Suparṇa, Garuḍa, Eagle, Meluhha hieroglyph, Indus Script Corpora; rebus-metonymy layered cipher: gold, hard metal, fire-altar

Suparṇa, Garuḍa, Eagle, Meluhha hieroglyph, Indus Script Corpora; rebus-metonymy layered cipher: gold, hard metal, fire-altar Eagle is an abiding metaphor in a mint or smithy evidenced by hieroglyphs on early coins and on Indus scrip writing system. The hieroglyph of 'eagle' is also associated with other hieroglyphs such as: nāga 'serpent' rebus: 'lead'; ḍ g mountain-ridge; dhangar ‘blacksmith’ and kaṇḍ 'firealtar' (Santali) kāṇḍa 'tools, pots and pans and metal-ware' -- all signifiers related to metalwork. Dominant orthography signifies eraka 'wing' rebus: eraka, arka 'copper'. Signifier glosses of eagle, falcon, kite are: garuḍa [p= 1095,2] m. a hawk , falcon , eagle , any bird of prey (esp. the eagle that brings down

to man) RV. &c; the signified semantics of rebus glosses

are: garuḍa 'gold'; firewood laid in the shape of an eagle S3ulbas.; sena, heṇa ʻ thunderbolt ʼ (Sinhalese) eṟaka ‘wing’ (Telugu) Rebus: erako ‘molten cast’ (Tulu) pajhar ‘eagle’ (pazuzu -Akkadian); rebus: pasra ‘smithy’. Rebus: suparṇa Emerald. Relating to bird or Garuḍa; R.16.8. (Apte. Samskritam) Gold (Samskritam. Monier-Williams) Hieroglyph: [p=1227,3] mf (/ई)n. having beautiful wings RV.m. any large bird of prey (as a vulture , eagle ; also applicable to the sun or moon as " having beautiful rays " , and to

and clouds

; du. " sun and moon ") ib.m. any mythical or supernatural bird (often identified with

, and

sometimes personified as a ,a , and an ) RV. TS. Ka1t2h. MBh.m. a ray Naigh. m. N. of one of the seven tongues of fire Gr2ihya1s. ल

[p= 94,1] m. a kind of bird VS. xxiv , 34. Identity to be investigated further. [kāraṇḍavamu] [Skt.] n. A sort of duck.

Hieroglyph: karaṇḍa duck (CDIAL 2787). Rebus:

[ karaḍā ] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi)

Hieroglyph: Safflower: [ karaḍī ] f (See ई) Safflower: also its seed. Rebus: [ karaḍā ] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c (Marathi) karaḍa -- m. ʻsafflowerʼ, °ḍā -- f. ʻ a tree like the karañja ʼ (Prakrit); M. karḍī, °ḍaī f. ʻ safflower, carthamus tinctorius and its seed ʼ. (CDIAL 2788). Rebus: [karaḍā] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi) kharādī ' turner, a person who fashions or shapes objects on a lathe' (Gujarati) All signifiers associated with metalwork are sacred and get displayed in sacred settings of temples. This is consistent with the semantics of kole.l 'smithy, temple' (Kota), a smithy IS a temple, a sacred space. The hieroglyph 'eagle' in association with vajra 'forked' is rendered in rebus-metonymy layered cipher: vajra 'adamantine, glue'. gāruḍa 'gold' (Samskritam)

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śyenaciti 'falcon altar' or kankaciti 'heron altar' are variant bird-shaped sacred spaces and structures described in the Śulbasūtras related to Vedic Yajnas. Such structures are also attested in archaeometallurgy. Many sites with such altars are also associated with coin-mints and metalwork [as for example, in Sanghol and sites such as Purola (Uttarakashi) linked with Kunindas in northern Bharatam].

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Hieroglyphs of kanka 'heron' on Dong Son bronze drums.

https://www.behance.net/gallery/13022597/Lac-Bird Nam TrangDang's blog

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Bird, boat hieroglyphs on Dong Son drums http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2015/02/hieroglyphs-on-dong-son-drums-relate-to.html

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Candi Sukuh in Indonesia presents the sculpture of an eagle in association with an elephant: ibha 'elephant' Rebus: ib 'iron'. eraka 'wing' Rebus: eraka 'moltencast' garuDa 'eagle' Rebus: karaDa 'hard alloy'; garuDa 'gold' (Samskritam) In the Ancient Near East, the metaphor of 'eagle' is expanded into a narrrative of Anzu bird which steals tablets of destiny. The gloss anzu is relatable to ancu 'iron' (Tocharian) and amzu 'Soma filament' (Rigveda) In Nahal Mishmar (Israel) cire perdue artifacts of copper alloys (arsenical copper?), two birds are shown on a crown which compare with the two aquatic birds shown on a boat together with oxhide ingots on a Mohenjo-daro prism tablet.

Harappa seal h166A, h166B. Vats, 1940, Excavations in Harappa, Vol. II, Calcutta: Pl. XCI. 255 ḍangar 'bull', ḍ g mountain-ridge (H.)(CDIAL 5476). Rebus: dhangar ‘blacksmith’ (Maithili)

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Thunderbolt pattern with an eagle on a coin from Olympia, Greece, 432-c.421 BCE. Hieroglyph: eruvai 'eagle'; synonym: 'eagle' eraka 'wing'. Rebus: eruvai 'copper' + [ karaḍā ] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. eraka 'moltencast' Hieroglyph: vajra 'forked' Rebus: vajra 'adamantine, glue'. gāruḍa 'gold' (Samskritam) [p= 1017,2] f. (later also

; for 1. 2. » col.2) an elevated (or according to some excavated)

piece of ground serving for a sacrificial altar (generally strewed with grass , and having receptacles for the sacrificial fire ; it is more or less raised and of various shapes , but usually narrow in the middle , on which account the female waist is often compared to it) RV. &cthe space between the supposed spokes of a wheel-shaped altar , S3ulbas.a stand , basis , pedestal , bench MBh. Ka1v. &c Hieroglyph/Rebus: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali) kāṇḍa 'tools, pots and pans and metal-ware' (Marathi)

f. knowledge , science (»

- °)

nāga [p= 532,3] m. (prob. neither fr. - nor fr. (esp.) Coluber Naga S3Br. MBh. &c nāga n. (m. L. ) tin , lead Bhpr. n. a kind of coitus L.

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) a snake ,

[p= 348,3] m. ( √2. Un2. iv , 155 , " devourer " , because was perhaps originally identified with the all-consuming fire of the sun's rays) , N. of a mythical bird (chief of the feathered race , enemy of the serpent-race [cf. RTL. p.321] , vehicle of [cf. RTL. pp. 65 ; 104 ; 288] , son of

and

; shortly after his birth he frightened the gods by his

brilliant lustre ; they supposed him to be

, and requested his protection ; when they

discovered that he was

, they praised him as the highest being , and called him fire and

sun MBh. i , 1239 ff. ;

, the charioteer of the sun or the personified dawn , is said to be the

elder [or younger cf. RTL. p.104] brother of female

=

;

, the wife of

, takes the shape of a

MBh. iii , 14307 and 14343) Suparn2. TA1r. x , 1 , 6 MBh. &ca building

shaped like R. VarBr2S. See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2015/06/suparna-syenapatanga-garuda-takes-to.html gāruḍa

a. (-

Garuḍa. - , -

f.) [

] 1 Shaped like Ga- ruḍa. -2 Coming from or relating to ल

1 An emerald;

charm against (snake) poison;

R.13.53. -2 A

K.51 (where it has sense 1 also). -3 A missile

presided over by Garuḍa. -4 A military array (

) of the shape of Garuḍa. -5 Gold.

