Thursday 17 October 2013

The Methods Of Yajna

 

Taittirya Samhita

1.6.7.3) 'The sacrificer should win both beasts of the wild and of the village', they say; in that he refrains from those of the village, thereby be wins them; in that he eats of the wild, thereby he wins them of the wild. If be were to fast without eating, the Pitrs would be his divinity. 

here word beasts ( pashu ) is used to symbolically represent the inner powers, energy flows inside the body. as the meanings of four pashus are described in previous post. there are two types of pashus, of wild, and of village. that means one type of energy is uncontrolled (wild / aaranyam ) and another is controlled ( of village / gramyam ). [ similar types of beasts of wild and of village is seen in shukla yajur veda 13.48, there also it should be understood that those energy inside the body are asked to be destroyed which are uncontrolled and harmful but to protect those energy which are controllable. ] here the yajna is described as fasting process by which he wins both powers of his body, controlled and uncontrolled. 

1.6.7.4)  he eats of the wild, the wild is power, and so he bestows power upon himself. If he were to fast without eating, he would be hungry; if he were to eat, Rudra would plan evil against his cattle; he partakes of water; that is neither eaten nor not eaten; he is not hungry and Rudra does not plot evil against his cattle. The sacrifice is a bolt, the enemy of man is hunger; in that he fasts without eating, he straightway smites with the bolt the enemy, hunger.

in this fast, sacrificer is said to eat the wild energy that gives him strength, because of he fast without eating he will be devoid of energy and become hungry. but if he eats, his organs will deviate him from his sacrifice and he may loose his spiritual energy ( the village cattles ). there are 11 rudras discussed in scriptures which are 5 gyanendriyan ( 5 sense organs ) and 5 karmendriyan ( hands, legs etc ) and 11th is mann ( mind ). so after getting power from wild energies, the rudras may lead him to loose his spiritual energy. therefore, sacrificer is told to take only water, and not food. but his hunger is still a big deviation from his sacrifice. so, for that last line says, "the yajna is thunderbolt ( vajra ), and hunger during the karma of yajna is enemy, sacrificer smites the enemy by the bolt. that means, by the power of yajna, hunger itself goes away. and thus, sacrificer is able to put the wild energies inside him for his inner development. needless to say that the last line saying yajna is bolt and hunger is enemy, especially in the context of fasting, is itself a proof that the animals about which we are talking are not real but metaphorically describe the inner energy flows. 



2.3.2.8.)  He who desires cattle should offer a cake on eight potsherds to Agni, the giver, and a cake on eleven potsherds to Indra, the bestower; verily Agni produces cattle for him, Indra makes them grow up. These are curds, honey, ghee, waters, and parched grain; that is the form of cattle; verily by their form he wins cattle; there are five takings, for cattle are fivefold; I it is of many forms, for cattle are of many forms,

it can be easily understood that cattle which are said to be produced from agni would not be an animal but should have characteristics of agni only, thus it can only be energy, nothing else. when devtas are pleased, they provide spiritual energy to sacrificer, that's said in the way that devtas provide cattle to him.  now the form of useful cattle or spiritual energy are "curds, honey, ghee, waters, and parched grain". all these forms also have spiritual meanings. waters is flow of energy, ghee is purified mind, and for honey, there is next verse.

2.3.2.9)  cattle are connected with Prajapati; verily Prajapati produces cattle for him; honey is the body of man; in that he offers honey on the fire, verily thus the sacrificer places his body in the fire; the Yajya and the Anuvakya are in the Pañkti metre, man is fivefold, cattle are fivefold; verily ransoming his body from death he wins cattle.

the body of sacrificer is itself the honey , that is to be sacrificed in agni. body is actually just subtle body , and not physical body. subtle body is offered in inner fire ( agni ) for purification and perfection like honey. thus prajapati produces spiritual energy for him by which he wins death and attains immortality. ( here also word immortality applies to subtle body, not physical body ) one another important thing is, many times in yajna , it is told that different body parts of sacrificial animal is put down in fire. that also means that while doing yajna in subtle body, one has to bring the spiritual fire to his different body organs for purification and perfection. in this way, he rises above and achieve salvation. that's the real meaning of sacrificing 'pashu'. that suksh sharir ( subtle body ) is itself the offering to devtas and by placing himself in agni, he rise above to dyulok. 


- yash vardhan

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