प्रथमेऽश्रवणादिति चेत्, न, ता एव हि, उपपत्तेः ॥ ५ ॥
prathame’śravaṇāditi cet, na, tā eva hi, upapatteḥ || 5 ||
prathame—In the first of the oblations; aśravaṇāt—not being mentioned; iti cet—if it be said; na—not so; tāḥ eva—that only (i.e. water); hi—because; upapatteḥ—on account of the appropriateness;
5. If it be objected on account of (water) not being mentioned in the first of the oblations, (we say) not so, because that (viz. water) only (is meant by the word ‘Sraddha’) on account of the appropriateness (of such an interpretation).
An objection is raised that as there is no mention of water in the first oblation: “On that altar the gods offer Sraddha as oblation” (Chh. 5. 4. 2), but only Sraddha (faith) is mentioned, to substitute water for Sraddha will be arbitrary. So how can it be ascertained “that in the fifth oblation water is called man.” The Sutra says that by ‘Sraddha’ water is meant, for in that case alone syntactical unity of the whole passage remains undisturbed. Otherwise the question and answer would not agree. Moreover, faith (Sraddha), which is a mental attribute, cannot be offered as an oblation. Water is also called Sraddha in the Sruti texts: “Sraddha indeed is water” (Taitt. Sam. 1. 6. 8. 1).