Chapter VII. Upanayana

Volume II: Part I pp. 268–415

Chapter VII. Upanayana

This word literally means ‘leading or taking near’. But the important question is ‘near what’? It appears that it originally meant ‘taking near the ācārya’ ( for instruction ); it may have also meant ‘introducing the novice to the stage of student-hood’. Some of the gṛhyasūtras bring out this sense clearly e. g. the Hir. gr. I. 5. 2¹ says “The teacher then makes the boy utter ‘I have come unto brahmacarya. Lead me near (initiate me into it). Let me be a student, impelled by the god Savitṛ’”. The Mānava and Kāṭhaka gr. ( 41. 1) also use the word upāyana for upanayana and Ādityadarśana on Kāṭhaka gr. (41. 1) says that upanaya, upanayana, mauñjibandhana, batukaraṇa, vratabandha are synonymṣ

A few words about the origin and development of this most important saṃskāra would not be out of place here. Comparison with the ancient Zoroastrian scriptures ( vide S. B. E. vol. V. pp. 285-290 about the sacred girdle and shirt ) and the modern practices among the Parsis of India tend to show that Upanayana goes back to an Indo-Iranian origiṇ But that subject is outside the scope of this work. Confining ourselves to Indian Literature, we find that already in the Ṛg. X. 109. 5 the word ‘brahmacārī’ occurs ‘oh gods! he ( Bṛhaspati), all pervading one, moves as a brahmacārī pervading all (sacrifices); he is only one part of the gods ( i. e. of sacrifices ); Bṛhaspati secured by that (i. e. by his service to the gods) a wife (me who am named) Juhū, who was (formerly) taken by Soma’.² The word 'upanayana' ³ can be derived and explained in two ways: (1)taking (the boy) near the ācārya, (2) that rite by which the boy is taken to the ācārya. The first sense appears to have been the original one and when an extensive ritual came to be associated with upanayana the second came to be the sense of the worḍ Such an ancient work as the Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 1. 19 says that upanayana is a saṁskāra (purificatory rite) laid down by revelation for him who seeks learning (i. e. it accepts the second explanation) or this sūtra may mean 'it is a saṁskāra brought about by imparting the śruti (viz. Gāyātrī mantra) to him who seeks learning'. This would mean that upanayana principally is gāyatryupadeśa (the imparting of the sacred Gāyātrī mantra). This appears to be suggested by the Vedic passage quoted above (p. 154 *f. ṇ 356) 'he created the brāhmaṇa with Gāyātrī, the kṣatriya with Triṣṭubh, the vaiśya with Jagati', and by Kātyāyana Śrauta 'one should initiate the brāhmaṇa with Gāyātrī'. Jaimini⁴ also (in VI. 1. 35) propounds the view that upanayana is a saṁskāra and has a seen result viz. thereby the boy is brought near the teacher for learning Veda.

Rg. III. 8. 4 ⁵ is a verse that clearly indicates that some of the characteristics of upanayana described in the gṛhya sūtras were well known even theṇ There the sacrificial post (yūpa) is praised as a young person (i. e. in the language of the later classical rhetoricians there is the first kind of the figure Atiśayokti) 'here comes the youth, well dressed and encircled (the boy by his mekhalā and the post by its raśanā); he, when born, attains eminence; wise sages, full of devotion to the gods in their hearts and entertaining happy thoughts, raise him up'. Here in 'un-nayanti' we have the same root that we have in upanayana. This mantra is employed in the upanayana by several gṛhya sūtras e. g. Āśv. I. 20. 8 (who employs it for making the boy circumambulate) and Pār. II. 2. (prescribe that the mantra is to be recited when tying the girdle round the boy's waist). In the Tai. S. VI.⁶²¹ 3. 10. 5 we have the famous passage referring to the three debts where the words 'brahmacāri' and 'brahmacarya' occur. 'Every brāhmaṇa when born is indebted in three debts viz. in brahmacarya to the sages, in sacrifice to the gods and in offspring to the manes; he indeed becomes free from debts who has a son, who sacrifices and who dwells ( with the teacher ) as a brahmacārī.'

In the other Vedas and in the Brāhmaṇa literature there is ample material to show what the characteristic features of upanayana and brahmacarya were. The whole of Atharvaveda XI. 7 (26 verses) is a hymn containing hyperbolical laudation of the brahmacārī (Vedic student) and brahmacarya. The very first verse⁶²² may be cited as a sample 'The brahmacārī incessantly covering (the world by his glory) roams in the two worlds; the gods have the same thoughts (of grace and favour) about him; he fills his teacher by his austerities'. Verse 3 says: 'the teacher leading ( the boy ) near him makes the brahmacārī like unto a foetus' (here the word 'upanayamānaḥ' occurs). Verse 4 states that the heaven and the earth are the 'samidh (the fuel stick) of the brahmacārī and that the brahmacārī by his mekhala (girdle), by his samidh and by his life of hard work fill the world with austeritieṣ Verse 6 tells us that the brahmacārī wears the skin of a black antelope and has a long beard; verse 17 says that the brahmacārī offers samidh into fire (or if fire is not available) to the sun, to the moon, to the wind or into waterṣ This hymn thus brings out most of the characteristic features of the brahmacārī and of upanayana (viz. deerskin, mekhalā, offering of samidh, begging and a life of hard work and restraint). From the reference to the beard and from the words 'this man (ayan puruṣaḥ )' occurring in the Atharvaveda VIII. 1. 1 and elsewhere it appears probable that upanayana was performed rather late in those ancient days than in the days of the sūtraṣ In the Tai. Br. III.⁸ 10. 11 there is the story of Bharadvāja who remained a brahmacārī for three parts of his life (i. e. till 75) and to whom Indra said that in all that long period of brahmacarya he had mastered only an insignificant portion (three handfuls out of three mountains) of the Vedas, which were endless in extent. The story of Nābhānedistha, son of Manu, who was excluded from ancestral property at a partition made by his brothers, narrated in the Ait. Br. shows ⁹ that he was a brahmacārī staying with a teacher away from his father's place. The Śat. Br. XI. 5. 4. contains many and almost complete details about the life of brahmacārins which bear a very close similarity to those taught in the gṛhya sūtraṣ A brief summary is set out below. The boy says 'I have come unto brahmacarya' and 'let me be a brahmacārī'. Then the teacher asks him 'what is your name'; then the teacher takes him near (upanayati); the teacher takes hold of the boy's hand with the words 'you are the brahmacārī of Indra; Agni is your teacher, I am your teacher, N. N. (addressing the boy by his name)'. Then he consigns the boy to (the care of) the elementṣ The teacher instructs him 'drink water, do work (in the teacher's house), put a fuel stick (on the fire), do not sleep (by day).' He repeats the Sāvitrī (mantra sacred to Savitr). Formerly it was repeated a year (after the boy came as a brahmacārī), then at the end of six months, 24 days, 12 days, 3 days; but one should repeat to the brāhmaṇa boy the verse at once (on the very day of upanayana); the teacher repeats it to him first each pāda separately, then the half and then the whole. Being a brahmacārī one should not eat honey. ¹⁰ The word 'antevāsi' (lit. one who dwells near a teacher) occurs in the Śat. Br. V. 1. 5. 17 and in the Tai. Up. I. 11. The Śat. Br. (XI. 3. 3. 2) says¹¹ 'he who takes to brahmacarya indeed takes upon himself a sacrificial session of long duratioṇ' It further says (XI. 3. 3. 3–6) that the boy when entering upon studenthood approaches giving a fourth part of himself to Agni, Death, the teacher and himself and that by the offering of samidh (to fire), by begging and by doing work in the teacher's house respectively he secures freedom from the action of the first three. It also says that after one finishes studenthood and takes the ceremonial bath one should not beg. Vide Gopathā Br. (eḍ by Gastra) 2. 3 and Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 53. The Śat. Br. (III. 6. 2. 15) further says 'therefore brahmacārins protect the teacher, his house and his cattle, with the idea that otherwise he might be taken away from them'.¹²

Janamejaya Parīkṣita asks the hamsas (who were the Āhavanīya and Dakṣiṇā fires) 'what is holy' and the latter reply 'It is brahmacarya' (vide Gopathā Br. 2. 5). Gopathā (2. 5) further says 'the period of studenthood for the mastery of all Vedas is 48 years, which, being distributed among the Vedas in four parts, makes brahmacarya last for 12 years, which is the lowest limit; one should practise brahmacarya according to one's ability before taking the ceremonial¹³ bath.' The same work says that the brahmacārī should fetch samidhs every day for worship-ping fire and beg and that if he does not do so continuously for seven days he has to undergo upanayana again (2. 6) and that the lady of the house should daily give alms to a brahmacārin with the idea that he may not deprive her of her wealth, of merit due to iṣṭāpūrta. It also says that a brahmacārī should not sleep on a cot, should not engage in singing and dancing, should not roam about, should not spit about nor go to a cemetery.¹⁴ It appears from the above and from the Upaniṣad passages set out immediately below that originally Upanayana was a very simple matter. The would-be student came to the teacher with a samidh in his hand and told the teacher that he desired to enter the stage of studenthood and begged to be allowed to be a brahmacārī living with the teacher. There were no elaborate ceremonies like those described in the gṛhya sūtras. The word brahmacarya occurs in the Katha. Up. I. 1.15, Muṇḍaka II. 1. 7, Chāndogya VI. 1. 1 and other Upaniṣadṣ The Chāndogya and the Bṛ. Up., probably the oldest among the Upaniṣads, furnish very valuable informatioṇ That some ceremonies were required before a young boy was admitted as a student even in Upaniṣadic times is clear from the statement in the Chāndogya V. 11. 7¹⁵ that when Aśvapati Kekaya was approached by Prācīnāśāla Aupamanyava and four others who carried fuel in their hands (like young students) and who were grown-up householders and theologians, ‘he (Aśvapati) without submitting them to the rites of Upanayana began the discourse’. When Satyakāma¹⁶ Jābāla tells the truth about his gotra to Gautama Hāridrumata, the latter says ‘fetch, dear boy, fuel, I shall initiate you. You have not swerved from the truth’ (Chāndo-gya IV. 4. 5). Similarly in the Bṛ. Up. VI. 2. 7. it is said that former students (i. e. students in former ages) approached (the teacher for brahmacarya) only in words (i. e. without any further solemn rite or ceremony).¹⁷ In the most ancient times it is probable that the father himself always taught his soṇ¹⁸ But it appears that from the times of the Tai. S. and the Brāhmaṇas the student generally went to a guru and stayed in his house (vide note 624 about Nābhānediṣṭha). Uddālaka Āruṇi who was himself a profound philosopher of brahma asks his son Śvetaketu to enter upon brahmacarya and sends him to a teacher to learn the Vedaṣ¹⁹ The same Upaniṣad describes the āśrama of brahmacarya ‘dwelling as a brahmacārī in the house of a teacher, mortifying his body in the house of his teacher till his ²⁰ end’. Chāndogya IV. 4. 4. shows that the teacher asked the pupil his gotra (in order that he may address him by that name). The same Upaniṣad shows that the brahmacārī had to beg for food (IV. 3. 5), and that he had to look after the fire of his teacher (IV. 10. 1–2) and that he had to tend his cattle (IV. 4. 5). The age when upanayana was performed is not expressly stated in the Upaniṣads except in the case of Śvetaketu who was 12 (vide note 634 above). The period of student-hood was usually twelve (Chāndogya II. 23.1, IV. 10.1, VI.1.2), though the Chāndogya (VIII. 11. 3) speaks of Indra’s brahmacarya for 101 years and Chāndogya II. 23. 1. speaks of brahmacarya for life.

We shall now turn to upanayana as described in the sūtras and smṛtis The following matters fall to be treated under Upanayana: The proper age for upanayana, the auspicious seasons for it; the skin, the garments, the girdle and the staff for the brahmacārins of different varṇas; the yajñopavīta; the preliminaries of upanayana, such as homa, taking of curds by the boy, añjalipūraṇa, āśmārohaṇa; the principal rites of upanayana viz. taking of the student’s hand by the teacher, touching the chest of the student expressive of acceptance as pupil, handing the boy to Savitṛ and other gods (paridāna), instruction in the duties of the student (such as putting fuel on fire, begging &c.), instruction in the famous Sāvitrī mantra; medhāj anana; study of the Vedas and daily recitation of Vedic texts; special vratas of the brahmacārī; Patitasāvitrika (those whose upanayana has not been performed at all) and rules about theṃ These matters will now be dealt with in order. It should be remembered that all these matters are not dwelt upon by all the smṛtis nor are they treated of in the same order. Further the Vedic mantras often differ in the different sūtraṣ

The proper age for Upanayana

The Āśv. gr. ²¹ (I. 19. 1-6) says that a brāhmaṇa boy should undergo upanayana in the eighth year from birth or from conception, a kṣatriya in the 11th year, a vaiśya in the 12th and that to the 16th, 22nd and 24th years respectively for the three varṇas it cannot be said that the time for upanayana has passeḍ Āp.²² (10. 2), Sāṇ (II. 1), Bauḍ (II. 5. 2) and Bhār. (I. 1), Gobhila (II. 10. 1) gṛhya sūtras, Yāj. I. 14, Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 19 expressly say that the respective years are calculated from conceptioṇ The Mahābhāṣya ²³ also refers to the rule that a brāhmaṇa's upanayana is to be performed in the 8th year from conceptioṇ Pār.²⁴ gr. (II. 2) allows upanayana in the 8th year from birth or conception and adds that in the case of all varṇas family usage may be followeḍ Yāj. I. 14 also refers to family usage. Sāṇ gr. (II. 1. 1) allows upanayana in the 8th or 10th year from conception, the Mānava gr. (I. 22. 1) allows it in the 7th or 9th year, the Kāthaka gr. (41. 1-3) prescribes 7th, 9th and 11th years for the upanayana of the three varṇas respectively. In some smṛtis upanayana is allowed to be performed even earlier or at different ages, e. g. Gautama (II. 6-8) prescribes that upanayana for a brāhmaṇa is in the 8th year from conception but it may be in the 5th or 9th according to the result desired ; and Manu. II. 37 says that if spiritual eminence ( for the boy ) is desired ( by his father ) then upanayana may be performed in the 5th year for a brāhmaṇa, in the 6th year for a kṣatriya if there is a desire for military power, in the 8th for a vaiśya if there is desire for endeavour to accumulate wealth. Vaik. (II. 3) also prescribes the 5th, 8th, 9th years from conception for a brāhmaṇa if there is a desire respectively for spiritual eminence, long life and wealth. The Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 21 and Bauḍ gr. (II. 5) prescribe 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th years respectively for one desiring spiritual eminence, long life, brilliance, abundant food, physical vigour and cattle.

Therefore, the 8th, 11th and 12th years from birth for the three varṇas are the principal time for upanayana; while the years from 5th onwards up to 11th are the secondary time (gauṇa) for a brāhmaṇa, 9th to 16th are secondary for kṣatriya and so oṇ From 12th to 16 is gauṇatara for brāhmaṇas and after 16 gauṇatama for theṃ Vide Saṁskāra-prakāśa p. 342.

The auspicious times according to the Āp. gr. and Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 1. 19, Hir. gr. (I. 1) and Vaik. are vasanta (spring), grīṣma (summer), and śarad (autumn) for the three varṇaṣ The Bhār. gr. (I. 1) says that upanayana for a brāhmaṇa should be performed in vasanta, for a kṣatriya in summer or hemanta, for a vaiśya in śarad, in the rains for a carpenter (rathakāra) or in śiśira for all. Śabara in his bhāṣya on Jaimini VI. 1. 33 where upanayana is denied to śūdras quotes 'vasante brāhmaṇam upanayīta' as a Vedic text. Āśv. gr. I. 4. 1 (quoted above in f. ṇ 494), Hir. gr. (I. 1. 5, S. B. E. vol. 30 p.1 37) and Bhār. gr. (1. 1) say that upanayana should be performed in the bright half of a month, on an auspicious nakṣatra, particularly under a nakṣatra the name of which is masculine.²⁵

Later works introduced very intricate rules about the proper months, tithis, days and times for upanayana. It is neither possible nor very necessary to go into these astrological detailṣ But a few words must be said as in modern times upanayana is performed only in accordance with these ruleṣ Vrddhagārgya²⁶ laid down that six months from Māgha were the proper months for upanayana, while others say that five months from Māgha are the proper oneṣ Then 1st, 4th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 13th, 14th 15th t. e. (full moon and new moon) tithis are generally avoided (though there are some counter exceptions which are not set out here). It is stated that upanayana should not be performed when Venus is so near the sun that it cannot be seen, when the sun is in the first degree of any zodiacal sign, on anadhyāya days and on galagraha ²⁷ (the tithis specified above). Jupiter, Venus, Mars²⁸ and Mercury are respectively the presiding deities of the Ṛgveda and the other Vedaṣ Therefore the upanayana of those who have to study these Vedas should be performed on the week days presided over by these planetṣ Among week days Wednesday, Thursday and Friday are the best, Sunday is middling, Monday is the least suitable, but Tuesday and Saturday are prohibited (except that for students of the Sāmaveda and kṣatriyas Tuesday is allowed). Among the nakṣatras²⁹ the proper ones are Hasta, Citrā, Svāti, Pusya, Dhaniṣṭhā, Aśvinī, Mṛgāśiras, Punarvasu, Śravaṇa and Revati. There are other rules about nakṣatras with respect to those who follow a particular Veda (which are passed over). One rule is that all nakṣatras except Bharaṇī, Kṛttikā, Maghā, Viśākhā, Jyeṣṭhā, Śatatārākā are good for all. The Moon and Jupiter must be astrologically strong with reference to the boy's horoscope. The rule about Jupiter probably arose from the fact that Jupiter was supposed to rule over knowledge and happiness and as upanayana was meant to be the entrance for Veda-study, Jupiter's benevolent aspect was thought to be necessary. If Jupiter and Venus are not to be seen owing to nearness to the sun, upanayana cannot be performeḍ Jupiter when in the 2nd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 11th zodiacal sign from the sign of birth (calculation to be made inclusive of the sign of birth) is auspicious, when in the 1st, 3rd, 6th, 10th place from the sign of birth it is auspicious after the performance of a propitiatory homa and when it is in the 4th, 8th, 12th place from birth, it is inauspiciouṣ The moon is supposed to be malefic when she is in the 2nd, 4th, 5th, 8th, 9th or 12th place froin the sign of birth. Four hours from sunrise is the best for upanayana, from that time to noon is middling and afternoon is prohibiteḍ Some said that a person's upanayana should not be performed in the month in which he was born, others restricted the prohibition to the pakṣa (the half) of the month in which he was borṇ There are other rules about the Lagna (the rising zodiacal sign at the time of upanayana ) which are not set out here. There are other prohibited astrological conjunctions like Vyātipāta, Vaidhṛti &c. For detailed rules on these, works like the Sāṃ Pr. (pp. 355-385), Nirṇayasindhu and Dharmasindhu may be consulteḍ

For persons who are entitled to perform the upanayana of a boy, vide note 480.

A brahmacārī had to wear two garments, one for the lower part of the body (vāsaś), another for covering the upper part of the body (uttarīya). Āp. Dh. S. (I. 1. 2. 39-I. 1. 3. 1-2) says that ‘the garment³⁰ (vāsaś) for a brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya or vaiśya brahmacārī is respectively to be made of hemp, flax, ajina (deerskin), some teachers prescribe that the lower garment should be of cotton but coloured reddish-yellow for brāhmaṇas; dyed with madder for kṣatriyas, dyed with turmeric for vaiśyaṣ’ Pār. gr. (II. 5), Manu (II. 41) speak of ‘āvikā’ (made of wool) for vaiśya instead of ‘ajina’. Vaṣ Dh. S. (XI. 64-67) says that a brāhmaṇa (brahmacārī) should wear a (lower) garment which is white and unblemished (or new) and for a kṣatriya or vaiśya it should be the same as in Āp. Dh., but for vaiśya Vaṣ prescribes also one made of kuśa grass or he says that all should wear cotton cloth that is undyeḍ’ Gaut. (I. 17-20) on the other hand says ‘ for all the lower garment may be made of hemp, flax or kuśa grass (cīra) or of the hair of the mountainous goat (kutapa ); other teachers prescribe coloured garments, one coloured with the juice of trees for brāhmaṇas and madder-red and yellow for kṣatriya and vaiśya. Āśv. gr. (I. 19. 8), Pār. gr. (II. 5), Vaṣ Dh. S. (XI. 61-63), Bauḍ gr. (II. 5. 16 ) say that the upper garment for a brāhmaṇa should be the skin of a black deer, for kṣatriya the skin of ruru deer and for a vaiśya of cow-skin or of goat skiṇ Bauḍ and Āśv. prescribe only goat skiṇ Pār. gr. adds that if any one cannot secure a skin suited to one’s varṇa, he may wear an upper garment of cow-hide as the cow is the chief among animalṣ³¹ Bauḍ gr. II. 5. 16 prescribes the skin of black deer for all in the same circumstanceṣ Āp. Dh. S. (I. 1. 3. 7-8) gives the option to all varṇas to use a sheep skin (as upper garment) or a woollen plaid (kambala). Āśv. gr. (I. 19. 8-9) appears to suggest that the lower and upper garments may be of the same skin or that the lower garment may be white or coloured (as stated above by Āp. Dh. S.). The Kāṭhaka gr.³² (41. 13) says that the upper garment for the three varṇas should be respectively of the skins of black deer, tiger and ruru deer. A vestige of these rules survives in the modern practice of tying a small piece of deer skin to the yajñopavīta of the boy when his upanayana is performeḍ

That the rules about the lower and upper garments go back to great antiquity is shown by a reference to a Brāhmaṇa passage in the Āp. Dh. S.³³ I. 1. 3. 9 'one should wear only deer-skin (as lower and upper garments) if one desires the increase of Vedic lore, only (cotton) garments if one desires the increase of martial valour and both if one desires both'.

Daṇḍa (staff) :-There is some divergence of view about the trees of which the staff was to be made. Āśv. gr. (I. 19. 13 and I. 20. 1) says 'a staff of the palāśa wood for a brāhmaṇa, of udumbara for a kṣatriya and of bilva for a vaiśya or all the varṇas may employ a staff of any of these treeṣ' The Āp. gr. 11. 15-16 (this is the same as Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 2. 38) says that the staff should be of palāśa wood for a brāhmaṇa, of the branch of the nyagrodha tree (so that the downward end of the branch forms the tip of the staff) for a kṣatriya, of badara or udumbara wood for a vaiśya; while some teachers say that the staff should be made of a tree (which is used in sacrifices) without reference to any varṇa. Gaut. (I. 21) and Bauḍ Dh. S. (II. 5. 17) say that the staff of palāśa or bilva should be used for brāhmaṇa and Gaut. (I. 22-23) says that aśvattha and pīlu wood staff should be used respectively for kṣatriya and vaiśya or of any sacrificial tree for all varṇaṣ Bauḍ gr. prescribes nyagrodha or rauhitaka for kṣatriya, and badara or udumbara for vaiśya. Pār. gr. (IL 5) recommends a staff of palāśa, bilva and udumbara respectively for the three varṇas (or any of these for all). Kāṭhaka gr. (41. 22) recommends palāśa, aśvattha and nyagrodha respectively for the three. Manu (II. 45) prescribes bilva and palāśa for brāhmaṇa, vaṭa and khadira for kṣatriya, pīlu and udumbara for vaiśya, and Kulluka adds that two staffs should be used by the boy, as two are recommended in a compounḍ The staff was required for support, for controlling the cattle of the teacher (which the student was to tend), for protection when going out at night and for guidance when entering a river or the like.³⁴

The length of the staff varied according to the varṇa of the boy. Aśv. gr. I. 19. 13, Gaut. I. 25, Vaṣ Dh. S. (XI. 55-57), Pār. gr. (II. 5), Manu (II. 46) prescribe that in the case of the brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya or vaiśya boy respectively the staff should be as high as his head, forehead or the tip of the nose. The Śāṇ gr. (II. 1. 21–23, S. B. E. vol. 29. p. 260) on the other hand reverses this (the brāhmaṇa having the shortest staff and the vaiśya the longest). Gaut. I. 26 says that the staff should be one not eaten by worms, should have the bark attached to it, and should have a curved tip, while Manu II. 47 adds that the staff should be straight, pleasing to look at and should not have come into contact with fire. The Śāṇ gr. (II. 13. 2–3) prescribes that the brahmacārī should not allow any one to pass between himself and his staff and that if the staff, girdle or the yajñopavīta break or rend, he has to undergo a penance (same as the one for the breaking of a chariot at a wedding procession) and that at the end of the period of brahmacarya, he should sacrifice in water the yajñopavīta, staff, the girdle and the skin ³⁵ with a mantra to Varuṇa (Ṛg. I. 24. 6) or with the sacred syllable ‘om’. Manu II. 64 and Viṣṇu Dh. S. (27. 29) say the same thing.

Mekhalā (girdle):—Gaut. (I. 15), Aśv. gr. (I. 19. 11), Bauḍ gr. (II. 5. 13), Manu II. 42, Kāṭhaka gr. (41. 12), Bhār. gr. (I. 2) and others prescribe that a girdle made of muñja grass should be tied round a brāhmaṇa boy's waist, one made of mūrvā grass (which is used for making a bowstring) for a kṣatriya and one of hemp cords for a vaiśya. Pāraskara says that the string of a bow should be used for a kṣatriya and of mūrvā grass for a vaiśya and adds that in the absence of these the girdle should respectively be made of kuśa, aśmantaka and balvaja grass (for brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya and vaiśya). Manu (II. 42-43) gives the same rules as Pār. gr. Āp. Dh. S. (I. I. 2. 35-37) ³⁶ optionally allows a girdle of muñja grass with an iron piece intertwined in it for kṣatriyas and woollen string or the yoke-string or a string of tāmala bark for vaiśyas (according to some). Bauḍ gr. (II. 5. 13) allows mauñjī girdle also to all. Some of the sūtras (e. g. Bauḍ gr., Āp. Dh. S.) further prescribe that the girdle of muñja grass should have three strings to it and the grass should have its ends turned to the right and the knot of the girdle should be brought near the navel. Manu (II. 43) says that there may be one knot or three or five (according to family usage, says Kullūka). ³⁷

In order to convey an idea of the rites of upanayana in the days of the gṛhya sūtras the ceremony as contained in the Āśv. gr. sūtra (which is among the shortest) is set out in full. ³⁸ 'Let him initiate the boy who is decked, whose hair (on the head) is shaved (and arranged), who wears a new garment or an antelope skin if a brāhmaṇa, ruru skin if a kṣatriya, goat's skin if a vaiśya; if they put on garments they should put on dyed ones, reddish-yellow, red and yellow (for a brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya respectively), they should have girdles and staffs (as described above). While the boy takes hold of (the hand of) his teacher, the latter offers (a homa of clarified butter oblations) in the fire (as described above) and seats himself to the north of the fire with his face turned to the east, while the other one (the boy) stations himself in front (of the teacher) with his face turned to the west. The teacher then fills the folded hands of both himself and of the boy with water and with the verse 'we choose that of Savitr' (Rg. V. 82. 1) the teacher drops down the water in his own folded hands on to the water in the folded hands of the boy; having thus poured the water, he should seize with his own hand the boy’s hand together with the thumb (of the boy) with the formula 'by the urge (or order) of the god Savitṛ, with the arms of the two Āśvins, with the hands of Pūṣan, I seize thy hand, oh! so and so'.³⁹ with the words 'Savitṛ has seized thy hand), with the words 'Agni is thy teacher, oh so and so' a third time. The teacher should cause (the boy) to look at the sun, while the teacher repeats 'God Savitṛ, this is thy brahmacārī, protect him, may he not die'⁴⁰ and (the teacher should further) say 'Whose brahmacārī art thou? thou art the brahmacārī of Prajñā. Who does initiate thee and whom (does he initiate)? I give⁴¹ thee to Ka (to Prajāpati)'. With the half verse (Ṛg. III 8. 4.) ‘the young man, well attired and dressed, came⁴² hither’ he (the teacher) should cause him to turn round to the right and with his two hands placed over (the boy’s) shoulders he should touch the place of the boy’s heart repeating the latter half (of Ṛg. III. 8. 4). Having wiped the ground round the fire the brahmacārī should put (on the fire) a fuel stick silently, since it is known (from śruti) ‘what belongs to Prajāpati is silently (done)’, and the brahmacārī belongs to Prajāpati. Some do this (offering of a fuel stick) with a mantra ‘to Agni I have brought a fuel stick, to the great Jātavedas; by the fuel stick mayst thou increase, Oh Agni and may we (increase) through brahman (prayer or spiritual lore), svāhā’.⁴³ Having put the fuel stick (on the fire) and having touched the fire, he (the student) thrice wipes off his face with the words ‘I anoint myself with lustre'; it is known (from śruti) 'for he does anoint himself with lustre'. 'May Agni bestow on me, insight, offspring and lustre; on me may Indra bestow insight, offspring and vigour (indriya); on me may the sun bestow insight, offspring and radiance; what thy lustre is, Oh Agni, may I thereby become strong; what thy strength is, Agni, may I thereby acquire consuming power'.⁴⁴ Having waited upon (worshipped) Agni with these formulas, (the student) should bend his knees, embrace (the teacher's feet) and say to him 'recite, Sir, recite, Sir, the Sāvitrī'. Seizing the student's hands with the upper garment (of the student) and his own hands the teacher recites the Sāvitrī, first pāda by pāda, then hemistich by hemistich (and lastly) the whole verse. He (the teacher) should make him (the student) recite (the Sāvitrī) as much as he is able. On the place of the student's heart the teacher lays his hand with the fingers upturned with the formula 'I place thy heart⁴⁵ unto duty to me; may thy mind follow my mind; may you attend on my words single-minded; may Bṛhaspati appoint thee unto me'. Having tied the girdle round him (the boy) and having given him the staff, the teacher should instruct him in the observances of a brahmacārī with the words 'a brahmacārī⁴⁶ art thou, sip water, do service, do not sleep by day, depending (completely) on the teacher learn the Veda'. He (the student) should beg (food) in the evening and the morning; he should put a fuel stick (on fire) in the evening and the morning. That (which he has received by begging) he should announce to the teacher; he should not sit down (but should be standing) the rest of the day. "⁴⁷ The whole procedure of upanayana is more elaborately described in the Āp. gr., in Hir. gr. and Gobhila. A few points of interest and divergence may be noted here briefly. It is remarkable that Āśv., Āp. and several other sūrakāras do not say a word about the sacred thread, while a few like Hir. gr. (I. 2. 6), Bhār. gr. (I. 3) and Mānava gr. (I. 22. 2) say that the boy already wears the yajñopavīta before the homa begins; while Bauḍ gr. ⁴⁸ (II. 5. 7) says that the boy is given the yajñopavīta and then made to recite the well-known mantra ‘the Yajñopavīta is extremely sacred’ and the Vaik. smārta (II. 5) says that the teacher gives the upper garment to the boy with ⁴⁹ the verse ‘parīdam vāsaḥ’, the sacred thread with the mantra ‘the yajñopavītam’ and the black antelope skin with the mantra ‘the eye of Mitra’. Sudarśana on Āp. gr. 10. 5 says that the boy puts on the yajñopavīta with the mantra before he takes his meal (according to some) or (according to others) before⁵⁰ he puts the fuel stick on the fire and relies on Āp. Dh. S. I. 5. 15. 1 for support. According to Karka and Harihara (on Pāraskara) the yajñopavīta was given to the student by the teacher after the tying of the girdle. The Saṁskāratattva p. 934 says the same. Late works like the Saṁskāraratnamālā (p. 202) prescribe the wearing of the sacred thread before the homa. The origin and development of the ideas about yajñopavīta will be dealt with separately later oṇ Āp. gr. (X. 5), Baud gr. (II. 5. 7) and Pār. gr. (II. 2) prescribe a dinner to brāhmaṇas before the ceremonies begin and receiving their benedictionṣ Āp. gr. (X. 5), Bhār. gr. (I. 1), Baud gr. ⁵¹ (II. 5. 7) say that the boy also is made to take food; according to later works (e. g. Saṁskāraratnamālā) the boy takes his meal in the same dish with his mother (for the last time) and other brahmacārins (eight in number) are also invited at the same time for meals in the company of the boy. This practice is observed even in modern timeṣ Almost all prescribe that the boy is shaved on this day ( as in caula ); this also is done in modern timeṣ But in ancient ⁵² times the shaving was done by the ācārya himself as stated by Sudarśana on Āp. gr. 10. 6–8. There are several other matters detailed in Āp. and others, on which Āśv. and some others are silent. The important ones are mentioned below. (a) Āp. gr. (10. 9), Mānava gr. (I. 23. 12), Bauḍ gr. (II. 5,10), Khādira gr. (II. 4) and Bhār. gr. (I. 8) make the boy tread on a stone to the north of the fire with his right foot after homa. The mantras repeated in the several sūtras are significant asking the boy to be firm like a stone. ⁵³ (b) Mānava gr. (I.22.3) and Kāthaka gr. (41. 10) prescribe after homa the tasting of curds thrice after repeating the verse ‘Dadhikrāvņo akāriṣam’ ( Rg. IV. 39. 6=Tai. S. I. 5. 4. 11 ). (c) Pār. gr. (II. 2), Bhār. gr. (I. 7), Āp. gr. (11. 1–4), Āp. Mantrapāṭha (II. 3. 27–30), Bauḍ gr. II. 5. 25 ( quoting Sātyā-yanaka ), Mānava gr. I. 22. 4–5, and Khādira gr. II. 4. 12 refer to the fact that the teacher asks the boy his name and the latter pronounces his name. The teacher also asks whose brahmacārī the boy iṣ

A person was given ( as shown above at pp. 246–247 ) an abhivādaniya name either derived from the nakṣatra of birth or from a deity name or the gotra name. This was necessary for several purposeṣ The teacher had to know that the boy came from a good family, he had also to address him by name ( as there might be several pupils ). It is wrong to suppose ⁵⁴ from the story of Satyākāma Jābāla ( where the teacher asked him his gotra) that only brāhmaṇas were admitted to brahmacarya. All smṛtis, even the latest, contemplated that the three castes had the right to learn the Veda. It is one thing to have a right and another to exercise it. Probably very few kṣatriyas cared to submit their sons to the rigorous discipline of brahmacarya as laid down in the smṛtis and cared much less for Veda studieṣ In the Mahābhārata and in the Kādambarī it is said that the princes were taught in a special house constructed for the purpose and teachers were paid handsomely and brought there to teach instead of the princes going to the teacherṣ

It is not possible for want of space to show how the great- est possible confusion prevails as to the order of the various components of the ceremony of upanayana. But a few striking examples may be giveṇ Āśvalāyana gr. treats of the tying of the girdle and the giving of the staff almost at the end of the ceremony, while Āp. gr. puts this after homa and immediately before añjalipūraṇa (filling the folded hands of both with water ); Āśvalāyana puts ādityadarśana after the boy's hand is held by the teacher and before paridāna ( handing the boy over to the deities ), but Bhār. ( I. 9 ) puts it after the instruction in the observances of brahmacarya. The Bhār. gr. ( I. 9 ) treats of ādityadarśana almost at the end of the rites, while Āśv. places it among the earlier ones after homa. Besides the same mantras are employed by different sūtras for different purposes; for example, the mantra ' suśravaḥ &c.' is employed by Āp. at the time of taking the staff by the boy ( XI. 14 and Mantrapāṭha II. 5. 1 ), while Āśv. gr. ( I. 22. 19 ), Bhār. gr. ( I. 10 ), Mānava gr. ( I. 23. 17 ) employ it in ' medhājanana ' ( on the 4th day after upanayana ) and Pār. gr. ( II. 4 ) employs it at the time of putting a fuel stick on fire. Āśv. employs the verse ' yuvā suvāsāḥ ' ( Ṛg. III. 8. 4 ) for making the boy turn round ( first half ) and for touching the region of the boy's heart ( latter half ), while the same verse is employed at the time of tying the girdle round the boy's waist by the Mānava gr. ( I. 22. 8 ) and Pār. gr.(II. 2).

