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The Sacred Laws of the Âryas: Vasishtha - Chapter XI
1. Six persons are (particularly) worthy to receive the honey-mixture (madhuparka),1
2. (Viz.) an officiating priest, the bridegroom of one's daughter, a king, a paternal uncle, a Snâtaka, a maternal uncle, as well as (others enumerated elsewhere).
3. (A householder) shall offer, both at the morning and the evening (meals, a portion) of the prepared (food) to the Visve Devas in the (sacred) domestic fire.2
4. Let him give a Bali-offering to the (guardian) deities of the house,3
5. (Thereafter) let him give a portion, one Pala in weight, to a Srotriya or to a student, (and afterwards an offering) to the manes.4
6. Next let him feed his guests in due order, the worthiest first,5
7. (Thereafter) the maidens, the infants, the aged, the half-grown members of his family, and pradâtâs,6
8. Then the other members of his family.7
9. (Outside the house) he shall throw (some food) on the ground for the dogs, Kândâlas, outcasts, and crows.8
10. He may give to a Sûdra either the fragments (of the meal) or (a portion of) fresh (food).9
11. The master of the house and his wife may eat what remains.10
12. A fresh meal for which all (the same materials as for the first) are used (may be prepared), if a guest comes after the Vaisvadeva has been offered. For such a (guest) he shall cause to be prepared food (of a) particularly (good quality).11
13. For it has been declared in the Veda, 'A Brâhmana guest enters the house resembling the Vaisvânara fire. Through., him they obtain rain, and food through rain. Therefore people know that the (hospitable reception of a guest) is a ceremony averting evil.'
14. Having fed the (guest), he shall honour him.12
15. He shall accompany him to the boundary (of the village) or until he receives permission (to return).
16. Let him present (funeral offerings) to the manes during the dark half of the month (on any day) after the fourth.13
17. After issuing an invitation on the day preceding (the Srâddha, he shall feed on that occasion) three ascetics or three virtuous householders, who are Srotriyas, who are not very aged, who do not follow forbidden occupations, and neither (have been his) pupils, nor are (living as) pupils in his house.14
18. He may also feed pupils who are endowed with good qualities.15
19. Let him avoid men neglecting their duties,16 those afflicted with white leprosy, eunuchs, blind men, those who have black teeth, those who suffer from black leprosy, (and) those who have deformed nails.
20. Now they quote also (the following verses): 'Now, if a (Brâhmana) versed in the Vedas is afflicted with bodily (defects) which exclude him from the company, Yama declares him to be irreproachable. Such (a man) sanctifies the company.'17
21. 'At a funeral sacrifice the fragments (of the meal) must not be swept away until the end of the day. For streams of nectar flow (from them, and the manes of) those who have received no libations of water drink (them).'18
22. 'But let him not sweep up the fragments (of the meal) before the sun has set. Thence issue rich streams of milk for those who obtain a share with difficulty.'19
23. 'Manu declares that both the remainder (in the vessels) and the fragments (of the meal) certainly are the portion of those members of the family who died before receiving the sacraments.'20
24. 'Let him give the fragments that have fallen on the ground and the portion scattered (on the blades of Kusa grass), which consists of the wipings and water, as their food, to the manes of those who died without offspring and of those who died young.'
25. 'The malevolent Asuras seek an opportunity (to snatch away) that food intended for the manes, which is not supported with both hands;'21
26. 'Therefore let him not offer it (to the Brâhmanas) without holding (a spoon) in his hand; or let him stand, holding the dish (with both hands, until) leavings of both kinds (have been produced).'22
27. 'He shall feed two (Brâhmanas) at the offering to the gods, and three at the offering to the manes, or a single man on either occasion; even a very wealthy man shall not be anxious (to entertain) a large company.'23
28. 'A large company destroys these five (advantages), the respectful treatment (of the invited guests, the propriety of) time and place, purity and (the selection of) virtuous Brâhmana (guests); therefore he shall not (invite a large number).'24
29. 'Or he may entertain (at a Srâddha) even a single Brâhmana who has studied the whole Veda, who is distinguished by learning and virtue, and is free from all evil marks (on his body).'25
30. '(But) how can the oblation to the gods be made if he feeds a single Brâhmana at a funeral sacrifice? Let him take (a portion) of each (kind of) food that has been prepared (and put it) into a vessel;'
31. 'Let him place it in the sanctuary of a god and afterwards continue (the performance of) the funeral sacrifice. Let him offer that food in the fire or give it (as alms) to a student.'
32. 'As long as the food continues warm, as long as they eat in silence, as long as the qualities of the food are not declared (by them), so long the manes feast on it.'26
33. 'The qualities of the food must not be declared as long as the (Brâhmanas who represent the) manes are not satiated. Afterwards when they are satisfied, they may say, "Beautiful is the sacrificial food."'
34. 'But an ascetic who, invited to dine at a sacrifice of the manes or of the gods, rejects meat, shall go to hell for as many years as the slaughtered beast has hairs.'27
35. 'Three (things are held to) sanctify a funeral sacrifice, a daughter's son, the midday, and sesamum grains; and they recommend three (other things) for it, purity, freedom from anger and from precipitation.'28
36. 'The eighth division of the day, during which the sun's (progress in the heavens) becomes slow, one must know to be midday; what is (then) given to the manes lasts (them) for a very long time.'
