The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanishads v1.c17.s9.6

v1.c17.s9.6

With the growth of the ritual the distinction is made and developed between the various sources of the waters; thus standing water becomes unfit for use since it is Varuṇa's and Varuṇa would seize the sacrifice; in the Rājasūya, the consecration of the king, seventeen different kinds of water are used to confer each some special power on the king at the consecration:¹ the horse sacrifice sees also a similar use of the different powers of the waters to which under many aspects offerings are made. The purifying and protecting power of the waters is seen further in the domestic ritual, in which water is placed near a woman in child-bed.²