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1. After he has returned from the teacher’s house, he should support his father and mother.
2. [1] With their permission he should take a wife belonging to the same caste and country, a ‘naked’ girl, a virgin who should belong to a different Gotra (from her husband’s).
3. [2] Whatever he intends to do (for instance, taking a wife), he should do on an auspicious day only, during one of the following five spaces of time, viz. in the morning, the forenoon, at midday, in the afternoon, or in the evening. [ p. 187 ]
4. [3] Having put wood on the fire, and having performed (the preparatory rites) down to the laying of (three) branches round (the fire, the bridegroom) looks at the bride who is led to him, with (the verse), ‘Auspicious ornaments does this woman wear. Come up to her and behold her. Having brought lack to her, go away back to your houses.’
5. To the south of the bridegroom the bride sits down.
6. [4] After she has sipped water, she touches him, and he sprinkles (water) round (the fire) as above.
7. [5] After he has performed the rites down to the oblations made with the Vyâhritis, he sacrifices with (the following Mantras),
‘May Agni come hither, the first of gods. May he release the offspring of this wife from the fetter of death. That may this king Varuna grant, that this wife may not weep over distress (falling to her lot) through her sons. Svâhâ!
‘May Agni Gârhapatya protect this woman. May he lead her offspring to old age. With fertile womb may she be the mother of living children. May she experience delight in her sons. Svâhâ!
‘May no noise that comes from thee, arise in the house by night. May the (she-goblins called) the weeping ones take their abode in another (woman) [ p. 188 ] than thee. Mayst thou not be beaten at thy breast by (the she-goblin) Vikesî (« the rough-haired one »). May thy husband live, and mayst thou shine in thy husband’s world, beholding thy genial offspring! Svâhâ!
‘May Heaven protect thy back, Vâyu thy thighs, and the two Asvins thy breast. May Savitri protect thy suckling sons. Until the garment is put on (thy sons?), may Bshaspati guard (them?), and the Visve devâs afterwards. Svâhâ!
‘Childlessness, the death of sons, evil, and distress, I take (from thee), as a wreath (is taken) from the head, and (like a wreath) I put all evil on (the head of) our foes. Svâhâ!
‘With this well-disposed prayer which the gods have created, I kill the Pisâsas that dwell in thy womb. The flesh-devouring death-bringers I cast down. May thy sons live to old age. Svâhâ!’
8. After he has sacrificed with (the verses), ‘This, O Varuna,’ ‘For this I entreat thee,’ ‘Thou Agni,’ Thus thou, Agni,’ ‘Thou, Agni, art quick,’ ‘Pranâpati’—he makes her tread on a stone, with (the verse), ‘Tread on this stone; like a stone be firm. Destroy those who seek to do thee harm; overcome thy enemies.’
9. To the west of the fire he strews two layers of northward-pointed Darbha grass, the one more to the west, the other more to the east. On these both (the bridegroom and the bride) station themselves, the one more to the west, the other more to the east.
8. See above, I, 1, 3, 5; I, 1, 4, 1.
[ p. 189 ]
1. [6] Facing the east, while she faces the west, or facing the west, while she faces the east, he should seize her hand. If he desires to generate male children, let him seize her thumb; if he desires (to generate) female children, her other fingers; if he desires (to generate) both (male and female children), let him seize the thumb together with the other fingers, (so as to seize the hand) up to the hairs (on the hair-side of the hand).
(He should do so with the two Mantras),
‘Sarasvatî! Promote this (our undertaking), O gracious one, rich in studs, thou whom we sing first of all that is.
‘I seize thy hand that we may be blessed with offspring, that thou mayst live to old age with me, thy husband. Bhaga, Aryaman, Savit_ri_, Purandhi, the gods have given thee to me that we may rule our house.’
2. [7] He makes her turn round, from left to right, so that she faces the west, and recites over her (the following texts),
‘With no evil eye, not bringing death to thy husband, bring luck to the cattle, be full of joy and [ p. 190 ] vigour. Give birth to living children, give birth to heroes, be friendly. Bring us luck, to men and animals.
‘Thus, Pûshan, lead her to us, the highly blessed one, into whom men pour forth their sperm, yâ na ûrû usatî visrayâtai (read, visrayâtai), yasyâm usanta_hss_epam.
‘Soma has acquired thee first (as his wife); after him the Gandharva has acquired thee. Thy third husband is Agni; the fourth am I, thy human husband.
‘Soma has given her to the Gandharva; the Gandharva has given her to Agni. Agni gives me cattle and children, and thee besides.
‘This am I, that art thou; the heaven I, the earth thou; the Sâman I, the Rik thou. Come! Let us join together. Let us unite our sperm that we may generate a male child, a son, for the sake of the increase of wealth, of blessed offspring, of strength.
‘Bountiful Indra, bless this woman with sons and with a happy lot. Give her ten sons; let her husband be the eleventh.’
3. [8] After he has made her sit down in her proper place (see Sûtra 5 of the preceding section), and has sprinkled Âgya into her joined hands, he twice pours fried grain into them, with (the verse), ‘This grain I pour (into thy hands): may it bring prosperity to me, and may it unite thee (with me). May this Agni grant us that.’ [ p. 191 ]
4. After he has sprinkled (Âgya) over (the grain in her hands), he sacrifices (the grain) with her joined hands (which he seizes), with (the verse), ‘This woman, strewing grain into the fire, prays thus, « May my husband live long; may my relations be prosperous. Svâhâ! »’
5. [9] Having made her rise with (the verse which she recites), ‘Up! with life’ (Taitt. Samh. I, 2, 8, 1), and having circumambulated the fire (with her) so that their right sides are turned towards it, with (the verse), ‘May we find our way with thee through all hostile powers, as through streams of water’—he pours fried grain (into her hands, and sacrifices them), as before.
