Manava Dharmashastra 3.110

3.110

yajñe nimitte'rvāgapi saṃvatsarātprāptyartho'yamiti kecit | anye tu pūrvasyaiva rājaśrotriyayorupasaṃhāramāhuḥ | anupasaṃhāre hi natvayajña iti nopapadyate | atra śrotriyo yaḥ snātakaḥ prāgukto, yadi vā ṛtvigeva | tasya hi yajñakarmaṇi prāripsyamāne madhuparkadānaṃ vihitam | yadyapyasakṛtsaṃvatsarasya somena yajeta, kṛtāryā evainaṃ yājayeyuḥ | evaṃ klṛptamūlaiṣā smṛtirbhaviṣyati | itarathā kalpyeta mūlam | anye tu sarvānṛtvigādīñchrotriyaśabdena nirdiṣṭānmanvyante | tathā cāviśeṣeṇa gautamena paṭhitam ( 5 | 25, 27 ) | “ṛtvigācāryaśvaśurapitṛvyamātulānāmupasthāne madhuparka” ityuktvā “yajñavivāhayorarvāg” iti paṭhitavān | ataśca sarveṣāmevārdhyāṇāṃ yajñe nimitte'rvāgapi saṃvatsarādarhārhatā syāt | na tvayajña iti ca pratiṣedho'rvāksaṃvatsarātrordhvamityevaṃ jñeyaḥ | iha dvitīye pāde'nekadhā pāṭhapratipattiḥ | kecitpaṭhanti ‘tate yajña upasthitā’viti | teṣāmayamarthaḥ | ‘tate’ prārabdhe yajñe yadi prāptau bhavato nimantryānītau, tadeyaṃ madhuparkakriyā tayoḥ | na punaḥ prārabhyamāṇe | eṣa pakṣaḥ kaiściddūṣyate | dīkṣito na dadātīti dīkṣitasya sarvadānapratiṣedhānmadhuparkadānamanujñāyamānaṃ tadviruddhaṃ syāt | na ca śakyaṃ vaktuṃ—“dānametanna bhavati, arhayediti nodanāt pūjaiṣā vidhīyate" | yate'sti madhuparke dadhidānaṃ māṃsabhojanādidānaṃ ca | athocyate "svayameva tatparakīyaṃ bhuñjīta iti" | evaṃ sati steyadoṣaḥ syāt | "vacanānneti", cedastyeva tarhi dadatyarthaḥ | coditaṃ ca dadātiḥ, 'madhuparkaṃ ca dadyāditi' | tasmādviruddham | "dīkṣito na dadātītyanena syādvirodhaḥ yadi yajñaśabdaḥ somayāgeṣveva vartteta | darśapūrṇamāsādayo'pi yāgāḥ, tadviṣayo'yaṃ vidhirbhaviṣyati" | naitadyuktam | evaṃ sati samācāravirodhaḥ | na hi śiṣṭāḥ somayāgebhyo'nyatra kacidarghyāya madhuparkamāharanti | ācāro vedādaraḥ | ato'yameva pāṭho yuktaḥ 'yajñakarmaṇyupasthita' iti | prārabhyamāṇayajña āgataṃ śiṣṭā madhuparkeṇa pūjayanti, na pravṛttayajñāḥ | ataścaitadapi na vicārayāmaḥ | sāmānyataḥ prāptasya dānasya bhavatu nivṛttirna punastadviṣayatayaiva śrutasya | -yajñaścāsau karma ca tadyajñakarma tasminnupasthite prāpte |

The king and the Learned Man should be honoured with the Honey-mixture, at the approach of a sacrificial performance,—not if there is no sacrifice (going to be performed).—(120)

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):
Some people hold that this verse serves to prescribe the honouring even before the lapse of a year, if the persons happen to Arrive in connection with a sacrifical peformance. Others, however, take it as completing what has been said in the preceding verse; and if it be not taken in this sense, then the statement ‘not if there is no sacrifice’ remains inexplicable.

The term ‘learned man’ here may be taken as standing either for the person spoken of above as ‘accomplished student,’ or for the Priest; it is for the latter that the offering of ‘Honey-mixture,’ when the sacrifice is going to be performed, has been laid down. Though one would perform the Soma-sacrifice several times during the year, yet the Priests would help in the performance only if they have been duly honoured. Thus it is only if taken in this sense that the text comes to have a well-established basis (in the Veda). In any other sense, it will have to have its basis assumed.

Others, however, take the term ‘learned man’ as referring to the Priest and all the rest of them (mentioned in the preceding verse). In fact, Gautama has said this in a general way: Having said that ‘the honey-mixture is to be offered in the reception of the priest, the father-in-law, the paternal uncle and the maternal uncle, (5-25), he says ‘before the sacrifice and the marriage’ (5.27). And from this it is clear that at the time that a sacrifice is going to be performed, all those who deserve to be honoured should be honoured even before the lapse of the year.

‘Not if there is no sacrifice;’—this prohibition applies to the honouring before t he year is over, and not that which comes after it.

In connection with the second foot of the verse, there are several readings:

Some people read ‘tate yajñe upasthitau,’ ‘who arrive when a sacrifice has commenced;’ and they explain this to mean that ‘the honey-mixture’ is to be offered to them only if they come, by invitation, when the performance of the sacrifice has commenced, and not when it is only going to be commenced.

This view is objected to by some persous: In view of the general rule that ‘the person initiated for sacrifice should not offer anything,’ all offering is prohibited for the initiated sacrificer; so that, if the offering of honey-mixture were now permitted, this would be contrary to the said general rule. It will not be right to argue (in answer to this that—“this is not an offering, since the injunction is that he should honour them, so that it is honouring that is enjoined;” because in the rite of the ‘Honey-mixture, ‘there is an actual offering of curd, as also of meat and food. If it be said that “the man eats what belongs to another person (without the latter offering it),”—in that case, the act would involve the sin of theft. It may be argued that, “in view of the direct assertion permitting such an act, it could not be regarded as theft.” But in that case, the act of giving is there; in fact, th e giving or offering also is actually enjoined in such texts as ‘should offer the honey-mixture.’ Hence the act would be contrary to law. “The offering would be contrary to the law that ‘the Initiated Sacrificer should not offer anything,’ only if the term ‘Sacrifice’ always stood for the Soma-sacrifice (in connection with which we have the said prohibition); as a matter of fact, however, the terra stands for the Darśa- Pūrṇamāsa sacrifices also; and the present injunction may be taken as pertaining to these latter.” This also will not be right; as, in this case, it will be contrary to usage: as a matter of fact, cultured people do not offer the Honey-mixture to honoured persons at any other sacrifice except the Soma-sacrifice; and Usage always follows the Veda.

For all these reasons, the right reading is ‘yajñakarmaṇyupasthite’ (as we have explained already). As a matter of fact, it is only when an honoured person arrives when the sacrificial performance is going to commence that cultured persons receive him with the Honey-mixture; and not after the performance has commenced. For this reason we do not even stop to consider the point that the prohibition (of offering by the Initiated Person) pertains to the act of giving in general, and not to that act of offering or giving which has been enjoined in connection with the sacrifice itself.

The compound ‘yajñakarma’ is to be expounded as the Karmadhāraya compound: when this performance is approaching—going to be performed.—(120)