History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v5.c73.t1.271.2

v5.c73.t1.271.2

73 13-14), but once the brāhmaṇas have begun to eat there is no such precedence, whatever each brāhmaṇa may be noted as requiring should be served to him (as indicated by Manu III. 231). The performer of the śrāddha when serving food to the brāhmaṇas (including pitrya) wears his sacred thread in the upavīta form. Though it is said that the food should be hot, that does not apply to such eatables as curds, fruits and roots and flavoured ¹⁰³⁵ drinks (as Śaṅkha XIV.13 and Skandapurāṇa say). As Hemādri (śrāddha p. 1371) points out, the serving of food in a śrāddha rite should be done with the right hand supported by the left; besides, nothing should be served with the bare hand or with a single hand, but with a wooden ladle or other utensil (but not an iron one). All cooked food, all side dishes and ghee should be served with a ladle (and not with the bare hand) but not water or eatables like *laddus*. No salt was to be directly served (Viṣṇu Dh S. 79. 12). In Kātyāyana's Śrāddha-sūtra it is provided ¹⁰³⁶ "The food that remains after *agnaukarana* should be served in the plates of the *pitrya* brāhmaṇas and the performer should touch each plate for those brāhmaṇas after repeating the mantra 'the earth is thy vessel, the sky is the cover, I offer nectar in the brāhmaṇa's nectar-like mouth; svāhā'. Then the performer plunges the (right) thumb of the *pitrya* brāhmaṇa in the food (the remains of the homa in fire) with the ṛk or yajus addressed to Viṣṇu;