Chapter VI. Samskāras

Volume II: Part I pp. 188–267

Chapter VI. Samskāras

Gautama (II. 1) says that before upanayana, a boy may act, speak and eat as and what he likes (i. e. may follow his inclinations). Haradatta explains that this does not mean that he can kill a brāhmaṇa or drink liquor, but that there is no restriction, although he be a brāhmaṇa's son, to his selling what is forbidden to a brāhmaṇa to sell, or he may eat onions and garlic or stale food or may eat four or five times a day. Āp. Dh. S. ¹ (II. 1. 6. 15. 17-20) states several views on this point. 'Up to the time when they begin to take cooked food infants do not become impure ( by the touch of a rajasvalā &c. ); according to some ( teachers ) up till they are one year old; or till they are not able to distinguish the cardinal points; another view is that till upanayana ( they do not become impure )'. Aparārka (p. 28) also explains that a boy may (before upa nayana) eat the leavings of the food of his parents, but he cannot eat or drink what would cause loss of caste as in that case he may become unfit to have the saṁskāra of upanayana performed on hiṃ The Smṛtyarthasāra gives the view of some that in case an infant touches a caṇḍāla before it reaches the age of taking cooked food, only water need be sprinkled on it, before caula ācamana need be done by it and after caula (and before upanayana) a bath would be necessary. Vaṣ Dh. S. (II. 6) quotes a verse of Hārīta to the effect 'up till investi ture with the girdle of muñja grass (i. e. till upanayana) there is no action that is obligatory on him, as long as he is not born again for Vedic study he may be in his conduct like a śūdra'². This verse occurs also in Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 6 and Manu II. 171 and 172. Dakṣa I. 3-4 says 'Till a boy is eight years old he is like one newly born and only indicates the caste in which he is borṇ As long as his upanayana is not performed the boy incurs no blame as to what is allowed or forbidden to be eaten, as to what should (or should not) be drunk, as to what he should or should not speak, as to telling a falsehood⁴⁴⁰. But this does not hold good as to mahāpātakaṣ As to prāyaścitta when a child is guilty of the commission of a mahāpātaka, see under prāyaścitta later on and the Mit. on Yāj. III. 253. The smṛtis look upon upanayana as the second birth of a boy (the first being his physical birth)⁴⁴¹. Gaut. (X. 1 and 51) says that the three higher classes are called dvijātis (having two births), while the śūdra is only ekajāti⁴⁴². Āp. Dh. S. says (I. 1. 1. 16–18 )‘the teacher causes him (the boy who is initiated into Vedic study) to be born from vidyā (i.e. by imparting Vedic knowledge ), that birth is superior, the parents produce only the body’⁴⁴³. Upanayana is like Baptism and St. John (3. 3 ) also says ‘except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of Goḍ’ Manu II. 147-148 ( = Viṣṇu Dh. S. 30. 45-46 ) convey the same idea. Manu ( II. 169 ) speaks of three births in the case of a man, first birth from his mother, the second when the girdle is tied (i. e. on upanayana ) and the third when he is initiated for a Vedic sacrifice. Upanayana is the foremost of the saṁskāraṣ Atri (141–142) says ‘a person is known as a brāhmaṇa by birth, he is said to be a dvija (twice-born ) on account of saṁskāras, he reaches the position of a vipra by learning ( study of the Veda ); he is called śrotriya on account of all these three’⁴⁴⁴. Parāśara (VIII. 19) contains a fine image to illustrate this ‘just as a work of painting gradually unfolds itself on account of the several colours ( with which it is drawn), so brāhmaṇya (the status of a brāhmaṇa) is similarly brought out by saṁskāras performed according to prescribed riteṣ'

Therefore it is now time to speak of saṁskāraṣ

The word saṁskāra hardly ever occurs in the ancient Vedic literature, but the root ‘kṛ’ with ‘sam’ and the past passive participle ‘saṁskṛta’ occur often enough. In Rg. V. 76. 2 the word saṁskṛta is applied to ‘gharma’ (vessel) ‘the two Aśvins do not harm the gharma that has been purifieḍ' In Rg. VI. 28. 4 we have the word saṁskṛtatrā’ and Rg. VIII. 33. 9 has ‘raṇāya saṁskṛtaḥ’. Śat.⁸ Br. I. 1. 4. 10 speaks of preparing (or purifying) offering (havis) for the godṣ So in Śat. Br. III. 2. 1. 22 ‘therefore a woman approaches a man who stands in a well-trimmed (saṁskṛta) house.' Vide Vāj. S. IV. 34 for a similar use of saṁskṛta. In Chāṇ Up. IV. 16. 2, we ⁹ read “of that sacrifice there are two ways, by mind, by speech; the Brahmā (priest) prepares (or polishes) one of them by his minḍ” The word saṁskāra is used several times in the sūtras of Jaimini (as in III. 1. 3, III. 2. 15 and 17, III. 8. 3, IX. 2. 9, 42, 44, IX. 3. 25, IX. 4. 33, IX. 4. 50 and 54, X. 1. 2 and 11 &c.). It generally means some purificatory act in a sacrifice e. g. in Jaimini III. 8. 3 the word is applied to the actions of shaving the head, washing the teeth and paring the nails on the part of the sacrificer in Jyotiṣṭoma; in IX. 3. 25 the word saṁskāra is applied to prokṣaṇa (sprinkling with water), in X. 2. 49 it is applied to the shaving of the head and face. In Jaimini ¹⁰ VI. 1. 35 the word saṁskāra stands for upanayana. Śabara explains ¹¹ saṁskāra as that which being effected makes a certain thing or person fit for a certain purpose and the Tantra-vāratika says that saṁskāras are those actions and rites that impart fitness and it further says ¹² ‘fitness is of two kinds; it arises by the removal of taints (sins) or by the generation of fresh qualitieṣ Saṁskāras generate fresh qualities, while tapas brings about the removal of taintṣ He who performs such sacrifices as Jyotiṣṭoma and others has certain blemishes in him due to not doing in this life or a previous life duties laid down for him or doing what is forbiddeṇ If they (blemishes) are not removed they obstruct the (acquisition of the) reward of the sacrifice even if it be entirely free from any defects whatever, as they (blemishes) produce (for the sacrificer) the experience of their own fruits that are opposed to the (fruit of the) sacrifice.’ The Viramitrodaya ¹³ (on saṁskāra) defines ‘saṁskāra’ as ‘a peculiar excellence due to the performance of rites ordained (by the śāstra) which resides either in the soul or the body’ and says that it is of two kinds, one kind making a person eligible for performing other actions (e. g. upanayana renders a person eligible for Vedic study), while another kind removes the evil taint that may have been generated (e. g. Jātakarma removes the taint due to seed and uterus). The word saṁskāra does not occur in most of the gṛhyasūtras (it occurs in Vaik.), but it occurs in the Dharmasūtras (vide Gaut. VIII. 8, Āp. Dh. I. 1. 1. 9, Vaṣ IV. 1).

The principal matters that fall to be discussed under saṁskāras are: the purpose of saṁskāras, the classification of saṁskāras, the number of saṁskāras, the procedure of each of the saṁskāras and the persons authorized to perform them and the persons for whom they are to be performeḍ

First as to the purpose of saṁskāraṣ Manu (II. 27–28) says ‘In the case of dvijātis, the taints (or sins) due to seed and the uterus (i. e. derived from parents) are wiped off by the homas (burnt oblations) performed during pregnancy and by jātakarma (ceremonies on birth), caula (tonsure) and the tying of the girdle of muñja grasṣ This (human) body is rendered fit for the attainment of brahma by the study of the Veda, by (observance of ) vratas, homas (oblations in fire), by the vrata called traividya, by worship (of gods, sages and manes), by generation of sons, by the performance of the five daily sacrifices and by (solemn Vedic) sacrificeṣ' The view of Yāj. (I. 13) is that 'thus (i. e. by the performance of saṁskāras) the taint arising from the seed and uterus (i. e. from the physical defects of parents) is removeḍ' These words of Manu and Yāj. are variously interpreted by the commentatorṣ Medhātithi says 'seed and uterus are not the causes of sin and therefore all that is meant by enas (in Manu II. 27) is impurity.' Kullūka explains that blemishes of seed are those arising from intercourse in a prohibited manner and the 'gārbhika' blemish is what arises from having to stay in the womb of an impure mother. The Mit. ¹⁴ on Yāj. I. 13 makes it clear that saṁskāras are deemed to remove bodily defects transmitted from parents (such as defective limbs, diseases &c.) and are not intended to remove the taint of being born of sinful parentṣ Manu II. 66 also states that all the saṁskāras are performed on a woman also for the purification of the body. Hārīta ¹⁵ as quoted in the Saṁskāratattva says 'when a person has intercourse according to the procedure of garbhādhāna he establishes in the wife a foetus that becomes fit for the reception of the Veda, by the rite of puṁsavana he makes the garbha become a male, by the ceremony of Sīmantonnayana he removes from the foetus the taint derived from the parents and the accumu-lated taints (which are five) due to seed, blood and womb are removed by jātakarama, nāmakaraṇa, annaprāśana, cūḍākaraṇa and samāvartana. By these eight saṁskāras (from garbhādhāna) purity ariseṣ' The exact significance of saṁskāras in the development of higher human personality was left rather vague in our authorities and their treatment of the purpose of saṁskāras is not very elaborate or exhaustive. The saṁskāras had been treated from very ancient times as necessary for unfolding the latent capacities of man for development and as being the outward symbols or signs of the inner change which would fit human beings for corporate life and they also tended to confer a certain status on those who underwent theṃ If we look at the list of saṁskāras we shall find that the purposes of saṁskāras were manifolḍ Some like Upanayana served spiritual and cultural purposes, they brought the unredeemed person into the company of the elect, they opened the door to Vedic study and thus conferred special privileges and exacted dutieṣ They have also psychological values impressing on the mind of the person that he has assumed a new role and must strive to observe its ruleṣ Other saṁskāras like nāmakaraṇa, annaprāśana, and niṣkramaṇa were more or less of a popular nature. They afforded opportunities for the expression of love and affection and for festivitieṣ Other saṁskāras like garbhādhāna, puṁsavana, sīmantonnayana had also mystical and symbolical elementṣ Vivāha (marriage) was a sacrament which brought about a union of two personalities into one for the purpose of the continuance of society and for the uplift of the two by self-restraint, by self-sacrifice and mutual co-operatioṇ

The saṁskāras were divided by Hārīta into two kinds, brāhma and daiva.¹⁶ The saṁskāras of garbhādhāna and others which are described only in the smṛtis are called brāhma and the man who is purified by performing them attains equality with sages, stays in the same world with them and is joined with them; pākayajñas (offerings of cooked food), yajñas with burnt offerings and sacrifices in which soma is offered are called daiva (saṁskāras). The last two varieties, viz. those in which there is burnt offering and those in which soma is offered, are dealt with in the śrauta sūtras, which have been left outside the purview of this work (except in the note at the end of this volume).

There is a great divergence of views among the writers on smṛtis as to the number of saṁskāraṣ Gaut. (VIII. 14-24) speaks of forty saṁskāras and eight virtues of the soul. The forty saṁskāras are: garbhādhāna, puṁsavana, sīmantonnayana, jātakarama, nāmakaraṇa, annaprāśana, caula, upanayana (8 in all); the eight forms of the Veda, snāna (or samāvartana), vivāha, five daily mahāyajñas (for deva, pitṛ, manuṣya, bhūta and brahma); seven pākaya jñas ¹⁷ (viz. aṣṭaka, pūrvaṇaṣṭhapālīpāka, śrāddha, śrāvaṇī, āgrahāyaṇī, caitrī, āśva yujī); seven havuryajñas (in which there is burnt offering but no soma) viz. Agnyādheya, Agnihotra, Darśapūrṇamāsa, Āgrayaṇa, Cāturmāsyas, Nirūḍhapaśubandha and Sautrāmaṇī); seven soma sacrifices (Agniṣṭoma, Atyagniṣṭoma, Ukthya, Ṣoḍaśin, Vājapeya, Atirātra, Āptoryāma). Gautama uses the word saṁskāra in the most extended sense. Śaṅkha as quoted by the Sṃ C. (I. p. 13) and the Subodhinī on Mit. II. 4 follow Gautama. Vaik. speaks of eighteen śarīra saṁskāras (in which he includes utthāna, pravāsāgamana, piṇḍavardhana, which are seen nowhere else as saṁskāras) and twenty-two yajñas (i. e. five daily yajñas as one and seven pākaya jñas, seven havir-yajñas, and seven soma yajñas). Most gṛhyasūtras, dharmasūtras and smṛtis do not enumerate so many. Angiras (quoted in the Saṁskāra mayukha, Saṁskāra-prakāśa p. 135 and other digests) mentions twenty-five saṁskāraṣ They include all saṁskāras of Gautama from garbhādhāna to the five daily yajñas (which latter are reckoned as one saṁskāra by Angiras) and after nāmākaraṇa niṣkramaṇa is addeḍ Besides, Viṣṇubali, Āgrayaṇa, Aṣṭakā, Śrāvaṇī, Āśvayujī, Mārgaśīrṣī (same as Āgrahāyaṇī), Pārvaṇa, Utsarga and Upākarma are enumerated as saṁskāras by Angiraṣ Veda-Vyāsa I. 14-15 enumerates sixteen saṁskāraṣ Manu, Yāj., Viṣṇu Dh. S. do not give the number of saṁskāras but simply say that they are those from niṣeka (garbhādhāna) to smaśāna (i. e. antyeṣṭi). This last one is not treated of in Gautama and several gṛhyasūtraṣ In most of the digests the principal saṁskāras are said to be sixteen; but there is some difference of opinion even as to these sixteeṇ ¹⁸ For example, Jātukarṇya as quoted in Saṁ. Pr. (p. 135) enumerates the 16 as garbhādhāna, puṁsavana, sīmanta, jātakarama, nāmākaraṇa, annaprāśana, caula, mauñjī ( upanayana ), vratas ( four ), godāna, samāvartana, vivāha and antyeṣṭi. These slightly differ from the sixteen of Veda-Vyāsa.

The gṛhyasūtras deal with saṃskāras in two different sequenceṣ Many of them begin with vivāha ( marriage ) and then proceed up to samāvartana. Some like the Hiraṇya-keśīgrhya, Bhāradvājagṛhya and Mānavagṛhya begin with upanayana.¹⁹ Some saṃskāras like Karṇavedha and Vidyā-rambha are conspicuous by their absence in the gṛhyasūtras, but are added by later smṛtis and purāṇaṣ The following is the list of all the saṃskāras usually so called in most of the smṛti works together with a few remarks against each as to the work or works in which each is mentioned or describeḍ The saṃskāras are arranged in the sequence of the times at which in a man’s life they are performed beginning from garbhādhāna:

Ṛtu-saṅgamana—mentioned in Vaik.²⁰ I. 1 as distinct from garbhādhāna ; it calls it niṣeka also ( VI. 2 ) and describes it in III. 9 and garbhādhāna in III. 10. The Vaik. commences the saṃskāras with niṣeka.

Garbhādhāna : Niṣeka : Caturthīkarma or-homa:—Manu (II. 16 and 26 ), Yāj. I. 10-11, Viṣṇu Dh. S. ( 2. 3 and 27. 1 ) employ the word niṣeka as equivalent to garbhādhāna. In the Śāṅkhā-yana gṛhya ( I. 18-19), Pār. gr. I. 11, and Āp. gr. (8. 10-11) the rite called caturthīkarma or caturthīhoma takes the place of the rite called garbhādhāna elsewhere and there is no separate description of garbhādhāna in these and some similar gṛhyasūtraṣ The Bauḍ gr. (IV. 6. 1), the Kāṭhakagṛhya (30. 8), Gaut. (VIII. 14), Yāj. I. 11 employ the word garbhā- dhāna. According to Vaik. (III. 10) the garbhādhāna rite follows niṣeka or ṛtu-saṁgamana (union of married pair after menstruation) and consists in ensuring conceptioṇ *Pumsavana :—*occurs in almost all the gṛhyasūtras, in Gaut., in Yāj. (I. 11). *Garbharakṣaṇa :—*mentioned in the Śāṅkhāyana gr. (I. 21). It seems to be the same as the Anavalobhana which according to the Āśvalāyana gr. (I. 13. 1) occurs in the Upaniṣad and which is described in Āśv. gr. (I. 13. 5–7). *Simantonnayana :—This occurs almost everywhere. Yāj. I. 11 uses the word sīmanta. Viṣṇubali :—*mentioned in Bauḍ gr. (I. 10. 13–17 and I. 11. 2), Vaik. (III. 13), Aṅgiraṣ It is not mentioned by Gautama and several other ancient sūtrakāraṣ *Soṣyanti-karma or-homa :—*described in Khādira and Gobhila. It is called Soṣyanti-savana in Kāṭhaka-gṛhya and Kṣiprasuvana in Āp. gr., Bhāradvāja gr. and Kṣipraprasavana in Hir. gr. (S. B. E. vol. 30, p. 210). It occurs in Budhasmṛti ( as quoted in Saṁskāra-prakāśa p. 139 ). *Jātakarama :—*This is described in all sūtras and smṛtis *Utthāna :—*mentioned only in the Vaik. (III. 18) and in Śāṅ. gr. I. 25 (S. B. E. vol. 29, pp. 51–52). *Nāmakaraṇa :—*mentioned in all smṛtis Niṣkramaṇa or Upaniṣkramaṇa or Ādityadarśana or Nirṇayana :—Yāj. I. 11 speaks of it as Niṣkramaṇa, Pār. gr. (I. 17) as Niṣkramaṇa, Manu II. 34 speaks of it as Niṣkramaṇa. The Kauśikasūtra 58. 18 calls it Nirṇayana; while Bauḍ gr. (II. 2) employs the word upaniṣkramaṇa; Mānava gr. (I. 19. 1), Viṣṇu Dh. S. (27. 10), Śāṅkha (in verse, II. 5) employ appropriately the name Ādityadarśana. Gaut., Āp. gr. and several other sūtras omit it. *Karṇavedha :—*omitted in almost all ancient smṛtis; men- tioned in Veda-Vyāsa smṛti (I. 19), Bauḍ gr. śeṣa-sūtra (I. 12. 1), Kātyāyana-sūtra (a supplement to Pār. gr. ) *Annaprāśana :—*mentioned by almost every smṛti. *Varṣavardhana or Abdapūrti :—*mentioned in Gobhila, Śāṅ. Pār., Bauḍ Caula or Cūḍākarma or Cūḍākaraṇa:--mentioned by all smṛtis Vidyārambha:--not mentioned in any smṛti but only in Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa quoted by Aparārka (p. 30) and Sṃ C. (I. p. 26 ). Upanayana:--mentioned by all. It is called vratādeśa in Veda-Vyāsa I. 14. Vratas (four):--mentioned by most of the gṛhyasūtraṣ Keśānta or Godāna:--Mentioned by almost all. Samāvartana or Snāna:--there is great divergence about these two. Manu (III. 4) seems to keep snāna (ceremonial bath after the period of studentship is over) as distinct from samā- vartana. Gaut., Āp. gr. V. 12-13, Hir. gr. I. 9. 1, Yāj. I. 51, Pār. gr. (II. 5-7) employ the word snāna for both the ceremonial bath and the rites of return from the teacher's house on finishing one's studies, while Āśv. gr. (III. 8. 1), Bauḍ gr. (II. 6. 1), Śāṅ. gr. III. 1, Āp. Dh. S. (I. 2. 7. 15 and 31) employ the word Samāvartana. Vivāha:--Mentioned by all as a saṁskāra. Mahāyajñas:--five daily yajñas; mentioned by Gaut., Aṅgiras and otherṣ Utsarga:--(seasonal giving up of Veda studies) is men- tioned as a saṁskāra in Vaik (I. 1) and by Aṅgiraṣ Upākarma:--(yearly commencement of Veda study) men- tioned as a saṁskāra by Vaik. (I. 1) and by Aṅgiraṣ Antyeṣṭi:--mentioned by Manu II. 16 and Yāj I. 10. It is laid down that the saṁskāras from jātakarama to cūḍākarma were to be performed in the case of the twice-born classes with Vedic mantras when the child was a male and that in the case of girls the ceremonies were to be performed but without Vedic mantras; vide Āśv. gr. (I. 15. 12, I. 16. 6, I. 17. 18), Manu II. 66, Yāj I. 13. But marriage in the case of the girls of the three higher classes was to be performed with Vedic mantras (Manu II, 67, Yāj. I. 13). The saṁskāras ²¹ from garbhādhāna to upanayana alone were absolutely necessary in the case of all twice-born persons; the saṁskāras of snāna and vivāha were not obligatory, as a man was allowed to become a saṁnyāsin (ascetic) immediately after finishing the period of studenthood (according to the Jābalo- Samskāraprakāśa enters upon an elaborate discussion as to whether jātakarama could a child that is neither a male nor a female (pp. 195-197) and arrives at the conclusion that jātakarama and other saṁskāras cannot be performed for a klība (impotent) chilḍ

