Early Monastic Buddhism v1.c5.s2.16

v1.c5.s2.16

The time when Brāhmaṇas began to approach for sacrifice to the kings, the first of whom was Okkāka (Ikṣvāku), the eldest son of Manu, must have been the time when the Ṛgveda was about to take its present shape; for, in it are found already the various classes of priests required for a sacrifice, e.g., Hotṛ, Adhvaryu, Brahman, and the system of taking the aid of a priest by the yajamāna for performing a sacrifice, a custom not prevalent in the pre-Ṛgvedic period. The practice of the yajamāna giving rich rewards to the priests had already become current at the time of the completion of the Ṛgveda, while by the time of the Yajurvedas, it became an indispensable religious necessity.