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Respected members,

I received this very informative and illuminating article on kANDa r^iShi-s
and their significance from an esteemed member who wishes to remain
anonymous. 

He has requested that I post this to the group on his behalf. I am very
grateful for his detailed discussion of my various questions on this topic.

 

With namaskAram-s to all vedAbhimAnI-s,

Ramesh

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Sri:

asmath gurubhyO namaha

asmath parama gurubhyO namaha

asmath sarva gurubhyO namaha

 

Dear Sri Ramesh and other aasthikas,

 

adiyen would like to offer a few more points to the discussion. 

 

Readers will be more familiar with the divison of the 

samhita-bhagam of the Krishna Yajur Veda (KYV)

into Seven kANDams as follows:

 

I Darsa-Purna-Maasa

II Pasu Vidhanam

III Neuna Karma-Vidhanam

IV Agni-Chiti-Anga Mantra-Patha-Abhidhanam(Agni-Chayana Mantras)

V Ukhya-agni-kathanam

VI soma-mantra-brahmana-nirupanam

VII AshwamEdhA-gata mantrAnam abhidanam

 

The other classification, followed by Bodhayana, Hiranyakesin 

and Apastambha mahArishi-s, is the ArshEya-pAtA-kramam. 

 

This classification, splits the text of  the Samhita/Bramhana/Aranyaka 

into Five kANDA-s - each kANDA named after the rshI who played the

major role in the collection of the MantrAs and BrahmanAs - prajApati,

Soma, Agni, Visvedeva and Svyambhuva.

 

Five KhAndA-a of ArshEya-pAtA-kramam of KYV, along with the

"subjects" covered:

 

I prAjApatyAnI:

  1.paurodasika

  2.yAjamAnA

  3.hOtArah

  4.hautrA

  5.pitra-mEdhA 

 

II saumyam

  1. AdhvaryAva

  2. grahAh

  3. dAkshinAnI

  4. samishta-yajugaMshI

  5. Avabhrta-yajugMshI

  6. vAjapEya

  7. SukriyAni

  8. savAh

 

III Agneyam

  1. agni-Adheya

  2. agnihOtrA

  3. agni-upasthana

  4. agni-chayanA

  5. sAvitrA

  6. nAchiketA

  7. chatur-hOtrA

  8. vaisva-srjam

  9. arunA-kEtu-chayanA

 

 

IV vaisvadEvam

  1. rAja-sUyA

  2. pasu-bandhA

  3. ishtyAha

  4. nakshtra-isthI

  5. Diva-syEnayah

  6. apAgha

  7. sattrAyanA

  8. upa-homAh

  9. sUktanI

  10. aupAnuvAkya

  11. yAjyAh

  12. ashwamAdhA

  13. purusha-mEdhA

  14. sautrAmanI

  15. achidrAni

  16. pasu-Hautra

  17. upanishadah

 

V svyambhuvam kANDam

  1. svAdhyAyA brAmhaNa

 

 

---The sUtrakArA-s of KYV - Bodhayana, Hiranyakesin and 

Apastambha rishi-s have all addressesed the 

upakarma/utsarjana ceremonies in varying levels of detail-

 

---Apasthambha-grhya-sUtram III.8:

upAkaraNe samApanE cha rishiryah pragyAyatE (1)

sadaspatir-dvitIyaha(2)

 

---hiraNyakEsin-grhya-sUtram Prasna I, patala 2, Section 8:

In the context of the vratha-s observed by the

bramhachArI-student at the beginnig and completion of 

the study of a kANDA:

 

". na tvEvavrathah syath| kANDopakaraNE kANDa-visargE cha|
sadasaspathimadbhutahm priyam-indrasya kamyam | 

sanim medhA-mayA-sisham | svAhA | iti kANDa-rshIr-dvitIyah."

 

 

---hiraNyakEsin-grhya-sUtram Prasna II, patala 8, Section 18:

"aThAth upakaraNothsarajanE vyAkhyAsyAmaH...."

 

The rishi recommends the fortnight that precedes the Sravana

full-moon, under Hasta nakshatra or on the full-moon 

day itself for the annual course of opening ceremony of study.

 

vyAhritI oblations are to be made to the rishi-s of the kANDAs,

or to the names of the kANDAs, to the sAvitrI (gAyatrI mantrA),

to the rg-vEda, to the yajur-vEda, to the sAma-vEda, to 

the atharvana-vEda, and to sadaspati:

 

".agnimupsamAdhAya vyahritiparyantam krtvA kANDa-rshI juhOti| 

prajApatyE kANDarshayE svAhA| sOmAya kANDarshayE svAhA| 

agnayE kANDarshayE svAhA| visvEbhyo devEbhyah kANDarshayE svAhA|

svaymbhuvE kANDarshayE svAhA| iti kANDarshayah kANDanAmAni 

vA sAvitrI rg-vEdam  yajur-vEdam  sAma-vEdam-atharvana-vEdam 

sadasaspathimiti|"


Having thus offered oblations, one should repeat the 

first three anuvAkA-s, or the beginnings of all kANDA-s.