Later writers went on adding mantras and detailṣ On the day prior to upanayana the Nāndīśrāddha was performed as said by Haradatta on Āp. gr. 10. 5. Grahamakha ( a sacrifice to the planets ) also may be performed the previous day or on any day within 7 or 10 days of the upanayana. Then before the actual upanayana, there is the worship of Gaṇapati and of Kuladevatās, puṇyāhavācana, the worship of Mātṛs and the consecration of the maṇḍapa-devatāṣ For the detailed modern procedure (prayoga) of upanayana, the S. R. M. (pp. 197-210), which in the main follows the briefer procedure in the gṛhya sūtras, may be consulteḍ Up to the act of making the boy dine with his mother it is the father who does everything; thereafter it is the ācārya who does the rest. The saṁkalpa of upanayana is given below ⁵⁵.

Yajñopavīta ⁵⁶:—A few words must be said on the history of yajñopavīta from ancient timeṣ Among the earliest references is one from the Tai. S. II. 5. 11. 1 ‘the nivīta ⁵⁷ is (used in actions) for men, the prācīnāvīta (is used in rites) for pitṛs, the upavīta (in rites) for gods; he wears it in the upavīta mode (i. e. slung from the left shoulder), thereby he makes a distinguishing sign of the gods’. In the Tai. Br. (I. 6. 8.) we read ‘wearing in the prācīnāvīta form he offers towards the south; for in the case of pitṛs, acts are performed towards the south. Disregarding that one should wear in the upavīta form and offer in the north only, since both gods and pitṛs are worshipped (in this rite)’. ⁵⁸ The three words nivīta, prācīnāvīta and upavīta are explained in the Gobhila gr. (I. 2. 2–4) which says ‘raising his right arm, putting the head into (the upavīta) he suspends (the cord) over his left shoulder in such a way that it hangs down on his right side; thus he becomes yajñopavītiṇ Passing his left arm, putting the head (into the upavīta) he suspends it over his right shoulder, so that it hangs down along his left side; in this way he becomes prācīnāvītin; a person becomes prācīnāvītin only in the sacrifice offered to the Manes’. ⁵⁹ To the same effect is Khādira gr. I. 1. 8-9, Manu II. 63, Bauḍ gr. paribhāṣā-sūtra II. 2. 7 and 10, Vaik. I. 5. The Bauḍ⁶⁰ gr. paribhāṣā-sūtra II. 2. 3 says ' when it is carried over the neck, both shoulders and the chest and is held with both the thumbs ( of the two hands ) lower than the region of the heart and above the navel, that is nivīta; (when the śruti says it is) for men, what it means is that it is for sageṣ The occasions when nivīta mode is used are: ṛṣi-tarpaṇa, sexual intercourse, saṁskāras of one's children except when homa is to be performed, answering the calls of nature, carrying a corpse and whatever other actions are meant only for men; nivīta is what hangs from the neck '.

The Śat. Br. ( II. 4. 2. 1, S. B. E. vol. 12, p. 361 ) says "the gods being yajñopavītins approached near, bending their right knee; he ( Prajāpati ) said to them ' the sacrifice is your food, immortality is your strength, the sun is your light'; then the pitṛs approached him, being prācīnāvītins and bending their left knee and then men approached him covered with a garment and bending their bodies" etc.⁶¹ It is important to note here that men are said to have been covered only with a garment and there is no reference in their case to any mode of wearing either as yajñopavīta or nivīta or prācīnāvīta. This rather suggests that men wore only garments when approaching gods and not necessarily a cord of threadṣ In the Tai.⁶² Br. III. 10. 9. it is said that when vāk ( speech ) appeared to Devabhāga Gautama he put on the yajñopavīta and fell down with the words ' namo namaḥ '.

It seems to follow from a passage in the Tai. Ā. ( II. 1 ) that a strip of black antelope skin or of cloth was used in ancient times as upavīta⁶³ ' the sacrifice of him who wears the yajñopavita becomes spread out (prosperous, famous), while the sacrifice of him who does not wear it does not spread ; whatever a brāhmaṇa studies, wearing a yajñopavita, he really (therein) performs a sacrifice. Therefore one should study, sacrifice or officiate at a sacrifice with the yajñopavita on for securing the spreading of sacrifice ; having worn an antelope skin or a garment on the right side, he raises the right hand and keeps the left down ; this is yajñopavita; when this position is reversed it is prācīnāvīta ; the position called saṁvīta is for meṇ' It is remarkable that here at any rate no cord of threads is meant by upavita, but only a piece of skin or cloth. The Par. M. (I. part 1 p. 173 ) quotes⁶⁴ a portion of the above passage and remarks that the Tai. Ār. lays down that a man becomes an upavitin by wearing one of the two, viz. antelope skin and ( cotton ) garment.

In the Pūrvamīmāṁsāsūtra (III. 1. 21) it is established (with reference to the words) in the Tai. S. II. 5. 11. 1 (upavyayate etc. quoted in f. ṇ 671) that one has to be an upavitin throughout all the actions, prescribed in the sections on the Darśa-Pūrṇamāsa sacrifice and not only when the Sāmidhenī verses are reciteḍ The first part of the same passage is discussed by Jaimini (III. 4. 1–9) and it is established that the passage enjoins the wearing of upavita in Darśı-Pūrṇamāsa which is devakarma and that the reference to prācīnāvīta and nīvīta is only an anuvāda intended to emphasize the desirability of the wearing of upavita in sacri- fices to godṣ The Tantravārtika⁶⁵ explains that nīvīta is tying the upavita round the throat like a braid of hair (according to some), while according to others it is tying it round the waist as if for girding up the loins and that the first is not done except in battle, while the latter has to be resorted to in all acts in order to devote sole attention to theṃ So according to the Tantravārtika, the Tai. S. is not referring (in II. 5. 11. 1) to a cord of threads but to a piece of cloth. Some of the sūtrakāras and commentators drop hints that garments were used or could be used as upavita. Āp. Dh. S. (II. 2. 4. 22–23) says that a householder should always wear an upper garment and then adds ' or the sacred thread may serve the purpose of an upper garment.' This shows that originally upavita meant an upper garment and not merely a cord of threadṣ In another place the same sūtra says (II. 8. 19. 12) 'one (who partakes of śrāddha dinner) should eat covered with an upper garment slung over the left shoulder and passing under the right arm'. Haradatta gives two explanations of this, viz. that one should wear an upper garment (while dining at a śrāddha) like a yajñopavita i. e. under the right arm and over the left shoulder, that is, a brāhmaṇa cannot rely on Āp. Dh. S. II. 2. 4. 23 and wear at śrāddha repast only the sacred thread (but he must wear the garment in that fashion) and give up the sacred thread for the time.⁶⁶ While another view is that he must wear the sacred thread and the upper garment both in the fashion of upavita. Āp. Dh. S. (I. 2. 6. 18–19) prescribes that when a student wears two garments he should wear one of them (i. e. the upper one) in the yajñopavita mode, but when he wears only one garment then he should wear it round the lower part of the body (and should not cover the upper body with a portion of the garment though it may be long enough for that). Āp. Dh. S. I. 5. 15. 1 prescribes that a man must be yajñopavītin at the time of waiting upon teachers, elders, guests, at the time of homa, in japa (murmuring prayer), at meals and in taking ācamana and at the time of daily vedic study. On this Haradatta says 'yajñopavita means a particular mode of wearing the (upper) garment; if one has no upper garment, then there is another (but inferior) mode stated in Āp. Dh. S. II. 2. 4. 23 and that at other times it is not necessary to have the yajñopavita'.

The Gobhila gr. (I. 2. 1) in treating of upanayana ⁶⁷ says 'the student takes as yajñopavita a cord of threads, a garment or a rope of kuśa grass¹. This indicates that though a cord of threads was considered in Gobhila's days as the appropriate yajñopavita, that was not an invariable rule in his day and that a garment could be employed insteaḍ The commentator being brought up in the latter day tradition explains by saying that if the sūtra was lost in a forest then a garment may be worn like the sacred thread and if even that was lost a rope of kuśa. But this appears to be rather far-fetched as an explanation of Gobhila's unqualified wordṣ Manu (II. 44) says that ‘the upavīta of a brāhmaṇa should be made of cotton, its strands should be twined with the right hand moved over them (or the twist of the strands must be upwards) and it should have three threads’. Medhātithi comments on this that ‘upavīta’ means a particular mode of wearing a garment or a particular position of it and therefore here by upavīta is meant that which can be worn in that mode. The Sṃ C. quotes a prose passage from Ṛṣyaśṛṅga ‘or one may carry out all the purposes for which yajñopavīta is required by means of a garment and in its absence by a string of three threads’. From the above passages, from the fact that many of the gṛhyasūtras are entirely silent about the giving or wearing of the sacred thread in upanayana and from the fact that no mantra⁶⁸² is cited from the Vedic Literature for the act of giving the yajñopavīta (which is now the centre of the upanayana rites), while scores of vedic mantras are cited for the several component parts of the ceremony of upanayana, it is most probable, if not certain, that the sacred thread was not invariably used in the older times as in the times of the later smṛtis and in modern times, that originally the upper garment was used in various positions for certain acts, that it could be laid aside altogether in the most ancient times and that the cord of threads came to be used first as an option and later on exclusively for the upper garment.

A few rules about yajñopavīta may now be stated here.⁶⁸³ The yajñopavīta is to have three threads of nine strands well twisted (for each thread). Vide Bauḍ Dh.S.I. 5.5., Devala quoted in the Sṃ C.⁷⁰ The nine devatās of the nine tantus (strands) are given by Devala viz. Omkāra, Agni, Nāga, Soma, Pitṛs, Prajāpati, Vāyu, Sūrya,⁷¹ all godṣ Medhātithi on Manu II.44 says that in iṣṭis, animal sacrifices and soma sacrifices, the yajñopavīta was to have only one thread of three tantus, but it was three-fold in three classes of ahīna, ekāha, and sattra sacrifices as they required three fires and in the seven somasaṁsthās seven-fold and five-fold when viewed with reference to the three savanas and two saṁdhyāṣ The yajñopavīta should reach as far as the navel, should not reach beyond the navel, nor should it be above the chest.⁷² Manu II. 44 and Viṣṇu Dh. S. 27. 19 prescribe that the yajñopavīta for brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya and vaiśya should respectively be of cotton, hemp and sheep wool. Bauḍ Dh. S. (I. 5. 5), Gobhila gr. (I. 2. 1) say that it may be of cotton thread or of kuśa grass and Devala as quoted in Sṃ C. says that all twice-born persons should make their yajñopavīta of cotton, of kṣumā, hair of cow’s tail, hemp, tree bark or kuśa according to the availability of the material.⁷³ The remarks of the Saṁskāramayūkha after quoting Manu II. 44 are interesting ' we do not know the origin of (or authority for) the practice of present-day kṣatriyas and vaiśyas, viz. of wearing cotton yajñopavīta '. This shows that in the 17th century A. D. many kṣatriyas and vaiśyas put on yajñopavīta.⁷⁴ Kumārila also says that wearing yajñopavīta and studying Vedas is common to all the three varṇaṣ

The number of yajñopavītas to be worn differed according to circumstanceṣ A brahmacārī was to wear only one yajñopavīta and saṁnyāsins, when they kept yajñopavīta at all, also wore only one. A snātaka ⁷⁵ (i. e. one who has returned from the teacher's house after brahmacarya ) and a house-holder were to wear two while one who desired long life may wear more than two. Vaṣ Dh. S. XII. 14 says ‘snātakas should always wear a lower garment and an upper one, two yajñopavitas, should have a stick and a pot filled with water’. Kaśyapa allowed a householder to wear any number up to teṇ Whether yajñopavita as worn in modern times was worn from the most ancient times or not, it is certain that long before the Christian era it had come to be so worn and it had become an inflexible rule that a brāhmaṇa must always wear a yajñopavita and have his top-knot (of hair) always tied up; if he did any act without observing this rule, it was inefficaciouṣ⁷⁶ Vaṣ⁷⁷ and Bauḍ Dh. S. (II. 2. 1) both say that a man must always wear yajñopavita. If a brāhmaṇa took his meals without wearing yajñopavita, he had to undergo prāyaścitta viz. to bathe, to mutter prayers and fast; vide Laghu-Hārīta verse 23 quoted by Aparārka pp. 1171, 1173. The Mit. on Yāj. III. 292 prescribes prāyaścitta for answering calls of nature without having the yajñopavita placed on the right ear (as Yāj. I. 16 prescribes). Manu IV. 66 forbids the wearing of another’s yajñopavita along with several other things (such as shoes, ornament, garland and kamaṇḍalu ). In Yāj. (I. 16 and 133 ) and other smṛtis the yajñopavita is called brahmasūtra.

An interesting question is whether women ever had upanayana performed or whether they had to wear the yajñopavita. Several smṛtis contain instructive dicta on this point.⁷⁸ The Hārītadharmasūtra as quoted in the Sṃ C. and other digests says ‘there are two sorts of women, those that are brahma- vādinīs (i. e. students of sacred lore) and those that are sadyo- vadhūs (i. e. who straightway marry). Out of these brahma- vādinīs have to go through upanayana, keeping fire, Vedic study and begging in one’s house (i. e. under the parental roof); but in the case of sadyovadhūs when their marriage is drawing near, the mere ceremony of upanayana should somehow be performed and then their marriage should be celebrateḍ’ In the Gobhila gr. ⁷⁹ II. 1. 19 it is said “leading forward towards the sacred fire (from the house) the bride who is wrapped in a robe and wears the sacred thread (slung from her left shoulder, in the yajñopavīta mode) he (the husband) should murmur the verse ‘Soma gave her to Gandharva’ (Rg. X. 85. 41)”. It is clear that the girl, according to Gobhila, wore the yajñopavīta as a symbol of the rite of upanayana. The commentator to whom this procedure naturally seemed strange explains ‘yajñopavītinīm’ as meaning ‘whose upper garment is worn in the fashion of the sacred thread’. In the Saṁskāra- tattva of Raghunandana it is stated that Hariśarmā held that according to Gobhila the bride was to wear a yajñopavīta, though Raghunandana himself does not approve of this expla- natioṇ In the ceremony of Samāvartana, Āśv. gr. III. 8, ⁸⁰ on the subject of applying ointment says ‘after having smeared the two hands with ointment a brāhmaṇa should salve his face first, a kṣatriya his two arms, a vaiśya his belly, a woman her private parts and persons who gain their livelihood by running, their thighs’. It is improper to say, as some do, that as to women this is a general rule interpolated in the treatment of samāvartana and has nothing to do with the latter. We should rather hold that Āśv. knew of women undertaking Vedic study and so prescribed what they should do in their samāvartana. In the Mahābhārata (Vanaparva 305. 20)⁸¹ a brāhmaṇa is said to have taught to the mother of the Pāṇḍava heroes a number of mantras from the Atharvaśiraṣ Hārita⁸² prescribes that in the case of women samāvartana took place before the appearance of menseṣ Therefore brahmavādinī women had upanayana performed in the 8th year from conception, then they studied Vedic lore and finished student-hood at the age of puberty. Yama⁸³ says 'in former ages, tying of the girdle of muñja (i. e. upanayana) was desired in the case of maidens, they were taught the vedas and made to recite the Sāvitrī (the sacred Gāyatrī verse); either their father, uncle or brother taught them and not a stranger and begging was prescribed for a maiden in the house itself and she was not to wear deer-skin or bark garment and was not to have matted hair'. Manu seems to have been aware of this usage as prevalent in ancient times, if not his owṇ Having spoken of the saṁskāras from jātakarama to upanayana, Manu winds up (II. 66) 'these ceremonies were to be performed in their entirety for women also, but without mantras' and adds (II. 67) 'the ceremony of marriage is the only saṁskāra performed with Vedic mantras in the case of women; (in their case) attendance on the husband amounts to serving a guru (which a student had to do) and performance of domestic duties to worship of fire' (which the student had to perform by offering a fuel-stick in the evening every day). This shows that in the day of the Manusmṛti, upanayana for women had gone out of practice, though there were faint glimmerings of its performance for women in former dayṣ Relying on the words 'in former ages' occurring in the verses of Yama quoted above medieval digests like the Sṃ C., the Nirṇayasindhu and others say that this practice belonged to another yuga. In Bāṇabhaṭṭa's Kādambarī,⁸⁴ Mahāśvetā (who was practising tapas) is described as 'one whose body was rendered pure by (wearing) a brahmasūtra (i. e. yajñopavīta)'. The yajñopavīta came to have superhuman virtues attributed to it and so probably even women who were practising austerities wore it. The Saṁ. Pr. (p. 419) quotes a verse saying that the Supreme Being is called yajña and yajñopavīta is so called because it belongs to the Supreme Being (or is used in sacrifices for Him ).⁸⁵

Though kṣatriyas and vaiśyas also were entitled to have the upanayana performed, it appears that they often neglected it or at least neglected the constant wearing of yajñopavīta, so much so that from comparatively early times the yajñopavīta came to be regarded as the peculiar indicator of the wearer's being of the brāhmaṇa caste. For example, Kālidāsa in Raghuvamśa (XI. 64)⁸⁶ while describing the irate brāhmaṇa hero Paraśu-rāma says ‘wearing the upavīta, which was the heritage that came to him from his father, and holding a formidable bow that came to him from the side of his mother (who was a kṣatriya princess)'. If the upavīta had been as constantly worn by the kṣatriyas as by brāhmaṇas in Kālidāsa's day he would not have spoken of it as the peculiar sign of a brāhmaṇa. In the drama Veṇīsaṃhāra (Act III) when Karṇa resented the attitude of Aśvatthāman, who raised his left foot for kicking Karṇa, and said that he could not cut off his leg as by virtue of his caste (as brāhmaṇa) he could not be punished in that way, Aśvatthā-man replied by throwing away his sacred thread with the words 'here do I give up my caste'.⁸⁷ That shows that in the days of the Veṇīsaṃhāra (not later than about 600 A. D.) the yajñopavīta had become the peculiar indicator of the caste of brāhmaṇas only.

The Baudhāyana-sūtra quoted in the Saṃskāra-ratnamālā (p. 188) says that yarn spun by a brāhmaṇa or his maiden daughter is to be brought, then one is to measure first 96 aṅgulas of it with the syllable bhūḥ, then another 96 with bhuvaḥ and a third 96 with svaḥ, then the yarn so measured is to be kept on a leaf of palāśa and is to be sprinkled with water to the accompaniment of the three mantras 'āpo hi sthā' (Rg. X. 9. 1-3), with the four verses 'Hiraṇyavarṇāḥ' (Tai. S. V. 6. 1 and Atharva I. 33. 1-4) and with the anuvāka beginning with 'pavamānaḥ suvarjanaḥ' (Tai. Br. I. 4. 8) and with the Gāyatrī, then the yarn is to be taken in the left hand and there is to be a clapping of the two hands thrice, the yarn is to be twisted with the three verses 'bhūragṇim ca' (Tai. Br. III. 10. 2) and then the knot is to be tied with the formula 'Bhūrbhuvah svaś- candramasam ca' (Tai. Br. III. 10. 2) and the nine deities 'oṁkāra, Agni (quoted above in note 685)' have to be invoked on the nine strands, then the upavīta is to be taken with the mantra 'devasya tvā' and then it is to be shown to the sun with the verse 'ud vayam tamasaspari' (Rg. I. 50. 10) and then the yajñopavīta is to be put on with the verse 'yajñopavītam &c.' Then there is to be a japa of the gāyatrī verse and then ācamana. For a brief statement of the mode of putting on a fresh sacred thread vide note below.⁸⁸

The Baudhāyana-gṛhyasūtra (II. 8. 1–12) gives a few insignificant points of difference as to the upanayana of kṣatriyas, vaiśyas, ambaṣṭha and karaṇa (son of a vaiśya from a śūdra female). It is not necessary to go into these detailṣ

The next important question is as to whether upanayana was performed in the case of the blind, the deaf and dumb, the idiotic &c. Jaimini has established that those who are devoid of a limb⁸⁹ or agnihotra, but this inability arises only when the defect is incurable. Similarly the Āp. Dh. S. II. 6. 14. 1, Gaut. 28. 41-42, Vaṣ 17. 52-54, Manu 9. 201, Yāj. II. 140-141, Viṣṇu. Dh. S. 15. 32 ff. lay down that persons who are impotent, patita, congenitally blind or deaf, cripple and those who suffer from incurable diseases are not entitled to share property on a partition, but are only entitled to be maintaineḍ But they all allow even these to marry. As marriage is not possible for dvijātis unless upanayana precedes it, it appears that the cere- mony of upanayana was gone through as far as it could be carried out in the case of the blind, the deaf and dumb &c. The Bauḍ gr. śeṣasūtra (II. 9) prescribes a special procedure for the upanayana of the deaf and dumb and idiotṣ The principal points in which their upanayana differs from that of others are that the offering of samidh, treading on a stone, putting on a garment, the tying of mekhalā, the giving of deer skin and staff are done silently, that the boy does not mention his name, it is the ācārya himself who makes offerings of cooked food or of clarified butter, all the mantras are muttered softly by the ācārya himself. The sūtra ⁹⁰ says that according to some the same procedure is followed as to other persons who are impotent, blind, lunatics, or suffering from such diseases as epilepsy, white leprosy or black leprosy &c. The Nirṇayasindhu quotes a passage from the Brahmapurāṇa cited in the Prayogapārijāta about the upanayana of the impotent, the deaf and others which contains rules similar to Baudhāyana'ṣ The Saṃ Pr. (pp. 399-401) and S. R. M. (pp. 273-274) also quote the passage and explain it. The purāṇa ⁹¹ says that those who cannot repeat the Gāyatrī (such as the deaf and dumb) should be brought near the teacher or fire and that the teacher should then touch them and then mutter the Gāyatrī himself, but that in other cases such as lunatics, they should be made to repeat the Gāyatrī at least if possible and if that too is not possible, then on touching them the ācārya should repeat it. The same purāṇa prescribes that kuṇḍa and golaka (the first being the offspring of an adulterous intercourse when the husband is living and the second when the husband is dead) should have upanayana performed in the same way as for the deaf and dumb, if it is known that the adulterer and the woman were both of the brāhmaṇa caste. There is some difference of opinion as to kuṇḍa and golaka. Manu (II. 174) defined them as above. Āp. Dh. S. II. 6. 13. 1, Manu (10. 5) and Yāj. (I. 90, 92) ⁹² expressly say that a person born of a brāhmaṇa from a brāhmaṇa woman belongs to the same caste only if he is born in lawful wedlock and that even the anuloma sons must be born in wedlock. The kuṇḍa and golaka being the offspring of adultery would not really be brāhmaṇas even though both parents were brāhmaṇaṣ Thus, though these two are not strictly brāhmaṇas, upanayana of a secondary kind is allowed to theṃ Manu (III. 156) included the kuṇḍa and golaka among brāhmaṇas not to be invited at śrāddha. Elaborate discussions have been held why they were so specially mentioned, when they were not on Manu's own dictum brāhmaṇaṣ Some like the author of the Saṃgraha held that the kuṇḍa and golaka forbidden by Manu in śrāddha were those born under the ancient practice of niyoga; while others repudiated the idea that those born under the practice of niyoga had any taint attaching to theṃ⁹³

It is not necessary to go into the question of the upanayana of mixed casteṣ Manu (X. 41) says that the six anulomas are eligible for the rites of dvijas (and so for upanayana) and the Mit.⁹⁴ on Yāj. I. 92 and 95 says that the anulomas have upanayana performed according to the rules of the caste of the mother and further mixed castes arising from the six anuloma castes in the anuloma order are also eligible for upanayana. The Bauḍ gr. śeṣasūtra II. 8 gives rules for the upanayana of kṣatriyas, vaiśyas and of mixed castes like rathakāra, ambastha &c. Gaut.⁹⁵ IV. 21 made an exception in the case of the son of a brāhmaṇa from a śūdra womaṇ All pratilomas were like śūdra according to Manu (IV. 41) and the offspring of a brāhmaṇa from a śūdra woman, though anuloma, was like pratilomaṣ A śūdra is only ekajāti and not dvijāti (Gaut. X. 51) and for the pratilomas (as well as for the śūdra) there was no upanayana.

Upanayana was so highly thought of that some of the ancient texts prescribe a method of upanayana for the Aśvattha tree. Vide Bauḍ gr. śeṣasūtra II. 10. In modern times also rarely this upanayana is performeḍ To the west of the Aśvattha tree homa is performed, the saṃskāras from puṃsavana are imitated but with the vyāhṛtis only, the tree being touched with Rg. III. 8. 11 'vanaspate'. A piece of cloth is held between the tree and the performer, then eight auspicious verses are repeated (manga-lāstaka), the cloth is removed and then the hymn called Dhruva-sūkta (Rg. X. 72. 1–9) is repeateḍ Other mantras (like Rg. X. 62–63) are also reciteḍ Then a piece of cloth, yajñopavīta, girdle, staff and deer-skin are given with appropriate mantras and lastly after touching the tree, the Gāyatrī is repeateḍ In E. C. vol. III. Malavalli No. 22 there is a reference to the upanayana of Aśvattha trees performed by one Bāchappa in 1358 A. D.

Sāvitryupadeśa :—It will be seen from the passage of the Śat. Br. quoted above (in note 625) that the sacred Gāyatrī verse was imparted in very ancient times to the student by the teacher a year, or six months, 24, 12 or 3 days after upanayana and that the Śat. Br. prescribes that in the case of brāhmaṇa students this must be done immediately. This ancient rule was probably due to the fact that students in those far-off times when they came to the teacher at the age of seven or eight had hardly any previous instruction and so must have found it difficult to pronounce properly and correctly the sacred verse immediately on initiatioṇ It is for this reason that so modern a work as the S. R. M. (p. 194) says that such mantras as ‘Śan-no devirabhiṣṭaye’ (Rg. X. 9. 4) which have to be repeated by the brahmacārī in the rites of upanayana should be taught to him even before upanayana, just as the wife (who being a woman had no upanayana performed) was taught the Vedic mantras accompanying such acts as that of examining ājya in sacrificeṣ⁹⁶ The same rule⁹⁷ of postponing the instruc-tion in Gāyatrī is stated in Śāṇ gr. II, 5, Mānava gr. I. 22. 15, Bhār. gr. I. 9, Pār. gr. II. 3. The general practice however seems to have been to impart the Gāyatrī that very day. According to the most of the sūtras the teacher sits to the north of the fire facing the east and in front of him the student sits facing the west and then the student requests the teacher to recite to him the verse sacred to Savitṛ and the teacher imparts to him first one pāda at a time, then two pādas and then the whole. According to Bauḍ gr. II. 5. 34-37 the student places on the fire four fuel sticks of the palāśa or other sacrificial tree anointed with clarified butter and repeats mantras to Agni, Vāyu, Aditya and the lord of vratas with ‘svāhā’ when offering⁷¹² theṃ Various intricate modes occur in the sūtras and the commentaries thereon about how this first instruction in Gāyatrī is to be carried out. The differences are due to the place assigned to the vyāhṛtis⁷¹³ ( bhūḥ, bhuvaḥ, svaḥ ). Two illustrations are set out below froin Sudarśana⁷¹⁴ on Ap. gr. II. 11. The syllable ‘om’ has been looked upon as very sacred from ancient times and is a symbol of the Supreme Being. The Tai. Br. II. 11 contains a eulogy of ‘omkāra’ and quotes Rg. I. 164. 39 in support ‘rco akṣare parame &c.' taking the word ‘akṣara’ to mean the ‘omkāra’. The Tai. Up. I. 8. says ‘( syllable ) om is Brahma ; om is all this ( universe )’. A brāhmaṇa about to begin the teaching ( of the Veda ) says ‘om’ with the idea that he may reach near brahmāṇ ‘Om’ is called pranava. Ap. Dh. S. I. 4. 13. 6 says ‘oṁkāra is the door to heaven; therefore one who is about to study the Veda, should start his study by first repeating oṃ' Manu (II. 74) prescribes the repetition of pranava at the beginning and at the end of daily Vedic study and further on (II. 76) says that the three letters 'a', 'u', 'm' (in om) and the three vyāhṛtis were distilled from the three vedas by Prajāpati as the essence. Medhātithi on Manu (II. 74) says that 'om must be uttered at the beginning of the daily Vedic study by the student or by the householder (when performing brahmayajña), but it is not necessary in japa' &c. In the Mārkaṇḍeya-purāṇa chap. 42, Vāyu chap. 20, Vṛddha-Hārīta-smṛti VI. 59-62 and in numerous other places there are hyperbolical or esoteric identifications of the three letters of om with Viṣṇu, Lakṣmī and the jīva, with the three Vedas, with the three worlds, with three fires &c. In the Kāthopaniṣad I. 2. 15-17 om is said to be the end of all Vedas, the source of the knowledge of brahma and also its symbol.

The sacred Gāyatrī verse is Rg. III. 62. 10 and occurs in the other Vedas also. It is addressed to Savitṛ (the sun) and may also be interpreted as a prayer to the Source and Inspirer of everything. It literally means 'we contemplate that esteemed (longed for) refulgence (glory) of the divine Savitṛ who may inspire our intellects (or actions)'. Some gṛhya sūtras prescribe the same verse for all students, whether brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas or vaiśyaṣ But others say that for brāhmaṇa the Sāvitrī verse is the Gāyatrī, but for kṣatriyas and vaiśyas, a sāvitrī (verse addressed to Savitṛ) in the Triṣṭubh (having 11 syllables in each quarter) or Jagatī (12 syllables in each quarter) should be the proper one. Here again there is difference. According to the commentators on the Kāṭhaka gṛ. (4I. 20), the verse ‘adabdhebhiḥ savitā’ (Kāṭhakam IV. 10) and the verse ‘Viśvā rūpāṇi’ (Kāṭhakam XVI. 8) are cited as the Sāvitrī for a kṣatriya and a vaiśya respectively; while the commentator on Śāṅ. gṛ. (II. 5. 4-6) says that the Triṣṭubh which is to be taught as the Sāvitrī to the kṣatriya students is ‘ā kṛṣṇena rajasā’ (Rg. I. 35. 2) and the Jagatī Sāvitrī for the vaiśya is ‘Hiraṇya-pāṇih savitā’ (Rg. I. 35. 9) or ‘haṁsaḥ śuciṣad’ (Rg. IV. 40. 5). According to the Vārāhagṛhya (5) ‘devo yāti savitā’ and ‘yuñjate manaḥ’ (Rg. V. 81.1) are the Triṣṭubh and Jagatī meant as Sāvitrī for the kṣatriya and vaiśya respectively. According to Śātātapa quoted in the Madanapārijāta (p. 23) the verse ‘Deva savitaḥ’ (Tai. S. I. 7. 7. 1, Kāṭhakam XIII. 14) is the sāvitrī for the kṣatriya. According to Medhātithi on Manu II. 38 ‘ā kṛṣṇena (Rg. I. 35. 2) and ‘viśvā rūpāṇi’ (Kāṭhakam XVI. 8) are the two Sāvitrīs respectively for kṣatriya and vaiśya. That all these rules about the Sāvitrī being in the Gāyatrī, Triṣṭubh and Jagatī metres for the three varṇas respectively are probably very ancient follows from the text 'gāyatryā brāhmaṇamupajajata triṣṭubhā rājanyam &c.' (quoted in note 356 above). The Āsv. gr., while Pār. gr. II. 3 allows an option viz. all varṇas may learn the Gāyatrī or the Sāvitrī verses in the Gāyatrī, Triṣṭubh and Jagati respectively.¹⁰¹ Why the Gāyatrī verse (Ṛg. III. 62. 10) came to be famous it is difficult to say. Its fame was probably due to its grand simplicity and to its adaptability to an idealistic conception of the world as emanating from an all-pervading Intelligence. The Gopathā Brāhmaṇa (I. 32–33) explains the Gāyatrī in various wayṣ In the Tai. Ār. (II. 11) it is stated that the mystic words 'bhūḥ. bhuvaḥ, svaḥ' are the truth (essence) of speech and that Savitā in the Gāyatrī means 'one who en- genders glory'.¹⁰² Atharvaveda 19. 71. 1 calls it 'vedamātā' and prays that it may confer long life, glory, children, cattle &c. on the singer.¹⁰³ The Bṛ. Up. V. 14. 1-6¹⁰⁴ contains a sublime eulogy of Gāyatrī which word is there derived from 'gaya' meaning 'prāṇa', and the root 'trai' (to save) and it is said that when the teacher repeats the Gāyatrī for the benefit of the young student he thereby saves the boy's life (from ignorance and the effects of sin ). The Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 10 mentions a brāhmaṇa text to the effect that the Sāvitrī is recited for all the Vedas ( i. e. by its recital all Vedas become recited as it is their essence ). Manu II. 77 ( = Viṣṇu Dh. S. 55. 14) says that each pāda of the Sāvitrī was as if extracted from each of the three Vedas and that (II. 81 = Viṣṇu Dh. S. 55. 15 ) the Sāvitrī together with om and the three mystic syllables (bhūḥ &c.) is the mouth of Vedic lore (since Vedic study starts with it, or 'brahma' may mean 'the Supreme Being'). Manu II. 77–83, Viṣṇu Dh. S. 55. 11-17, Saṅkhāsmṛti XII, Samvarta (verses 216–223), Brhat-Parāśara chap. V (where the mystical significance of each of the 24 letters of the Gāyatrī is explained) and numerous¹⁰⁵ other works contain hyperbolical eulogies of Gāyatrī. Parāśara V. 1 calls it ‘Vedamātā’. The words ‘Apo jyoti rasoṁṛtam brahma bhūr-bhuvaḥ svarom’ are said to be the śiras (head) of the Gāyatrī (vide Śaṅkhasmṛti XII. 12). Manu (II. 104) and others prescribe that every day a brahmacārī (as well as others) must perform japa of Gāyatrī. Bauḍ Dh. S. II 4. 7-9 prescribes that in the evening Samdhyā adoration one should murmur the Gāyatrī a thousand times, or a hundred times with prāṇāyāma each time or ten times with ‘om’ and the seven vyāhṛtiṣ¹⁰⁶ Vaṣ Dh. S. 26. 15 prescribes that a man desirous of purifying himself from sin should repeat the divine Gāyatrī 1000 times (daily) as the maximum or 100 times (as the middle way) or at least ten timeṣ There are mantras for invoking the Gāyatrī and for taking leave of it.¹⁰⁷

Brahmacāri-dharmāḥ :—Certain rules and observances are prescribed for all brahmacārins¹⁰⁸. They are of two kinds, some are prescribed for a very short time and some have to be observed for all the years of studenthooḍ The Āśv. gr. I. 22. 17¹⁰⁹ says “for three nights, or twelve nights or a year, after upanayana The brahmacārī should not eat 'kṣāra' and 'lavaṇa' and should sleep on the ground". The same rule is stated by Bauḍ gr. II. 5. 55 (adding the maintenance of the fire kindled at the upanayana for three days), Bhār. gr. I. 10, Pār. gr. II. 5, Khādira gr. II. 4. 33 (adding avoidance of milk also for three days). Hir. gr. (I. 8. 2) specially prescribes for the first three days the avoidance of kṣāra, of lavaṇa and vegetables, and the duty of sleeping on the ground, of not drinking out of an earthen vessel, of not giving the remnants of his food to śūdras and several other observances which he has to continue throughout the period of student-hooḍ These latter are briefly indicated in Manu II. 108 and 176 viz. offering samidhs into fire, begging for food, not using a cot, working for the teacher, daily bath, tarpaṇa of gods, sages and pitṛs &c.

