Part 5.6: The concluding bath (avabhṛtheṣṭi)

[Full title: Rites Performed on the Fifth Day: (f) The concluding bath (avabhṛtheṣṭi)]

According to Chitrabhanu, the word avabhṛtha literally means carrying off or descent into the water. This is the final purificatory bath which marks the end of a sacrifice. This Iṣṭi consists of bathing of the sacrificer, his wife and the priests in flowing water and disposal of various sacrificial utensils smeared with soma in to water.^[1] This Iṣṭi is called so because here the crushed stalks of soma are thrown into the water and thus the stalks as it were become juicy and thereby the sacrificr too gains his vital sap.^[2] In order to perform the Avabhṛtheṣṭi, they all leave the sacrificial ground through the north side of the sacrificial ground and follow the path between the cātvāla and the āgnīdhrīya shed. Then they proceed towards a pool of water formed by a flowing river. If such water is not available, then they search for any other water.^[3] Being directed by the Adhvaryu, the Prastotṛ sings a sāman in honour of Agni in a verse composed in aticchands metre. As Agni is the repeller of the evil spirits, by singing the verse, he throws away the effects of the evil powers from the sacrifice.^[4] Kātyāyana adds here that the Prastotṛ is directed to sing the sāman on the way to the water and beside of the water body. While he sings the sāman, he is accompanied by all the priests and the sacrificer.^[5] Having reached the water body, the sacrificer goes into the water. At this time he is directed to pay homage to lord Varuṇa by uttering the prescribed yajuṣ formula.^[6] Karka mentions that the sacrificer is made to utter the formula while he is being led to the water by holding his hand.^[7]

The formula runs as follows—

namo varuṇāyādhiṣṭhito varuṇasya pāśaḥ/^[8]

Then comes the rite of making a libation. For this, the Adhvaryu holds a fire stick over the water and makes a libation of four scoops of ghee on the fire stick with a yajuṣ formula.^[9]

The formula runs as follows—

agneranīkamapa āviveśāpāṃnapātpratirakṣannasuryam/ damedame samidhaṃ yakṣyagne prati te jihvā ghṛtamuccaraṇyat svāhā//^[10]

The Adhvaryu again takes four scoops of ghee and performs the rite of prayāja offering. He offers four fore-offerings avoiding the offering related tothe Barhiṣ.^[11] Generally prayāja offerings are five in Iṣṭi type of sacrifices and these are made to Samidh , Tanūnapāt , Iḍa , Barhiṣ and Svāhākāra before the principal offerings are made.^[12] In the Avabhṛtheṣṭi, the fourth prayāja offering is dropped. The peculiarity of the Avabhṛtheṣṭi is that here libations are made in the water, not in the fire like the other libations.^[13] Then comes the principal offering of this Iṣṭi. Here a sacrificial bread is offered to Varuṇa prepared on only one potsherd after cutting out two portions from it.^[14] Generally the bread prepared on one potsherd should be fully offered.^[15] But the offering of this sacrificial bread is exception to this rule. Here, if the bread is offered fully, then nothing will remain for sviṣṭakṛt offering . Hence, two portions are cut for the iṣṭi offering and the sviṣṭakṛt offering respectively.^[16] After having cut the portions from the bread, the Adhvaryu bastes these with ghee and after the utterance of the prescribed anuvākyā and the yājyā and after the utterance of vaṣaṭ, he offers the bread to Varuṇa.^[17] Along with the bread, one may also cut off some portion from the crushed soma stalks two times or one time or one may not do it.^[18] After this principal offering comes the sviṣṭakṛt offering. For this the Adhvaryu prepares an underlayer of ghee in the offering spoon. Having placed the other portion of the bread in the spoon, the Adhvaryu directs the Hotṛ to utter the anuvākyā for Agni and Varuṇa,bastes with ghee the upper side of the remaining bread twice and directs the Hotṛ for uttering the yājyā for offering the bread to Agni and Varuṇa . When the Hotṛ utters the vaṣaṭ, the Adhvaryu offers it to Agni and Varuṇa . The cutting of crushed soma stalks is stated as an optional act. If it is done in the principal offering, then in the sviṣṭakṛt offering too, the Adhvaryu cut the soma stalks once. Thus, in the Avabhṛtheṣṭi, the offerings may be increased upto six or if the sacrificer desires then the number of offering may be done as per his wish. The Adhvaryu should offer the two Ājyabhāgas, four Prayājas , two Anuyājas(avoiding the Barhiṣ) and the principal and sviṣṭakṛt offerings. Thus the offerings are ten in number.^[19] In case of six offerings, there are four fore-offerings, one principal offering and the sviṣṭakṛt offering. After the completion of these offerings the pitcher containing the remaining stalks of soma is discarded in the water.While this is being done the Adhvaryu pays his homage to it and immerges the pitcher into the water. Each rite is performed uttering prescribed formulae.^[20]