Ta. eruvai a kind of kite whose head is white and whose body is brown; eagle. Ma. eruva eagle, kite.(DEDR 818). Rebus: eruvai ‘copper’ (Tamil). eṟaka ‘wing’ (Telugu) Rebus: erako ‘molten cast’ (Tulu) loa ‘ficus’; rebus: loh ‘copper’. Pajhar ‘eagle’; rebus: pasra ‘smithy’. Hieroglyph: [p= 913,1] mfn. shaped like a kind of cross (cf. above ) , forked , zigzag ib. [cf. Zd. vazra , " a club. "] Rebus:

[p= 913,1] mn. n. a kind of hard iron or steel L. mfn. adamantine , hard ,

impenetrable W." the hard or mighty one " , a thunderbolt (esp. that of

, said to have been

formed out of the bones of the or [q.v.] , and shaped like a circular discus , or in later times regarded as having the form of two transverse bolts crossing each other thus x ; sometimes also applied to similar weapons used by various gods or superhuman beings , or to any mythical weapon destructive of spells or charms , also to , " wrath " RV. or [with

] to a jet of water AV. &c ; also applied to a thunderbolt in general or to the lightning

evolved from the centrifugal energy of the circular thunderbolt of when launched at a foe ; in Northern Buddhist countries it is shaped like a dumb-bell and called Dorje ; » MWB. 201 ; 322 &c ) RV. &ca diamond (thought to be as hard as the thunderbolt or of the same substance 7

with it) , Shad2vBr. Mn. MBh. &cm. a form of military array , Mn. MBh. &c (cf. hard mortar or cement (

)a kind of

) VarBr2S. (cf. -ल )

m0451A,B Text 3235

m1390Bt Text 2868 Pict-74: Bird in flight.

Elamite bird (eagle?) with spread wings on an axe-head from Tepe Yahya (Lamberg-Karlovsky, C.C. and D.T. Potts. 2001. Excavations at 8

Tepe Yahya, Iran, 1967-1975: The Third Millennium. Cambridge: Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University, p.216).

Gulf seal with bucranium (top center), anthropomorph (left), grid, and scorpion (right), as well as bird (Kjaerum, Poul. 1983. Failaka / Dilmun, the Second Millennium Settlements, Vol. 1:1, The Stamp and Cylinder Seals. Jutland Archaeological Society Publications XVII:1. Moesgard, Aarhus: Jysk Arkaeologisk Selskab, p.37).

3255; Louvre Museum; Luristan; light yellow stone; seal impression; one side shows four eagles; the eagles hold snakes in their beaks; at the center is a human figure with outstretched limbs; obverse of the seal shows an animal, perhaps a hyena or boar striding across the field, with a smaller animal of the same type depicted above it

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eGTTn T1 rsToG moTfwslTes owT TG emGT)9T,7T.gneT,233-232T:bT1891 wn nhnT((h woTbwsr To s GTT;aowee bThGm T TG ew eGhTs Ts GTf nG. T.r T oGTsfT T wlsowGw

A shaft hole axe found in Bactria depicting a double eagle headed man fighting a tiger and a boar.

kuṭhārḥ

rī

1 An axe, or hatchet;

Bh.3.11.-2 A sort of hoe or spade; Kau. A.2.3.Rebus: 3 An armourer.(Samskritam) gaṇḍakḥ [ ] 1 A rhinoceros rhinoceros.(Marathi) Rebus: kaNDA 'fire altar' (Santali)

ल

1 A tree. -2 An ape, a monkey. -

[ gēṇḍā ] m ( H) A

Rhinoceros/boar: baḍhia = a castrated boar, a hog (Santali) baḍhi ‘a caste who work both in iron and wood’ (Santali) baṟea ‘merchant’ 10

kul ‘tiger’ (Santali); kōlu id. (Telugu) kōlupuli = Bengal tiger (Te.) कोल्हा [ kōlhā ] कोल्हें [kōlhēṃ] A jackal (Marathi) Rebus: kol, kolhe, ‘the koles, iron smelters speaking a language akin to that of Santals’ (Santali) kol ‘working in iron’ (Tamil)

The struggle of the eagle and the serpent found on a soapstone bas-relief in Nippur, ca 2500 B.C.E. Nippur vessel with combatant snake and eagle motif. Istanbul Museum. The design is raised above the base; the vessel of chlorite was found in a mixed Ur III context at Nippur in southern Mesopotamia. See Langdon, Semitic Mythology, p. 170 (fig. 65). See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2011/10/itihasa-and-eagle-narratives.html

Hieroglyphs:

(p. 662) [ mēḍha ] f A forked stake. Used as a post. Hence a short post

generally whether forked or not. Pr.

ल ल

. 2 The polar star.

(Marathi) Rebus: mēḍ 'iron' (Ho. Munda) kola 'tiger' Rebus: kol 'kolhe, smelter' kol 'working in 11

iron' Rebus:

(p. 159) [ kāraṇḍava ] m S A drake or sort of duck.

f S The female. (Marathi)

(p. 137) [ karaḍā ] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c(Marathi)

Royal seal of Šauštatar of Mitanni. Shaushtatar (also spelled Šauštatar) son of Parshatatar was a king of the Hurrian kingdom of Mitanni in the fifteenth century BCE.

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Mohenjo-daro. One side of a tablet shows two ox-hide shaped ingots, two palm trees and two birds. The two birds are comparable to the two birds on the Nahal Mishmar copper crown. On another side of the Mohenjo-daro tablet, a fish + crocodile hieroglyphs are shown. A list of glyphs (signs) appear on the third side of the prism tablet.. Fish + Crocodile hieroglyphs are read as Meluhha words denoting fish & crocodile: ayas + kara; read rebus: ayakara 'metal smith' (Pali). Thus, the two bird hieroglyphs are also relatable to the smithy artisan's or lapidary's

work. See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2014/01/meluhha-metallurgical-roots-and-spread.html

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[ Crown, copper, lost wax technique, from the Cave of the Treasure (Nahal Mishmar) Judean Desert. The hoard was made up mainly of copper objects, 240 mace heads, 80 sceptres and 10 crowns, probably from the sanctuary at Ein Geddi. Collections of IDAM Israel Museum(IDAM), Jerusalem, Israel 4th millennium BCE. kōṭhī ] f (

S) A granary, garner, storehouse, warehouse, treasury, factory, bank. 2 The grain

and provisions (as of an army); the commissariatsupplies. granary, store-room, warehouse, water-reservoir &c. castle. 2 The wall of a fort. [ kōṭa ] m ( 2 The wall of a fort or town. (Marathi)

[ kōṭhā ] m ( [ kōṭha ] m (

S) A large

S) A fort: also a

S) A fort, fortress, castle, stronghold, tower &c.

Rebus: Ko. guṛy temple Te. koṭika hamlet; guḍi temple; guḍise hut, cottage, hovel. Kol. (SR) guḍī temple. Pa. guḍi temple, village resthouse. Ga. (Oll.) guḍi temple. Go.(Ko.) guḍi, (Mu.) guḍḍi, (S. Ko.) guṛi temple; guḍḍī (Ph.) temple, (Tr.) (DEDR 1655) See Turner, CDIAL, no. 3232, kuṭī-, no. 3493, kōṭa-, no. 3233, kuṭumba-, for most of the Skt. Forms. [kāraṇḍavamu] [Skt.] n. A sort of duck.

