History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v5.c74.t2.282

v5.c74.t2.282

of the size already stated and made of the material already mentioned with the sacred thread in the *apasavya* form. Raghunandana explains that although there are nineteen piṇḍas still this is called śrāddhaṣoḍaśī as a technical term.¹⁵²³ It would be noticed that all the mantras refer to males in the words 'ye', 'te', 'tebhyaḥ'. So this is 'Puṁ-ṣoḍaśī.' There is a 'strī-ṣoḍaśī' also which only involves changing the words of the mantras in the masculine to words in the feminine gender as indicated in the Vāyupurāṇa itself.¹⁵²⁴ Otherwise there is no difference between the two (puṁṣoḍaśī and strīṣoḍaśī). The note below states the mode in which both males and females are to be invoked and gratified.