Verse 5.122

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:

संमार्जनौपाञ्जनेन सेकेनौल्लेखनेन च ।
गवां च परिवासेन भूमिः शुध्यति पञ्चभिः ॥ १२४ ॥

saṃmārjanaupāñjanena sekenaullekhanena ca |
gavāṃ ca parivāsena bhūmiḥ śudhyati pañcabhiḥ || 124 ||

By cleaning and smearing, by sprinkling and by scraping, and by the lodging of cows—by these five land become purified.—(122).

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

Sprinkling—with cow’s urine or water; or by milk, as laid down in some books.

‘Scraping.’—Scratching with some weapon and then throwing away the scraped earth, according to Gautama’s direction that ‘of land there should be throwing away’ (1.32).

‘By these five.’—This re-iteration is with a view to indicate that the methods may be used singly or collectively. ‘Smearing without ‘cleaning’, is a means of purifying a spot which is not supplied with a dust-inn. If the ground is stained with urine or ordure, there should be scraping and sweeping. In the case of river-banks and forests, there should be sprinkling with water.

‘Lodging of cows’—making the land a cow-pen for a single day.

All this should be done in the case of land lying near the cremation-ground. In the case of land containing bones and skull, a portion of the earth should be taken out and thrown away to another place; also where all these may not be visible, but where their existence and subsequent appearance may be suspected.—(122).

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

(Verse 124 of others.)

This verse is quoted in Hemādri (Śrāddha, p. 821).

 

Comparative notes by various authors

Devala (Aparārka, p. 265).—(See under 121.)

Yama (Do.).—(See under 121.)

Baudhāyana (1.9.11).—‘Land becomes pure, according to the degree of defilement, by sweeping, by sprinkling, by smearing with cow-dung, by scattering pure earth over it, and by scraping.’

Baudhāyana (1.13.16-20).—‘If solid earth is defiled, it should be smeared with cow-dung; loose earth is cleansed by ploughing;—moist earth by bringing pure earth and covering with it; land is purified in four ways—by being trod on by cows, by digging, by lighting fire on it and by rain falling on it,—fifthly by smearing it with cow-dung and sixthly, through lapse of time.’

Gautama (1.32).—‘Scattering earth over it is a method of purifying land.’

Vaśiṣṭha (3.56).—‘Land becomes pure according to the degree of defilement, by sweeping, by smearing with cowdung, by scraping, by sprinkling and by heaping earth on it.’

Vaśiṣṭha (?.57).—(Same as Manu.)

Yājñavalkya (1.188).—‘The ground is purified by sweeping, burning and lapse of time, by cows walking over it, by sprinkling and scraping.’