Hieroglyph: karaṇḍa duck (CDIAL 2787). Rebus:

[ karaḍā ] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi)

Rebus: ख

[ kharaḍa ] f (ख

) A hurriedly written or drawn piece; a scrawl; a mere tracing or

rude sketch. Rebus: kharādī ‘ turner’ (Gujarati) Alternative: vartaka ‘duck’ Rebus: vartaka ‘merchant’. vartaka ‘bell-metal, brass’. karandi 'fire-god' (Remo) eṟaka ‘wing’ (Telugu) Rebus: erako ‘molten cast’ (Tulu) loa ‘ficus’; rebus: loh 14

‘copper’. Pajhar ‘eagle’; rebus: pasra ‘smithy’. ḍato = claws of crab (Santali) ḍato ‘claws or pincers (chelae) of crabs’; ḍaṭom, ḍiṭom to seize with the claws or pincers, as crabs, scorpions; ḍaṭkop = to pinch, nip (only of crabs) (Santali) Rebus: dhātu = mineral (Skt.) kamaṭha crab (Skt.) Rebus: kammaṭa = portable furnace (Te.) kampaṭṭam coiner, mint (Ta.) Peg ‘khuṇṭa’; rebus: kūṭa ‘workshop’ khũṭi = pin (M.) kuṭi= smelter furnace (Santali) konḍu मूलिकादिघर्षणवस्तु m. a washerman's dressing iron (El. kunḍh); a scraper or grater for grating radishes, or the like; usually ˚ -- , the second member being the article to be grated, as in the following: -- kȧnḍi-mujü घर्र्षता मूलिका f. grated radish, but mujĕkonḍu, a radish-grater (cf. mujü). (Kashmiri) *khuṭṭa1 ʻ peg, post ʼ. 2. *khuṇṭa -- 1. [Same as *khuṭṭa -- 2? -- See also kṣōḍa -- .]1. Ku. khuṭī ʻ peg ʼ; N. khuṭnu ʻ to stitch ʼ (der. *khuṭ ʻ pin ʼ as khilnu from khil s.v. khīˊla -- ); Mth. khuṭā ʻ peg, post ʼ; H. khūṭā m. ʻ peg, stump ʼ; Marw. khuṭī f. ʻ peg ʼ; M. khuṭā m. ʻ post ʼ.2. Pk. khuṁṭa -- , khoṁṭaya -- m. ʻ peg, post ʼ; Dm. kuṇḍa ʻ peg for fastening yoke to plough -- pole ʼ; L. khūḍī f. ʻ drum -- stick ʼ; P. khuṇḍ, ḍā m. ʻ peg, stump ʼ; WPah. rudh. khuṇḍ ʻ tethering peg or post ʼ; A. khũṭā ʻ post ʼ, ṭi ʻ peg ʼ; B. khũṭā, ṭi ʻ wooden post, stake, pin, wedge ʼ; Or. khuṇṭa, ṭāʻ pillar, post ʼ; Bi. (with -ḍa -- ) khũṭrā, rī ʻ posts about one foot high rising from body of cart ʼ; H. khūṭā m. ʻ stump, log ʼ, ṭī f. ʻ small peg ʼ (→ P.khūṭā m., ṭī f. ʻ stake, peg ʼ); G. khūṭ f. ʻ landmark ʼ, khũṭɔ m., ṭī f. ʻ peg ʼ, ṭũ n. ʻ stump ʼ, ṭiyũ n. ʻ upright support in frame of wagon ʼ, khūṭṛũn. ʻ half -- burnt piece of fuel ʼ; M. khũṭ m. ʻ stump of tree, pile in river, grume on teat ʼ (semant. cf. kīla -- 1 s.v. *khila -2), khũṭā m. ʻ stake ʼ, ṭī f. ʻ wooden pin ʼ, khũṭaḷṇẽ ʻ to dibble ʼ.Addenda: *khuṭṭa -- 1. 2. *khuṇṭa -- 1: WPah.kṭg. khvndɔ ʻ pole for fencing or piling grass round ʼ (Him.I 35 nd poss. wrong for ṇḍ); J. khuṇḍā m. ʻ peg to fasten cattle to ʼ. (CDIAL 3893) Vikalpa: pacar = a wedge driven ino a wooden pin, wedge etc. to tighten it (Santali.lex.) pasra = a smithy, place where a black-smith works, to work as a blacksmith; kamar pasra = a smithy; pasrao lagao akata se ban:? Has the blacksmith begun to work? pasraedae = the blacksmith is at his work (Santali.lex.) khareḍo = a currycomb (G.) Rebus: kharādī ‘ turner’ (G.)

Greeting the Sun God, A modern clay impression from a Mesopotamian cylinder seal, The Seal of Adda. Akkadian Period, 2350 BC - 2100 BC. The British Museum

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lo 'overflow' (Munda) Rebus: lo 'copper' (Santali) kāṇḍa 'water' Rebus: kāṇḍā 'metal tools, pots and pans' ayo 'fish' Rebus: ayas 'metal'. Ta. eruvai a kind of kite whose head is white and whose body is brown; eagle. Ma. eruva eagle, kite.(DEDR 818). Rebus: eruvai ‘copper’ (Tamil). kuṭa, °ṭi -- , °ṭha -- 3, °ṭhi -- m. ʻ tree ʼ lex., °ṭaka -- m. ʻ a kind of tree ʼ Kauś. (CDIAL 3228). Rebus: kuṭi 'smelter furnace' (Santali). B. kāti ʻ shell -- cutter's saw ʼ, kātān ʻ large sacrificial knife ʼ; Or. katā ʻ small billhook ʼ, kātī ʻ knife ʼ; Bi. Mth. kāt ʻ brazier's cutters ʼ; H. kāt m. ʻ shears for shearing sheep, cock's spur ʼ, °tā m. ʻ knife for cutting bamboos ʼ, (kattā m. ʻ small curved sword ʼ, kattī f. ʻ knife ʼ, kaṭṭī f. ʻ small sword ʼ ← EP.); G. kātũ n. ʻ knife ʼ, °tī f. ʻ knife, saw ʼ; M. kātī f. ʻ cleaver ʼ.kārti (CDIAL 2853) G. bhāthɔ, bhātɔ, bhāthṛɔ m. ʻ quiver ʼ (whence bhāthī m. ʻ warrior ʼ); M. bhātā m. ʻ leathern bag, bellows, quiver ʼ, bhātaḍ n. ʻ bellows, quiver ʼ; bhástrā f. ʻ leathern bag ʼ ŚBr., ʻ bellows ʼ Kāv., bhastrikā -- f. ʻ little bag ʼ Daś.(CDIAL 9424). Rebus: bhaṭa ‘furnace’. OA. bhāthi ʻ bellows ʼ A D 2 6. . bh ṭi ʻ bellows ʼ, H. bhāṭhī f. kola ‘woman’; rebus: kol ‘working in iron’ (Ta.) Rebus: khati 'wheelwright' (H.) kāṭi = fireplace in the form of a long ditch (Ta.Skt.Vedic) meṭṭu 'dance step'; rebus: meḍ 'iron' (Ho.) ‘mountain’: a rock.

[ meṭṭa ] or ,

,

meṭṭa. [Tel.] n. Rising ground, high lying land, uplands. A hill, ,

mēṭu , n. [T. meṭṭa, M. K. mēḍu.] 1. Height;

.

