Reading section 19

"Thus the householder, with faith, should offer oblations to the maternal grand father along with the worship of Viswadevas or he should perform the Viswadevas[250] ceremony. He should feed the Brahmins, who are for the gods and maternal ancestors with their faces to the east. And there who are for the paternal ancestors and ancestors in general should be fed with their faces to the north. Some say, O king, that separate Srāddha should be performed for these two classes of ancestors and others hold that they should both be entertained with the same food. The wise should spread Kusā grass for the seats of the Brāhmans and then worship them with libations; and having received permission from them he should then invoke the deities. Then the man who is acquainted with the ritual should offer a libation to the gods with water and barley and then flowers, perfumes and incense. Then he should offer libations to the manes placed upon his left; and having first provided seats of Kusā grass, he, with the permission of the Brāhmans, should invoke with the usual prayers, the manes to the ceremony, offering libation on his left hand of water and sesamum. If any guest arrives at the time who is desirous of eating or who is passing along the road he should worship him with the permission of Brāhmans; for the saints, for the behoof of mankind, travel over the earth disguised in various shapes and forms. It is for this reason, O king, that the wise worship a person who comes at such an hour—and if a guest is neglected—the fruits of an ancestral offering are baffled.

"With the permission of the Brāhmans assisting in the ceremony the householder should offer food without salt and seasoning to fire three several times, exclaming first, 'To fire, the Conveyance of oblations; to the progenitors Swaha'. Next addressing the oblation to Soma, the lord of the progenitors and giving the third to Vaivaswat. He should then place the residue in the dishes of the ancestors. He should then offer to Brāhmanas choice viands well dressed and seasoned and profuse and request them most gently to partake of it at their pleasure. The Brāhmanas should attentively, in silence and with smiling faces eat that food. The sacrificer not hungrily, nor in haste but with devout faith should offer that food. Thereupon repeating the prayers that slay Rakshas and scattering sesamum-seeds on the ground he should regard these eminent Brāhmanas as his ancestors and address them (saying). 'May my father, grand father and great grand father enter the persons of these Brāhmans and be propitiated with (my offerings). May my father, grand father and great grand father derive satisfaction from these oblations to fire. May my father grand father, great grand father derive gratification from the balls of food placed by me upon the ground. May my father, grand father, great grand father be propitiated with what I have offered them, this day, in faith. May my maternal grand father, his father and his father derive gratification from my offerings. May all the celestials derive satisfaction and evil beings die. May the imperishable Hari the lord of sacrifice accept the oblation offered to the manes or to the celestials and may all malignant spirits and enemies of the celestials depart from the ceremony'.

"When the Brāhmans have been entertained with food to their satisfaction he should scatter a portion of the food on the ground and present them individually with water to rinse their mouths. And then obtaining their permission he should place upon the ground, balls made up of boiled rice and condiments along with sesamum-seeds. He should then offer libation along with sesamum-seeds with the part of the hand sacred to the manes: and with the samri part of the hand he should offer cakes to his maternal ancestors. He should diligently make gifts on all these occasions in lonely places, naturally picturesque and by the side of streams. Upon Kusā grass the tips of which are directed to the south and lying near the remnants of meats the householder should present the first ball of food consecrated with flowers and incense to his father; second to his grand father and the third to his great grand father; and then wiping his hands with the roots of Kusā grass he should satisfy them who are contented with the wipings thereof. Then having satisfied the maternal ancestors with balls of food consecrated with incense and flowers he should offer water to the principal Brāhmans to rinse their mouths. And then giving presents to the Brahmans with attention and piety according to his means soliciting their benedictions accompanied with the exclamation 'Swadha' and having distributed those presents to the Brāhmans he should address the gods saying 'May the Viswadevas be propitiated' and receive the reply thereto from the Brāhmans. The Brāhmans having said ‘So be it,' and granted him blessings he should first send away his paternal ancestors and then the celestials. The same order as regards food, gift and dismissal should be observed with the maternal ancestors and the gods. Beginning with the washing of the feet and ending with the dismissal of the gods and Brāhmans all the ceremonies should be first performed for paternal ancestors and then for maternal ancestors.

