Upanayana Question

[Asko Parpola]

The corresponding suutras of the Kau.siitakag.rhyasuutra are  Ratna  
Gopaala Bha.t.ta's edition (1908: 14) identical with the  
;saa:nkhaayanag.rhyasuutra, but in T. R. Chintamani's edition (1944:  
79) they run as follows with Bhavatraata's commentary:
2.2.8 ga.naanaa.m tveti ga.nakaamam
Bhavatraata: ga.naanaa.m tvety anaya rcaa ga.nakaamam upanayed devasya tveti
2.2.9 aagantaa maa ri.sa.nyateti yaudham
Bhavatraata: upanayed ity evaanu.sa:nga.h
2.2.10 mahaavyaah.rtibhir vyaadhitam
Bhavatraata: upanayed ity evaanu.sa:nga.h

Vaasudeva's ;saa:nkhaayanag.rhyasa:ngraha.h:
...devas tvaa savitu.h prasave ;svinor baahubhyaa.m puu.s.no  
hastaabhyaam upanayaami devadatteti mantra.m  
maa.navakanaamopalak.sita.m japet / atha maa.navakasamuuhaadhipatyam  
icchati tato ga.naanaa.m tvaa ga.napati.m havaamaha ity etaam .rca.m  
japet / aagantaa maa ri.sety anena .rcaa (sic) k.satyiyaan upanayet /  
atha maa.navakas traivar.niko vyaadhito bhavati tato mahaavyaah.rtii;  
catasro japet / o.m bhuu.h o.m bhuva.h o.m sva.h o.m mahar bhuur  
bhuva.h sva.h, upanayaami devadattety anena mantre.na / eva.m  
trayaa.naam api var.naanaa.m mantre maa.navakanaamoccaarayitavyam /  
apare tv eva.m vyaacak.sate sevasya tvaa savitur ity anena saha  
samuccaya iti / ...

Both Somanaathopaadhyaaya (1908: 29) and Ganga Sagar Rai (1995: 30)  
have maa.navakasamuuhaadhipatyam icchati, but one should undoubtedly  
read maa.navake samuuhaadhipatyam icchati, or maa.navaka.h  
samuudhaadhipatyam icchati (this latter reading is in line with atha  
maa.navakas traivar.niko vyaadhito bhavati).

With best wishes, also for a Happy Christmas and New Year, Asko Parpola

Quoting "Jarrod Whitaker" <whitakjl at WFU.EDU>:

> Dear Colleagues:
> A Master's student of mine is working on the Sankhayana Grhya Sutra  
> description of the Upanayana and Samavartana rites for his thesis.  
> He has completed his translation of both rites and we are going  
> through his translation and exegesis. Can anyone help with the  
> meaning of the following three lines from II.2:
>
> gaṇānāṃ tveti gaṇakāmān ||13||
> To those who desire of a number [of followers/attendants] he says  
> the verse “You of
> multitudes…” (RV. II.23.1).
>
> āgantā mā riṣaṇyateti yodhān ||14||
> To warriors he says “Come here, do not suffer harm” (R.V. VIII.20.1).
>
> mahāvyāhrtibhirvyādhitān ||15||
> To the sick he says the great utterances (mahāvyāhrti).
>
>
> We cannot figure out what these three lines are doing. They would  
> structurally correspond to the three varna-s mentioned up to this  
> point, but I am unsure of even this. But if this is so, then line 13  
> would refer to a brahmin, but what does gana mean here? A  
> "following"? a "polity"? And why in 15 are vaisya called "sick"  
> (vyaadhitaan) and why are the mahaavyaahr.ti-s spoken to them? Are  
> these lines exceptions in the case of special initiates or par for  
> the course for all initiates?
>
> Oldenberg is not helpful and neither are the other sources we know of.
>
> Any help would be greatly appreciated.
>
> Cheers and happy holidays
>
> JLW
>
>
> -- 
>
> Jarrod L. Whitaker, Ph.D.
> Associate Professor, South Asian Religions
> Graduate Program Director
>
> Wake Forest University
> Department of Religion
> P.O. Box 7212
> Winston-Salem, NC  27109
> whitakjl at wfu.edu
> p 336.758.4162
> f 336.758.4462
>
>