History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v5.c73.99

v5.c73.99

Though Āp. Gṛ. (II. 5 3) and Śāṅ. Gṛ. III. 13. 7 state that the Anvaṣṭakya rite follows the procedure of Piṇḍapitṛyajña, some Gṛhyasūtras (such as Khādira III. 5, Gobhila IV 2-3) give very elaborate descriptions of that rite. The Āśv. Gṛ. and Viṣṇudharmasūtra 74 follow a middle course. The description in Āśv. Gṛ. is comparatively brief and it is set out below. It may be noted that some Gṛhya-sūtras state that the Anvaṣṭakya rite is performed on the 9th or 10th of the dark half (e.g. Khādira Gṛ III. 5. 1 'navamīm daśamīm vānvaṣṭakyam)'. Further, it may be stated that though most Gṛhyasūtras call the rite Anvaṣṭakya still it is also called Anvaṣṭakā by Pār. Gṛ. III. 3. 10, Manu IV. 150, Viṣṇudharmasūtra 74. 1 and 76. 1. The most notable peculiarity of this rite is that therein female ancestors are invoked and offerings are made to them of which liquor (*surā*), scum of boiled rice, collyrium, salves and garlands form part. Though some sūtras (like Āśv. Gṛ. II. 5) declare that the Aṣṭakā and Anvaṣṭakya are modelled on the monthly śrāddha or Piṇḍapitṛyajña, others (like the Baud. Gṛ. III. 12. 1, Gobhila Gṛ. IV. 4., Khādira III. 5. 35) say that the Aṣṭakā or Anvaṣṭakya is the norm which is followed in the Piṇḍapitṛyajña and all the śrāddhas. The Kāṭhaka Gṛ. (66. 1, 67. 1, 68. 1, 69. 1) avers⁸¹⁶ that the first śrāddha, the other śrāddhas (such as sapiṇḍīkaraṇa), Paśuśrāddha (in which the flesh of an animal is offered) and the śrāddha performed every month follow the procedure of Aṣṭakā. The Piṇḍa-pitṛyajña could be offered on amāvāsyā only by one who was *āhitāgni* (i. e. had kept the sacred vedic fires). It is impossible to believe that everyone became āhitāgni. The case was probably the reverse i. e. only a few became *āhitāgnis* and the rest had only the gṛhya fire or many of the rest were without even the gṛhya fire. It appears possible that all were required to offer śrāddha on amāvāsyā on the analogy of piṇḍapitṛyajña. As the latter became rare, the requirement of offering śrāddha on amāvāsyā remained and in the sūtras and smṛtis all the details were mentioned under māsiśrāddha and in the case of the other śrāddhas the sūtras and smṛtis pointed out only what was to be omitted. It is owing to this that the māsiśrāddha came to be called the *prakṛti* and the other śrāddhas were called *vikṛtis* or variations of the māsiśrāddha. Most of the details of the piṇḍapitṛyajña were required in māsiśrāddha and a few (such as giving arghya, gandha, dīpa) were added and more elaborate rules evolved.