"Thereupon he should dismiss the Brahmans with sweet words and reverence, follow them to the gate and then come back with their permission. The wise will then perform the invariable ceremony called the worship of Viswadevas and then with a controlled mind he should take his meals in the company of revered persons, friends and servants.

"The learned should then celebrate the ancestral ceremony—for the ancestors being propitiated all his desires are fulfilled. The things are specially considered sacred at obsequies namely a daughter's son, a Nepal blanket and sesamum-seeds; the gift or naming or seeing of silver is also auspicious. O king, the person performing a Srāddha ceremony should abstain from anger, walking about and hurry and those who take their meals at the Srāddha should also avoid them. O king Viswadevas, paternal ancestors, and maternal ancestors are pleased with him who performs these obsequial rites.

"O king, the moon is the supporter of the manes and he is sustained by acts of austere devotion. Hence one, who practises austerities, should be appointed at the performance of a Srāddha. O king, if there is one Yogi in the midst of a thousand Brāhmans, he liberates both the sacrificer and all those who take their meals there".

SECTION XVI.

Aurva said—"Ancestors are gratified for a month with Havishya,[251] fish, or the flesh of the hare, of birds, of the the goat, the antelope, the deer, the gayal, or the sheep, or with the milk of the cow[252] and various preparations thereupon, They are perpetually pleased with flesh in general and with that of the long-eared white goat in particular, The flesh of the rhinoceros, the Kālasāka, potherb and honey, give special satisfaction to those who are adored at the obsequial ceremonies. Blessed is he, and the king who performs at the due time the Srāddha ceremony of his ancestors at Gya and that affords special delight to his ancestors. Grains that spring up spontaneously, wild-rice, white and black Panic forest vegetables, barely, wheat-rice, sesamum, various kinds of pulse and mustard are considered specially fit for ancestral offerings. O king, a householder should not offer any kind of grain that is not rendered sacred by religious rites nor the pulse called Rājamāsha, nor millet, nor lentils, nor gourds, nor garlick, nor onions, nor nightshade, nor camel's thorn, nor salt, nor the efflorescence of salt deserts, nor red vegetable extracts, nor any thing that looks like salt, nor any thing that is hated by people. He should not offer that water at a Srāddha that has been brought by night, or has been left off, or is so little as cannot satisfy a cow, or smells badly or is covered with froth. He should not offer milk of animals with undivided hoof, of a camel, a ewe, a deer, or a buffalo. Neither the celestials nor the manes will partake of the food if a Srāddha is looked at by a eunuch, a foundling, an outcast, a heretic, a drunken man, or one diseased, a cock, a naked ascetic, a monkey, a village hag, by a woman in her courses or pregnant, by an unclean person, or by a carrier of corpses. The ceremony should be celebrated on a plot of ground carefully enclosed. The performer should scatter sesamum on the ground and drive away evil spirits. He should not offer food that is fetid, or spoiled by hairs or insects, or mixed with acid gruel, or stale. Whatever pure food is offered to the manes, with faith and mentioning their names and race, gives them nourishment. O king, in the days of yore, in the forest of Kalāpa the Pitris said to Ikshwaku, the son of Manu 'Those, who shall respectfully offer to us cakes at Gya, shall follow a righteous path. May he be born in our family, who shall give us on the thirteenth of Bhādrapada and Māgha milk, honey and clarified butter, who shall marry a maiden, shall liberate a black bull and shall liberate a horse sacrifice accompanied with liberal presents'".

SECTION XVII.

Parāçara said:—In the days of yore the glorious Aurva, when accosted by the illustrious king Sagara, said thus regarding the usages to be practised by mankind. I have described to you all those observances which no one should violate.

Maitreya said:—"O venerable Sir, I know all those who are called Sanda,[253] Apabidha[254] and Udakee[255] but I wish to know who is called Nagna; doing what he is called so, and what is the character of such a person to whom you have referred".

