I, 5, 17

The Grihya Sutras, Part 2 (SBE30), by Hermann Oldenberg, [1892], at sacred-texts.com

PATALA 5, SECTION 17.

1. A she-wolf (he addresses) with (the verse), 'Whether incited by others or whether on its own accord the Bhayedaka (? Bhayodaka, var. lect.) utters this cry, may Indra and Agni, united with Brahman, render it blissful to us in our house.'

2. ² A bird (he addresses) with (the verse), 'Thou fliest, stretching out thy legs; the left eye . . .; may nothing here suffer harm (through thee);'

3. An owl (piṅgalâ) with (the verse), 'The bird with the golden wings flies to the abode of the gods. Flying round the village from left to right portend us luck by thy cry, O owl!'

4. ⁴ 'May my faculties return into me; may life return, prosperity return; may the divine power return into me; may my goods return to me.

'And may these fires that are stationed on the (altars called) Dhishnyâs, be in good order here, each in its right place. Svâhâ!

'My self has returned, life has returned to me; breath has returned, design has returned to me. (Agni) Vaisvânara, grown strong with his rays, may he dwell in my mind, the standard of immortality. Svâhâ!

'The food which is eaten in the evening, that does

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not satiate in the morning him whom hunger assails. May all that (which we have seen in our dreams), do no harm to us, for it has not been seen by day. To Day svâhâ!'—with these (verses) he sacrifices sesamum seeds mixed with Âgya, if he has seen a bad dream.

5. ⁵ Now the following expiations for portents are prescribed. A dove sits down on the hearth, or the bees make honey in his house, or a cow (that is not a calf) sucks another cow, or a post puts forth shoots, or an anthill has arisen (in his house): cases like these (require the following expiation):

6. ⁶ He should bathe in the morning, should put on clean garments, should show patience (with everybody) during the day, and should speak (only) with Brâhmanas. Having put wood on the fire in an inner apartment, and having performed the rites down to the Vyâhriti oblations, he sacrifices with (the verses), 'This, O Varuna,' &c. (see above I, 2, 8, 16, down to the end of the Sûtra). Then he serves food to the Brâhmanas and causes them to say, 'An auspicious day! Hail! Good luck!

Footnotes

183:2 17, 2. The commentary explains sakuni (bird) by dhvâṅksha (crow). In the translation of the Mantra (Taitt. Âr. IV, 35) I have left out the unintelligible words nipepi ka. The way to correct the last Pâda is shown by Atharva-veda VI, 57, 3; X, 5, 23.

183:4 Comp. Âsvalâyana-Grihya III, 6, 8.

184:5 Sâṅkhâyana V, 5. 8. 11; Âsvalâyana III, 7, &c. Kuptvâ is corrupt; we should expect a locative. We ought to correct kuptvâm, as Dr. Kirste has observed, comp. Âpastamba-Grihya VIII, 23, 9.

184:6 Comp. above, I, 4, 14, 2; 15, 5; I, 2, 8, 16; I, 3, 9, 7. 8.