Ashvamedha
The Ashvamedha (
The ritual is recorded as being held by many ancient rulers, but apparently only by two in the last thousand years. The most recent ritual was in 1741, the second one held by Maharajah
The original Vedic religion had evidently included many animal sacrifices, as had the various folk religions of India. Brahminical Hinduism had evolved opposing animal sacrifices, which have not been the norm in most forms of Hinduism for many centuries. The great prestige and political role of the Ashvamedha perhaps kept it alive for longer.
The sacrifice
The Ashvamedha could only be conducted by a powerful victorious king (rājā).[2][3] Its object was the acquisition of power and glory, the sovereignty over neighbouring provinces, seeking progeny and general prosperity of the kingdom.[4] It was enormously expensive, requiring the participation of hundreds of individuals, many with specialized skills, and hundreds of animals, and involving many precisely prescribed rituals at every stage.[5]
The horse to be sacrificed must be a white stallion with black spots. The preparations included the construction of a special "sacrificial house" and a fire altar. Before the horse began its travels, at a moment chosen by astrologers, there was a ceremony and small sacrifice in the house, after which the king had to spend the night with the queen, but avoiding sex.[6]
The next day the horse was consecrated with more rituals, tethered to a post, and addressed as a god. It was sprinkled with water, and the
The escort had to prevent the stallion from mating with any mares during its journey, and if he did, an oblation of milk was performed to
After the return of the horse, more ceremonies were performed for a month before the main sacrifice. Twelve days of dīkṣā rites took place, and then twelve days of upasad.[14] The dīkṣā rite was a preparatory consecration rite performed before sacrifices.[15] It consisted of a preliminary oblation, and then the king would bathe, dress in black antelope skin, and sit on another skin in a hut in front of a fire, fasting in silence with a covered head and sleeping on the ground. The upasad was a multiday ceremony that precedes Soma sacrifices.[16] It consisted of the acquisition and welcoming of Soma and the construction of various structures needed for the sacrifice, along with the sacrifice of a goat.[17]
On the twenty-fifth day, the agniṣṭoma was performed.[18] The agniṣṭoma was the main part of the Soma sacrifice. In the morning pressing, the soma was pressed out and offered along with "rice cakes, parched barley, flour in sour milk, parched rice, and a hot mixture of milk and sour milk". During the pressings and oblations, five musical chants were sung and five recitations were chanted. The priests then partook in the drinking of the soma and the twelve oblations to the seasons, and the sacrifice of a goat to Agni. The midday pressing was similar and dedicated to Indra, and dakshina was also distributed on that day to the priests consisting of a varying multitude of cows. At the evening pressing only two musical chants were sung and two recitations chanted. Then proceeded the conclusory libations to the "yoking of the bay horses" and the sun, followed by the Avabhṛtha. The Avabhṛtha was the "unpurificatory" bathing of the sacrificer at the end of the sacrifice. After an antelope skin was put in the water body, the king, his wife, and the priests ritually bathe.[19][20] Afterwards a sterile cow or eleven other animals are sacrificed.[20] Throughout the entire night, the annahoma was performed at the Uttaravedi (the northern altar).[21] It consists of an oblation of clarified butter, fried rice, fried barley, and fried grain.[22][23][18]
On the twenty-sixth day,
On the next morning, the priests raised the queen from the place. One priest cut the horse along the "knife-paths" while other priests started reciting the verses of Vedas, seeking healing and regeneration for the horse.
The
Mentions in Hindu epics
Mahabharata
The best-known text describing the sacrifice is the
Ramayana
Balakanda, the first book of the Ramayana by Valmiki, mentions a horse sacrifice performed at the behest of King Dasharatha, the father of Rama.[40]
On Gupta coins
One type of the gold coins of the
-
Samudragupta, Ashvamedha horse
-
The queen, reverse of last
-
Kumaragupta
Similar sacrifices elsewhere
Many
A similar ritual is found in Celtic tradition in which the king in Ireland conducted a rite of symbolic marriage with a sacrificed horse.[29] The Roman October Horse sacrifice was an annual event, and apparently the only time horses were sacrificed, rather than cattle or smaller animals.[42]
Horse sacrifices were performed among the ancient Germans, Armenians, Iranians,[43] Chinese, Greeks,[44] among others.