The formulae are—

(a) samudre te hṛdayamapsvantaḥ saṃ tvā viśantvoṣadhīrutāpaḥ/ yajñasya tvā yajñapate sūktoktau namovāke vidhema yatsvāhā//

(b) devīrāpa eṣa vo garbhastaṃ suprītaṃ subhṛtaṃ bibhṛta/ deva somaiṣa te lokastasmiñchaṃ ca vakṣva pari ca vakṣva//

(c) avabhṛtha nicumpuṇa nicerurasi nicumpuṇaḥ/ ava devairdevakṛtameno’yāsiṣamava martyairmartyakṛtaṃ pururāvṇo deva riṣaspāhi/^[21]

It is to be noted here that along with the sacrificer his wife too enters into the pond of water. They take bath in the water and help each other in cleaning their backs. Having put on new dresses, they come out from the pond. Through this concluding bath, the sacrificer is supposed to free himself from all sins like a snake giving up his old skin. Thus, the sacrificer becomes pure internally and externally like a new born baby. After having completed the concluding bath, they all come back to the sacrificial ground following the same path by which they had come to perform the Avabhṛtheṣṭi.Having reached the sacrificial ground the sacrificer puts a kindling stick on the āhavanīya fire.^[22]

Here he utters this following formula—

devānāṃ samidasi/^[23]

The Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra mentions that the sacrificer, after having immerged the pitcher in the water, he dips the hind part of the black antelope’s skin into the water and pays homage to it so that he may not be devoid of power of his Indriyas, the quality of being the best and the highest. Then he hands over the skins to his son and performs the rest of the rites up to putting of the kindling stick in the āhavanīya fire just as it is done in the varuṇapraghāsa rite.^[24] The sacrificer throws away all the vessels having soma juice stuck to them in the water. The sacrificer and his wife are prohibited from giving away the garments they have been wearing prior to their bathing. The priests too take bath in the pond. The Unnetṛ priest helps the other priests to come out from the pond by uttering the formula udvayam… etc. and then they all return to the sacrificial ground muttering a formula.^[25]

The formulae are—

(a) udvayaṃ tamasaspari svaḥ paśyanta uttaram/ devaṃ devatrā sūryamaganma jyotiruttamam/

(b) apāma somamamṛtā abhūmāganma jyotiravidāma devān/ kiṃ nūnamasmān kṛnavadarātiḥ kimudhūrtiramṛtaṃ martyasya//^[26]

Having reached the sacrificial ground, the sacrificer goes to the west side of the śālādvārya fire and takes his seat with the places black antelope’s skin on his lap. The Adhvaryu makes a libation of ghee on the āhavanīya fire with the sruva sothat Agni may bestow on the sacrificer the powers of his Indriyas and the qualities of being the best and the highest.^[27]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Chitrabhanu Sen, op.cit., p.43

[2]:

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa , 4.4.5.1.

[3]:

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa , 4.4.5.9-10; Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra ,10.8.21-22.

[4]:

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa , 4.4.5.6-8.

[5]:

Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra ,10.8.18-20.

[6]:

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa , 4.4.5.11; Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra ,10.8.23.

[7]:

Karka on ibid.,10.8.23.

[8]:

Vājasaneyi Saṃhitā , 8.23(c)

[9]:

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa , 4.4.5.12; 10.8.24.

[10]:

Vājasaneyi Saṃhitā , 8.24.

[11]:

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa , 4.4.5.14; Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra ,10.8.25.

[12]:

Chitrabhanu Sen, op.cit., p.90.

[13]:

Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra ,10.8.26.

[14]:

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa , 4.4.5.15; Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra ,10.8.27.

[15]:

Ibid.,1.9.12.

[16]:

Vidyadhar Sharma on ibid.,10.8.27.

[17]:

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa , 4.4.5.16.

[18]:

Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra ,10.8.26.

[19]:

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa , 4.4.5.17-19; Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra ,10.8.28-32.

[20]:

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa , 4.4.5.20-22; Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra ,10.9.1-3.

[21]:

Vājasaneyi Saṃhitā , 8.25, 26-27^(a) respectively.

[22]:

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa , 4.4.5.23;

[23]:

Vājasaneyi Saṃhitā , 8.27 (b)

[24]:

Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra ,10.9.4-5.

[25]:

Ibid.,10.9.6-8.

[26]:

Vājasaneyi Saṃhitā , 20. 21 and as shown by Thite, the later formula belongs to Ṛgveda Saṃhitā , 8.48.3, Thite, op.cit., p.428 under sūtra 10. 9.7

[27]:

Kātyāyana Śrautasūtra , 10.9.9