Praśna 8, Kaṇḍikā 1

[The Cāturmāsyas]

[Vaiśvaḍeva-parvan]

1. One, who is going to perform the Cāturmāsyas, should go along the pañcahotṛ formula^[1] in his mind, and offer an oblation on the Āhavanīya fire with the graha portion of that formula.

2. He should (beforehand) offer a cake on twelve potsherds to vaiśvānara Agni and cooked rice to Parjanya.

3. He should give away gold as dakṣiṇā in the sacrifice to vaiśvānara Agni and a milch-cow in the sacrifice to Parjanya.

4. The sacrifice should come to an end in the prescribed manner.

5. This sacrifice takes the place of the Anvārambhaṇīya sacrifice.^[2]

6. On the full-moon day of Phālguna or Caitra, one should perform the Vaiśvadevaparvan^[3] at a place which is sloping towards the east.

7. There is a view that the Āhavanīya fire in this sacrifice should be such as is in the New-moon and the Full-moon sacrifices. There is another view that it should be such as is in a Soma-sacrifice.^[4]

8. The entire procedure should be gone through except the piling up of the Uttaravedi.

9. The procedure of the New-moon sacrifice should be followed.

10. The rites up to the driving away of the calves should be similar.^[5]

11. The Adhvaryu should send away the cows with the formula, “O invulnerable ones, do you swell with the share for Viśve Devas; possessing strength, possessing milk, possessing offspring, harmless, diseaseless; let the thief not command you, nor the wicked.”^[6]

12. The rites up to the fetching of the sacrificial grass should be similar.^[7]

13. The sacrificial grass should be having shoots.

14. Having tied it threefold, the Adhvaryu should again tie it once,

15. In the same way, he should tie a faggot of twenty-three sticks.

16. The rites up to the arrangement of the utensils should be similar.^[8]

17. He should arrange the pṛṣadājyadhānī as a second Upabhṛt, two vessels for clarified butter, three vessels for cooking rice, and a vājina-pot^[9] made of palāśa.

18. The rites up to the pouring out of the oblation-material should be similar.^[10]

19. He should pour out paddy for a cake on eight potsherds to Agni, for cooked rice to Soma, for a cake on twelve potsherds to Savitṛ, for cooked rice to Sarasvant, for cooked rice to Pūṣan, for a cake on seven potsherds to Maruts, āmikṣā for Viśve Devas, and paddy for a cake on one potsherd to Dyāvāpṛthivī.

20. The rites up to the pounding of the paddy should be similar.^[11]

21. Out of the pounded rice-grains, he should take out some quantity for cooking rice with the formula intended for division.^[12]

22. He should crush together the remaining quantity.

23. Out of the flour which has been poured out, he should take out some quantity for the oblation to Pūṣan.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Taittirīya-āraṇyaka III.3; Taittirīya-brāhmaṇa II.2.2.2,3.

[2]:

V.15.9.

[3]:

On the preceding day he should offer an oblation with the pañcahotṛ formula, and perform a sacrifice for vaiśvānara Agni and Parjanya.

[4]:

That is to say, the Āhavanīya fire should be ceremonially carried forth as in the Animal-sacrifice with certain modifications. cf. VII.4.5 ff.

[5]:

I.2.12.

[6]:

I.2.15.

[7]:

I.3.7,8.

[8]:

I.16.1.

[9]:

A goblet or a ladle according to Āpastamba-śrauta-sūtra VIII.2.1.

[10]:

I.18.10.

[11]:

I.21.1 ff.

[12]:

I.25.7.