We shall explain the sacrifice. Yajña, sacrifice, is an act by which we surrender something for the sake of the gods. Such an act must rest on a sacred authority (āgama), and serve for man's salvation (śreyo ऽ rtha). The nature of the gift is of less importance. It may be puroḍāśa, cake; karu, pulse; sāṃnāyya, mixed milk; paśu, an animal; soma, the juice of the Soma-plant, &c.; nay, the smallest offerings of butter, flour, and milk may serve for the purpose of a sacrifice. Yajña, yāga, yajana, and iṣṭi are considered as synonymes. The sacrifice is for the three colours or castes (varṇa), for Brāhmaṇas and Rājanyas, also for the Vaiśya. Though the sacrifice is meant for the three castes, here called varṇa, i.e. colour, the third caste, that of the Vaiśya or citizen, is mentioned by itself, while the two castes, the Brāhmaṇas and Rājanyas (the Kṣatriyas or nobles), are mentioned together. This is done because there are certain sacrifices (bahuyajamāna), performed by Brāhmaṇas and Rājanyas together, in which Vaiśyas take no part. In the Śāṅkhāyana-sūtras, I, 1, 3, also the Vaiśya is mentioned by himself. In Kātyāyana's Sūtras, however, no such distinction is made. and we read, I, 6, Brāhmaṇa-rājanya-vaiśyānāṃ śruteḥ. Women, if properly married, are allowed to participate in sacrifices, but no one is allowed to be accompanied by a Sūdrā woman, even though she be his wife. Properly a Brāhmaṇa should marry a wife of his own caste only. A Kṣatriya may marry a woman of his own or of the Brāhmaṇa caste. A Vaiśya's proper wife should be taken from his own caste. See, however, Manu III, 12 seq. The four castes, with the Śūdra as the fourth, are mentioned once in the Ṛg-veda, X, yo, 12. The opposition between Āryas and Śūdras occurs in the Atharva-veda, XIX, 62, &c., and in most of the Brāhmaṇas. In the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa we read of the four castes, Brāhmaṇa, Rājanya, Vaiśya, and Śūdra, and we are told that none of them vomits the Soma. Kātyāyana excludes from the sacrifice the aṅgahīna, cripple, shaṇḍa, eunuch, and all aśrotriyas, persons ignorant of the Veda, which would bar, of course, the whole class of the Śūdras, but they are also specially excluded. Concessions, however, had to be made at an early time, for instance, in the case of the Rathakāra, who is admitted to the Agnyādhāna, &c. This name means chariot-maker, but Āpadeva, in his Mīmāṃsā-nyāya-prakāśa, remarks that, though rathakāra means a chariot-maker etymologically, it should be taken here as the name of a clan, namely that of the Saudhanvanas (MS. Mill 46, p. 13 b ). Deva, in his commentary on the Kātyāyana-sūtras, makes the same remark. See also Weber, Ind. Stud. X, 12 seq. These Saudhanvanas, often identified with the Ṛbhus, are evidently the followers of Bṛbu, mentioned RV. VI, 45, 31; 33, and wrongly called Bṛdhu in Manu X, 107; see M.M., Hist. of A.S.L., p. 494. In the Śāṅkhāyana-Śrauta-sūtras, XVI, 11, 11 (ed. Hillebrandt), he is rightly called Bṛbu. In later times Rathakāra is the name of a caste, and its members are supposed to be the offspring of a marriage between a Māhiṣya and a Karaṇī. A Māhiṣya is the son of a Kṣatriya and a Vaiśyā, a Karaṇī the daughter of a Vaiśya and a Śūdrā. Sudhanvan also is used in Manu X, 23, as the name of a caste, namely the offspring of fallen (vrātya) Vaiśyas. Another exception is made in favour of a Niṣādasthapati, a Niṣāda chieftain. If it meant a chieftain of Niṣādas, it might be meant for a Kṣatriya who happens to be a chieftain of Niṣādas. Here it is meant for a chieftain who is himself a Niṣāda, a native settler. He is admitted to the Gavedhuka sacrifice. Again, although, as a rule, the sacrificer must have finished his study of the Veda and be married, a sacrifice is mentioned which a Brahmacārin, a student, may perform. The case thus provided for is, yo brahmacārī striyam upeyāt, sa gardabham paśum ālabheta. As these sacrificers are not upanīta, and therefore without the sacred fires, their sacrifices have to be performed with ordinary fires, and the sacrificial offerings, the puroḍāśas, are not cooked in kapālas, jars, but on the earth, while the avadānas (cuttings), heart, tongue, &c., are sacrificed in water, and not in fire. The Niṣāda chieftain has to learn the necessary Vedic verses by heart, without having passed through a regular course of Vedic study. The same applies to women, who have to recite certain verses during the sacrifice. That certain women are admitted to the sacrifice, is distinctly stated by Kātyāyana, I, 1, 7, strī kāviśeṣāt. The sacrifice is prescribed by the three Vedas. In order to know the whole of the sacrifice, one Veda is not