Parāçara said:—The Rig, Yajur and Sama Vedas are the three-fold covering of the several castes and the sinful wight who throws off this is called naked or apostate. The three Vedas constitute the dress of all men and when people neglect them they are left bare. Hear, what my grand father the pious Vasishtha said about this to the noble Bhishma. O Maitreya I heard what my grand-father said about this.

There took place in the days of yore a battle between the gods and demons for the period of a divine year in which the gods were defeated by the demons under the command of Hrāda. The celestials, who were defeated, fled away to the northern shore of the milky ocean, where being engaged in devout practices, they thus prayed to Vishnu—"May the glorious Vishnu, who is without beginning, the lord of all beings, be propitiated with the words that we are going to address to him. Who can sing the glories of that great God from whom have originated all beings and in whom they cease to exist? Though thy true greatness is not within the reach of words still we have been engaged in glorifying thee being discomfitted by our enemies. Thou art earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, Prakriti and Purusha. O thou at one with all souls, thy form, visible or unvisible, pervades all from Brahmā to a stock diversified by time and place. Salutation to thee, who art Brahmā originated from the lotus springing from thy navel for the purpose of creation. Salutation to thee who art Indra, the sun, Rudra, the Vasus, fire, the winds and even also ourselves. Salutation to thee, O Govinda, who art at one with all demons, who are the creature of arrogance and want of discrimination uncontrolled by patience and self-control. Salutation to thee who art at one with the Yakshas, whose minds have no idea of perfect knowledge and who are accordingly of unmitigated prowess and whose nature is charmed with sounds. Salutation to thee, O foremost of Purushas, who are at one with all night-rangers, originated from the quality of darkness, fierce, fraudulent and cruel. Salutation to thee, O Janārddana, who art that virtue that gives rewards for the virtuous actions of those who live in heaven. Salutation to thee who art at one with the saints of accomplished piety, who are always contented and who traverse unobstructed all permeable elements. Salutation to thee who art at one with the serpents, double-tongued, impulsive, cruel, not satisfied with enjoyment and having immense wealth. Salutation to thee who art at one with the Rishis who are freed from sins and imperfections and at one with wisdom and tranquility.

"Salutation to thee, O thou having lotus-eyes, who art at one with time that devours, without any compunction, all created beings at the end of Kalpa. Salutation to thee who art at one with Rudra, who dances with delight after devouring all beings—gods and men. Salutation to thee, Janārddana, who art at one with men, who, actuated by the quality of foulness, engage in actions. Salutation to thee who art at one with brute animals—the spirit that leads to perversity, which proceeds from the quality of darkness and is encumbered with twenty-eight kinds of obstruction. Salutation to thee who art that chief spirit that appears diversified in the vegetable world and which are the substance of sacrifice is the agent of accomplishing the perfection of the universe. Salutation to thee who art identical with every thing and whose first form is the objects of perception and heaven and animals and men and celestials. Salutation to that form of thine, which is the cause of causes and which is distinct from and superior to the endless universe composed of intelligence, matter and the like and with which nothing can be compared. Salutation to thee, O great God, who hast neither colour nor extent nor dimensity and which is beyond all qualities and whose essence, purest of the pure, can be conceived only by sages. Salutation to the Brahma form of thine, who pervades in our bodies, who exists in all objects, who is without birth or decay and distinct from whom nothing exists. Salutation to thee, Vāsudeva, the supreme lord of all, who is unsullied, the root of all things, freed from dissolution, unborn, eternal, who in essence is the supreme condition of spirit and in substance the whole of the universe".

Having thus recited the prayer the celestials beheld Hari the supreme lord of all, seated on Garuda, armed with the shell, the discus, and the mace. And having placed themselves before him they addressed him and said "Have pity upon us, O lord, and save us, who have come to thee for help, from the Daityas. O supreme lord, transgressing the commands of Brahmā, the demons headed by Hrāda, have taken possession of the three worlds and appropriated the offerings which are our portion. Though thou art at one with the endless creation and we are a portion of thyself, we, impressed by illusions, behold all things of the universe as distinct. Our enemies are engaged in the duties of their respective orders, follow the paths laid down by sacred writings and practise religious penances so we cannot lay them. O thou of immeasurable wisdom, do thou so instruct us that we may root out the enemies of the celestials".

