The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanishads v2.c31.s4.7

v2.c31.s4.7

The mode of study was simple: the two sat down north of the fire, the teacher as usual facing east, the pupil west, and the teacher at the request of the pupil recited the verse he was to learn, giving the seer, deity, and metre of each: in the case of the Rigveda the pupil might learn all the hymns of each seer, or of each of the eighty-five Anuvākas, or so much as the teacher wished to teach him, or the first and last hymns of each seer or Anuvāka, or a verse at the beginning of each hymn. Doubtless there were differences in the extent of the teaching, according to the desire of the pupil and his caste: explanations of the texts and of the rites which they were to accompany must clearly have been given. At the end of each lesson Kuça grass balls were taken by the teacher, a pit of cow dung made at their roots, and water poured on. A mistake on the part of the pupil required for atonement a twenty-four hours’ fast at least.