sufficient, still less one sākhā (recension) only. The sacrifice is conceived as a whole, and its members (aṅgas) are described in different parts of the three Vedas. By the Ṛg-veda, the Yajur-veda, the Sāma-veda (is the sacrifice prescribed). The Darśa-pūrṇamāsau, the new and full-moon sacrifices, are prescribed by the Ṛg-veda and the Yajur-veda. The Agnihotra is prescribed by the Yajur-veda. The Agniṣṭoma is prescribed by all. By saying all, the Atharva-veda is supposed to be included, at least according to one commentator. The Agniṣṭoma requires sixteen priests, the Paśu sacrifices six, the Cāturmāsyas five, the Darśa-pūrṇamāsas four. With the Ṛg-veda and Sāma-veda the performance takes place with a loud voice (uccaiḥ). Even lines of the Yajur-veda, if they are contained in the Ṛg-veda and Sāma-veda, would have to be pronounced with a loud voice. Certain mantras, however, are excepted, viz. the japa, abhimantraṇa, and anumantraṇa-mantras. With the Yajur-veda the performance takes place by murmuring (upāṃśu). This murmuring, upāṃśu, is described as a mere opus operatum, the words being repeated without voice and without thought. One may see the movements of the vocal organs in murmuring, but one should not hear them at a distance. If verses from the Ṛg-veda or Sāma-veda occur in the Yajur-veda, they also have to be murmured. See Kāty. I, 3, 10. With the exception of addresses, replies, choosing of priests (pravara), dialogues, and commands.

The juhū is a sruc, a spoon, the sruva, a ladle. The offering is made in the Āhavanīya fire. The sacrificial vessels are kept from the first laying of the fires (ādhāna) for the whole life. All sacrificial vessels and instruments are to be kept, and most of them are burnt with the sacrificer at his death. At every sacrifice these vessels are to be purified. The rule for the sacrifice are the Mantras and Brāhmaṇas. The name Veda belongs both to the Mantras and Brāhmaṇas. The Brāhmaṇas are the precepts for the sacrifice. The rest of the Brāhmaṇa, that which does not contain precepts, consists of explanations, i.e. reproof, praise, stories, and traditions. It is difficult to find words corresponding to technical terms in Sanskrit. Arthavāda, which I have translated by explanation, means not only the telling of the meaning, but likewise the telling of the object; parakṛti, story, means literally the action of another; purākalpa, traditions, means the former state. The difference between the two is stated to be that parakṛti refers to the act of one person, purākalpa to that of several. This subject is fully treated in the Pūrva-mīmāṃsā. Satyavrata begins a new Sūtra with 'reproof' (nindā). All the rest are Mantras. But passages which are not handed down, are not to be classed as Mantras, as, for instance, the pravara, the words used in choosing priests, divine or human; ūha, substitution of one word for another; and nāmadheya-grahaṇa, the mentioning of the names of particular sacrificers. The reason why such passages are not to be treated as Mantras is that they should not be subject to some of the preceding rules, as, for instance, the murmuring, enjoined in Sūtra IX. Those passages naturally vary in each sacrifice. With regard to the names a distinction is made between the gārhyam nāma, the domestic name of a person, such as Yajñaśarman, and the astrological name, such as Rauhiṇa, derived from the star Rohiṇī. Likewise the sound of a carriage and the sound of a drum. These sounds, though serving for the sacrifice, are not to be considered as liable to the rules given for the recitation of Mantras. The prohibition of reciting Mantras in the Svādhyāya does not apply to the sacrifice, because there is then a different object. Svādhyāya, i.e. self-reading, is the name given to the study of the Veda, both in first learning and in afterwards repeating it. This study is under several restrictions, but these restrictions cease when the Veda is used for sacrificial purposes. Sacrificial acts are accompanied by one Mantra. If it is said that the priest cuts the plants with fourteen verses, that means that there are fourteen plants to be cut and that one verse is used for each plant. This applies also to sacrificial acts which have a number and are to be carried out by separate (repeated) acts. If a rule is given, such as triḥ prokṣati, he sprinkles thrice, the mantra which accompanies the act, is recited once only. Again in the case of acts that require repetitions, such as rubbing, pounding, &c., the hymns are recited once only. The same applies to rubbing, sleeping, crossing a river, down-pours of rain, the conjuring of unlucky omens, unless they happened some time ago.