When the glorious Vishnu heard their prayers he emitted from his person an illusory form which he gave to the celestials and said. "This illusory form shall so deceive the Daityas, that being led astray from the path of the Vedas, they shall be slain; for all gods, demons and others, who shall transgress the authority of the Veda, shall perish by my prowess which I exercise for the preservation of the universe. Go then; be not afraid; this illusory form shall go before you. O celestials, it shall be of great service to you, this day".

SECTION XVIII.

Parāçara said:—Maitreya, having proceeded to the Daityas the illusory form beheld them engaged in austere penances on the banks of the river Nerbudā. And approaching them in the guise of a naked mendicant, with his head shaven and carrying a bunch of peacock's feathers he addressed them gently "O lords of Daitya race—why do you practice these devout penances? Do you expect rewards in this world or in the next?" The Asuras said:—"O thou of great mind, we have been engaged in these penances with a view to reap fruits in the next world. Do thou tell us if thou hast got anything to say on this". The deceptive figure said:—"If you are desirous of final emancipation hear my words, for you will obtain the revelation which is the door to final happiness. The instructions, superior to which there is nothing, I will give you, are the secret path to final emancipation. If you follow them you shall either obtain heaven or exemption from future births. O ye gifted with mighty strength, you are worthy of these instructions".

Parāçara said:—There did the illusory figure mislead the Daityas from the teachings of the Vedas by various persuations and many specious arguments, teaching that the same-thing might be for the sake of virtue and of vice; might be and might not be; might or might not lead to final emancipation; might be the supreme object and not the supreme object; might be effect and not be effect; might be manifest and not be manifest; might be the duty of those who go naked and who go richly dressed. And thus were the Daityas led astray from the path of their duties by the continued teachings of their illusory teacher, keeping up the equal truth of contradictory teachings. And those were called Arhatas from the phrase he had employed of "Ye are worthy (Arhatha) of this great teaching" that is of the false teachings which he induced them to follow. Thus did the illusory figure lead away the Asuras from the teachings of the Vedas. And being impressed by those teachings the Asuras initiated others in all those doctrines. They in their turn became teachers of the same false doctrines and converted others. And thus communicating their doctrines to each other, they were all led away from the teaching of the Vedas.

Then pulling on garments of red colour, with collyrium in his eyes, the illusory figure again addressed others of the same family in sweet and mild accents—"O ye demons, gifted with strength, if ye wish for heaven or final rest desist from the sinful massacre of animals and hear from me what you should do. The whole universe is composed of discriminative knowledge; understand my words well for they have been uttered by the wise. The world is without stay and is perpetually revolving in the straits of existence being engaged in the pursuit of erroneous knowledge and sullied by passion and others".

Parāçara said:—In this wise exclaiming to them "Know" (Budhyadwam) and they saying (Budhyate), "it is known," those Daityas were led away from their own religion. They thus renounced their respective duties being impressed by the reasonings and arguments of that illusory figure. O Maitreya, they, impressed, persuaded others to do the same and thus the heresy spread and many abandoned the practices laid down by the Vedas and Smritis. O twice-born one, with various other erroneous teachings, the illusory figure converted many other Daityas. Being thus deluded, the Asuras, in no time, abandoned the doctrines and rites laid down by the three Vedas. Some of them, O twice-born one, spoke ill of the Vedas and others villified the celestials. Some spoke against the Vedic rites and sacrifices and others calumniated the Brāhmans. "The precepts" they preached "that lead to the sacrifice of animals, are highly culpable. To lay that throwing clarified butter in fire produces rewards is simply childishness. If any one, after having obtained godhead by multiplied ceremonies, is fed along with Indra upon the wood used as fuel in holy fire, he is lower than a brute which feeds upon leaves. If a beast, being sacrificed, attains to heaven, why does not the sacrificer slay his father in a sacrifice? If a dead person is satisfied if another is fed at a Srāddha then why does not the food offered by his son reach him who resides at a distance? All these words therefore depend upon individual respect so it is better for you to neglect them and appreciate mine. The words of authority, O mighty Asuras, do not fall from heaven; reasonable words only are to be acknowledged by me and persons like yourselves". By these and similar reasonings the Daityas were led away and none of them any longer acknowledged the authority of the Vedas.