Another question was as to what saṁskāras could be per- formed for the śūdra. The view of Vedavyāsa that he could have ten saṁskāras performed (but without Vedic mantras) has been stated above (p. 159). The Baijavāpa²² gṛhya says that seven saṁskāras are allowed to the śūdra viz. from garbhādhāna (or niṣeka) to caula. The view of Aparārka²³ appears to be that the eight saṁskāras from garbhādhāna to caula (in Yāj. I.11–12) were meant for all varṇas (including the śūdra). According to the Madanaratna, Rūpanārāyaṇa and the bhāṣya of Harihara as quoted in the Nirṇayasindhu, the śūdras were entitled to perform six saṁskāras viz. jātakarama, nāmakaraṇa, niṣkra- maṇa, annaprāśana, cūḍā and vivāha and the five daily mahā- yajñaṣ The Śūdrakṛtya-tattva of Raghunandana (p. 634) quotes a verse from the Varāhapurāṇa²⁴ 'this very procedure (about śrāddha) has been declared in the case of śūdras but without mantras; for the śūdra who is not entitled to repeat a mantra, a brāhmaṇa repeats the mantra' and then remarks that for a śūdra a mantra from the purāṇas is to be repeated by the brāhmaṇa priest employed, that the śūdra is not to repeat even the purāṇa mantras but has only to say ‘namah’. The Nirṇayasindhu²⁵ mentions with approval the same view of Śūlapāṇi that in all religious ceremonies for śūdras the man- tras are to be taken from the purāṇas and that they are to be repeated by the brāhmaṇa priest. The Brahmapurāṇa²⁶ quoted in the Sṃ C. ( I. p. 24) and other digests states that no other saṁskāra than vivāha is allowed to the śūdra. On this the Nirṇayasindhu remarks that these conflicting views are to be reconciled by holding that the liberal ones apply to good ( sat ) śūdras and the stricter ones to low ( asat ) śūdras or that the rules are different in different countrieṣ

It is to be noted that in modern times most of the sams- kāras (except garbhādhāna, upanayana and vivāha) have fallen into oblivion and are hardly ever performed even by brāhmaṇas in the manner and at the times prescribed by the smṛtis Owing to the rapid rise in the marriageable age of brāhmaṇa girls, even the saṁskāra of garbhādhāna is falling into abeyance. Nāmakaaraṇa, annaprāśana are performed in a popular way but without Vedic mantras or without calling a priest to officiate. In most cases caula is performed on the day of the upanayana and samāvartana is also performed a few days after upanayana. Jātakarama and annaprāśana are performed on the same day in some parts (e. g. in Bengal). It appears that this state of things has continued for centurieṣ The Smṛtyarthasāra ²⁷ (p. 3) says 'if the Saṁskāras (except upa- nayana) are not performed at the prescribed times, the Vyāhṛti- homa should be offered and then the Saṁskāras should be per- formed (though late). For each saṁskāra that is not performed the penance called pādakṛcchra should be performed (if the non- performance is due to some difficulty or distress ), and for non- performance of caula the penance is ardha-kṛcchra. If the sams- kāras were knowingly omitted or if there was no distress then the penance is double ²⁸ of thiṣ' The Nirṇayasindhu quotes verses of Śaunaka ²⁹ to this effect and then remarks that there was a conflict of views, some holding that after the penance the Saṁskāras passed over should be performed all at one time, while others held that they should not be performed at all after undergoing penance and a third view was that if caula was left unperformed it may be performed on the same day as upanayana. The Dharmasindhu ( 3rd pariccheda, purvardha ) states various substitutes ( which are comparatively easy ) for these penanceṣ For example, one prājāpatya penance is equal to three Pādakṛcchraṣ In place of prājāpatya the person guilty of the lapse may make the gift of a cow or ( in the absence of a cow ) may give one niṣka ( 320 guñjās ) of gold or one half or one-fourth of it; one who is very poor may give one-eighth of a silver niṣka or corn of that value. There being these easy substitutes ( pratyāmnāya as they were called ) people gradually left off performing the several saṁskāras and concentrated themselves only on upanayana and vivāha. The whole life of a person was so very minutely worked out and overlaid with so much ritual in the gṛhyasūtras and smṛtis that the tendency to neglect and change became insistent and inevitable. This tendency was helped by the accommodating spirit of the brāhmaṇa authors of later smṛtis and digests that were ready to prescribe easier and easier substitutes for non-observance of the elaborate sacraments, pre-natal and post-natal. Haradatta in commenting on Gaut. I. 6 ( upanayanam brāhmaṇasya aṣṭame ) remarks ‘ the teacher ( Gautama ) expounding upanayana first and passing over the saṁskāras like garbhādhāna that precede upanayana in time conveys that upanayana is the principal saṁskāra. Therefore even if the saṁskāras like garbhādhāna did not take place owing to adverseness of fate, upanayana can be performed, but it follows that if upanayana be not performed there is no adhikāra ( eligibility ) for marriage which follows only after upanayana.’ ³⁰ In modern times in undergoing prāyaścitta for non-performance of the saṁskāras up to caula rupees two have to be paid to the priest ( annas four for each of the saṁskāras not performed up to caula and annas eight for caula ).³¹ The saṁskāras will now be described in detail. The material contained in the sūtras, smṛtis and nibandhas is so vast that only very concise statements can be made here. The method followed will be as followṣ Each saṁskāra will be described from a few representative gṛhya and dharma sūtras such as the Āśv. gṛ., Āp. gṛ., and references to other important workṣ Only important parts of procedure can be noted, minute divergences among the several works being passed over. Greater details will be given in the case of the two chief saṁskāras viz. upanayana and marriage which are in vogue even now.³²

Garbhādhāna:—The beginnings of this ceremony are found very early. Atharvaveda V. 25 appears to be a hymn intended for the garbhādhāna rite. Atharva V. 25. 3 and 5 are verses which occur in the Bṛ. Up. VI. 4. 21; the passage of the Bṛ. Up. VI. 4. 13, 19–22 may be rendered thus : ‘ At the end of three days (after menstruation first appears) when she (wife) has bathed, the husband should make her pound rice (which is then boiled and eaten with various other things according as he desires a fair, brown or dark son or a learned daughter) ... and then towards morning, after having according to the rule of the Sthālīpāka performed the preparation of the clarified butter, he sacrifices from the Sthālīpāka little by little, saying 'This is for Agni, svāhā; this is for Anumati, svāhā; this is for divine Savitr the true creator, svāhā! Having sacrificed he takes out the rest of the śice, eats it and after having eaten he gives some of it to his wife. Then he washes his hands, fills a water jar and sprinkles her thrice with water saying 'Rise, oh Viśvāvasu, seek another blooming girl, a wife with her husbanḍ' Then he embraces her and says ' I am Ama, thou art Sā. Thou art Sā, I am Ama. I am the Sāman, thou art the Ṛk. I am the sky, thou art the earth. Come, let us strive together that a male child may be begotten' ( VI. 4. 21-22 cannot be literally translated for reasons of decency ). Briefly the husband has intercourse with her and repeats certain mantras ' may Viṣṇu make ready your private parts, may Tvaṣṭā frame your beauty, may Prajāpati sprinkle and may Dhātā implant an embryo into you; Oh Sinīvālī! Oh Pṛthuṣṭukā! implant embryo ( in her ), may the two Aśvins who wear a garland of lotuses plant in thee an embryo........ As the earth has fire inside it, as heaven has Indra inside it, as the wind is inside ( as the embryo of ) the quarters, so I plant a garbha in thee, oh, so and so ( the name of the woman being taken )'.³³ In the Āśv. gr. ( I. 13. 1 ) it is expressly stated that in the Upaniṣad the ceremonies of Garbhalambhana ( conceiving a child ), Pumsavana ( securing a male child ) and Anavalobhana ( guarding against dangers to the embryo ) are mentioneḍ Evidently this is a reference to the Br. Up. quoted above (where four mantras used in the garbhādhāna saṁskāra by Hir. and other gṛhya sūtras occur ).

The rite called caturthīkarma is described in the Śāṅkhāyana gr. ( I. 18-19, S. B. E. vol. 29, pp. 44-46 ) as follows "Three nights after marriage having elapsed, on the fourth the husband makes into fire eight offerings of cooked food to Agni, Vayu, Sūrya (the mantra being the same for all three except the name of the deity), Aryaman, Varuṇa, Pūṣan (mantras being the same for these three), Prajāpati (the mantra is Ṛg. X. 121. 10 ), ( Agni) Sviṣṭakṛt. Then he pounds the root of Adhyandā plant and sprinkles it into the wife's nostril with two verses ( Ṛg. X. 85. 21–22 ) with svāhā at the end of each. He should then touch her, when about to cohabit, with the words 'the mouth of the Gandharva Viśvāvasu art thou'. Then he should murmur 'into the breath I put the sperm, Oh ! so and so (the name of the wife) or he repeats the verse 'as the earth has fire inside &c. ( quoted above from Bṛ. Up. VI. 4. 22 ) or several other verses in this strain ‘may a male embryo enter thy womb as an arrow into the quiver; may a man be born here, a son, after ten months ".³⁴ The Pār. gṛ. ( I. 11, S. B. E. vol. 29, pp. 288–290 ) also has a similar procedure. Āp. gṛ. ( 8. 10–11, S. B. E. vol. 30, pp. 267–268 ), Gobhila II. 5 (S. B. E. vol. 30, pp. 51–52 ) give briefly a similar procedure, but refer to mantras given in the Mantrapāṭha (e. g. Āp. M. P. I. 10. 1. to I. 11. 11 ). To modern minds it appears strange that intercourse should have been surrounded by so much of mysticism and religion in the ancient sūtraṣ But in ancient times every act was sought to be invested with a religious halo ; so much so that according to Hir. ¦gṛ. I. 7. 25.3. (S. B. E. vol. 30, p. 200) Ātreya held that mantras were to be repeated at each cohabitation throughout life, while Bādarāyaṇa prescribed that this was necessary only at the first cohabitation and after each monthly course.³⁵ The Hir. gṛ. ( I. 7, 23.11 to 7, 25, S. B. E. vol. 30 pp. 197–200 ) gives a very elaborate rite, but on the same lines as the above gṛhyasūtraṣ One of the mantras is interesting on account of its reference to the cakravāka birds ( I. 7. 24. 6 ), ‘The concord that belongs to the cakravāka birds, that is brought out of the rivers of which the divine Gandharva is possessed, thereby we are concordant ' (S. B. E. vol. 30, p. 198 ). The Vaik. ( III. 9 ) calls this ceremony ṛtusaṁgamana and is similar to Āp. gṛ. and Hir. gṛ. It will be seen that the caturthikarma is treated by the gṛhya writers as part of the marriage rites and the rite was performed irrespective of the question whether it was the first appearance of menses or whether the wife had just before the marriage come out of her monthly illnesṣ This indicates that it was taken for granted that the wife had generally attained the age of puberty at the time of marriage. As the marriageable age of girls came down it appears that the rite of caturthikarma was discontinued and the rite was performed long after the ritual of marriage and appropriately named garbhādhāna.

The smṛtis and nibandhas add many details some of which will have to be noticeḍ Manu (III. 46) and Yāj. I. 79 say that the natural period (for conception) is sixteen nights from the appearance of menseṣ Āp. gr. 9. 1 says³⁶ that each of the even nights from the 4th to 16th (after the beginning of the monthly illness) are more and more suited for excellence of (male) offspring. Hārīta also says the same. These two appear to allow garbhādhāna on the fourth night, but Manu (III. 47), Yāj. (I. 79) lay down that the first four nights must be omitteḍ Kātyāyana, Parāśara (VII. 17) and others say that a woman in her menses is purified by bathing on the 4th day. Laghu-Āśvalāyana (III. 1) says that the garbhādhāna ceremony should be performed on the first appearance of menses after the 4th day has elapseḍ The Sṃ C. suggests that the 4th may be allowed if there is entire cessation of the flow.³⁷ Manu (IV. 128) and Yāj. I. 79 added further restrictions viz. that new moon and full moon days and the 8th and 14th tithis of the month were also to be omitteḍ Astrological details were added by Yāj. I. 80 (that the Mūla and Maghā constellations must be avoided and the moon must be auspiciously placed) and other later smṛtis, which it is unnecessary to dwell upoṇ In the later smṛtis like Laghu-Āśvalāyana III. 14-19 and in nibandhas like the Nirnayasindhu and Dharmasindhu elaborate discussions are held about the months, tithis, week- days, nakṣatras, colour of clothes, that were deemed to be inauspicious for the first appearance of menses and about the śāntis (propitiatory rites) for averting their evil effectṣ Āp. gr., Manu (III. 48), Yāj. (I. 79), Vaik. III. 9 hold that a man desirous of male issue should cohabit on the even days from the 4th day after the appearance of menses and if he cohabits on uneven days a female child is borṇ Hir. gr. ³⁸ I. 7. 24. 8 (S. B. E. vol. 30 p. 199) and Bhāradvāja gr. (I. 20) prescribe that a woman in her menses who takes a bath on the 4th day should attire herself in white (or pure) clothes, should ornament herself and talk with (worthy) brāhmaṇas (only). The Vaik. (III. 9) further adds that she should anoint herself with unguents, should not converse with a woman, or a śūdra, should see no one else except her husband, since the child born becomes like the male whom a woman taking a bath after the period looks at. Śaṅkha-Likhita convey a similar eugenic suggestion, ³⁹ viz. ‘Women give birth to a child similar in qualities to him on whomsoever their heart is set in their periodṣ’

A debatable question is whether garbhādhāna is a saṁskāra of the garbha (the child in the womb) or of the womaṇ Gaut. VIII. 24, Manu. I. 16, and Yāj. I. 10 indicate that it is a saṁskāra of the garbha and not of the womaṇ Viśvarūpa ⁴⁰ on Yāj. I. 11 expressly asserts that all saṁskāras except Sīmantonnayana have to be performed again and again (as they are the saṁskāras of the garbha), while Sīmantonnayana being a saṁskāra of the woman has to be performed only once and this opinion was in consonance with the usage in his dayṣ Laghu-Āśvalāyana (IV. 17) also holds the same view. Medhā- tithi ⁴¹ on Manu II. 16 says that the garbhādhāna rite with mantras was performed after marriage only once at the time of the first cohabitation according to some, while according to others it was to be performed after every menstruation till conceptioṇ Later works like the Mit. ( on Yaj. I. 11), the Sṃ C., the Saṁskāratattva (p. 909) hold that garbhādhāna, puṁsavana ⁴² and sīmantonnayana are saṁskāras of the woman and are to be performed only once and quote Hārīta in support. Aparārka holds that sīmantonnayana is performed only once at the first conception, while puṁsavana is repeated at each conceptioṇ He relies on Pār. gr. I. 15; and the Saṁs- kāra-mayūkha and the Saṁskāraprakāśa (pp. 170–171) hold the same opinioṇ Sṃ C. ( I. p. 17 ) quotes a verse of Viṣṇu that according to some even sīmantonnayana is repeated at each conceptioṇ About the rules for women who are rajasvalā (in their monthly course) vide later oṇ

According to Kullūka (on Manu II, 27), the Sṃ C. ( I. p. 14) and other works garbhādhāna is not of the nature of homa. The Dharmasindhu says that when garbhādhāna takes place on the first appearance of menses, homa for garbhādhāna is to be performed in the gṛhya fire, but there is no homa when the cohabitation takes place on the second or later appearance of menses; that those in whose sūtra no homa is prescribed should perform the garbhādhāna rite on the proper day after the first appearance of menses by reciting the mantras but without homa. The Saṁskārakaustubha (p. 59) relying on Gṛhyaparisiṣṭa prescribes homa in which cooked food is to be offered to Prajāpati and seven offerings of ājya are to be offered in fire, three with the verses 'Viṣṇur-yonim' (Rg. X. 184. 1–3), three with 'nejameṣa' (Āp. I., I. 12. 7–9) and one with Ṛg. X. 121. 10 (prajāpate na).

All saṁskāras other than garbhādhāna can be performed by any agnate in the absence of the husband (vide Saṁskāra- prakāśa ⁴³ p. 165 ). As homa is necessary in numerous ceremonies and rites, the gṛhyasūtras give a description of a model homa. Therefore here also it would be well to set out the description from the Āśvalāyana ⁴⁴ Gṛhyasūtra ( I. 3, S. B. E. vol 29 pp. 162-163), a few important points of difference being added from other gṛhyasūtras and other workṣ

“Now wherever ( a person ) intends ⁴⁵ to offer a sacrifice he should besmear ( with cowdung ) a sthaṇḍila ( a slightly raised square surface of sand or loose earth ) of the dimension at least of an arrow on all ( four ) sides ; let him then draw six lines ( in all ) on it, one to the west ( of that part of the sthaṇḍila on which the fire is to be placed ) but turned northwards, two lines turned towards the east but separately at the two ends ( of the line first drawn ) ; ( then he should draw ) three lines in the middle ( of the two) ; let him then sprinkle (the sacred sthaṇḍila) with water, establish the (sacred) fire ( on the sthaṇḍila ), put (two or three samidhs) on the fire ; then he should perform parisamūhana ( i. e. wiping or sweeping the ground round the fire), then paristaraṇa ( i. e. strewing darbha grass round ) to the east, to the south, to the west, to the north ( in order) ; in this way (all acts like parisamūhana, paristaraṇa &c. ) should end in the north. Then silently he should sprinkle (water) round (the fire). (2) With two (kuśa blades used as) strainers (pavitra) the purifying of the ājya is done. (3) Having ⁴⁶ taken two kuśa blades with unbroken ends, which do not bear a young shoot in them, of the measure of a span, at their ends with his thumb and fourth finger, with hands turned the inside being upwards, he purifies the ājya ( from the west ) towards the east with ( the words ) 'by the urging of Savitṛ I purify thee with this uninjured pavitra, with the rays of the Vasu ( i. e. rich or good ) sun', once with this mantra, twice silently. (4) The strewing of kuśa grass (paristaraṇa) round the fire may or may not be done in the ājya homas ( i. e. sacrifices in which clarified butter alone is to be offered into the fire ). (5) So also the two ājya portions ( may optionally be offered ) in the Pākayajñas. (6) And ( the employment in all Pākayajñas) of the brahmā priest is optional except in the Dhanvantari sacrifice and Śūlagava sacrifice. (7) He should offer the sacrifice with the words ‘to such and such a deity, svāhā’. (8) If there is no specific direction (as to the deities to whom the offerings are to be made), the deities are Agni, Indra, Prajāpati, Viśve Devas (all gods), Brahmā.⁴⁷ At the end there is an offering to Agni Sviṣṭakṛt (vide Appendix under note 481 for the mantra).

