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Their Rites, Cults and Religious Festivals : 147
The Jain rites we will study are those mentioned in R. Williams's book 'Jaina Yoga' and in different other works concerning the Svetāmbara and Digambara ceremonies of marriage. The five rites that may be practiced by the Jains before the birth of a child are, as detailed in R. Williams book:
1) the rite for conceiving, called "garbhādhāna”. It comprises among other things: a "pājā" with an offering (havana) to three sacred fires, in front of the statue of a Jina, a specific “mantra" and, after the purifying bath that follows the menses of women, a union after having said the “Namokāra Mantra”.
2) the rite for conceiving a male, called "prīti". It is important because, according the custom in India, it is the eldest son who becomes the head of the family when the father abandons progressively his activities. It is also he who inherits the property and takes care of the funeral when his parents die. This rite, also called "pussavana, is practiced in the third month of the pregnancy. It implies a "pājā" with a specific “mantra” and the setting over the entrance of the house, of an arch of leaves representing goddess Laksmī, with two vessels full of pure water on each side,
3) the rite for increasing the chance to have a boy, called “suprīti”. It consists, at the fifth month of pregnancy of the future mother, in a "pūja" with a new offering to the sacred fires in front of the statue of a Jina,
4) the rite for avoiding a miscarriage, called "dhști”. It is a renewal at the seventh month of pregnancy, of the two former ones,
5) the rite to strengthen the foetus, called "moda". It consists in a visit to the temple and in a "pūja”, for those that are of an obedience practicing such tradition, with the reciting of a specific “mantra” and the offering of sweets.
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