The observances that last throughout the period of student-hood are first seen in the passage of the Śat. Br. (quoted above in note 625 ). The same are laid down in Āśv. gr. I. 22. 2 (quoted on p. 283 above), Pār. gr. II. 3, Āp. Mantrapāṭha (II. 6. 14), Kāṭhaka gr. (41. 17) and other textṣ These are principally ācamana, guruśuśrūṣā, vāksamyama (silence ), samidādhāna. When the teacher says in the upanayana ' drink water, do work &c ', the student is to reply with the word ' yes ' ('bādham ' or om ). But the sūtras and smṛtis lay down many rules about these and other observances; vide Gaut. II. 10–40, Śāṅ. gr. II. 6. 8, Gobhila gr. III. 1.27, Khādira gr. II. 5. 10–16, Hir. gr. 8.1–7, Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 3. 11–I. 2. 7. 30, Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2, Manu II. 49–249, Yāj. I. 16–32 &c. The rules centre principally round agniparicaryā (worshipping fire ), bhikṣā (begging for food), sandhyopāsanā, study of Veda and its methods and duration, avoidance of certain foods and drinks and other matters like singing &c., guruśuśrūṣā (including honouring him and his family and other elders ), and the special vratas of the brahmacārī. These principal topics will be dealt with in some detail now. Before doing so some other matters will have to be briefly disposed off.

On the 4th day after upanayana a rite was performed called Medhājanana¹¹⁰ (generation of intelligence) by virtue of which it was supposed that the student's intellect was made capable of mastering Vedic lore. Āśv. gr. I. 22. 18-19 deals with thiṣ The teacher makes the student sprinkle water in an unobjectionable direction thrice from the left to the right with a pot of water round about a palaśa tree that has one root, or round a bunch of kuśa grass if there is no palaśa, and makes him repeat the mantra 'Oh glorious one, thou art gloriouṣ As thou, glorious one, are glorious, thus, glorious one, make me full of glory. As thou art the preserver of the treasure of sacrifice for the gods, thus may I become the preserver of the treasure of Veda among men'¹¹¹. The Bhār. gr. (I. 10) also prescribes this rite on the fourth day after upanayana and says that a palaśa tree with one root is to be anointed with ājya and the mantra 'suśravaḥ' (the same as in Āśv.) is to be muttereḍ Kāṭhaka gr. 41. 18, Mānava gr. I. 22. 17 also refer to thiṣ The Sāṃ Pr. (pp. 444-446) gives a more elaborate descriptioṇ In addition to what is stated in Āśv. gr. it quotes from Śaunaka and adds a few more details, viz. the student deposits at the root of the palaśa his garments already worn, the staff and the girdle and then wears new ones and then when the boy returns to the house, a stream of water is poured before hiṃ The teacher takes the garments &c. left by the boy. The Āp. gr. 11. 24 says that on the fourth day the teacher takes the garments worn on the day of upanayana by the student and the boy wears new oneṣ Sudarśana on Āp. 11. 24 speaks of palaśa-karma on the fourth day. The boy goes out with his ācārya to the east or north and three sthaṇḍilas are prepared to the north or east of a palaśa tree and on these three praṇava (om ), śrāddha and medhā are invoked, are worshipped with unguents, flowers, lamp &c. (as in the regular worship of an image ), then the praṇava is worshipped with the formula 'yaś-chandasām' to 'śrutam me gopāya' (Tai. Up. I. 4.1), śrāddha with the hymn 'śraddhayāgniḥ' Rg. X. 151 and Medhā with the anuvāka 'Medhā devī' (Tai. Ār. X. 39). Then the staff is deposited at the foot of the palaśa, another staff is taken and the student returns to the house with the ācārya. In modern times in the Deccan a similar ceremony is gone through under the (Marāṭhī) name ‘Palaśulā’. We have seen above that the student has to offer samidh ( fuel stick ) into the fire on the day of upanayana. The fire kindled at the time of upanayana was to be kept up for three days and the fuel-sticks were offered in that fire during those dayṣ Afterwards samidh was to be offered in the ordinary fire ( vide Bauḍ gr. II. 5. 55-57, Āp. gr. 11. 22 ). The student is required to offer every day after upanayana a samidh into fire in the evening and in the morning. Āśv. gr. I. 22. 6 prescribes this and the commentator Nārāyana adds that in so doing he has to observe the procedure prescribed in Āśv. gr. I. 20. 10-I. 21. 4 for the putting on of samidh on the first day. Sāṇ gr. II. 10, Manu II. 186, Yāj. I. 25 and almost all others prescribe the offering of samidh into fire in the evening as well as in the morning ; but Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 4. 17 notes that according to some ‘agnipūjā’ was to be performed in the evening only. Āp. Dh. S. (1. 1. 4. 14-20) lays down the following rules: ‘the student ⁷²⁶ should always bring fuel from the forest and heap it on a low place (otherwise if placed high it may fall on anybody's head ), one should not go out after sunset for bringing fuel-stickṣ Hav- ing kindled fire, having swept round it he should offer fuel-sticks in the evening and the morning as already directed ( in the gṛhyasūtra. One should sweep round the fire that is burning red-hot with the hand and not with a broom ( of kuśa grass ).’ The Āp. Dh. S. I. 5. 15. 12 further prescribes that no fuel is to be placed on fire (in śrauta and smārta rites) unless water has been sprinkled over it. The student had not only to offer samidhs on his own account into the fire, but he had to help his ācārya in the latter's worship of fire by bringing fuel and by offering oblations for his ācārya when the latter was away on a journey or was ill. The Āśv. gr. I. 9. 1 says⁷²⁷ ‘beginning from marriage a householder should worship grhya fire himself or his wife or son or maiden daughter or pupil may do so.’ The Chāndogya Up. IV. 10 contains the story of Upakosala Kāmā- layana who was a student of Satyākāma Jābāla and looked after his teacher's fires for twelve years and whom Satyākāma did not teach anything, though the wife of Satyākāma interceded on behalf of the dejected pupil. [ Ch. VII ]

A few words about samidhs may be said here. The samidh ¹¹⁴ must be of palāśa or some other yajñiya tree (used in sacrifices). Such trees are palāśa, aśvattha, nyagrodha, plakṣa, vaikańkaṭa, udumbara, bilva, candana, sarala, śāla, devadāru and khadira. The Vāyupurāṇa quoted by Aparārka (p. 51) says that palāśa samidhs should be preferred, in their absence samidhs of khadira, in the absence of the first two, of śami, rohitaka and aśvattha and in the absence of all these of arka and vetasa. The Trikāṇḍa-maṇḍana ( II. 82-84 ) has several rules on this point. The principal trees for fuelsticks (samidh) are palāśa and khadira, but samidhs of kovidāra, bibhitaka, kapittha, karabha, rājavṛkṣa, śākadruma, nīpa, nimba, karañja, tilaka, śleṣmātaka or śālmali are not to be employeḍ The samidh was not to be thicker than the thumb, was to have its bark on it, was not to be worm-eaten nor divided, nor longer nor shorter than the span (prādeśa) nor having two branches, it was to be without leaves and was to be strong.¹¹⁵ According to Hārīta ‘when death wanted to seize the brahmacārī formerly, Agni saved him from death and so a brahmacārī should serve fire’.¹¹⁶

The number of samidhs varied as shown above and not only in the worship of Agni by the brahmacārī, but also elsewhere.

Bhikṣā:—The Āśv. gr. after prescribing begging for food states (I. 22. 7-8) that the student should first beg of a man who would not refuse or of a woman who would not refuse and that in begging he should say ‘sir, give food’. More detailed rules are laid down by otherṣ

The Hir. gr. (S. B. E. vol. 30 p. 157) says “after giving the student the staff the teacher gives him a bowl ( for collecting alms) and says to him 'go out for alms'. Let him beg of his mother first, then in other families which are generously disposed; he brings the food to his guru and announces it to him with the words '( these are ) the alms' and then the teacher accepts with the words 'these are good alms'." The Bauḍ gr. II. 5. 47-53 gives the same rules and adds ¹¹⁷ that a brāhmaṇa student should beg with the words 'bhavati bhikṣām dehi' (lady, give me food), a kṣatriya with the words 'bhikṣām bhavati dehi' and a vaiśya with the words 'dehi bhikṣām bhavati.' Pār. gr. II. 5, Ap. Dh. S. I. 1. 3. 28-30, Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 17, Manu II. 49, Yāj. I. 30 and others contain the same rules about addressing the ladies for almṣ¹¹⁸ Pār. gr. II. 5 says that the student should first beg of three women who would not refuse or of six, of twelve or of an unlimited number and that according to some he should first beg of his mother. Manu II. 50 says that he should first beg of his mother, sister or mother's sister. Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 3. 26 says that if women refuse to give alms to a devout brahmacārī he snatches away or destroys their merit arising from sacrifices, gifts and burnt offerings, progeny, cattle, spiritual glory (of their families) and food and quotes a Brāhmaṇa passage 'therefore indeed one should not refuse to give food to a crowd of students moving about ( for alms ) for fear that among them there may be some one who is like this (a devout student), and who has carried out all the observances for studentṣ' If a brahmacārī cannot get food elsewhere he may beg from his own family, from his elders (like maternal uncles), his relatives and lastly from his ācārya himself. As to the persons¹¹⁹ from whom to beg for food, one sees how the growing strictness of caste rules about food during the lapse of centuries affected the brahmacārī. Āp. Dh. S. ¹²⁰ I. 1. 3. 25 prescribes that he could beg food from anybody except apapātras ( persons like cāṇḍālas ) and abhiśastas (i. e. those who are guilty of or suspected of grave sins ). Gaut. II. 41 expressly says that a brahmacārī may beg food from all the varņas except from those who are abhiśasta and patita. Manu ( II. 183 and 185 ) says a brahmacārī should beg for food at the houses of those who study the Veda and perform sacrifices, who are devoted to their duties and are virtuous in their conduct; if from such persons food cannot be had he may go about the whole village, but should avoid those who are abhiśasta. Yāj. I. 29 says ‘ for his own maintenance a brahmacārī should beg from brāhmaṇas who are blameless ’ and the ancient commentator Viśvarūpa says that the best way is to beg at brāhmaṇa houses, the next best is to beg of kṣatriya and vaiśya houses and to beg of śūdras is allowed only in āpad ( time of distress or difficulty ). Auśanasa ( Jiv. ed I. p. 505 ) says that a brahmacārī should beg only from houses of his own caste ( as the best way probably ) or he may beg at the houses of all varņas, while Āṅgiras quoted in the Par. M. ( I. 2, p. 41 ) says that even in a season of distress a brahmacārī should not beg for cooked food from śūdraṣ The Madanapārijāta p. 33 quotes a passage from the Bhaviṣyapurāṇa to the effect that a brahmacārī may beg food from anybody except a śūdra.

Food obtained by begging was supposed to be pure as said by Manu II. 189, Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 5. 56 and Yāj. I. 187. It was further said that a brahmacārī who subsists on food obtained by begging is like one observing a fast ( Manu II. 183 and Bṛhat-Parāśara p. 130 ). The brahmacārī was to eat food collected from several houses and was not to take food at a single person’s house, except that when he was requested to dinner in honour of gods or the Manes he might do so by partake- ing of such food at such dinners as would not violate his vowṣ Vide Manu II. 188–189 and Yāj. I. 32.

Corresponding to the duty of the student to beg was the obligation cast on householders to serve food according to their ability to brahmacārins and yatis (ascetics). Gautama V. 16 prescribes that after performing the daily yajñas to gods (vaiśvadeva) and offering bali to bhūtas, the householder should offer alms (of food) preceded by the word ‘svasti’ and by water. Manu III. 94, Yāj. I. 108 and others say that alms should be given to ascetics and brahmacārins with honour and welcome. The Mit. on Yāj. I. 108 says that alms should be ordinarily one morsel of food as large as the egg of a pea-hen and quotes a verse of Śātātapa¹²² saying that ‘bhikṣā is as much as one morsel, that puṣkala is equal to four morsels, hanta is equal to four puṣkalas and agra is equal to three hantas.’

The idea that a brahmacārī must beg for his food and offer fuel-sticks every day was so ingrained in ancient times that the Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 54 and Manu II. 187 ( = Viṣṇu Dh. S. 28. 52 ) prescribe that if for seven days continuously a brahmacārī who was not ill failed to offer fuel-sticks and to beg for food he violated his vow and had to undergo the same penance as was prescribed for a brahmacārī having sexual intercourse.¹²³ Even in modern times many brāhmaṇa students ( not only those who study the Veda from orthodox teachers but even those learning English ) begged for their daily food and by dint of hard discipline, patient industry and integrity rose to high positions in public life. However the practice of poor begging students attending English schools in this way is dying out, since English education does not now ensure for the poor brāhmaṇa students even a bare maintenance.

Other important rules about the begging of food are that the student should not beg for his sake alone, should announce to the teacher all that he has brought and eat only that which the teacher directs him to take; if the teacher is gone on a journey then he should announce it to the teacher’s family ( wife, son ); if even these are absent, then to other learned brāhmaṇas and eat with their permissioṇ Vide Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 3. 31–35, Manu II. 51. He should leave no residue in his dish and wash it after taking his meal thereiṇ If he is not able to eat the whole that he has brought he should bury it underground or consign it to water or place that which is more than he can eat near an ūrya or give it to a śūdra who works for his teacher (Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 3. 37–41). Āp. Dh. S. (I. 1. 3. 43–44) says that alms are held to be equal to sacrificial food, the teacher holds the place of the deity and of the āhavanīya fire.¹²⁴

Other miscellaneous acts that the students had to do were bringing¹²⁵ water for the ācārya in pots, collecting flowers, cowdung, earth, kuśa grass &c. ( vide Manu II. 182 ).

Sandhyā :—On the day of upanayana there is no morning saṁdhyā. Jaimini¹²⁶ says ‘as long as there is no imparting of the Gāyatrī there is no saṁdhyā.’ So the student begins his saṁdhyā in the noon of the day of upanayana. As however on that day he knows no Vedic text except the Gāyatrī, his whole saṁdhyā worship consists of the Gāyatrī.

The word ‘saṁdhyā’ literally means ‘twilight’, but also indicates the action of prayer performed in the morning and evening twilight. This act is generally styled ‘saṁdhyopāsanā’ or ‘saṁdhyāvandana’ or simply ‘saṁdhyā.’¹²⁷ This act of adoration is sometimes prescribed as necessary thrice a day viz. at day-break, in the noon and at sun-set e.g. Atri¹²⁸ says ‘a twice- born person possessed of the knowledge of the Self should perform three saṁdhyā adorationṣ’ These are respectively named Gāyatrī (morning one), Sāvitrī (noon) and Sarasvatī (evening one) by Yoga-yājñavalkya. Generally however the samdhyā prayer is prescribed twice (Āśv. gr. III. 7, Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 30. 8, Gaut. II. 17, Manu II. 101, Yāj. I. 24-25 &c). All prescribe that the morning¹²⁹ prayer is to be begun before sunrise and should be carried on till the disc of the sun is seen on the horizon and the evening prayer begins when the disc of the sun is about to set and goes on up to the appearance of starṣ This is the most proper time; but a secondary time was allowed up to three ghațikās after sunrise and sun-set. The duration of the prayer each time was to be one muhūrta (i. e. two ghațikās, according to Yoga-yājñavalkya) whatever the length of the day may be.¹³⁰ Manu (IV. 93-94) however recommends the prayer to extend as long as one could afford, since the ancient sages secured long life, intelligence, glory, fame and spiritual eminence by long samdhyā prayerṣ¹³¹ According to most writers japa of Gāyatrī and other sacred mantras is the principal thing in samdhyā and other things such as mārjana are merely subsidiary, but Medhātithi on Manu II. 101 ( where the words are ' japanistișțhet ' and not ' tișțhan japet ') says that japa is subsidiary or secondary and the place of the prayer and the posture of the praying person are the principal itemṣ When it is said ' one should perform the samdhyā' what is meant is that one should contemplate the deity called Āditya represented by the orb of the sun and should also contemplate on the fact that the same Intelligence dwells in his heart. The proper place for samdhyā prayer is outside the village (Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 30. 8, Gaut. II. 16, Mānava gr. I. 2. 2), in a lonely place (Sāṅ. gr. II 9. 1 ' aranye ') or on a river or other sacred spot (Bauḍ gr. II. 4. 1). But this does not apply to the agnihotrin,¹³² who has to perform vedic rites and repeat homa mantras at sun-rise and who therefore may perform samdhyā adoration in his house. Vasiṣṭha quoted by Aparārka says that samdhyā performed in a cowpen or on a river or near the shrine of Viṣṇu (or other deity) respectively is ten times, 100000 of times or numberless times better than samdhyāvandana in the house.¹³³ All prescribe that the morning samdhyā is to be performed standing and the evening one in a sitting posture (Āśv. gr. III. 7. 6, Sāṇ gr. II. 9. 1 and 3, Manu II. 102) and the morning samdhyā is to be performed facing the east and the evening one facing the northwest (Āśv. gr. III. 7. 4, Sāṇ gr. II. 9. 1). He is to bathe, to sit in a pure spot on a seat of kuśa grass, should have the sacred cord in the usual position and restrain his speech (i. e. should be silent and not talk in the midst of samdhyā).

The principal constituents of samdhyopāsana are these: ācamanas (sipping of water), prāṇāyāma, mārjana thrice (sprinkling himself with water to the accompaniment of several mantras), aghamarṣaṇa, offering of water to the sun (arghya), japa of Gāyatrī, and upasthāna (reciting mantras by way of worship of the sun in the morning and generally of Varuṇa in the evening). Among the earliest references to Samdhyopāsana is the one in the Tai. Ār. II. 2,¹³⁴ where it is said that when brahmavādins facing the east throw up water consecrated by the Gāyatrī, the evil spirits that fight with the sun are sent tumbling into the country (called) Maṇḍeha Aruṇa (of the evil spirits). This shows that in ancient times samdhyā consisted principally of offering water (arghya) to the sun in worship and japa of Gāyatrī. Āśv. gr. III. 7-3-6, Sāṇ gr. II. 9. 1-3 and others refer only to the japa of the Gāyatrī mantra in Sandhyopāsana. Māṇava gr. (I. 2.1-5) refers only to the arghya offering to the sun and japa of Gāyatrī. It is in the Bauḍ Dh. S. II. 4 that we find an elaboration of samdhyopāsana into various components such as ācamana, mārjana, japa of Gāyatrī and upasthāna (worship) of Mitra and Varuna (respectively in the morning and evening with only two verses in each case).¹³⁵ Modern writers went on adding details e. g. it is now the practice in the Deccan to repeat the 24 names of Viṣṇu at the very beginning of the samdhyopāsana, but this is hardly any- where prescribed by any smṛti or early commentator. Similarly elaborate rules are laid down about mystic nyāsas with the sixteen verses of the Puruṣasūkta (vide Aparārka p. 140), of the nyāsa of the Nārāyaṇamantra of 25 letters on 25 parts of the body (Vṛddha-Hārīta VI. 16-19) and of the letters of the Gāyatrī Bṛhatparāśara chap. V. p. 83 ). In modern times ācamana is performed with the three names of Viṣṇu, viz. Keśava, Nārāyaṇa and Mādhava in the form 'om Keśavāya namaḥ.' The 24 names are given below.¹³⁶

A few words on each of the principal components of samdhyā may be said here. Elaborate rules about ācamana are laid down in several smṛtis; vide Gaut. I. 35-40, Āp. Dh. S. I. 5. 15. 2-11 and 16. 1-16, Manu II. 58-62, Yāj. I. 18-21. Such rules must have been elaborated from very ancient timeṣ The Tai. Br. (I. 5. 10) prescribes that one should not perform ācamana with water that is in a cleft of the earth. Āp. Dh. S. (1. 5. 15. 5) says the same thing.¹³⁷ One should perform ācamana in a sitting posture ( and not standing nor bent ) in a pure spot, facing the north or east, one should sip water thrice with water that is not hot and that is free from foam or bubbles, one should after sipping water wipe the lips twice (thrice according to Āp.) and should touch with the wet right hand one's eyes, ears, nose, heart and heaḍ The water for ācamana should be as much as would penetrate ( or reach ) to the heart in the case of brāhmaṇas, to the throat in the case of kṣatriyas, to the palate in the case of vaiśyas; women and śūdras should sip on occasions of ācamana only once as much water as would reach the palate. Manu (II. 18) and Yāj. (I. 18) say that water should be sipped by the brāhmatīrtha (i. e. from the root of the thumb).¹³⁸ The further elaborate rules laid down in such smṛtis as Gobhila gṛ. (I. 2. 5-6 ), Śaṅkhasmṛti 10 are not set out here. The occasions for ācamana are many. According to Gobhila¹³⁹ gr. I. 1. 2 one must do every gṛhya rite with yajñopavīta worn in the usual way and after ācamana. Haradatta on Āp. Dh. S. I. 5. 15. 1 says that ācamana is a subsidiary matter in all religious actṣ There are several occasions when the sipping of water twice is necessary, the principal being before and after bhojana (meals); vide Gautama I. 40, Vaṣ 3. 38, Yāj. I. 196, Sṃ C. I. p. 100, Madanapārijāta p. 57, Par. M. I. part I. pp. 241-243. Both the Br. Up. (VI. 1. 14) and Chāṇ Up. V. 2. 2 refer to the practice of sipping water before and after bhojana and the Vedāntasūtra III. 3. 18 is based on these upaniṣad passages and says that water is looked upon as the garment of prāṇa.¹⁴⁰ Numerous occasions when ācamana is necessary are stated in Āp. Dh. S. I. 5. 16. 15-16, Manu V. 138 and 145, Yāj. I. 196, Kūrmapurāṇa I. 2. 13. 1–8 &c. Prāṇāyāma (restraint of breath) is defined by the Yoga- sūtra¹⁴¹ (II. 49) as the regulation of inhalation and exhalation of air. Gaut. I, 50 prescribes three prāṇāyāmas, each of which lasts for 15 mātrās (moras). Bauḍ Dh. S. IV. 1. 30 ( = Vaṣ Dh. S. 25. 13 = Śańkhasmṛti VII. 14) and Yaj. I. 23 say that the śiras of Gāyatrī, the three vyāhṛtis each preceded by ‘om’ and the Gāyatrī verse are to be rehearsed mentally during the time of prāṇāyāma. According to Yoga-yājñavalkya, one should first revolve in the mind the seven vyāhṛtis, each preceded by ‘om,’ then the Gāyatrī and then the śiras of Gāyatrī.¹⁴² Prāṇāyāma has three components, pūraka (inhaling the outside air), kumbhaka (keeping in the inhaled air i. e. neither taking in air nor giving it out) and recaka (exhaling air from the lungs). Manu VI. 70-71 highly praises the utility of prāṇāyāma in purifying the mind of siṇ

Mārjana is performed by means of kuśa grass dipped in water kept in a vessel of copper or udumbara wood or earthen- ware and while doing so one is to repeat ‘om,’ the vyāhṛtis, Gāyatrī and the three verses ‘āpo hi ṣṭhā’ (Rg. X. 9. 1-3). Bauḍ Dh. S. II. 4. 2 adds more Vedic mantras for mārjana.¹⁴³ Mānava gr. I. 1. 24, Yāj. I. 22 and others prescribe mārjana only with the three verses ‘āpo hi ṣṭhā’ (Rg. X. 9. 1-3).

Aghamarsana (driving out sin) consists in taking water in the right hand formed in the shape of a cow's ear, holding it near one's nose, breathing out from the nose on the water (with the idea of driving away sin from oneself) to the accom- paniment of the three verses ‘ṛtam ca’ (Rg. X. 190. 1-3) and then casting the water away to one's left on the grounḍ Arghya ¹⁴⁴ ( offering water out of respect to the sun ) consists in taking water in one's joined hands, repeating the Gāyatrī verse over it and standing facing the sun and casting it up thrice. If a man cannot have water (being at the time of Sandhyā on a road or in jail &c.) he could use dust for water. The Tai. Ār. II. 2 says that a brāhmaṇa contemplating the rising and setting sun and doing obeisance to it by going from left to right attains all bliss, since this Āditya is Brahma.

As to japa of Gāyatrī, vide above under Sāvitryupadeśa (p. 304). There is an extensive literature about the greatness of the japa of Gāyatrī and of other holy Vedic mantras which are passed over here and for which reference may be made to Aparārka pp. 46–48, Sṃ C. I. pp. 143–152, Gr. R. pp. 241–250, Āhnikaprakāśa pp. 311–316. A few details will be given under āhnika.

As to upasthāna vide above(p. 315, note 748). According to Bauḍ the worship ¹⁴⁵ of the sun is done with the verses ‘udvayam’ (Rg. I. 50.10), ‘Udu tyam’ (Rg. I. 50.1), ‘citram’ (Rg. I. 115.1), ‘tac-cakṣur’ (Rg. VII. 66. 16), ‘ya udagāt’ (Tai. Ār. IV. 42. 5). Manu II. 103 prescribes that he who does not perform the Sandhyopāsana in the morning and evening should be excluded from all actions meant for the benefit or honour of dvijaṣ Gobhila ¹⁴⁶ smṛti II. 1 says the same and adds that brāhmaṇya resides in the three sandhyās and that he who has no concern for sandhyopāsana is not a brāhmaṇa. Bauḍ Dh. S. II. 4. 20 calls upon the religious king to make brāhmaṇas, who do not engage in sandhyopāsana thrice a day, perform the work peculiar to śūdraṣ The Kūrma-purāṇa ¹⁴⁷ goes so far as to say that even if a person engages in other actions which are religious but gives up the performance of sandhyopāsana, in so doing he falls into numerous hellṣ Manu declares (II. 102) that sins committed at night through ignorance (or oversight ) are removed by the performance of morning samdhyā and the sins committed in the day are removed by the evening samdhyā. Bauḍ Dh. S. II. 4. 25-28, Yaj. III. 307 are to the same effect. When a person is impure owing to mourning or birth in the family, he is to perform samdhyā only up to arghya to the sun but not japa nor upasthāna.

In modern times the samdhyopāsana has become a lengthy business by the addition of materials from purāṇas and the tantraṣ But as observed by the Saṁskāraratnamālā rituals like nyāsa are non-Vedic ⁷⁶⁰ and many do not perform theṃ For various nyāsas and mudrās (postures of the fingers, hands etc.) one may consult the Smṛti-muktāphala (āhnika pp. 328-333), Sṃ C. I. pp. 146-148.⁷⁶¹

Nyāsa means 'mentally invoking god and holy texts to come to occupy certain parts of the body to render it a pure and fit receptacle for worship and contemplatioṇ' The sixteen verses of the Puruṣasūkta (Ṛg. X. 90) are respectively invoked to reside in the left and right hands, the left foot, the right foot, the left and right knees, the left and right sides, the navel, the heart, the throat, the left and right arms, the mouth, the eyes and the head (vide Aparārka p. 140). The Bhāgavata (VI. 8. 4-5) recommends that one should perform nyāsa on the hands and limbs of one's own body with the two mantras of Nārāyaṇa and thus make Nārāyaṇa one's armour when some danger arises and that one should perform nyāsa with 'om' and other syllables on one's feet, knees, thighs, belly, heart, chest, mouth and heaḍ⁷⁶² The Sṃ C. I. p. 144 quotes verses from Vyāsa and Brahmā as to the nyāsa of the letters of the Gāyatrī with 'om' and 'namaḥ' on the several parts of the body. Vṛddha-Hārita VI. 16-19 speaks of the nyāsa of the twenty-five letters of the mantra about Nārāyaṇa on the twenty-five parts of the body. The Nityācārapaddhati (pp. 578-579) describes the nyāsa of the letters of the alphabet (51 in all) from ‘Om Keśavāya namaḥ’ to ‘kṣam Nṛsiṁhāya namaḥ.’ One well-known mode is to assign Govinda, Mahīdhara, Hṛṣīkeśa, Trivikrama, Viṣṇu, Mādhava respectively on the tips of the thumb, the index finger, the middle finger, the ring- finger, the small finger and the middle of the palṃ Manu II. 60 enjoining the touching of the limbs and head with water appears to contain the germ of this practice of nyāsa.

The Sṃ C. I. (pp. 146-148) quotes long passages about the mudrās (hand poses) to be made in the saṁdhyā adoratioṇ The Samgraha¹⁵¹ quoted in the Pūjāprakāśa (p. 123) states that the mudrās are to be made in worship, at the time of japa, dhyāna (contemplation) and when starting on kāmya rites ( performed for securing some desired object ) and that they tend to bring the deity worshipped near to the worshipper. The names and number of mudrās differ considerably. For example, the Sṃ C. and Smṛ. Mu. ( āhnika pp. 331-332 ) quote passages defining the following mudrās viz. sammukha, saṁpuṭa, vitata, vistīrṇa, dvimukha, trimukha, adhomukha, vyāpakāñjalika, yamapāśa, grathita, sammukhoṇmukha, vilamba, muṣṭika, mīna, kūrma, varāha, siṁhākraṁta, mahākraṁta, mudgara and pallava. The Nityācārapaddhati p. 533 derives the word mudrā from ‘mud’ (joy) and the root ‘rā’ (to give) or ‘drāvay’ (causal of dru, to put to flight ) and says that “ mudrā ” is so called because it gives delight to the gods and also puts to flight asuras ( evil beings). That work and the Pūjā-prakāśa (pp. 123-126) give the names of mudrāṣ They are āvāhanī, sthāpanī, sannidhāpanī, saṁrodhinī, prasādamudrā, avagun- thana-mudrā, sammukha, prārthana, śaṅkha, cakra, gadā, abja, (or padma), musala, khaḍga, dhanus, bāṇa, nārāca, kumbha, vighna (for Vighneśvara), saura, pustaka, lakṣmī, saptajihva (for Agni Vaiśvānara), durgā, namaskāra (bringing together both hands from the wrist to the tips of the fingers), añjali, saṁhāra (in all 32). The Nityācārapaddhati (p. 536) says that śaṅkha, cakra, gadā, padma, musala, khaḍga, śrīvatsa and kaustubha are the eight mudrās of Viṣṇu. The Sṃ C. quotes a work called ¹⁵² Mahāsamhitā that the mudrās are not to be performed in the presence of a crowd and if so performed the deities become angry and the mudrās become fruitlesṣ The Śāradātilaka (23. 106) states that all deities are gladdened by the mudrās and in verses 107-114 describes the following mudrās, viz. āvāhanī, sthāpanī, sannidhāpanī, samrodhinī, sammukha, sakala, avagunthana, dhenu, mahāmudrā. The Ācāra-dinakara of Vardhamāna-sūri composed in saṁvat 1468 (1411-12 A. D.) for Jainas enumerates 42 mudrās and defines them (1923, part II. pp. 385-386 ).

The influence of these mudrās spread outside India and they are still practised in the island of Bali. Miss Tyra de Kleen has brought out a very interesting book on the ‘mudrās (the hand poses) practised by Buddhist and Śaiva priests’ (called pedandas) in Bali, with 60 full page drawings (1924, New York ).

Study of the Veda: —A detailed examination of the educational system from ancient times onwards, together with its methods, courses of study and kindred topics will require a volume by itself. The works ¹⁵³ mentioned in the note below may be read for that purpose. Here a few salient features alone can be set out.

