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294
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
diately; D. Ca. Sc. Vi 1. Vi 2. J. Ká. leave it quite out of view) they make it precede this celebration addressed to the moon (Ms. Ud. take up a peculiar position in regard to this); and also distribute somewhat differently the prayers given by OC Sa, giving them not here, but at an earlier stage (see p. 292), and introduce other prayers instead of them.
According to D. a cocoanut in a shell is first of all to be offered as argha-gift to Krishna in company with Devaki, with the following
prayer :
Hail to thee, O son of Devaki, who givest desired fruits..
Thou wast born for Kansa's death, for the lightening of the earth's burden,||
For the destruction of the Kauravas, for the annihilation also of the Daityas,
And for the good (welfare) of the Pandavas, for the re-establishing of the right, ||
For the destruction of the D â na vas, thou scion
of Vasudeva's stem! |
Take, Hari, thou with Devaki, the gift offered thee by me.||
After this, water is poured into the shell, they put flowers, roasted barley, and sandalwood into it, kneel down on the earth, and offer this as argha to the moon. Also according to B. (quite briefly) the argha-gift to Krishna precedes that to the moon. According to RNK Ms. Ká. however, the argha-gift (water in the shell, &c.) to the moon is offered first. Moreover K. makes a similar one to Devaki alone to come after this one, with the prayer (see p. 291), "Even as thou attainest highest happiness..."; and her worship is repeated at each watch through the night. According to Ms. the argha-gift to the moon, which is to be solemnized outside, is to be followed directly by a birth-celebration, (see immediately below) inside (that is, in the house), after that an argha-gift to Krishna with the prayers, "Thou wast born for Kaisa's death...", then offerings of perfumes and such-like to Devaki with the same prayer as K., and then new prayers to Krishna con
This verse is, according to R. from the Sivarahasya; M. has a similar one from the Vishnudharmottara (see above, p. 163).
Where, however, 446-52 are wanting; they are found again in Ca. 496-51, with important variant readings. In Dare also found further 456-47a, 52; in R. (pp. 28, 29) 446,-52. N., 52 in sc. K. Bhd. tvridhyamtaran 0.
[OCTOBER, 1877.
clude, "A thousand incarnations indeed. . . . (see p. 291, D. 116bff). In Ká. after the arghagift to the moon a similar one follows to Krishna with the prayers, "Thou wast born. . . ." (as above), and thereafter an ardent prayer to him for deliverance from sin and need. Lastly, RN do not make any more such gifts follow the argha-gift to the moon, but only prayers to Krishna,-in the first place, namely, those prayers with the forty names of Vishnu (along with a finale specially belonging to it), and then the same beautiful prayer, as Ká. It runs thus:
Save me, Lord of all the worlds! Hari! (from) out of the samsara-sea! |
Snatch me away, blotter-out of all guilt, from the flood of pain and grief, O Lord!|| Lord of all worlds! save me, who fell into the stream of life,
O son of Devaki! Lord of salvation! Hari! out of the samsara-sea! |
Snatch me away, blotting out all pain, from the flood of sickness and trouble, Hari!|| Thou Vishnu, helpest the miserable if they think only of thee. |
I, God, am very miserable. Save me out of the sea of trouble!
Lotus-eyed one! I am sunk in the sea of delu. sion and folly. I
Save me, God, Lord of gods! Besides thee there is indeed no protector !||
As child, as young man, or as old man, what good (deed) |
I may have done, bring it to perfection now Blot out my faults, Halâ yudha! |
The texts belonging to this are as follows first in O. C.* $1.
vidhyantaramt aptchanti kechid atra dvijottama || 13 ||
chandrodaye sasankaya argham dadyad dharin smarans anagham TTodmanam baurim**vaikunthun purushottamam || 44 ||
vasudevam hrishikeśam madhavam madhusudanum [ vardhamt pundartkáksham nṛisinhaṁ daityasi danam || 45 |
dámodaram padmanabham kesavam garuḍadhva jam§§ 1
So Ottamaḥ O 1., °ttama O 2, atraiva strayaḥ sa. § Sa C sa R, smaret 0.
TT anargham O 2, anarhyam 01, anatam sv 1. **saurim.
tt vårdhamh O sa D.; this hemistich is wanting in Ca. IV. 46 is wanting in sa.
§§ två "dyan, D.