If we read that, as in the case of fees to be given to priests, two, seven, eleven, twelve, twenty-one, sixty, or a hundred, this means that either one or the other, not that all should be given at the same time. But accumulation is meant in the buying (of Soma), in the redemption, and in initiation. When it is said that Soma is bought for a goat, gold, &c., that it is re-bought from the priests by means of a fee, or that at the time of the Dīkṣā, the purification and initiation of a sacrificer, clothes, gold, grain, &c., should be given, these are cases not of aut-aut but of et-et. The Soma-plant, which is supposed to be bought from northern barbarians, is botanically described in an Āyur-vedic extract, quoted in the Dhūrtasvāmi-bhāṣyaṭīkā (MS. E.I.H. 531, p. 3 b ), as śyāmālāmlā ca niṣpatrā kṣīriṇī tvaci māṃsalā, śleshmalā vamanī vallī somākhyā chāgabhojanam. 'The creeper called Soma is dark, sour, without leaves, milky, fleshy on the surface, producing phlegm and vomiting, food for goats.' This passage, quoted from some Āyur-vedic text, is still the only one which gives an approximative description of the Soma-plant. Dr. Hooker says that the predicates 'sour and milky' point to Sarcostemma, but the question is not decided yet. For further information see George Watt, The Soma Plant, an extract from the third volume of the Dictionary of Economic Products of India, and Hillebrandt, Vedische Mythologie, pp. 14 seq. If one has performed an offering to Rudra, to the Rākṣasas, to Nirṛti, or to the Pitṛs, if one has cut or broken or thrown away anything, or rubbed oneself, &c., one should touch water. The touching of water is for the sake of purification. Nirasana is left out in some MSS. The ca, inserted after abhimarśanāni, is explained, as usual, as including other acts also, corresponding to our etc. All priestly performances take place on the northern side of the Vihāra. Uttarata-upacāraḥ has to be taken as a compound. Vihāra is explained as vihriyante ऽ gnayaḥ pātrāṇi ca yasmin deśe, i.e. the sacrificial ground. Upacāra is explained as adhvaryvādīnāṃ saṃcaraḥ, and this saṃcara, according to Kātyāyana I, 3, 42, is the path between the Cātvāla and Utkara, the Utkara being on the west, the praṇītās on the east of the Vihāra. Kātyāyana I, 8, 26, expresses the same rule by uttarata-upacāro yajñaḥ, the vihāra being the place where the yajña takes place. The priest should never turn away from the fire, i.e. should never turn his back on the altar. Nor from the Vihāra. Sacrificial utensils should be turned inside, the performers being outside. The meaning is that the priest should carry such things is spoons, vessels, &c., holding them towards the altar. The sacrificer and his wife should likewise be on the inside of the priest, and the priests should take precedence sideways according to their rank. After a sacrificial object has been hallowed by a Mantra, the priest should not toss it about. Sacrificial acts intended for the gods, should be performed by the priest towards the east or towards the north, after he has placed the Brahmanic cord over the left and under the right arm (yajñopavītin), and turning towards the right. Sacrificial acts intended for the Fathers should be performed by the priest towards the south, after he has placed the Brahmanic cord over the right and under the left arm (prācīnāvītin), and turning towards the left. Ropes which have to be joined, should be joined by the priest from left to right, after having tied them from right to left. Ropes which are not joined (single ropes), should be tied by the priest from left to right. The exact process here intended is not quite clear. The ropes seem to have been made of vegetable fibres. See Katy. I, 3,15-17. Let a man sacrifice with the Amāvāsyā sacrifice at the time of the Amāvāsyā, new moon. Amā-vāsyā is the dwelling together, i.e. the conjunction, of sun and moon, an astronomical expression which was adopted in the common language of the people at a very early time. It does not occur, however, in the Ṛg-veda. In our Sūtra amāvāsyā is used in the sense both of new moon and new-moon sacrifice.