The pivot of the whole educational system of ancient India was the teacher (variously called ācārya, guru, upādhyāya). The instruction was oral. Rg. VII. 103. 5 (speaking of frogs ) says ‘when one of these frogs follows another in making noise just as a learner repeats the words of the teacher’. Vide the quotations from the Atharvaveda and the Śat. Br. cited above (f. ṇ 622 and 625 ). In the beginning the father alone may have taught his soṇ The story narrated in the Br. Up. V. 2. 1 and the story of Śvetaketu Āruṇeya who was taught by his father everything he knew (Br. Up. VI. 2. 1 and 4 ) illustrate this (vide f. ṇ 633). But even from very ancient times the practice of sending ¹⁵⁴ boys to learn from an ācārya had become usual. The Chāṇ Up. itself says in one passage (VI. 1) that Śvetaketus Āruṇeya was placed by his father for twelve years as a student with a teacher. The same upaniṣad (III. 11. 5) says that the father should impart the 'madhuvidyā' to his eldest son or to a worthy pupil only. As the boy stayed with the teacher in the latter's house and all instruction was oral, the teacher's position assumed the greatest importance. Satyākāma Jābāla ¹⁵⁵ says to his teacher (in Chāṇ IV. 9. 3) 'I have heard from persons like your revered self that knowledge when learnt from an ācārya reaches the highest excellence'. The Śvetāśva. taropaniṣad ¹⁵⁶ (VI. 23) places the guru almost on a level with God and inculcates the highest devotion to hiṃ The Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 6. 13 says 'the pupil should wait upon the ācārya as if he were ¹⁵⁷ Goḍ' The story of Ekalavya, whom Droṇa refused to take as a pupil because he was a niṣāda and who by worshipping the image of Droṇa is alleged to have become an adept in archery, illustrates two points viz. the prevailing notion of the greatness of a guru and the necessity of single-minded devotion to him for attaining proficiency (vide Ādiparva 132 for the story and also Droṇaparva 181. 17). The Mahābhārata condemns him who learns the Vedas at home and says that Raibhya became superior to Yavakṛta ¹⁵⁸ because the former learnt from a guru, while the other did not do so. In Manu and other smṛtis there is some divergence about the greatness of the ācārya. Manu II. 146 (= Viṣṇu Dh. S. 30. 44) says that both the father (janaka) and the teacher are called father (pitā) but the father (i. e. ācārya) who imparts the sacred Veda is superior to the father that gives (physical) birth, since the birth in spiritual learning is for a brāhmaṇa of eternal benefit here and hereafter. But in II. 145 Manu¹⁵⁹ says that an ācārya is ten times superior to an upādhyāya, the father is superior to a hundred ācāryas, while the mother is thousand-fold superior to the father. Gaut. II. 56 declares that the ācārya is the highest among all gurus while according to some the mother is the highest. Yāj. I. 35 also places the mother higher than the ācārya. Gaut. I. 10-11, Vaṣ Dh. S. III. 21, Manu II. 140, Yāj. I. 34 define¹⁶⁰ the ācārya as one who performs the upanayana of the student and imparts the whole Veda to hiṃ The Nirukta¹⁶¹ (I. 4) derives ācārya as follows: ‘he makes the student understand the proper course of conduct, or he collects wealth (i. e. fee) from the student (or gathers together the meanings of words), or he increases the intelligence (of the student)’. Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 1. 14 says ‘The ācārya is so called since the student gathers his duties from hiṃ’ Manu II. 69 says that the teacher, after performing upanayana, teaches his pupil the rules about śauca (bodily purity), ācāra (rules of conduct in every day life), the offering (of fuel-stick) in fire and saṁdhyā adoratioṇ Yāj. I. 15 is to the same effect. Though the words ācārya, guru¹⁶² and upādhyāya are very often used as synonyms, ancient writers made a distinction between theṃ According to Manu II. 141 and 142, an upādhyāya is one who teaches to a student a portion of the Veda or the Vedāṅgas¹⁶³ (subsidiary lores of the Veda ) as a means of his own livelihood and a guru is one who performs the saṁskāras and who maintains the chilḍ This latter definition shows that guru means the father here. Vaṣ Dh. S. (III. 22–23 ), Viṣṇu Dh. S. 29. 2, and Yāj. I. 35 define upādhyāya in the same way as Manu. According to Yāj. I. 34 the guru is one who performs the saṁskāras and imparts the Veda. This corroborates the statement made above that originally the father himself taught the Veda to his soṇ The word guru is often used in the sense of any elderly person, male or female, who is entitled to respect. Viṣṇu Dh. S.¹⁶⁴ (32. 1–2 ) says that the father, the mother and the ācārya are the three highest gurus of a person and Manu II. 227–237 contain the most sublime glorification of these three. Devala¹⁶⁵ says that 'among gurus five deserve special honour, viz. father, mother, ācārya, eldest brother and husband (in the case of women)'. Manu (II. 149 ) says that whoever confers on another the benefit of knowledge, whether great or small, is the latter's guru. A great deal is said about the qualifications of the ācārya who is to perform the upanayana of a person and to teach him the Veda. Āp. Dh. S.¹⁶⁶ I. 1. 1. 11 refers to a Brāhmaṇa text to the effect ‘he whom a teacher devoid of learning initiates enters from darkness into darkness and he also (i. e. an ācārya ) who is himself unlearned ( enters into darkness ).’ Āp. Dh. S. (I. 1. 1. 12–13) further provides that one should desire a performer of one’s upanayana who is endowed with learning and whose family is hereditarily learned and who is serene in mind and that one should study Vedic lore under him up to the end (of brahmacarya ) as long as the teacher does not fall off from the path of dharma. Vyāsa (quoted in Saṃ P. p. 408 ) says¹⁶⁷ that the ācārya should be a brāhmaṇa who is solely devoted to the Veda, who knows dharma, is born of a good family, who is pure, is a śrotriya that has studied his Vedic śākhā and who is not lazy. Śrotriya has been defined above (f. ṇ 290). Ap. Dh. S. II. 3. 6. 4 and Bauḍ gr. I. 7. 3 define a śrotriya as one who has studied one śākhā of a Veda. Vide Vāyupurāṇa vol. I. 59. 29 also.¹⁶⁸ The ācārya in upanayana must be a brāhmaṇa; as to the study of veda one should ordinarily learn the Veda from a brāhmaṇa teacher; in times of difficulty (i. e. when a brāhmaṇa is not available ) one may learn the Veda from a kṣatriya or vaiśya teacher; but in such circumstances the only service that a brāhmaṇa student rendered to the guru would be following after the non-brāhmaṇa teacher; he had not to render bodily service (such as shampooing or washing the feet &c.). Vide Āp. Dh.S.II. 2. 4. 25-28 (quoted above in note 229), Gaut. 7. 1-3, Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 40-42, Manu II. 241. Manu II. 238 allows even a brāhmaṇa to learn śubhā vidyā (visibly beneficial knowledge) even from a śūdra. Śāntiparva 165. 31 does the same.¹⁶⁹ The Mit. on Yāj. I. 118 remarks that a kṣatriya or vaiśya should teach a brāhmaṇa only when urged by him and not at his sweet will. Aparārka (p. 160) says that Manu II. 241 allows only teaching to a kṣatriya, but does not allow him to make it a means of his livelihooḍ¹⁷⁰

We saw above (p. 321) that the instruction was entirely oral. The first thing that was taught to the boy was the praṇava and the vyāhṛtis and the Gāyatrī. Then the boy was to be taught other parts of the Veda. It is desirable to set out briefly the method of teaching the Veda followed in ancient timeṣ The Śāṅ. gr (IV. 8) describes the method as follows: the teacher sits facing the east or north, while the other (i. e. the student) sits to his right facing the north or two students may sit in that way but if there are more than two they should sit as the available space will allow.¹⁷¹ The student should not sit on a high seat before the teacher nor on the same seat with him; he should not stretch out his feet, nor should he sit seizing his knees with his arm, nor should he lean against a support, nor should he place his feet on his lap nor should he hold his feet like an axe. After the student utters ‘Recite, Sir,’¹⁷² the teacher should urge him to pronounce ‘om’; the other (i. e. the student) should reply ‘om’. Thereafter he (the student) should recite continuously. After reciting he should clasp the teacher's feet and say ‘we have finished, Sir’ and go away to his businesṣ Some teachers say that the teacher should say ‘Leave, let us stop’. In the Ṛk Prātiśākhya,¹⁷³ 15th paṭala, there is a description of the method of teaching the Veda, which closely agrees with the above quotation from the Śāṇ gr. It adds that the teacher may also sit facing the north-east. When the teacher recites two words or more, the first pupil (to the right of the teacher) repeats the first of the two or more words and the other pupils repeat the rest afterwardṣ The teacher recites one word if it is a compound, two words if they are un-compounded; the teacher also clearly explains how to recite the words if there is any difficulty; in this way the whole praśna is finished and all the pupils repeat again the whole of it. A praśna generally has three mantras and each adhyāya has about sixty praśnaṣ Manu (II. 70-74) also prescribes certain rules: the student should sip water (ācamana) when about to begin Vedic study, should face the north, should fold both hands¹⁷⁴ together (and place them on his knee), should wear light (pure) clothes, should at the beginning and end of Vedic study clasp the feet of the teacher with crossed hands and should touch the right foot of the teacher with his own right hand and left foot with the left hand, should repeat ‘om’ at the beginning and at the end of Vedic study. The teacher should say to the pupil ‘repeat’ and should stop from teaching with the words ‘let there be a pause’. Gaut. (I. 49-58) gives similar ruleṣ The Gopathā Br. I. 31 uses the expression ‘sarve vedā mukhato gṛhītāḥ’, which is current even in modern times (it means all Vedas were committed to memory by word of mouth).

The study of the Veda was the first duty of every twice-born person (dvijāti). Vedic Literature had grown to vast proportions even in the times of the Tai. Br. (III. 10. 11), as the story of Indra and Bharadvāja cited above (p. 271) showṣ The ideal was set up by Manu II. 165, viz. that the whole Veda together with secret doctrines (Upaniṣads) was to be learnt by every dvijāti. The Śat. Br. XI. 5. 7 contains a eulogy of Veda study (svādhyāya) and the injunction ‘svādhyāyosdhyetavyah’ (one must study the Veda) occurs there very frequently. The Ap. Dh. S. (I. 4. 12. 1 and 3) quotes¹⁷⁵ the Tai. Ā. II. 14. 3 that the study of the Veda (svādhyāya) is austerities and also the Śat. Br. XI. 5. 6. 8. The Mahābhāṣya (vol. I. p. 1) quotes a Vedic text ‘a brāhmaṇa should study and understand without any purpose (or desire of reward) dharma and the Veda with its six aṅgaṣ’¹⁷⁶ The Mahābhārata says that a brāhmaṇa may be deemed to have completely accomplished his duty by the study of the Veda.¹⁷⁷ Yāj. I. 40 says that it is Veda alone that confers the highest bliss upon dvijātis by enabling them to understand and perform sacrifices, austerities and auspicious acts (like saṁskāras). The Mahābhāṣya (vol. I. p. 9) contains the traditional extent of the four Vedas, viz. that there were 101 śākhās of the Yajurveda, 1000 of the Sāmaveda, 21 of the Ṛgveda and nine of the Atharvaveda.¹⁷⁸ Concessions had to be made to the shortness of human life and the weakness of the human minḍ Therefore Gaut. II. 51, Vaṣ Dh. S. VII. 3, Manu III. 2, Yaj. I. 52 and others allowed a person to study only one Veda. After a man studied his own Veda, he could if so minded study another śākhā of another Veda or other Vedaṣ The rule laid down by many smṛtis is that one should study the śākhā of the Veda which his ancestors studied and should perform religious rites with mantras derived from that śākhā. Vide Medhātithi on Manu III. 2 and Viśvarūpa on Yaj. I. 51.¹⁷⁹ That person who does not study a Vedic śākhā studied by his ancestors and studies another śākhā altogether was called 'śākhāranḍa'. Whatever religious rites a man did with the procedure and mantras of another śākhā giving up his own śākhā becomes fruitlesṣ But an exception was made to the effect that if some¹⁸⁰ religious rite was omitted in one's śākhā, but was dealt with in another śākhā and was not opposed to the teaching of one's śākhā, it may be performed as in the case of Agnihotra (which is not dealt with in all śākhās, but is to be performed by all ).

Teachers mostly confined themselves to one place. But we find that even in ancient times there were teachers who wandered from one country to another. In the Kauṣ. Br. Up. IV. 1 we find that the famous Bālāki Gārgya moved about in the countries of Uśīnara, Matsya, Kuru-Pañcāla and Kāśīvideha. In the Bṛ. Up. III. 3. 1 Bhujyu Lāhyāyani tells Yājñavalkya that he and others wandered about in the country of Madra for study. Students generally stuck to one teacher; but it appears that they sometimes flocked to renowned teachers as waters flow down a slope¹⁸¹ ( Tai. Up. I. 4. 3 ). There were also students who wandered from teacher to teacher and were therefore derisively called 'tīrthakāka (crows at a sacred place),' as the Mahābhāṣya stateṣ¹⁸²

As the study of the Veda was a duty enjoined upon a brāhmaṇa, so teaching Veda to another was a duty. Medhātithi on Manu (II. 113) quotes a Vedic text¹⁸³ 'He who having studied the Veda would not teach one who requests him to do so would be one who destroys his own good acts (i.e. would lose the benefit thereof), would shut the door leading to happiness; therefore he should teach; it leads to great glory'. When Satyākāma Jābāla did not teach his pupil Upakosala anything for twelve years, though the latter served assiduously by attending to the sacred fires of the teacher, the teacher's wife remonstrated with the husband by saying 'this student has worked hard and attended the fires, may the fires not censure you and order you to teach him the vidyā he desires' (Chāṇ Up. IV. 10. 1–2). The Praśna Up.¹⁸⁴ VI. 1 gives expression to the view that if a teacher keeps back anything he knows he dries up entirely. The Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14. 2–3 expressly prescribes 'the teacher whom a student asks for instruction should not refuse him, if he finds no defect in the student.'¹⁸⁵ Āp. Dh. S. (I. 2. 8. 25–28) lays down certain excellent rules for the teacher 'the teacher, anxious for the welfare of the student as if he were his son, should atten-tively impart learning to the student without hiding anything from him in all matters of duty; nor should the teacher restrain the student for his own work in such a way as to cause obstacles in his study except in seasons of distresṣ A teacher becomes no teacher if he avoids giving instruction' (i.e. he may be abandoned). The Droṇaparva (50. 21) says that a pupil comes only after the son according to the idea of those who know dharma. If a teacher does not teach a pupil any- thing even after his pupil has stayed with him for a year, the former receives all the sins of the pupil. A teacher ¹⁸⁶ who did not teach or was sinful was to be abandoneḍ Similarly a teacher, who became puffed up, did not care for what should or should not be done and took to a sinful path was to be abandoneḍ¹⁸⁷ Ap. I. 1. 1. 13 lays down that a student must stay with his teacher who performs his upanayana till he completes his study, unless the teacher himself swerved from the path of dharma and became a sinner and ( I. 2. 7. 26 ) that if the teacher cannot teach the subject, the pupil may resort to another teacher.

The smṛtis lay down rules about the qualifications of a student who deserves to be taught. In the Vidyāsūkta quoted in the Nirukta¹⁸⁸ ( II. 4 ) we see that the teacher was not to impart vidyā (knowledge) to one who was jealous (or who treated vidyā with contempt), was crooked and was not self-restrained and that learning was to be imparted to one who was pure, attentive, intelligent and endowed with brahmacarya (celibacy), who would never prove false (to his teacher) and who would guard what he learnt as a treasure. Manu (II. 109 and 112 also) says that ten persons deserve to be taught viz. the son of the teacher, a student who serves his guru, one who gives some knowledge in exchange, one who knows dharma or who is pure (in body and mind), who is truthful, who is able to study and retain it, who gives money (for teaching), who is well-disposed and who is one's near relative (agnate). Yāj. I. 28 mentions all these and adds that the student must be grateful, not inclined to hate or prove false to the teacher, healthy and not disposed to find fault. The student should always be dependent on and under the control of the teacher (as Ap. Dh. S.¹⁸⁹ I. 1. 2. 19 and Nārada say) and should stay with no one but the teacher. We saw above (p. 274) that from ancient times the student had to serve the teacher by tending his cattle ( Chāndogya IV. 4. 5), had to beg for food and announce it to the teacher (ibiḍ IV. 3. 5) and to look after his sacred fires and to learn the Veda only in the time that would be left after doing work for the guru¹⁹⁰. Besides these, the rules concerning his conduct towards the teacher, the teacher's wife and son, concerning the method of salutation and showing respect, the food, drinks, and actions allowed or prohibited to students are too numerous to be set out in detail. A few important ones from Gautama, Ap. Dh. S., Manu II and Yāj I. 33 are stated below. Gaut. ( II. 13, 14, 18, 19, 22, 23, 25) says that the student should speak the truth, bathe everyday, should not look at the sun; should avoid honey, flesh, perfumes, the wearing of flowers, sleeping by day, rubbing oil on the body, putting collyrium in the eyes, going in a cart,¹⁹¹ wearing shoes and holding an umbrella, love affairs, anger, covetousness, infatuation, vain discussions, playing on musical instruments, luxurious baths with hot water, meticulous cleans- ing of the teeth, ecstatic states of mind, dancing, singing, calumny of others, dangerous places, gazing at women or touching young women, gambling, serving a low person ( or doing very low work ), injury to animals, obscene or harsh talk, wine. Manu ( II. 198 and 180-181 ) prescribes that he should not sleep on a cot and should observe complete celibacy, but if he suffers from night emissions he should bathe, worship the sun and repeat thrice the mantra ‘punar mām’ ( Tai. Ār. I. 30 ). The Ap. Dh. S. ( I. 1. 2. 21-30, I. 1. 3. 11-24 ) contains similar rules of conduct. Āp. says ( I. 1. 2. 28-30 ) that the student should not wash his limbs with hot water (generally), but he may do so if they are smeared with dirty and impure matter provided he does it out of the sight of the teacher and that he should not bathe in water in a sportive manner, but should bathe in it motionless like a stick. Āp. not only prohibits for him sexual intercourse (I. 1. 2. 26) but ordains that he should speak with women only as much as is absolutely neces-sary. The student was not to¹⁹² laugh, but if he could not help laughing he should do so covering his face with his hands (says Āp.).

Gautama and Bauḍ Dh. S. (I. 2. 34 and 37) say that the student is to serve his teacher by following after him when he goes anywhere, he should help the teacher in his toilet and bath and should shampoo his body and take food left by him (ucchiṣṭa) ;¹⁹³ he should be diligent in doing work that would be pleasing and beneficial to the teacher; he was to study when the teacher called him, he was not to cover his throat with a piece of cloth, or was not to sit in the presence of his teacher with his feet on his lap, was not to stretch his feet, he was not to clear loudly his throat, nor to laugh, yawn or crack the knuckles; he was when called by the teacher to reply at once leaving his seat or bed and was to approach the teacher even when he called from a distance; he should always occupy a seat lower than that of his teacher and should go to sleep after his teacher and rise before him (Gautama II. 20–21, 30–32), Manu II. 194–198 and Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 5. 26 and I. 2. 6. 1–12 contain similar ruleṣ Manu (II. 199) says that a pupil should not mimic the gait, the manner of speech and the actions of the teacher. Manu (II. 200–201) calls upon the pupil to close his ears (with his bands or fingers) or to leave the place where somebody indulges in calumnies about the teacher or points out the faults in him, and states that if the pupil himself finds fault with his teacher or calumniates him, the pupil (in the next life) is born as an ass or a dog. Viṣṇu Dh. S.¹⁹⁴ 28. 26 says the same.

Some rules are laid down as to how the brahmacārin is to deal with the hair on his heaḍ Even the Rg. speaks of boys with several śikhās (topknot). Vide note 598 above. Gaut. I. 26 and Manu II. 219 say that a brahmacārin may either shave his entire head, or may allow all the hair to grow as matted or should keep only a tuft of hair on the head (and shave the rest ).¹⁹⁵ Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 2. 31–32, Vaṣ VII. 11 allow only two alternatives viz. growing all the hair or keeping a tuft of hair, while Viṣṇu Dh. S. 28. 41 says that a student may either shave the entire head or grow matted hair. One was not to untie one’s śikhā, while on the public roaḍ¹⁹⁶

One of the rules for the student was that he. was not to pronounce the name of his teacher even when the teacher was not present without prefixing or affixing an honorific addition ( such as śrī, bhaṭṭa, ācārya ). Gaut. ordains that the student should not speak of his teacher, the teacher’s son or wife or of a man who has been initiated for a śrauta sacrifice by their bare'names¹⁹⁷ and then says that when it is absolutely necessary to refer to these by name the student should not pronounce the name and gotra of his teacher as they are, but by means of a synonym ( e. g. if the teacher's name is Haradatta or Deva- vara the pupil should respectively say Devarāta or Sureśvara ). Ap. Dh. S. I. 2. 8. 15 says that even after returning home a snātaka should avoid touching his former teacher with his fingers ( to call his attention), frequent muttering of something in his ears, laughing into his face, calling him out loudly, taking his name, ordering him about. Manu II. 128 and Gaut. VI. 19 say that a man who has been initiated for a śrauta sacrifice should not be addressed by his name, even though he be younger than the person addressing, but that one should use the words 'bhoḥ' and 'bhavat' when addressing him or speak- ing about him and may refer to him by words like dīkṣita &c. There are other rules about addressing or referring by name which may be set out here for the sake of completenesṣ The Sṃ C. (I. p. 45) and Haradatta on Gaut. II. 29 quote a smṛti¹⁹⁸ that one should not mention by name only one's teacher, teacher's son and wife, a dīkṣita, any other guru, father, mother, paternal and maternal uncles, one's benefactor, a learned man, one's father-in-law, one's husband, one's mother's sister. The Mahābhārata says that one should not mention by name or address as 'tvam' (thou) one's elders, but one may speak of one's contemporaries or those who are younger by their nameṣ¹⁹⁹ Another verse says that one should not mention one's own name, the name of one's guru, the name of a mean person, of one's wife and one's eldest chilḍ

Upasamgrahaṇa consists in repeating one's gotra and name, saying 'I salute', touching one's ears, clasping the feet (as stated above) and bending one's head while so doing. In abhivādana there is no clasping of the feet with the hands; one may or may not touch the feet of the person to be honoureḍ Abhivādana must always be preceded by pratyutthāna.²⁰⁰

Very detailed rules were laid down about pratyutthāna ( rising from one's seat to receive a person ), abhivādana ( salut- ing a man ), upasamgrahaṇa ( saluting by clasping the feet of the teacher or another with one's hands ), pratyabhivāda ( returning a salutation ), and namaskāra ( bowing with the word 'namah' ). According to Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 5. 19 and I. 3. 10. 17 the student must, when he meets his teacher after sunrise, clasp his teacher's feet and also before beginning the day's lesson of Vedic study and also after finishing it. Manu II. 71 says the same. Gaut. ( I. 52–54 ) prescribes the clasping of the feet every day in the morning and at the beginning and at the end of a lesson in the Veda. According to Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 5. 20 on other occasions whenever the student meets the teacher only abhivādana is sufficient, though according to some teachers ( Āp. I. 2. 5. 21 ) clasping the teacher's feet is necessary on each occasioṇ Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 5. 22 states that in upasamgrahaṇa the teacher's right foot is to be stroked below and above with the student's right hand and the foot and ankle are both to be taken hold of, while according to some teachers, the student must press each foot of the teacher with both hands and clasp theṃ Manu II. 72, Viṣṇu Dh. S. 28. 15, and Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 24 say that the student is to clasp the feet of the teacher with crossed hands, touching the right foot with the right hand and the left foot with the left hanḍ Kullūka on Manu II. 72 quotes Paithīnasi that the student should clasp the teacher's feet with his hands turned upwardṣ Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 28 adds that clasping should not be done when either the teacher or the pupil is seated, or is lying down or impure. Acc- ording to Gaut. VI. 1–3 one must clasp every day on the first meeting and particularly on his or their return from a journey, the feet of one's parents, of the blood relations of parents ( e. g. paternal and maternal uncles ), of the elder brother, of the guru ( i. e. ācārya, upādhyāya ) and of persons venerated by one's guruṣ Āp. Dh. S. ( I. 4. 14. 7–9 ) says that even after finishing one's studies and returning home a man must every day clasp the feet of gurus (father, mother, teacher and other venerable persons) and of elder brothers and sisters according to their seniority.

Abhivadana is of three kinds, viz. nitya (obligatory every day), naimittika (to be done only on certain occasions) and kamya (to be done only if a person has certain rewards in view). As examples of nitya abhivadana one may instance the rules of Ap. Dh. S.²⁰¹ (I. 2. 5. 12-13) "every day a student should get up from bed in the last watch of the night and standing near his teacher salute him with the words 'I so and so, ho' (salute thee ); and the student should also salute other very aged (and learned brāhmaṇas) who may reside in the same village before his morning meal." Yāj. I. 26 also speaks of the latter. The occasional abhivadana is done on certain occasions such as return from a journey (Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 5. 14). A person may salute elderly persons whenever he chooses, if he is desirous of long life or (bliss in) heaven (Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 5. 15 and Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 26 ). Manu²⁰² (II. 120 and 121) says 'the prāṇas (vital breaths) of a young man mount upwards when an old man approaches; but by rising to meet him and salutation (to him), he (the young man) recovers theṃ He who habitually salutes and constantly pays reverence to the aged obtains an increase of four things viz. length of life, knowledge, fame and strength.' Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14. 11,²⁰⁴ Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 44, Manu II. 130 and Vaṣ Dh. S. 13. 41 prescribe that a person must honour by rising and mentioning one's name an officiating priest, one's father-in-law, paternal and maternal uncles, even though these may be younger than oneself in yearṣ Gaut. (VI. 9) however says that in the case of these one need only rise from his seat to receive them; but it is not necessary to salute them (abhivādana is not necessary). Viṣṇu Dh. S. 32. 4 expressly says that in the case of officiating priests and others specified by Āp. and Gaut. and who are younger, rising from one’s seat is tantamount to abhivādana. Manu II. 117 says that one must perform abhivādana to a person from whom one learns secular, Vedic or spiritual knowledge of any kinḍ There is some difference in the words used at the time of abhivādana. Usually the words are ‘abhivādaye devadatta- śarīmā-ham²⁰⁵ bhoḥ’ (vide Āp. I. 2. 5. 12, Gaut. VI, 5, Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 27, Vaṣ XIII. 44, Manu II. 122 and 124). But this mode is appropriate only if the person addressed knows how to return the salutatioṇ Manu II. 123 and 126 and Vaṣ Dh. S. 13. 45 declare that in the case of those who do not know how to return a salutation (pratyabhivādana, and according to Manu in the case of women also) one should omit the word ‘bhoḥ’ and simply say ‘abhivādaye aham’ (omitting one’s name). Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14. 20 similarly says that in saluting women, a kṣatriya or a vaiśya one should use a pronoun and omit one’s name.²⁰⁶

The manner of abhivādana was as follows:²⁰⁷A brāhmaṇa shall salute stretching forward his right arm on a level with his ear, a kṣatriya holding it on a level with the chest, a vaiśya holding it on a level with the waist and a śūdra holding it low (up to his feet) and that the salutation shall be by joining one’s hands’ (Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 5. 16–17). The Madanapārijāta adds that abhivādana is with both hands when the person to be saluted is learned, but with one hand only if he is not learned (p. 27) and the Sṃ C. (I. p. 36) quotes Viṣṇu and Atri to the same effect. The stretching of the hands up to the ear &c. indicates how far the head is to be bent in each case.

There were also other rules about honouring one's elders in the presence of one's teacher or honouring the teacher's teacher or about one's behaviour when a gentleman comes to see one's ācārya and leaves him, which are here passed over for want of space. Vide Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 6. 29-32, Manu II. 205.

A brāhmaṇa who does not know the form of returning a salutation must not be saluted by a learned man; he is like a śūdra (Manu II. 126). Similarly a brāhmaṇa was not to perform abhivādana to a kṣatriya or a vaiśya however learned the latter may be, but one should simply say ‘svasti’; those who are of the same caste should do abhivādana.²⁰⁸ The Mit. on Yāj. III. 292 and Aparārka p. 1188 quote sūtras of Hārīta prescribing as prāyaścitta a fast of one, two or three days respectively for a brāhmaṇa saluting a kṣatriya, vaiśya or śūdra and also for saluting when the persons saluted or the man saluting are in such a condition as to make them unfit for abhivādana. One should not salute with the shoes on or when one's head is wrapped up or one's hands are full (Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14. 19); or if one carries a load of fuel-sticks or holds a pot of flowers or food in one's hands one shall not salute, nor shall one salute on occasions similar to the preceding (such as one being engaged in worship of manes, of fire or other gods or when one's teacher is so engaged), nor should one salute a teacher standing very close to him (Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 31-32). When one is impure or the person he meets is impure (owing to āśauca or other causes) no salutation is to be made or returned (Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14. 17). Gaut. IX. 45 says that one should not occupy a seat or perform abhivādana and namaskāra with shoes oṇ One need not salute a person who is not a guru or who stands in a lower or higher place than oneself (Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14). Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14. 23, Manu II. 135 and Viṣṇu Dh. S. 32. 17 say that a brāhmaṇa ten years old is like a father to a kṣatriya even 100 years old and so deserves salutation from the kṣatriya. Āp. Dh. S. (I. 4. 14. 12) gives a special rule that a friendship kept for ten years as fellow citizens, a friendship contracted at school for five years, the fact of a śrotriya being three years older entitles the friend or śrotriya to a salutatioṇ But Gaut. (VI. 14–17) and Manu II. 134 give somewhat different rules viz. contemporaries who are born in the same year are to be addressed with the word ‘bhoḥ’ or ‘bhavat’ and a fellow citizen who is ten years older than oneself and an artist who is five years older than oneself and a śrotriya studying the same Vedic school as oneself who is three years older are to be addressed similarly. Manu adds blood relations to the list when the difference in age is very small. The Smṛtyarthasāra p. 7 gives a long list of persons whom one should never salute viz. an heretic, a person guilty of grave sins, an atheist, gamblers, thieves, ungrateful persons, drunkardṣ Vide also Manu IV. 30 and Yāj. I. 130 (as to showing no respect even by words to heretics &c).

In the case of certain persons one was to show honour only by rising from his seat and not by abhivādana. Gaut. (VI. 9) mentions some such persons who are already referred to in note 815. Haradatta (VI. 10–11) even a śūdra of eighty years or more must be honoured by rising by one (even though the latter be of a higher varṇa) young enough to be his son (but there will be no abhivādana) and that an ārya (i. e. one belonging to the three higher castes) must be honoured by rising by a śūdra even if the latter be older (and so a vaiśya must honour a kṣatriya though the latter be younger). Haradatta explains that the word śūdra in Gaut. VI. 10 is only illustrative and that an old vaiśya must be honoured by a young kṣatriya or brāhmaṇa by simply rising from his seat and an old kṣatriya by a young brāhmaṇa in the same way. Āp. Dh. S. (II. 2. 4. 16–18) lays down that if a brāhmaṇa who has not studied the Veda comes as a guest one may give him a seat, water and food but one should not rise to receive him, but should rise to receive him if he is entitled to abhivādana on account of age (as stated in Āp. I. 4. 14. 12, and Manu II. 134); similarly a brāhmaṇa need not rise to receive a kṣatriya or vaiśya (except on the same ground of age).

The rules about returning a salutation (about pratyabhivāda) are made somewhat intricate and obscure by the varying interpretations of commentatorṣ Pratyabhivāda consists in pronouncing a benediction in the proper form given by a guru or other person who has been saluteḍ Among the oldest²⁰⁹ is the rule in Ap. Dh. S. I. 2. 5. 18 ' when returning the salute of one belonging to the first three castes, the (last syllable of the) name (of the person whose salutation is to be returned) shall be lengthened to three moras'. Vasiṣṭha's rule (XIII. 46) is ' when the salute is returned, the last vowel (of the noun standing) in the vocative is protracted to the length of three moras and if it is a diphthong (i. e. e or o but not of the dual number) it becomes 'āy' or 'āv' e. g. 'bho becomes bhāv'. Manu II. 125 prescribes "a brāhmaṇa should be thus saluted in return, ' mayst thou be long-lived, O gentle one!' and the vowel 'a' or any other vowel at the end of the name (of the person addressed) should be made pluta (i.e. lengthened to three moras) and if the name ends in a consonant, the preceding vowel is made pluta."

That these rules are very ancient follows from Pāṇini's sūtra (VIII. 2. 83) ' when the salutation of a person who is not a śūdra is returned by the person saluted, the final vowel in the name (that occurs at the end of the sentence of pratyabhivāda ) becomes¹ pluta.' The Mahābhāṣya comments on this and two vārtikas thereon say that this rule does not apply when it is a woman to whom the salutation is returned and it applies optionally when the person whose salutation is returned is a kṣatriya or vaiśya. All these rules are exemplified in the foot-note below.²¹⁰ Ap. Dh. S. agrees with this rule of the ancient grammarianṣ The verse of Manu (II. 125) also really means the same thing; but there the word 'akāra' is only illustrative²¹¹ and stands for all vowelṣ The ancient commentator Medhātithi interprets Manu so as to agree with Pāṇini and says 'in the realm of the use of words and their senses Pāṇini has higher authority than Manu, that the pratyabhivāda words containing the benediction about long life are not stereotyped, that when a kṣatriya returns the salutation of a kṣatriya or a vaiśya of a vaiśya, the same rules hold good'. As a person of a higher varṇa was not to do abhivādana to one of lower varṇa (vide note 819 above) there would be no occasion for pratyabhivāda from the side of the latter. The verse of Manu is interpreted by Haradatta and a few others in a different manner. According to them the last vowel in the name of the person whose salutation is to be returned is pluta and then 'a' is added to it, and that if the vocative ends in e or o, it becomes āya or āva (with ‘a’ added).²¹² This view is opposed to Pāṇini, the Mahābhāṣya, the Kāśikā, Āpastamba and several writers of digestṣ Aparārka and the Sṃ C. condemn the interpretation put upon Manu's verse by commentators like Haradatta.²¹³

What great importance was attached to the correct utter- ance of the return salutation can be seen from the fact that one of the miscellaneous reasons assigned for the necessity of grammatical studies in the Mahābhāṣya is that (as stated in a verse) a person who returns from a journey will perform salutation to ignorant persons (who do not know how to utter pratyabhivāda) as if to women with the words ‘abhivādaye ayamaham²¹⁴ (i. e. grammar is to be learnt by men for fear that they may be treated as women when a person salutes them).

Āp. Dh. S. (I. 2. 7. 27) prescribes that the student shall be-have towards his teacher's wife as towards the teacher himself, but he shall not clasp her feet or eat the residue of her fooḍ²¹⁵ Gaut. (II. 31–32) also says the same thing and adds that the student shall not assist the wives of the teacher at their toilet or bath nor wash their feet nor shampoo theṃ Manu II. 211, Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 2. 37, Viṣṇu Dh. S. 32. 6 have the same rule. But Gaut. II. 33 states an exception that on return from a journey the student shall clasp the feet of the wives of his teacher (also Manu II. 217 and Viṣṇu Dh. S. 32. 15). Manu (II. 210) gives special directions ‘the wives of the teacher who belong to the same caste must be treated as respectfully as the teacher but in the case of those who belong to a different caste he need only rise from his seat and salute’ (Viṣṇu Dh. S. 32. 5 also is similar ), and ‘a student who is full twenty years old shall not honour the young wife of a teacher by clasping her feet ( Manu II. 212 and Viṣṇu Dh. S. 32. 13); but even a young student may prostrate himself on the ground for honouring the young wife of his teacher without clasping her feet ( with the words ‘abhivādaye amukaśarmā-ham bhoḥ’ ).

