History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c89.291

v7.c89.291

"On the 8th or 11th or 14th tithi of the bright half of a month or on Śravaṇa nakṣatra, the owner should feed brāhmaṇas, make them declare 'it is an auspicious day, let there be welfare, let there be prosperity,' should first (or 'towards the east') take out for offering *havis* sesame and rice grains, bring water after repeating the Gāyatrī verse (Ṛg. III. 62. 10), should cover two jars with a new piece of cloth with the Gāyatrī, should close the mouths of the jars with some fruit (a cocoanut or the like) and keep the boiled food towards the west and place (the two jars) on a bunch of five dūrvās. Then after the elephant stable is decked with wreaths of darbhas the elephant inhales the smell of the food offered in fire. He then makes ready a spoon of Aśvattha wood and fuel and darbha grass. Then he goes through the items of ordinary *homa*¹³⁰⁴ from drawing lines onwards and offers oblations of the boiled food with ghee to the accompaniment of the Ghṛtasūkta¹³⁰⁵ (Ṛg. VIII. 81. 1–9). Then (the priest) offers 1008 additional *āhutis* with clarified butter with the five mantras beginning with 'namas-te Rudra manyave' (O Rudra! adoration to you that are fury incarnate' Tai. S. IV. 5. 1. 1–5). Then the procedure from Sviṣṭakṛt offering to the gift of the cow (should be gone through). He puts down on bunches of *dūrvā* grass the remaining portion of the food from which offerings were made in front of the sacred Agni with the words '*svāhā* to the *bhūtas*' (spirits). Then he (priest) makes (the elephant) eat what remains of the food cooked in the *sthālī* (pan or cooking vessel) and the bunch of five dūrvās (on which the jars had been placed) to the accompaniment of the Āyuṣyasūkta;¹³⁰⁶ he sprinkles drops from the praṇītā¹³⁰⁷ water with the three verses beginning with 'āpo hi sthā' (Ṛg. X. 9. 1-3, Tai. S. IV. 1. 3. 1-3) and the four verses beginning with 'Hiraṇyavarṇāḥ' (Tai. S. V. 6. 1. 1-4), purifies (the elephant with water) to the accompaniment of the anuvāka beginning with 'pavamānaḥ suvarjanaḥ' (Tai. Br. I. 4. 8. 1); he then leads the elephant to its place (stable); the elephant becomes long-lived; so says the adorable Baudhāyana."