History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c89.96

v7.c89.96

The omens and portents mentioned in the two epics are generally described as occurring at certain important times and events, e. g on the eve of battles or when Daśaratha proposed that Rāma be crowned as *yuvarāja*, or when Pāṇḍavas started on their exile into the forest or when Bhīṣma was anointed as commander-in-chief of the Kaurava hosts or when Arjuna vowed that he would kill Jayadratha before sunset There is no gradation or order in mentioning the omens and portents in these two works, but they are set out pell-mell Untimely rain, thunder without clouds, croaking of frogs are on the same level and uttered in the same breath with eclipses. But Garga,¹¹⁸⁹ Parāśara, Sabhā-parva, Bṛhatsaṃhitā 45. 2, Matsyapurāṇa 229.5, Atharva-pariśiṣṭa LXIX (1. 2) and other works divide *utpātas* into three classes, viz. *divya* (arising from heavenly bodies), *āntarīkṣa* (springing in the sky or atmospheric region) and *bhauma* (that appear on the earth). This classification is ancient enough. The Atharvaveda¹¹⁹⁰ expressly refers to the three classes of utpātas 'May the earthly and atmospheric utpātas and the planets moving in heaven confer welfare on us'. The Bṛhatsaṃhitā¹¹⁹¹ says that it is the king's business to arrange for śāntis in his kingdom for counteracting (the consequences of portents). Garga¹¹⁹² declared that those who, when advised by brāhmaṇas for performing śāntis, perform auspicious rites with faith do not suffer defeat, but that those who having no faith or because of atheism or resentment do not perform rites for counteracting (omens) perish in a short time. Garga, the Bṛhatsaṃhitā, Matsya 229. 6-9, Agni 263. 12-13 furnish examples of the three kinds of utpātas,¹¹⁹³ viz. the *divya* ones are concerned with the abnormal conditions of planets and nakṣatras, eclipses, comets; those of atmospheric regions are hurricanes, unusual clouds, fall of meteors, twilights, preternatural reddish appearances of the quarters, halo, Fata Morgana (appearance of illusory town in the air), rainbow and strange rainfall (such as of blood-red water, or fall of rain with fishes, tortoises &c.); those of the earth are earth-quake and unusual states of water reservoirs. The Bṛhatsaṃhitā remarks that the evil consequences of earthly (*bhauma*) utpātas when counteracted with śāntis are removed, the evil consequences of utpātas from the atmospheric regions are reduced to a mild form (by śāntis), while, according to some (ācāryas like Kāśyapa, says Utpala) *divya* utpātas are not counteracted by śāntis at all; the opinion of Varāhamihira himself appears to be that the consequences of even *divya* utpātas are conjured away by the gifts of plenty of gold, food, cows and land and by spilling the milk of cows on the ground or in a Rudra temple and by performing *Koṭihoma*. Varāhamihira and Matsya further provide that daiva utpāta has evil effects (lit. bears fruit) in eight ways, viz on the king himself, his son, his treasury, his conveyances (horses, elephants &c.), his capital, his queen, purohita and his people¹¹⁹⁴