.( .) 2. Eminence, little hill, hillock, ridge, rising ground; .( .) Ka. mede heap. Te. (VPK, intro. p. 128) meda id. (DEDR 5 65) Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ ‘iron’ (Mu.Ho.) meṭṭu 'dance step'; rebus: meḍ 'iron' (Ho.) kāmaṭhum, ‘bow’. Rebus: kammaṭi a coiner (Ka.); kampaṭṭam coinage, coin, mint (Ta.) kammaṭa = mint, gold furnace (Te.) Vikalpa: kaṇḍa ‘stone (ore)’. ran:ga ron:ga, ran:ga con:ga = thorny, spikey, armed with thorns; edel dare ran:ga con:ga dareka = this cotton tree grows with spikes on it (Santali) Rebus: ranku ‘tin’ (Santali) ख [ khōṇḍa ] m A young bull, a bullcalf. Rebus: kõdā ‘to turn in a lathe’ (B.) [kōṇḍaṇa] f A fold or pen. (Marathi) koḍe ‘young bull’ (Telugu) koḍ ‘one’. Ta. kōṭu (in cpds. kōṭṭu-) horn; Pa. kōḍ (pl. kōḍul) horn; Go. (Tr.) kōr (obl. kōt-, pl. kōhk) horn of cattle or wild animals; Ka. kōḍu horn (DEDR 2200). koḍ = place where artisans work (G.) Aramaic aryaa 'l' aryeh 'lion'. Rebus: A Northwest Semitic root *ryh 'lion'. eraka, era, er-a = syn. erka, copper, weapons (Ka.) Rebus: aru m. ʻ sun ʼ lex. Kho. yor Morgenstierne NTS ii 276 with ? Whence y -- ? (CDIAL 612) Rebus: āra ‘brass’ as in ārakūṭa (Skt.) 16

Ta. ciṟai, ciṟaku, ciṟakar wing; iṟai, iṟaku, iṟakar, iṟakkai wing, feather. Ma. iṟaku, ciṟaku wing. Ko. rek wing, feather. Ka. eṟake, eṟaṅke, ṟakke, ṟekke wing; ṟaṭṭe, ṟeṭṭe wing, upper arm. Koḍ. rekke wing; raṭṭe upper arm. Tu. ediṅke, reṅkè ing. Te. eṟaka, ṟekka, rekka, neṟaka, neṟi id. Kol. reḍapa, (SR.) reppā id.; (P.) reṛapa id., feather. Nk. rekka, reppa wing. Pa. (S.) rekka id. Go. (S.) rekka wing-feather; reka (M.) feather, (Ko.) wing (Voc. 3045). Konḍa ṟeka wing, upper arm. Kuwi (Su.) rekka wing. (DEDR 2591). Ko. kerŋgl, kergl feather, wing. (DEDR 1983). Rebus: eraka, eṟaka = any metal infusion (Ka.Tu.); urukku (Ta.); urukka melting; urukku what is melted; fused metal (Ma.); urukku (Ta.Ma.); eragu = to melt; molten state, fusion; erakaddu = any cast thng; erake hoyi = to pour meltted metal into a mould, to cast (Ka.)

Add caption Zu as a lion-headed eagle, ca. 2550–2500 BCE, Louvre AO2783 Votive relief of Ur-Nanshe, king of Lagash, representing the bird-god Anzu (or Im-dugud) as a lion-headed eagle. Alabaster, Early Dynastic III (2550–2500 BC). Found in Telloh, ancient city of Girsu. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Relief_Im-dugud_Louvre_AO2783.jpg Ta. eruvai a kind of kite whose head is white and whose body is brown; eagle. Ma. eruva eagle, kite.(DEDR 818). Rebus:eruvai ‘copper’ (Tamil). Rising from the mountain in the center is the sun god Utu/Shamash, greeted by three other great gods. From left to right, they are: the storm god Ninurta; the goddess of love and war, Inanna/Ishtar; and the god of water and wisdom, Enki/Ea. To Enki's right is his vizier, the twofaced Usmu. (When the gods are given a pair of names linked with a slash, like "Utu/Shamash", the first is the Sumerian name, the second the Akkadian or Babylonian name.) As high gods, they all wear conical hats crowned with four pairs of bull's horns. But they are easily identified by the special signs and powers that spring from their shoulders. In the exact center, with his sun held overhead, and flames rising from his shoulders, is the sun god Utu/Shamash. He also holds up a saw-toothed knife, or pruning saw, which some say he uses to cut his way out of the mountain; but most say the pruning saw symbolizes his role as a judge of gods and men who "de-cides" each case by "cutting off" the bad from the good. It is dawn, and he rises from Kur, the cosmic mountain (indicated by the usual mountain pattern of overlapping scallops). Kur is also the name of the Underworld, which has two entrances: one in the west, where the sun god descends each night, and one in the east, where he rises at dawn. Directly above Utu/Shamash, and giving him a hand up by touching or tugging on his rising sun, is his sister, Inanna/Ishtar, the Queen of Heaven and Earth. From her shoulders stretch 17

widespread wings, showing she rules the sky. From behind her shoulders bristle six weapons (spears and maces) that show she is a war goddess, a mistress of battles. She is also a goddess of love, a fertility goddess. So beside her there's a sacred tree, the Tree of Life, which sprouts from the Mountain of the Underworld. On the other side of Utu/Shamash is Enki/Ea, the god of wisdom and "sweet water" - the fresh water without which nothing can live, and which is opposed to the cosmic ocean of "bitter" salt water that surounds the earth, and even the heavens, on all sides, top and bottom. (It is probably this "sweet" water that is the Water of Life which Enki sends along with the Food of Life to revive Inanna's corpse in the Underworld.) Enki is identified by two streams of fresh water (the Tigris and Euphrates rivers) that spring from his shoulders, and which are filled with fish. (In other pictures, the two streams may flow from jars or vases that he holds.) With one hand Enki holds the thunderbird [the now-tamed Imdugud/Zu?], while at his feet kneels a horned animal, a water buffalo or a bull, a symbol of life. Behind Enki is his minister or vizier, the Janus-faced Usmu, who is himself a voice of wisdom as he faces both forwards and backwards, towards the future and the past. The bearded storm-god Inurta on his winged and maned lion as he battles the lion-headed birdgod Imdugud/Anzu. On the left side of the scene is the bearded storm god Ninurta with his bow and arrows. Beside him is a lion, a symbol of death. On other seals, such as the one at right, Ninurta's lion appears winged and breathing flames as the god rides him into battle against various Underworld demons and monsters - here defeating the treacherous fire-breathing lion-headed bird Zu. Above Ninurta's lion is a block of cuneiform writing with the Akkadian name "Adda," which also means "scribe." This shows the cylinder seal was custom-made for the official who owned and used it to sign and seal important documents and letters. These were clay tablets, of course, but larger than the modern strip of clay on which Adda's stone cylinder was rolled to create the image before us. Its printout was "over-rolled," which is why the lion-plus-signature image reappears on the right, just beyond two-faced Usmu, but now facing the "wrong way," off-stage to the right. See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2013/06/tablet-of-destinies.html S. Kalyanaraman Sarasvati Research Center June 4, 2015 vedi: Vedic Altars In the Vedic sacrificial ritual, when a sacrifice is performed for the benefit of a sacrificer, the dimension of the sacrificial altar is derived from the dimension of the sacrificer. The ritual requires that the altar be constructed of layers of bricks, from which the deity is invoked through the power of hymns. Having been invoked, the deity flies to the site of the sacrifice in his ratha, or "chariot," partakes of the sacrifice offered from the altar, and then departs. After this ritual, the 18