In the Śāṅkhāyana gṛ. I. 7 (S. B. E. vol. 29 pp. 22–31) the procedure described is more elaborate and contains some important differenceṣ The performer (I. 7. 6–7) draws one line in the middle of the sacrificial surface from south to north and from this line only three lines are drawn upwards, one to the south of it, one in the middle, and one to the north (i.e. there are only four lines and not six as in Āśvalāyana). Further it (I. 8. 6–7) says that the seat of the brahmā priest is to the south of the sthaṇḍila and he is honoured with flowerṣ Śāṅkhāyana adds (I. 8. 8.) the detail that the praṇītā waters are carried forward on the north side and (I. 8. 9–11) that paristaraṇa follows after the carrying forward of the praṇītā waterṣ It also adds (I. 8. 24–25) that waters in the sruva spoon are purified just as ājya is purified and then a portion of the water in the sruva is poured on to the praṇītā water and the rest of the water in the sruva is called the prokṣaṇī water with which the `havis`, the `idhma` (fuel) and `barhis` (kuśas) are sprinkleḍ Śāṅkhāyana I. 9. 1 lays down that sruva spoon is the vessel in all gṛhya rites (and not juhū as in śrauta rites) except where a special rule to the contrary is stateḍ The Pār. gṛ. I. 1 (S. B. E. vol. 29, pp. 269–270) and the Khādira gṛ. I. 2 (S. B. E. vol. 29, pp. 376–378) describe the model homa in a very concise manner. The Gobhila gṛ. (I. 1. 9–11, and I. 5. 13–20, I. 7. 9, I. 8. 21), Hir. gṛ. (1. 1. 9–I. 3. 7 S. B. E. vol. 30 pp. 138–145) describe it at great length. The sthaṇḍila should be prepared on a level spot or on a spot that slopes towards the east or north or north-east (vide Hir. gṛ. I. 1. 9, S. B. E. vol. 30, p. 138). The sthaṇḍila should be raised to the height of two or four finger breadths or as much as the sand or loose earth that one has brought will allow; and the sthanḍila is to be a square, each side of which is given variously as being an arrow (18 angulas) in length, or 32 finger breadths (according to Vājik.), or one aratni (=21 angulas according to Bauḍ gr. paribhāṣā I. 5. 3 ).⁴⁸ The Āp. gr. describes at length the procedure common to all homaṣ The following figures would illustrate the position of the sthanḍila, the lines drawn thereon, the position of the sacrificer and of the various articles required at the time of homa &c. A East B barhis idbma 3 6 5 4 2 ājyapātra pranāyanapātra 1 sruva proksaṇapātra D West C South 0 Brahmā priest facing north. Sacrificer facing the east. ABCD is the sthanḍila of sand or loose earth; 1–6 are the lines drawn with a samidh on which the fire is to be placeḍ The above figure represents the position of all materials in an ājya homa (i. e. offering of clarified butter) only; but when there is darvihoma (offering of boiled food in a darvi or ladle) the materials on the north side are carusthālī and proksaṇapātra, darvi and sruva, camasa and ājyapātra, idhma and barhis ( according to Āśvalāyana-gṛhya-pariśiṣṭa 14) and Kumārila- kārikā I. 2. 20. )

East North Soma line 12 angulas one apan Indra Line one span Prajāpati line 12 angulas Prthivi line South ☐ seat of brahmā. Agni line 21 angulas West Sacrificer facing the east.

The above is the figure of the sthaṇḍila and the lines there- on in all gṛhya rites according to Baudhāyana-gṛhya-saṁgrha- pariśiṣṭa ( Z. D. M. G. vol. 35 p. 540 ) I. 52-58. The distance between the lines running towards the east is six aṅgulas and it will be noted that all the lines are only five ( and nplitu ).

The brahmā is the only priest ( out of the four^9-11 the praṇt ṛtviks ) in sacrifices that are offered in one fire ( n the sru- gṛhya fire ) and are called pākayajñas and the porṇana ( sacrificer ) is himself the hotṛ priest. ⁴⁹ The order of the several parts in the homa is as follows: ⁵⁰ upalepana ( smearing with cowdung ), arranging of sthaṇḍila with sand or earth; drawing lines on the sthaṇḍila with a samidh (fuel stick), keeping the samidh on the lines with its end towards the east, sprinkling sthaṇḍila with water on its north or east, keeping the samidh ( with which lines were drawn ) outside the sthaṇḍila towards the north-east, then ācamana ( by the sacrificer ), then placing fire ( either produced by attrition or brought from the house of a śrotriya or the ordinary one ) on the sthaṇḍila facing the performer, placing two or three samidhs on the fire, keep- ing ready of idhma ( 15 samidhs ) and a bunch of darbha grasṣ Then parisamūhana ( wiping the ground round the fire from north-east with the hand that has water in it ), then paristaraṇa ( strewing darbha grass round the altar first to the east, then to the south, then to the west and lastly to the north ), then silent paryukṣaṇa ( sprinkling of water thrice round the fire, each time taking water in the hand separately), then apaḥ-praṇayana (carrying forward the water to the north of the fire) in a vessel of bell-metal or earthenware, then ājyotpavana (purifica-tion of the clarified butter with two kuśa blades as strainers ⁵¹ thrice, once with mantra and twice silently), the two āghāras and the two oblations of ājya. Then the principal oblations as directed in the various sūtras, then finally an oblation to Agni Sviṣṭakṛt. The method of offering an oblation is to repeat the mantra preceded by om and to add svāhā at the end, to put the āhuti (oblation) on fire and to say 'this is for such and such a god and not mine'. ⁵²

The Āśv. gṛhya-sūtra (I. 4) further adds that in caula, upanayana, godāna and marriage there are (as part of these ceremonies) first four oblations of clarified butter to be made with the three mantras (Rg. IX. 66. 10-12) 'Oh Angi, thou purifiest life &c' and with the one verse 'Prajāpati! no other than thou &c' (Rg. X. 121. 10) or with the vyāhṛtis, ⁵² or according to some teachers with a combination ( of the ṛk verses and vyāhṛtis ),⁵³ while according to others there are no such special oblationṣ⁵⁴

In modern times, after the sthaṇḍila is sprinkled with water, fire is established on it under various names depending on the rite to be performed e. g. in upanayana and marriage respec- tively the fire is called⁵⁵ 'Samudbhava' and 'Yojaka'. Then fuel sticks already sprinkled with holy water are placed on the fire and it is fanned into a flame and prayer is offered to it in the words 'agne Vaiśvānara Śāṇḍilya meṣadhvaja mama sammukho varado bhava'. Then follow parisamūhana and other acts stated above.

Just as homa is required in most gṛhya rites there are certain matters common to almost all riteṣ One is that in all saṃskāras one has to feed brāhmaṇas learned in the Vedaṣ⁵⁶ All rites begin with ācamana by the performer, prāṇāyāma by him, reference to the deśa (place) and kāla (time) and a saṃkalpa (a declaration of what rite he is performing and for what purpose). After these, according to medieval works, follow in all auspicious rites the worship of Gaṇapati, puṇyāhavācana, the worship of Mātṛs (mother goddesses) and Nāndīśrāddha. According to some there is only one saṃkalpa for all these; according to others there is a separate saṃkalpa for each of puṇyāhavācana, mātṛkāpūjana and Nāndīśrāddha. In all auspicious rites the performer takes a bath first, ties his topknot, has a piece of ground cowdunged and lines with coloured materials are drawn on a portion of the ground, two auspicious kalaśas (jars) filled with water are placed on such ornamented ground with their mouths covered with a pot, all articles necessary for worship are placed to the north of the spot, two wooden low stools or planks are arranged to the west of the spot so decorated, the performer sits on one plank facing the east, his wife sits to his right and if the ceremony is meant for his son, the latter sits to the right of the wife; the brāhmaṇas are seated a little away to the right of the wife, facing the north and the performer sips water (takes ācamana). Except ⁵⁷ where a religious rite is to be performed on a fixed day (e. g. anniversary śrāddha &c.) all saṁskāras and other auspicious rites are to be performed at certain auspicious times only.

Ganapatipūjana :—This consists in inviting the presence of the elephant-faced god Gaṇeśa on a betelnut placed in a handful of husked rice. The word Gaṇapati is used in the Ṛgveda as an attribute of Brahmapaspati (the lord of prayer or holy lore ). The well-known mantra (‘gaṇānām tvā gaṇapatim havāmahe’ Ṛg. II. 23. 1) which is used to invoke Gaṇeśa is addressed to Brahmapaspati. Indra is addressed as Gaṇapati in Ṛg. X. 112. 9. In the Tai. S. IV. 1. 2. 2 and Vāj. S. paśus (and the horse specially) are said to be the Gaṇapatya of Rudra. The Ait. Br. IV. 4 ⁵⁸ expressly says that the mantra ‘gaṇānām tvā’ is addressed to Brahmapaspati. In the Vāj. S. 16. 25 we have the plural (‘Gaṇapatibhyaśca vo namo’) and in 22. 30 we have the singular ‘Gaṇapataye svāhā’. The peculiar features of Gaṇeśa as described in the medieval works, viz. the head of an elephant, pot belly, mouse as vāhana (conveyance) are entirely wanting in the Vedic literature. In Vāj. S. III. 57 the mouse ⁵⁹ is said to be the paśu (animal to be offered to) of Rudra. In the Tai. Ār. (X. 15) there is a verse ⁶⁰ ‘We contemplate Vakratuṇḍa, therefore may the tusked (god) impel us’. In the Gṛhya and Dharma sūtras there is no reference to the worship of Gaṇeśa at the beginning of all auspicious riteṣ That is comparatively a later cult. In the Bauḍ Dh. S. (II. 5. 83-90, S. B. E. vol. 14. p. 254 ) the Devatarpaṇa includes the propitiation of Vighna, Vināyaka, Vīra, Sthūla, Varada, Hastimukha, Vakratuṇḍa, Ekadanta and Lambodara. But this part of the Bauḍ Dh. S. is of doubtful authenticity. All the above are the appellations of Vināyaka (vide Bauḍ gṛhya-śeṣasūtra III. 10. 6). In the Mānava gṛhya II. 14 it is said that the Vināyakas are four viz. Śālakaṭaṅkaṭa, Kūṣmāṇḍarājaputra, Usmita and Devayajana. They are evil spirits and people when seized by them have bad dreams and see in them inauspicious sights such as shaved persons, persons with matted hair or wearing yellowish garments, camels, hogs, asses, cāṇḍālaṣ When seized by them, princes, though capable, do not get their kingdoms; maidens, though endowed with all accomplishments, cannot secure husbands; married women have no children or even virtuous wives lose their children in infancy; husbandmen lose their crops &c. The Mānavagṛhya then prescribes propitiatory rites to remove the effects of Vināyaka seizure. The Baijavāpagṛhya (quoted by Aparārka p.563 on Yāj. I. 275) says⁶¹ that there are four Vināyakas, Mita, Sammita, Śālakaṭaṅkaṭa and Kūṣmāṇḍarājaputra and describes seizure by them and its effects in the same way as the Mānavagṛhya. These two show the first stage in the development of the cult of Vināyaka. Vināyakas are at this stage malevolent spirits who cause dangers and obstacles of various kindṣ In this cult various elements from the terrific aspects of Rudra were probably first drawn upon and amalgamated with other elements drawn from aboriginal cultṣ The next stage is indicated by the Yāj. smṛti (I. 271-294). Here Vināyaka (I. 271) is said to be one appoin- ted by Brahmā and Rudra to the over-lordship of the Gaṇas, he is represented not only as causing obstacles, but also as bring- ing success in the actions and rites undertaken by meṇ Yāj. enumerates the results of the seizure by Vināyaka in the same way as the Mānavagṛhya. Yāj. I. 285 says that Mita, Sammita, Śālakaṭaṅkaṭa and Kūṣmāṇḍarājaputra are the four names⁶² of the one Vināyaka and that Ambikā is the mother of Vināyaka. It is noteworthy that Yāj. does not employ any one of the well-known epithets of Vināyaka, viz. Ekadanta, Heramba, Gajānana, Lambodara &c. The Bauḍ gr. śeṣasūtra III. 10 prescribes a somewhat different procedure for propitiating Vināyaka and styles him 'the lord of bhūtas', and also 'hastimukha' and 'vighneśvara' and prescribes the offerings of apūpa and modaka to hiṃ Thus Baudhāyana is nearer to the medieval conception of Gaṇeśa than even yajña-valkya. The Ādiparva makes Gaṇeśa write the Mahābhārata to the dictation of Vyāsa; but this part is apocryphal as many msṣ altogether omit this episode (vide J. R. A. S. for 1898 pp. 380-384, Winternitz). The other references in Vanaparva 65. 23 and Anuśāsana 150. 25 bear affinity to the description of Vināyaka in the Mānavagṛhya. ⁶³

The Gobhilasmṛti (in verse) I. 13 prescribes that at the begin- ning of all rites, the Mātṛs together with Gaṇādhipa (the lord of Gaṇas) should be worshippeḍ The well-known characteristics of Gaṇeśa and his worship had become fixed before the 5th or 6th century of the Christian era. Kālidāsa does not refer to Gaṇeśa. The Gāthāsaptaśatī has references to Gaṇeśa. In that work (IV. 72) an image of Gaṇeśa is referred to as made use of as a pillow and the tip of his trunk is mentioned in V. 3. In Codrington's ‘Ancient India’ plate XXXIX there is an image of Gaṇeśa referable to about 500 A. D. Vide Dr. Bhandarkar in 'Vaiṣṇavism and Śaivism' p. 147. Bāṇa in his Harṣacarita (IV Ucchvāsa verse 2 ) speaks of the large tusk of Gaṇādhipa and in describing Bhairavācārya (Harṣacarita III) associates Vināyaka with obstacles and learning and also indicates that he had the head of an elephant. In the Vāmanapurāṇa (chap. 54) there is a fantastic legend about the birth of Vināyaka.

The Mahāviracarita ( II. 38 ) speaks of the tusk of Heramba The Matsyapurāṇa ( chap. 260. 52–55 ) describes how the images of Vināyaka are to be made. Aparārka ( p. 343 ) quotes a passage from the Matsyapurāṇa ( 289.7 ) on the mahādāna called Mahābhūtaghaṭa, in which it is said that Vināyaka should be shown as riding a mouse. The Kṛtyaratnākara p. 271 quotes a passage from the Bhaviṣyapurāṇa for the worship of Gaṇeśa on the 4th day of Bhādrapada. Vide Agnipurāṇa chap. 71 and 313 In modern times a verse ⁵⁰¹ is repeated in which the shrines of the eight Vināyakas in the Deccan are enumerateḍ

Among the earliest epigraphic references to Ganapati is the one in the Nidhanpur plate of Bhāskarvarman (middle of 7th century). Vide E. I. Vol. XII. p. 73. ⁵⁰²

The Gaṇapatipūjāna consists in the performer repeating the mantra Ṛg. II. 23. 1 ('gaṇānām tvā Gaṇapatim') as a prayer and then bowing to Gaṇeśa with the words 'Om Mahā- gaṇapataye namo namaḥ nirvighnam kuru' (salutations to the great Gaṇapati, make (this rite) free from obstacles'.

Puṇyāhavacana :—Although many elaborate descriptions of this are given in later digests like the Saṁskāraratnamālā, this was originally in ancient times a very simple and brief rite. The Āp. Dh. S. (I. 4. 13. 8) says that in ordinary life in all auspicious rites (such as marriage) all sentences begin with 'Om' as in saying 'puṇyāham', 'svasti', and 'ṛddhim'. The performer of a religious rite honours the assembled brāhmaṇas with gandha (sandalwood paste), flowers and tāmbūla (betel leaves) and requests with folded hands 'may you declare the day to be auspicious for such and such a ceremony which I, by name so and so, am ⁵⁰³ about to perform' and then the brāhmaṇas respond by saying ‘Om, may it be auspicious’. Each of these three sentences (with svasti, puṇyāham and ṛddhim) is to be repeated thrice according to Bauḍ gr. śeṣa-sūtra I. 10. A verse of Yama says that the brāhmaṇas should respond without the syllable ‘om’ when the performer of the rite is a kṣatriya or a vaiśya.

