Praśna 2, Kaṇḍikā 5

1. With the verse, “The decoration has come down from the heavens and is resting on the region of the earth. We smite the enemy with that thousand-branched decoration (that is, the darbha-blades),”^[1] he should throw these cleansers on that fire on which he had heated the utensils,^[2] having first sprinkled them with water.

2. Or he should throw them on the rubbish-heap.^[3]

3. With the verse, “Beseeching favour, offspring, prosperity and (good) form^[4] I, observing the vow in connection with Agni, gird myself for good action,”^[5] he should fasten around the waist of the sacrificers’ wife, who is sitting with her knees raised up or is standing, by means of the yoke-halter made of muñja grass and having a noose at one end, under the lower garment or above. Or the wife should fasten herself.^[6]

4. She^[7] should tie a soluble knot towards the north of the navel and shift it towards the south.

5. She should recite over the Gārhapatya fire the formula, “O Agni, lord of the house, do thou give me consent.”^[8]

6. With the formula, “O wives of gods, give me consent,”^[9] she should pray to the wives of gods towards the rear of the Gārhapatya fire.

7. With the formula, “O wife, this is thy region; obeisance be to thee; do thou not injure me,”^[10] she should pray to the abode of the wives of gods.

8. She should sit down to the south of the place (of the Gārhapatya-fire) facing the north with the verse, “May I be devoid of widowhood like Indrāṇī, having good sons like Aditi. O Gārhapatya, riding a wagon which is not one-horsed, I sit by thy side so that I may obtain good offspring.”^[11]

9-10. She should recite over the Gārhapatya fire the verses, “With fair offspring, with a noble husband we have come to thee, O Agni, to thee that deceivest the foes, the undeceivable, we that are not deceived.—May my sons be smiters of foes; may my daughter be radiant; may I be victorious; may my husband be of good fame.”^[12]

11. With the formula, “May Pūṣan open thy hollow,” the Āgnīdhra should remove the lid of the container of clarified butter.

12. He should take the vessel of clarified butter with the formula, “Thou art Aditi with flawless leaves.”

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Taittirīya-brāhmaṇa III.8.2.1.

[2]:

II.4.2.

[3]:

ŚBr I.3.1.11 finds blame in putting the cleansers on the fire, and prescribes their throwing on the rubbish-heap.

[4]:

Atharva-veda XIV.1.42 reads rayim for tanūm.

[5]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.I.10.1.

[6]:

This accords with the sense of the verse.

[7]:

CALAND (Āpastamba-śrauta-sūtra II.5.6) ascribes the tying of the knot to the Āgnīdhra.

[8]:

Caraka-kaṭha-saṃhitā I.10.

[9]:

Caraka-kaṭha-saṃhitā I.10.

[10]:

Maitrāyaṇī-saṃhitā I.4.3.

[11]:

Taittirīya-brāhmaṇa III.7.5.10.

[12]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.1.10.1. According to Āpastamba-śrauta-sūtra II.5.9, she should first sit down with suprajasas tvā... and then murmur indrāṇī'vā....