1876.] 



at Delhi three thousand years ago. 



391 



The religious rites performed on the last day of the great sacrifice were 

 twofold— one appertaining to the celebration of an ephemeral (oiMUJca) 

 Soma sacrifice with its morning, noon and evening libations, its animal sacri- 

 fices, its numerous Shastras and Stotras, and its chorus of Sama hymns, and 

 the other relating to the bathing and its attendant acts of mounting a car, 

 symbolically conquering the whole earth, receiving the homage of the priests, 

 and quaffing a goblet of Soma beer and another of arrack, together with 

 the rites appertaining thereto. 



The proper time for the ceremony was the new moon after the full moon 

 of Phalguna, i. e., at about the end of March. The fluids required for the 

 bathing were of seventeen kinds according to the Madhyandiniya school of 

 the White Yajush, and " sixteen or seventeen" according to the Taittiriya- 

 kas. The former, however, gives a list of 18 kinds # ; thus— 1st, the water 



* The discrepancy is explained by taking the Sarasvati water to "be the principal 

 ingredient, and the others the regular ritual articles. For the Abhisheka of Vaishnavite 

 idols of wood, stone or metal, recommended "by later rituals, the articles required are 

 considerably more numerous, but they do not include all those which the Vedas give 

 above. Thus, they enumerate, 1st, clarified butter ; 2nd, curds ; 3rd, milk ; 4th, cow- 

 dung ; 5th, cow's urine ; 6th, ashes of bull's dung ; 7th, honey ; 8th, sugar ; 9th, Ganges 

 water or any pure water ; 10th, water of a river which has a masculine name ; 11th, 

 water of a river which has a feminine name ; 12th, ocean water ; 13th, water from a 

 waterfall; 14th, water from clouds; 15th, water from a sacred pool; 16th, water in 

 which some fruits have been steeped; 17th, water in which five kinds of astringent 

 leaves have been steeped ; 18th, hot water ; 19th, water dripping from a vessel having 

 a thousand holes in its bottom ; 20th, water from a jar having some mango leaves in it ; 

 21st, water from eight pitchers ; 22nd, water in which kusa grass has been steeped ; 

 23rd, water from a jar used in sprinkling holy water (sdnWkumbha) ; 24th, sandal- wood 

 water ; 25th, water scented with fragrant flowers ; 26th, water scented with fried grains ; 

 27th, water scented with Jatamansi and other aromatics ; 28th, water scented with 

 certain drugs collectively called Mahaushadhi ; 29th, water in which five kinds of 

 precious stones have been dipped ; 30th, earth from the bed of the Ganges ; 31st, earth 

 dug out by the tusk of an elephant; 32nd, earth from a mountain; 33rd, earth from 

 the hoof of a horse ; 34th, earth from around the root of a lotus ; 35th, earth from a 

 mound made by white-ants ; 36th, sand from the bed of a river ; 37th, earth from the 

 point where two rivers meet; 38th, earth from a boar's lair; 39th, earth from the 

 opposite banks of a river; 40th, cake of pressed sesamum seed ; 41st, leaves of the 

 asvattha ; 42nd, mango leaves ; 43rd, leaves of the Mimosa arjuna ; 44th, leaves of a 

 particular variety of asvattha ; 45th, flowers of the Champaka ; 46th, blossoms of the 

 mango; 47 th, flowers of the Sami ; 48th, Kunda flowers; 49 th, lotus flower; 50th, 

 oleander flowers ; 51st, Nagakesara flowers ; 52nd, Tulsi leaves powdered ; 53rd, Bel 

 leaves powdered; 54th, leaves of the kunda; 55th, Barley meal; 56th, meal of the 

 Nivara grain (a wild paddy); 57th, Powdered sesamum seed, 58th, powder of Sati 

 leaves, 59th, turmeric powder, 60th, meal of the Syamaka grain, 61st, powdered ginger, 

 62nd, powder of Priyangu seeds ; 63rd, rice meal ; 64th, powder of Bel leaves ; 65th, 

 powder of the leaves of the Amblic myrobalan ; 66th, meal of the kangni seed. The 

 usual practice is to place a mirror before the idol, then to fill a small pitcher with pure 

 2 B 