altar is abandoned. Accordingly, texts describe altars as falcon-shaped and, to one extent or another, these altars conform to the shape of a bird, or more accurately, the shadow of a bird on the ground. There are a number of possible representations of falcons, most of which are composed of shapes which bear no resemblance to temple plans, and thus do not share a common constructive diagram. One of the few representations of this falcon that resembles a temple plan is given in the Manava Shulbasutra, which is part of a class of texts called shulbasutras, or "cord-rules," which treat of altar construction. The altar is called Caturasra Shyena, or "four-sided falcon," and consists of a 'falcon' with a square body and head, two rectangular wings, and a rectangular tail. The first step in the construction of the altar is to determine the size of the angula, or "finger," the fundamental unit of measure used to determine the various dimensions of the altar. The Manava Shulbasutra gives two options for determining the size of the angula, the first based on division, and the second based on multiplication. According to the first method, if the sacrificer is standing with his feet flat on the ground and his arms raised, then this height is said to be 120 angulas; and if the sacrificer is standing on his toes, then this height is said to be 125 angulas. The length of 120 angulas is called a purusha, or "man." In the second method, the distance between the lines forming the middle part of the middle finger of the sacrificer is equal to one angula, or, if the sacrificer is short, then one angula may be formed from the width of six barley grains. Thus, unless the sacrificer's body is found to be deficient, the dimension of the sacrificial altar derives from the dimension of the sacrificer. The second step in the construction of the altar is to determine its location and orientation. The orientation is both spatial and temporal; the orienting procedure determines not only the direction of the ritual object, but also the time of its construction. Similar procedures were utilized to orient any propitious event. The simplest procedures for determining time and orientation in the Indian tradition utilize gnomons and ropes. The earliest example of the application of this technique occurs in the orientation of the Vedic sacrificial altar. The shadow of a gnomon is used to determine the primary, east-west line, and pegs, cords, and rods are used to layout a square of 240 x 240 angulas, represented by the gray area in the following figure:

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In the figure above east is located at the top, following the Indian tradition of the representation of orientation, and thus the primary east-west line is vertical. When the size and orientation have been fixed, the altar is constructed out of five layers of bricks, each layer consisting of 200 bricks. The height of each layer is six angulas, so that the total height is 30 angulas, which is equal to the width of the largest brick. The 'body' of the falcon is square, the same square with a dimension of 240 angula, or 2purushas, that was formed at the time of location and orientation of the altar.

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In order that the four limbs of the falcon do not break away from the body, structural integrity is maintained by overlapping layers with different arrangements of bricks. The bricks of the first, third, and fifth layers of the Caturasra Shyena altar are are constructed with three different bricks in the following quantities and sizes, where a =angula:

21

  

110 30a x 30a 85 12a x 12a 5 12a x 6a

The second, and fourth layers of the Caturasra Shyena altar are constructed with four different bricks in the following quantities and sizes:

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   

110 30a x 30a 75 12a x 12a 10 12a x 6a 5 18a x 12a

The square 'body' of the altar may thus also be described as an 8 x 8 grid, a pattern which is most apparent in the arrangement of bricks in layers 1, 3, and 5. This 8 x 8 grid is proportionally equivalent to the plans of Indian temples, and the areas enclosed by the representations of walls in tantric yantras and mandalas.   

List of Illustrations Bibliography Index

Patrick A. George ([email protected]) http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/george/vedi.html Sulbasutras: Indian Texts on Sacred Geometry BY: PARAMESWARAN MURTHIYEDATH Nov 26, CANADA (SUN) — Vedic instruction on geometric design of sacred structures, spaces. 23

The Sulbasutras deal with geometrical constructions, a large majority of them for the purpose of carrying out Vedic rituals at precisely constructed altars and similar such ends, that are popularly believed to date to the millennium before Christ or the end of the Vedic age. Of these, Baudhayana’s Sulbasutra is believed to date to the 8th century B.C. Later, other authors including Apastamba, Manava, Katyayana,Satyasadha Hiranyakesin, Vadhula, Varaha and Kathaka composed sulbasutras as well, although the chronological order in which these texts were composed remains unknown as yet. The first five of the sulbasutras is found available in text form while the manuscripts of the others are known to exist. Still later, the commentaries of Kapardi, Karavinda, Sundararaja and Dwarkanath aappeared. In more recent times there have been commentaries written by Thibault and Van Geldner in the second half of the 19th century A.D., followed by S. N. Sen and the last by A.K. Bag in 1983. Baudhayana’s work and his successors The Baudhayana Sulbasutram (BSS) is possibly the most important sulbasutra text since it contains the principles of prescribed geometry for the Vedic altar space. Baudhayana, after dwelling upon the basic geometrical construction concepts prevalent during his and earlier times in the first set of sutra, described the Vedic altar space in general and then the 14uttaravedi forms. His descriptions of the uttaravedis reveal a remarkable approach to geometry and the text serves as a model for technical accuracy and brevity. The order present in the geometrical analysis as well as in the flow of the text, its subject matter, reveal great clarity of thinking in the author’s mind and set the text apart from its later counterparts. The later sulbasutras either dealt with matters mentioned in Baudhayana’s work and developed it further, or discussed issues that were omitted from this earlier work. Some of these works may be considered supplementary material. Katyayana’s text described how the construction of the uttaravedis may range from a size of 7.5to 101 purusam square in a clear narrative style. Similarly, Manava documented the examples of 8.5 square purusam uttaravedis, something that neither Baudhayana nor Katyayana had done. Manava further stated a new approach to the use of the purusam measure and a new unit of measure called pancangi. While a continuity of subjectmatter may be observed in Katyayanaand Manava’s work, Apastamba’s output did not conform to the trend set by Baudhayana. No clear enhancement or elucidation of former works on geometry was discernible in his work. He described two forms of brick layout for the pithan syenaciti and new kanka and alaja citis, and his work on this proved to be very popular. Recent Interest in the Sulbasutras The cryptic style of the sulbasutra texts was essentially suited to the Vedic ritualists and in the wake of a break with traditional rituals and practices after the Vedic period, the texts could have lost their popular relevance. In some cases, this seems to be exactly what happened- a disconnect between the content of the text and the purposes to which it no longer was applicable. This made it very difficult to retrieve the sulbasutras completely at a later date when scholastic interest in them was reawakened. Therefore, it is doubtful how far the earlier mentioned commentaries are capable of revealing the real geometrical contents of the sulbasutra in all their glory. The work done on the sulbasutras since the 19th century A.D. has, however, been followed with interest in recent times. It is clear that the major concern of the sulbasutra is geometry alone, although some observations of the srauta nature and certain mathematical operations connected with geometry also find mention in these texts. It is worth noting that the geometry of the sulbasutra has more affinity to modern engineering practice than to theoretical mathematics of 24