As regards women who are not wives of the teacher, the following rules deserve attentioṇ The first rule is that married women, whatever their age may be, deserve honour ( and so he must salute &c.) according to the ages of their husbands²¹⁶ (Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14. 18 and Vaṣ Dh. S. 13. 42). Viṣṇu Dh. S. 32. 2 gives the same rule, but restricts it to wives of the same caste. Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14. 6 prescribes that the teacher i. e. their feet must be clasped on those occasions on which a teacher's feet are to be clasped and Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14. 9 extends the rule to elder sisterṣ Gaut. (VI. 7-8) states that the feet of the wives of (elder) brothers or of one's mother-in-law need not be clasped on any occasion; and the feet of a paternal uncle's wife or of elder sisters need not be clasped except when one returns from a journey. But Manu (II. 131-132) gives different ruleṣ A maternal or paternal aunt, a maternal uncle's wife, a mother-in-law are equal to one's teacher's wife and must be honoured like her; one's elder brother's wife's feet must be clasped every day if she is of the same caste, but the feet of the wives of one's other paternal and maternal relatives need only be clasped on one's return from a journey. Viṣṇu Dh. S. 32. 3 places a maternal or paternal aunt and the eldest sister on an equality with the teacher's wife. As already stated above in the case of all women the salutation is simply 'I salute' (abhivādaye aham )' without mentioning one's name. Devala says 'the mother, mother's mother, teacher's wife and the full brothers and sisters of one's parents, paternal grand-mother, mother-in-law, elder sister and the foster mother are women who are ( to be honoured like ) gurus'.²¹⁷

Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 7. 30, Vaṣ Dh. S. XIII. 54, Viṣṇu Dh. S. 28. 31, Manu II. 207 require that the student will behave towards the teacher's son as towards his teacher. That this rule is very ancient follows from a passage²¹⁸ in the Mahābhāṣya; where it is stated and a proviso is added that the student will not however clasp the son's feet nor eat the leavings of his fooḍ Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 7. 30 only mentions as prohibited the eating of the leavings of food, but Viṣṇu Dh. S. (28. 32-33) prohibits also the washing of the son's feet. Manu (II. 208) gives a restrictive rule that the son of the teacher deserves the same honour as a teacher, if he imparts instruction in place of the teacher ( because the latter is otherwise engaged ), whether the son be younger or of the same age as the student, but that the student in any case must not shampoo the limbs of the son nor assist him in his bath nor wash his feet nor eat the leavings of his fooḍ

From Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 7. 28 and I. 4. 13. 12²¹⁹ it appears that the system of pupil teachers (who were called 'samādiṣṭa') obtained in ancient times and Āp. prescribes that the student shall behave towards a pupil teacher who teaches him at the teacher's command as towards the teacher and shall honour him also by clasping his feet, as long as he is giving instructioṇ

Further rules are laid down about showing courtesy to a person who is not a relative or who is not a teacher &c. Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14. 26–29 and Manu II. 127 lay down that one should, on meeting a brāhmaṇa, ask after his health with the word ‘kuśala,’ a kṣatriya about his health using the word ‘anāmaya’, a vaiśya by using the word kṣema (or anasta according to Āp.) and a śūdra by employing the word ārogya. Thus one who is older (according to the rule in Manu II. 134 cited above on p. 339) should be saluted, while one who is of the same age or younger should simply be asked ‘kuśala’ &c. Gāut. V. 37–38 gives similar directionṣ²²⁰ Manu ( II. 129 ) enjoins that one should address a woman who is the wife of another man and who is not a blood relation as ‘lady’ ( bhavatī ) or ‘beloved sister’ and (Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 14. 30) that one should not pass a learned brāhmaṇa without addressing him nor a woman whom he meets in a forest or other lonely place and Viṣṇu Dh. S. 32. 7 says that in such circumstances he must address her (in order to assure her) as ‘sister’ (if she is of the same age as himself) or ‘daughter’ (if she is younger) and ‘mother’ (if she is older than himself).

It is stated in the Ud vāhatattva²²¹ (p. 144). that the word ‘śrī’ is to be prefixed when referring by name to a deity or a teacher, to the place of one's teacher, to a holy place or to the presiding deity of a holy place, to one who has secured Yogic siddhis or to those who have secured by sacrifices the worlds of bliss; and Raghunandana adds that according to the usage of respectable people ‘śrī’ is prefixed to names of such persons while they are alive. The same work also tells us that women of the dvijātis were to have the honorific suffix ‘devī’ added to ` their names and of the śūdra caste the word 'dāsī'. This is still the practice particularly in Bengal and Northern India.

The works on Dharmaśāstra give very interesting rules about the grounds on which respect was to be shown to a persoṇ Honour²²² consists in saluting a person, or rising to meet him or allowing him to walk in front of one or giving him a garland, sandal-wood paste on festive occasions and the like. Manu (II. 136) and Viṣṇu Dh. S. (32. 16) say that wealth kindred, age, (performance of) religious rites and sacred knowledge confer title to respect, but each succeeding one out of these five is superior to each preceding one. Gaut. (VI. 18-20) is slightly different; he says 'wealth, relations, occupation, birth, learning and age must be honoured; each later named is more important than each preceding one; but Vedic learning is more important than all (the rest)'. Vaṣ Dh. S. 13. 56-57 also says that learning, wealth, age, relationship and religious actions are titles to respect, but each preceding one is more important than each succeeding one. Yāj. I. 116 puts the order as vidyā, karma, age, relationship and wealth (i. e. wealth is the least ground for giving honour). Viśvarūpa on Yāj. I. 35 says that if respect is not paid to guru (parents), ācārya, upādhyāya and ṛtvik (they are arranged in descending order) one incurs sin, but if honour is not shown on the ground of 'learning, wealth &c. there is no sin but one loses happiness and succesṣ Manu II. 137 says that a śūdra who is beyond 90 years is still a child to a learned brāhmaṇa. In order to show that Vedic learning is superior to seniority of age Manu (II. 151-153) narrates the story of a young scion of the Angiras gotra who taught his pitṛs and addressed them as 'little sons' and whose action was supported by the gods with the remark that a man destitute of knowledge was a child and he who taught him the Veda was his father. This story is referred to expressly by Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 4. 47 and tacitly by Gaut. VI. 20. It is borrowed from the Tāṇḍya Mahābrāhmaṇa²²³ ( 13. 3. 24 ). Manu II. 155 clinches the argument by saying 'the seniority of brāhmaṇas springs from (sacred) knowledge, of kṣatriyas from valour, of vaiśyas from (the possession) of corn and other wealth and only among śūdras is age a ground of seniority'. Kauṭ. says that men deserve honour according to their learning, intelligence, valour, high birth and eminent deedṣ ²²⁴ One has to distinguish between abhivādana and namaskāra. In the former one not only bows but utters words like 'abhi- vādaye &c.', while in the latter one only bows and folds one's handṣ The latter is done only to images of gods, brāhmaṇas, saṁnyāsins and the like. The Smṛtyarthasāra p. 8 prescribes a fast for one day as a penance for not bowing to images of gods, saṁnyāsins &c. Viṣṇu ²²⁵ (quoted in the Sṃ C.) says that one should not salute (abhivādana) a brāhmaṇa, but should only perform namaskāra in all public assemblies, in sacrifices or in palaces or royal courtṣ The posture of the hands in namaskāra is stated as follows: 'One should join the hands in the shape of a shegoat's ear in namaskāra to a learned man, one should fold the hands together in bowing to an ascetic, one should salute an ignorant man with one hand and should not perform abhi- vādana to one who is younger. ²²⁶ One had to show respect by circumambulating ²²⁷ from left to right temples or images of gods, bulls, cowpens, cows, ghee, honey, sacred trees that had brick or stone platforms built round them (like aśvattha) and squares (where four roads meet), a teacher who is very learned, a learned and religious brāhmaṇa, clay from sacred placeṣ One was not to approach empty-handed one's parents, ācārya, sacred fires, houses and the king, if the latter has not heard of him before. ²²⁸ A matter closely connected with the showing of respect is that of the rules about the preference to be given on the roaḍ This has already been dealt with in speaking of the privileges of brāhmaṇas above pp. 146-147.

One striking point about the imparting of knowledge (particularly Vedic) in the ancient educational system of India was the great prejudice against learning from bookṣ The greatest importance was attached to handing down the Veda intact and various devices were discovered and employed for securing this end, such as the various modes of repeating the Veda only in padas, in the krama, jaṭā and other formationṣ Great care was taken to preserve the proper accentuation of the Vedic textṣ There is a well known story how Tvaṣṭṛ repeating the words 'Indraśatru-vardhasva'²²⁹ in wrong accents caused the fire to be extinguished instead of inflaming it against Indra as he intendeḍ This story is alluded to in the Pāṇinīyaśikṣā. The same work (in verse 32) condemns one who learns from a manuscript as among the worst of learnerṣ The Veda was to be recited not only with proper modulation of the voice to convey the accents, but the accents were indicated also by the movements of the fingers (vide verses 43-45 of the Pāṇinīya-śikṣā). All these intricate matters could be learnt only by oral instructioṇ

Great controversies have raged round the question whether the art of writing was known in India in very ancient times, whether it was used for literary purposes in the times of Pāṇini and whether the Brāhmī alphabet was an indigenous product or whether it was imported into India from some foreign lanḍ Max Muller in his 'History of ancient Sanskrit Literature' started the astounding and absurd theory that writing for literary pur-poses was unknown to Pāṇini (p. 507). Later on that position was given up. Then Bühler wrote his famous work on the origin of the Brāhmī alphabet, mainly relying on the resemblances of a few letters of the Aśokan script with an ancient Semitic alphabet and came to the conclusion that the Brāhmī alphabet was derived from a Semitic script sometimes about 800 B. C. It never occurred to that learned scholar to advance and carefully examine the other possible hypotheses which any unbiased and cautious scholar should have ordinarily advanced viz. that the Semitic script might have been derived from the Brāhmī alphabet and was later on developed or both might have been derived from some unknown ancient script. All these theories are now in the melting pot on account of the seals bearing writing in some undeciphered script found at Mohenjo- daro and Harappa, some of which are at least 5000 years olḍ So if the Brāhmī alphabet was at all borrowed, it is clear now that it was not necessary for Indians to travel so far as Westernmost Asia for that purpose.

Oral instruction was the cheapest and most accurate method of imparting learning. In ancient times writing materials were not easily available and written texts could not be handled easily and would have been extremely costly. Therefore the method of oral instruction was resorted to and having been hallowed by the lapse of thousands of years it has been persisted in to the present day. Even in the 20th century after writing has been known for not less than 3000 years accord- ing to scholars like Bühler there are hundreds of brāhmaṇas who learn not only the whole of the Ṛgveda (about 10580 verses) by heart, but also commit to memory the pada²³⁰ text of the Ṛgveda, the Aitareya Brāhmaṇa and Āraṇyaka and the six Vedāṅgas (which include the 4000 aphorisms of Pāṇini and the extensive Nirukta of Yāska) without caring to understand a word of this enormous material.

Par. M. (I. 1. p. 154) quotes a verse of Nārada to the effect ²³¹ what is learnt from reliance on books and is not learnt from a teacher does not shine in an assembly²³². Vṛddha-Gautama condemns to hell those who sell the Veda, who condemn the Veda and those who write it dowṇ Aparārka (p. 1114 on Yaj. III. 267-268) quotes verses from the Caturvimśatimata which prescribe various prāyaścittas for selling the Vedas, the aṅgas (of the Veda), the smṛtis, itihāsa and purāṇa, the secret pañcarātra (system), gāthās, nītiśāstras &c. The prejudice against using books for learning was carried so far that among the six obstacles in the path of the acquirer of knowledge, reliance on books is mentioned as one.²³³ Aparārka (p. 390) quotes a long passage from the Bhaviṣyottarapurāṇa about the rewards of gifts of books of the epics and purāṇas to a brāhmaṇa or to a maṭha for the use of the public. A grant of the Valabhi king Guhasena I dated 559 A. D. refers to a collec- tion of books on the true dharma.²³⁴ In the Kādambarī (para 88) the queen Vilāsavatī is described as surrounded by ascetic women who held books in their hands and read itihāsa.²³⁵ Vide under dāna and maṭha-pratiṣṭhā.

The teacher was expected to make the student understand by explanations in Sanskrit or in the prākrits or even by employing the current languages of the various countrieṣ²³⁶

The Duration of studenthood (brahmacarya) :—It appears from certain passages of the Upaniṣads that the usual duration of brahmacarya was 12 years²³⁷. Śvetaketu Āruṇeya is said to have become a brahmacārī when he was twelve and to have mastered all the Vedas at the age of 24 (vide Chāṇ Up. VI, 1. 2 quoted in f. ṇ 634). Similarly Chāṇ IV. 10.1 appears to suggest that students left their teacher after twelve years of study. But brahmacarya was not unknown to the sages of the Upaniṣadṣ Chāndogya (VIII. 11. 3) declares that Indra remained as a student with Prajāpati for 101 years (three periods of 32 years plus five). The story of Bharadvāja narrated in the Tai. Br. quoted above (at p. 271) states that Bharadvāja studied the Vedas three parts of his life (at least till 75 years). The Gopatha Brāhmaṇa ²³⁸ (II. 5) states that the period of studenthood for learning all the Vedas is 48 years; that period in four portions among the vedas student-hood is for 12 years (for mastering one Veda), that period (12 years) is the shortest (for brahmacarya) and that one should learn of the Veda as much as one can before he is about to return from his teacher.

Some of the gṛhya and dharma sūtras contain these very words of the Gopatha Brāhmaṇa e. g. Pār. gṛ. II. 5 says 'one should observe brahmacarya forty-eight years for the (four) Vedas, or twelve years for each Veda or until one has learnt one or more Veda'. The Bauḍ gṛ. (I. 2. 1-5) has a very suggestive passage "the ancient period of studenthood was forty-eight years for (the four Vedas) or 24 years, or 12 years for each Veda or at least one year for each kāṇḍa (section of the Vedic saṁhitās like the Tai. S.) or until the student learnt (one Veda), as life is fleeting and as there is a Vedic text 'one should consecrate (the three) sacred fires, while his hair is still dark'". On Jaimini I. 3. 3 Śabara states the objection (among other similar matters) that the smṛtis speaking of brahmacarya for fortyeight years are opposed to the Vedic injunction that 'a man who has a son and whose hair is still dark should consecrate the (three śrauta) fires' (i. e. he must do so in middle life, not when his hair is turning grey). Śabara gives his opinion that such smṛtis being opposed to śruti are to be disregarded ²⁴⁰ and makes fun of them by saying that some persons desirous of concealing their lack of manhood observed brahmacarya for forty-eight years and the prescriptions in these smṛtis to that effect are due to this fact.²⁴¹ The very orthodox Kumārilabhaṭṭa could not tolerate this light-hearted statement of Śabara and rebukes the latter by saying that there is really no contradiction between the śruti text and the smṛti passage, since the smṛtis themselves prescribe other lesser and alternative periods, since it is possible to hold that smṛtis speak of brahmacarya for 48 years only with reference to him who wants to become a saṁnyāsin immediately after brahmacarya or who desires to become a perpetual student.²⁴²

As the Vedic literature had grown to vast proportions and as it was thought necessary to preserve this ancient heritage, the ancient sages hit upon the plan of enlisting the whole population of the three varṇas in the task of preservation by making it as their duty to devote as much time as they could to the study and conservation of the Vedic literature. Therefore various alternatives were proposed viz. studying all the four Vedas for 48 years, three of them for 36 or if a man was very clever he may finish the study of three Vedas in 18 years or in 9 years or he should devote as much time as he would require for learning one Veda or more. Vide Manu III. 1–2 and Yāj. I 36 and 52 for the various alternativeṣ Spending 12 years for Vedic study must have been found even in ancient times impossible for many among the brāhmaṇas and therefore the Bhāradvāja grhya (quoted above in note 850) allowed the alternative that one should study the Veda till the Godāna ceremony (which as we shall see later on) took place in the 16th year. Aśv. gr. sūtra I. 22. 3-4 also prescribes only two alternatives for brahmacarya viz. for 12 years or as long as one would learn the Veda (so Aśv. contemplated brahmacarya for less than 12 years). Haradatta remarks on Āp. Dh. S. I. I. 2. 16²⁴³ that reading Āp. I. 1. 2. 12-16, I. 11. 3. 1 and Manu III. 1 together it follows that every one must observe brahmacarya for three years at least for each Veda and when it is said that one may observe brahmacarya till one learns the Veda, that means beyond three years for each Veda. This appears somewhat opposed to the words of Aśv. and Bhāradvāja.

Not only was the study of the Veda made an absolute duty for all persons belonging to the three higher varṇas, but the study of Veda was essential for the performance of the solemn Vedic sacrificeṣ Jaimini²⁴⁴ lays down that it is only he who knows the Vedic portion necessary for a Vedic sacrifice, that is entitled to perform that sacrifice.

Subjects of Study:—The study of the Veda means the study of the Mantras and the Brāhmaṇa portion of the particular śākhā or sākhāṣ²⁴⁵ The Veda was deemed to be eternal and not composed by any human author (i.e. it is apauruṣeya). Jaimini in I. 1. 6-23 establishes that the relation of word and sense is eternal and that (in I. 1. 27-32) the Vedas are apauruṣeya. This is not the place to set out or examine the argumentṣ All dharmaśāstra writers proceed on this axiom of the eternity of the Veda. The Vedāntasūtra (I. 3, 28-29) says that the Vedas are eternal and the whole universe (including the gods) emanates from the Veda and reliance is placed on certain Upaniṣad passages and on Manu I. 21, Śānti-parva 233. 24 and other smṛtis The Bṛ. Up. IV. 5. 11 says that the Vedas are the breath of the great Being (i. e. the Supreme Spirit, God) ; in Bṛ. Up. I. 2. 5 the Creator (Prajāpati) is said to have evolved all this viz. Ṛgveda, Yajurveda, Sāmaveda, yajñas and so forth. The Śvetāśvatara Up. VI. 18 says that the Supreme Being evolved Brahmā and imparted the Vedas to hiṃ²⁴⁶ The Śāntiparva²⁴⁷ says that speech in the form of Veda is without beginning and without end, from which all activities and creation proceed, and that the Vedas become latent at the periodical dissolution of the world and become manifest to the great sages again when the world is recreateḍ But the eternity of the Veda and apauruṣ- eyatva of the Veda were interpreted in various ways e. g. the Mahābhāṣya says that, though the purport of the Veda is eternal, yet the arrangement of words is non-eternal and therefore there are various śākhās ( branches or recensions ) of the Veda, named Kāṭhaka, Kālāpaka &c.²⁴⁸

From very ancient times the literature to be studied appears to have been vast. Vide Tai. Br. quoted above (at p. 271) where the Vedas have been declared to be endlesṣ In the Ṛgveda itself (X. 71. 11) reference is made to the verses learnt by the four principal priests (hotā, adhvaryu, udgātā and brahmā), it is also said that persons who studied together showed great disparity in their mental advancement (Ṛg. X. 71. 7) and that co-students feel elation when their friend wins in a debate in an assembly. The Śat. Br. (XI. 5. 7. 4–8, S. B. E. vol. 44, pp. 97–98) enumerates under ‘svādhyāya’ ṛks, yajus formulae, sāmans, Atharvāṅgirasaḥ (Atharvaveda), itihāsa-purāṇa, gāthās in praise of heroes (called Nārāśaṁsīs)'. The Gopatha Brā- hmaṇa II. 10 also says ‘in this way all these Vedas were created together with kalpa, rahasya (secret doctrines), Brāhmaṇas, Upaniṣads, itihāsa, anvākhyāna, purāṇa, anuśāsanas, vākovākya &c'. In the Upaniṣads frequent mention is made of the literature studied by persons before they became seekers for the knowledge of brahma. For example, in Chāṇ Up. VII. 1. 2 Nārada tells Sanatkumāra that he had studied the four Vedas, Itihāsa-purāṇa as the fifth Veda, the Veda of Vedas (grammar), pitrya (treatise on śrāddhas), rāśi (arithmetic), daiva (portents), nidhi (finding out hidden treasures), vākovākya (dialogue or dialectic), ekāyana (politics), devavidyā (Nirukta), brahmavidyā (metres and phonetics), bhūtavidyā (exercising ghosts), kṣatravidyā (dhanurveda), nakṣatravidyā (astronomy), sarpavidyā (snake charms), devajanavidyā (arts like dancing, singing, preparing unguents &c.). The same list is repeated in Chāṇ Up. VII. 1. 4 and VII. 7. 1. In the Br. Up.²⁴⁹ II. 4. 10 and IV. 5. 11 there is a similar smaller list. In the Muṇḍaka Up. I. 1. 5 it is said that the ācārya Aṅgiras told Śaunaka who was a great householder that the four Vedas and the six aṅgas (mentioned in note 775 above) are inferior knowledge and that the highest knowledge is that by which the Imperishable One is apprehendeḍ Gaut. XI. 19 exhorts the king to rely upon the Veda, dharmaśāstras, the aṅgas, Upavedas and Purāṇa for regulating the conduct of his subjectṣ Ap. Dh. S. (quoted above in note 775), Viṣṇu Dh. S. 30. 34-38, VaṣIII. 19 and 23, VI. 3-4 mention the aṅgas of Veda. Pāṇini shows acquaintance not only with the Veda and Brāhmaṇas but he knew ancient Kalpasūtras, Bhiksusūtras and Naṭasūtras, secular works on various subjects (IV. 3. 87-88, 105, 110,111, 116). Patañjali²⁵⁰ (2nd century B. C.) mentions how vast the field of Sanskrit literature had become. Yāj. I. 44-45 calls upon the student to study every day according to his ability also Vākovākya, Purāṇa, Nārāśaṁsī,²⁵¹ gāthās, itihāsa, vidyās if he desired to please the gods and maneṣ Fourteen vidyās are generally enumerated as in Yaj. I. 3 (= Matsya 53. 5-6), Vāyupurāṇa vol. I. 61. 78, Vrddha-Gautama (p. 632) and other works, viz. four vedas, 6 aṅgas, purāṇas, nyāya (logic), mīmāṁsā and dharmaśāstra. Some added four more to these, viz. the Upavedas of Āyurveda, Dhanurveda, Gāndharvaveda and Arthaśāstra (which were affiliated respectively to the four Vedas) and thus the vidyās are also spoken of as 18.²⁵² Kālīdāsa in the Raghuvamsa (V. 21) expressly says that VaraTantu taught his pupil 14 vidyāṣ In E.I. vol. VIII. p. 287 (in an inscription of 199 Guptasamvat i.e. 517–18 A. D.) it is said about Suśarman, an ancestor of Mahārāja Saṁkṣobha, that 'he knew the highest truth because of his proficiency in the 14 vidyā-sthānas'. Kumārila²⁵³ in his Tantravārtika (p. 201) says that vidyā-sthānas that are looked upon as authoritative in knowing dharma are 14 or 18. The Vārāhagrhyas (6) refers to different preparations for different people, viz. a yājñika had to study mantra and Brāhmaṇa kalpa (vedic ritual) and mīmāṁsā and one could study at his option grammar, the smṛtis and vaktra (?) and the śrotriya only committed to memory the Veda; the first two were called snātakaṣ Numerous grants and inscriptions testify to the provision made by kings and well-to-do donors for all branches of study. In E. C. vol. III. T N. 27 there is a grant made by the minister Perumal under the Hoysala king Viranarasimhadeva in 1290 A. D. which provided that each teacher of the Ṛgveda and the other Vedas was to receive a salary of six gadyāṇakas of gold a year and the teacher who taught the boys to read Nāgara, Kannaḍa, Tigula (Tamil) and Ārya (Marathi) was to receive the same salary. The Gadag inscription of the time of Vikramāditya VI. (1098 A. D.) refers to the founding of a school for teaching Prabhākara's system of Mīmāṁsā at Lakkiguṇḍi (E. I. vol. 15 p. 348). Vide E. I. vol. I. p. 338 (for endowment for teaching an astronomical work of Bhāskara).

Even in early times a very extensive literature on Dharma-śāstra had come into existence. The literature of the epics, of kāvyas, drama, fables and romances, astrology, medicine and several branches of speculation had grown to an enormous extent. On account of this vast literature many portions of which appealed more to the emotions and intellect than the Vedas could, the study of the Veda receded in the background and the study of subsidiary works became more popular. Therefore the smṛtis again and again raise their voice and try to impress it upon all that the first duty of a dvijāti is to study the Veda. The Maitrī Up. VII. 10, though comparatively a late work, inveighs against brāhmaṇas studying non-vedic textṣ²⁵⁴ Manu (II. 168) says that the dvija who, without study- ing the Veda, bestows labour upon another lore, is quickly reduced to the status of a śūdra in this very life together with his descendantṣ Kullūka on this verse cites the aphorism of Śaṅkha-Likhita ²⁵⁵ ‘one should not, without studying the Veda first, study another lore, except the Vedāṅgas and smṛtis’. Vaṣ Dh.S. III. 2 expressly quotes the verse of Manu II. 168 as Mānava śloka. The Tai. Up. I. 9 speaks of svādhyāya (study of the Veda) and pravacana (teaching it or daily repeating it) as tapas and joins these two with ṛta, satya, tapas, ²⁵⁶ dama, śama, fires, agnihotra and progeny in order to emphasize that these two are his return home not to neglect his study of the Veda.

The study of the Veda did not merely consist in learning the mantras by heart. Śaṁkara in his bhāṣya on Vedāntasūtra I. 3. 30 quotes a Brāhmaṇa text to the effect that he who teaches a mantra or officiates at a sacrifice with mantras of which he does not know the seer, the deity or the Brāhmaṇa (i. e. viniyoga, employment or use) falls on a stump or in a pit. ²⁵⁷ The Mit. on Yāj. III. 300 quotes a verse of Vyāsa to the same effect. Not only was the Veda to be committed to memory (i. e. not only was there to be pāṭha) but one had also to understand the meaning. The Nirukta (I. 18) quotes two verses²⁵⁸ which condemn in very strong language one who commits to memory the Veda and does not know the meaning 'that man, who having studied the Veda, does not know its meaning, is indeed a tree, a stump, a mere carrier of a load; he alone who knows the meaning secures all happiness; his sins being shaken off by knowledge, he reaches heaven'. Dakṣa²⁵⁹ II. 34 says that the study of Veda involves five things viz. first committing to memory the Veda, then reflection over its meaning, keeping it fresh by repeating it again and again, japa (inaudibly muttering by way of prayer) and imparting it to pupilṣ Manu XII. 103 says 'those who have committed to memory the Veda are superior to those who are ignorant of it, those who retain their Veda (i. e. who do not allow it to be forgotten) are superior to those who only studied it (and then forgot it), those who know its meaning are superior to those who simply retain it in memory, those who perform what the meaning of the Veda dictates are superior to those who know its meaning'. Śabara²⁶⁰ says that the real purpose of the study of the Veda is the knowledge about religious actions that it conveys and that from the mere memorizing of the Veda, no rewards are promised by those who know the lore of the sacrificeṣ Viśvarūpa²⁶¹ on Yāj. I. 51 says that he alone is really vedapāraga who has made the Veda his own as to the spirit (the meaning). Aparārka (p. 74) quotes a long passage from Vyāsa condemning the mere memorizing of the Veda.²⁶² Vide also Medhātithi on Manu III, 19. In spite of these excellent precepts it appears that from very ancient times the Veda was only committed to memory and most men learned in the Veda never cared to know its meaning. The Mahābhārata ²⁶³ speaks disparagingly of the śrotriya as having an intellect dulled by the constant repetition of the anuvākas of the Veda. Further there was always an undercurrent of the belief that the mere memorizing of the Vedic texts conferred great sanctity on the memorizer and removed all sinṣ As time went on these ideas became supreme and the neglect of the meaning of the Veda has gone so far that among many modern orthodox brāhmaṇas there is a belief that the meaning of the Veda cannot be known and it is futile to try to find its meaning. The Tai. Br. says that a man's sins are destroyed by the Veda and by svādhyāya. In Manu XI. 245, Yāj. III. 310 and in numerous other places it is said that sins do not affect a man who studies the Veda and that the study of Veda destroys siṇ Vaṣ Dh. S. 28. 10–15 speaks of about 35 groups of Vedic hymns (like the Aghamarṣaṇa, Ṛg. X. 190 ) by silently muttering which a man is purified of his sins; but Vaṣ Dh. S. 27. 4 is careful to add that Veda study only removes such sins as are committed through ignorance or carelessnesṣ²⁶⁴ Similar provision for removal of sins by the muttering of the Vedic mantras is made in Viṣṇu Dh. S. 56. 1–27, Yāj. III. 307-309, Manu XI. 248-260 &c.

Not only was the Veda to be committed to memory, but when learnt it was not allowed to slip from one's minḍ Āp. Dh. S. I. 7. 21. 8 makes 'brahmojjha' (i. e. abandoning what is learnt) a grave sin along with drinking wine and otherṣ Similarly Manu XI. 56 and Yāj. III. 228 also treat it as equal to drinking wine or the murder of a brāhmaṇa.

Similarly Manu IV. 163 forbids nāstikya²⁶⁵ (holding that there is no soul or no Hereafter) and the reviling of the Veda and In XI. 56 regards the latter as a grave sin equal to drinking wine, while Yāj. III. 288 treats it as grave as brahmahatyā. Gaut. 21. 1 mentions the nāstika among patitas along with brāhmaṇa murderer and drinker of wine. Viṣṇu Dh. S. 37. 4 includes the reviling of Veda among upapātakas ( lesser sins ). Manu II. 11 says that he who disrespects Veda and smṛti by relying on syllogistic reasoning is a reviler of Veda and a nāstika (atheist) and should be excluded from social intercourse by good meṇ Vaṣ Dh. S. XII. 41 says ‘to hold the vedas as unauthoritative, to carp at the words of the sages, and to be wavering on all points lead to one's destruction’. Vide Viṣṇu Dh. S. 71. 83 and Anuśāsanaparva 37. 11 for the same ( in the latter the 2nd pāda is śāstrāṇām cābhilaṅghanam ).

Another striking feature of the ancient educational system was the total absence of any prior agreement about fees for teaching studentṣ So early as Br. Up. IV.1.2 we find Yājñavalky. saying to king Janaka who offered to give him a thousand cows, an elephant and a bull (or as Śaṁkara explains an elephant-like bull), ‘my father was of opinion that without fully teaching a pupil one should not receive any reward from him’.²⁶⁷ Gaut.²⁶⁸ (II. 54–55) says that at the end of his studies the student should request the teacher what should be given and after paying or doing what the teacher wants or if the teacher allowed him to go without demanding anything, the student should take the ceremonial bath (i. e. return home). The Āśv. gr. (III. 9. 4) has almost the same wordṣ The Āp. Dh. S.²⁶⁹ (1. 2. 7. 19–23) requires the student to offer at the end of his studies, whatever their extent may be, a dakṣiṇā obtained from proper sources to his teacher according to his abilities and that if the teacher is in straightened circumstances, to offer him a fee even by begging from a person who is of the ugra caste or from a śūdra and that after offering a fee or doing even a very strikingly good turn `to his teacher he should not boast of it to others nor should he ever dwell in his mind over it. The ideal `was that the dakṣiṇā (fee) offered to the teacher at the end of study was simply for pleasing or propitiating the teacher and was not a complete equivalent of or compensation for the knowledge imparteḍ Manu (II. 245–246) says that the student need not give anything to the teacher till his snāna; when he is about to return home, he may offer to his guru some wealth; that the gift of a field, gold, a cow, or a horse, of even shoes or an umbrella, of a seat, corn, vegetables and clothes (either singly or together) may engender pleasure in the teacher. The Chāṇ Up.²⁷⁰ III. 11.6 eulogises brahmavidyā by declaring it to be more valuable than the gift of the whole earth together with all its wealth. The smṛtis²⁷¹ declare that even if the guru teaches a single letter to the pupil, there is nothing in this world by giving which the pupil can get rid of the debt he oweṣ The Mahā- bhārata says (Aśvamedhika 56. 21) that the teacher's satisfac- tion with the student's work and conduct is indeed the proper dakṣiṇā,²⁷² Yāj. I. 51 says that one should give to his teacher what he chooses to ask as dakṣiṇā and Kātyāyana²⁷³ quoted by Aparārka (p. 76) prescribes that a brāhmaṇa pupil may give a cow, a princely one a village, a vaiśya a horse (if able to do so). It has been shown above (p. 355) how kings and others made gifts of lands or provided for salaries to teacherṣ One of the earliest record about university scholarships is contained in the Bahur (near Pondichery) plates of Nṛpatuṅgavarman in which we find a grant to a Vidyāsthāna (a seat of learning) for promotion of learning (E. I. vol. 18 p. 5). In E. I. vol. 15 p. 83 there is provision of 30 matters of land for professors lecturing to ascetics and of eight matters to teachers giving lessons to the youths in a monastery (in the times of Cālukya Someśvara I at Sūdi in Dharwar District in śake 981). The Peśwa distri- buted to learned brāhmaṇas every year dakṣiṇā which rose to 4 lakhs of rupees a short time before 1818 A. D. It may be stated that even in the 20th century there are numerous brāhmaṇa teachers of the veda and the śāstras who. teach pupils for years without stipulating for any fee or even receiving any- thing from theṃ

According to Manu II. 141, Śaṅkhasmṛti III. 2 and Viṣṇu Dh. S. 29. 2 a teacher who teaches the Veda or the Vedāṅgas for money or for his livelihood is called an Upādhyāya. Yāj. III. 235 and Viṣṇu Dh. S. 37. 20 and others include teaching for money (and also learning from a paid teacher) among upapāta- kas (lesser sins). Manu III. 156, Anušāsana 23. 17 and Yāj. I. 223 say that he who is a hired teacher (bhṛtakādhyāpaka) and he who learns from such a teacher are not fit to be invited at a śrāddha. But Medhātithi (on Manu II. 112 and III. 146), the Mit. (on Yāj. III. 235), the Sṃ C. and others say that a person does not become a hired teacher by accepting something from a pupil, but that what is condemned is making a stipulation before- hand that one would teach only if a certain sum or if so much were paid or delivereḍ²⁷⁴ In distress, Manu X. 116 and Yāj. III. 42 allow even such stipulations for the purpose of securing one's livelihooḍ

The Mahābhārata (Ādi. 133. 2-3) shows that when Bhīṣma appointed Droṇa as the teacher of the Pāṇḍava and Kaurava princes he bestowed on him wealth and a well-furnished house full of corn; but there was no stipulatioṇ

It has been shown above (p. 113) that it was the king's duty to support learned men and students and to see that no brāhmaṇa died of hunger in his kingdom (vide Gaut. X. 9-12, Viṣṇu Dh. S. III. 79-80, Manu VII. 82-85, Yāj. I. 315, 333). So a student, when the teacher demanded a heavy fee at the end of studies, could theoretically at least approach a king for the fee. Kālidāsa draws in Raghuvamsa V a graphic picture how Vara- tantu demanded a dakṣiṇā of 14 crores from his pupil Kautsa who approached Raghu for the same and would not take more than his requirementṣ Sometimes the teacher or his wife, according to legends, demanded fanciful dakṣiṇāṣ For example, Uttanka was asked by his teacher's wife, when he urged her to take something, to bring the ear-rings of the queen of the reigning king (vide Ādiparva chap. 3 and Aśvamedhika-parve 56 ).