List of performers
The historical performers of Ashvamedha include:
Monarch | Reign | Dynasty | Source |
---|---|---|---|
Purukutsa | Early Vedic Period | Puru | [47][48] |
Trasadasyu Paurukutsya | Early Vedic Period | Puru | [48] |
Sudās Paijavana | Early Vedic Period | Bharata | [49] |
Parikṣit
|
Later Vedic Period | Kuru | [50] |
Janamejaya Pārikṣita | Later Vedic Period | Kuru | [51] |
Pushyamitra Shunga | 185–149 BCE | Shunga
|
Ayodhya inscription of Dhanadeva and Malavikagnimitra of Kalidasa[52]
|
Sarvatata
|
1st century BCE | Gajayana | |
Devimitra | 1st century BCE | Unknown | Musanagar inscription[52] |
Satakarni I | 1st or 2nd century CE | Satavahana
|
Nanaghat inscription mentions his second Ashvamedha[54][52] |
Vasishthiputra Chamtamula | 3rd century CE | Andhra Ikshvaku | Records of his son and grandson[55] |
Shilavarman | 3rd century CE | Varshaganya | Jagatpur inscriptions mention his fourth Ashvamedha[52] |
Pravarasena I | c. 270 – c. 330 CE | Vakataka | Inscriptions of his descendants state that he performed four Ashvamedha sacrifices[56] |
Bhavanaga
|
305–320 CE | Nagas of Padmavati | The inscriptions of |
Vijaya-devavarman | 300–350 CE | Shalankayana
|
Ellore inscription[56][57] |
Shivaskanda Varman | 4th century CE | Pallava | Hirahadagalli inscription[56] |
Kumaravishnu | 4th century CE | Pallava | Omgodu inscription of his great-grandson[56] |
Mulawarman | 4th century CE | Kutai Martadipura (present Indonesia) | [58] |
Samudragupta | c. 335/350–375 CE | Gupta
|
Coins of the king and records of his descendants[56][59] |
Kumaragupta I | 414 – 455 CE | Gupta
|
[60] |
Madhava Varman
|
440–460 CE | Vishnukundina
|
[55] |
Dharasena | 5th century CE | Traikutaka | [57] |
Krishnavarman | 5th century CE | Kadamba | [57] |
Narayanavarman
|
494–518 CE | Varman | Legend of Bhaskaravarman's seals[61] |
Bhutivarman | 518–542 CE | Varman | Barganga inscription[61] |
Pulakeshin I | 543–566 CE | Chalukyas of Vatapi
|
[62] |
Sthitavarman
|
565–585 CE | Varman | [63] |
Pulakeshin II | 610–642 CE | Chalukyas of Vatapi
|
[55] |
Madhavaraja II (alias Madhavavarman or Sainyabhita) | c. 620–670 CE | Shailodbhava | Inscriptions[64][61] |
Simhavarman (possibly Narasimhavarman I) | 630–668 CE | Pallava | The Sivanvayal pillar inscription states that he performed ten Ashvamedhas[56] |
Adityasena | 655–680 CE | Later Gupta | Vaidyanatha temple (Deoghar) inscription[61] |
Madhyamaraja I (alias Ayashobhita II) | c. 670–700 CE | Shailodbhava | Inscriptions;[65] one interpretation of the inscriptions suggests that he merely participated in the Ashvamedha performed by his father Madhavaraja II[61] |
Dharmaraja (alias Manabhita) | c. 726–727 CE | Shailodbhava | Inscriptions; one interpretation of the inscriptions suggests that he merely participated in the Ashvamedha performed by his grandfather Madhavaraja II[61] |
Rajadhiraja Chola
|
1044–1052 CE | Chola | [66] |
Jai Singh II
|
1734 and 1741 CE | Kachwahas of Jaipur
|
Ishvaravilasa Kavya by Krishna-bhatta, a participant in Jai Singh's Ashvamedha ceremony and a court poet of his son Ishvar Singh[67][68] |
The Udayendiram inscription of the 8th-century
In Hindu revivalism
In the
the word in the sense of the Horse Sacrifice does not occur in the Samhitas [...] In the terms of cosmic analogy, ashva s the Sun. In respect to the adhyatma paksha, the Prajapati-Agni, or the Purusha, the Creator, is the Ashva; He is the same as the Varuna, the Most Supreme. The word medha stands for homage; it later on became synonymous with oblations in rituology, since oblations are offered, dedicated to the one whom we pay homage. The word deteriorated further when it came to mean 'slaughter' or 'sacrifice'.[72]
He argues that the animals listed as sacrificial victims are just as symbolic as the list of human victims listed in the Purushamedha[72] (which is generally accepted as a purely symbolic sacrifice already in Rigvedic times).