6. Having circumambulated (the fire) a second time, he pours fried grain (into her hands, and sacrifices them), as before.
7. Having circumambulated (the fire) a third time, he sacrifices to (Agni) Svishtaktt.
8. [10] Here some add as subordinate oblations the Gaya, Abhyâtâna, and Râshtrabhtt (oblations) as above.
9. [11] To the west of the fire he makes her step forward in an easterly or a northerly direction the (seven) ‘steps of Vishnu.’
10. He says to her, ‘Step forward with the right (foot) and follow with the left. Do not put the left (foot) before the right.’
[ p. 192 ]
1. (He makes her step forward, and goes with her himself), with (the Mantras), ‘One (step) for sap, may Vishnu go after thee; two (steps) for juice, may Vishnu go after thee; three (steps) for vows, may Vishnu go after thee; four (steps) for comfort, may Vishnu go after thee; five (steps) for cattle, may Vishnu go after thee; six (steps) for the prospering of wealth, may Vishnu go after thee; seven (steps) for the sevenfold Hotnship, may Vishnu go after thee.’
2. After the seventh step he makes her abide (in that position) and murmurs, ‘With seven steps we have become friends. May I attain to friendship with thee. May I not be separated from thy friendship. Mayst thou not be separated from my friendship.’
3. [12] He then puts his right foot on her right foot, moves his right hand down gradually over her right shoulder, and touches the place of her heart as above,
4. [13] And the place of her navel with (the formula), ‘Thou art the knot of all breath; do not loosen thyself.’
5. [14] After he has made her sit down to the west of the fire, so that she faces the east, he stands to the east (of his bride), facing the west, and besprinkles her with water, with the three verses, ‘O waters, ye are wholesome’ (Taitt. Samh. IV, I, 5, 1), with the four verses, ‘The gold-coloured, clean, purifying waters’ (V, 6, 1), and with the Anuvâka, ‘The purifier, the heavenly one’ (Taitt. Brâhmama I, 4, 8). [ p. 193 ]
6. [15] Now they pour seeds (of rice, &c.) on (the heads of the bridegroom and bride).
End of the Sixth Patala.
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186:2 19, 2. sagâtâ_mgngmgggmgk_a. Mâtgdatta. As to the meaning of ‘a naked girl,’ (i.e. a girl who has not yet the monthly illness), comp. Gobhila III, 4, 6 and note. ↩︎
186:3 According to Mâtridatta, ‘morning’ means one Nâriikâ before and one Nâriikâ after sunrise; ‘forenoon’ means one Nâriikâ before and one Nâriikâ after the moment at which the first quarter of the day has elapsed; and thus each of the other three day-times p. 187 is understood to comprise two Nâriikâs. As the whole day consists of sixty Nâriikâs, it is the sixth part of the day (= 10 Nâriikâs) which is considered as auspicious for such purposes as taking a wife. ↩︎
187:4 See I, 1, 2, 1 seq. Rig-veda X, 85, 33; Pâraskara I, 8, 9, &c. ↩︎
187:6 See I, 1, 2, 7 seq. ↩︎
187:7 Pâraskara I, 6, 11. With the third verse comp. Atharva-veda XI, 9, 14. ↩︎
189:1 20, 1. Sâṅkhâyana I, 13, 2; Âsvalâyana I, 7, 3 seq., &c. The text of the first Mantra ought to be corrected according to Pâraskara I, 7, 2; in the second Mantra we ought to read yathâsah instead of yathâsat; comp. Rig-veda X, 85, 36; Pâraskara I, 6, 3. The bridegroom and the bride, of course, are to face each other; thus, if the bridegroom stands on the eastern layer of grass (Sûtra 9 of the preceding section), he is to face the west; if on the western, he is to face the east. ↩︎
189:2 The words, agrena dakshinam ansam . . . abhyâvartya, evidently have the same meaning which is expressed elsewhere (Sâṅkhâyana p. 190 II, 3, 2), dakshinam bâhum anvâvntya. With the first Mantra comp. Rig-veda X, 85, 44; Pâraskara I, 4, 16; with the second, Rig-veda, loc. cit., 37; Pâraskara, loc. cit.; with the following ones, Rig-veda X, 85, 40. 41. 45; Pâraskara I, 4, 16; 6, 3, &c. ↩︎
190:3 3 seq. Comp. Sâṅkhâyana I, 13, 15 seq. ↩︎
191:5 Comp. above, I, 2, 7, 13; Rig-veda II, 7, 3. ↩︎
191:8 Comp. I, 2, 8, 16. ↩︎
191:9 9 seq. Comp. Gobhila II, 2, 11 seq.; Sâṅkhâyana I, 14, 5 seq. ↩︎
192:3 21, 3. See above, I, 2, 5, 11. ↩︎
192:4 See above, I, 2, 5, 12. ↩︎
192:5 Comp. I, 3, 10, 2. ↩︎
193:6 Mâtridatta explains adhirirayanti by vapanti _grihris_irasi kshipanti. ↩︎