Idea of Ahimsa and Asceticism in Ancient Indian Tradition

Author(s): Bansidhar Bhatt
Publisher: B J Institute

Page 18

AHMSA, ASCETICISM ...
water, and the rest of the water is then poured on the ground (cf. Heesterman-1 p.19). It suggests that the pain of the victim is transferred in the water and goes to the earth. Also, water heals up the burning pain and lets it go to the earth. As such, the victim is assumed to have become purified and beautified for the gods (Mait.Sam. 3.10.1). Water is considered to be an appeasing and healing element in Brahmanical literautre.
Also, the ritualists employed their own meta-language and generally avoided words like "killing" and "dying" which are more common in use. Instead, they use words such as: a labhate, for "leading" the animal for the offer (cf. Schmithausen1, pp.9-10), sam jnapayati, for "consenting" the killing, samit; (appeaser), for the slaughter, the act of santi implies an elimination of the killing as such (see Alsdorf-1 pp.67 68).
We come across in such contexts, the term ahimsayai . in dative, as privative infinitives, first in the Brahmanical texts, e.g.
"Thus he established them on a firm foundation, in order to prevent injury to himself to the sacrificer."
pratisthayam evainau tatpratistha payaty atmanas ca yajamanasya cahimsayai / (Ait.B. 1.30.ii; see also Gonda- 1 pp. 115).
In the PVB (7.9.9.) the vamadevya-chant is invoked in order to prevent injuries to the cattle - paśūnam ahinsa yai“. But any clear reference restricting the meat-eating only to sacrificial occasions is rare to be traced in Vedic literature. The earlier one of its kind of the reference can be traced from the Ch.Up, which deserves our special attention. It says :
tad haitad Brahma Praja pataye uváca, Praja ptir Manave, Manuh prajabhyah: acarya-kulad vedam adhitya yatha-vidhanam guroh karma atiśeşená bhisa mavstya kutumbé sthitva śucau desė svadhya yam adhiya no dharmikan vidadhad atmani sarvêndriy ani sampratisthapya-ahiņsa yai sarva-bhata nyanyatra tirthebhyah sa khalv evam varta yan yavad-a yusam Brahma-lokam abhisa mpadyate, na sa punar avartate 1 (Ch.Up. 8.15.1)
4. See also ahimsa yai:- Tait.Sam. 3.1.5.1; Ait.B. 8.10.9; SB 11.5.4.4:
aristyai = ahim sayai; ibid., 7.1.1.38; for details about it, Gonda-1
pp.115-116,; cf.Schreiner. p.295, fn.12.