The Aṣṭā-kapāla for Agni, the Ekādaśa-kapāla or Dvādaśa-kapāla for Indra-Agnī, form the principal acts at the Amāvāsyā, the new moon, in the case of one who does not sacrifice with Soma. In the case of one who sacrifices with Soma, the second principal act is the Sāṃnāyya (both at the full-moon and new-moon sacrifices). The Sāṃnāyya is a mixture of dadhi and payas, sour and sweet milk, and is intended for Indra or Mahendra . It takes the place of the second Puroḍāśa at the new-moon sacrifice. In the case of a Brāhmaṇa, who does not sacrifice with Soma, the Agnīṣomīya cake is omitted. This rule does not seem to be accepted by all schools. It is not found in Kātyāyana, and Hiraṇyakeśin observes: Nāsomayājino brāhmaṇasyāgnīṣomīyaḥ puroḍāśo vidyata ity ekeṣām. See Hillebrandt, l.c. p. iii. Without distinction of caste, the Aindrāgna offering is omitted for one who offers the Sāṃnāyya. Even though he be not a Somayājin, says the commentary. This whole matter is summed up in Kapardin's commentary: Amāvāsyāyām asomayājina aindrāgna-sāṃnāyyayor vikalpaḥ. Paurṇamāsyāṃ tv asomayājino brāhmaṇasyāgnīṣomīyayāgābhāvaḥ. Tadrahitāpi paurṇamāsī puruṣārthaṃ sādhayati. Tatra dvayor eva hi yāgayoḥ paurṇamāsīśabdavācyatvam asti, pratyekaṃ nāmayogāt. Tasmād agnīṣomīyayāgarahitāv evetarau puruṣārthaṃ sādhayataḥ. The Pitṛ-yajña, the sacrifice to the fathers, is not Aṅga (auxiliary) because its own time is prescribed. The text should be pitṛyajñaḥ svakālavidhānād anaṅgaḥ syāt. This sacrifice for the Manes, called also the Piṇḍa-pitṛyajña, falls under the new-moon sacrifice, but is to be considered as a pradhāna, a primary sacrifice, not as an aṅga, a member of the Darśa. Also, because it is enumerated like the Darśapūrṇamāsa sacrifice. This refers to such passages from the Brāhmaṇas as: There are four great sacrifices, the Agnihotram, the Darśapūrṇamāsau, the Cāturmāsyāni, and the Piṇḍa-pitṛyajñaḥ. Also, because, when the Amāvāsyā sacrifice is barred, the Pitṛyajña is seen to take place. A principal act (pradhāna) is accompanied by auxiliary acts (aṅga). This Sūtra forms sometimes part of the preceding Sūtra, and would then refer to the Pitṛyajña only. A principal act is what has its own name, and is prescribed with special reference to place, time, and performer. This Sūtra is sometimes divided into two; the first, dese kāle kartarīti nirdiśyate, the second, asvaśabdaṃ yat. The following are given as illustrations. If it is said that 'he should sacrifice with the Vaiśvadeva on a slope inclined to the East,' we have the locality. If it is said that 'he should sacrifice with the Vājapeya in autumn,' we have the time. If it is said that 'the sacrificer himself should offer the Agnihotra on a parvan (change of the moon),' we have the performer. In each of these cases, therefore, the prescribed sacrificial act is a pradhāna sāṅgam, a principal act with auxiliary members. The Darvi-homa (libation from a ladle) stands by itself. Apūrva is explained by the commentator, not in its usual sense of miraculous, but as not being subject to the former regulations. They are ordered by the word juhoti, he pours out. They are offered with the word Svāhā. According to Kātyāyana I, 2, 6-7, the juhotis are offered sitting, the yajatis standing. See Sūtra XCII. The juhoti acts consist in pouring melted butter into the fire of the Āhavanīya altar, which is so called because 'āhūyante ऽ sminn āhutayaḥ kṣipyanta iti.'

