Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v2.c4.639

v2.c4.639

Praśna denotes generally ‘enquiry’ or ‘disputed question,’ the phrase praśnam eti having the sense ‘he asks a person for the decision of a disputed point’ in the Taittirīya Saṃhitā¹ and elsewhere.² Thus Praśna comes to have the definite meaning of ‘decision’ in the Aitareya Brāhmaṇa.³ In the list of victims at the Puruṣamedha (‘human sacrifice’) in the Yajurveda⁴ are included the Praśnin, the Abhi-praśnin, and the Praśna-vivāka; it is quite likely that here the three parties to a civil case are meant—the plaintiff, the defendant, and the arbitrator or judge (Madhyamaśī).