37. 'The ancestors of that man who has intercourse29 with a woman after offering or having dined at a Srâddha, feed during a month from that (day) on his semen.'
38. 'A child that is born from (intercourse immediately) after offering a Srâddha or partaking of a funeral repast, is unable to acquire sacred learning and becomes short-lived.'
39. 'The father and the grandfather, likewise the great-grandfather, beset a descendant who is born to them, just as birds (fly to) a rig tree;'30
40. '(Saying), "He will offer to us funeral repasts with honey and meat, with vegetables, with milk and with messes made of milk, both in the rainy season and under the constellation Maghâh."
41. 'The ancestors always rejoice at a descendant who lengthens the line, who is zealous in performing funeral sacrifices, and who is rich in (images of the) gods and (virtuous) Brâhmana (guests).'31
42. 'The manes consider him to be their (true) descendant who offers (to them) food at Gayâ, and (by the virtue of that gift) they grant him (blessings), just as husbandmen (produce grain) on well-ploughed (fields).'32
43. He shall offer (a Srâddha) both on the full moon days of the months Srâvana and Âgrahâyana and on the Anvashtakî.33
44. There is no restriction as to time, if (particularly suitable) materials and (particularly holy) Brâhmanas are at hand, or (if the sacrificer is) near (a particularly sacred) place.34
45. A Brâhmana must necessarily kindle the three sacred fires.35
46. He shall offer (in them) the full and new moon sacrifices, the (half-yearly) Âgraya.a Ishti, the Kâturmâsya-sacrifice, the (half-yearly) sacrifices at which animals are slain, and the (annual) Soma-sacrifices.36
47. For all this is (particularly) enjoined (in the Veda), and called by way of laudation 'a debt.'37
48. For it is declared in the Veda, 'A Brâhmana is born, loaded with three debts,' (and further, 'He owes) sacrifices to the gods, a son to the manes, the study of the Veda to the Rishis; therefore he is free from debt who has offered sacrifices, who has begotten a son, and who has lived as a student (with a teacher).'38
49. Let him (ordinarily) initiate a Brâhmana in the eighth (year) after conception,39
50. A Kshatriya in the eleventh year after conception,
51. A Vaisya in the twelfth year after conception.
52. The staff of a Brâhmana (student may) optionally (be made) of Palâsa wood,40
53. (That) of a Kshatriya optionally of the wood of the Banyan tree,
54. (That) of a Vaisya optionally of Udumbara wood.
55. (The staff) of a Brâhmana shall (be of such a length as to) reach the hair,41
56. (That) of a Kshatriya the forehead,
57. (That) of a Vaisya the (tip of the) nose.
58. The girdle of a Brâhmana shall be made of Muñga grass,42
59. A bowstring (shall be that) of a Kshatriya,
60. (That) of a Vaisya shall be made of hempen threads.
61. The upper garment of a Brâhmana (shall be) the skin of a black antelope,43
62. (That) of a Kshatriya the skin of a spotted deer,
63. (That) of a Vaisya a cow-skin or the hide of a he-goat.
64. The (lower) garment of a Brâhmana (shall be) white (and) unblemished,44
65. (That) of a Kshatriya dyed with madder,
66. (That) of a Vaisya dyed with turmeric, or made of (raw) silk;
67. Or (a dress made of) undyed (cotton) cloth may be worn by (students of) all (castes).
68. A Brâhmana shall ask for alms placing (the word) 'Lady' first,45
69. A Kshatriya placing (the word)' Lady' in the middle,
70. A Vaisya placing (the word) Lady' at the end (of the formula).
71. The time (for the initiation) of a Brâhmana has not passed until the completion of the sixteenth year,46
72. (For that) of a Kshatriya until the completion of the twenty-second,
73. (For that) of a Vaisya until the completion of the twenty-fourth.
74. After that they become 'men whose Sâvitrî has been neglected.'47
75. Let him not initiate such men, nor teach them, nor sacrifice for them; let them not form matrimonial alliances (with such outcasts).48
76. A man whose Sâvitrî has not been performed, may undergo the Uddâlaka-penance.
77. Let him subsist during two months on barley-gruel, during one month on milk, during half a month on curds of two-milk whey, during eight days on clarified butter, during six days on alms given without asking, (and) during three days on water, and let him fast for one day and one night.
78. (Or) he may go to bathe (with the priests) at the end of an Asvamedha (horse-sacrifice).49
79. Or he may offer a Vrâtya-stoma.50
Footnotes
1. Gautama V, 27-30. The persons enumerated elsewhere are the teacher, the father-in-law, and so forth. Regarding the Snâtaka, see Âpastamba I, 11, 30, 1-4.
2. Vishnu LXVII, 1-3.
3. Vishnu LXVII, 4-22.
4. Vishnu LIX, 14; LXVII, 23, 27. Krishnapandita does not take 'agrabhâga' as a technical term, but explains it by 'a first portion, sufficient for a dinner, or as much as one is able to spare.'