Gayatri Pariwar since 1991 has organized performances of a "modern version" of the Ashvamedha where a statue is used in place of a real horse, according to Hinduism Today with a million participants in Chitrakoot, Madhya Pradesh on April 16 to 20, 1994.[73] Such modern performances are Sattvika Yajnas where the animal is worshipped without killing it,[74] the religious motivation being prayer for overcoming enemies, the facilitation of child welfare and development, and clearance of debt,[75] entirely within the allegorical interpretation of the ritual, and with no actual sacrifice of any animal.
Reception
The earliest recorded criticism of the ritual comes from the
According to some writers, ashvamedha is a forbidden rite for Kali Yuga, the current age.[77][78]
This part[
Scholar Manohar L. Varadpande, praised the ritual as "social occasions of great magnitude".[80] Rick F. Talbott writes that "Mircea Eliade treated the Ashvamedha as a rite having a cosmogonic structure which both regenerated the entire cosmos and reestablished every social order during its performance."[81]
See also
- Ashva – Horses in Hinduism
- October Horse – Animal sacrifice to Mars
- Cruelty to animals – Negligent or abusive action against non-human animals by humans
Footnotes
- ^ Monier-Williams, Monier; Leumann, E.; Cappeller, C. (2005). A Sanskrit-English Dictionary: Etymologically and Philologically Arranged with Special Reference to Cognate Indo-European Languages. Asian Educational Services. p. 115.
- ^ a b Mansingh, Surjit. Historical Dictionary of India. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 68.
- ^ Rick F. Talbott 2005, p. 111.
- ^ Gopal, Madan (1990). K.S. Gautam (ed.). India through the ages. Publication Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. p. 72.
- ^ Glucklich, 111-114
- ^ Glucklich, 111-112
- ^ Stutley 1969, p. 257.
- ^ a b c Glucklich, 112
- ^ a b Roshen Dalal 2010, p. 399.
- JSTOR 1258749– via JSTOR.
- ^ Bose, Saikat (2020). "The Aśvamedha: in the context of early South Asian socio-political development". Electronic Journal of Vedic Studies. 25 (2): 3–4.
- ^ Bose 2020, p. 16.
- ^ Bose 2020, p. 18,20.
- ^ a b c d e f g Renou, Louis (1957). Vedic India. Translated by Spratt, Philip. Susil Gupta. pp. 108–109.
- ^ Apte & 1957-1959, p. 816.
- ^ Monier-Williams, Leumann & Cappeller 2005, p. 206.
- ^ Renou 1957, p. 105.
- ^ a b c Bose 2020, p. 4.
- ^ Apte, Vaman Shivaram (1957–1959). Revised and enlarged edition of Prin. V. S. Apte's: The practical Sanskrit-English dictionary. Vol. 3. Poona: Prasad Prakashan. p. 251.
- ^ a b Renou 1957, p. 100, 105-106, 108-109.
- ^ Monier-Williams, Leumann & Cappeller 2005, p. 178.
- ^ Goldstücker, Theodor (1856). A Dictionary, Sanskrit and English. A. Asher and Co. p. 137.
- ^ Apte & 1957-1959, p. 1363.
- ^ Stutley 1969, p. 259.
- ^ Bose 2020, p. 40.
- JSTOR 41784542– via JSTOR.
- ^ Stutley 1969, p. 258.
- JSTOR 41784542.
- ^ ISBN 9783110815030.
- ^ Bose 2020, p. 4-5.
- ISBN 9788184752779.
- ^ Rick F. Talbott 2005, p. 123.
- ^ Renou 1957, p. 104-105.
- ^ The Laws of Manu, translated by Wendy Doniger with Brian K. Smith, p.104. Penguin Books, London, 1991
- ^ "Horse sacrifice Add. 15295, f.33". Archived from the original on 29 June 2020. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
- ^ Ganguli, K.M. (1883-1896) "Aswamedha Parva" in The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa (12 Volumes). Calcutta
- ^ Dutt, M.N. (1905) The Mahabharata (Volume 14): Ashwamedha Parva. Calcutta: Elysium Press
- ^ van Buitenen, J.A.B. (1973) The Mahabharata: Book 1: The Book of the Beginning. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, p 478
- ^ Debroy, B. (2010) The Mahabharata, Volume 1. Gurgaon: Penguin Books India, pp xxiii - xxvi
- ^ "Sloka & Translation | Valmiki Ramayanam". www.valmiki.iitk.ac.in. Archived from the original on 26 November 2020. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
- ^ Glucklich, 111
- ISBN 9783110815030.
