

From his navel was the atmosphere; from his head the sky came into being (sam-vṛt); from his (two) feet the earth, the quarters from his ear (çrótra): so shaped they the worlds.

Virāj in the beginning came into being (sam-bhū); out of Virāj, Purusha; it, when born, exceeded the earth behind, also in front.

When, with Purusha as oblation, the gods extended the sacrifice, spring was its sacrificial butter, summer its fuel, autumn its oblation.

They sprinkled with the early rain (prāvṛ́ṣ) that sacrifice, Purusha, born in the beginning; therewith the gods sacrificed, the Perfectibles (sādhyá) and they that are Vasus.

From that were born horses, and whatever [animals] have teeth in both jaws; kine were born from that; from that [are] born goats and sheep.

From that all-sacrificing sacrifice were born the verses (ṛ́c), the chants (sā́man); meter ⌊sic!⌋ were born from that; sacrificial formula was born from that.

From that all-sacrificing sacrifice was collected the speckled butter (pṛṣadājyá); it made those cattle belonging to Vāyu—those that are of the forest and of the village.

Seven were made its enclosing sticks (paridhí), thrice seven its pieces of fuel, when the gods, extending the sacrifice, bound Purusha as victim.

Seven times seventy rays (aṅçú) were born from the head of the great god, of king Soma, when born out of Purusha.