History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v3.c51.126

v3.c51.126

Then before the mādhyandina savana begins the priests again enter the sadas, and the yajamāna enters by the eastern door. The procedure of the mid-day pressing is in main outlines the same as that of the morning one (Āp. XIII. 1. 2). There is no hurry in the first two pressings, but the third pressing is got through with speed (Āp. XII. 29. 12). There are a few points of difference. In the mid-day pressing there are no cups for the joint deities (dvidevatya grahas), no cups for the seasons (Āp. XIII. 1. 4). The great pressing is done as in the morning pressing, but in a loud voice (Āp. XIII. 1. 8). In this pressing the vasatīvarī waters are taken in the hotṛcamasa, are handed over to the yajamāna and become the nigrābhyā for pressing soma. The cloth in which soma stalks are tied is loosened and given for wearing as a turban to the priest called grāvastut and it is taken back from him after he recites the praise of the crushing stone (Āp. XIII. 1. 5 and com.). The cups taken are five, viz. śukra and manthin, āgrayaṇa, two marutvatīya and ukthya (also taken either before both marutvatīya cups or between the two). The grāvastut (praiser of the stones used in crushing soma stalks) enters the havirdhāna pavilion by the eastern door, throws away a blade of kuśa on a spot which is to the north-east of the northern point of the axle of the southern havirdhāna cart and stands opposite the soma stalks with face to the south-east. He takes the cloth in his joined hands, folds it round his head and face from left to right thrice (so as to make it look like a turban). When the stalks of soma are placed for being crushed he should recite certain verses by the middle tone (Āśv. V. 12. 7-8), which is the tone for all vedic texts in the mid-day pressing. The texts repeated by the grāvastut are (Āśv. V. 12. 9-11): Ṛg. I. 24. 3, V. 81. 1, VIII. 81. 1, VIII. 1. 1, X. 94 (this hymn is called Arbuda), Ṛg. X. 76 and 175. Before the last verse of Ṛg. X. 94, the two hymns Ṛg. X. 76 and X. 175 are recited. Either between the latter two hymns or after them or before them he recites as many pavamāna verses as are required up till the taking up of the cups, finishes the last verse of Ṛg. X. 94 and hands back the turban to the sacrificer. Āśv. further directs that from the hymn Ṛg. X. 94 which has 14 verses the 4th is taken out and the last is the paridhānīya (the finishing verse) and the rest (12 verses) are divided into four triplets and each of the triplets is either preceded or followed by a triplet out of the following viz. Ṛg. I. 91, 16-18, IX. 8. 4, IX. 15. 8, IX. 107. 21, VIII. 72. 8, VIII. 72. 16, IX. 17. 4, IX. 67. 14-15 (which together come to twelve verses). The four triplets are respectively recited by the grāvastut at the time of sprinkling water on the soma stalks, pounding with the hands, extracting juice, and collecting the soma juice in the ādhavanīya trough (Āśv. V. 12. 15-19). In the mid-day pressing the place of the Bahiṣpavamāna is taken by the Mādhyandina-pavamāna stotra (Āp. XIII. 3. 7). This stotra consists of Ṛg. IX. 61. 10-12, X. 107. 4-5, X. 87. 1-3, that is Sāmaveda II. 1. 1. 8-10 (Benfey) and S. V. vol. III. pp. 22-23, 41-42, 78-80. The yajamāna mutters several texts before the mādhyandina pavamāna is chanted and during its chanting (Āp. XIII. 3. 1).