Mātṛkāpūiana :—The Mātrs (the Mother Goddesses) do not figure in the sūtraṣ But that their worship was prevalent certainly in the first centuries of the Christian era throughout India can be proved from several sourceṣ In the drama Mṛcchakaṭika (I) Cārudatta asks his friend Maitreya to offer bali to the Mātrṣ The Gobhila-smṛti⁶⁷ (in verse I. 11–12) names 14 mātrs viz. Gaurī, Padmā, Śacī, Medhā, Sāvitrī, Vijayā, Jayā, Devasenā, Svadhā, Svāhā, Dhṛti, Puṣṭi, Tuṣṭi and one’s own deity (abhiṣṭa-devatā). In the Mārkaṇḍeya (chap. 88. 11–20 and 38) seven mātrs have been named as Mātṛgaṇa. The Matsyapurāṇa (chap. 179. 9–32) names over a hundred mother goddesses (like Māheśvarī, Brāhmī, Kaumārī, Cāmuṇḍā), while in chap. 261 (24–36), there is a description of the images of some of the mātrs like Brāhmaṇī &c. The Bṛhat-saṃhitā of Varāhamihira (chap. 58. 56) refers to the images of the mother goddesseṣ Bāṇa in his Kādambarī frequently refers to the mātrs, to their worship and to dilapidated temples of these goddesseṣ⁶⁸ The Kṛtyaratnākara quotes a passage from the Bhaviṣyapurāṇa at p. 261 about the images of the seven mātrs and pp. 305 and 307 quote the Devīpurāṇa about the worship of mātrs and the flowers dear to theṃ The worship of mātrs is mentioned in the Bihar Stone Pillar Inscription of Skandagupta (Gupta Inscriptions pp. 47, 49). The Cālukyas are often described as ‘cherished by the seven mātrs’ (I. A. vol. VI. p. 73 in 535 śaka and E. I. vol. IX. p. 100 in 660 A. D.). The Kadambas are described as meditating on Kārtikeya-svāmī and on the group of mātrs (I. A. vol. VI. p. 25)⁶⁹. Similarly a temple to the Mātrs is said to have been erected by Mayūrākṣa, the minister of Viśvavarman in 480 of the Mālava Era i. e. 423-24 A. D. (Gupta Inscriptions p. 74). Whence the cult of mātṛs, which was not described in the Gṛhyasūtras, was derived it is difficult to say. Sir John Mar- shall in his famous work on Mohenjo-Daro (vol. I. p. VII and pp. 49-52 and plates XII, XCIV and XCV) shows how figurines of mother goddesses are common at Mohenjo-Daro. That shows that the cult prevailed in the remotest antiquity and was probably taken up by the followers of the Vedic religion and affiliated to the worship of Durgā, the spouse of Śiva. In Rg. IX. 102. 4 ⁷⁰ the seven mothers are said to regulate soma when it is being prepared (the seven mothers are probably the seven metres or the seven rivers). Nāndiśrāddha :—This will be dealt with under śrāddhas later oṇ Puṁsavana :—This rite is so called because in virtue of it a male is borṇ⁷¹ The word 'puṁsuvana' occurs in the Atharva- veda VI. 11. 1 where ⁷² it appears to be used literally (in the sense of 'giving birth to a male child') 'The Aśvattha tree is on top of the Śami tree, there the birth of a male has been effected'. The Aśv. gr. I. 13. 2–7 describes the rite as follows: 'he should in the third month of pregnancy, under the constel- lation Tisya (i. e. Pusya) give (thrice) to eat to the wife, after she has fasted, (on the preceding Punarvasu constellation) in the curds of a cow which has a calf of the same colour (with the cow) two beans and one grain of barley for each handful of curdṣ On his asking (the woman) 'what dost thou drink? what dost thou drink?', she should thrice reply 'puṁsavana', (generation of a male), 'puṁsavana'. In this way (he) should make her take three handfuls (of curds with two beans and barley ).'⁷³ There is some difference of view as to detailṣ The Āp. gr., Hir. gr. and Bhāradvāja gr. place puṁsavana after sīmanton- nayana and Āp. says it may be performed when pregnancy becomes apparent. Instead of two beans and a barley⁷⁴ grain in the bringing of a shoot of the branch of a nyagrodha tree which (tree) points eastward or northward and which has two (fruits that look like) testicles and the pounding of the shoot and fruits by a girl who has not attained puberty between two upper stones of (two mills) with water. He then prescribes that the wife should lie down on her back to the west facing the east and that the husband should insert in her right nostril the pounded substance with his thumb with the formula (puṃsavanam-asi) found in Āp. M. P. (II. 11. 14). Śāṅ. gr. (I. 20, S. B. E. vol. 29. p. 46) says that the rite may be performed on Tisya or Śrāvaṇa, while the Bhāradvāja gr. (I. 22) says that it may be performed on Tisya or Hasta or Anurādhā or Prosthapada; Pāraskara and Baijavāpa (I. 22) says that it may be performed on Tisya or Hasta or Anurādhā or Uttarā or Prosthapada; Pāraskara and Baijavāpa performed when the moon is in conjunction with a male nakṣatra.⁷⁵ Pār. gr. I. 14 and Jātukarṇya (Sāṁ. Pr. p. 167) and Baijavāpa (ibiḍ) say that the rite should be performed in the 2nd or 3rd month of pregnancy. Āśv., Hir., Śāṅ., Gobhila, Khādira prescribe the third month. Yāj. I. 11, Pār. gr. (I. 14), Viṣṇu Dh. S. 27. 2 and Bṛhaspati (quoted in the Sṁ. C.) say that puṃsavana should be performed before the foetus begins to move or throb in the womb. In the Kāṭhaka gr. 32. 2 the proper time is said to be when the greater number of months of pregnancy are past (i. e. after the 5th) and the Mānava gr. says that it should be performed in the 8th month of pregnancy. Devapāla (coṃ of Kāṭhaka gr.) says the usage of śiṣṭas is to perform it in the 8th month and Brahmabala (another coṃ) says that the usage is to perform it in the 7th or 8th month of pregnancy. Most of the gṛhyasūtras refer to the pounding of the shoot⁷⁶ of the Nyagrodha tree (or some other plant) and inserting the pounded substance in the wife's right nostril. The mantras repeated when inserting the substance in her nostril are different according to most sūtraṣ Śāṅkhāyana (S. B. E. vol. 29, p. 46) prescribes the four verses Ṛg. I. 1. 3, III. 4. 9., V. 37. 2 and IX 3. 9. with svāhā at the end of each verse. Pāraskara (S. B. E. vol. 29, p. 292) prescribes Vāj. S. XIII. 4 (Ṛg. X. 121. 1) and XXXI. 17; Khādira gr. (S. B. E. vol. 29. p. 394) mentions Mantra-Brāhmaṇa I. 4. 8, the Kāṭhaka gr. quotes Kāṭhaka saṃhitā. The several sūtras of the Black Yajurveda show the greatest divergence among themselveṣ

It would be clear that the puṁsavana rite has several elements, religious (homa and son's importance from ancient times), symbolical or suggestive (the drinking of curds with beans and grain of barley) and medical (inserting some substance in the woman's nostrils). For what purpose the placing of the bile of a tortoise on the woman's lap was prescribed by Pāraskara alone (I. 14) it is difficult to say.

Later works like the Saṁskāraratnamālā prescribe a homa for puṁsavana also and remark that when in the absence of the husband, the husband's brother or other relative performs the rite, it should be performed in ordinary kitchen fire (p. 815). This latter rule applies to Sīmantonnayana also.

Anavalobhana or Garbharakṣaṇa :—This rite was apparently part of Puṁsavana. Āśv. gr., as already said, separately men-tions puṁsavana and anavalobhana as referred to in the Upaniṣaḍ The Baijavāpa gr. (quoted in the Saṁskāraprag-kāśa p.171) says ‘He performs the puṁsavana and anavalobhana in the fortnight of the waxing moon on an auspicious day when the moon is in conjunction with a nakṣatra (deemed to be) a male’. This shows that both were performed on the same day. Another sūtra of Baijavāpa quoted in the Saṁskāramayūkha⁷⁷ says that the two are to be performed in the 2nd or 3rd month of pregnancy. This rite is so called because by virtue of its performance the foetus does not fall out or is not destroyed (i. e. it is really anavalopana from the root lup with ava). Āśv. gr. (I. 13. 5–7) describes it as follows : He then inserts in her right nostril in the shade of a round apartment the (sap) of an herb which is not faded ; ⁷⁸ according to some ( teachers), with the Prajāvat and Jīvaputra mantraṣ Having offered a sacrifice of cooked food to Prajāpati he should touch the region of her heart with the verse ‘Oh thou whose hair is well parted, what is hidden in thy heart, in Prajāpati, that I understand, (mayst thou understand) me who know that; may not injury to the son be my lot’.

It will be seen that the inserting of dūrvārāsa in the woman’s nostril, touching her heart and prayers to the gods for the safety of the foetus are the principal features of this rite in Āśv.

According to Śaunaka-kārikā (Mṣ in Bombay University Library, folio 13a) that rite is called anavalobhana whereby the foetus remains undisturbed or does not fall out. ⁷⁹ According to the Smṛtyarthasāra it is to be performed in the fourth month. According to Laghu-Āśvalāyana IV. 1-2 anavalobhana and simantonnayāna were to be performed in the 4th, 6th or 8th month of pregnancy and verses 6–7 give the same details as in Āśv. gr.

The Śāṇ gr. (I. 21. 1–3, S. B. E. vol. 29, p. 47) speaks of a ceremony called Garbharakṣaṇa (protection of the foetus) : “In the fourth month the garbharakṣaṇa; offering six oblations into fire from a mess of cooked food with the six verses of the hymn ‘brahmaņāgnih’ ⁸⁰ (Rg. X. 162) with svāhā uttered at the end of each verse, with the verses ‘from thy eyes, thy nose’ (Rg. X. 163. 1–6), besmearing her limbs with clarified butter at each verse.” This seems to be another version of anavalobhana. According to Āśv. gr. kārikās of Kumārila (I. 6. 5) this rite is to be repeated on every conceptioṇ Most other writers would hold that like puṁsavana it is to be performed only once.

Sīmantonnayana :—This is treated in the following gr. sūtras : Āśv. I. 14. 1–9; Sāṅ. I. 22, Āp. 14. 1–8, Hir. II. 1, Bauḍ I. 10, Bhāradvāja I. 21, Gobhila II. 7. 1–12, Khādira II. 2. 24–28, Pār. I. 15, Kāṭhaka 31. 1–5, Vaikhānasa III. 12.

This word literally means ‘parting of the hair (of a woman) upwardṣ’ Yaj. (1. 11), Veda-Vyāsa (I. 18) call this saṁskāra simply ‘sīmanta’, while Gobhila (II. 7. 1), Mānava gr. (I. 12. 2), Kāṭhaka gr (31. 1) call it sīmantakaraṇa. Āp. gr. and Bhāradvāja gr. (I. 21) describe it before puṁsavana. The Āśv. gr. (I. 14. 1–9) describes it as follows : “In the fourth month of pregnancy the Sīmantonnayana (should be performed). In the fortnight of the waxing moon, when the moon may be in conjunction with a nakṣatra that is (regarded as) male (or the name of which is of the masculine gender, according to Nārāyaṇa); then he establishes fire (i. e. performs the details of homa up to offering of ājyabhāgas ) and having spread to the west of the fire a bull’s hide with its neck to the east and the hair outside, he makes eight oblations (of ājya, clarified butter), while his wife sits on it (hide) and takes hold (of his hand), with the two (verses) ‘may Dhātṛ give to his worshipper’ (Atharvaveda VII. 17. 2–3 ), with the two verses, ‘I invoke Rākā’ (Ṛg. II. 32. 4–5 ), with the three (verses) called ‘nejamesa’ ( a khilasūkta after Ṛg. X. 184 and Āp. M. P. I. 12. 7–9) and with the verse ‘Oh Prajāpati, no one other than you’ (Ṛg. X. 121. 10). He then three times parts her hair upwards (beginning from the front and proceeding backwards) with a bunch of an even number of unripe fruits with a porcupine quill that has three white spots ⁸¹ (or rings) and with three bunches of kuśa grass, with the words ‘bhūr, bhuvaḥ, svar, om’ or he does so four timeṣ He gives orders to two lute players ‘sing (praise of) king Soma.’ (They sing this gāthā) ‘may soma, our king, bless the human race. Fixed is the wheel (dominion) of this (river); (here they take the name in the vocative) of the river near which they dwell. And let them do whatever aged brāhmaṇa women whose husbands and children are alive direct. A bull is the fee (for the sacrifice) ". In the Āp. mantrapātha thirteen verses are devoted to this saṁskāra in all, some of which occur in the Rg., the Atharvaveda and Tai. S. We have here first the religious part of homa and oblations with mantraṣ But this rite is mainly of a social and festival nature intended to keep the pregnant woman in good cheer. The Saṁskāraprakāśa (pp. 172-173) quotes some verses from an Āśvalāyana stating that this rite serves the purpose of driving certain female goblins that thirst for the destruction of the foetus; the parting of the hair by the husband with the quill, bunch of unripe fruits and darbhas and tying a garland round her neck, giving her boiled rice mixed with mudga and ghee and asking lute players to sing indicate its festive character. There is a great divergence among the gṛhya sūtras about the several details of this saṁskāra and the order in which they take place. The Sṃ C. after pointing out a few divergences remarks that one should follow the rules of one's own gṛhya sūtra. A few important divergences are pointed out below. This saṁskāra was to be performed in the 3rd month according to Kāṭhaka gṛ., in 3rd, 6th or 8th according to the Mānava; in the 4th month according to Āśv., Āp., Hir. (II. 1), in 4th or 6th according to Gobhila (II. 7. 2) and in the 4th, 6th or 8th according to Khādira, in 6th or 8th according to Pāraṡkara, Yāj. (I. 11), Viṣṇu Dh. S. (27. 3), Ṡaṅkha; in the 7th according to Ṡāṇ gṛ. (I. 22. 1), in the 8th according to Vaik. and Veda-Vyāsa (I. 18). Ṡaṅkha as quoted in the Smṛticandrikā (I. p. 17) says that it should be performed on the foetus beginning to move and up to the time of delivery. Āśv., Ṡāṇ and Hir. require that the moon must be in conjunction with a male nakṣatra. Hir. gṛ. alone prescribes that the saṁskāra should take place in a round apartment. It is remarkable that Āśv. alone requires that the woman should be seated on a bull's hide, which shows that till his day such a hide was not treated (as is done in modern times) as a very unholy thing. Pāraṡkara makes her sit on a soft chair or seat, while Gobhila prescribes a seat of northward pointed darbhaṣ There is great divergence as to the number of oblations and the verses to be repeated even in sūtras of the same Veda, e. g. Āśvalāyana prescribes eight oblations and eight mantras, but Śāṅkhāyana prescribes only six (by omitting the verses Ṛg. II. 32. 4-5). Gobhila, Khādira, Bhāradvāja, Pāraskara and Śānkhāyana prescribe the preparation of boiled rice with ghee thereon or sesame and the first three of these say that the woman should be asked to look at the ghee on the mass of rice and be questioned ‘what do you see’ and she should be made to reply ‘I see progeny’ (Bhāradvāja has the reply ‘sons and cattle’). Almost all gṛhya sūtras agree that in parting the hair the husband is to use a bunch of unripe fruit (Gobhila, Pār. and Śāṇ specifying that it was to be Udumbara fruit), a porcupine quill with three white spots and three bunches of kuśa grasṣ Pāraskara and Gobhila add the use of a Viraṭara stick and a full spindle. Some like Āśv. prescribe that the parting must be done thrice, Gobhila seems to prescribe it six times, while Khādira (II. 2. 25) expressly says that it is to be done only once. Śāṇ says that the unripe fruits are to be tied to a string of three twisted threads and the string is to be suspended from her neck as a garlanḍ Pār. also seems to suggest the same. Āp. also says that the husband should (by way of ornament) tie a string of barley grains with young shoots on the woman’s head (14. 7) and Vaikhānasa says that the woman is to wear a garland and have fragrant unguents applied to her body. Many of the gṛhya sūtras direct that lute players should sing a verse or verseṣ Gobhila, Khādira, Vaik. are silent on this point, but Gobhila prescribes that brāhmaṇa women should address auspicious words to her ‘Be you the mother of a valiant soṇ’ There is divergence as to whose praise is to be sung. Śān and Pār. say that the ballad sung must be in praise of the (ruling) king or any one else who is very valiant. Āśv., Hir., Bauḍ, Bhāradvāja and Pār. prescribe a gāthā in honour of king Soma (the plant). Āpastamba refers to two verses, one of which praises king Yaugandhari and the other king Soma and prescribes that the first is to be sung for all varṇas residing in the Sālva countries, while the second is to be recited by brāhmaṇaṣ Some of the sūtras like Āśv., Pār., Bhāradvāja allow that in the ballad to be sung by the lute players the river on which the woman and her husband dwell is to be invokeḍ⁸² Āśv. and Śāṇ expressly state that a bull is the fee in this saṁskāra for the officiating priest. Āp., Pār. and Bhāradvāja say that brāhmaṇas are to be fed in this rite. Śāṇ says that the woman is to sing merrily and wear gold ornaments if she likeṣ The Āp. and Bhāradvāja gr. say that the husband is to observe silence that day till the stars begin to appear and then after going out of the house from the east or north, he should first touch a calf and then mutter the vyāhṛtis (bhūḥ, bhuvaḥ, svaḥ) and give up his silence.⁵²⁰

The Mānavagṛhya (I. 12. 2) speaks of parting of hair in the marriage rite also. Laghu-Āśvalāyana (IV. verses 8–16) gives a faithful summary of the Āśv. gr. Āpastamba, Bauḍ, Bhāradvāja and Pār. expressly say that this saṁskāra is to be performed only once at the first conceptioṇ For the difference of view among nibandhakāras vide above (pp. 205-206) on garbhādhāna.

Viṣṇu was of opinion that simantonanyana is a saṁskāra of the woman, but that according to some it is a saṁskāra of the foetus and so was to be repeated at each conceptioṇ⁸⁵ On account of the great divergence of details one may conjecture that this saṁskāra was not very ancient in the times of the Gṛhyasūtraṣ

It appears however that gradually this picturesque rite receded in the back ground, so much so that Manu does not even mention it by name, though Yaj. names it. In modern times in Western India some people perform a rite in the 8th month of pregnancy (called in Marathi Athāngulem) which retains some vestiges of the ancient rite (such as the garland of udumbara fruit).

Viṣṇubali :--According to Vasiṣṭha quoted in the Saṁskāra-prakāśa (p. 178) this ceremony was to be performed in the 8th month of pregnancy, on the 2nd, 7th or 12th tithi of the bright fortnight and when the moon was in the Śravaṇa, Rohiṇī or Puṣya constellatioṇ The same work quotes verses of Āśvalā- yana describing the ceremony and stating its purpose viz. to remove harm to the foetus and for easy delivery of the woman and that it was to be performed during every conceptioṇ On the preceding day Nandiśrāddha was to be performed and then homa to fire was to be performed up to the offering of ājyabhāgaṣ To the south of the fire another sthaṇḍila of the shape of a lotus or svastika was to be drawn on which 64 oblations of boiled rice with ghee thereon were to be offered to Viṣṇu (some offer them on the fire itself) with the verses of Rg. I. 22. 16-21, Rg. I. 154. 1-6, Rg. VI. 69. 1-8, Rg. VII. 104. 11, Rg. X. 90. 1-16, Rg. X. 184. 1-3. Then to the north-east of the fire, a square plot should be smeared with cowdung and be divided into 64 squ- ares with white dust and 64 offerings of boiled rice should be offer- ed with the same mantras and in their midst one ball of rice should be offered to Viṣṇu with the mantra loudly uttered ‘namo Nārāyaṇāya ' and the husband and wife should partake separa- tely of two balls of the same rice. Then the offering to Agni Svi- ṣṭakṛt should be made, dakṣiṇā should be distributed and brāh- maṇas should be feḍ The Vaik. (III. 13 ) describes Viṣṇubali differently. The gods with Agni as the first are invoked unto the northern praṇidhi vessel and then at the end Puruṣa is invoked four times with ‘om bhūḥ ’, ‘ om bhuvaḥ ’, ‘ om suvaḥ ’, ‘ om bhūr-bhuvaḥ-suvaḥ ’, then to the east of the fire he invokes Viṣṇu on seats of darbha grass with the names, Keśava, Nārāyaṇa, Mādhava, Govinda, Viṣṇu, Madhusūdana, Trivikrama, Vāmana, Śrīdhara, Hṛṣīkeśa, Padmanābha, Dāmodara; then he bathes Viṣṇu, with mantras ‘Āpaḥ’ (Tai. S. IV. 1. 5. 11 = Rg. X. 9. 1–3), ‘Hiraṇyavarṇāḥ' (Tai. S. V. 6. 1) and the chapter beginning 'pavamānaḥ' (Tai. Br. I. 4. 3 ); he does worship (with sandal paste, flowers &c. ) by each of Viṣṇu's twelve names, then he offers 12 oblations of clarified butter with the mantras ‘ ato devā ' (Rg. I. 22. 16–21 ), ‘Viṣṇor-nu kam ' ( Rg. I 54. 1 = Tai. S. I. 2. 13), 'tad -asya priyam ' (Tai. Br. II. 4. 6 = Rg. I 154. 5), ' pra tadvṣṇuḥ ' (Tai. Br. II. 4. 3 = Rg. I. 154. 2 ), ' paro mātrayā' ( Tai. Br. II. 8. 3 ), 'vicakrame trir-devaḥ ' (Tai. Br. II. 8. 3 ). Then he announces as offering a mess of rice cooked in milk on which ājya has been poured to the god and sacrifices it to him with the twelve names repeating the twelve mantras ( Rg. I. 22. 16–21, and Rg. I. 154. 1–6 ). Having praised the god with mantras from the four vedas he should prostrate himself before the god after taking twelve names with the word 'namah ' at the end of each ( i. e. by saying ' Keśavāya namah ' &c. ). What remains of the rice cooked in milk is eaten by the wife.

