I, 7, 24

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

PATALA 7, SECTION 24.

1. 'Agni! Expiation! Thou art expiation. I, the Brâhmana, entreat thee, desirous of protection. What is terrible in her, drive that away from here. Svâhâ!

'Vâyu! Expiation! Thou art expiation. I, the Brâhmana, entreat thee, desirous of protection. What is blameful in her, drive that away from here. Svâhâ!

'Sun! Expiation! Thou art expiation. I, the Brâhmana, entreat thee, desirous of protection. What dwells in her that is death-bringing to her husband, drive that away from here. Svâhâ!

'Sun! Expiation! &c.

'Vâyu! Expiation! &c.

'Agni! Expiation! &c.

'Agni! Expiation! &c.

'Vâyu! Expiation! &c.

'Sun! Expiation! &c.'

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2. Having sacrificed (these oblations), he then pours the remainder as an oblation on her head, with (the formulas), 'Bhûh! I sacrifice fortune over thee. Svâhâ! Bhuvah! I sacrifice glory over thee. Svâhâ! Suvah! I sacrifice beauty over thee. Svâhâ! Bhûr bhuvah suvah! I sacrifice brightness over thee. Svâhâ!'

3. There (near the sacrificial fire) he places a water-pot, walks round the fire (and that water-pot) keeping his right side turned towards it, makes (the wife) lie down to the west of the fire, facing east or north, and touches her secret parts, with (the formula), 'We touch thee with the five-forked, auspicious, unhostile (?), thousandfoldly blessed, glorious hand that thou mayst be rich in offspring!'

4. He then cohabits with her with (the formula), 'United is our soul, united our hearts, united our navel, united our skin. I will bind thee with the bond of love; that shall be insoluble.'

5. He then embraces her with (the formula), 'Be devoted to me; be my companion. What dwells in thee that is death-bringing to thy husband, that I make death-bringing to thy paramours. Bring luck to me; be a sharp-cutting (destroyer) to thy paramours.'

6. ⁶ He then seeks her mouth with his mouth, with (the two verses), 'Honey! Lo! Honey! This is honey! my tongue's speech is honey; in my mouth dwells the honey of the bee; on my teeth dwells concord.

'The (magic charm of) concord that belongs to the kakravâka birds, that is brought out of the

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rivers, of which the divine Gandharva is possessed, thereby we are concordant.'

7. ⁷ A woman that has her monthly courses, keeps through a period of three nights the observances prescribed in the Brâhmana.

8. In the fourth night (the husband) having sipped water, calls (the wife) who has taken a bath, who wears a clean dress and ornaments, and has spoken with a Brâhmana, to himself (with the following verses):

Footnotes

198:6 With the first verse comp. Taitt. Samh. VII, 5, 10, 1; Kâtyâyana XIII, 3, 21; Lâtyâyana IV, 3, 18.

199:7 Taitt. Samhitâ II, 5, 1, 5.6: Therefore one should not speak with a woman that has her monthly courses, nor sit together with her, nor eat food that she has given him, &c.