5. Vishnu LXVII, 28, 36-38.
6. Vishnu LXVII, 39. The majority of the MSS. read bâlavriddhatarunapradâtâs [tato]. Krishnapandita corrects the last word to pradâtâ, while the editor of the Calcutta edition writes prabhritîms [tato]. Both conjectures are inadmissible. As the same phrase occurs once more, below, XIX., 23 (where Krishnapandita writes pradâtârah), I think that it is not permissible to change the text. Pradâtâh must be the correct reading, and a technical name for a class of female relatives. Etymologically it may mean 'those who have been perfectly cleansed.' But I am unable to trace its precise technical import, and have left it untranslated.
7. Vishnu LXVII, 41.
8. Vishnu LXVII, 26.
9. Gautama V, 25, and note. 'A Sûdra, i.e. one who is his servant.'--Krishnapandita. It is, however, possible, that a visitor of the Sûdra caste is meant; see Âpastamba II, 2, 4, 19-20.
10. Vishnu LXVII, 41.
11. Âpastamba II, 3, 6, 16; Gautama V, 32, 33. A guest, i.e. one to whom the definition given above, VIII, 6, 7, applies. I read according to my MSS. punahpâko instead of punahpâke.
12. Gautama V, 38.
13. Vishnu LXXVI, 1-2; Gautama XV, 3.
14. Vishnu LXXIII, 1; LXXXII, 2-4; LXXXIII, 5, 19; Gautama XV, 10; Âpastamba II, 7, 17, 4.
15. Âpastamba II, 7, 17, 6.
16. Gautama XV, 16, 18. The explanation of the word nagna, 'neglecting their duties,' is doubtful. I have followed Krishnapandita, who quotes the Mârkandeya Purâna in support of his view. The word occurs in the same connexion, Vishnu LXXXII, 27, where it is rendered by 'naked.' Possibly it may refer to ascetics who go entirely naked.
17. The Sûtra gives an exception to the preceding rule.
18. I read 'skyotante hi' instead of 'skyotante val.'
19. 'Those who receive a share with difficulty,' i.e. the manes of uninitiated children, mentioned in the next verses.
20. Vishnu LXXXII, 22 Manu III, 245-246. These rules, however, do not fully agree with the teaching of our Manu-smriti, as the latter assigns the fragments on the ground to honest and upright servants. Sûtra 24 I read with the majority of the MSS. 'lepanodakam' for 'lepamodakam,' and 'annam preteshu' for 'anupreteshu.'
21. Manu III, 225.
22. Manu III, 224. The meaning of the last clause seems to be that the sacrificer shall stand before the Brâhmanas until they have done eating.
23. Identical with Manu III, 125; see also Vishnu LXXIII, 3. The offering to the gods is the Vaisvadeva offering which precedes the Srâddha.
24. Identical with Manu III, 126.
25. Manu III, 129.
26. Identical with Vishnu LXXXII, 20, and Manu III, 237.
27. Manu V, 35.
28. Identical with Manu III, 235.
29. Vishnu LXIX, 2-4.
30. Vishnu LXXVIII, 51-53.
31. 'Who lengthens the line,' i.e. who himself begets sons. Read instead of nuyantam pitrikarmani (v. l. muyantam and tripantah), 'udyatam.'
32. Vishnu LXXXV, 4, 66-67. A
33. Srâvana, i.e. July-August; Âgrahâyana, i.e. Mârgasîrsha or November--December. Anvashtakî means the day following the Ashtakâ, or eighth day, i.e. the ninth day of the dark halves of Mârgasîrsha, Pausha, Mâgha, and Phâlguna. The form of the word is usually anvashtakâ.
34. Gautama XV, 5.
35. Vishnu LIX, 2.
36. Vishnu LIX, 4-9.
37. Manu IV, 257. I read rinasamstutam with MS. E.
38. Taitt. Samh. VI, 3, 10, 5; Satapatha-brâhmana I, 7, 2, 11.
39. Vishnu XXVII, 15-17.
40. Vishnu XXVII, 29. Regarding other kinds of sticks, see Gautama I, 22-24.
41. Vishnu XXVII, 22.
42. Vishnu XXVII, 18.
43. Vishnu XXVII, 20.
44. Vishnu XXVII, 19; Gautama I, 17-21. 'Unblemished,' i.e. new, without holes and seams.
45. Vishnu XXVII, 25. I.e. 'Lady, give alms;' 'Give, O lady, alms;' and 'Give alms, lady.'
46. Vishnu XXVII, 26.
47. Vishnu XXVII, 27. Sâvitrî, literally 'the Rik sacred to Savitri' (Rig-veda III, 62, 10), means here 'the initiation,' see Gautama I, 12 note.
48. Âpastamba I, 1, 1, 28. The plural vivâhayeyuh, 'let them (not) form matrimonial alliances,' indicates that orthodox Brâhmanas must neither give their daughters to Patitasâvitrîkas nor take the daughters of such persons.
49. Gautama XIX, 9.
50. Gautama XIX, 8.
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