Sos̃yantīkarma :—Vide Āp. gr. 14. 13–15; Hir. gr. II. 2. 8– II. 3. 1, Bhāradvāja gr. I. 22, Gobhila gr. II. 7. 13–14, Khādira gr. II 2. 29–30, Pār. gr. I. 16, Kāthaka gr. 33. 1–3. This seems to be a very ancient rite. It means ' a rite for a woman who is about to be delivered of a child'. Rg. V. 78. 7–9 give the earliest indications of this rite. 'Just as the wind moves a lake on all sides, so may the foetus move and come out, being ( now ) in the tenth month. Just as the wind, the forest and the sea are in movement, so mayst thou ( foetus ) that art ( now ) in the tenth month, come out together with the after-birth, may the male child having been sleeping ten months inside his mother, come out a living being, unharmed, from his mother, herself being alive.' Br. Up. VI. 4. 23 also refers to this rite "He sprinkles with water the woman who is about to be delivered ( with the mantras ) 'just as the wind ......... may it come out with the after-birth' (same as Rg. V. 78. 7 except the last pāda). This is a pen⁸⁶ of Indra with a bolt and with a chamber for rest: oh Indra, leave it and come out with the foetus and after-birth.” Āp. gr. describes the ceremony as follows : ‘Now is described the rite to secure a rapid delivery. With a cup that has not been dipped in water before he draws water in the direction of the current (of a river or spring); he places Tūryanti plant at his wife’s feet; he should then touch on the head (with both hands) the woman who is in child-birth with the verse (Āp. mantra-pātha II. 11. 15),⁸⁷ should sprinkle her with the waters (brought as above) with the next three verses (Āp. mantra-pātha II. 11. 16–18). If the after-birth does not come out, he should sprinkle her with the water (brought) as directed above with the mantra-pātha II. 11 19–20).⁸⁸ Hir. j to P. II. 11. 16 ). Bhāradvāja is similar to Āp., but gives verses that are slightly different from those of the Āp. M. P. Gobhila and Khādira are very brief and say that a homa with two oblations of clarified butter is to be performed with the verses of the Mantra-brāhmaṇa I 5. 6–7. Pāraskara also speaks of the sprinkling of the woman with two verses of Vāj S. VIII. 28-29 (the first being almost like Rg. V. 78. 7) and prescribes the recital of Atharvaveda I. 11. 4 for the falling of the after-birth. Ādityadarśana on Kāṭhaka gr. (33. 1) remarks that this rite is not really a saṁskāra and Devapāla says that this is a rite which has a seen result (while saṁskāras are deemed to have an unseen result).

Jātakarms :—This appears to have been a rite of hoary antiquity. In the Tai. S.⁸⁹ II. 2. 5. 3-4 we read ‘one should offer a cake cooked on twelve potsherds to Vaiśvānara, when a son is born (to a man) .... That son, for whom when born they perform this 'iṣṭi', does become pure, glorious, substantial in (abundant) food, full of vigour and possessed of cattle'. This shows that Vaiśvānareṣṭi was performed on the birth of a soṇ Jaimini (IV. 3. 38) holds a discussion on this passage and establishes the conclusion that this iṣṭi is for the benefit of the son and not of the father and the bhāṣya of Śabara gives the further propositions that this iṣṭi is to be performed after the jātakarama rites are finished (and not immediately at birth) and that it is to be performed on a full moon day or a new moon day following ten days after birth. The Śat. Br. (S. B. E. vol. 44 p. 129) prescribes a certain rite before the navel string is cut "regarding a new born son let him say to five brāhmaṇas before the navel string has been cut 'breathe over him in this way.' But if he should be unable to obtain them, he may even himself breathe over him while walking round him". The Br. Up. I. 5. 2 contains the following interesting passage ⁹⁰ "when a boy is born they first make him lick clarified butter, and they make him take the breast (of the mother) after that." At the end of the Br. Up. (VI. 4. 24–28) there is an elaborate description of the jātakarama. "When (a son is) born, having kindled the fire, having placed the son on one's lap, having poured curds mixed with ghee in a bell-metal vessel he offers oblations of the curds mixed with ghee with the mantras 'may I maintain a thousand, prospering in my house; may there be no break with regard to progeny and cattle; svāhā! I offer to these in my mind my prāṇas, svāhā! Whatever I have done in excess in my work or whatever I may have left deficient in this (rite), may the wise (Agni) (called) Sviṣṭakṛt make that well sacrificed and well offered for us, svāhā!'. Then after bringing down his mouth up to the right ear of the son he should recite thrice the word 'speech' ⁹¹, then having poured together curds, honey and clarified butter, he makes the (son) eat it by means of (a spoon of) gold not covered with anything else with the mantras 'I place in thee bhūḥ, I place in thee bhuvaḥ, I place in thee svaḥ, I place in thee bhūr-bhuvaḥ svaḥ, I place in thee all'. Then he gives him (the boy that is born) a name with the words 'thou art the Veda'. That becomes his secret name. Then he hands the boy over to his mother and gives him the breast of the mother with the mantra (Rg. I. 164. 49) 'Oh, Sarasvati! make that breast ready for being sucked, which lies on thy body, which engenders happiness, by which thou nourishest all blessings, which bestows gems, that wins wealth and is a generous donor'. Then he solemnly addresses the mother of the child with the following mantras 'Oh maitrāvaruṇī ⁹²! Oh strong one! thou art Ilā, she (the mother) has given birth to a valiant (boy); mayst thou be endowed with valiant sons, since thou hast made us possessed of a valiant soṇ They say to him (the newly born son) 'thou indeed excellest thy father, excellest thy grand-father; he may attain the highest station by his prosperity, glory and spiritual eminence, who is born as a son of such a brāhmaṇa that knows this'".

It will be clear from the above passages of the Bṛ. Up. that the jātakarrma rite contained the following parts: (1) homa of curds with ghṛta to the accompaniment of mantras; (2) repeat-ing in the child's right ear the word 'speech' thrice; (3) making the child lick curds, honey and ghṛta by means of a golden ladle (or ring); (4) addressing the child with a name which was to be his secret name (nāmakaraṇa); (5) putting the child to the breast; (6) addressing the mother with mantraṣ The Śatapatha adds another detail viz. asking five brāhmaṇas if available to breathe on the child (from four quarters, east, south, west, north and one immediately above him) or the father himself may do so.

There is great divergence in the gṛhyasūtras on the diffe-rent details that go to make up the jātakarrma. Some give almost all the above seven details, while others omit some of theṃ The order of these components differs in the gṛhya-sūtras and according to the Veda to which each sūtra is attached the mantras differ. It would be impossible to give in a brief compass the details from all gṛhyasūtraṣ Some description, however, of the details from important gṛhyasūtras is given below: The ceremony has to be performed by the very necessities of the case immediately after birth. But different sūtras ex- press it in different ways, e. g. Āśv. I. 15. 2 says the rite should be done before any other person (than the mother and nurse ) touches the chilḍ Pār. gr. (I. 16) says it is performed before the navel string is cut off. Gobhila (II. 7. 17) and Khādira II. 2. 32 say that it is to be performed before the navel string is cut off and the breast is given to the chilḍ

In the Āśv. gr. (I. 15. 1–4) the ceremony is described as follows: “When a son has been born, he (the father) should before other persons touch him, give to the child to eat honey and clarified butter in which gold has been rubbed by means of a golden (spoon) with the verse ‘I give unto thee the Veda (wisdom or knowledge) of honey and ghṛta, (Veda) which is produced by the god Savitṛ (who urges on) the bountiful; may you have long life and may you live in this world for a hundred autumns being protected by the gods’. Bringing near the child’s two ears (his mouth) the father mutters medhājanaṇa ⁹³ may god Savitṛ bestow on thee intelligence; may the goddess Sarasvatī bestow on thee intelligence and may the two gods Aśvins wearing wreaths of lotus give to thee intelligence”. ⁹⁴ He touches the (son’s) two shoulders (with the mantra) ‘be a stone, be an axe, be indestructible gold; thou art indeed Veda, called son; so live a hundred autumns’ and (with the mantra) ‘Oh Indra, bestow the best wealth’ (Rg. II. 21. 6) and ‘Oh Maghavan (bountiful Indra) ⁹⁵ Oh (Indra) partaker of चर्जूिष! bestow on us’ (Rg. III. 36. 10). And let them give him a name”. The following sūtras (I. 15. 5–10) lay down rules about the name, which will be considered under Nāmākaraṇa. It will be noticed that out of the several components of the rite described in the Br. Up. and the Sat. Br., Āśv. omits express mention of homa, of putting the child to the breast (stanadāna), the address to the mother (mātrābhimantrana), and the breathing over the child by five brāhmaṇas or the father. The Śāṇ gr. (I. 24. 1–12) also omits homa, the stanadāna and mātrābhi-mantrana, but refers to the father breathing over the new born child thrice. Instead of ghṛta and honey served with a golden spoon, Śāṇ prescribes mixing of curds, honey, ghṛta and water or grinding together of rice and barley. It adds the tying of gold to a hempen string and fixing it on the right hand of the child till the mother gets up from child-beḍ

It will have been noticed that Āśv. and Śāṇ both prescribe giving a secret name to the child on the day of birth and do not prescribe a separate Nāmakaraṇa ceremony. Śāṇ gr. (I. 24. 6) adds that a vyavahārika name may be given on the 10th day from birth. The Gobhila gr. (II. 7. 13–15 ) and Khādira gr. II. 2. 28–31 say that a secret name for the child that is to be born is to be uttered in the Soṣyantī-karma. So Āśv. probably carries on that traditioṇ

We shall now take the several components of the rite and show how they are dealt with by the several gṛhyasūtraṣ

Homa :-This is prescribed by the Br. Up., the Mānava, the Kāṭhaka gr. at the time of birth. The Āśv. gr. pariśiṣṭa (I. 26) says that homa should be performed to Agni and other gods as stated above; then the child should be made to eat honey and ghṛta and then the offering be made to Agni. It is prescribed before birth (in the Soṣyantikarma) by Gobhila and Khādira. It is prescribed after the whole rite by Bauḍ gr. II. 1. 13. It is omitted by Āśv. and Śāṇ The Pār. gr. (I. 16), Hir. gr., Bhāradvāja gr. (I. 26) say that the Aupāśana (i. e. gṛhya) fire is taken away and a sūtikāgni set up (which is also called Uttapanīya) ⁹⁶ near the door of the lying-in chamber. The Vaik. (III. 15 ) calls it jātākāgni (and also Uttapanīya). These say that in this fire white mustard seed with small grains of rice are offered at the time of birth and at the morning and evening twilights for ten days after birth with certain mantraṣ Āp. prescribes that mustard seeds and rice chaff are to be offered in the fire whenever any body enters the lying-in chamber for ten dayṣ

2. Medhājānana :—Two meanings are given to thiṣ This word does not occur in the Br. Up. But it speaks of muttering in the right ear of the boy the word ‘ vāk ’ thrice and making the boy lick from a golden spoon or ring curds, honey and ghṛta. The first of these viz. muttering in the right ear of the boy some words or a mantra is called medhājānana in Āśv. and Śāṇ (I. 24. 9 which prescribes ‘ vāk ’); while most of the other sūtras viz. Vaik., Hir., Gobhila say that medhājānana is the action of making the child eat honey, ghee, curds or pounded barley and rice, to the accompaniment of mantras (like ‘ bhūstvaẏi dadhāmi ’ in Pār. or ‘ Bhūr ṛcaḥ ’ as in Vaikhānasa, or medhām te devaḥ’ as in Āp.). The Bauḍ gr. (II. 1. 7) prescribes the giving of curds, honey and ghṛta ten times with each of the ten mantras (Tai. Br. II. 5. 1) of the anuvāka beginning with ‘prāṇo rakṣati viśvam-ejat.’ The Vaik. expressly says that the Vacā⁹⁷ plant, Pathyā plant, gold, honey and clari- fied butter become medhājānana. Manu II. 29 seizes upon the making the child eat gold (dust), honey and clarified butter to the accompaniment of mantras as the central part of the rite. Later works like the Saṃskāramayūkha regard this eating of honey and ghṛta as the principal part of jātakarama.⁹⁸

3. Āyusya :—Some of the sūtras speak of a rite called āyusya in the jātakarama. This consists in muttering over the navel (‘as in Pār.) or in the right ear of the boy some mantra or mantras invoking the bestowal of long life on the boy. Āśv. (vide p. 231) has such an invocation in conjunction with the eating of honey and ghṛta. Bhāradvāja also does the same. Mānava gr. prescribes the anuvāka ‘Agne āyur-asi’ (Kāṭhaka Saṁ. XI. 7) for 21 oblations (this anuvāka is full of the word ‘āyuṣmat’).

4. Aṃśūbhimarśana (touching the child on the shoulder or shoulders ). Vide Āśv. above. Āp. begins his treatment with the direction that the father touches the boy with the Vātsapra anuvāka. Pār., Bhāradvāja speak of touching the boy twice, once with Vātsapra anuvāka (Vāj. S. XII. 18–29 or Tai. S. IV. 2. 2 ), and again with ‘be a stone, be an axe’ (in Pār. and with the mantra ‘may he grow’ in Bhār.). Some sūtras like Sāṅ. omit thiṣ

(5) Mātrābhimantraṇa :—(addressing the mother). The mother is addressed by the father with the verse ‘Thou art Ilā &c’ (vide Br. Up. above), which occurs in Pār. Many sūtras omit thiṣ Hir. has a different verse.

(6) Pañca-brāhmaṇasthāpana :— We saw above that the Śatapatha prescribes the breathing over the child by five brāhmaṇas or the father himself. Pār. prescribes the same and gives an option (the five brāhmaṇas are to repeat in order from the east prāṇa, vyāna, apāna, udāna and samāna). Sāṅ. asks the father himself to breathe thrice over the boy with a verse referring to the three Vedaṣ Several sūtras omit thiṣ

(7) Stana-pratidhāna or stanapradāna :— making the child take the breast. The Br. Up. and many of the sūtras prescribe this, together with the recitation of a mantra or mantras e. g. Pār. prescribes Vāj. S. 17. 87 and 38. 5 for the two breasts, Āp. and Bhār. prescribe Āp. mantrapāṭha II. 13. 2 only for the right breast; Hir. and Vaik. prescribe the same verse for both.

(8) Deśābhimantraṇa⁹⁹ (or-marśana):— touching the ground where the son is born and addressing the earth (with one or two mantras). Pār., Bhār., Āp., Hir. do thiṣ

(9) Nāmakaraṇa :—(giving a name to the child). The Br. Up., Āśv., Sāṅ., Gobhila, Khādira and several others speak of giving a name to the boy on the day of birth. Āśv. (I. 15. 4 and 10 ) prescribes the giving of two names on that date, one for common use (for which he gives elaborate rules) and the other a secret one which his parents only know till the boy’s upanayana. Sāṅ. reverses this and says the name for which similar elaborate rules are laid down by him is the secret name and a name for common use is to be given on the 10th day Āp. gr. (15. 2-3 and 8) says on the day of birth a name derived from the nakṣatra (lunar mansion) on which the boy is born is given, which is the secret name and then on the 10th another name is to be giveṇ According to Gobhila and Khādira a name is to be given in the Sosyantī-karma which is to be kept secret. 10. Keeping off evil spirits: —Though Āśv. and Śāṇ are entirely silent on this point several sūtras devote large space to this topic and are full of mantras which are more or less magic. Āp. prescribes the offering of mustard seed and rice chaff in fire three times with each of eight mantras (Āp. mantra-pāṭha II. 13. 7–14). Bhār. gr. (I. 23) also prescribes similar offerings with several verseṣ Hir. gr. requires the throwing of mustard seeds eleven times in the sūtikāgni with eleven mantras some of which are almost the same as in Bhāradvāja. Pār. gr. recites two of such mantraṣ¹⁰⁰

It would not be out of place to mention a few other subsidiary matterṣ Bauḍ, Āp., Hir. and Vaik. expressly say that the boy is to have a bath. The Hir. and Vaik.¹⁰¹ say that the axe is to be placed on a stone and gold is to be placed on the axe, then these are to be turned upside down (so that gold lies at the bottom and the stone is on top) and then the boy is to be held head eastwards above the stone by a female in her two hands, while the father repeats the two mantras 'be a stone &c. and the mantra 'thou art produced from (my) limb by limb &c.' This shows how what was once only symbolical (viz. uttering the mantras 'be a stone' &c. indicating the desire that the boy should be strong, sharp and worthy like a stone, axe and gold) became transformed into a rite requiring physical presence of these thingṣ Pār., Āp., Hir., Bhār. and Vaik. prescribe that a pot full of water should be placed towards the head (of the woman and her child) with a mantra 'Oh waters! watch while (people are asleep).' None of the sūtras (except Vaikhānasas) refers to any astrological detailṣ Vaik. (III. 14) says that when the child's nose appears, the position of the planets should be observed and his future welfare or otherwise should be examined, since the boy is to be so brought up as to enhance his good qualitieṣ Both Āp. and Bauḍ say that the remnants of honey, curds and ghṛta should be mixed with water and poured out in a cowstable (and not thrown about in an impure place). This ceremony is comparatively brief in Āp., Śań. and a few others, but in Hir., Pār. and Bhāradvāja it is more elaborate and would require an unduly long time considering the state of the newly born child and the woman in child-beḍ There is no wonder, therefore, that this ceremony gradually went out of vogue.. In modern times a few well-to-do families in Western India sometimes perform what is called 'putrāvaṇa' (in Marathi) and make the boy lick honey and ghṛta by means of a golden piece or ring. The dangers to the child of an elaborate ritual must have been apparent to all people even in ancient timeṣ¹⁰²

The Sṃ C. (I. p. 19)¹⁰³ cites Hārita, Śańkha, Jaimini to the effect that till the navel cord is cut there is no impurity, that the saṁskāra may be performed till then and that gifts of jaggery, sesame, gold, clothes, cows and corn may be made and accepteḍ The same work quotes Saṁvarta and other smṛtis to the effect that the father must bathe before he can perform the jātākarma rite. This would involve some further loss of time and it is remarkable that the gṛhya sūtras observe silence about this, though Manu V. 77 prescribes a bath on hearing of the birth of a soṇ The Sṃ C. quotes Pracetas, Vyāsa and others to the effect that a nāndīśrāddha (which will be explained under śrāddha) should be performed in jātākarma (brāhmaṇas are not to eat cooked food in this śrāddha, but to receive corn or only money payment). Later works like the Dharmasindhu say that in jātākarma as in other rights, svastivācana, puṇyāha- vācana and mātṛkāpūjana are necessary. Ch. VI ] Medieval writers of digests give extensive descriptions of śānti rites¹⁰⁴ performed to counteract the inauspicious effects of birth on the 14th tithi of the dark half of a month or on the amāvāsya or on Mūla, Āśleṣā and Jyeṣṭhā nakṣatras and certain astrological conjunctions like Vyatīpāta, Vaidhṛti, Saṁkrānti (sun's passage from one sign of the zodiac into another). These matters are passed over here for want of space, as of little importance in modern times and as new departures introduced in the ancient sūtra rites by later workṣ A few general remarks will be made on these matters in the section on Śānti and Muhūrta.

In modern times on the 5th and 6th days after birth certain ceremonies are performed for which there is no warrant in the sūtraṣ These probably arose in the times of the Purāṇas, since the only verses quoted on this point in the Nirṇayasindhu, the Saṁskāramayūkha and other works are the Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa, Vyāsa and Nārada. On these days the father or other male relative bathes in the first part of the night, then invokes Gaṇeśa, and certain minor deities called Janmadā on handfuls of rice and also Ṣaṣṭhidevī and Bhagavātī (i. e. Durgā) and worships them with sixteen upacāraṣ Then tāmbūla and dakṣiṇā are offered to one or more brāhmaṇas and the members of the family keep awake that night with songs ( in order to ward off evil spirits ). One text from the Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa says 'men fully armed should keep watch the whole night'. It must be noted here that fear springing from astrological considerations got better of even natural love and affection to such an extent that some writers advised that the child when born on certain inauspicious conjunctions should be abandoned and its face should not be seen till at least its eighth year. Vide Nityācārapaddhati pp. 244-255.

