Praśna I, Paṭala 2, Section 8

1.^[1] He keeps through three days the (following) vow:

2.^[2] He eats no pungent or saline food and no vegetables; he sleeps on the ground; he does not drink out of an earthen vessel; he does not give the remnants of his food to a Śūdra; he does not eat honey or meat; he does not sleep in the daytime; in the morning and in the evening he brings (to his teacher) the food which he has received as alms and a pot of water; every day (he fetches) a bundle of firewood; in the morning and in the evening, or daily in the evening he puts fuel on (the fire, in the following way):

3.^[3] Before sprinkling (water) round (the fire), he wipes (with his wet hand) from left to right round (the fire) with the verse, 'As you have loosed, O Vasus, the buffalo-cow' (Taitt. Saṃh. IV, 7, 15, 7), and sprinkles (water) round (the fire) as above.

4.^[4] (Then) he puts (four) pieces of wood (on the fire) with the single (Vyāhṛtis) and with (the three Vyāhṛtis) together, and (four other pieces) with (the following four verses),

'This fuel is thine, Agni; thereby thou shalt grow and gain vigour. And may we grow and gain vigour. Svāhā!

'May Indra give me insight; may Sarasvatī, the goddess, (give) insight; may both Aśvins, wreathed with lotus, bestow insight on me. Svāhā!

'The insight that dwells with the Apsaras, the mind that dwells with the Gandharvas, the divine insight and that which is born from men: may that insight, the fragrant one, rejoice in me! Svāhā!

'May insight, the fragrant one, that assumes all shapes, the gold-coloured, mobile one, come to me. Rich in sap, swelling with milk, may she, insight, the lovely-faced one, rejoice in me! Svāhā!'

5.^[5] Having wiped round (the fire) in the same way, he sprinkles (water) round (the fire) as above.

6.^[6] He worships the fire with the Mantras, 'What thy splendour is, Agni, may I thereby' (Taitt. Saṃh. III, 5, 3, 2), and 'On me may insight, on me offspring' (Taitt. Āraṇyaka X, 44).

7.^[7] After the lapse of those three days (Sūtra 1) he serves in the same way the three kinds of food (stated above) to the Brāhmaṇas, causes them to say, 'An auspicious day! Hail! Good luck!' and discharges himself of his vow by (repeating) these (Mantras) with (the necessary) alterations, 'Agni, lord of the vow, I have kept the vow' (see above, I, 2, 7, 8).

8.^[8] He keeps the same observances afterwards (also),

9.^[9] Dwelling in his teacher's house. He may eat, (however,) pungent and saline food and vegetables.

10.^[10] He wears a staff, has his hair tied in one knot, and wears a girdle,

11. Or he may tie the lock on the crown of the head in a knot.

12. He wears (an upper garment) dyed with red Loth, or the skin (of an antelope, &c.).

13. He does not have intercourse with women.

14.^[11] (The studentship lasts) forty-eight years, or twenty-four (years), or twelve (years), or until he has learnt (the Veda).

15. He should not, however, omit keeping the observances.

16.^[12] At the beginning and on the completion of the study of a Kāṇḍa (of the Black Yajur-veda he sacrifices) with (the verse), 'The lord of the seat, the wonderful one, the friend of Indra, the dear one, I have entreated for the gift of insight. Svāhā!'

In the second place the Ṛṣi of the Kāṇḍa (receives an oblation).

(Then follow oblations with the verses), 'This, O Varuṇa;' 'For this I entreat thee;' 'Thou, Agni;' 'Thus thou, Agni;' 'Thou, Agni, art quick;' 'Prajāpati!' and, 'What I have done too much in this sacrifice.' Here some add as subordinate oblations the Jaya, Abhyātāna, and Rāṣṭrabhṛt (oblations) as above.

End of the Second Paṭala.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

8, 1. This is the Sāvitra-vrata. Comp. I, 2, 6, 7; Śāṅkhāyana, Introduction, p. 8.

[2]:

Regarding the term 'pungent food,' comp. Professor Bühler's notes on Āpastamba I, 1, 2, 23; II, 6, 15, 15.

[3]:

See I, 1, 2, 7 seq.; Āpastamba Dharma-sūtra I, 1, 4, 18.

[4]:

Āpastamba I, 1, 4, 16; Śāṅkhāyana II, 10, 4, &c.

[5]:

See Sūtra 3 and the note.

[6]:

Āśvalāyana-Gṛhya I, 21, 4.

[7]:

See I, 2, 7, 21. 25.

[8]:

He keeps the observances stated in Sūtra 2.

[9]:

See above, Sūtra 2. Comp. Āpastamba Dharma-sūtra I, 1, 2, II, and Sūtra 23 of the same section, which stands in contradiction to this Sūtra of Hiraṇyakeśin.

[10]:

10, 11. Comp. Āpastamba I, I, 2, 31. 32. Mātṛdatta has received into his explanation of the eleventh Sūtra the words, 'he should shave the rest of the hair,' which in the Āpastambīya-sūtra are found in the text.

[11]:

Āśvalāyana-Gṛhya I, 22, 3; Āpastamba Dharma-sūtra I, 1, 2, 12 seq.

[12]:

Ṛg-veda I, 18, 6. As the Ṛṣis of the single Kāṇḍas are considered, Prajāpati, Soma, Agni, the Viśve devās, Svayambhū. Regarding the Mantras quoted in the last section of this Sūtra, see above, I, 1, 3, 5-7.