the present times. This is natural given that the Vedic geometers were more concerned with accurate constructions of ritual altars and the altar space than with proving a theorem. The essence of the sulbasutras lies more in the concepts discussed therein than in the authors’ use of grammatical accentuation. The latter was incidental Baudhayana employed the then prevalent style of the sutra and the other authors followed in a similar fashion. One of the reasons for the perhaps inaccurate reproduction of the geometry of the sulbasutra may be the approach adopted by later commentators, an approach that was affected by strongly pre-conceived grammatical notions. Instead, the sulbasutras ought to be approached with an inquiring mind regarding the meanings of the words in association exclusively with the subject under discussion. The modern Indian commentators further tend to find arithmetical and mathematical references in the sulbasutra, references that are unlikely to have been intended as such by the authors. One of the acid tests for the accuracy of presentation of a particular meaning is whether it may result in constructions of the Vedic style. Thus, while?2 is of great concern to the sulbavid (author of a sulbasutra) the same may not be said of?3 which is irrelevant to Vedic constructions, although more recent commentators have interpreted the sulbasutras to ascribe relevance to this numerical value. The sulbasutra on the other hand reveal a great degree of development of geometry not only as applied to techniques of constructions, but also extending to conceptual symmetries and an unknown methodology of evolution of the conceptual approach to such geometry. While this is the very approach to basic geometry, it then becomes a passionate progress to various shapes of the uttaravedis. In fact, the very geometry of the mahavedi, in which the uttaravedi is an element, is of unique conceptual beauty. The 30-36-24 regular trapezium of the mahavedi contained several triples in their construction format such as 3-4-5, 12-5-13,15-9-17, 35-12-37 which could be employed to attain the accuracy of layout. The area of the mahavedi thus being 972 square of 18 prakramam, the uttaravedis were initially of 1/3rd of 972 and at the same time the square of 18. Then 1.3rd of 324 is 108, an important number since ancient times for obvious reasons. A trapezium shape of 10-12-8 amounting to an area of 108 thus became the smallest size of the uttaravedi in prakramam measures.

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Figure 1: Mahavedi The taper of this trapezium narrowing down to the east is impressed upon by all the sulba texts. The eastward striving nature of the uttaravedi (for, gods reside at the east) is of paramount importance to the vedic rituals and one could not possibly say for what long period of time it took, to later develop into highly complex and realistic geometrical shapes in the form of three later uttaravedis, meant as kamyaciti. In the further development of the uttaravedis, the concept of “saptavidha: sampadyate”, meaning that the area of the uttaravedi should follow a certain pattern became a great spirit of enquiry. The eastward striving nature and this new concept put together developed into highly complex and yet beautifully conceived geometrical shapes of symmetry perhaps unparalleled in the history of geometry and mathematics. It is at an unknown point of time after that Baudhayana stood and decided to document it for posterity. And it is this very thing that the modern commentators, in a way, failed to redeem and realise. At the very first, the term “saptavidha:” was insufficiently interpreted to mean as 7.5 times the purusam measure, whereas it was really referred to as the 7 stages of development from the 7.5 to the 101 as area and corresponding sizes. Later, Katyayana described this in good detail, which also went properly not delineated. While Manava updated to the mathematical order of his time and described several types of equalities and arithmetical series, it was ironically Apastamba who was accredited with several modern mathematical interpretations. As a whole, it would be fair to state that the magnificent total geometry of the sulbasutra remains undiscovered as on date. The BSS contains 21 major sutra sets, of which the first two describe basic geometrical constructs. They contain basic units of measurements, conversions from one shape to another of equal area, notions of right angles and the value of ?2 etc. Sutra 3 and 4 describe the geometry and general concepts of the total altar space. Sutra 5 and 6 are general in nature as well, but in 26

sutra 7 an initiation of the geometrical complexities to follow is indicated by the description of the new garhapatyaciti of 21 bricks. The general layout of the pracinasala and mahavedi, with a detailed definition of the position of the uttaravedi, is already clear at this point, since it uses the rathacakraciti with its well-defined centre for the purpose. The next 14 sutras are devoted to the various formats of the uttaravedi. After describing 2 brick-laying orders of the pithan syenaciti, syenaciti of pancapatri, sadpatri, kanka and alaja forms are described. These distinct bird shaped altars used different methods to fulfill the “saptavidha:” concept with the7.5 purusam square as the basis. All of them are based on clear symmetries and on basic formative squares and rectangles. Next, two simple triangular praugaciti are described. Then the geometrical content is intensified to describe the rathacakraciti, 3 dronociti, the smasanaciti, and the kurmaciti. Esoteric compositions are displayed in the final sutra which goes beyond the bounds set by basic, definitive principles. It is possible that this process of creative design and constructions was already declining before the time of Baudhayana and this motivated him to create the BSS text. While going through the BSS text, one may doubt that all of the citi formats described by him were in practice during his time since the descriptions contain varying levels of details, though each of the descriptions could be termed as sufficient in itself. It is here and in the unknown nature of the time line that the strength of the sruti is revealed in its capacity to travel intact wide expanses of time. Indeed there are very specific examples of such demonstration of strength of the system in its further travel to our present times. What is more demonstrative in the second period of about 2800 years since Baudhayana is that the text travelled intact almost without its meanings really taken in. And yet there are words in the BSS which could have easily got transformed into something else but did not. Then there are such instances where certain versions of the manuscripts tried to inject words into the body text which were found to be stoically resisted by the extant contents. In comparison, the later sulbasutra texts are explanatory in nature with some additional altar designs and some mathematical updates by the authors. These have definitely added strength to the information system on the one hand and then silently declared that they have stepped out of the sruti circuit to certain extent. The very sruti system might indeed have had several parallel flows where the sulbasutra and that of the rituallistic practices could have existed even without mixing. Where some amount of cross references only existed without one being part and parcel of the other is a distinct possibility. And possibilities for further studies are plentiful, as the present attempt of delineation of the sulbasutra could open up a better historical perspective and the timeline of the progress of not only geometry and mathematics of the period of first millenium BC but a host of other related subjects. It provides a better clarity to matters beyond the second millennium BC as well. For the geometrician of today and such enthusiasts, a large volume of exercise is provided by Katyayana, as his formulae for taking the citi forms from 7.5 to 101 purusam squares remain untested and untried.

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A Few Sutras An extract from the book with Commentary by Parameswaran Murthiyedath Sutra 12 (Kankaciti) Sutra 12.1 Kankacita etenatma Puccam ca vyakhyatam (The Kankacita defined here will have a body and a tail) The Kankacita is known to have the shape of a heron. Sutra 12.2 28

sirasi pancopadadhyat tasyakrtirvyakhyata sirasi pancopadadhya ttasyakrtirvyakhyata (the head will be obtained as 5 by definition of its shape) As per the definition the head will be obtained as 5. This states that the length of the head along the east west is 5 aratni from the body. With the same words a meaning that the area of the head is 5 sq. aratni could also be derived. Both meanings are true and so meant. Sutra 12.3 Saptapancasaddaksine paksa upadadhyat tathottare Saptapancasaddaksinepaksa upadadhya ttathottare (5 and 7 to south the wing will be obtained next the north) The wing at south will be obtained as 5 and 7and likewise the north. Again, The wing tips are at a distance of 12aratni’s to south (5+7) and at the same time it means that the area of the wings are 57 sq. aratni. Sutra 12.4 Vyayamena sapradesna paksayorapanamah pancamabhagiyardhyabhih sat sat patrani kuryat adhyardhavasisyate vyayamena sapradesnapaksayorapanamah pancamabhagiyardhyabhih sat sat patrani kuryat adhyardhavasisyate (by vyayama measure with the pradesa the wings bent with the pancami and adhyardha six and six wing cuts as stated an adhyardha will be balanced)