Utthāna :—(getting up from child-bed). According to Vaik. III.18 on the 10th or 12th day after birth, the father shaves, bathes, purifies the house, performs in the jātākagni ( or in the ordinary fire, according to some) a sacrifice to the earth through some person belonging to another gotra. Then he brings back the aupāsana (gṛhya fire), offers oblations to Dhātṛ and others (as in I. 16), five oblations to Varuṇa (I. 17), the mūlahoma (I. 18) and feeds the brāhmaṇaṣ Sāṇ gr. (I. 25) is more elaborate. It pre-scribes that a mess of cooked food is prepared in the sūtikāgni and oblations are made to the tithi of the child's birth, and to three nakṣatras and to their presiding deities, two to Agni and then one (i. e. 10th) to Soma with Ṛg. I. 91. 7. Hir. gr. II. 4. 6–9 (S. B. E. vol. 30 p. 214) and Bhāradvāja (I. 26) also refer to utthāna. Both say that the sūtikāgni is taken away and the Aupāsana fire is brought in and oblations of ghṛta (12 or 8) are offered in that fire with the mantras beginning with 'dhātā dadātu no rayim'.

Nāmakaraṇa¹⁰⁵:—The ceremony of naming a chilḍ Vide Āp. gr. 15. 8–11 (S. B. E. vol. 30, pp. 282–283), Aśv. gr. I. 15. 4–10), S. B. E. vol. 29, p. 183), Bauḍ gr. II. 1. 23–31, Bhār. gr. I. 26, Gobhila gr. II. 8. 8–18 (S. B. E. vol.30 pp. 57–58), Hir. gr. II. 4. 6–15 (S. B. E. vol. 30, pp. 214–215), Kāṭhaka gr. 34. 1–2 and 36. 3–4, Kauśika sūtra 58. 13–17, Mānava gr. I. 18, 1, Śāṅ. gr. I. 24. 4–6 (S. B. E. vol. 29, p. 50), Vaik. III. 19, Vārāha gr. 2.

There is great divergence of view as to the time when the child was nameḍ Several times are suggested in the ancient literature and in the sūtras and smṛtis

(a) We have already seen (p. 232) that a child was addressed by a name, according to Gobhila and Khādira, even in the Soṣyantīkarma.

(b) According to the Bṛ. Up., Aśv. and Śāṅ., Kāṭhaka gr. (34.1) a name was given to the child on the day of birth. This practice is supported by a passage of the Śat. Br.¹⁰⁶ therefore 'when a son is born (the father) should bestow on him a name; (the father gives him) even a second, even a third (name)'. The Mahābhāṣya of Patañjali appears to refer to this view. “In the world the parents give a name to the son when born in a closed space (or room) such as Devadatta, Yajñadatta; from their employment (of that name for the boy) others also come to know ‘this is his appellation’ ”.¹⁰⁷ (c) Āp., Bauḍ, Bhār., and Pār. prescribe the 10th day after birth for nāmakaraṇa. The Mahābhāṣya quotes a passage¹⁰⁸ from the Yājñikas that a name was given on a day after the tenth from birth. (d) Yāj. I. 12 prescribes it on the 11th day after birth. (e) Bauḍ gr. (II. 1. 23) says that Nāmakaraṇa may be performed on the 10th or 12th, while Hir. gr. says that it should be on the 12th. As Vaik. prescribes that the mother should get up from child-bed on the 10th or 12th and then speaks of nāmakaraṇa, it follows that the ceremony was performed accord- ing to it on the 10th or 12th. Manu II. 30 says it may be performed on the 10th or 12th day after birth or on an auspicious tithi, muhūrta and nakṣatra thereafter. (f) Gobhila (II. 8. 8, S. B. E. vol. 30. p. 57) and Khādira¹⁰⁹ say that it should be on any day after ten nights, one hundred nights or a year from birth. Laghu-Āśvalāyana (VI. 1) allows it on 11th, 12th or 16th day. Aparārka (p. 26) quotes gṛhyapariśiṣṭa to the effect that it may be performed after the 10th night is passed or after 100 nights or a year and the Bhaviṣyat-purāṇa to the effect that it may be performed after 10 or 12 nights or on the 18th day or after a month. It is worthy of note that Bāṇa in his Kādambari (pūrvabhāga para 68) says that Tārāpīḍa named his son Candrāpīḍa when the tenth day after birth fell on an auspicious muhūrta and that the minister Sukanāsa named his son Vaiśampāyana next day.¹¹⁰ The commentators were bewildered by these differenceṣ Viśvarūpa explains Manu II. 30 as 'when the 10th night is past' and Kullūka does the same (i. e. according to him it is performed on the eleventh day). Medhātithi does not¹¹¹ like the addition of 'past' (atītāyām) after 'daśamyām' in Manu II. 30 and says just as jātakarama can be performed even when there is impurity due to birth, so nāmakaraṇa may be performed on the 10th and that the only essential thing is that it is not to be performed before the 10th or 12th. Aparārka says that there is an option and one may follow one's own gṛhyasūtra. It appears that the nāmākaraṇa ¹¹² of Hariścandra, son of Jayatcandra, king of Kanoj, took place three weeks after jātakarman (on 31. 8. 1175 A. D.). In modern times nāmākaraṇa generally takes place on the 12th day after birth and no Vedic ceremony as prescribed in the sūtras is gone through, but women assemble and after consulting the male members of the family beforehand announce the name and place the child in the cradle.

In Rg. VIII. 80. 9 we read 'when you give us a fourth name connected with (the performance of) a sacrifice, we long for it; immediately afterwards, you, our master, take us' (for- ward to glory) ¹¹³. This shows that a man could have a fourth name even in the times of Rg. And the fourth was a name due to the performance of a yajña. Sāyana explains that the four names are: nakṣatranāma (derived from the nakṣatra on which a person was born), a secret name, a publicly known name and a fourth name like Somayājī (due to having performed a Somayāga). In Rg. X. 54. 4 there appears to be a reference to four names (though Sāyana takes nāma here to mean the body or deed). In Rg. IX. 75. 2 there is reference to a third name 'the son has a third name unknown to the parents and which is in the bright part of heaven'. The two names are the nakṣatra name and the ordinary name, while the third would be the name due to the performance of a sacrifice (which the parents could not foresee at his birth). In the Rg. frequent reference is made to the secret name of a persoṇ Vide Rg. IX 87. 3, X. 55. 1-2. We saw above (note 541a) that the Śat. Br. speaks of a second or even a third name for a person given to him by his parentṣ The same Brāhmaṇa ¹¹⁴ recommends 'Therefore a brāhmaṇa when he does not prosper should give himself a second name'. But how these names were formed is not stated anywhere in the Vedic literature. In the Tai. S. VI. 3. 1. 3 it is said 'therefore a brāhmaṇa who has two names prospers'.¹¹⁵ The Śat. Br. (II. 1. 2. 11) says 'Arjuna is the secret name of Indra and the constellation of Phālguṇīs being presided over by Indra they are really Arjunyaḥ, but are called Phālgunyaḥ in an indirect way'.¹¹⁶ We saw above (p. 230) that the Bṛ. Up. speaks of a secret name given by the father on the day of birth. Hardly any secret names are expressly mentioned in the Vedic literature except the name of Arjuna given to Indra (and being secret they cannot be expected to be mentioned). How the secret name was given is not clear from the Vedic literature. In Vāj. S. 17. 89 there is a reference to the secret name of ghṛta.¹¹⁷ The Tai. S. gives expression to the request that the (āhavanīya) fire should bear the name of one who keeps sacred fires, while the person praying was away on a journey.¹¹⁸

A few examples of the three names of a person from the Vedic literature may be given here. These are generally the ordinary name, a name derived from his father and a third from his gotra (or from the name of some remote ancestor). In Ṛg. V. 33. 8 we find Trasadasyu (his own name), Paurukutsya (son of Purukutsa), Gairikṣita (descendant of Girikṣita). In the Ait. Br. (33. 5) Śunaḥśepa is spoken of as Ājīgarti (son of Ājīgarta) and also as Āṅgirasa (a gotra name), while king Hariścandra is mentioned (Ait. Br. 33. 1) as Vaidhasa (son of Vedhas) and Aikṣvāka (descendant of Ikṣvāku). In the Śat. Br. (XIII. 5. 4. 1) Indrota Daivāpa (son of Devāpi) Śaunaka (a gotra name) is said to have been the priest of Janamejaya. In the Chāṇ Up. (V. 3. 1 and 7) Śvetaketu Āruṇeya (son of Āruṇi) is styled Gautama (a gotra name). In the Kāṭhopaniṣad (I. 1. and 11) Naciketas is the son of Vājaśravasa and is addressed as Gautama (a gotra name).

Usually however a person is referred to in the Vedic literature by two nameṣ In some cases it is his own name and a gotra name e. g. Medhyātithi Kāṇva (Ṛg. VIII. 2. 40), Hiraṇyastūpa Āṅgirasa (Ṛg. X. 149. 5), Vatsaprī Bhālandana (Tai. S. V. 2. 1. 6), Bālāki Gārgya (Br. Up. II. 1. 1), Cyavana Bhārgava (Ait. Br. 39. 7). In other cases a man is referred to by his own name and another name derived from a country or locality e. g. Kāśu Caidya (Ṛg. VIII. 5. 37), Bhīma Vaidarbha (Ait. Br. 35. 8), Durmukha Pāñcāla (Ait. Br. 39. 23), Janaka Vaideha (Br. Up. III. 1. 1), Ajātaśatru Kāśya (Br. Up. II. 1. 1). In some cases a matronymic is added to a person’s name e. g. Dīrghatamā Māmateya (Ṛg. I. 158. 6), Kutsa Ārjuṇeya (son of Arjuṇī, Ṛg. IV. 26. 1, VII. 19. 2, VIII. 1. 11), Kakṣīvat Auśīja (son of a woman called Uśik, Ṛg. I. 18. 1, Vāj. S. III. 28),¹¹⁹ Prahlāda Kāyādhava (son of Kayādhu, Tai. Br. I. 5. 10), Mahīdāsa Aitareya (son of Itarā, Chāṇ Up. III. 16. 7). In the vaṁśa added at the end of the Br. Up. there are about forty sages with matronymic nameṣ The practice of mentioning a man by reference to his mother’s name or to his mother’s father’s gotra was continued till later times, as will be shown later oṇ The most usual method, however, of referring to a person in the Ṛg. and also in other Vedic works was to state his name along with another derived from his father’s name. For example, Ambarīṣa, Rjrāśva, Sahadeva and Surādhas are all called Vārṣāgira (son of Vṛṣāgir, Ṛg. I. 100. 17); king Sudās is called Paijavana (son of Pījavana, Ṛg. VII. 18. 22 ), Devāpi is Ārṣṭiṣeṇa (son of Ṛṣṭiṣeṇa, Ṛg. X. 98. 5-6), Śāmyu Bārhaspatya (Tai. S. II. 6. 10), Bhṛgu Vāruṇi (Ait. Br. 13. 10 and Tai. Up. III. 1), Bharata Dauṣṣanti (Śatapatha XIII. 5. 4. 11, Ait. Br. 39. 9), Nābhānediṣṭha Mānava (Ait. Br. 22. 9).

The principal rules about names may now be set out from the gṛhyasūtraṣ Aśv. (I. 15. 4-10, S. B. E. vol. 29, pp. 182-183 ) says ‘Let (them) give the boy a name beginning with a sonant, having a semivowel in it, with a visarga at the end, consisting of two syllables or of four syllables, of two syllables if (the father) is desirous of firm (worldly) position (for his son), of four syllables if he is desirous of spiritual eminence (for his son); but (in all cases) with an even number of syllables in the case of males and with an uneven number of syllables in the case of womeṇ And let him find out (for the boy) a name to be employed at respectful salutations (at Upanayana &c.); that name (the boy's) mother and father alone should know till his upanayana¹²⁰. The Sāṇ gr. (S. B. E. vol. 29. p. 50) omits the rule about the name ending in a visarga and allows an option of six syllables and adds that the name should be formed by a kṛt affix (from a root) and not by a taddhita; that this name should be known only to his parents and that on the tenth day after birth the father should give the child a name for ordinary use which should be pleasing to brāhmaṇaṣ It should be noticed that Āśv. and Sāṇ differ on one very important point. According to Āśv. the name for which elaborate rules are laid down is to be the ordinary name and he lays down no rule about the formation of the secret name; while Sāṇ lays down for the secret name the same rules as Āśv. does for the public one and Sāṇ says about the public name that it should be pleasing.

Instead of quoting gṛhya sūtras at length the principal rules about names deducible from them may be stated in the form of propositions with a few illustrations for each.

(1) The first rule in almost all sūtras is that the name for males should contain two or four syllables or an even number. This rule is deduced from Vedic literature where most of the names contain either two syllables (e. g. Baka, Trita, Kutsa, Bhṛgu) or four syllables (Trasadasyu, Purukutsa, Medhyātithi, Brahmadatta &c.), though names of three syllables (like Kavasa, Cyavana, Bharata) and of five syllables (like Nābhānediṣṭha, Hiraṇyastūpa) are not wanting. Baija- vāpa¹²¹ grhya allowed the name to be of one, two, three, four or any number of syllableṣ Śāṇ allowed a name even of six syllables and Bauḍ gr. (II. 1. 25) of six or even eight. Exam- ples of names with two syllables and four syllables are given below.

(2) Almost all grhya sūtras contain the rule that the name should begin with a sonant and contain in the middle a semivowel. This is stated also in the ancient quotation from Yājñikas in the Mahābhāṣya.

(3) Some sūtras prescribe that the name should end in a visarga preceded¹²² by a long vowel (e. g. Āp., Bhār., Hir., Pār.). Āśv. only mentions that it should end in a visarga, while Vaik. and Gobhila say that it may end in a long vowel or in a visarga. These rules were probably based on such Vedic names as Sudās, Dirghatamas, Pṛthuśravas (that occur in the Ṛgveda) and such names as Vatsaprī (Tai. S. V. 2. 1. 6).

(4) Āp. prescribes that the name should have two parts, the first being a noun and the second a verbal formation (generally a past passive participle). This rule is probably based on such ancient names as Brahmadatta (which occurs in Bṛ. Up. I. 3. 24 and figures very much in Pali works), Devadatta, Yajñadatta &c.

(5) Many grhya sūtras (like Pār., Gobhila, Śāṇ, Baijavāpa, Vārāha ) say that the name should be formed from a root by a kṛt affix and should not be a taddhita (i. e. formed from a noun by an affix).

(6) Āp. and Hir. say that the name should have the upasarga 'su' in it as a Brāhmaṇa passage says that such a name has stability in it. Examples are Sujāta, Sudarśana, Sukēśas (Praśna Up. I 1). (7) Bauḍ gr. prescribes that the name may be derived from a sage or a deity or an ancestor.¹²³ The Mānava grhya, how-ever, forbids the giving of a name of a deity itself, but allows the giving of a name derived from the name of a deity or a nakṣa-tra. Examples of names derived from sages would be Vasiṣṭha, Nārada &c. and of names taken from deities would be Viṣṇu, Śiva &c. The Mit. on Yāj. I. 12 quotes a passage of Śaṅkha that the name should be connected with one's family deity. It should be noticed that in modern times most names in many parts of India are the names of deities or of heroes supposed to be avatāras of deitieṣ In Vedic literature hardly any human being bears the name of any of the Vedic gods (Indra, Mitra, Pūṣan &c). There are only a few exceptions such as that of Bhṛgu (in Tai. Up. III. 1) who is said to have learnt from his father called Varuṇa and in the Praśna Up. (I. 1) there is Sauryāyaṇi Gārgya whose name is derived from Sūrya. But in the Vedic Literature persons have names derived from the names of gods, such as Indrota (Indra + ūta, protected), Indradyumna. The names that occur in the Mahābhāṣya such as Devadatta, Yajñadatta, Vāyudatta (vol. II. p. 296), Viṣṇumitra (vol. I. pp. 41 and 359), Bṛhaspatidattaka (or Bṛhaspatika), Prajāpati-dattaka (or-patika), Bhānudattaka (or Bhānuka) and others set out in the Mahābhāṣya (vol. II. p. 425 ) exemplify the rule of the Mānavagṛhya. It is difficult to say when the very names of deities began generally to be borne by human beingṣ Probably the practice began in the first centuries of the Christian era. From the fifth century onwards we have historic examples of such names, e. g. in the Eraṇ stone inscriptions of Budha-gupta dated in the Gupta saṃvat 165 i. e. 484-5 A. D. (Gupta Inscriptions No. 19 ) there is a brāhmaṇa Indra-Viṣṇu, son of Varuṇa-Viṣṇu, son of Hari-Viṣṇu.