It would be interesting to see how far corporal punishment of pupils was allowed in ancient India. Gaut.²⁷⁵ (II. 48-50) lays down that pupils are to be regulated (ordinarily ) without beating; but if it is not possible to control the pupil (by words &c. ) then he may be struck with a slender rope or with a split bamboo; that if the teacher struck (the pupil) in any other way (e. g. with the hand &c. ) the teacher should be punished by the king. The Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 8. 29-30 calls upon the teacher to censure (by words) a pupil when he commits a fault and to employ according to the gravity of the offence any one or more of the following punishments till the pupil desists, viz. threatening (the pupil), refusing to give him food, drenching him in cold water and not allowing him to come in his presence.²⁷⁶ The Mahābhāṣya²⁷⁷ (vol. I. p. 41) refers to the fact that when a pupil pronounced a wrong accent (e. g. anudātta in place of udātta ) the upādhyāya slapped him (on the back probably). Manu VIII. 299–300, Viṣṇu Dh. S. 71. 81–82, Nārada ( abhyupetya-śuśrūṣa, verses 13–14) follow Gautama as to corporal punishment, but add that beating should be on the back only and never on the head nor on the chest, while Nārada further rules that the beating should not be excessive. Manu (VIII. 300) says that the punishment in case of violation of these rules by the teacher is that for a thief and (VIII. 299) extends the same rules to the son and the wife. Manu II. 159 recommends that in imparting instruction about the right path of conduct, one should use sweet persuasive ( not high-toned ) wordṣ

A few words must now be said about the education of kṣatriyas, vaiśyas and śūdraṣ According to Gaut. XI. 3 a king should be well-grounded in the three Vedas and in Ānvīkṣikī (i. e. metaphysics) and in XI. 19 Gaut. says that the king has to rely for carrying out his duties on the veda, the dharmaśāstras, the subsidiary lores of the veda, the upavedas and purāṇaṣ Manu VII. 43 and Yāj. I. 311 say that a king should be proficient in the three Vedas, in metaphysics, in daṇḍanīti (the art of government and statecraft) and in vārtā (economic life and production of wealth). These directions were probably meant to be an ideal and very few kings ever went through all thiṣ If any conclusions are to be drawn from the stories in the Mahābhārata, we may say that princes at least hardly ever went to a guru's home, but teachers were engaged to teach them ( as Droṇa was engaged by Bhīṣma ) and they became proficient in military skill. Alberuni(tr. by Sachau 1888, vol. I p. 125) says that brāhmaṇas taught the veda to kṣatriyas, but he is probably drawing only on the rules given in the smṛtis Kings left ecclesiastical matters to their purohita and were always to rely on him for advice. Gaut.²⁷⁸ XI. 12–13 and Āp. Dh. S. II. 5. 10. 16 require that the purohita was to be a learned man of good birth, endowed with polished speech, a fine form, middle age and high character and that he was to be well-versed in dharma and artha. Aśv. gr. III. 12 describes how the purohita is to prepare the king for battle. Kaut. in his Arthaśāstra after stating several views gives his own opinion that the vidyās for a prince are four (the same as those of Manu and Yāj. above). that after the caula is performed the prince should learn the alphabet and arithmetic and when upanayana is performed he should learn the four vidyās till he is 16 years old and may then marry (I. 5). in the first part of the day he should have instruction in elephant riding and horse riding, riding in chariots and in arms and the latter part of the day he should devote to hearing purāṇas, stories, dharmaśāstra and arthaśāstra (politics). In the Hathīgumpha Inscription (2nd century B. C.) there is a reference to rūpa (currency), gaṇanā (finance and treasury accounts), lekha (official correspondence) and vyavahāra (law and judicial administration) as the subjects which Khāravela mastered as heir-apparent from his 15th year to his 24th (vide E. I. vol. 20 p. 71 at p. 81, J. R. A. S. 1918 p. 545, I. H. Q. vol. 14 for 1938 p. 459 ff.). In the Kādambarī also Bāṇa shows that prince Candrāpīḍa did not go to a teacher's house but that a school was built for him outside the capital where he learnt from his 7th to the 16th year.

As to the education of kṣatriyas in general we have hardly any directions in the dharmaśāstra workṣ But that there were several learned kṣatriyas and vaiśyas who sometimes became teachers cannot be denieḍ Kumārilabhaṭṭa says (on Jaimini I. 2. 2) that adhyāpana²⁷⁹ is not a special characteristic for recognising that a man is a brāhmaṇa, since certain kṣatriyas and vaiśyas who have given up the observation of the caste rules also do so.

About the education of vaiśyas there is still less material. Manu X. 1 lays down generally that the three varṇas (including vaiśyas) are to learn the Veda, (X. 79) that trade, cattle-rearing and agriculture are the means of the vaiśya’s livelihood and that (IX. 328-332) the vaiśya should never think of giving up cattle rearing, that he should know the prices of jewels, coral and pearls, of metals and clothes, of perfumes and salt, the sowing of seed, the qualities and defects of soils, measures and weights, the different grades of qualities of goods, the profit and loss in trade, the rates of pay for servants, various alpha-bets and the places where saleable articles are produced or manufactureḍ Yāj. II. 184, Nārada (abhyupetyāśuśrūṣā 16-20) indicate that boys were apprenticed with master artisans to learn several śilpas (crafts) like preparing ornaments ²⁸⁰ of gold or for learning dancing, singing &c. An apprentice was to stipulate how long he would stay with the master craftsman, that even if he learnt the craft earlier than the stipulated time he was still to stay with the teacher and work for him till the period was over, that the teacher was to give food and lodging to the apprentice and to appropriate the proceeds from his work, that if the apprentice left the teacher before the time fixed even though the teacher was ready to teach him, he was to be compelled to stay with the teacher and to be imprisoned or sentenced to whipping by the king if he would not stay.

As for the education of the śūdra, there are hardly any rules in the dharmaśāstras. He gradually, as stated above (at pp. 120-121), rose in status and was allowed to engage in crafts and agriculture and so the same rules might have been applied to him as to vaiśya apprenticeṣ The śūdra could listen to the recitation of the Mahābhārata and the purāṇas as shown above (at pp. 155-156).

It appears that in very ancient times the status of Indian women as to education was much higher than in mediæval and modern times in India. Several women are stated to have been the composers of Vedic hymns; e. g. Rg. V. 28 is ascribed to Viśvavārā of the Atri family; Rg. VIII. 91 to Apālā of the same family and Rg. X. 39 to Ghoṣā Kākṣīvatī. The Br. Up. II. 4. 1. shows that Maitreyī, one of the two wives of Yājñavalkya, the great philosopher of ancient India, was herself a very earnest seeker after true knowledge and she prayed to Yājñavalkya that he should impart to her such knowledge as would make her immortal. ²⁸¹ In the same Upaniṣad (III. 6 and 8) we find that among the several interlocutors in the court of Janaka, king of Videha, who propounded several questions for solution before Yājñavalkya, Gārgī Vācaknavī occupies a very prominent positioṇ She pursued Yājñavalkya with subtle and searching questions till ultimately he was forced to warn her not to probe too much into the nature of the First Principle which was beyond mere human reason and logical questioning or otherwise she might die by the fall of her heaḍ Then she desisted, but her unquenchable thirst for philosophical knowledge again swelled up and she put two questions to Yājñavalkya hoping to confound hiṃ In the same Up. (Br. Up. VI. 4. 17 ) there is a rite prescribed ²⁸² for one who desires to have a learned daughter. As in the very preceding sentence a prescription is given for one desirous of having a son who would master the three Vedas, it naturally follows that the learning of the daughter must refer to the same topic. But Śaṁkara, in whose day women were debarred from learning the Vedas, could not but explain the word ' paṇḍitā ' as referring to proficiency in domestic work. It has been shown above (p. 294) that upanayana and veda study were allowed to women by Hārīta. In the daily ṛsitarpaṇa (Āśv. gr. III. 4) among a host of sages water is offered to three women as teachers viz. Gārgī Vācaknavī, Vāḍavā Prātitheyī and Sulabhā Maitreyī. The very fact that the Kāśikā on Pāṇini IV. 1. 59 and III. 3. 21 teaches the formation of ācāryā and upādhyāyā as meaning a woman who is herself a teacher (and not merely the wife of a teacher ) establishes that the ancient grammarians were familiar with women teacherṣ Patañjali teaches ²⁸³ how and why a brāhmaṇa woman is called Āpiśalā (one who studies the gram- mar of Āpiśali) and Kāśākṛtsnā (one who studies the mīmāṁsā work of Kāśākṛtsna). He also states the formation of the appellation 'Audameghāḥ ' (meaning the pupils of a woman teacher called Audameghyā). Gobhila ²⁸⁴ gr. II. 1. 19-20 prescri- bes that when the bride pushes forward with her foot a mat the bridegroom should make her repeat the mantra ' may the way which my husband goes by be also assigned to me ' and that if she does not repeat this mantra (through bashfulness &c. ) he should repeat it substituting the words ‘to her’ for ‘to me’. In the Kāṭhaka²⁸⁵ gr. 25. 23 it is said that the Anuvāka beginning with ‘sarasvati predam-ava’ (of 21 verses) was to be recited both by the bride and the bridegroom according to some teacherṣ All this shows that women could recite Vedic mantras in the sūtra perioḍ The Kāmasūtra of Vātsyāyana,²⁸⁶ a remarkable though in some places a filthy work, prescribes that women should study the Kāmasūtra and its subsidiary aṅgas (viz. the 64 kalās such as singing, dancing, painting &c.) before they attain youth (i. e. in their father’s house) and after marriage with the husband’s consent. In the 64 kalās enumerated in that work (I. 3. 16) are included prahelikās (riddles of words), pustakavācana (chanting from books), kāvyasamasyā-purāṇa (composing a suitable portion of a verse to fit in with a portion given), knowledge of lexicons and metres &c. We read in the epics and the dramas like the Śākuntala of women writing messages to their loverṣ In the Mālatīmādhava Bhavabhūti tells his readers that the fathers of the hero and the heroine studied in their youth together with Kāmandakī at the feet of the same master. From anthologies like Rājaśekhara’s Sūktimuktāvalī we learn that there were poetesses like Vijjā, Sītā &c. All these facts tend to indicate that literary attainments among women were not totally unheard of in ancient India.

But gradually the position of women became worse and worse. In the Dharmasūtras and Manu woman is assigned a position of dependence and even women of higher classes came to be looked upon as equal to śūdras so far as Vedic study and several other matters were concerneḍ Gaut. 18. 1, Vaṣ Dh. S. VI. 1, Bauḍ Dh. S. II. 2. 45 and Manu IX. 3 say that women have no independence and in all stages depend upon meṇ We have seen (at p. 265) also that all the saṁskāras (except marriage) were performed in the case of girls without Vedic mantraṣ Though according to the Pūrvamīmāṁsā the husband and wife were to perform Vedic sacrifices together (Jaimini VI. 1. 17-21) still women²⁸⁷ were only associated with their husbands and all the actions to be done by the sacrificer ( yajamāna ) were to be done only by the husband except where the texts expressly requested the wife to do certain things such as examining the ājya or repeat-ing certain mantras (VI.1.24). Jaimini says that the husband and wife were not equal and Śabara explains that the yajamāna is a male and is learned, while the patnī is a woman and has no vidyā. Medhātithi²⁸⁸ on Manu II. 49 raises the interesting question why brahmacārins when begging for alms used a Sanskrit formula ( bhavati bhikṣām dehi ) which language ladies do not know. He replies that women can understand that vernacular words which they use being similar to Sanskrit words must be derived from them and that these few well-known Sanskrit words they can easily grasp. Besides even in Vedic times there was a tendency as in many other countries to make sarcastic references to womeṇ The Ṛgveda²⁸⁹ VIII. 33. 17 says “Even Indra said ‘the mind of woman cannot be control-led; and also her intellect (or power) is slight’”; in Ṛg. X. 95. 15 ²⁹⁰ ‘there is no truth in the friendship of women ; they have the hearts of hyaenas’. The Śat. Br. XIV. 1. 1. 3 exhorts a person studying the Madhu-vidyā not to look at ‘woman, śūdra, the dog and the black bird that are all untruth’. In Manu II. 213-214, Anuśāsanaparva chap. 19. 91-94, chap. 38 and 39 there is severe condemnation of womaṇ Such ideas, and ideas about pollution and the early marriage of girls are probably responsible for the great lack of literacy among women in medieval and modern timeṣ

As literary education among women was in a languishing state or almost nil, the question of co-education hardly ariseṣ There are no doubt faint indications that when women could at all devote themselves to learning, they must have been taught with male pupilṣ Poets like Bhavabhūti (in the Mālatī-mādhava) envisage a state of society in which a woman (like Kāmandakī) learnt at the feet of the same master along with male students (like Bhūrivasu and Devarāta, who later on became ministers of states). The house of the ācārya where the student learnt was called ācāryakula (vide Chāṇ Up. II. 23. 2, IV. 5. 1., IV. 9. 1, VIII. 15. 1). The teacher who presided over a large establishment of pupils was called kulapati (e. g. Kaṇva is so referred to in the Śākuntala, vide note 134 above).

It is outside the scope of this work to show from the numerous inscriptions and copper-plate grants that have been published so far, how ancient kings and rich private persons made substantial grants to famous schools, colleges and universitieṣ There were famous universities at Takṣaśilā (modern Taxila ), Valabhi, Benareṣ, Nālandā, Vikramasīlā &c. For an account of the university of Nālandā in the 7th century reference may be made to the accounts given by the two Chinese travellers Yuan Chwang (vide Watters vol. II. pp. 109, 246 ) and Itsing ( ‘Records of the Buddhist Religion’ by Dr. Takakusu pp. 154, 177 &c.). Most of those seats of learning were endoweḍ One of the earliest of such grants is that of the Pallava Nṛpatunga-varman (Bahur Plates, E. I. 18 p. 5 ) whereby three villages were bestowed as a source of revenue (vidyābhoga ) for the promotion of learning to the residents of a seat of learning (vidyāsthāna, a college) at Vāgūr. The Kāvya-mīmāmsā of Rājaśekhara (in chap. 10) calls upon the king to hold assemblies of poets and learned men, to arrange for their examination and to distribute rewards to them in the manner of such ancient kings as Vāsudeva, Sātavāhana, Śūdraka, Sāhasāṅka. It also says that in Ujjayinī such poets as Kālidāsa, Meṇṭha, Bhāravi, Haricandra were examined and in Pāṭaliputra (modern Patna ) such famous śāstrakāras as Pāṇini, Vyāḍi, Vararuci, Patañjali, Varṣa, Upavarṣa, and Piṅgala were examineḍ

The salient features of the educational system outlined in the Dharmaśāstra works are the high and honourable position assigned to the teacher, the close personal contact of the pupil with the teacher and individual attention, the pupil's stay with the teacher as a member of his family, oral instruction and the absence of books, stern discipline and control of emotions and the will, cheapness ( as no fees were stipulated for ). The Indian system compares most favourably with any system of education of the West, whether in Greece or Rome or any other country. It gave to the students a more or less literary education, particularly of the Vedic literature and of philosophy, grammar and other subjects ancillary thereto. The principal effort was directed towards the conservation of the ancient literature rather than to the creation of fresh literature. In these respects it was similar to the Grammar Schools of England and to the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge as they were till about the middle of the 19th century. The defects of the Indian system were that it was too literary, there was too much memorizing, boys under it had hardly any instruction in useful manual arts and crafts, the studies were not brought in contact with practical life. The discipline was rigorous and joylesṣ Many of these defects were due to the exigencies of the caste system which assigned particular avocations to particular casteṣ We cannot and should not compare the system with the systems of education prevalent in the 20th century, when several subjects such as literature, music and the fine arts, handicrafts, mathematics, science, history and geography are taught in the schools to all boys and when it has been recognised that education is a prime concern of the State.

The four Veda-vratas :-Among the saṁskāras enumerated by Gautama there are four Veda-vratas ( Gaut. VIII. 15 ). These four are also included in the 16 saṁskāras by several smṛtis Their names and procedure differ considerably in the several gṛhyasūtraṣ Some gṛhyasūtras like Pār. do not describe theṃ A brief reference will be made to them here. The Āśv. gr. I. 22. ²⁹¹ says in general words that in the vratas all the ceremonies beginning from shaving the head up to paridāna ( i. e. Āśv. gr. I. 19. 8 to I. 20. 7 ) that are performed at the upanayana are repeated each time with each vrata. And the four vratas according to the Āśvalāyana smṛti ( in verse ) were Mahānāmnī vrata, Mahāvrata ( Ait. Ār. I. and V ), Upaniṣad vrata and Godāna. Each vrata is to be performed for a year. Vide Laghu Āśvalāyana 11th section ( Ānaṇ Ed ). The Sāṅ. gr. ( II. 11-12 ) describes, after the student is instructed in the sacred Gāyatrī, four vratas ( observances ) called Śukriya ( which precedes the study of the main part of the Ṛgveda ), the Śākvara, Vrātika and Aupaniṣada vratas ( which three precede the study of the different sections of the Aitareya Āraṇyaka ). The observance of the first of these ( viz. Śukriya ) lasted for three days or twelve days or one year or as long as the teacher liked and the observances of the other three were to be kept for one year each ( Śāṅ. gr. II. 11. 10-12, S. B. E. vol. 29 p. 77). At the beginning of each of these three vratas there is a separate upanayana, followed by a ceremony called Uddik-śanika ( giving up the preparatory observances ) and then the vrata is to be performed for one year. The āraṇyaka is to be studied in the forest out of the village. Manu II. 174 prescribes that at the time of the beginning of each of these vratas the student had to put on a new deer skin, a new yajñopavita and a new girdle. The Gobhila gṛhya III. 1. 26–31 ( which is connected with the Sāmaveda ) mentions the vratas as Godānika, Vrātika, Āditya, Aupanisada, Jyeṣṭha-sāmika, each lasting for one year. It adds that some do not observe the Āditya-vrata. The godāna vrata is connected by the Gobhilla with the saṁskāra of godāna ( to be described below ) and it prescribes certain observances for it such as removing all hair on the head, chin and lips ; avoiding false-hood, anger, sexual intercourse, perfumes, dancing and singing, collyrium, honey and meat; not wearing shoes in the village. It also prescribes that wearing the girdle, begging for food, carrying a staff, daily bath, offering a fuel-stick, and clasping the teacher's feet in the morning are common to all vrataṣ The Godānika enabled the student to study the Pūrvārcika of the Sāmaveda ( i. e. the collection of verses sacred to Agni, Indra and Soma Pavamāna ). The Vrātika was introductory to the study of the āraṇyaka ( excluding Śukriya sections ) ; the Āditya vrata to the study of the Śukriya sections ; the Aupanisada-vrata to the study of the Upaniṣad-brāhmaṇa ; the Jyeṣṭha-sāmika to the study of the Ājya-dohaṣ The Kh. gṛ. II. 5. 17 ff. speaks of the same vratas as Gobhila. Those who observe the Ādityavrata wore one garment, did not allow anything to come between them and the sun ( except trees and the roofs of houses ) and did not descend into water more than knee-deep. The Sākvara vrata was kept for one year, or for three or six or nine. Those who observe this vrata study the Sākvari or Mahānāmnī verseṣ Vārtika²⁹² on Pāṇini V. 1. 94. ( tadasya brahmacaryam ) mentions the Mahānāmnīs and teaches the derivation of Mahānāmņikam ( as the period of brahmacarya devoted to the vrata of the Mahānāmnīs ). There were certain peculiar observances for this such as bathing thrice a day (Gobhila III. 2. 7-46, Kh. gr. II. 5. 23 ff.), wearing dark clothes, partaking of dark food, standing by day, sitting by night, not seeking shelter when it is raining, not crossing a river without bathing in it (the virtue of the Mahānāmnīs is centred in water). After the student has kept his vow for one-third of the time prescribed, the teacher is to sing to the student the first stotriya of the Mahānāmnīs ²⁹³ (viz. the three mantras, vidā maghavan, abhiṣṭvam, evāhi śakro) and in the same way the two other stotriyas (each consisting of three mantras). They are to be sung to the student who has fasted, has closed his eyes, has dipped his hand in a brass vessel full of water in which all sorts of herbs are thrown and whose eyes are veiled with a new piece of cloth, the student is to keep silent and abstain from food for one day and night (or three), to stand in the forest till sunset (and return to the village in the night), should sacrifice with mahāvyāhṛtis; look at fire, clarified butter, the sun, a brāhmaṇa, a bull, food, water and curds; then salute the teacher, break his silence and give a fee to the teacher and offer a mess of cooked food to Indra and give a dinner to the teacher and all co-studentṣ The same rules apply to the Jyeṣṭhasāmika vrata (introductory to the study of the three Ājyadohas ²⁹⁴ viz. ‘mūrdhānam divah, tvām viśve, nābhim yajñānām’). The student who undergoes this has to observe certain rules throughout his life viz. he cannot marry or have sexual intercourse with a śūdra woman, cannot eat bird's flesh, he should not restrict himself to one kind of corn or one country and should always wear two garments, should bathe in water drawn with a vessel and should not eat in an earthen pot or drink water from it.

The Bauḍ gr. III. 2. 4 ff says that there are vratas of one year each which precede the study of certain brāhmaṇa texts (of the Kṛṣṇa Yajurveda); they are hotāraḥ ²⁹⁵, śukriyas, upaniṣadaḥ. godānam and sammitam and it describes them in detail. For want of space all these are passed over. The Saṁskāra-kaustubha (pp. 571–580) gives in some detail the procedure of the Mahā- nāmni vrata, Mahāvrata, Upaniṣadvrata and Godānavrata. It states that the Mahānamni vrata is performed in the 13th year from birth and Godānavrata in the 16th. It appears, however, that these vratas gradually fell into desuetude and medieval writers often pass them over altogether or barely mention them and emphasize only the general observances of brahmacārins viz. celibacy, begging for food, avoiding honey, wine and singing &c. For example, the Smṛtyarthasāra ²⁹⁶ (p. 6) refers to Sāvitrivrata, then the vrata for Vedic study and then the Āraṇyaka vrataṣ The Mit. on Yāj. I. 52 (vedam vratānī vā pāram nītvā) explains ‘vratam’ as simply the duties of the student already enumerated by Yāj. (among which the specific vratas of Mahānamni &c. do not figure).

If the student failed in observing the specific vratas, he had to perform prāyaścitta by undergoing the prājāpatya penance thrice or six times or twelve timeṣ If the brahmacārī is guilty of failing in his daily duties of observing śauca and ācamana, of the performance of saṁdhyā prayer, of using darbha, of begging for food, of offering fuel stick to fire, of avoiding the touch of śūdras and the like, of wearing the cloth (for covering his private parts), the loin thread, the yajño- pavita, the girdle and the staff and deerskin, of not sleeping by day, of not holding an umbrella over his head or of not wear- ing shoes, or not putting on garlands, of avoiding luxurious bath, sandal paste, collyrium, of not sporting in water, of avoiding gambling, and addiction to dancing, singing and music, of not engaging in conversation with heretics, he had to undergo the penance of three kṛcchras (according to Baudhā- yana) and to perform a homa with the vyāhṛtis separately and together (i. e. four oblations of clarified butter were to be offered). ²⁹⁷ If he was guilty of other more serious lapses he had to undergo heavier penance. The most reprehensible act in a brahmacārin was to have sexual intercourse with a womaṇ The Tai. Ār. II. 18 speaks of the prāyaścitta for such a brahmacārin who is called avakirṇiṇ Gaut. 25. 1–2 quotes the Tai. Ār. “they (the sages)²⁹⁸ say ‘in how many (deities) the avakirṇin enters; (the answer is) he enters the Maruts with his breath, Indra with his strength, Bṛhaspati with his spiritual eminence and fire with the rest ( of his senses )’” and Gautama further provides that he should kindle fire at midnight on a new moon day and then offer two ājya oblations by way of penance with the two mantras ‘Kāmāva–’ and ‘Kāmāvadrugdhosmi’ &c., place a fuel stick on fire, sprinkle water round the fire, offer the yajñavastu oblation (for which see Gobhila gr. I. 8. 26–29 ) and standing near the fire should worship fire thrice with the verse ‘ sam mā siñcantu’. Bauḍ Dh. S. (IV. 2. 10–13 ) contains the same ruleṣ Jaimini²⁹⁹ ( VI. 8. 22 ) prescribes that ordinary ( laukika ) fire is to be used for the paśu to be sacrific- ed ( viz. ass to Nirṛti, which is symbolic of the stupid lapse the student is guilty of ) and Śabara quotes a Vedic passage that ‘ a brahmacārin who has become avakirṇin should sacrifice an ass to Nirṛti’. Āp. Dh. S. I. 9. 26. 8, Vaṣ 23. 1–3, Manu XI. 118–121, Yāj. III. 280 contain similar provisions (Vasiṣṭha allowing in the absence of an ass oblations of boiled rice with the mantras mentioned by Gautama ). Manu XI. 122–123 and Viṣṇu Dh. S. 28. 49–50 prescribe that the brahmacārī so guilty should for one year wear the skin of the ass, should beg for food at seven houses announcing to them his lapse, should take food only once, should bathe thrice and then only he becomes pure. Manu II. 187 ( = Viṣṇu Dh. S. 28. 52 ) prescribes similar penance for a brahmacārī who without being ill gives up begging for food and offering fuel to fire continuously for seven dayṣ Prāyaścitta is prescribed for loss of yajñopa- vīta or its being torn, or its being polluted by impure things like blood &c. It consists in offering homa and wearing a new one. Vide Saṁskāra-ratnamālā pp. 365-367 for detailṣ

Naisṭhika brahmacārin (perpetual student).— Brahmacārins were of two kinds, upakurvāṇa (the student who offered some return to the teacher, vide Manu II. 245, for the word upakurvita) and the naiṣṭhika³⁰⁰ (the student who remains so till his death). These two names occur in Hārīta Dh. S., Dakṣa I. 7 and in several smṛtis The word ‘naiṣṭhika’ occurs in Viṣṇu Dh. S. 28. 46, Yāj. I. 49, Veda-Vyāsa I. 41. The idea of perpetual studenthood is very ancient. In the Chāndogya³⁰¹ Up. II. 23. 1 we read that the third branch of dharma is the (status of a) student who stays with his teacher's family and who wears out his body to the end in the family of the teacher. Gaut. III. 4-8, Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 4. 29, Hārīta Dh.³⁰² S., Vaṣ VII. 4-6, Manu II. 243, 244, 247-249, and Yāj. I. 49-50 say that if the student likes he may stay with his teacher till life lasts and should serve his guru and in the rest of the time repeat the Veda; that if the teacher be dead he may stay with and serve the teacher's son if he is worthy or the teacher's wife or he may worship the fire kindled by his deceased guru; he should thus wear out his body; he obtains the highest worlds of bliss and is not born agaiṇ He has to perform throughout his life the duties of offering fuel sticks, Veda study, begging for food, sleeping on the ground (not on a cot), and of self-restraint (Bṛhaspati quoted in Sṃ C. I. p. 62).

According to Viṣṇu quoted in Aparārka (p. 72) and the Sṃ C.³⁰³ (I. p. 63) quoting the Saṁgraha persons who are dwarfs, ill-formed, congenitally blind, impotent, cripples and those suffering from incurable diseases should become perpetual students, as they are not entitled to perform the Vedic rites and are not entitled to inherit. We saw above that Kumārila bhaṭṭa accepted this view (vide note 852a). But this does not mean that the blind and other partially defective people could not marry at all. They could marry if they had sufficient wealth. For example, Dhṛtarāṣṭra, though congenitally blind, married and had sonṣ Aparārka (p. 72), the Sṃ C., the Madanapāri- jāta (p. 111), the Par. M. (I. 2. p. 51 ff) and others say that perpetual student-hood is not restricted only to the blind and the cripple, but it may be resorted to by even able-bodied men at their choice (vide Manu II. 243-44).

Atri (VIII. 16) says ³⁰⁴ that if a person undertakes to be a perpetual student, but falls from that ideal, there is no prāyaś- citta for that lapse. Some interpret this as applying to one who becomes a saṃnyāsin and then gives up that mode of life; while others like the Saṃskāra-prakāśa (p. 564) interpret it as meaning the prāyaścitta is double of what the upakurvāṇa would have to undergo.

Patitasāvitrīka (those for whom there has been no upana- yana and therefore no instruction in Gāyatrī and who are therefore sinful and outside the pale of Aryan society). The gṛhya and dharma sūtras are agreed that the time for upana- yana has not passed till the 16th, 22nd and the 24th year in the case of brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas and vaiśyas respectively, but that after these years are past without upanayana taking place they become incompetent thereafter for learning the Sāvitrī (the sacred Gāyatrī verse). Vide Āśv. gr. I. 19, 5-7, Bauḍ gr. III. 13. 5-6, Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 1. 22, Vaṣ XI. 71-75, Manu II. 38-39, Yāj. I. 37-38. Such persons are then called patitasāvitrīka or sāvitrīpatita and also vrātya (Manu II. 39 and Yāj. I. 38 call them so). These works ³⁰⁵ also declare that the consequences of this are that no upanayana is to be thereafter performed for them, they are not to be taught the Veda, nor is any one to officiate at their sacrifices and there is to be no social intercourse with them (i. e. no marriage takes place with them). Āp. Dh. S. (I. 1. 1. 24-27) prescribes that after the 16th or 24th year, the person should undergo the rules of student-hood two months just as those who meant to study the three Vedas and whose upanayana has been performed observe (viz. begging for food &c.), then his upanayana should be performed, then for one year he should bathe (thrice if possible) every day and then he should be taught the Veda. This is a somewhat easy penance. But others prescribe heavier penaltieṣ Vaṣ Dh. S. XI. 76-79 and the Vaik. smārta II. 3 prescribe that one who is patitasāvitrika should either perform the Uddālaka vrata or should take a bath along with the performer of an Aśvamedha sacrifice or should perform the Vratyastoma sacrifice. Both Vasiṣṭha³⁰⁶ and the Vaik. smārta explain that the Uddālaka vrata consists in subsisting on barley gruel for two months, for one month on milk, for half a month on āmikṣā (the whey that arises by pouring curds in hot milk), for eight days on ghee, for six days on alms obtained without begging, for three days on water and in observing a total fast for one whole day. The Sṃ C. (I. p. 28) says that this vrata is so called because it was promulgated by Uddālaka. Manu XI. 191 and Viṣṇu Dh. S. 54. 26 prescribe a mild prāyaścitta for patitasāvitrikas, viz. three prājāpatya³⁰⁷ penances; while Yāj. I. 38, Bauḍ gr. III. 13. 7, Veda-Vyāsa I. 21 and several others prescribe only the Vratyastoma for those who are patitasāvitrikas. Viśvarūpa³⁰⁸ (on Yāj. III. 262) tries to reconcile these contradictions by saying that the easy penance prescribed by Manu applies to a brāhmaṇa whose upanayana is not performed before the 16th year, but whose upanayana is sought to be performed before the 22nd year, while the Vratyastoma is to be performed for him whose upanayana is not performed for forty-eight years from the first prescribed period (viz. 8th year, 11th year or 12th). The Mit. on Yaj. III. 262 also tries to introduce vyavasthā (order) in the contradictory dicta of the smṛtis According to Gaut. 21. 11, Yaj. III. 234 and others vrātyā (being patitasāvitrika) is only an upapātaka and Manu XI. 117 prescribes an easy penance for all upapātakaṣ Āp. Dh. S. ³⁰⁹ says 'if a person's father and grandfather also had not the upanayana performed for them, then they (i. e. the three generations) are called slayers of brahma (holy prayers or lore) ; people should have no intercourse with them, should not take their food nor should enter into marriage alli-ances with them; but if they desire then penance should be administered to them'. It then prescribes that they have to perform the penance (observing rules of student-hood) one year for each generation (that had not the upanayana perform-ed), then there is upanayana and then they have to bathe (thrice or once) every day for a year with certain mantras viz. the seven Pāvamānī verses beginning with 'yad anti yacca dūraka' (Rg. IX. 67. 21-27), with the Yajus pavitra (Tai. S. I. 2. 1. 1=Rg. X. 17. 10), with the sāmapavitra and with the mantra called Āṅgirasa (Rg. IV. 40. 5) or one may pour water only with the vyāhṛtis ³¹⁰. After all this is done, one may be taught the Veda. Āp. Dh. S. goes further (I. 1. 2. 5-10) and says 'if the generations ³¹¹ beginning with the great-grand-father had not the upanayana performed on them, they are called the cemetery and that if there is desire they may observe the rules of student-hood for twelve years, then upanayana may be performed and then the person so desirous of upanayana will have to bathe with the Pāvamānī ( as stated above), then instruction in the duties of the householder may be imparted to him (i. e. to the 4th); he cannot, however, be taught the Veda; but his son may have the saṁskāra performed as in the case of one who is him-self patitasāvitrīka and then his son will be one like other āryas'. Haradatta ³¹² remarks that Āp. does not declare the prāyaścitta for him whose great-grandfather's father also was without upanayana, but that those who know the dharmaśāstra should find out a proper prāyaścitta even in such caseṣ It is clear that Āp. contemplates cases where for three generations there had been no upanayana and the fourth generation also had not the upanayana performed at the right time and desired to have it performed for hiṃ Pār. gives a brief rule 'when three generations are patitasāvitrīka, their offspring (i. e. the fourth generation) is excluded from the sacrament of upanayana and he cannot be taught the Veda.' ³¹³ So Pār. is more restrictive than Āpastamba.

There is a famous historical example of the application of these ruleṣ Gāgābhaṭṭa, a profound scholar of Benares, officiated at the coronation of Shivaji, the founder of the Maratha Empire, in 1674 and performed the upanayana of Shivaji before the coronation, when Shivaji was about 45 years old and had even two sonṣ Some eminent scholars like the late Mr. Justice Telang ³¹⁴ have found fault with Gāgābhaṭṭa and the other brāhmaṇas of that time; but these scholars are wrong and Gāgābhaṭṭa had behind him weighty and ancient authorities like Ap., Pāraskara, Viśvarūpa and Haradatta as shown above.

