History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v4.c63.t2.897

v4.c63.t2.897

The animal in a śrauta sacrifice was to be killed by choking it and strangling it. The person who did so was called *śamitṛ*. Different views were entertained as to who was to be the śamitṛ. Acc. to Jai. III. 7. 28-29¹⁸⁴⁶ the adhvaryu himself was to be the śamitṛ; the usual opinion was that he was to be some one other than the *ṛtviks*. The Āśv. Śr. (XII. 9. 12-13) shows that he may be a brāhmaṇa or a non-brāhmaṇa. For further details vide H. of Dh. vol. II. pp. 1121-22, n. 2504. As animal sacrifices themselves came to be looked down upon or even forbidden, this text forbids a brāhmaṇa from being a śamitṛ.