(8) Bauḍ, Pār., Gobhila ( and the Yājñikas quoted by the Mahābhāṣya) prescribe that the name of the boy may be the same as that of any of the ancestors of the father. The Mānava gr. (I. 18) expressly says that the father's own name should not be giveṇ This practice was observed in ancient times and continues even today, when the child is often given his grand-father's name.¹²⁴ Vide I. A. vol. VI. p. 73 where we see that Pulakeśi II was grandson of Pulakeśi I. (9) The gṛhyasūtras (except Pār. and Mānava) are agreed that a secret name is to be given to the boy by the parents, in the Sosyantīkarma according to Gobhila and Khādira, at birth according to some (like Aśv. and Kāṭhaka) and according to others (like Āp., Bauḍ, Bhār.) at the time of Nāmākaraṇa on 10th or 12th day. We saw above that Sāṇ and Kāṭhaka give elaborate rules about the secret name, which rules are those of the Vyāvahārika¹²⁵ name according to Aśv. and many other sūtrakāraṣ Gobhila and Khādira give no rules about the secret name. Āp., Hir. and Vaik. only say that the secret name should be derived from the nakṣatra of birth, but give no further ruleṣ Bhāradvāja¹²⁶ speaks of the giving of two names in Nāmākaraṇa, one being derived by applying the intricate rules described above and the other being a nakṣatra name; but it is not quite clear which was to be the secret name; it is probable, however, that the nakṣatra name was to be the secret one. According to Āśvalāyana the secret name was called Abhīvādaniya (which was to be known to the parents only till the boy's upanayana and which was to be used by the boy for announcing himself in respectful salutations); but he does not say how it was to be deriveḍ Gobhila, Khādira, Vārāha (5) and Mānava speak of an Abhīvādaniya name. Gobhila prescribes that this name was to be given to the boy at the time of upanayana by the ācārya and was to be derived from the nakṣatra of birth or from the presiding deity of that nakṣatra. Gobhila¹²⁷ further adds that accord-ing to some teachers the abhīvādaniya name was derived from the gotra of the boy (as e. g. Gārgya, Sāṇḍilya, Gautama &c.). This practice is based on the usage we find in the Upaniṣads, where Satyākāma when about to go to a teacher for Vedic study asks his mother what his gotra was ( Chāṇ Up. IV. 4. 1) and where the teacher also asks him what his gotra waṣ In the Kathopaniṣad Naciketas is styled Gautama and in Chāṇ V. 3. 7 Śvetaketu is addressed as Gautama by Pravāhaṇa Jaivali when the latter expounded Saṁvarga-vidyā to the former. But if the abhivādaniya was a gotra name there could have been no secrecy. From Gobhila it appears that the ācārya told the boy his abhivādaniya name, but the Khādira suggests that the boy already knew it ( from his father or mother) and informed the teacher. The nakṣatranāma was of importance in the perform- ance of Vedic sacrificeṣ The Vedāṅgajyotiṣa ¹²⁸ (of the Ṛg) in verses 25-28 enumerates 28 nakṣatras (adding Abhijit after Uttarāṣāḍhā and before Śravaṇa ) and their presiding deities and adds that in sacrifices the sacrificer is to bear a name derived from the name of the presiding deity of his nakṣatra. The object of keeping the nakṣatra name secret seems to have been to prevent rites of abhicāra (magical practices) against a person, for the effective employment of which it was necessary to know a person's name.¹²⁹ Hundreds of names occur in the Vedic Literature, but there are hardly any names directly derived from a nakṣatra. In the Śatapatha (VI. 2. 1. 37) there is an Āṣāḍhi Sauśromateya (son of Āṣāḍha and Suśromatā). Here Āṣāḍha is probably connected with the nakṣatra Āṣāḍhā. It appears therefore that in the times of the brāhmaṇas nakṣatra names were secret and so are not met with. Gradually however nakṣatra names ceased to be secret and became commoṇ For several centuries before the Christian era nakṣatra names were very commoṇ Pāṇini (who cannot be placed later than 300 B. C. and may have flourished some centuries earlier still) "gives several rules (IV. 3. 34-37 and VII. 3. 18) for deriving names of males and females from nakṣatraṣ In IV. 3. 34 he says that names are derived from Śraviṣṭhā, Phalguni, Anurādhā, Svāti, Tisya, Punarvasu, Hasta, Asāḍhā and Bahulā (Kṛttikā) without adding any termination signifying 'born on' (e. g. we have the names Śraviṣṭhaḥ, Phalgunaḥ &c.). In VII. 3. 18 he derives the name Proṣṭhapadaḥ from Proṣṭhapāda. In the Junagadh inscription of Rudradāman (150 A. D.) the brother-in-law of Candragupta Maurya is said to have been a vaiśya named Puṣyagupta (E. I. vol. VIII. p. 43). This shows that in the 4th century B. C. a name was derived from the nakṣatra Puṣya (so the name was nakṣatrāśraya). The Mahābhāṣya (vol. I. p. 231) speaks of boys named Tisya and Punarvasu and cites Citrā, Revatī, Rohiṇī as names of women born on these nakṣatras (vol. II. p. 307) and of Caitra as a male (vol. II. p. 128). The Mahābhāṣya speaks of Puṣyamitra, the founder of the Śuṅga dynasty (vol. I. p. 177, vol. II. pp. 34 and 123). Buddhists also had nakṣatra names e. g. Moggaliputta Tissa (where a gotra name and a nakṣatra name from Tisya are combined), a parivrājaka Poṭṭhapāda in Dīgha I. p. 187 and III. p. 1 (from the nakṣatra Proṣṭhapāda), Asāda, Phaguna, Svātiguta, Pusara-khita and in the Sāñcī inscriptions of 3rd century B. C. (E. I. (vol. II. p. 95 ). The giving of nakṣatra names continued for centuries after the Christian era. For example, in the Palitana plate of Dhruvasena I dated Valabhi saṃvat 210 (about 529 A. D.) there is a brāhmaṇa named Viśākha. We have names like Puṣyasvāmi, Rohiṇīsvāmi (in the plates of Śivarāja dated 602-3 A. D., in E. I. vol. IX. p. 288). Another way of deriving names from nakṣatras was to form them from the presiding deity of the nakṣatra on which a person was borṇ A man was called Agneya, if he was born on Kṛttikā (Agni being its devatā), Maitra (from being born on Anurādhā). In modern times this round-about way is given up and persons are named directly from the names of gods and avatāras (like Rāma).

There is another way of deriving names from nakṣatras set forth in medieval works on Dharmaśāstra and Jyotiṣa. Each of the 27 nakṣatras is divided into four pādas and to each pāda a specific letter is assigned (e. g., cū, ce, co and lā for the pādas of Aśvinī1) from which names are derived for persons born in those pādas (e. g. Cūḍāmaṇi, Cedīśa, Coleśa and Lakṣmaṇa for the four pādas of Aśvinī).¹³⁰ These names are secret and are even now muttered into the ear of the brahmacārī in Upana yana and are known as the name in the daily saṁdhyā prayer.

Modern works like the Saṁskāraprakāśa (p. 237) say that four kinds of names may be given viz. devatānāma, māsanāma, nakṣatranāma and vyavahārikanāma. The first shows that the bearer is the devotee of that devatā. The Nirṇayasindhu¹³¹ quotes a verse about twelve names derived from the month in which a man was born and adds that the Madanaratna laid down that the names specified in the verse were to be given to the months from Mārgaśīrṣa or Caitra. Such names (of Viṣṇu) are being given now, particularly in Western India, but without regard to the month of birth. So early as in the Bṛhatsaṁhitā of Varāhamihira the twelve names of Viṣṇu are associated with the twelve monthṣ¹³²

As to the names of girls, some special rules were laid dowṇ Many gṛhyasūtras say that the names of girls should contain an uneven number of syllables and the Mānava gr. (I. 18) expressly says that the names of girls should be of three syllableṣ Pār. and Varāhagṛhya further say that the names of girls should end in 'ā', Gobhila and Mānava say they should end in 'dā' (as in Satyadā, Vasudā, Yaśodā, Narmadā), Śānkha-likhita dharmasūtra and Baijavāpa require that it should end in 'ī', while the Bauḍ¹³³ gr. śeṣa-sūtra says that it should end in a long vowel. The Varāhagṛhya adds an intricate rule that the name of a girl should have an 'ā' vowel in it and should not be after a river, a nakṣatra or should not be the name of the 'given by god' as in Devadattā or having the word 'rakṣitā' (as in Buddharakṣitā).¹³⁴ Manu II. 33 prescribes that the names of women should end in a long vowel, should be easy to pronounce, should not suggest any harsh acts, should be perspicuous, should be pleasing to the ear, auspicious and should convey some blessing and in III. 9 Manu and Āp. gr. III. 13 say that one should not marry a girl named after nakṣatras, trees, riverṣ In modern times girls frequently bear the names of the great rivers of India (Sindhu, Jāhnavī, Yamunā, Tāpī, Narmadā, Godā, Kṛṣṇā, Kāverī &c. ).

It is remarkable that Manu altogether omits the involved rules given by the gṛhya sūtras about naming a boy and prescribes (II. 31-32) two simple rules viz. that the names of all the members of the four varṇas should suggest respectively auspiciousness, vigour, wealth and lowness (or contempt) and that the names of brāhmaṇas and the other varṇas should have an addition (upapada) suggestive of śarman (happiness), rakṣā ( protection ), puṣṭi ( prosperity ) and preṣya ( service or depen- dence on others ). It is significant that none of the gṛhya- sūtras except Pāraskara ¹³⁵ makes any reference to these additions ( śarman and the like ) to the names of brāhmaṇas and otherṣ Therefore this was comparatively a later development, though such additions must have been in vogue at least two centuries before the Christian era. The Mahābhāṣya ¹³⁶ ( vol. III. p. 416 ) cites Indravarmān and Indrapālita as the names of a rājanya and a vaiśya. Yama quoted by Aparārka ( p. 27 ) says ¹³⁷ that the names of brāhmaṇas should have the addition of śarma or deva, of kṣatriyas karma or trāta, of vaiśyas bhūti or datta, and of śūdras dāsa. Similar rules are given in the Purāṇas ¹³⁸. These rules were sometime observed, but were often broken from very ancient times as inscriptions show. A striking example of the observance of these rules is contained in the Talgunda Inscription of Kakutsthavarman of the Kadamba family ( E. I. vol. VIII. p. 24 ) where the founder who was a brāhmaṇa is styled Mayūraśarman, but his descendants who were kings had names ending in varman ( which was appropriate to kṣatriyas ). On the other hand we have frequent breaches of these ruleṣ In the Gupta Inscriptions No. 35 ( C. I. I. vol. III, p. 150, at p. 156 the Mandasor Inṣ of Yaśodhar- man of Mālava year 589, 645–46 A. D. ) the genealogy of the brāhmaṇa ministers is Śasthidatta, his son Varāhadāsa, his son Ravikīrti ( so the upapadas ‘ datta ’ and ‘ dāsa ’ appropriate to vaiśyas and śūdras respectively were added to brāhmaṇa names ). In the Neulpur plate of Śubhakara of Orissa ( 8th century A. D., E. I. vol. XV. p. 4 ) we have several bhaṭṭas whose names end in vardhana, datta and svāmiṇ In the Nidhanpura plate of Bhāskaravarman ( E. I. vol. XIX p. 115 ) among the numerous donees ( who must have been all brāhmaṇas ) there are some who are named Śraddhadāsa, Karkadatta and Merudatta. In the Inscriptions of the Śaka king Dāmijada of the year 60 (C. I. I. vol. II. p. 16) his father is called Valavadha (Balavardhana) and his son Mitravadhana (Mitravardhana).

A few words may be said about matronymicṣ A few examples of such names have been given above from Vedic Literature. Āśv. gr.¹³⁹ (I. 5. 1.) says that in selecting a bridegroom or bride “one should first examine the family, as has been already said ‘those who on the mother’s and father’s side’”. This refers to the Āśv. Śrauta sūtra where it is required that both parents of the brāhmaṇa at the time of camasabhakṣaṇa in Daśapeya should be for ten generations perfect in their learning, austerities, and meritorious works and who can be traced to have throughout been of the brāhmaṇa class on both sides &c. Yāj. I. 54 enjoins that one should choose a girl from a great family of śrotriyas, which has been famous for ten generations (for learning and character). Therefore when in certain cases a person is named after his mother or after the gotra of his mother’s father, all that is intended to be conveyed is that he is descended from worthy male and female ancestorṣ There is no question in such cases of matriarchy. In the Nasik Inscription No. 2 (E. I. vol. VIII. p. 60) śri Puḷumayi is described as Vāsiṭhiputa and in E. I. vol. VIII. p. 88 the Ābhīra king Īśvarasena is described as Mādhaputra.¹⁴⁰ In a Scythian Inscription (E. I. vol. X at page 108) we have mention of ‘the son of Bhārgavī’. In all these cases the mother’s gotra name is specially emphasized probably to convey that the mothers were of the bluest blooḍ Comparatively late writers mention the gotra in which their mother was born (e. g. Bhavabhūti who flourished about 700-750 A. D. says that he was a Kāśyapa while his mother was a Jātukarṇī). From a Kārikā in the Mahābhāṣya we learn that the great grammarian Pāṇini was the son of a Dākṣi. Pāṇini himself ¹⁴¹ (IV. 1. 147) delivers a special rule about the formation of a name for a man from the gotra name of his mother to convey contempt (e. g. Gārgaḥ or Gārgikaḥ, a rogue, from his mother's name Gārgī).⁵⁷⁷ Śaṅkhāyana gṛhya (I. 25. 2–9, S. B. E. vol. 29, p. 52) prescribes that the father and mother (having bathed themselves and the child) should put on new clothes, that the father should cook a mess of food in the sūtikāgni, that he is to offer oblations to the tithi of the boy's birth and to three constellations with their presiding deities, that he is to place in the middle the oblation to the nakṣatra of birth and he should make two other oblations to fire with two mantras and then the 10th oblation is made to Soma with Ṛg. I. 91. 7. The father pronounces aloud the child's name and causes the brāhmaṇas to say auspicious wordṣ

The Āśv. gr. does not describe Nāmakaraṇa. Many of the other gṛhyasūtras prescribe that the sūtikāgni is to be removed and the homa for nāmakaraṇa is to be performed in the Aupāsana (gṛhya) fire. The Bhāradvāja gr.⁵⁷⁸ prescribes the repetition of the Jayā, Abhyātāna and Rāṣṭrabhrt mantras and the offering of eight oblations of ghṛta with the eight mantras 'may Dhātṛ bestow on us wealth' (Āp. M. P. II. 11. 1ff). The Hir. gr. (II. 4. 6–14, S. B. E. vol. 30 pp. 214–215) contains similar ruleṣ It prescribes twelve oblations with the mantras 'may Dhātṛ bestow on us wealth' and gives two names (a secret nakṣatra name and an ordinary name) to the boy. The twelve oblations are as follows: four to Dhātṛ, four to Anu-mati, two to Rākā, two to Sinīvālī. According to some a thirteenth oblation to Kuhū was to be offereḍ

The later works state many details which it is unnecessary to set out. The mother with her child on her lap sits to the right of the father. Some late writers prescribe that the father is to give a secret name to the boy and should spread huskeḍ grains of rice in a vessel of bronze, write thereon with a golden pen the words ‘salutations to Śrī Gaṇapati’ and then write four names of the boy, viz. kuladevatā nāma (such as Yogeśvarī- bhakta ), then māsanāma ( vide note 566 above), a vyāvahārika- nāma, a nakṣatranāma.¹⁴⁴

Some sūtra works add a detail immediately after Nāma- karaṇa. For example, Āśv. gr. (I. 15. 11) says ‘when a father returns from a journey he holds in his hands his son’s head, mutters the verse ‘aṅgād aṅgād &c.’ and thrice smells (kisses) his son on the heaḍ Āp. gr. 15. 12¹⁴⁵ prescribes that on returning from a journey the father should address his son (abhimantraṇa ) with the verse ‘aṅgād,’ should smell the child on the head with the verse ‘be thou an axe’ and should mutter in his right ear five mantraṣ These rules have a very ancient origiṇ The Kauṣītaki Br. Up. II. 11 says that on returning from a journey the father touches the head of a son with the verse ‘aṅgād-aṅgād &c.’ and takes the name of the boy and also repeats the verse ‘aśmā bhava’ &c. In the case of the girl there is no smelling of the head nor muttering in the ear, but only address ( with a prose formula ). This no doubt indicates that greater value was attached to a son than to a daughter, but it also shows that the daughter was not altogether neglecteḍ

Karnavedha :—(piercing the lobes of the ears of the child). In modern times this is generally done on the 12th day after birth. In the Bauḍ gr. śeṣa-sūtra ( I. 12 ) karṇavedha is pres- cribed in the 7th or 8th month, while Bṛhaspati quoted in Saṃs- kāraprakāśa ( p. 258 ) says that it may be performed on the 10th, 12th or 16th¹⁴⁶ day from birth or in the 7th or 10th month from birth. The Sṃ C. has a brief note on karṇavedha. The gṛhya- pariśiṣṭa says that the father sits facing the east in the first half of the day and first addresses the right ear of the boy with the mantra ‘Oh gods, may we hear bliss with our ears’ ( Ṛg. I. 89. 8 ) and then also the left ear. If the boy cries honey is to be given to him; after the rite brāhmaṇas are to be feḍ In modern times, generally a goldsmith is called who pierces the lower lobes of the ears with a pointed golden wire and turns it into a ring round the lobeṣ In the case of girls the left ear is pierced first. That ears of boys were pierced even in ancient times is suggested by a mantra quoted in the Nirukta.¹⁴⁷ ‘He (the teacher) who pierces the ear with truth, without causing pain and yet bestowing ambrosia, should be regarded as one’s father and mother’.

Niṣkramaņa:—(Taking the child out of the house in the open). This is a minor rite. Pār. gr. I. 17 gives the briefest descriptioṇ Vide also Gobhila II. 8. 1–7 (S. B. E. vol. 30 pp. 56–57), Khādira II. 3. 1–5 (S. B. E. vol. 29.p. 396), Bauḍ gr. II.2, Mānava gr. I. 19. 1–6, Kāṭhaka gr. 37–38.¹⁴⁸ This was done according to most authorities in the 4th month after birth. Aparārka (p. 23) quotes a purāṇa that the going out of the house may be done on the 12th day or in the 4th month. According to Pār. gr. the father makes the child ¹⁴⁹ look at the sun pronouncing the verse ‘that eye’ (Vaj. S. 36. 24). The Mānavagṛhya prescribes that the father cooks a mess of food in milk and offers oblations thereof to the sun with the verses ‘the brilliant sun has risen in the east’ (Mait. S. 4. 14. 4), ‘he is the haṁsa sitting in pure worlds’ (Ṛg. IV. 40. 5=Mait. S. II. 6. 12=Tai. S. I. 8. 15. 2), ‘whenever him’ (Ṛg. X. 88. 11) and then he worships the sun with the verse ‘that Jātavedas’ (Ṛg. I. 50. 1, it occurs in all Saṁhitās) and then he should present the child turning its face towards the sun with the verse ‘salutation to thee, Oh divine (sun) who hast hundreds of rays and who dispellest darkness, remove the misfortune of my lot and endow me with blessings’; then brāhmaṇas are to be fed and the fee is to be a bull. Bauḍ gr. (II. 2) prescribes a homa with eight oblationṣ Gobhila speaks of candradarśana. It says that on the 3rd tithi of the third bright fortnight after birth, the father bathes the child in the morning, worships in the evening the moon with folded hands, then the mother, having dressed the child, hands it with its face to the north from the south to north to the father and herself passes behind the back of the father and stands to the north of him, who worships with the three verses ¹⁵⁰ 'Oh thou whose hair is well parted, thy heart' (Mantrabrāhmaṇa I. 5. 10–12), then the father hands back the son to the mother with the words ‘that this son may not come to harm and be torn from his mother’. Then in the following bright fortnights, the father filling his joined hands with water and turning his face towards the moon, lets the water flow out of his joined hands once with the Yajus ‘what is the moon’ (Mantrabrāhmaṇa I. 5. 13) and twice silently. The Khādiragṛhya has practically the same rules, except that it does not speak of two timeṣ It will be noted that both omit the sight of the sun, but only mention the seeing of the mooṇ Laghu-Āśvalāyana VII. 1-3 speaks of the performance of ābhyudayika śrāddha, then reciting the sūkta from ‘svasti no mimītam’ (Ṛg. V. 51. 11) and ‘āśu śiśānah’ (Ṛg. X. 103. 1), showing the boy to the sun in the courtyard of one's father-in-law or in that of another and then repeating the verse ‘that eye’ (Vāj. S. 36. 24). The Sṃ C. remarks that those in whose śākhā this rite is not mentioned need not perform it. The Saṁskāraprakāśa pp. 250–256 and Saṁskāraratnamālā pp. 886–888 give an extensive description and make of this saṁskāra a matter of great pomp, festivity and rejoicing. Yama ¹⁵¹ quoted in Saṁ. Pr. says that seeing the sun and seeing the moon should be done respectively in the 3rd and 4th months from birth.