After the Daityas have thus been led astray, the gods, with careful preparations, addressed themselves for fight. And there again began a terrible encounter between the gods and demons. And the demons were now defeated and slain by the gods who had adhered to the righteous path. Formerly the Daityas were protected by the armour of their own religion and they were now slain for the desertion of that armour of religion.

For that time, O Maitreya, those, who have followed the religion preached by the illusory figure, are called naked for they following a wrong track have thrown off the garment of the Vedas. There are four orders of men, namely; the religious student, the householder, the hermit and the mendicant; there is no fifth order. The sinful man, who after relinquishing the order of the householder, does not become either a hermit or a mendicant, is said to be naked. The man, who, although able, does neglect his permanent observances for one day, commits sin for one day; and if he neglects them, not being in trouble, for a fortnight he can be purified only by arduous expiation. The virtuous must see the sun after looking upon a person who has neglected his permanent observances for a year; if they have touched they must bathe with their clothes on—but that vicious one has no individual expiation for himself. There is no sinner on earth more culpable than one in whose house the celestials, progenitors and spirits are left to sigh unworshipped. No man should associate, in residence, sitting or society with him on whose person or in whose house the gods, progenitors and spirits sigh. Conversation, exchange of civilities or association with a man is equally reprehensible who for a year has not observed pious observances. And the man who eats in the house of such a man, or sits down with him or sleep on the same couch with him, becomes instantly in the same way culpable.

He who eats himself without satisfying the gods, manes, spirits and guests feeds upon his own iniquity and there is no salvation for such a person. The Brāhmans are men of other castes who neglect their respective duties or take up a degraded profession are said to be naked. To live in a place where there is an intermixture of four castes is detrimental to the character of the righteous. Those who converse with him who eats without offering a portion to the gods, the sages, the manes, spirits and guests, are doomed to hell. A wise man should not therefore talk with or come in contact with these heretics who are rendered impure for renouncing the three Vedas. A Srāddha ceremony, although performed with great care and devotion, if looked upon by these heretics does not please the gods or progenitors.

As described, there was in the days of yore a king named Satadhanu whose wife Saivya was a woman of great piety. She was faithful to her husband, kind, sincere, pure, and gifted with every female accomplishment, humility and discretion. The king, with his wife, worshipped with great devotion Janārddana the lord of gods. He daily worshipped Him with whole-mindedness, oblations to fire, prayers, gifts and fasting. One day when they had fasted on the full moon of Kārtika and had bathed in the Bhagirathi, they saw as they came up from the river a heretic to approach them who was the friend of the king's military preceptor. The king, out of his respect for the preceptor, entered into conversation with him but his devoted wife Saivya did not utter a single word. And thinking that she was fasting she turned from him and looked towards the sun. Having arrived at home, the husband and wife as usual performed the worship of Vishnu. After a time the king, who had defeated all his enemies, died and the queen ascended the funeral pile of her husband.

On account of the sin committed by Satadhanu for speaking to a heretic while fasting he was born again as a dog. His wife was born as the daughter of the king of Kāsi having a knowledge of her former birth, versed in every science and gifted with every virtue. Her father was anxious to marry with a good husband, but she always opposed and the king was prevented from celebrating the nuptials. The daughter of the king of Kāsi, by the knowledge of her pristine birth, saw that her husband was born as a dog in the city of Visidhā. And having gone there she saw her husband in that plight. And knowing that animal to be her husband she placed upon his neck the bridal garland going through the marriage rites and prayers. And being pleased with the excellent food offered, the animal expressed his joy after the manner of his species. He thus sporting as a dog, she was greatly ashamed and bowing unto her husband, born as a dog, she said "O king, remember the civilities shown by you (towards your preceptor's friend) for which thou hast been born as a dog and art fawning upon me. Dost thou not remember, O My lord, that by conversing with a heretic after bathing in a sacred river, thou hast been born as a dog?"