The Vaik. sūtra ( II. 37 ) adds that in the case of the man who is himself patitasāvitrika the saṁskāras ( from Garbhā- dhāna ) have to be again performed ( with Vedic mantras ) and then the upanayana is performeḍ

One very important question that exercised the minds of some writers in medieval times was whether kṣatriyas and vaiśyas existed in the kali age. In some of the purāṇas it is said in a prophetic vein that Mahāpadma Nanda will destroy the kṣatriyas and thereafter rulers will be of the śūdra caste. For example, the Viṣṇupurāṇa IV. 23. 4-5 says ‘Mahāpadma Nanda, the son of Mahānandī, born of a śūdra woman would be extremely greedy (of power) and will destroy the whole kṣatriya race as if he were another Paraśurāma; thereafter śūdras will be kings’. The Matsya 272. 18-19 and the Bhāgavata-purāṇa XII. 1. 6–9 declare the same prophecieṣ The Viṣṇupurāṇa IV. 24. 44 remarks that Devāpi, descendant of Pūru, and Manu, descendant of Ikṣvāku, stay in

historiaṇ The judge has to give a decision on the evidence adduced by the parties before him; it is no part of his business to collect evidence for himself. But the role of a historian is entirely different. He must not only try to read all evidence available till the time he writes but he must himself ferret out all possible evidence and make searches in places where evidence is likely to be founḍ Above all he must be cautious in his condemnations of persons long dead on the strength of the meagre evidence read by hiṃ Mr. Telang wrote the paper above referred to in 1892, but long before that Pāraśkara (in 1886) and Āpastamba (in 1885) had been translated and published in ‘the Sacred Books of the East serieṣ’ But he, though a great judge and also a great Sanskrit scholar, nowhere shows that he cared to see whether śāstric rules allowed the upanayana of a man himself at any age whatever ( after some penance ). If he had seen those rules he would not have unjustly taken to task pandits that flourished two hundred years before him and attributed irregular motives to theṃ It does not appear that he made any search in the archives of the Udaipur Durbar to see how Shivaji traced his descent from the Sisodia clan, nor does it appear that he even went to Mudhol and other places in Mahārāṣṭra where ancient Maratha families have been holding sway for centurieṣ The papers recently published from the records of the Mudhol State amply establish Shivaji's claim to a Rajput lineage. Kalāpagrāma, are endowed with great yogic powers, will revive when the kṛta age will start again after the comes to an end and that some kṣatriyas exist on the earth like seed even in the kali age. Vāyu (vol. I. 32. 39–40), Matsya (273. 56–58) have similar verseṣ Relying on such passages some medieval writers stated that there in their timeṣ The Śuddhitattva ³¹⁷ of Raghunandana (p. 268) after quoting the Viṣṇupurāṇa IV. 23. 4 and Manu X. 43 declares that kṣatriyas existed till Mahānandi, that the so-called kṣatriyas of his day were śūdras and that similarly there were no vaiśyas also. In the Śūdra-Kamalākara occurs this verse ‘ The varṇas are brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas and śūdras, the first three being twice-born; all these exist in the several yugas; but in the kali age only the first and the last remain’. Nāgeśabhaṭṭa (first half of 18th century ³¹⁸) in his Vratyātaprāyaścittanirṇaya (Chaukhamba Series) examines all the relevant Purāṇa passages and states as his conclusion that real kṣatriyas do not exist and so those, in whose families no upanayana had been performed for ten or twenty generations, are not kṣatriyas even though they rule over kingdoms and no upanayana can be performed for such kingṣ It must be stated that such views, though held by some rigidly orthodox writers of extreme views, were not shared by most writerṣ All the smṛtis speak of the duties of the four varṇas even in the kali age. Parāśara-smṛti which is said to be the smṛti par excellence for the kali age (as stated in I. 24) does so. Almost all nibandha-kāras (authors of digests and commentaries) discuss the privileges and duties of all varṇaṣ The author of the Mitākṣarā, who is rightly described as the best of all nibandha-kāras, nowhere says that kṣatriyas do not exist in the kali age. Numerous kings claimed to be descended from the Sun and the Mooṇ Hemādri in his Caturvargacintāmaṇi states that his patron was a scion of Somavamśa (vide H. Dh. vol. I p. 356 for quotations). The princes of Rajputana and Central India claimed to have sprung from the Agnikuṇḍa on Mount Abu, viz. of the four clans of Chohan, Parmar (or Paramāra), Solanki (or Cālukya), Padihar (or Pratīhāra). Vide Tod's Rajasthan ( Madras eḍ of 1873 ) vol. I chap. VII pp. 82 ff. This theory of the Agnikulas is at least as old as 1000 A. D., since it is referred to in several inscriptions of the 11th century A. D. Vide the Vasantagadh Inscription of Paramāra Pūrnapāla dated saṃ 1099 (1042-43 A. D.) in E. I. vol. IX p. 10 and the inscription of Cāmundarāja dated saṃ 1136 (1079-1080 A. D.) in E. I. vol. XIV. p. 295.

This question is now largely of academic interest. Whether a person is a śūdra or a member of the regenerate classes assumes great importance in adoption, inheritance and successioṇ Therefore the question, whether kṣatriyas exist in modern times, came before the British Indian courts over a hundred years ago. In Chouturya Run Murdun Syn v. Sahub Purhulad Syn ³¹⁹ Moore's Indian Appeals 18 this question was argued and the Privy Council citing the authorities on both sides set the question at rest by remarking ( p. 46 ) 'Their Lordships have nevertheless no doubt that the existence of the Khatri caste as one of the regenerate tribes is fully recognised throughout India and also that Rajputs in central India.....are considered to be of that class ..... The courts in all cases assume that the four great classes remain'. The only question that is now permissible is whether a particular caste belongs to the regenerate classes or to the śūdra clasṣ On this the courts often differ. Vide p. 75 under Kāyastha. In Maharaja of Kolhapur v. Sundaram Ayyar 48 Maḍ 1 it was held (in an exhaustive judgment extending over 229 pages) that the Tanjore Maratha princes descended from Venkaji, the step-brother of the founder of the Maratha Empire, were śūdras and not kṣatriyaṣ The learned judges ( at p. 51 ) quote Telang's dictum criticized by me above ( note 923 ), but refrain from expressing any decided opinion about the claim of Shivaji to be of kṣatriya descent. In Subrao v Radha 52 Boṃ 497 it was held after a careful examination of authorities that the Marathas of Mahārāṣṭra are sub-divided into three groups, viz. ( 1 ) the five families, ( 2 ) the ninety-six families and ( 3 ) the rest and that the first two groups are kṣatriyaṣ It was further held that the tests to be applied in determining the class ( varṇa ) of a particular caste are three viz. the consciousness of the caste itself, the acceptance of that consciousness by other castes, and lastly its customs and usageṣ

We have already seen (in note 118) how even in the Vedic age there were non-Aryan tribes like the Kirātas, Andhras, Pulin- das, Mātibas, that were described as dasyus by the Ait. Br.. One word that is of striking importance is mleccha. The Śat. Br. (III. 2. 1. 23-24, S. B. E. vol. 26 p. 32 ) states that the asuras were defeated because they spoke an incorrect and corrupt dialect and that a brāhmaṇa should not, therefore, utter such a corrupt³²⁰ speech and so should not become a mleccha and an asura. Gaut. IX. 17 enjoins that one should not speak with mlecchas, impure or irreligious persons and Haradatta explains that mlecchas are the inhabitants of Ceylon and similar countries where there is no system of varṇas and āśramaṣ Viṣṇu Dh. S. 64. 15 is to the same effect. Viṣṇu Dh. S. 84. 1-2 and Saṅkha 14. 30 prescribe that one should not perform śrāddha in a mleccha country nor should one visit such a country (except on a pilgrimage). Viṣṇu Dh. S. 84. 4 states that that country where the system of the four varṇas is not in vogue is mleccha terri- tory and Āryāvarta is beyond it, while Manu II. 23 states that the mleccha country is beyond Āryāvarta which land is fit for sacrifices and in which the black deer wanders naturally. Viśva- rūpa on Yāj. I. 15 quotes Bharadvāja to the effect ‘one should not study the language of the mlecchas, for it is declared (in the Brāhmaṇas) that a corrupt word is indeed mleccha’. Vaṣ Dh. S. VI. 41 also enjoins that one should not learn the mleccha dialect. Manu X. 43-44 knew that many of the tribes called Puṇḍrakas, Yavanas, Śakas spoke mleccha languages and also the language of the Āryas (mlecchavācāś-cāryavācāḥ sarve te dasyavah smṛtāḥ). In Parāśara IX. 36 mlecchas are referred to as eaters of cow’s flesh. That the mlecchas had affected the Sanskrit language by lending to it certain words follows from the discussion in Jaimini I. 3. 10 whether words like pika (a cuckoo), nema (half), sata (a wooden vessel), tāmarasa (a red lotus) are to be understood in the sense in which mlecchas use them or certain meanings are to be assigned to them by deriving them from some root according to the rules of grammar, Nirukta and Nighanṭu and Jaimini’s conclusion is that they are to be understood in the same sense in which mlecchas employ them³¹⁴. Pāṇini derives the word yavanānī. and Patañjali speaks of the siege of Sāketa and Madhyamikā by the Yavana by whom scholars generally understand Menander. Aśoka in his Rock Edict No. 13 refers to Yona kings and it appears from his reference that brāhmaṇas and śramaṇas were not found in the Yona country. A Yavanarāja Tusāśpha is mentioned as the governor of Kathiawar under Aśoka in the inscription of Rudradāman at Junagadh (E. I. vol. VIII. at p. 43). In the Prakrit Inscriptions the Yavanas are referred to as Yavana (vide E. I. vol. VII. pp. 53-55 at Karle No. 7 and 10) or Yona or Yonaka (E. I. VIII. 90 Nasik cave No. 18). In Kharavela's inscription also the form is Yavana (E. I. 20 p. 79). In the Mahābhārata the words Yavana and Śaka occur very frequently. Vide notes above on these wordṣ In the Droṇaparva 119. 45-46 Yavana, Kamboja, Śaka, Śabara, Kirāta and Barbara are mentioned as one group fighting against Sātyaki. In Droṇa 119. 47-48 they are referred to as dasyus and as having long and flowing beardṣ In the Strīparva 22. 11 Jayadratha is said to have had Kamboja and Yavana women in his hareṃ The word Yavana is generally taken as referring to the Greekṣ But there are dissenting voices also. Dr. Otto Stein in 'Indian Culture' denies that the word ever means Greeks and Dr. Tarn in his recent work on 'Greeks in Bactria and India' p. 254 argues that the Yavanas in the Nasik inscriptions were not Greeks but only Indian citizens of a Greek poliṣ The Śāntiparva 65. 17-22 prescribes for Yavanas, Śakas and similar tribes only the duties of obedience to parents and attendance on teachers and tending cattle and looking after agriculture, dedication of wells and making gifts to dvijas, ahiṁsā, satya, absence of fury, śauca, adroha, maintenance of wife and chilḍ Atri VII. 2 puts the receiving of gifts from or eating the food of or having sexual intercourse with the women of Śakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Bāhlikas, Khaśas, Draviḍas on the same level with doing the same things with reference to naṭa, nartaka, śvapāka &c. Aparārka p. 923 quotes Vṛddha-Yājñavalkya to the effect that the touch of Mlecchas is on the same level with that of cāṇḍāla, Bhilla and Pārasika.

Prof. D. R. Bhandarkar in a very learned and scholarly paper in Indian Antiquary vol. 40 pp. 7–37 endeavours to establish that many non-Aryan persons belonging to tribes like the Yavanas, the Śakas became absorbed in the general mass of Hindu society, that even several of the princely families such as those of the Guhilots were not of pure Aryan descent and that the pride of The purity of caste shown by many castes is not justified by history. He, therefore, appeals to modern Indians to forget all caste-exclusiveness and pride. But this appeal will be in vaiṇ Merely showing that non-Aryan elements were absorbed in the body of the Aryan community several thousands or hundreds of years ago will not probably lessen that pride. Such people may retort that, whatever may have happened centuries ago, for about a thousand years there has been no such fusioṇ Therefore the appeal should rather be based on the futility of caste exclusiveness in the 20th century when owing to the exigencies of one nation and one people is absolutely necessary for securing to Indians their proper place in the society of nationṣ

The question of the re-conversion or re-entry of people converted to other faiths willingly or against their wishes will be briefly dealt with immediately below.

A few words may first be said about the Vratyastoma. The Tandya-Mahabrahmana (or the Panca-vimsa, as it is called from the number of Adhyayas) describes four vratyastomas in chap. 17. 1–4 (khandas). The meaning of many words and passages in that chapter of the brāhmaṇa is uncertain and somewhat cryptic. The four vratyastomas were ekahas (i. e. sacrifices taking one day only). Tandya 17. 1. 1 begins with the story that when the gods went to the heavenly world some dependents of theirs who lived the vrata life were left behind on the earth. Then through the favour of the gods the dependents got at the hands of Maruts the Sodaśastoma (containing 16 stotras) and the metre (viz. anustubh) and then the dependents secured heaveṇ The Sodaśastoma is employed in each of the four vratyastomas, the first of which (17. 1) is meant for all vratyas, the 2nd is meant for those who are abhisasta (who are wicked or guilty of heavy sins and so censured) and lead a vrata life, the third for those who are youngest and lead a vrata life, and the fourth who are very old and yet lead a vrata life. Some of the passages convey a tolerably clear idea of what the vratyas were like. Those who ³²¹ lead the vrata life are base and are reduced to a baser state, since they do not observe student-hood (brahmacarya) nor do they till the soil nor engage in trade. It is by the Sodaśastoma that they can attain this (superior status). This shows that the vātyas did not perform upanayana and did not study the Veda, nor did they do even what vaiśyas do. Another passage says 'those swallow poison who eat food of the common people as food fit for brāhmaṇas, who call good words bad, who strike with a stick him who does not deserve to be beaten (or punished ), who, though not initiated, speak the speech of the initiateḍ The Śodāśastoma has the power to remove the guilt of these. That (in this rite) there are four Śodāśastomas, thereby they are freed from guilt.'³²² This passage indicates that the vratyas spoke the same language as the orthodox people, but were rough in their ways and lax as regards the food they partook of. They were thus outside the pale of orthodox Aryan society and they were brought within it by the Vratyastoma described in the Tāṇḍya. The origin of the word vrátya is lost in the mists of antiquity. The 15th Kānda of the Atharvaveda glorifies the vrātya and identifies him with the Creator and Supreme Being. 'The word is probably derived from vrāta (group) and means 'he who belongs to or moves in a group.' It is possible to derive the word from vrata. Originally vratyas appear to have been groups of people who spoke the same language as orthodox Āryas, but did not follow their discipline and habitṣ The word vrāta occurs in Rg. I. 163. 8, III. 26. 6, V. 53. 11. Sāyaṇa also perceived the difficulty raised by the glorification of the vrātya in the Atharvaveda 15. 1. 1 and his note is interesting, since he says that the description does not apply to all vrātyas, but only to some very powerful, universally respected and holy vrātya who was, however, not in the good books of the brāhmaṇas that were solely devoted to their own rites and sacrificeṣ Kātyāyanaśrauta XXII. 4. 1–28 and Āp. Śrauta XXII. 5. 4–14 also deal with Vrātyastoma. Kātyāyana des- cribes the four vrātyastomas and adds ³²³ ‘by performing the vrātyastoma sacrifice, they should cease to be vrātyas and become eligible for social intercourse with the orthodox āryaṣ’ The Pār. gr. II. 5 quotes the last sūtra of Kātyāyana with the remark "for such persons he who desires to have the sacrament (saṁskāra of upanayana) performed on them should perform the sacrifice of vrātyastoma and then may indeed study the Veda for a text says 'they become eligible for (social) inter-course',³²⁴"

In the Vrātyatā-śuddhisamgraha provision is made ³²⁵ for the purification of vrātyas even after twelve generations (vide pp. 7 and 22–24) and that work adds (p. 42) that the Vrātya-stoma like the penance for an avakirņin is to be performed in the ordinary fire (laukika agni). It also suggests easy substi-tutes for the lengthy and trying penance of twelve years prescribed by Āp.

Hinduism has not been an avowedly proselytizing religioṇ In theory it could not be so. For about two thousand years the caste system has reigned supreme and no one can in theory be admitted to the Hindu fold who is not born in it. A Hindu may lose caste, be excommunicated and driven out of the fold of Hinduism, if he be guilty of very serious lapses and refuses to undergo the prāyaścittas prescribed by the smṛtis Gaut. 20. 15 states that he who was guilty of a misdeed for which death was prescribed as a penance became purified only by dying. But Gaut. himself prescribed death (21. 7) as penance only for the sins of brāhmaṇa-murder, drinking spirituous liquor and incest. Even as regards these three, lesser penances were prescribed by some smṛtis as alternatives (e. g. vide Manu XI. 72, 74–8, 92, 108). When the sinner performed the prāyaścitta prescribed by the śāstras, he was to be welcomed by his relatives, who took a bath along with him in a holy river or the like and threw therein an unused jar filled with water; they were not to find fault with him and were to completely associate with him in all ways (Manu XI. 186–187, Yāj. III. 295, Vaṣ 15, 20, Gaut. 20. 10–14). Vaṣ 15. 17 says that those who were patita were to be re-admitted to all social intercourse when they performed the prescribed penances (patitānām tu caritavratānām pratyuddhāraḥ). But if the sinner refused to undergo the prescribed prāyaścitta, then a peculiar procedure called ghaṭasphoṭa (breaking a jar) was prescribeḍ In such a case the sinner's relatives (sapiṇḍas) made a slave girl whose face was turned to the south thrust aside with her foot an earthen jar full of water so that all water flowed out of it, then the relatives were to observe mourning for one day and night ( as he was deemed to be dead to them ) and from that day they were to stop speaking or sitting with him, and all other social intercourse and he was to be given no inheritance ( vide Manu XI. 183–185, Yaj. III. 294, Gaut. 20. 2–7 ). In this way the obstinate sinner went out of the Hindu folḍ The ancient smṛtis do not expressly prescribe any rites for bringing into the brahmanic or Hindu fold a person who or whose ancestors did not belong to it. But as Hinduism has been extremely tolerant³²⁷ (barring a few exceptional instances) it had a wonderful power of quiet and unobtrusive absorptioṇ If a person, though of foreign ancestry, conformed to Hindu social usages in outward behaviour, in course of time his descendants became absorbed into the vast Hindu community. This process has gone on for at least two thousand yearṣ The beginnings of it are found in the Śāntiparva chap. 65 where Indra tells the Emperor Māndhātṛ to bring all foreign people like the Yavanas under brahmanical influence. The Besnagar column inscription shows that the Yona (yavana) Heliodora (Heliodorus) son of Diya (Dion) was a bhāgavata (devotee of Vāsudeva). Vide J. R. A. S. for 1909 pp. 1053 and 1087 and J. B. R. A. S. vol. 23 p. 104. In the caves at Nasik, Karle and other places many of the donors are said to have been yavanas (vide E. I. vol. VII, pp. 53–54, 55, E. I. vol. VIII, p. 90, E. I. vol. XVIII, p. 325). Several inscriptions state that Indian kings married Hūṇa princesses, e. g. Allāṭa of the Guhila dynasty married a Hūṇa princess named Hariyadevi (I. A. vol. 39 p. 191), king Yaśaḥkarṇadeva of the Kalacuri dynasty is said to have been the son of Karṇadeva and Āvalladevi, a Hūṇa princesṣ These and similar examples show that persons of foreign descent and their children were absorbed into the Hindu community from time to time. This absorption is illustrated in modern times by the case of Fanindra Deb v. Rajeshwar (L. R. 12 I. A. 72) in which it was found that a family in Kooch Behar not originally Hindu had adopted certain Hindu usages and it was held that it had not taken over the practice of adoptioṇ How Hindu customs and incidents persist even after conversion to Islam is strikingly shown by the Khojas and Kutchi Memons of the Bombay Presidency, who though made converts to Islam several centuries ago, were held by the courts in India to have retained the ancient Hindu Law of succession and inheritance.³²⁶ The problem of taking back into the Hindu fold persons who were forcibly converted to other faiths has engaged the attention of smṛtis Moslems first attacked India in the 8th century from the direction of the province of Sindh. This invasion led to the enslavement and forcible conversion of many people. It appears that Devala and other smṛtikāras tackled with the problem of taking back such people. The Devala smṛti opens with a question by the sages put to Devala who was sitting on the banks of the Sindhu at ease as to how brāhmaṇas and members of the other varṇas when carried off by Mlecchas were to be purified and restored to caste. The following verses of the Devala-smṛti are very instructive on this point. Verses 7-10 declare that when a brāhmaṇa is carried off by Mlecchas and he eats or drinks forbidden food or drink or has sexual intercourse with women he should not have approached, he becomes purified by doing the penance of cāndrāyaṇa and parāka, that a kṣatriya becomes pure by undergoing parāka and pādakṛcchra, a vaiśya by half of parāka and a śūdra by the penance of parāka for five dayṣ Then verses 17-22 are most important ^⁹²⁸ᶜ. ‘When persons are forcibly made slaves by Mlecchas, cāṇḍālas and robbers, are compelled to do dirty acts, such as killing cows and other animals or sweeping the leavings of the food (of Mlecchas) or eating the leavings of the food of Mlecchas or partaking of the flesh of asses, camels and village pigs, or having intercourse with their women, or are forced to dine with them, then the penance for purifying a dvijāti that has stayed for a month in this way is prājāpatya, for one who had consecrated Vedic fires (and stayed one month or less) it is cāndrāyaṇa or parāka; for one who stays a year (with Mlecchas in this condition of things) it is both cāndrāyaṇa and parāka; a śūdra who stays (in this condition) for a month becomes pure by kṛcchrapāda; a śūdra who stays a year should drink yāvaka for half a month. The appropriate prāyaścitta should be determined by learned brāhmaṇas when a person has stayed (in the above circumstances among Mlecchas) for over a year; in four years the person (who stays in the above circumstances among Mlecchas) is reduced to their condition (i. e. becomes a mleccha and there is no prāyaścitta for him).' The Prāyaścittaviveka states that after four years death is the only purifier for hiṃ³²⁷ Three more verses of Devala (53-55) also deserve consideration 'One who was forcibly seized by Mlecchas for five, six or seven years or from ten to twenty years, is purified by undergoing two Prājāpatyaṣ Beyond this there is no purification; these penances are meant only for him who has simply stayed among Mlecchaṣ He who had stayed with Mlecchas from five to twenty years is purified by undergoing two Cāndrāyaṇas'. These verses are apparently inconsistent with the verses cited above (17-22), but they most probably mean this that if a man only stayed among Mlecchas for 5 to 20 years, but has not done any of the forbidden things such as eating ucchiṣṭa or the flesh of asses &c., then he can be taken back even after so many yearṣ This would be an exception to the rule contained in verse 22. There is no reason why the reasoning of Devala should not be extended to persons who have been in the condition stated in verses 17-22 for over four yearṣ In the Pāñcadaśī (Tṛptīdipa v. 239) we have the following very significant passage³²⁷ 'just as a brāhmaṇa seized by Mlecchas and afterwards undergoing the appropriate prāyaścitta does not become confounded with Mlecchas (but returns to his original status of being a brāhmaṇa) so the Intelligent Soul is not really to be confounded with the body and other material adjunctṣ' This establishes that the great Vidyāraṇya, who after Śaṁkarācārya, is the greatest figure among ācāryas, approved of the view that a brāhmaṇa even though enslaved by Mlecchas could be restored to his original statuṣ

Under Shivaji and the Peshwas it appears that several persons that had been forcibly made Moslems were restored to caste after under-going prāyaścitta ( vide notes 2321-2 below for examples). But this was done in only a few instanceṣ

In modern times there is a movement among Hindus called śuddhi or patitaparāvartana (purification or bringing back into the Hindu fold those who had fallen away from it ). In a very few cases persons born in western countries have been taken into the Hindu fold by the performance of vrātyastoma and other riteṣ But such instances are very rare and are not yet supported by the vast majority of Hinduṣ It has been shown above that for taking back a man who was once a Hindu but had left Hinduism, there is smṛti authority in Devala and others and the authority of the Nibandhakāraṣ Punarupanayana (performing upanayana again). In certain cases an upanayana has to be performed agaiṇ The Āśv.³²⁸ gr. (I. 22. 22–26) prescribes that in punarupanayana the cutting of the hair and production of intelligence (medhā-janana) are optional, there are no rules about paridāna (giving in charge of deities) and about the time (i. e. it may be performed at any time and no paridāna is necessary) and instead of the usual Gāyatrī, he should recite ‘tat savitur vṛṇīmahe’ (Rg. V. 82. 1.). When a person in whose family one Veda is studied (e. g. the Ṛgveda) wants to study another Veda (e. g. Yajurveda), he had to undergo a fresh upanayana. The Āśv. gr. sūtra is interpreted in this way by some. Haradatta on Āp. Dh. S. I. 1. 10 says that as the Sāvitrī (i. e. Gāyatrī, Ṛg. III. 62. 10) is recited for all Vedas according to the Brāhmaṇa passage quoted by Āp. one upanayana is sufficient for the study of the three Vedas in succession, but if a person wants to study the Atharvaveda after studying another Veda, then a fresh upanayana is necessary. This is one kind of punarupanayana. Another kind of punarupanayana takes place when in the first upanayana the principal rite viz. placing his hands on the boy’s shoulders and bringing the student near the teacher is left off through oversight or the first upanayana takes place in a season other than vasanta (spring) or in the dark half of a month or on a day which was anadhyāya³²⁹ (unfit for Vedic study) or on a galagraha (vide note 642 above) or in the latter part of the day. A third kind of punar-upanayana is one which is by way of prāyaścitta for certain sins or lapses from good conduct.³³⁰ Gaut. 23. 2–5 prescribes the penance called Taptakṛcchra and punarupanayana for one guilty of drinking wine (surā) in ignorance or partaking of human urine, fæces and semen and the flesh of wild beasts, camels, asses, village cocks, and village hogṣ Vaṣ (23. 30) also has a similar sūtra. Bauḍ Dh. S. II. 1. 25 quotes a verse 'if a person belonging to the three varṇas unknowingly drinks surā (wine) or fæces, he has to undergo punarupanayana' and says (II. 1. 29 ) that if a brahmacārī carries a corpse (other than that of his parents or teacher) he has to undergo punar-upanayana. Manu V. 91 and Viṣṇu Dh. S. 22, 86 prescribe the same. In the Bauḍ gr. paribhāṣāsūtra (I. 12. 4–6) it is said that on partaking of honey, or flesh, śrāddha food or food from those in impurity on birth, or the milk of a cow before the lapse of ten days or the milk of a sandhinī cow, mushrooms or the resin exuded from trees, vilāyaṇa (a product of milk?), the food prepared for a number of people in common or the food of prostitutes, a man has to undergo punarupanayana and, according to some, also if he goes to a forbidden coun-try, ³³¹ viz. Saurāṣṭra (Kathiawar), Sindhu, and Sauvīra (Sind and the territory to its south and east), Avanti (Ujjain), Dakṣiṇāpatha (Deccan), a brāhmaṇa has to undergo punarupanayana (except when he goes on a pilgrimage). It then sets out the procedure (such as a homa, putting a fuel stick of palāśa on the fire and oblations of cooked food and ājya) and adds that in punarupanayana shaving, dakṣiṇā, girdle, staff, deer-skin, begging for food and vratas do not take place.

The Vaik. smārta (VI. 9-10) contains similar rules for punarupanayana.³³² Aparārka (p. 1160) quotes Paithīnasi to the effect that if a grown-up person drinks the milk of sheep or of a she-ass, she-camel or of a woman, he has to undergo punarupanayana and also the penance called prājāpatya.

Anadhyayā :—(cessation from Vedic study ; holiday). It appears that from very early times Vedic studies were stopped on various groundṣ The Tai. Ār. ³³³ II. 15 has a very important statement on this subject. ‘Indeed as to this yajña (brahmayajña) there are two cases in which the study of the Veda ceases, namely, when the man himself is impure or when the place is impure’. The Śat. Br. ³³⁴ has a passage in which several occasions when Vedic study was ordinarily stopped are mentioned and it is added that those occasions do not prevent the repetition of Vedic texts as Brahmayajña. ‘Therefore one knowing this should certainly repeat the Veda as Brahmayajña, when the wind blows, when lightning flashes, when it thunders or when there is a fall of thunderbolt, in order that vaṣaṭkāras may not be fruitless’. The Āp. Dh. S. (I. 4. 12. 3.) quotes the Vājasaneyi Brāhmaṇa (the Śatapatha) to the effect that Vedic study is Brahmayajña; when it thunders, when lightning flashes, when there is a fall of the thunderbolt, when the wind blows, these are its vaṣaṭkāras; ³³⁵ therefore wheṇ.....fruitless”. The Ait. Ār. (V. 3. 3) notes that if there be rain when it is not the season of rainfall, he should make a break by observing cessation of Vedic study for three nightṣ ³³⁶

The subject of anadhyāya is discussed in the gṛhya and dharmasūtras and in almost all smṛtis It is not possible to give for want of space the differences between the several workṣ Among sūtras and smṛtis the most exhaustive and lengthy treat- ment is found in Āp. Dh. S. (I. 3. 9. 4. to I. 3. 11), Gaut. 16. 5-49, Śaṅkhāyana gṛ. IV. 7 (S. B. E. vol. 29 pp. 115–118 ), Manu IV. 102–128, Yāj. I. 144–151. The subject is also treated at length in the Sṃ C., Smṛtyarthasāra, the Saṁskāra kau- stubha ( pp. 564–570 ), the Saṁskāra-ratnamālā ( pp. 327–339 ) and other Nibandha workṣ In the following an attempt is made to present a tolerably exhaustive list of anadhyāyas together with a few references to the original sourceṣ

Among tithis the following are anadhyāyaṣ On the first, the 8th, the 14th, 15th tithis ( Paurṇamāsī and Amāvāsyā ) there was to be cessation of Vedic Study for the whole day ; vide Manu IV. 113–114, Yāj I. 146 ( in both pratipad is not expressly mentioned ) and Hārīta. Patañjali in the Mahā- bhāṣya ( vol. II. p. 386 ) refers to anadhyāya on amāvāsyā and 14th tithi. There is a famous verse of the Rāmāyaṇa ³³⁷ which shows that pratipad also was a holiday. Gaut. says that there was no holiday on the full moon days of the twelve months, but only on the full moon days of Āṣāḍha, Kārtika and Phālguna. The Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 11. 42–43 quotes a verse ³³⁸ '( Vedic study on ) the eighth tithi kills the teacher, 14th kills the pupil, 15th kills learning '. Manu ( IV. 114 ) has a similar verse. Aparārka ³³⁹ ( p. 189 ) quotes from the Nṛsiṁhapurāṇa verses to the effect that there is to be no teaching ( of the Veda ) on Mahānavamī ( 9th of Āśvina, bright half ), on Bharaṇī ( i. e. the tithi when the moon is in Bharaṇī nakṣatra after Bhādra- pada full moon ), Akṣatatṛtīyā ( 3rd of Vaiśākha, bright half ) and Rathasaptamī ( 7th of Māgha, bright half ). Similarly there is to be anadhyāya on what are called Yugādi and Man- vantarādi tithiṣ Yugādi tithis according to Viṣṇupurāṇa ³⁴⁰ and Brahmapurāṇa quoted by Aparārka ( p. 425 ) are Vaiśākha- śukla tṛtīyā, Kārtika śukla navamī, Bhādrapada kṛṣṇa trayodaśī and Māgha Pūrṇimā ( they are respectively the beginnings of the four yugas, kṛta, tretā, dvāpara and kali ). The Sṃ C. ( I. p. 58 ) quotes the Nāradīyapurāṇa ' on the day when uttarāyaṇa and dakṣiṇāyana first take place, on Vișuva ( the two days in the year when the day and night are equal), on the tithis when Viṣṇu sleeps and awakes from sleep (i. e. Āṣāḍha- śukla-ekādaśī and Kārtika-śukla-ekādaśī ), on Yugādi and Manvādi tithis there is anadhyāya. The tithis on which the fourteen manvantaras are supposed to begin are quoted below.³⁴¹ According to a purāṇa passage quoted in the Sṃ C. (I. p. 58) there is anadhyāya on Sopapadā tithis³⁴² (viz. Jyeṣṭha śukla 2, Āśvina śukla 10, and Māgha śukla 4 and 12). Sometimes on the same day there are two tithis; hence the rule laid down is that if on any day a particular tithi (which is declared to be anadhyāya) is shown in the calendar as extending for three muhūrtas at sunrise or at sunset, then the whole of that day is anadhyāya.³⁴³

Yāj. (I. 148-151) speaks of 37 tātkālika anadhyāyas (i. e. where Veda study is suspended only as long as the occasion or disturbance stated lasts). They are: when there is noise created by a dog, jackal, ass, owl, singing of strīman, playing on a flute and the cries of the distressed (these are 7); in the vicinity or presence of impure things, of a corpse, or a śūdra or antya (i. e. one of the untouchables), cemetery, a patita (one guilty of mahāpātaka ); when the place (of study) has become impure or when the man himself is impure; when there is continuous flashing of lightning or continuous peals of thunder; while one’s hands are wet after taking one’s meals; in the midst of water; at midnight; when a violent wind is blowing; when there is a rainfall of dust, when the quarters are lit up by sudden (and strange) lights; at the two twilights; when there is fog; when there is a fright (caused by robbers &c.); when one is running; when the smell of something rotten or impure spreads; when a distinguished visitor comes to the house; when one rides an ass, a camel, a conveyance (like a chariot ), an elephant, a horse, a boat, or climbs a tree or is in a desert (or barren ) place. A few explanatory words may be addeḍ According to Āp. Db. S. I. 3. 10. 19 when wolves howl, or when there is the sound of any musical instrument, or of weeping, singing or of the recitation of a Sāman there is anadhyāya. Gaut. 16. 7 mentions the sound of bāṇa (a kind of vīņā ), bherī (a drum), mṛdaṅga, garta (a chariot ) and the distresseḍ Manu (IV. 123-124) explains that when a sāman is heard, one should not study any portion of the Ṛgveda or Yajurveda, because the gods are the devatās of Ṛgveda, the Yajurveda deals with men (it enjoins actions to be done by men), Sāmaveda has the pitṛs as its deities; hence its sound has something of the impure or uncanny about it. Āp. Dh. S. I. 3. 11. 27 prescribes³⁴⁴ that there should be no Vedic study as long as there are clouds when it is not the season for clouds, when there is a halo round the sun or moon, when there is a rainbow, or when there is parhelion or a star with a tail (like a fish). Gaut. 16. 19, Āp. Dh. I. 3. 9. 14-15, Vaṣ 13. 11 say that there is anadhyāya as long as a corpse or a cāṇḍāla is in the village or towṇ Gaut. 16. 45 states the view of some that the Veda can never be studied in a city ; there is no Veda study as long as there is an assembly of people (Manu IV. 108) or while the student is lying down or has stretched his feet or placed them on a cot or stool, or while he sits on his haunches winding round his knees and hips a piece of cloth (Manu IV. 112., Vaṣ Dh. S. 13. 23, Viṣṇu Dh. S. 30. 17 ). There is to be anadhyāya when one is answering the calls of nature (Manu IV. 109 ), or when one has not yet sipped water (ācamana) after taking food, or after partaking of meat (Manu IV. 112 ), when there is wordy argument or there is an affray or a fight or when one is wounded or when blood flows from the body (Manu IV. 122 ) or when one suffers from indigestion or vomits or has sour eructations (Manu IV. 121 ).

In certain cases anadhyāya lasts only for a portion of the day. When the wind blows by day strong enough to carry off clouds of dust (Gaut. 16. 5) there is anadhyāya during the day (but not at night even if the wind is still strong ) or when on a festive occasion like upanayana there is anadhyāya after dinner that day (Gaut. 16. 43 ); when in the morning twilight fire has been kindled for homa and there are flashes of lightning and thunder ( not accompanied by rain ) there is anadhyāya till the sun setṣ Gaut. ( 16. 32 ) prescribes anadhyāya for the rest of the day when the king in whose country a man dwells dies ; when a strong wind that was blow- ing stops, there is anadhyāya for a muhūrta i. e. two ghațikās ( Āp. Dh. S. I. 3. 11. 28 ) or when there is the howling of sālāvṛka ( hyaena ? ) or a jackal moving about alone there is anadhyāya till one gets up from sleep ( ibid I. 3. 11. 29 ).

