History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v3.c42.19

v3.c42.19

In certain medieval digests like the Saṁskāra-kaustubha (p. 122) a rite called Nāgabali is described. It is performed on Sinīvālī (a day on which the moon is seen, but there is amāvāsyā thereafter) or full moon day or on the 5th or on the 9th when the moon is in Āśleṣā (of which serpents are the presiding deity). Its object is two-fold viz. to expiate the sin of having killed a snake or snakes and to remove the obstacle to progeny (supposed to arise from the wrath of serpents killed by a person). In this a figure of a serpent is made of the flour of rice or wheat or sesame which is then placed in a śūrpa (winnowing basket), then it is worshipped with the 16 upacāras (described above) and a bali of pāyasa (rice-milk) is offered to it; then after washing the hands and feet and sipping water a homa is performed with ordinary fire (but there is no sviṣṭakṛt offering); an oblation of clarified butter is offered with *om* and all the three vyāhṛtis into the mouth of the serpent figure and the rest of the *ājya* is sprinkled on its body, the serpent is praised with the mantras quoted above from Tai. S. IV. 2. 8. 3 and certain Purāṇa verses are repeated and the figure is thrown into the fire; then impurity (āśauca) is observed by the sacrificer and his wife for three days or one day; then eight brāhmaṇas are invited, they are supposed to stand in the place of the burnt effigy and upacāras are offered to them, they are fed and gifts are given to them; then a golden image of a serpent is put into the *kalaśa* (water-pot) and prayer is offered to it, and the golden image or its value or a cow is gifted to a brāhmaṇa.