- ^ Rick F. Talbott 2005, p. 142.
- ^ Roshen Dalal 2010, p. 44.
- ^ David M. Knipe 2015, p. 234.
- ^ K M Ganguly 1896, pp. 130–131.
- ISBN 9780199370184.
- ^ a b Erdosy, George; Witzel, Michael (1995). Language, Material Culture and Ethnicity. The Indo-Aryans of Ancient South Asia: Rgvedic history: poets, chieftains and politics. De Gruyter. pp. 237–242.
- S2CID 238465491.
- ISBN 81-307-0291-6
- ISBN 9788171418756.
- ^ a b c d e f Dineshchandra Sircar 1971, p. 175.
- ^ Dinesh Chandra Shukla (1978). Early history of Rajasthan. Bharatiya Vidya Prakashan. p. 30.
- ^ David M. Knipe 2015, p. 8.
- ^ a b c d Jayantanuja Bandyopadhyaya 2007, p. 203.
- ^ a b c d e f Dineshchandra Sircar 1971, p. 176.
- ^ a b c Upinder Singh 2008, p. 510.
- ISBN 9781462905072.
- ^ David M. Knipe 2015, p. 9.
- ^ Ashvini Agrawal 1989, p. 139.
- ^ a b c d e f Dineshchandra Sircar 1971, p. 179.
- ^ David M. Knipe 2015, p. 10.
- ISBN 978-1-317-47680-1.
- ^ Snigdha Tripathy 1997, p. 67.
- ^ Snigdha Tripathy 1997, pp. 74–75.
- ISBN 978-81-208-0018-2.
- OCLC 2499291.
- ISBN 978-81-89833-36-7.
- ^ Ayodhya Revisited by Kunal Kishore p.24
- ^ Dineshchandra Sircar 1962, p. 263.
- glosses 'ashva' as "the symbol of mobility, valour and strength" and 'medha' as "the symbol of supreme wisdom and intelligence", yielding a meaning of 'ashvamedha' of "the combination of the valour and strength and illumined power of intellect"
- ^ a b The Critical and Cultural Study of the Shatapatha Brahmana by Swami Satya Prakash Saraswati, p. 415; 476
- ^ Hinduism Today, June 1994 Archived December 13, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Ashwamedha Yagam in city". The Hindu. Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh. Oct 13, 2005. Archived from the original on December 14, 2005. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ^ Ashwamedhayagnam.org Archived September 29, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Madhavacarya, Sarvadarsana-sangraha, English translation by E. B. Cowell and A. E. Gough, 1904 quoted in Debiprasad Chattopadhyaya (ed.), Carvaka/Lokayata: An Anthology of Source Materials and Some Recent Studies (New Delhi: Indian Council of Philosophical Research, 1990)
- ISBN 9781590560662.
- ^ The Vedas: With Illustrative Extracts. Book Tree. p. 62.
horse sacrifice was prohibited in the Kali Yuga
- ^ Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, Writings and Speeches. p. 1376.
- ^ "History of Indian Theatre, Volume 1" by Manohar Laxman Varadpande, p.46
- ^ "Sacred Sacrifice: Ritual Paradigms in Vedic Religion and Early Christianity" by Rick F. Talbott, p. 133
References
- Ashvini Agrawal (1989). Rise and Fall of the Imperial Guptas. Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN 978-81-208-0592-7.
- Charles Drekmeier (1962). Kingship and Community in Early India. Stanford University Press. p. 46. ISBN 978-0-8047-0114-3.
- ISBN 9780199397709.
- Dineshchandra Sircar (1962). Ramesh Chandra Majumdar (ed.). The History and Culture of the Indian People: The classical age. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.
- ISBN 978-81-208-2790-5.
- ISBN 978-1-84331-332-8.
- K M Ganguly (1896). The Mahabharata of Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa. Sacred Texts.
- Glucklich, Ariel (2007). The Strides of Vishnu: Hindu Culture in Historical Perspective. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195314052.
- Rick F. Talbott (2005). Sacred Sacrifice: Ritual Paradigms in Vedic Religion and Early Christianity. Wipf and Stock. ISBN 978-1-59752-340-0.
- Roshen Dalal (2010). Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide. Penguin Books India. ISBN 9780143414216.
- Snigdha Tripathy (1997). Inscriptions of Orissa. Vol. I - Circa 5th-8th centuries A.D. ISBN 978-81-208-1077-8.
- ISBN 9780195096637.
- ISBN 9788131711200.
- ISBN 9781462905072.