14 
E. T. Atkinson— Notes on the history 
[No. 1, 
towards the heavens whilst saying :—‘ Praise to the ancestors in paradise.’ 
Then follows the verses :—“ Sapta vyadhd dasdrneshu ,” 8fc., as in the termi¬ 
nation of the Nandi-sraddha, after which the materials for the ceremony 
are removed and gifts again made to Brahmans. Next the celebrant pro¬ 
ceeds to a pipal tree, or if no snch tree be near a branch is brought from 
a tree and a dedication is made in the name of Vishnu of three hundred 
and sixty vessels of water which is poured over the tree and then the tree 
is tied round with thread three times and whilst moving round, the 
following mantra is repeated :—■“ Glory to thee 0 king of trees whose root 
is like Brahma, trunk Vishnu and top like Shva.” The ceremony con¬ 
cludes with the usual gifts and dedication. 
Monthly ceremony. —On every monthly return of the date on which 
a father dies a single pinda is offered to his manes as before with a vessel 
of water to the pipal tree. This continues for eleven months and in the 
twelfth month the FLdrshilc a-sraddha takes place which is in all respects 
the same as the Fhoddishtd-sraddha already described. The Ndrayana-bali 
is offered when a father dies in a strange land and his relatives cannot 
find his body to perform the usual rites. A figure of the deceased is 
made of the reed Jeans, and placed on a funeral pyre and burned with the 
dedication that the deceased may not be without the benefit of funeral rites 
Then the Jcalas'a is consecrated and the forms of Brahma, Vishnu, S'iva 
and Yama stamped on pieces of metal are placed on the covering of the 
halasa and are worshipped with the Purusha-suhta mantra from the Rig- 
veda (Man. 10, 90). Then sixteen homas and ten pindas are offered with 
* 
the usual dedication and the latter are thrown into the water. Sixteen 
offerings of water from both hands (anjali) conclude the ceremony. A 
separate ritual is prescribed for a woman dyiug whilst in her courses or 
dying in child-birth. The body is anointed with the pancha-gavya and 
sprinkled with water whilst the mantra —‘ Apohishta, &c.,’ is recited. 
The body is then taken and a small quantity of fire placed on the chest 
after which it is either buried or thrown into flowing water. For eight 
days nothing is done, but on the ninth day, forty-five pindas are given 
and the ceremonies of the remaining three days as already described are 
carried through if the people can afford it. There is also a separate 
ritual for persons who have joined a celibate fraternity as a Jogi, Gosain, 
&c. His staff and clothes are placed on the charpai as in the case of an 
ordinary person and the arha-vivdlia or marriage with the plant maddr 
takes place, after which a pinda is offered in his name. Fakirs, lepers and 
women who die in child-birth are buried in Kumaon. It is believed that 
if any one dies during the Dhanishtlia, Satabhisha, Purvabhada, Uttara- 
bhada or Bevati nahshatras or lunar-mansions, four others of his family 
will certainly die, and for the avoidance of this evil a sdnti or preventive 
