365bet娱乐

[Full title: Religious observances (1) Agnihotrahoma-vidhi]

Apart from the details regarding such items as the site for a sacrifice, fire-altars, kundas, sacrificial implements, etc; The Atharvaveda-Parisistas deal also with some sacrificial rites. These rites are both of the Srauta as well as Smarta types - but mostly of the latter type, the Agnihotra being the only regular Srauta rite. In a sense, therefore, this portion of the Atharvaveda-Parisistas may be regarded as supplementing the Vaitana Sutra and the Kausika Sutra 91. Kausika Sutra 136.2. 92. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension VII.66.1 and 67.1. 93. These are Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension Vedic Index 35.1, 5.1 and 62.1. 94. Cf. Atharva-Prayascitta 2.5,6,9 with Atharvaveda-Parisistas 37.1.4.5.3,5.

469 The Purvamimamsa divides all actions into four types: 1) nitya 2) naimittika 3) kamya and 4) nisiddha. The religious observances normally belong to one of the first three categories. Among the obligatory religious observances (nitya-karmas) are included the Agnihotra-oblations, the daily bath, tarpana, twilight-worship (sandhyopasana), the offerings to deities and to the manes. The occasional observances (naimittika-karmas) are the Skanda-vaga, the Pasupata-Vrata as well as the Veda-Vrata and the optional observances (kamya-karmas) are the Grand Homas, the Brahmakurca-Vidhi, the Tadagadi-Vidhi and the Gosanti. The special worship of the manes (sraddha) is regarded as a nitya or a naimittika or also as a kamya karma. Following is a statement regarding such obligatory, occasional and optional observances which are dealt with in the Parisistas. 1. The Agnihotrahoma-Vidhi The forty-fifth Parisista deals with the Agnihotraofferings which are to be made on the sacred fires every morning and evening. This Parisista is closely related to the seventh kandika of the Vaitana Sutra The Agnihotra is to be started in the evening and concluded in the morning and no other rite is to be performed in between. According to some teachers, the ritual is to be started in the morning. The sacrificial implements should be washed and the oblation should be made ready. It should be

470 placed to the north of the fire on which it is to be offered. The sacred grass and the water-pot should be made wet by sprinkling water on them and then the oblations should be offered with rtam tva satyena parisincami. After the offering is made, the formula satyam tva rtena parisincami should be recited. A stream of water should be poured out from the Garhapatya to the Ahavaniya fire with the formula amrtam asi. The Ahavaniya should be sprinkled and the sacrificer should come back to the Garhapatya, stir the embres there and keep over them the pot of rice with ubhayam Then it should be taken down with pratyudham 97 96 .95 The Sruva and the Sruc should be washed and heated. With the Sruva, the offering (of milk) should be taken into Sruc. The officiating priest should raise the fire-stick and the Srue up to his mouth and should then proceed towards the Ahavaniya fire, saying: "Here I am raising up the sacrificer to the heaven." The Srug should be placed on the holy grass and fire-sticks should be offered on the fire uttering different formulas in the morning and the evening. Oblations of clarified butter should be offered to Agni and Prajapati 98 with the prescribed formulas. 95. Cf. Gopatha Brahmana 1.3.12; Vaitana Sutra 7.5; Katss 4.13.15.16. 96. Rgveda II.9.5. 97. Jaiminiya I.39. 98. It is stated that the oblations should be offered to Agni only in the morning with jyotisman udety ayamtanatam and that they should be offered both in the morning and evening to Prajapati with prajapate na.. (Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension VII.80.3).

471 The Sruva should be raised three times towards the north (udancam) saying: "I please the Rudras." It should be placed on the sacred grass and wiped. Hands should be washed in the north saying: I please the osadhis and vanaspatis. The Sruc should be wiped with the sacred thread worn as pitryupavita and the man es should be propitiated. Offerings of boiled rice should be made on the Garhapatya and Daksina fires with the prescribed formulas. The Sruc and the Sruva should be kept on the holy grass to the north of the fire and the remnant in the Srug should be partaken of by the sacrificer. With the Srue which is not washed, libations of water should be poured saying: "I please those other than the serpents" and after wiping it with the sacred grass, libations should be offered saying: "I please the holy serpents." With the Sruva, libations should be offered to the gandharvas and the apsarases. The Sruc and the Sruva should be heated saying: "I please the Saptarsis." At night the handle of the Sruc should be wiped downwards with dakginan 99 nayami...; in the morning it should be wiped upwards. Then the fire should be prayed to with ratrin ratrim aprayatam... and with the two verses beginning with ayam no agnih 101 100 Some prayascittas also are mentioned for the mishaps & in this connection. If the milk overflows while boiling, it 99. Cf. Vaitana Sutra 7.24. 100. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension XIX.53. 101. Kausika Sutra 89.13.

ME 472 should be wiped off with water to the accompaniment of the 102 verses: prthivim turiyam ... (45.1.6-7). If the ukha is leaking, the material of oblation contained in it should be poured into another ukha which is intact with the mantra: 103 suta devesu.... The same procedure is to be followed in respect of a soma-kalasa or a maha-vira. If the Agnihotra-cow etc. is lost and another is not available, loblations (of clarified butter) should be offered to the respective divinities to the accompaniment of the vyahrtis (45.2.19-21).