History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v5.c72.201

v5.c72.201

that the four varṇas should respectively perform sañcayana on the 4th, 5th, 7th and 9th day. The Āśv. gṛ. S. IV. 5. 1 states that sañcayana should be performed after the 10th day from cremation in the dark half, but on uneven *tithis* (i. e. 1st, 3rd, 11th, 13th, 15th) and on a *nakṣatra* which bears a name not applicable to two or more nakṣatras (i. e. except on the two Āṣāḍhas, two Phalgunīs and two Bhādrapadās). Viṣṇu Dh. S. 19 10, Vaik. Smārta-sūtra V. 7, Kauś. 82. 29, Viṣṇupurāṇa III. 13 14, Kūrmapurāṇa (uttara) 23 and a few other works lay down that sañcayana must be done on the 4th day after cremation. The various texts differ a good deal in details. The following is the procedure in the Āśv. gṛ. IV. 5:—The bones of a male should be collected into an urn that has no special marks (protuberances), those of a woman in an urn that has protuberances but no other special marks. Aged persons, odd in number⁵⁵³ not being together with women, (i. e. not as a mixed assemblage) collect the bones. The performer walks thrice round the spot (where the body was burnt) with his left side turned towards the spot, sprinkles on it with a śamī branch milk mixed with water with a verse 'śītike' (Ṛg. X. 16. 14). With the thumb and the 4th finger they (gatherers) should put each single bone into the urn without making a rattling noise (of the bones in the urn), the bones of the feet being taken first, those of the head last. Having well gathered the bones and having purified them with a winnowing basket (i. e. removing the dust attaching to them) they should put the urn in a pit at a place where the waters from different sides do not flow together except rain water with the verse 'upasarpa' (Ṛg. X. 18. 10) and he should throw earth (into the pit) with the following verse (Ṛg X. 18. 11) After having thrown (earth) he should repeat the next verse (Ṛg. X. 18. 12). Then covering (the mouth of the urn) with a lid with the mantra 'ut te stabhnāmi' (Ṛg. X. 18. 13) (he fills up the pit) Then without looking back they return (towards the house), bathe in water and then offer śrāddha to him alone (the departed). Dr. B. N. Datta in his paper 'Vedic funeral customs and Indus Valley culture in 'Man in India', vol. 16 pp. 223-307 regards (p. 285) Rg. X. 18 as a hymn dealing with burial of the whole body (and not of ashes), while he admits (p 287) that Rg. X. 16 is a cremation hymn. I dissent from him for various reasons; the most important is that if his theory be correct a period of several centuries must be postulated between the two hymns. This is inadmissible.