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SÚTRAS CXLVII, CXLVIII.
357
duty, and without any view to special rewards. Thus we read in Vasishtha :
Avasyam brâhmanosgnîn adadhîta, darsapůrnamâsågrayaneshtikâturmasyapasusomais ka yageta, ‘A Brahmana should without fail place his fires, and offer the Darsa. půrnamåsa, the Ågrayaneshti, the Katurmâsyas, the Pasu, and the Soma sacrifices.'
Hârîta says: Pakayagñan yagen nityam haviryagñams ka nityasah, Somams ka vidhiparvena ya ikkhed dharmam avyayam, 'Let a man offer the Pakayagñas always, always also the Haviryagñas, and the Soma sacrifices, according to rule, if he wishes for eternal merit.' The object of these sacrifices is aparimitanihsreyasarapamoksha, eternal happiness, and hence they have to be performed during life at certain seasons, without any special occasion (nimitta), and without any special object (kama). According to most authorities, however, they have to be performed during thirty years only. After that the Agnihotra only has to be kept up. The proper seasons for these sacrifices are given by Manu, IV, 25-27:
A Brahmana shall always offer the Agnihotra at the beginning or at the end of the day and of the night, and the Darsa and Paurnamâsa ishtis) at the end of each halfmonth;
When the old grain has been consumed the (Ågrayana) Ishti with new grain ; at the end of the (three) seasons the (Katurmåsya) sacrifices; at the solstices an animal (sacrifice); at the end of the year Soma offerings;
A Brahmana, who keeps sacred fires, shall, if he desires to live long, not eat new grain or meat, without having offered the (Agrayana) Ishti with new grain and an animal (sacrifice)?!
These Påkayagñas, Haviryagñas or ishtis, and Soma sacrifices are enumerated by Gautama”, as follows:
See Manu, transl. by Bühler, S. B. E., XXV, who quotes to the same purpose Gaut. VIII, 19-20; Vâs. XI, 46; Vi. LIX, 2-9; Baudh. II, 4, 23; Yagn. I, 97, 124-125.
2 Kâtyâyana, p. 34.
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