Tag Archives: soma ritual

Ones, twos, threes … hundreds and thousands in the Ṛgveda

In the previous note, we looked at some special numbers relating to the count of the gods in the Veda and the influence of the Proto-Indo-European tripartition on them. Here we more generally look at the distribution of numbers in … Continue reading

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The rise of yajña and Kauśika exceptionalism

The extant Vedic ritual is bifurcated into two domains the gṛhya (the household rites and rites of passage) and the śrauta (large-scale/grand rituals). First, in operational terms, they are distinguished by the use of a single fire (the aupāsana) in … Continue reading

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Agni as the divine commander in the Veda and the Purāṇa

With the Sākamedha-parvan with the oblations to Agni Anīkavat having just passed, we present a brief note on Agni as the general of the deva army. Agni is presented as the commander of the deva-s in the brāhmaṇa literature. For … Continue reading

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The songs of shunaHshepa and nArada

In the nocturnal ritual of the soma rite 27th and 28th sAmavedic stuti-s are described below. These songs are sung sometime between 12.30-1.00 AM. The sAmavedic mantra-s have the following musical pattern with respect to the three sAmavedin ritualists: The … Continue reading

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