With the earlier portions, there is a rule which of two gods should have the first or the second portion. With the last couple, however, the priest may himself assign whichever portion he likes to one or the other god. The commentary says, svayam eva idam asyā iti saṅkalpayet. When there is a number of Carus and Puroḍāśas, one separates what belongs to the Carus and what belongs to the Puroḍāśas, before the strewing. Prāg adhivapanāt, before the strewing, is explained by prāg adhivapanārthakṛṣṇājinādānāt, before one takes the black skin which is used for the strewing. One then marks the two (the materials for the Karus and the Puroḍāśas) according to the deities (for whom they are intended). Let the word idam be the rule. This means that the offering (havis) intended for each deity should be pointed out by the words idam, this, Agneḥ, is for Agni, &c. Thus we read with regard to the offerings intended for certain gods and goddesses: idaṃ Dhātur, idam Anumatyā, Rākāyāḥ Sinīvālyāḥ, Kuhvāḥ. All this applies also to Carus and Puroḍāśas which are separated. The commentary explains vyatishikta by anyonyaṃ vyavahita, though it is difficult to see how it can have that meaning. It is said that in the Vaiśvadeva the Carus and Puroḍāśas are vyatishikta, but that they also have to be divided before the adhivapana, and to be marked for each deity. Thus we read: Idam Agneḥ, Savituḥ, Pūṣṇo, Marutāṃ, Dyāvāpṛthivyoḥ, &c. At the time when the Kapālas are put on the fire, one puts on the karu with the first kapāla verse. Karu is here used for the vessel for boiling the caru, the carusthālī. The first of these verses is dhṛṣṭir asi. Kapālas are the jars in which the rice is cooked. The verse is adapted and changed to dhruvo'si. Saṃnāma means the same as ūha, i.e. the modification of a verse so as to adapt it to the object for which it is used. In our case, caru, being a masculine, dhṛṣṭi, a feminine, is replaced by dhruva, a masculine. At the time when the meal is to be cleansed, one cleanses the grains. This takes place after the caru-pot has been put on. The taṇḍulas are the unhusked grains, piṣṭa is the ground flour. In Sanskrit a distinction is made between śasya, the corn in the field, dhānya, corn with the husk, taṇḍula, grains without husks, anna, roasted grains. At the time of cooking (adhiśrapaṇa) one throws the grains in with the cooking verse. Commentary. This verse is gharmo'si. Without taking the caru (out of the sthālī) one puts it down. At the Darśa-pūrṇamāsa sacrifices there are fifteen Sāmidhenīs. Sāmidhenīs are particular verses recited while the fire is being kindled. The first and last verses are repeated thrice, so as to make fifteen in all. At the Iṣṭi and Paśubandha sacrifices there are seventeen Sāmidhenīs, when they are so handed down. When it is said that wishful iṣṭis are performed in a murmur, this means that the names of the chief deities are pronounced in a murmur (likewise the yājyā and anuvākyā). The Darśa-pūrṇamāsa sacrifice is the Prakṛti or norm for all iṣṭis.

They are optionally vikāras of the Aindrāgna. Sometimes these two Sūtras are combined into one. The commentator, however, sees in the vā of aindrāgnavikārā vā a deeper meaning. Agnī-Shomau, he says, consists of four, Indrāgnī of three syllables. Therefore if the name of more than one deity consists of four syllables, it should be treated as a vikāra of the Agnīṣomīya, if of less than four syllables, as a vikāra of the Aindrāgna. An exception must be made in the case of the gods of the prakṛti, as, for instance, the Aindra puroḍāśa, the Saumya caru. The exception applies to cases where the offering in a vikṛti sacrifice is meant for the same principal deities as those of the prakṛti offering. For instance, in the Darśa-pūrṇamāsa Agni and Soma are the deities of the Agnīṣomīya, Indra and Agni of the Aindrāgna. If then in one of the secondary or vikṛti sacrifices there occurs an Aindra puroḍāśa, or a Saumya caru, then the Aindra puroḍāśa is treated as a vikāra of the Aindrāgna, the Saumya karu as a vikāra of the Agnīṣomīya. The Somendra caru also, as its principal deity is Soma, would follow the Agnīṣomīya, the Indrāsomīya puroḍāśa, as its principal deity is Indra, would follow the Aindrāgna. If there is sameness both in the offering and in the deity, then the offering prevails. If a caru for Prajāpati occurs in a vikṛti sacrifice, it would follow that, being offered to Prajāpati, it should be offered with murmuring, but, as it is a vegetable offering, it follows the norm of the puroḍāśa, though the puroḍāśa is intended for Agni. If there is contradiction with regard to the substance and the preparation of an offering, the substance prevails. A puroḍāśa may be made of vrīhi, rice, or of nīvāra, wild