In some cases there is anadhyāya for the whole day and night. According to Yāj. I. 145-147 there is such an anadhyāya when there is thunder at the twilight time, there is a fall of the thunderbolt or earth-quake or the fall of a meteor, when one finishes saṃhitā or Brāhmaṇa ( of the śākhā one is studying ) or when one finishes the study of the Āraṇyaka portion of one's Veda; when there is an eclipse of the sun or moon, or when it is the first day after the season changes or when a person partakes of śrāddha food or accepts a gift on śrāddha ( except in Ekoddiṣṭa śrāddha); when a beast, frog, mongoose, dog, snake, cat or mouse passes between the teacher and pupil ( Manu IV. 126 also ) or when the banner of Indra is raised or taken dowṇ Manu IV. 110 lays down anadhyāya for three days when one accepts invitation for an Ekoddiṣṭa śrāddha or when the king dies or when there is an eclipse. This last refers to an eclipse where the sun or the moon sets while still eclipseḍ Gaut. I. 60 prescribes cessation for three days when dogs and others come betweeṇ This is explained as referring to the first lesson in Veda, while the words of Manu and Yāj. are held to refer to repetitioṇ Raising the banner in honour of Indra was a festival prescribed for kings in the Kauśika sūtra 140 and other workṣ The banner was raised usually in Bhādrapada ( or sometimes in Āśvina) on the 12th of the bright half when the moon was in conjunction with uttarāṣāḍhā, śravaṇa or dhaniṣṭhā constellation and it was taken down in the same month on the bharaṇī constellation ( vide Sṃ C. I. p. 59 ). According to the Bṛhat-saṃhitā ( chap. 43 ) of Varāha this festival lasted from the 8th to the 12th day of Bhādrapada śukla. Manu ( IV. 119 ) prescribes anadhyāya for a day and night on the Aṣṭakā days³⁴⁵ and on the last day of each of the six ṛtus ( seasons ). In a few cases the anadhyāya was ākālika³⁴⁶ i. c. lasted for one day (60 ghaṭikās) from the time when the cause began to operate up to the same hour next day. Āp. Dh. S. I. 3. 11. 25-26 ) lays down this kind of anadhyāya if out of three viz. flashing of lightning, thunder and rain, one or two occur at a time when it is no season for rain; there is this anadhyāya for all vidyās at all times, when there is an eclipse of the sun or the moon or there is an earthquake or a whirlwind or fall of meteorṣ Manu IV. 103-105 and Gautama 16. 22-23 are similar to Āp. Dh. S. I. 3. 11. 25-26 and Manu IV. 118 prescribes ākālika anadhyāya when a village is thrown into confusion by thieves or there is a commotion due to a conflagration and in the case of all portentous phenomena (such as rain of blood or stones; vide Vaṣ 13. 35). Gaut. (16. 47-48) adds that the performer of a śrāddha (whether he actually serves cooked food to brāhmaṇas or only makes gifts of money and corn &c.) has to observe this anadhyāya (vide Manu IV. 117 also).

Anadhyāya for three days was prescribed in a few caseṣ If lightning, thunder and rain all appear together when it is not the proper season for them, there is anadhyāya for three days (Āp. Dh. I. 3. 11. 23). Vide note 937 above. In the utsarga and upākaraṇa of the Vedas, on the death of gurus (persons worthy of respect like the father-in-law), on the Aṣṭakās and on the death of near agnates (like brother, nephew &c.) there is anadhyāya for three days ³⁴⁷ (Āp. Dh. S. I. 3. 10. 2-3). Gaut. (6. 38-41) is similar to Āp. The Hārita dharmasūtra ³⁴⁸ prescribes anadhyāya for three days on the death of one's upādhyāya, or of the king or of a śrotriya or fellow pupil, on eclipses of the sun and the moon, on the taking down of the banner of Indra and on the death of one's ācārya. Manu (IV. 110 and 119) prescribes anadhyāya for three days on accepting invitation for ekoddiṣṭa śrāddha, on the death of the king, on eclipses and on upākarma or utsarga. Yaj. I. 144 contains similar ruleṣ

Āp. Dh. S. (I. 3. 10. 4) prescribes 12 days' anadhyāya on the death of one's parents and ācārya. Bauḍ Dh. S. I. 11. 32 prescribes³⁴⁹ three days' anadhyāya on the death of one's father. This rule must be taken as referring only to a brahmacārī. Vaṣ (13. 39–40) prescribes three days' anadhyāya on the death of one's ācārya and one day's on the death of the son or wife of the ācārya.

The Smṛtyarthasāra (p. 10) mentions some occasions when anadhyāya may extend to a month, to six months, or a year. Āp. D. S. I. 3. 9. 1. prescribes that, when upākarma is performed on the full moon day of Śrāvaṇa, for a month thereafter one should not study Veda in the first part of the night ( he may do so after that at night or in the day ).

Aparārka (p. 192) quotes a verse from Yama³⁵⁰ that there can be no Vedic study under the shade of certain trees like Śleṣmātaka, Śālmali (silk-cotton), Madhuka, Kovidāra and Kapitthaka.

Both Gaut. (16. 49) and Āp. Dh. S. I. 3. 11. 34 state that besides the anadhyāyas expressly mentioned by them there are others which may be learnt from the several smṛtis and from the assemblies of learned meṇ³⁵¹

It would be noticed how the number of anadhyāyas is rather too numerous for rapid and effective study. Therefore certain rules are laid down to explain what is that is forbidden on those dayṣ

In the first place anadhyāya may be vācika (concerned with the loud utterance of Vedic words), mānasa (revolving the Veda in the mind). Bauḍ Dh. S. I.³⁵² 11. 40-41 says that the rule about anadhyāya on portentous happenings for a day and night does not apply to mānasa study; but even mānasa study is forbidden when there is impurity due to birth or death. Gaut. 16. 46 says the same. Āp. Dh. S. I. 3. 11. 20 allows (in general) mental study (not vocal) on anadhyāya dayṣ Vide also Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 32. 12-13.

The Āp. śrautasūtra ³⁵³ (24. 1. 37) says that the rules about anadhyāya apply only to the learning of Vedic mantras, but have no application to their employment in various riteṣ Jaimini ³⁵⁴ (XII. 3. 18-19) establishes the proposition that the rules about anadhyāya being prescribed for acquisition of the Vedic mantras have no application to their employment in sacrificeṣ The Āp. Dh. S. I. 4. 12. 9 has a sūtra which shows remarkable agreement with the words of Jaimini.

We saw above that according to the Tai. Ār. the rules of anadhyāya do not apply to the daily performance of Brahma-yajña (i. e. to the repetition of the Vedic texts already learnt). Manu II. 105 says that there is no concern about anadhyāya as to the lores (the angas like grammar, Nirukta &c.) helpful to (understanding of ) the Veda, the obligatory svādhyāya (i. e. brahmayajña) and the mantras to be used in homa. Śaunaka ³⁵⁵ quoted in the Sṃ C. says there is no anadhyāya as to repeating the Vedic texts in the obligatory rites and in japa nor in kāmya rites, in sacrifices or in the pārāyaṇa (repeating the Veda already learnt); the anadhyāya rules apply only to the first learning of Vedic mantras and to their teaching. The Smṛtyar-thasāra ³⁵⁶ (p. 10) says that those who have a slippery memory or those who have to commit to memory extensive Vedic texts should study the Vedāṅgas, nyāya (logic), mīmāṁsā and dharmaśāstras on all anadhyāyas except on 1st, 8th, 14th and full moon and new moon dayṣ Some digests quote a verse from the Kūrmapurāṇa³⁵⁷ that there is no anadhyāya for the study of Vedāṅgas, of itihāsa, purāṇas, dharmaśāstras and other śāstras ; but on parva days the study of even these should be droppeḍ This shows that these tithis were the only close holidays on which there was complete cessation of all study, whether Vedic or non-Vedic. That is, these were what are called nitya holidays while the rest are naimittika anadhyāyaṣ Even now these nitya anadhyāyas are observed by vaidikas and by Pandits in their Sanskrit schools ( particularly amāvāsyā ).

It will be seen that though some of the occasions for anadhyāya are somewhat strange and bizarre, underlying most of them there are reasonable and understandable principleṣ Vedic study depended in the first place on memorizing. Committing sacred texts to memory ( without in most cases understanding their meaning ) required close attention and concentratioṇ Therefore, all occasions which caused disturbance or distraction of mind were held to be anadhyāyaṣ But the same concentration was not necessary for reciting in sacrifices or japa or brahma-yajña what had already been committed to memory. Hence such occasions were not anadhyāyas for those purposeṣ

It was believed that³⁵⁸ if a person taught the Vedic lore or studied it on anadhyāya days, he incurred loss as to ( long ) life, offspring, cattle, intelligence and the merit accumulated by hiṃ

Keśānta or godāna :—This saṁskāra consists in shaving the head and also the hair on the other parts of the body ( such as arm-pits, chin ). Pār. gr., Yāj. (I. 36 ) and Manu ( II. 65 ) employ the word keśānta, while Āśv. gr., Śāṅ. gr., Gobhila and other gṛhyasūtras employ the word godāna. In the Śat.³⁵⁹ Br. while speaking of the dikṣā ( consecration of the performer of a sacrifice ) the word godāna is used in the sense of a portion of the hair ( on the head ) near the top of the ear. Most smṛtikāras say that this saṁskāra was performed in the 16th year. According to Śāṇ gr. ( I. 28. 20, S. B. E. vol. 29, p. 57 ) it may be performed in the 16th or 18th year. According to Manu II. 65 keśānta is performed in the 16th, 22nd or 24th year respectively for a brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya or vaiśya. The Laghu-Āśvalāyana smṛti XIV. 1 says that Godāna may be performed in the 16th year or at the time of marriage. This last view seems to have been known to Bhavabhūti who in his Uttararāmacarita ³⁶⁰ (Act. I) makes the heroine Sītā say that Rāma and his three brothers had the godāna ceremony per- formed immediately before their marriage. It is somewhat strange that according to the Kauśika sūtra ³⁶¹ ( 54. 15 ) godāna precedes cūḍākarma and the commentator Keśava remarks that godāna takes place at the end of the first or 2nd year ( from birth ).

There is great divergence of views about the starting point from which 16 years are to be calculateḍ The Bauḍ Dh. S. (I. 2. 7) has stated the rule in general terms that the number of years is to be calculated from the time of conceptioṇ ³⁶² Following this rule the Mit. on Yāj. I. 36 and Kullūka on Manu II. 65 say that godāna should be performed in the 16th year from conception in the case of brāhmaṇas, ³⁶³ while Aparārka says that it is to be performed in the 16th year from birth. Viśvarūpa ³⁶⁴ on Yāj. I. 36 says that whatever the period of brahmacarya that a student was going to observe ( whether 12, 24, 36, 48 &c.) keśānta must be performed in the 16th year and if any one had his upanayana performed later than the 16th year, then keśānta will not take place at all. Nārāyaṇapa on Aśv. gr. I. 22. 3 notes that according to some godāna takes place in the 16th year from upanayana, while others celebrate it in the 16th year from birth.

All sūtrakāras are agreed that godāna or keśānta follows the procedure of cūḍākaraṇa with a few differenceṣ The Āśv. gr. (I. 18. 1–9) points these out. Caula is performed in the 3rd year, while godāna is performed in the 16th. Āśv. gr. further says “wherever the word keśa occurs ( in the mantras or proce- dure of caula ) he should employ the word śmaśru (beard). He moistens the beard here. (The mantra is) 'purify his head and face, but do not deprive him of life'. He gives orders ( to the barber ) ‘arrange his beard, the hair of his body and his nails, ending in the north’. Having bathed and stood up silently during the rest of the day, he should break his silence in the presence of his teacher (saying to the teacher) ‘I give a gift’. The fee is a pair of cowṣ Let the teacher instruct him to keep the observances for a year” ³⁶⁵. Nārāyaṇa notes that being grown up he should not sit on his mother’s lap as in caula (but sit to her right) and that the instruction is to be on the next day. Nārāyaṇa says that the instruction referred to is the one men- tioned in Āśv. gr. I. 22. 20 from ‘cutting the hair’ to ‘giving in charge’ i. e. from Āśv. gr. I. 19. 8. to I. 20. 7. It is better to hold as Pār. and Bhār. gr. ordain that the instruction is as to brahmacaryavrata (mentioned ³⁶⁶ in Āśv. gr. I. 22. 17) or that he is not to shave himself for a year, 12 days, 6 days or at least 3 dayṣ Pār. gr., Śāṅkhāyana and several others allowed the fee of only one cow ³⁶⁷. Gobhila (III. 1. 5) and Khadira (II. 5. 3) allowed optionally the gift of a pair of horses or a pair of sheep for kṣatriyas or vaiśyas respectively. According to Gōbhila and Khādira shaving the beard precedes a vrata called godānika for one year and both state at length the observances of that vrata (Gōbhila III. 1. 11–29, Khādira II. 5. 7–16).

Śāṅ. gr. (I. 28. 22) expressly says that the keśānta ceremony is performed for girls but silently. Āp. gr. 16. 15, Hir. gr. 6. 16, Bhāradvāja gr. I. 10, Bauḍ gr. III. 2. 55 prescribe in godāna the removal of all the hair on the head (including the śikhā top-knot), while in caula it is not so.

This saṁskāra gradually went out of vogue, so much so that most of the medieval digests like the Sṃ C., the Saṁskāraprākāśa, and the Nirṇayasindhu contain hardly anything about it.

Snāna or Samāvartana :—(Taking the ceremonial bath after finishing Vedic study and returning from the teacher's house). Some sūtrakāras such as Gaut. (VIII. 16), Āp. gr. XII. 1, Hir. gr. 9. 1 and Yāj. I. 51 employ the word ‘snāna’ for this saṁskāra, while Āśv. gr. III. 8. 1, Bauḍ gr. (II. 6. 1), Āp. Dh. S. I. 2. 7. 15 and 31, Bhār. gr. II. 18 employ the word samāvartana. The Khādira gr. (I. 3. 2–3, III. 1. 1) and Gōbhila III. 4. 7 use the word ‘āplavana’ (which means snāna). Manu (III. 4) uses both ‘snāna’ and ‘samāvartana’ in “a dvija being permitted by his teacher, may take the ceremonial bath and return from his teacher according to the rules laid down (in his own gṛhyasūtra) and then marry a a girl &c”. Aparārka (p. 76) explains this verse by saying that it makes a distinction between snāna and samāvartana. The distinction consists in this : snāna or ceremonial bath indicates the completion of the period of student-hooḍ A man who wants to remain a brahmacārin all his life need not undergo this saṁskāra. Samāvartana literally means ‘return from the teacher's house to one's home’. If a boy learns under his own father, then literally speaking there will be no return in his case from a teacher's house. Medhātithi³⁶⁸ (on Manu III. 4) puts this position forcibly. Samāvartana is not a necessary aṅga (adjunct) of marriage and therefore he who learnt the Veda in his father's house may, though there is no return (to the father's house from the teacher's house), enter on matrimony. Some hold that Samāvartana is an aṅga of marriage and consists in the ceremonial bath. If it be said that the gerundial termination (tvā in snātvā in Manu III. 4) conveys distinction between snāna and samāvartana, the reply is that Manu will later on speak of samāvartana as the saṁskāra of snāna.

Āp. gr. 12. 1 begins its treatment with the words ‘vedam adhītya snāsyan’ (after learning the Veda and when about to undergo the ceremonial bath).‘ Having these words in mind Bauḍ gr.³⁶⁹ (II 6. 1) remarks that in the words ‘vedam adhītya snāsyan’ it is samāvartana that has been describeḍ Hence the essence of samāvartana is the ceremonial bath and return to the parental home is a subsidiary matter (which may or may not occur in the case of a student). The Mahābhāṣya (vol. I. p. 384) says that a person after he has studied the Veda and taken the ceremonial bath with the permission of the teacher should begin to use a cot (for sleeping on).

In the Vedic Literature both words are useḍ In the Chāndogya Upaniṣad³⁷⁰ IV. 10. 1 we read that Upakosala Kāmalāyana became a student of Satyakaṁa Jābāla and tended his teacher's fires for twelve years; the teacher while making his other pupils return (to their parental home) did not make Upakosala returṇ Here it is clear that the Upaniṣad knew the term 'samāvartana'. Similarly in Chāndogya VIII. 15 it is stated that 'having studied the Veda according to the rules in the time that was left after doing work for the teacher and having returned from the teacher's house to his own family'. On the other hand the Śat. Br. (XI. 3. 3. 7) says ‘that one³⁷¹ should not beg after taking the ceremonial bath’. The Śat. Br. (XII. 1. 1. 10) distinguishes³⁷² a snātaka from a brahmacārin (S. B. E. vol. 44 p. 137). Similarly the Āp. Dh. S. II. 6. 14. 13 quotes a Brāhmaṇa passage ‘therefore the face of the snātaka is as if resplendent with fire'. The Ait. Ār. V. 3. 3. remarks that ‘one who has not studied this (mahāvrata) does not become a (true) snātaka, even though he may have learnt a good deal else.' The Āśv. gr. III. 9. 8 summarises a Brāhmaṇa passage to the effect that a snātaka is indeed a great being.

Snāna (the ceremonial bath) was ordained by the sūtrakāras after a student finishesd his Vedic study. The Āśv. gr. (III.9.4) remarks 'after having finished (the task of learning) vidyā, they should invite his teacher to name the gift ( of wealth or other wise ) he desired or when the pupil has been permitted by the teacher, the pupil may take a ceremonial bath.'³⁷⁴ This shows that one may perform snāna either when he had finished his Vedic and other studies or he may do so even without finishing his intended studies, if the teacher permitted him to do so. The Pār. gr. II. 6 is more explicit 'The student should take the ceremonial bath after finishing (the study of) the Veda or when he has gone through the period of student-hood for 48 years, or for 12 years according to some (teachers); (he should) take the bath when permitted by the teacher.' A person who has taken the ceremonial bath is called a snātaka. A snātaka is said by the Pār. gr. (II. 5),³⁷⁵ Gobhila (III. 5. 21-22), Bauḍ gr. paribhāṣā sūtra I. 15, Hārita and others to be of three kinds, viz. vidyāsnātaka (or Veda-snātaka as Bauḍ gr. pari bhāṣā has it ), vratasnātaka and vidyā-vratasnātaka (or veda vrāta-snātaka as in Baud ). One who has finished Veda study, but has not gone through the vratas ( described above ) is called vidyā-snātaka ; one who has finished the vratas, but has not finished his Veda study is styled vrata-snātaka ; while one who has finished both is named vidyā-vrata-snātaka. Yāj. I. 51 in saying that a student 'after finishing Veda (study) or the vratas (observances of brahmacarya) or both, and after giving to the teacher what the latter chooses to ask should take the ceremonial bath with the teacher's permission' impliedly refers to the three-fold division of snātakaṣ These three alternatives are due to the fact that a student may not have the ability or the time to go through the full Vedic curriculum and the vrataṣ Medhātithi on Manu IV. 31 notices that according to some vrata-snātakas are those who without finishing Veda study take the ceremonial bath three years after upanayana. Gobhila (III. 5. 23) says that of these, vidyā-vrata-snātaka is the best, the other two being equal to each other. Āp. Dh. S. (I. 11. 30. 1–5) refers to this three-fold division and adds that all three are to be honoured as snātakas, but that great reward follows by honouring vidyā-vrata-snātakaṣ

A good deal of time may conceivably elapse between a man’s taking the ceremonial bath and actually marrying a womaṇ During that period he is called a snātaka; while after marriage he comes to be called a gṛhastha ³⁷⁶. As long as a person is not married after he takes the bath, he has to follow the observances prescribed for snātakas and gṛhasthas so far as applicable to his position but not those of a student. Gaut. ³⁷⁷ (IX. 1–2) makes the position quite clear by prescribing the same rules of conduct for gṛhasthas and for snātakaṣ He also states (in III. 9) that whatever rules laid down for brahmacārins are not opposed to the special rules for other āśramas are to be observed by all. The latter means that special obser vances of a brahmacārī are not applicable to him (such as avoiding honey and flesh, living on alms, offering fuel-sticks to fire).

The most elaborate procedure of samāvartana is found in Hir. gr. I. 9–13, Bauḍ gr. paribhāṣā I. 14, Pār. gr. II. 6 and Gobhila gr. III. 4–5. A concise statement is given below from Āśv. gr. (III. 8 and 9). The student who is about to return home from his teacher should get ready (eleven) things, viz. a jewel (to be suspended round his neck), two ear-rings, a pair of gar ments, an umbrella, a pair of shoes, a staff, a wreath, (powder) for rubbing his body with, ointment, eye-salve, a turban, (all these) being meant for the teacher and for himself. If he cannot afford to have these materials for both of them, then he should prepare them only for the teacher. He should procure a fuel-stick from the north-east side of a sacrificial tree (like palāśa); the fuel-stick may be undried if he wishes for the enjoyment of food or for prosperity or for splendour; it may be dry if he wishes for spiritual lustre; or both dry (in part) and undried in the remaining part if he desires both. Having placed the fuel-stick on high (not on the ground) and having made gifts of food and of a cow to brāhmaṇas, he should perform the actions prescribed in godāna ceremony (and not the obser- vances like remaining silent). He should ³⁷⁸ alter the mantras (of godāna) so that they refer to himself. (He should rub himself) with the powder of Ekakliṭaka. ³⁷⁹ Having bathed himself in lukewarm water and having put on two garments which have not yet been washed (or used) with the mantra 'You two (Mitra and Varuṇa) put on garments ³⁸⁰ with fat splendour' (Ṛg. I. 152. 1); he should apply eye-salve to his eyes with the words 'thou art the lustre of stone, protect my eye.' He should fasten the two ear-rings with the words 'thou art the lustre of stone; protect my ear.' After having smeared his two hands with ointment (saffron paste &c.) a brāhmaṇa should first anoint his face with it (and then the limbs), a Rājanya his two arms first, a vaiśya his belly first, a woman her private parts, persons, who maintain themselves by running, their thighṣ With the words 'free from distress art thou, may I become free from distress' he should put on the wreath, but not such a wreath as would be called a mālā (garland). If some call it mālā (through ignorance of what to say) he should cause them to speak of it as sraj (wreath). He steps into the shoes with the words 'you two are the supports of the gods, protect me from all sides' and with the words 'heaven's covering art thou' he takes the umbrella. He takes the bamboo staff with the words 'bamboo art thou, thou art the child of a tree, protect me from all sideṣ' Having tied round his neck the jewel³⁸¹ with the hymn beginning with 'āyuṣyam'³⁸² and having arranged the turban (on his head) he should in a standing posture put a fuel-stick (on the fire), and should say at that time 'memory and reproach, knowledge, faith, wisdom as the fifth, what is sacrificed, what is given (as gift), what is studied and what is done, truth, learning, observanceṣ O Agni, the vow (of thee) together with Indra, with Prajāpati, with the sages, with the sages that are kṣatriyas, with the Fathers, with the kings among Fathers, with men and with the kings among men, with the glow, with the super-glow, with the after-glow, with the counter-glow, with gods and men, with Gandharvas and Apsarases, with wild and domestic animals, the vow be- longing to my own self, dwelling in my own self, that is my entire vow. O Agni! I shall on all sides become this vow, svāhā'. With the hymn 'mine, O Agni, be the glory' (Ṛg. X. 128. 1) he should put fuel-sticks on fire one for each verse.³⁸³ He should stay for the night at a place where the people will do honour to him (by offering Madhuparka)'. Madhuparka will be dealt with under marriage.

The Bauḍ gr. paribhāṣā says (I. 14. 1) that the samāvartana rite for him who is only a vratasnātaka (and has not studied the Veda) is performed silently (i. e. without the mantras prescribed). The other gṛhya sūtras have a similar procedure in samāvartana, only the mantras sometimes differ and a few details are addeḍ For example, Śāṅ. gr. (III. 1. 2) makes the student sit on bull's hide. Pār. gr. (II. 6) prescribes that eight jars full of water are to be placed on kuśa grass and water therefrom is to be poured over the head and the body of the student with certain mantras, that he is to worship the rising sun, to partake of curds or sesame seeds, to cleanse his teeth with an udumbara twig, he sees himself in a mirror (after adorning himself). Both Pār. and Gobhila (III. 4. 23) say that in this rite the girdle is taken off. Gobhila (III. 4. 31-34) says that at the end of the rite the student should mount a chariot drawn by oxen, drive some distance in an eastern or northern direction, should then come back to the teacher who honours him with madhuparka. Hir. gr. (I. 9. 10) says that the girdle, the staff and the black antelope skin that he wore as brahmacārin are to be thrown into water. The Laghu-Āśvalāyana-smṛti (14th section) appears to suggest that godāna and samāvartana take place on the same day and that at the end of the homa in samāvartana a student of the Ṛgveda should unloosen the girdle of muñja grass with the mantra ‘ud uttamam mumugdhi’ (Ṛg. I. 25. 21). It is for this reason that in the Marāṭha country samāvartana is called ‘soḍmuñja’ (rite in which the muñja girdle is taken away).

The sūtras more or less prescribe expressly or impliedly the same materials that are required by Āśvalāyana. Vide Bhār. gr. II. 18 (which enumerates them in one place), Bauḍ gr. paribhāṣā sūtra I. 13. 1.

Some of the sūtras specify the auspicious times when this rite is to be performeḍ Hir. gr. I. 9. 3 lays down that the proper time for snāna is during the northern course of the sun, in the bright half of a month when the moon is in conjunction with Rohiṇī, Mṛgaśiras, Tiṣya (Puşya), Uttarā Phalgunī, Hasta, Citrā, or Viśākhā. The Bauḍ gr. paribhāṣā (I. 13. 3-9) omits Mṛgaśiras out of these, while Bhār. gr. (II. 18) omits Rohiṇī and Mṛgaśiras and adds Svāti. Medieval and modern digests add elaborate rules about the astrological details for the proper day of samāvartana, which are passed over here. Vide Saṁskāraprākāśa pp. 576-578 for some of these detailṣ

Numerous rules are laid down in the smṛtis and digests about snātakas (snātakadharmāḥ). Many of these rules are applicable to gṛhasthas also (i. e. snātakas who have married). Those rules are too numerous to enumerate. But some idea may be conveyed by quoting in full the rules in Aśv. gr. (III. 9. 6-7) which has the shortest treatment and adding a few interesting items from other workṣ Āśv. gr. (III. 9. 6-7) says ‘He (the snātaka) should not bathe at night, nor bathe naked, nor lie down naked, he should not look at a naked woman except during intercourse, he shall not run when it rains, he should not climb up a tree, nor descend into a well, should not cross a river (by swimming) with his arms, he should not expose himself to a danger. A great being indeed is a snātaka—so it is known (from the śruti)’. Āp. Dh. S. (I. 11. 30. 6-I. 11. 32. 29), Vaṣ XII. 1-47, Gaut. IX, Yāj. I. 129-166, Manu IV. 13ff, Viṣṇu Dh. S. 71, Pār. gr. II. 1 contain an exhaus- tive treatment of snātaka vrataṣ Some of these are concerned with the rules about anadhyāyas, about answering calls of nature, about persons whose food should not be taken, about sexual intercourse, about ācamana, about daily observances like the five mahāyajñas, about upākarma and utsarjana. These have been or will be dealt with in the appropriate placeṣ A few of the other important rules of conduct are: a snātaka should always be pure (in body), should daily bathe and should apply fragrant unguents (like sandal-wood paste) to his body, should be always patient, persistent in his under- takings, self-restrained, generous and not disposed to cause injury to others (Gaut. 9. 7 and 73); he should speak the truth and also speak what is agreeable, but should not tell disagree- able truths, nor should he tell agreeable lies (Manu IV. 138 and Gaut. IX. 68); he should according to his ability try to make his day fruitful as regards the performance of meritorious acts, satisfaction of (legitimate) desires and acquisition of wealth, but he should look upon dharma as the principal of the three puruṣārthas (Gaut. IX. 46-47, Manu IV. 176, Yāj. I. 156), though he should avoid even what is allowed by the śās- tras if it is hateful to the people; he should not beg (for his liveli- hood) of anybody except the king or his pupils, but when oppres- sed by hunger he may beg a little such as a cultivated or uncul- tivated field, a cow, goats and sheep, or gold, corn, food (Vaṣ XII. 2-3, Gaut. IX. 63-64, Manu IV. 33-34, Yāj. I. 130); but he should not beg of a king who is not of kṣatriya descent or who sets at naught the dictates of the śāstras (Manu IV. 84, 87) nor should he stay in the kingdom of a śūdra king (Manu IV. 61); he should not talk with the mlecchas, impure persons and irreligious persons (Gaut. IX. 17); he should not dwell in contact with sinners, cāṇḍālas and other untouchables, with fools or persons puffed up with the pride of wealth &c. (Manu IV. 79); he should not be restless in his sexual desires or with his hands and feet, speech and eyes (Gaut. IX. 50, Manu IV. 177, Vaṣ VI. 42); he should go round (perform pradakṣiṇā), when he meets on his way a cow, images of gods, a brāhmaṇa, ghee, honey, a square, well-known trees (Manu IV. 39, Gaut. IX. 66); he should not engage in wordy quarrels with his parents, guests, brothers, sisters, persons connected by marriage, maternal uncles, dependents, relations, sacrificial and family priests, children, wife, slaves (Manu IV. 179-180=Śāntiparva 244, 14–16, Yāj. I. 157–158); he should carry a bamboo stick, a water jar, kuśa grass, wear two yajñopavītas, two garments (upper and lower) and two golden ear-rings (Manu IV. 36, Yāj. I. 133, Vaṣ XII. 14, 37–38); if he has money enough he should not wear old and dirty clothes, his garments should be white, he should not wear garments that are dyed and black cloth even when that is its natural colour (Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 30, 10–13, Manu IV. 34–35, Yāj. I. 131, Gaut. IX. 4–5); nor should he wear the clothes, shoes, and garland of another and if he wears these of another owing to poverty, he should thoroughly clean them (Gaut. IX. 6–7, Manu IV. 66); he should not allow his beard to grow unless there is some good ground to do so and should pare his nails (Gaut. IX. 8, Manu V. 35, Yāj. I. 131); while his shoes are in his hand he should not sit on a seat nor should he salute a person or bow to a deity (Gaut. IX. 45); he should not blow with his mouth to kindle fire (Manu IV. 53, Vaṣ XII. 27, Gaut. IX. 32); he should not hold simultaneously in his hands fire and water nor should he come between the fire and a brāhmaṇa nor between two brāhmaṇas without their permission (Āp. Dh. S. II. 5. 12. 6–8, Vaṣ XII. 28–30); he should not eat food in the same plate with his wife, nor should he see his wife while she is eating or applying eye-salve or when she is yawning or sneezing (Manu IV. 43–44, Vaṣ XII. 31, Gaut. IX. 32); he should not use a seat or pādukās or tooth- brush made of palāśa (Vaṣ XII. 34, Gaut. IX. 44, Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 32. 9); he should wear a wreath (of flowers) and ointment so as not to be easily noticed (Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 32. 5, Manu IV. 72, Vaṣ 12. 39, Gaut. IX. 32); he should not see the sun rising or setting (Vaṣ 12. 10, Manu IV. 39, Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 31. 20); he should not be kulāiṁkulā³⁸⁴ and should not go over a rope by which a calf is tied (Vaṣ XII. 8-9, Gaut. IX. 52-53, Manu IV. 38); he is not to point out the rainbow when he sees it in the sky (Manu IV. 59 ) nor is he to employ the word ‘Indradhanuḥ’ for it, but the word ‘maṇidhanuḥ’ (Vaṣ XII. 32–33. Gaut. IX. 23, Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 31. 18); he is to employ certain euphemisms e. g. he should not speak of a cow that yields no milk as ‘adhenu’ but as ‘dhenu-bhavyā’ (who would become dhenu later on), he is not to employ the word ‘bhadra’ for a thing that is auspicious, but he should employ the words ‘puṇya or praśasta’; what is not ‘bhadra’ he should speak of as ‘bhadra’ and should not use the word ‘kapāla’, but the word ‘bhagāla’ for it (Gaut. IX. 20-22, Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 31. 11–14); he should not inform a person when a cow does some damage or allows her calf to have milk without the owner knowing it (Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 31. 9–10, Gaut. IX. 24–25 ); he should enter or leave his village from the east or north (Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 30. 7 ) and should not enter a village or a guarded house by a by-path (Manu IV. 73, Yāj. I. 140, Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 32. 23); at the two twilights he should be seated outside the village and should be silent (Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 30. 8); he should not wander about by day with the head covered, but he may do so at night or when answering calls of nature (Gaut. IX. 35–37; Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 30. 14); he should avoid finding fault with a cow, a fee given or a maiden (Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 31. 8); he should not resort³⁸⁵ to inferior men or to countries in which such persons abound nor should he frequent gambling houses or meetings of clubs (Āp. Dh. S. I. 11. 32. 18–20, Vaṣ XII. 40); he should try to dwell in a place that abounds in fuel, water and grass, kuśas, flowers, that has a court-yard, and is mostly peopled by Āryas, that has industrious and religious people engage in dalliance with his wife, engage³⁸⁶ in yoga practice in a place screened from public view and he should guard his speech, intellect and strength and should keep his wealth and age very secret; but he should make public the repayment of a debt, a gift, mortgage or sale, the gift of his daughter in marriage, the letting loose of a bull (in śrāddha) and a sin done in secret.

Manu (XI. 203) says that the prāyaścitta for not observing the rules of conduct laid down for snātakas is fasting for a day. Haradatta on Gautama IX. 2 says that the rules for snātakas are meant for brāhmaṇa and kṣatriya snātakas only, that the prāyaścitta for non-observance is also to be undergone by them and that the vaiśya snātakas are not obliged to observe these ruleṣ

In modern times samāvartana often takes place a short time after upanayana and sometimes on the 4th day thereafter or even the next day. As many brāhmaṇas do not learn any part of the Veda, samāvartana has become a mere matter of form in their case. Even the Saṃskārakauṣṭubha (p. 607) prescribes a very brief procedure for samāvartana when the brahmacārī is ill. It consists in the brahmacārī giving up his girdle &c., in shaving the boy silently, in silently bathing at a holy place, putting on another garment, then sipping water twice, bringing fire from the house of a śrotriya and placing it on some place according to the rules, then contemplating on Prajāpati and putting the samidh (fuel-stick) on fire.

As a brahmacārī is not affected by the mourning due to the death of relatives (except his parents), on samāvartana he has to observe impurity for three days (if there have been deaths of relatives in the interval, but not for births). (Vide Manu V. 88=Viṣṇu Dh. S. 22. 87).