Annaprāśana :—(making the child eat cooked food for the first time). Vide Āśv. gr. I. 16. 1–6 (S. B. E. vol. 29 p. 183), Śāṅ. gr. I. 27 (S. B. E. vol. 29 p. 54), Āp. gr. 16. 1–2 (S. B. E. vol. 30, p. 283), Pār. gr. I. 19 (S. B. E. vol. 29, pp. 299–300), Hir. gr. II. 5. 1–3 (S. B. E. vol. 30, p. 216 ), Kāthaka gr. 39. 1–2, Bhār. gr. I. 27, Mānava gr. I. 20. 1–6, Vaik. III. 22. The Gobhila and Khādira gr. omit this saṁskāra. Most smṛtis prescribe the 6th month from birth as the time for this saṁskāra; but Mānava gr. says it may be the 5th or 6th; while Śaṅkha quoted by Aparārka says it should be performed at the end of a year or at the end of six months, according to some¹⁵². The Kāṭhaka gr. enjoins the sixth month from birth or the time when the child first strikes teeth. The procedure is very brief in all except Śāṇ and Pār. Śāṇ says that the father should prepare food of goat’s flesh, or flesh of partridge, or of fish or boiled rice, if he is desirous of nourishment, holy lustre, swiftness or splendour respectively and mix one of them with curds, honey and ghee and should give it to the child to eat with the reciting of the Mahāvyāhṛtis (bhūḥ, bhuvaḥ, svaḥ). Then the father is to offer oblations to fire with four verses ‘Annapate’, ¹⁵³ Ṛg. IV. 12. 4-5 and ‘him, Oh Agni, lead to long life and splendour &c’. The father recites over the child the verse Ṛg. IX. 66. 19 and then sets down the child on northward pointed kuśa grass with Ṛg. I. 22. 15. The mother is to eat the remnant of the food thus prepareḍ Āśv. has almost the same rules as to food (omitting fish) but prescribes only one verse ‘Annapate’. Āp. gr. ¹⁵⁴ prescribes feeding of brāhmaṇas, making them give benedictions to the child and then making the child eat only once a mess of curds, honey, ghee and boiled rice mixed together, with the recitation of a mantra joined to the three vyāhṛtis singly and collectively and says that according to some the flesh of partridge may also be addeḍ Bhār. says that the method of making a child eat is the same as in Medhājanana and is silent about the fooḍ Pār. gr. (I. 19) prescribes the cooking of sthālīpāka and offering the two ājyabhāgas and then two offerings of ghee with the mantras ‘the gods generated ¹⁵⁵ the goddess of speech &c’ ( Ṛg. VIII. 100. 11) and the verse ‘may vigour to-day produce for us gifts &c’ ( Vāj. S. 18. 33). Mānava, Kāṭhaka and Vaik. are entirely silent about flesh. Kāṭhaka prescribes the cooking of all havisya food ⁵⁹¹ and the other two works prescribe food cooked in milk.

It will be seen from the above that the principal part of the saṁskāra is making the child taste fooḍ Some writers add homa, feeding of brāhmaṇas, and benedictionṣ The saṁskāra- prakāśa ( pp. 267–279 ) and Samskāraratnamālā ( pp. 891–895 ) have very detailed notes on this saṁskāra. One interesting matter quoted by Aparārka ( p. 28 ) from Mārkaṇḍeya is that on the day of this ceremony, in front of the gods worshipped in the house, tools and utensils required in various arts and crafts, weapons and śāstras should be spread about and the child should be allowed to crawl among them and what the child seizes at first should be noted and it should be deemed that he is destined to follow that profession for his livelihood which is represented by the thing first touched by hiṃ

Varṣavardhana or abdapūrti:—In some of the sūtras provi- sion is made for some ceremonies every month on the day of the birth of the child for one year and on every anniversary of the day of birth throughout life. For example, Gobhila gr. ( II. 8. 19–20 ) says ‘every month of the boy’s birth for one year or on the parva days of the year he should sacrifice to Agni and Indra, to Heaven and Earth and to the Viśve devaṣ Having sacrificed to these deities he should sacrifice to the tithi and nakṣatra’.⁵⁹² The Śāṇ gr. ( I. 25. 10–11 S. B. E. vol. 29, p. 52 ) similarly says ‘having sacrificed in the same way every month on the tithi of the child’s birth, he sacrifices when one year has expired in the (ordinary) domestic fire’. Bauḍ gr. III. 7⁵⁹³ prescribes an offering of cooked rice for life ( āyuṣyacaru ) ‘every year, every six months, every four months, every season or every month on the nakṣatra of birth’. Kāṭhaka gr. ( 36. 12 and 14 ) prescribes a homa every month after nāmakaṛaṇa for a year in the same way as in nāmakaṛaṇa or jātakarama and at the end of the year an offering of the flesh of a goat and sheep to Agni and Dhanvantari and feeding the brāhmaṇas with food mixed with plenty of ghee. Vaik. III. 20–21 speaks at great length of the ceremony called ‘Varṣavardhana’ (increase of the years of a person) to be performed on the anniversary of the birth-day every year and lays down that in this rite the deity of the nakṣatra on which a child is born is the principal one, that oblations of ghee are to be offered to that deity and nakṣatra and then to the other presiding deities of the nakṣatras and to the nakṣatras them- selves, then an oblation with the vyāhṛti (bhūḥ svāhā), then offerings to Dhātā. It describes in detail how different cere- monies are to be performed up to Upanayana, then up to finishing of Veda study, how ceremonies are to be performed on the anniversary day of one’s marriage, on the nakṣatra on which a person performed solemn sacrifices like Agniṣṭoma and that if he thus lives till 80 years and 8 months he becomes one who has seen a thousand (full) moons and is called ‘brahma- śāstra’, in celebration of which several ceremonies are pres- cribed (which for want of space are not set out here). In connection with the anniversary of the marriage day, ¹⁵⁹ Vaik. specially prescribes that whatever ceremonies women direct as done traditionally should be performeḍ Aparārka (p. 29) quotes verses of Mārkaṇḍeya to the effect that all should every year on the day of birth celebrate a festival (mahotsava) in which one should honour and worship one’s elders, Agni, gods, Prajāpati, the pitṛs, one’s nakṣatra of birth and brāhmaṇaṣ The Kṛtyaratnākara (p. 540), the Nityācārapaddhati (pp. 621–624) quote the same verses (as Aparārka does) and add that on that day one should worship Mārkaṇḍeya (who is believed to be immortal) and the seven other cirajīvinṣ ¹⁶⁰ The Nityācārapaddhati (p. 621) quotes a verse that in the case of kings the anniversary of the day on which they were crowned should be celebrateḍ The Nirṇayasindhu, the Saṁskāraprakāśa (which in pp. 231–294 gives the most elaborate treatment) call this festival ‘abdapūrti’. The Samskāraratanamālā contains a very extensive discourse on this rite (pp. 877-886) and calls this festival ‘āyurvardhāpana’. The Nirṇayasindhu and the Saṃskāraratnamālā set out the verses that are addressed to Mārkaṇḍeya and otherṣ In modern times women do celebrate every month the birthday of a child and the first anniversary of birth. They make the child cling to the principal house-post or to the post used for churning out butter from the pail of curds and water.

Caula or Cūḍākarma or Cūḍākaraṇa :—(the first cutting of the hair on the child’d head). This saṃskāra is mentioned by every writer. ‘Cūḍā’ means the ‘lock or tuft of hair’ kept on the head when the remaining part is shaved (i. e. the śikhā); so cūḍākarma or cūḍākaraṇa means that rite in which a lock of hair is kept (for the first time after birth ). We get ‘cauḍa’ from ‘cūḍā’¹⁶¹ meaning ‘a rite the purpose of which is keeping a lock of hair’ and ‘ḍa’ and ‘la’ often interchange placeṣ So we get ‘cauḍa’ or ‘caula’ also as the name of the ceremony.

According to many¹⁶² writers caula was performed in the third year from birth. Bauḍ gr. (II. 4), Pār. gr. (II. 1), Manu II. 35, Vaik. III. 23 say that it may be performed in the 1st or 3rd year; Āśv. gr. and Vārāha gr. say it may be performed in the 3rd year or in the year in which it is the custom of the family to perform it. Pār. also refers to family usage. Yāj. specifies no year, but mentions only family usage. Yama quoted by Aparārka (p. 29) allowed it in the first, 2nd or 3rd year, while Śaṅkha-Likhita allowed it in the 3rd or 5th (Aparārka p. 29 ), Ṣaḍ-guru-śiṣya quoted in the Saṃskāraprakāśa (p. 296) and Nārāyaṇa (on Āśv. gr. I. 17. 1) say that some performed it at the time of upanayana. Whether such a ceremony was performed in the Vedic ages cannot be ascertained with certainty. Bhār. gr. I. 28 expressly¹⁶³ refers to the Vedic verse ( Rg IV. 75. 17 or Tai. S. IV. 6. 4. 5 ) as indicative of the practice of Caula in Vedic times ' where arrows fall together like boys having many tufts of hair '. Manu II. 35 also has in view this Vedic verse.

The principal act in this ceremony is the cutting of the hair of the chilḍ The other subsidiary matters are the performance of homa, feeding of brāhmaṇas, receiving of their benedictions and giving of dakṣiṇā, the disposal of cut hair in such a way that no one can find theṃ

The ceremony is to be performed on an auspicious day as set out in note 494 above. Āp. gr. 16. 3 says it should be performed when the moon is in conjunction with Punarvasu nakṣatra, while Māņava gr. says that it should not be done on the 9th tithi of a month. Later works like the Saṁskāraprakāśa ( pp. 299-315 ) give very intricate rules about the auspicious times, which rules are passed over here. The most exhaustive treatment of this ceremony in the sūtra works is to be found in Āśv., Gobhila, Vārāha 4 and Pār. II. 1.

The materials required in this ceremony are stated as follows :—(1) To the north of the fire are placed four vessels each of which is separately filled with rice, barley, māṣa beans and sesame respectively ( Āśv. gr. I. 17. 2 ), but Gobhila ( II. 9. 6-7 ) says that they are to be placed to the east and Gobhila and Śāṇ say that these are to be given to the barber at the end of the rite ; (2) to the west of the fire the mother with the boy on her lap is to be seated and two vessels one filled with the dung of a bull and the other with śamī leaves are to be also placed to the west ( Gobhila II. 9. 5 and Khādira II. 3. 18 place the dung to the north of the fire and Khādira says that she sits to the north ); (3) to the right of the mother the father sits holding 21 bunches¹⁶⁴ of kuśa grass or the brahmā priest ( if there be any ) may hold them ; (4) warm and cold water or only warm water; (5) an ordinary razor or one made of Udumbara wood ( according to Khādira II. 3. 17 and Gobhila II. 9. 4 ); (6) a mirror (Gobhila and Khādira). According to Gobhila and Khādira the barber, hot water, mirror, razor and bunches of kuśa grass are to the south of the fire and a mess of rice mixed with sesame are to the north of the fire. Aśv., Pār., Kāṭhaka and Mānava say that the razor is to be of loha (which the commentator Nārāyaṇa explains as copper).

After homa is performed, the principal matter (of cutting the hair) is to be beguṇ According to Gobhila and Khādira the father, having contemplated upon Savitṛ, looks at the barber with the mantra ‘here comes Savitṛ’ (Mantra-br. I. 6. 1) and contem- plating on Vāyu looks at the warm water with the mantra ‘with warm water, Oh Vāyu, come hither’ ( Mantra-Br. I. 6. 2 ). The father then mixes the hot and cold water and may put, in a part of the water, butter or drops of curds and apply the water to moisten three times the boy’s head with the mantra ‘may Aditi cut thy hair; may the waters moisten (thy hair) for vigour ’. Then¹⁶⁵ on the right portion of the boy’s hair the father puts three kuśa bunches with the points towards the boy with the formula ‘herb, protect him’ (Tai. S. I. 2. 1. 1). With the words ‘Axe, do not harm him’ (Tai. S. I. 2. 1. 1) he presses a copper razor (on the kuśa blades). The hair is cut with the mantra ‘with that razor with which Savitṛ, the wise, cut (the hair) of king Soma and of Varuṇa, cut now his (the boy’s hair), Oh brāhmaṇas, so that he may be endowed with long life and (reach) old age’. Each time the hair is cut, he gives¹⁶⁶ the cut hair with their ends turned towards the east together with śamī leaves to the mother, who puts them down on the bull dung. Cutting is done a second time with the mantra ‘with what Dhātā shaved (the head) of Bṛhaspati, Agni and Indra for the sake of their long life, with that I shave thy (head) for the sake of long life, fame and happiness'. The cutting is done a third time with the mantra ' with what he may after night (is past) see the sun again and again, with that I shave thy (head) for the sake of long life, fame and happiness'. The cutting is done for the fourth time with all the three mantras together. Then the hair is cut three times on the left side similarly. The edge of the razor is then wiped off with the mantra 'when thou shavest as a shaver the hair (of the boy) with the razor that wounds and is well-shaped purify his head, but do not deprive him of life'. Then he gives orders to the barber 'doing with lukewarm water what has to be done with water, arrange his hair (well) without causing him (the boy) any wound'. Let him have the hair of the boy arranged according to the custom of the family. The rite only (without the mantras) is performed for a girl.¹⁶⁷

According to several sūtras, the cut hair placed in the dung of a bull is buried in a cow stable¹⁶⁸ or is thrown in a pond or in the vicinity of water (Pār., Bhār.) or is buried at the root of the Udumbara tree (Bhār.) or in a bunch of darbha grass (Bauḍ, Bhār., Gobhila) or in the forest (Gobhila). The Māṇava gr. prescribes that as the hair fall down when cut they are gathered by some friendly persoṇ The Kāthaka gr. and Māṇava gr. say that the barber gets a sesame cake and a fine piece of cloth, while Vaik. says food is given to hiṃ A bath for the boy is expressly prescribed by Bauḍ and some otherṣ

There is a great divergence of views about the number of locks of hair to be left on the head and the portion of the head where they are to be left. Bauḍ gr. says that one or three or five locks¹⁶⁹ may be left on the head or according to family usage and he further says that some sages say that the locks should be as many as the pravaras invoked by the father.¹⁷⁰ Āśv. gr., and Pār. gr. say that locks may be kept according to family usage. Ap. gr. says that the locks may be in number follow the pravara or they may be kept according to family usage. Gobhila and Khādira say that the locks should be arranged according to gotra and family usage. Whether they mean by ‘gotra’ the number of pravaras of the gotra or some rule such as the Kāṭhaka gives is not clear. The Kāṭhaka gr. says that the Vāsiṣṭhas keep a lock on the right, that persons of Atri and Kāśyapa gotra (or pravara) keep locks both on the right and the left, that the Bhṛgus shaves the entire head, that the Angiras gotra keeps five locks or only a line of hair, while persons of other gotras (like Agastya, Viśvāmitra &c.) keep a śikhā (without any particular number of locks) simply because it is an auspicious sign or one may follow the usage of one’s¹⁷¹ family. Vaik.¹⁷² says that the locks may be one, two, three, five or seven according to the pravaraṣ Ṛgveda¹⁷³ VII. 33. 1 refers to the fact that Vāsiṣṭhas had a lock of hair on the right side of the head and so the rule of the Kāṭhaka has a very hoary antiquity behind it. Up to modern times one of the characteristic outward signs of all Hindus was the śikhā (the top-knot). A verse of Devala says that whatever religious act a man does without the yajñopavīta or without śikhā is as good as undone and Hārīta rules that a person who cuts off his śikhā through hate or ignorance or foolishness becomes pure only after performing the taptakṛcchra penance.¹⁷⁴ In the Mudrārākṣasa (I.8) there is a reference to the śikhā of Cāṇakya having been kept untied when he was angered by the Nandaṣ Śabara (on Jaimini I. 3. 2) remarks that the śikhā (its position and locks) is a sign to indicate the gotra and quotes Rg. VI. 75. 17 (yatra bāṇāḥ &c. cited above in note 598). Vasiṣṭha (II. 21) prescribes that members of all varṇas (including the śūdra) should arrange their hair according to the fixed usage (of their family) or should shave the whole head except the śikhā. A Vedic passage¹⁷⁵ is 'the head that has no śikhā on it is unholy'. For rules about the śikhā of students vide later on under upanayana. During recent times men, particularly those receiving English education in towns and cities, are forsaking the ancient practice of keeping a śikhā and follow the western method of allowing the hair to grow on the whole heaḍ

In modern times the rite of cūḍākaraṇa generally takes place if at all on the day of Upanayana. Āśv. gr. (I. 17. 18) expressly says that the ceremony of cūḍākaraṇa was to be performed for girls also, but no Vedic mantras were to be repeateḍ Manu (II. 66) says that all the ceremonies from jātakarma to caula must be performed at the proper times for girls also in order to purify their bodies but without mantras and Yāj. (I. 13) is to the same effect. Even such late writers as Mitramiśra say that the caula of girls may be performed according to the usage of the family and that their hair may be entirely shaved or a śikhā may be kept or there should be no shaving at all.¹⁷⁶

In some castes even in modern times girls when mere children are shaved once, it being supposed that the first hair are impure.

Vidyārāmbha :—The gṛhya sūtras and dharmasūtras are entirely silent as to what was done for the child's education between the third year when usually caula was performed and the 8th year (from conception) when the upanayana usually took place (in the case of brāhmaṇas). They state that rarely upanayana was performed even in the 5th year (as will be shown hereafter). Some faint light is thrown on this matter by the Arthaśāstra of Kauṭilya,¹⁷⁷ which says that the prince after the performance of caula is to engage in the study of the alphabet and of arithmetic, and after his upanayana he is to study the Vedas, ānvīkṣikī (metaphysics), vārtā (agriculture and the science of wealth) and daṇḍanīti (the art of government) up till the 16th year when the godāna ceremony is to be performed and after which year he may marry. Kālidāsa also (in Raghuvaṁśa III. 28) says that prince Aja first mastered the alphabet and then entered into the ocean of ( Sanskrit ) literature. Bāṇa has¹⁷⁸ probably the Arthaśāstra in view when he makes prince Candrāpīḍa enter the temple of learning (vidyāmandira) at 6 and remain there till he became sixteen and he (like Milton in his letter to Hartlile) tells us how extensive the ideal curriculum of studies in arts and sciences for the prince was thought to be. In the Uttararāmacarita ( Act II ) it is said that Kuśa and Lava were taught vidyās other than the Veda after their caula and before upanayana.

It appears that at least from the early Christian era, a ceremony called Vidyārambha (commencement of learning the alphabet) was celebrateḍ Aparārka (pp. 30-31) and the Sṃ C. (I. p. 26) cite verses from the Mārkaṇḍeya-purāṇa¹⁷⁹ about vidyārambha as follows: in the fifth year of the child on some day from the 12th of the bright half of Kārtika to the 11th of the bright half of Āṣāḍha, but excluding the 1st, 6th, 8th, 15th tithi or riktā tithis (i. e. 4th, 9th and 14th ) and Saturday and Tuesday, the ceremony of beginning to learn should be performeḍ Having worshipped Hari ( Viṣṇu ), Lakṣmī, Sarasvatī, the sūtra writers of one’s śākhā and the lore peculiar to one’s family, one should offer in the fire oblations of clarified butter to the above mentioned deities and should honour brāhmaṇas by the payment of dakṣiṇā. The teacher should sit facing the east and the boy should face the west and the teacher should begin to teach the first lesson to the boy who should receive the benedictions of brāhmaṇaṣ Thereafter teaching should be stopped on the days of anadhyāya (which will be specified later on).

The Saṁskāra-prakāśa (pp. 321–325 ) and Saṁskāraratnamālā (pp. 904–907 ) have an extensive note, a considerable part of which is devoted to astrological matterṣ The Saṁskāraprakāśa quotes passages from Viśvāmitra, Devala and other sages and works that vidyārambha is performed in the 5th year or in any case before upanayana. It also quotes a verse from Nṛsimha that Sarasvatī and Gaṇapati should be worshipped and then the teacher should be honoureḍ The modern practice is to begin learning the alphabet on an auspicious day, generally the 10th of the bright half of Āśvina, Sarasvatī and Gaṇapati are worshipped, the teacher is honoured and the boy is asked to repeat the words ‘om namaḥ siddham’ and to write them on a slate and then he is taught the letters (‘a’, ‘ā’ &c.) of the alphabet. The Saṁskāraratnamālā¹⁸⁰ calls this ceremony Akṣaravīkāra (appropriately enough) and among other texts cites a long prose passage from Garga quoted in the Pārijāta and prescribes a homa also with ājyāhutis to Sarasvatī, Hari, Lakṣmī, Vighneśa (Gaṇapati), sūtrakāras and one’s vidyā.