growing rice. The wild rice has to be pounded, but not the good rice. The preparation, however, has to yield in a vikṛti, the important point being the substance. If there is contradiction with regard to the substance, the object prevails. An example makes the meaning of this Sūtra quite clear. Generally the yūpa or sacrificial post for fastening sacrificial animals is made of Khadira wood. But if a post made of wood is not strong enough to hold the animal, then an iron post is to be used, the object being the fastening of the animal, while the material is of less consequence. In a Prakṛti sacrifice there is no Ūha, modification of the mantras. Certain mantras of the Veda have to be slightly altered, when their application varies. In the normal sacrifices, however, no such alteration takes place. In a Vikṛti sacrifice modification takes place, according to the sense, but not in an arthavāda. Some mantras remain the same in the Vikṛti as in the Prakṛti. Others have to be modified so as to be adapted to anything new that has to be. If, for instance, there is a Puroḍāśa for Agni in the Prakṛti, and in its place a Puroḍāśa for Sūrya in the Vikṛti, then we must place Sūrya instead of Agni in the dedicatory mantra. When we hear words referring to something else, that is arthavāda. Arthavāda is generally explained as anything occurring in the Brāhmaṇas which is not vidhi or command. Here, however, it refers to Mantras or passages recited at the sacrifice. We saw how such passages, if they referred to some part of the sacrifice, had to be modified under certain circumstances according to the sense. Here we are told that passages which do not refer to anything special in the sacrifice, are arthavāda and remain unmodified. All this is expressed by the words paravākyaśravaṇāt. Vākya stands for padāni, words, such as are used in the nivāpamantra, &c. Some of these words are called samavetārthāni, because they tell of something connected with the performance of the sacrifice, as, for instance, Agnaye juṣṭaṃ nirvapāmi, I offer what is acceptable to Agni; others are asamavetārthāni, as, for instance, Devasya tvā Savituḥ prasave. When such passages which are not connected with some sacrificial act occur (śravaṇāt), they naturally remain unaltered. If what is prescribed is absent, a substitute is to be taken according to similarity. Here we have no longer modification, but substitution (pratinidhi). In cases where anything special that has been prescribed is wanting, a substitute must be chosen, as similar as possible, and producing a similar effect. According to Maṇḍana's Trikāṇḍa, the degrees of similarity are to be determined in the following order: Kāryai rūpais tathā parṇaiḥ kṣīraiḥ puṣpaiḥ phalair api, Gandhai rasaiḥ sadṛg grāhyam pūrvālābhe param param. 'What is similar by effect, by shape, by leaves, by milk, by flowers, and by fruit, By smell, or by taste is to be taken one after the other, if the former cannot be found.' If there is nothing very like, something a little like may be substituted, only it must not be prohibited.

This refers again to the same subject, namely what has to be done if there are either more or less mantras than there are acts which they are to accompany. In that case it is here allowed to use as many mantras as there are acts, and to drop the rest of the mantras. Or, if there are less mantras than there are acts, then, after the mantras have been equally divided, the last verse is to be multiplied. For instance, in the Dvikapāla sacrifice for the two Aśvins, the placing of the two kapālas is accompanied by two mantras. The rest of the mantras enjoined in the prakṛti is left out. But if there are, for instance, twelve or more iṣṭakās, bricks, to be placed, while there are only ten mantras, then the mantras are equally divided, and the fifth and tenth to be repeated, as many times as is necessary to equal the number of the iṣṭakās. As the Prakṛti has been told before, anything that has not been told before, should be at the end. This seems to mean that anything new, peculiar to a Vikṛti, and not mentioned in the Prakṛti, should come in at the end, that is, after those portions of the sacrifice which are enjoined in the Prakṛti. The rule should stand on account of the fitness of the Kumbhi, a large pot, the Śūla, the spit for boiling the heart, and the two Vapāśrapaṇīs, the spits for roasting the vapā. Kumbhī is explained by sroṇyādipākasamarthā bṛhatī sthālī; Śūla by hṛdayapākārthā yaṣṭiḥ, and Vapāśrapaṇī by vapāśrapaṇārthe yaṣṭī dve. The exact object of the Sūtra is not quite clear. Prabhutva is explained by samarthatva, that is, fitness. This would mean, that on account of their fitness, or because they can be used for the object for which they are intended, or, so