 

hiraNyakEsin goes on to describes the time and procedure for the utsarjana
ceremony.

 

Regarding the position on the yagnopvitham while offering rshI tarpanam:

 

".niVItin uttharat udIchin-pravaN udakagrairdarbhai: prAgapavargANyAsanAni
kalpayanti visvAmitrAy jamadagnyE bharadvAjAy gouthmAyAtraAyE vasishTAya
kashyapAy.."

 

 

---bodhAyanA-grhya-sUtram Prasna III, adhyAyA-s I and II  are on similar
lines to the description given by hiraNyakEsin, but much more elaborate,
This is very similar to that description given by hiraNyakEsin. Oblations to
yagnIkI-devatA, sAmhtI-devata, vAruNIa-devata are specifically mentioned in
this text. The ArshEya-pAtA-kramam listed out above, is also found here. 

 

The shikshavalli that expounds samhitopasana is called "sAMhitI", the
anandavalli and bhriguvalli are called "vAruNI" as the were taught by
varuNA. The mahAnArAyanOpanishad is well known as "yaajniki upanishad" -
Bhagavan Narayana, well known by the name Yagna, is the seer, and this
upanishad expounds the "yagna" of the form of the worship of the Supreme
Lord. 

 

[wrt to the question on placement of the yagnopavitham while offering
libation, Prasna II, AdhyAyA II  of bodhAyanA-grhya-sUtram says . aTha vai
bhavati nivItammanushyaNAM prachInAvItaM pitrnAM upavItam dEvanAM iti| ...] 

 

 

The kANDa rshI tarpana varies according to the shAkhA. For the KYV, there
are 4 kANDa-rshI-s, 3 upanishad devatas, 1 svAdhyAyA brAmhaNa, 1 Lord of the
assembly (sadaspati) - a total of 9 tarpanas are to be offered. 

 

The sAma-vEdins offer around 275 tarpana-s - including the sapta-rshI-s, the
teachers of the sAmA, pravachana kartArA, sacred rivers, the vamsa-brAmhaNa,
devataa-s, and pitarah. 

This lineage of rshi-s through whom the sAma-vEda has ben passed is dealt
with in the vamsa-brAmhaNa of the sAma-vEda. The vamsa-brAmhaNa says that
brAmhan learnt the sAma-sampradaya from none because he is "svyambhU", ie.
SvayambhAtavidyA, as Sayana explains - the knowledge revealed itself to Him.


Perhaps, this explanation can be applied to the svyambhuvam kANDam
(svAdhyAyA brAmhaNa) of the KYV as well.

 

At the conclusion, adiyen would like to reiterate this sentence from Sri
Vijayaraghavan Swamin's article,

( <http://www.ramanuja.org/sv/rituals/upakarma/significance.html>
http://www.ramanuja.org/sv/rituals/upakarma/significance.html) 

 

"The main purpose of the Upakarma function is to offer prayers and express
our gratitude to those rishis who gave us the Vedas -- the rishis through
whom the Vedic mantras were revealed."

 

The compassionate rshi-s and acharya-s (at the behest of the most merciful
Lord Sriman Narayana) have combined, compressed, and shortened many of the
mandatory karmas just for our "convenience". UpAkarmA and UtsarjanA signify
the beginning and conclusion of the study of one's shAkhA of the Veda.   The
veda-adhyAyanam is the most important part of the ceremonies. Yet, we teach
our children that upakArmA just means "thread-changing ceremony", that
reciting veda is only for "vadyars" and not for us "highly-educated
professionals" and thus totally abandon the study of Veda. 

 

Let us take a resolution during this upAkarmA/utsarjanA day as well as on
gAyatri-japam-day that within the next year each one of us will attempt to
learn atleast one sooktam or even one anuvakam of our own shAkha from a
qualified teacher! Purusha-suktam, upanishad, vedaarambham,
veda-sattumurrai, tamil vedam are all great to start with. 

 

munnivvulaguezhum irul mandiyunna
  munnivarodu daannavargaL thisaippa - vandhu
pannulagai naal-veda porulai-yellaam
  parimugamaay aruliya emparaman kaanmin,



(Periya Tirumozhi 7.8.2)

 

All errors above are due to adiyEn's ignorance.

 

srimate sri lakshmi-hayavadana parabramhane namaha!

ramanuja dasan.



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]





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