Praśna 13, Kaṇḍikā 16

1. Then he should fill in the three Atigrāhya cups with Soma (and place them on the mound) respectively with the three Anuvākas^[1]—the cup for Agni should be filled in and placed respectively with the mantras, “O Agni, thou purifiest life; do thou give food and strength to us; drive away ill fortune; thou art taken with a support; for tejasvant Agni thee.” “This is thy birth-place; for tejasvant Agni thee.” The cup for Indra respectively with the mantras, “Arising in might thou didst move thy jaws, O Indra, when thou hadst drunk the cup-pressed Soma. Thou art taken with a support; for ojasvant Indra thee.” “This is thy birth-place; for ojasvant, Indra thee.” The cup for Sūrya respectively with the mantras, “Overcoming, seen by all, lightmaking art thou. O Sūrya, thou dost illumine all the firmament; thou art taken with a support; for bhrājasvant Sūrya thee.” “This is thy birth-place; for bhrājasvant Sūrya thee.”

2. Then he should fill in the Ukthya vessel with Soma with the formula, “Thou art taken with a support; for bṛhadvant vayasvant Indra, eager for praise, thee. Thy great strength, O Indra, for that thee. For Viṣṇu thee.”^[2] (He should place it with the formula,“This is thy birth-place; for Indra, eager of praise, thee.”^[2])

3. Then he should fill in the Dhruva vessel with Soma with the mantras, “The head of the sky, the messenger of earth, Vaiśvānara, born for the holy order, Agni, the sage, the king, the guest of men, the gods have produced as a cup for their mouths. Thou art taken with a support; for vaiśvānara Agni thee. Thou art secure, of secure foundation, most secure of the secure, with securest foundation of those which are secure.”^[3] (He should place it with the formula, “This is thy birth-place; for vaiśvānara Agni thee.”^[3])

4. If he desires that the sacrificer should live the full span of life, he should fill in the vessel fully.^[4]

5. He should place the vessel on gold for a sacrificer who is desirous of (long) life.

6. A Kṣatriya should guard the Dhruva vessel.^[5] So is it said.^[6]

7. After the Dhruva vessel has been filled in, the sacrificer should not let it flow until it is to be poured out.^[7]

8. The Adhvaryu should cause so much quantity of Soma to pass through the woollen filter into the Droṇakalaśa as he thinks adequate for the morning pressing.

9. After having squeezed out the woollen filter and spread it over the Pūtabhṛt, he should pour out water from the Maitrāvaruṇa’s goblet into the Ekadhana pitchers.

10. He should pour out into the Ādhavanīya pitcher adequate quantity of water from the Ekadhana pitchers, and pour out a part of Soma from the Ādhavanīya into the Pūtabhṛt.

11. In this connection this is the general rule: whenever one has to pour out Soma into the Pūtabhṛt except from the Droṇakalaśa, he should pour it out through the filter.

12. The Adhvaryu should draw the Pavamānagrahas; he should touch the Droṇakalaśa with the formula, “Thou art taken with a support; for Prajāpati thee;”^[8] the Ādhavanīya with the formula,“...for Indra thee;’^[8] the Pūtabhṛt with the formula,“...for Viśve Devas thee.”^[8]

13. “The cups, which are to be filled in with the formula, should be filled in with the formula preceded by the portion, “Thou art taken with a support;^[9] those which are to be filled in with the verse should be filled in with the verse followed by that portion.” So is it said.^[9]

14. (The officiating priests who are about to proceed for the chanting of the Bahiṣpavamānastotra) should each offer the (three) vaipruṣa oblations^[10] respectively with the three verses, “O Soma, that drop of thine, that stalk of thine which has fallen, shaken by the arms, from the womb of the pressing boards, or from the woollen filter of the Adhvaryu, I offer to Indra to the accompaniment of svāhā-utterance.—The drop, the stalk, that has fallen on the ground from the roasted grains, the cake, the dough of the flour of parched barley, the Soma mixed with roasted grains,the Manthin, the Śukra, I offer it to Indra to the accompaniment of svāhā-utterance.—That sweet and strong drop of thine which goes to the gods to the accompaniment of svāhā-utterance, from the heaven, earth and midregion, I offer it to Indra to the accompaniment of svāhā-utterance.”^[11]

15. After having offered an oblation (also) with the saptahotṛ formula, they should crawl towards the north, bowing down,^[12] for the chanting of the Bahiṣpavamānastotra.

16. The Prastotṛ should touch the Adhvaryu, the Udgātṛ the Prastotṛ, the Pratihartṛ the Udgātṛ, the Brahman the Pratihartṛ, and the sacrificer the Brahman. According to some teachers, the Brahman should touch the sacrificer.^[13]

17. While moving a bunch of sacrificial grass, the Adhvaryu should crawl first with the formula, “The way belongs to the Gāyatrī metre, the Vasus are the divinity; may I safely reach the Vasus with an unharmful and straight path,” and also with the formula, “The first-going speech may go first; going straight, may it go to gods, granting glory unto me, vital breath to the cattle, offspring unto me and the sacrificer.”^[14]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.4.29-31.

[2]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.4 12.

[3]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā I.4.13.1.

[4]:

If he desires that the sacrificer should reach the latter half of his life, he should fill in more than half. cf. Āpastamba-śrauta-sūtra XII.16.2.

[5]:

Āpastamba-śrauta-sūtra XII.16.5-8 adds: If the Adhvaryu desires that the sacrificer, who has secured his kingdom, should be deprived of it or that one, who is deprived of his kingdom, should recover it, should lift up the Dhruva vessel with the formula, “Here I remove N.N., belonging to the gotra of N.N., son of N.N. from this land,” and place it again at that place with the formula, “Here I place N.N., belonging to the gotra of N.N., son of N.N, in this land.” By doing so, however, he would be stirring up the life of his offspring; he should, therefore, lift up, over the Dhruva vessel, a blade of grass over and above with this formula. If he wants to practise exorcism, he should move the Dhruva vessel with the formula, “Here I move the life of N.N., belonging to the gotra of N.N.” Or he should draw it towards himself with the formula, “I stir thee, O Dhruva, having a firm place, N.N., from this place.”

[6]:

Maitrāyaṇī-saṃhitā IV.6.6.; Caraka-kaṭha-saṃhitā XXVIII.1.

[7]:

Into the Hotṛ’s goblet at the third pressing. XIV.15.1.

[8]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā III.2.1.3.

[9]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā VI.5.10.4.

[10]:

According to Āpastamba-śrauta-sūtra XII.16.15, the Adhvaryu should offer an oblation, first with the verse drapsaś caskanda...(Taittirīya-saṃhitā III.1.10) and then with the above mentioned three verses. Āpastamba-śrauta-sūtra XII.16.16 records a view according to which the Adhvaryu should offer the first oblation at each pressing with the verse, drapsaś caskanda... and the second oblation with the above mentioned three verses respectively at the three pressings.

[11]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā III.1.10.1,2.

[12]:

According to Āpastamba-śrauta-sūtra XII.17.3, they should proceed as if crawling, licking and bowing down their heads.

[13]:

According to Āpastamba-śrauta-sūtra XII.17.1 the order is: Adhvaryu, Prastotṛ, Pratihartṛ, Udgātṛ, Brahman and the sacrificer.

[14]:

Taittirīya-saṃhitā III.1.10.2.