long as they can be used, the rule applying to them should remain. The commentary explains tantram by tantratā or ekatā. It may mean that the same pots and spits should be used, so long as they fulfil their purpose. The next Sūtra would then form a natural limitation. But if there is a different kind of animal, there is difference (in pots and spits), owing to the diversity of cooking. If different animals are to be cooked, then there must be different pots for each (pratipaśum), because each requires a different kind of cooking. The commentary adds that, as the reason for using different pots is given, that reason applies also to young and old animals of the same kind (jāti), i, e. the young and small animal would require a different pot and a different kind of cooking. At the Vanaspati sacrifice, which is a modification (vikāra) of the Sviṣṭakṛt, the addresses (nigama) of the deities should take place in the Yājyā, because they are included in the Prakṛti. These nigamas of the deities are not mentioned in the rules of the Vanaspati sacrifice, but they are mentioned in the rules for the Sviṣṭakṛt sacrifice of the Darśapūrṇamāsa, which is the Prakṛti, and should therefore be taken over. Here again, because a reason is given, it is understood that the same reason would apply to other portions of Sviṣṭakṛt also, such as the Dvir abhighāraṇa, which is to be retained in the Vanaspati sacrifice. The Anvārambhaṇīyā or initiatory ceremony does not take place in a Vikṛti, because the Vikṛtis would fall within the time of the Prakṛti, and the Anvārambhaṇīyā has but one object, namely (the initiation of) the Darśa-pūrṇamāsa sacrifice. The Anvārambhaṇīyā ceremony has to be performed by those who begin the Darśa-pūrṇamāsa sacrifice. It has thus one object only, and is never enjoined for any other cause. It is not therefore transferred to any Vikṛti, such as the Saurya ceremony, &c. The Darśa-pūrṇamāsa sacrifice having to be performed during the whole of life, or during thirty years, the Vikṛtis would necessarily fall within the same space of time. The initiatory ceremony has reference to the Darśa-pūrṇamāsa sacrifice only, and thus serves as an introduction to all the Vikṛtis, without having to be repeated for each. Or (according to others) the Anvārambhaṇīyā should take place (in the Vikṛtis also), because the time (of the Darśa-pūrṇamāsa) does not form an essential part. This Sūtra is not quite clear. It shows clearly enough that, according to some authorities, the Anvārambhaṇīyā or initiatory ceremony of the Darśa-pūrṇamāsa sacrifice should take place in the Vikṛtis also; but why? Because the time has not the character of a śeṣa, which is said to be a synonym of aṅga, an essential part of a sacrifice. When it is said that the Darśa-pūrṇamāsa should be performed during life, this is not meant as determining the time of the sacrifice. It only means that so long as there is life a man should perform these sacrifices, and that their non-performance would constitute a sin. The former argument, therefore, that the time of the Vikṛti sacrifices would fall within the time of the Prakṛti sacrifice is not tenable. And again, because there is difference in the undertaking. Ārambha, the beginning, is explained as the determination to perform a certain sacrifice (darśapūrṇamāsābhyāyṃ yakṣya iti niścayapuraḥsaraḥ saṅkalpaḥ). The object of the undertaking in the case of the Darśa-pūrṇamāsa sacrifice, as the Prakṛti, is simply svarga, in the Vikṛtis it may be any kind of desire. Therefore the Anvārambhaṇīyā ceremony of the Darśa-pūrṇamāsas should be transferred to its Vikṛtis. This seems to have been the opinion of the same authorities who are referred to in Sūtra CLVII. The final outcome of the whole controversy, however, is clearly that our Ācārya is in favour of omitting the Anvārambhaṇīyā in the Vikṛtis. Anayoḥ pakṣayor anvārambhaṇīyābhāvapakṣasyaiva balavattvam ācāryābhilaṣitam iti manyāmahe. The Anvārambhaṇīyā is not to be considered as an ordinary Aṅga, but as a special act to fit the sacrificer to perform the Darśa-pūrṇamāsa and to perform it through the whole of his life. For every object (new sacrifice) let him bring forward the fire (let him perform the Agnipraṇayana, the fetching of the Āhavanīya from the Gārhapatya fire). When the sacrifice is finished the fire becomes again ordinary fire, as when the (divine) fire has returned (to the firesticks). Article published on 05 September, 2014 I humbly request your help to keep doing what I do best: provide the world with unbiased sources, definitions and images. Your donation direclty influences the quality and quantity of knowledge, wisdom and spiritual insight the world is exposed to. Let's make the world a better place together!