Figure 2: Karika city layout (BSS-12.2-6)

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(The wings will be set out at a measure of 1 vyayama added with 1 pradesa at an angle and the wings tips will have six notches of a measurement of 1 pancami by 1 pancami and a half. An adhyardha will be balanced) The configuration of the wings are made by the diagonal of a square of 108A first taken forward and then retraced to give a mirrored bent. The sutra further categorically states that the wing tips configuration is with 6 nos of 1aratni by 1 adhyardha cuts. This adds to the area of 54 sq. aratni and additional 3aratni and the statement of 57 sq. aratni are now established. The statement ‘adhyardhavasisyate’ is about the excess area resulted amounting to 1½ aratni in the configuration which will be later adjusted by the leg trimming of the tail. Fig. 12.1 given here shows the citi geometry. First a basic square 1-2-3-4 will be established with side as 144A, deriving from the statement of ‘saratnipradesa’. The south end of the wings from which the wing tips take off is line 9-10, parallel to1-4 and at a distance of 12 aratni (288A). Line 4-8 is the diagonal of a square of 108A as side. Line 8-9 is mirrored from line 4-8. Thus the wing formation of 4-8-9-10-13-1 is established. The six wing tips are formed by the diagonals of boxes of an aratni by an adhyardha (1½ aratni) as sides, as shown within9-10-11-12. Sutra 12.5 taya pucchasyavastat padavaratnimatravaratnyantaralau pradesavyasau bhavatah tayoravastadabhito dvaudvavastamabhagau pragbhedavupadadhyat taya pucchasyavastat padavaratnimatravaratnyantaralau pradesavyasau bhavatah tayoravastadabhito dvaudvavastamabhagau pragbhedavupadadhyat (At the backside of the tail feet of an aratni length in an aratni gap with 1 pradesa as width at the back and near as 2 and 2, and 8 sided with a forward cut will be obtained) The tail is having a forward cut of 1 aratni length and 1 pradesa as width of sides, in a gap of 1 aratni, and thus having 8 sides split into two as forward cut. The tail portion of 15-14-16-17 contains the details mentioned above. Thus the tail have two cuts of 1 aratni square which is modified to form the root and two such feet are placed touching each other as stated forming an 8 sided cut in total. A statement like ‘pancadasa pucche’ is judiciously left out for the reason of the cut in the tail, though the overall outline agreed to such a statement. Further in sutra 12.8 the placement of two astamsi bricks at the tail to obtain this configuration are mentioned, to which the presentation here corresponds.

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Figure 2: Karika city layer 1 Sutra 12.6 evam saratnipradesah saptavidhah sampadyate evam saratnipradesah saptavidhah sampadyate (With only the aratni and pradesa the saptavidhah concept will be achieved) Thus with the aratni and pradesa measures alone, the saptavidhah concept will be achieved. Indeed, the altar shape graphically feeds back an area report of exactly 7.5 times the purusam square, as could also be seen from the calculation of area given here.

Table 1: Area of Kankacit Sutra 12.7 athestakanam vikarah pancamabhagiyah savayavah 31

padestakam caturbhih parigrhniyadardhapradesenadhyardhapradesena

Figure 4: Karika city, Layer 2 pradesena pradesasavises eneti adhyardhestakam caturbhih parigrhniyadardhavyayamena dvabhyamaratnibhyamaratnisavises eneti tah sat

Figure 5: Karika city, Bricks Athestakanam Vikarah pancamabhagiyah savayavah padestakam caturbhih parigrhniyadardhapradesenadhyardhapradesena pradesena pradesasavises eneti adhyardhestakam caturbhih parigrhniyadardhavyayamena dvabhyamaratnibhyamaratnisavises eneti tah sat 32

Now the bricks configuration with the pancami all over with the pada square brick with surrounded (sliced) ardha and pradesa and the adhyardha and pradesa and the adhyardha and pradesa with pradesa and a modified pradesa with the adhyardha brick from a square brick with the surrounded (sliced) half vyayama by two and by aratni and aratni modified like that six. With pancami as the basic brick allover with the pada of a square brick, and the ardha, the adhyardhardha and pradesa sliced, the vyayama and the aratni sliced, the modified aratni consisting 6 bricks will be used. However, some more bricks are found required and the lists of bricks are as given below: Sutra 12.8 tasam caturasrapadyah sastamabhagah padayorupadhaya sesam yathayogam yathasamkhyam yathaadharmam copadadhyat with these the caturasrapadyah and 8 divided part at the wings having placed balance as required in as many numbers as per rules be placed The caturasrapadyah and the astamsi bricks having placed as the feet, the balance will be filled with the required numbers as per rules.

Table 2: Kanchita Bricks Parameswaran Murthiyedath is a scholar of Vedic Mathematics. From "Kriti Rakshana", National Mission for Manuscripta. http://www.harekrsna.com/sun/features/11-07/features845.htm Geometry of Vedic Altars 33

George Gherveghese Joseph University of Manchester, United Kingdom The earliest material evidence of Indian mathematics is found among the ruins of the Harappa civilization, dated at the start of the third millennium B.C. An elaborate system of weights and measures related to binary and decimal series' has been brought to light. A notable feature of the Harappa culture was its use of kiln-fired bricks. These provide a link between the "frozen" geometry unearthed by archaeologists and the earliest written geometry, a guide to constructing Vedic brick

altars . TheSulbasutras and theSathapatha Brahmanacontain valuable information about the geometry of ancient India, including instructions for constructing sacrificial altars (vedi) and locating sacred fires (agni). The altars used during Agnicayana, a 12-day ceremony, are especially interesting in terms of geometry. The procedures described for their construction involve methods for approximating the values for the square roots of 2 and 5. One of the most elaborate public altars was shaped like a giant falcon poised for flight. Its shape and construction were minutely prescribed, while its height could be varied for special occasions. Mathematical problems of its construction involved finding a square equal in area to two or more given squares, and converting other geometrical shapes into a square of equal area, or vice versa. Solutions were achieved through the principle of dissection and reassembly and ingenious algorithms, including the so-called Pythagorean theorem. There is a view that Indian mathematics originated in the service of religion, but the magic and religious beliefs surrounding the Vedic rituals may be overly emphasized when considering the origins of Indian mathematics. The rituals associated with the construction of fire altars may be looked at from two standpoints. The first is from the standpoint of the beliefs connecting the shapes of altars with the specific desires to be fulfilled by their use in the sacrifices. The second is that of technology pure and simple: How exactly were the altars constructed to conform to specifications for shapes, sizes and number and types of bricks.

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Where are the origins of geometry in India? One hypothesis suggests that it must have come into being when there was already an advanced form of brick technology with a long tradition behind it. One may speculate that the geometry eventually codified in theSulbasutras could have come down from the Harappan period. If this is so, the first and earliest discontinuity in the chronology of Indian mathematics has been filled with the assistance of bricks. The correct citation for this paper is: George Gherveghese Joseph, "The Geometry of Vedic Altars", pp. 97-113 in Nexus: Architecture and Mathematics, ed. Kim Williams, Fucecchio (Florence): Edizioni dell'Erba, 1996. http://www.nexusjournal.com/conferences/N1996-Joseph.html http://www.emis.de/journals/NNJ/conferences/N1996-Joseph.html

Mathematics in Ancient India

Almost always overlooked by western scholars, India played a very important role in the advancement of mathematics for much of ancient history. Besides using simple arithmetic operations like addition, subtraction, etc., the Indians even invented the decimal system and the idea of positional notation, both of which are still in use today. They also used the "Pythagorean" theorem and "Pascal's" triangle long before either of those men were born!

