History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v3.c48.86.1

v3.c48.86.1

To the west of the āhavanīya he constructs a vedi, which is in length as much as the height of the sacrificer or which is as long as required for one's purpose and which has curved sides.²³²⁷ The sacrificer repeats a verse 'I make a mansion for him &c.' (Tai. Br. III. 7. 6) and touches the spot where the vedi is to be made. The adhvaryu sweeps the spot of the vedi with the veda bunch once with the mantra 'they knew the vedi by means of the veda bunch &c.' (Tai. Br. III. 3. 9) and twice silently before the dust and weeds are removed.²³²⁸ The yajamāna invokes the vedi when it is being swept by repeating certain verses viz. 'you, a young lady, with four tufts of hair &c.' (Tai. Br. III. 7. 6). The adhvaryu takes the sphya (wooden sword) along with two darbhas with 'I take you at the impulse of Savitṛ ...... with the hands of Pūṣan', invokes it with 'thou art the arm of Indra', cleanses upwards the tip of the sphya with a darbha with 'thou art wind with a thousand tips (or edges) and a hundred sharp brilliances' and places a darbha with its tip to the north or east on the eastern portion of the vedi at a spot which is 32 aṅgulas from the eastern side of the vedi (i. e. ⅓ of the length of the vedi) with 'thou art armour for the earth.'²³²⁹ He strikes the darbha with the *sphya* saying 'O Earth, meant as the place for worshipping gods, may I not injure the root of thy herb'.