The Sacrifices of Rajasuya, Vajapeya and Ashvamedha (study)
by Aparna Dhar | 2016 | 61,606 words
This page relates ‘Dichotomic interpretation of the Purushamedha Sacrifice’ of the study dealing with the Sacrifices such as Rajasuya, Vajapeya and Ashvamedha including their ritualistic and monarchial strata with reference to the Shatapatha-Brahmana. These Brahmanas represent a category of ancient Sanskrit texts dealing with ancient Vedic rituals and ceremonies based on the Vedas.
Dichotomic interpretation of the Puruṣamedha Sacrifice
The Puruṣamedha sacrifice is a form of soma sacrifice, which is totally designed on the Aśvamedha sacrifice of royal sway. It has been mentioned in the earlier chapter that the Puruṣamedha sacrifice is performed either by a Brāhmaṇa or by a Kṣatriya Yajamāna and the performer of this sacrifice attains all beings and secure everything.
The Puruṣamedha sacrifice is attached with numerous rites and rituals. We notice that in the Puruṣamedha sacrifice the victim Puruṣa is not really killed, it is symbolical in real performance. From this, we also get the idea that in the age of the Brāhmaṇas a changed mentality was working among the people.
The sacrificial fee as prescribed for the Puruṣamedha sacrifice is very novel. According to Keith[1] a king may on this occasion give up his all goods and enter in to the life of the wandering mendicant. Dr. Jogirāj Bāsu makes the statement that the main object of this sacrifice is to stir up the spirit of renunciation in man by proving the ephemeral nature of the world show[2]. We can also make our own opinion that by giving up all his property as dakṣinā for his subjects a general welfare is wished by the king for his people.
So, from the above discussion it can be said that the Puruṣamedha sacrifice has also some dichotomic significance. The philosophical idea in the Puruṣamedha sacrifice like avoiding of human slaughtering, self resignation or entering in to the life of wandering mendicant are the tree steps of an ideal kingship. Besides this, the ‘giving up of all property’ by the king for the welfare of his subjects highlights the idealistic monarchial strata of the then society.