Praśna 7, Kaṇḍikā 14

1. The officiating priests and the sacrificer, together with the sacrificer’s wife, should hasten to the cātvāla, and all of them should sprinkle themselves with water with the formula, “May we, pure and served by you, be servers upon you.”^[1]

2. The sacrificer’s wife should cause the vital parts of the animal to swell while the Adhvaryu is pouring water upon them.

3. According to some teachers, the Adhvaryu should cause them to swell while the sacrificer’s wife is pouring water.

4. (She should cause the vital parts to swell) respectively with the formulas, “Let thy speech swell; let thy breath swell; let thine eye swell; let thine ear swell.”^[2]

5. The Adhvaryu should pour down water on the neck with the half verse, “The pain that has reached thy vital breaths, that has reached thine eye, that has reached thine ear.”^[3]

6. The sacrificer’s wife should cause the entire animal to swell with the half verse, “What is harsh in thee, what is in its place, let that swell, let that hereby be pure.”^[4]

7. The navel with the formula, “Let thy navel swell,”^[5] the anus with the formula, “Let thine anus swell,”^[5] the feet with the formula, “Let thy feet be pure.”^[5]

8. With the formula, “Hail to the waters; hail to the plants; hail to earth; hail to day and night,”^[6] the Adhvaryu should pour down the remaining water along the back, and with the formula, “O plant, protect him,” place to the south of the navel the darbha-blade^[7] with its end pointing towards the east..

9. With the formula, “O knife, do thou not harm him,”^[8] he should take a crosswise incision on the darbha-blade by means of the knife.

10. He should take away the ending portion of the darbha-blade, anoint the thicker portion^[9] with the blood, and throw it away with the formula, “Thou art the share of the Rakṣases [Rakṣasas]; here do I lead the Rakṣas to the nethermost darkness; who hates us and whom we hate—him do I here lead to the nethermost darkness.”^[10]

11. After having touched water, he should extract out the omentum with the formula, “For food, thee.”^[11]

12. With the formula, “Do thou be purified; do thou be decorated,” he should remove it.

13. With the formula, “O Dyāvāpṛthivī, do you be covered with ghee,”^[12] he should cover the two forks with that omentum.

14. With the formula, “For strength thee,”^[13] he should prick the narrowest end (of the omentum) with the one-pronged fork.

15. He should prick it out with the formula, “May the wealth consisting of brave sons be uninterrupted;^[14] I cut thee up for Indra-Agni.”^[15]

16. The immolator should keep holding by means of the fist the end at which the omentum was extracted out until the offering of the omentum.

17. The Adhvaryu and the sacrificer should touch again the two forks.^[16]

18. With the formula, “Do thou go along the wide midregion,”^[17] the Adhvaryu should start.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.8.2.

[2]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.9.1.

[3]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.9.1.

[4]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.9.1.

[5]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.9.1.

[6]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.9.2.

[7]:

VII.12.16.

[8]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.9.2.

[9]:

At both ends, according to Āpastamba-śrauta-sūtra VII.18.14.

[10]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.9.2.

[11]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.9.2.

[12]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.9.2.

[13]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.1.1.1.

[14]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.9.2.

[15]:

cf. Maitrāyaṇī-saṃhitā I.2.15.

[16]:

That is to say, the sacrificer should touch the forks held by the Adhvaryu. cf. Āpastamba-śrauta-sūtra VII.19.6.

[17]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.3.9.2.