Sexual Life in Ancient India: A Study in the Comparative History of Indian Culture v1.c6.65

v1.c6.65

The main constituent of the caru is rice. A rice-dish also acts as putrīya (son-granting) in Rām., i, 16; only this account has a far more modern and artificial character. King Daçaratha is childless, and makes the horse-sacrifice to overcome this misfortune. When the putrīya iṣṭi is sacrificed, there floats out of the fire in mighty form Viṣṇu, who has once already been besought by the gods to become man, and he offers the prince in a mighty dish heavenly milky-rice (pāyasa) prepared by the gods, and says that the queens are to eat this food, and will then bear sons. Thus are born Rāma and his brothers.²