This scroll, written in Sanscrit, contains instructions for calculating the dates of solar eclipses. Although it is only from about 5 A.D., there are many clues suggesting that some, if not most, of the mathematics involved originated more than 1000 years before that.

Therefore, it is very important to try to understand more about these little-known people, who obviously and heavily influenced the development of math through the ages. This web site is meant to explore - in common terminology - the usually unrecognized achievements of Vedic and Hindu mathematicians from 2000-300 B.C. The information which the above claims are based on comes from the Vedas (the oldest known document in the world) and the Sulva-Sutras, an "instruction manual" for building brick altars. These two documents are the main focus of this site. For further information beyond the scope of this site, visit the bibliography.

Vedas The oldest known document in the world is the Rgveda, which is otherwise known simply as the Vedas (plural because it is split into four parts). It was orally passed down until 35

around 5 BC, when writing either started or became more commonplace in India. It came from the Vedic people, who lived between the Ganga and Sindhu rivers. Unlike other civilizations, the Vedas are the only remaining evidence left from this society -- so far no archeological discoveries have been made that shed more light on them. This means that there are no brick altars or similar remains that testify to their level of science and technology.

The Vedas are not mathematical texts; they are merely hymns to the Vedic gods. However, the word Veda means "knowledge", and when analyzed closely it actually contains many mathematical references, especially in the section on Jyotisa, or "the constellations". Unfortunately, almost all of these references are implied, so much of the interpretation is largely guesswork. Another reason that the Vedas are hard to interpret is that because it was an oral document, there are no symbols for numbers or operations -- only words. It is highly likely, however, that they did use symbols, because without them math becomes very tedious. For example, consider doing a multiplication problem using "four thousand six hundred and thirty-seven times two hundred and eightyeight." You would most likely convert the words to symbols, do the math on a piece of paper, and then probably only take the time to convert the answer back into words. 36

And what makes it even harder is that the Vedas were written in verse1, probably for ease in memorization (because it was passed down orally). This means that not only were ancient mathematicians poets as well, but more importantly the math they were working with had to be written to fit in verse. Most people consider it hard to do long division using symbols and well worked out methods. Imagine trying to complete this process with words and in poetry! And then, consider the difficulty of decoding your work 4000 years later! First of all, a scholar has to determine the name of every number, i.e. "three" or "fortyseven". But besides this, there are words meaning "some", "many", "both", "few", etc., and ordinal numbers ("first", "second", "third", etc.) These also have to be deciphered to even begin to get into the math. And yet another oddity of the Sanskrit language involves what happens with compound numbers, numbers with more than one "digit" (like "thirty-four"). In normal Sanskrit, compound words (like "servant of the king") came from left to right in order of prevalence (so our example would be "king-servant"; "servant-king" would mean a servant who was treated well). However, compound numbers are written the opposite way, with the higher digits on the right. (Our number 529 would be written "nine-twofive".) It is always like this, and there is even a rule included: ankanam vamato gatih, which literally means "the understanding of the numbers in the reverse way."2

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And then, the whole thing is in the form of stories and myths, which have to be closely analyzed for mathematical content. A good example of a story from which we can extract mathematics is one about a man named Manu.3 Manu had ten wives, who had one, two, three, four, etc. sons each (the first wife had one son, the second wife two, etc.). The one son allied with the nine sons, and the two sons allied with the eight, and so on until the five sons were left by themselves. They asked Manu for help, and so he gave them each a samidh or "oblation-stick". The five sons then used these sticks to defeat all of the other sons. On the surface, this is just a silly fable, but it shows several things about Vedic mathematics. Because the ten sons did not ally with anyone, and the nine did with the one, eight with two, and so on, the mathematicians must have been thinking that nine plus one, 38

and eight plus two equal ten. This obviously shows that they practiced addition, and it also implies that they used a base 10, or decimal, system. For the second part of the story, the authors probably added the tens up to find that there were 50 allied sons. When the five remaining sons asked their father for help, it is likely that he gave them just enough mathematical power to defeat the others. This would mean that each stick equaled the strength of 10 men, for a total of 50. With the five sons added to that, they were able to defeat the 50. (Or maybe the father gave them 50 men worth of sticks, thinking it would be an equal battle, but not realizing that the five sons would throw off the balance.) But this 50 business implies both multiplication and division as well, because there were five groups of ten sons allied, or five times ten. Then, when the father went to decide the power of the sticks, he would have had to divide that 50 by five, to split the power equally among the five sons.4 Going even further, the story can be shown to symbolize the idea of positional notation -the idea of place values in numerals. (For an example of positional notation, 218 is the same as 200 + 10 + 8, or 2 x 102 plus 1 x 101 plus 8 x 100. In summary, the order of numerals tells how big the numbers are.) The "oblation-sticks" are obviously thought of as very powerful, just as 10 might be thought of as more "powerful" than a lowly 1. So when the 5 "lowly" sons were "added" to the 5 "powerful" sticks, this could have symbolized the 50 and 5 making 55, which is a bigger number (and therefore more powerful) than 50. This view of things also gives further evidence to the fact that they used base 10. So this simple story shows examples of addition, multiplication, division, base 10, and even positional notation. The Vedas are full of these stories, and many more examples are given throughout of all these concepts, along with subtraction, fractions, and squares.5 There are even instances of arithmetic and geometric sequences, which are series of numbers that increase by adding or multiplying a certain number (arithmetic sequence: 2 (+3 =) 5, 8, 11, 14, ... ; geometric sequence: 2 ( x 3 =) 6, 18, 54, ...). The Vedas give us many examples of arithmetic in ancient India, but to find out about the geometry of the time we turn to a collection of Hindu religious documents called the sulva-sutras. 1 Zimmerman, Francis. "Lilavati, Gracious Lady of Arithmetic." UNESCO Courier. Nov, 1989, p 20. [bibliography entry] 2 Pandit, M. D. Mathematics as Known to the Vedic Samhitas. Dehli, India: Sri Satguru Publications, 1993, p 153. [bibliography entry] 3 From Maitrayani Samhita (part of the Vedas), section 1.5.8, trans. M. D. Pandit. [bibliography entry] 4 Most of the ideas in this paragraph come from Pandit, p 102. 5 See Pandit for more details. Sulvasutras The sulva-sutras, a collection of Hindu religious documents, were written between 600 and 300 B.C. Although this is quite a bit later than when the Vedas originate, the ideas set forth in them must have come from the earlier Vedic society. And also like the Vedas, the sulvasutras were not mathematics textbooks! These contained the instructions for making special altars to the gods. These altars, made out of mud-brick, could be very complicated in shape and size, and often required the use of mathematical formulas. A common example is wanting to build a square-shaped altar (or section of one) which had the same 39

area as a circular altar (a math problem which has baffled mathematicians for

years). For this to work, they needed an approximation of pi, calculating procedures, and accurate construction methods6. Sulva means "cord", and the sulva-sutras are so named because the Hindu priests used a simple cord or string for all (or at least most) of their constructions. This cord could work as a straight edge (stretched tight), a compass (drawn around a point), and more (such as getting proportional lengths, by doubling the string over itself the desired number of times). A pole was also often used, for functions such as the making of circles and also sometimes in marking corners of rectangles, so that the cord could be stretched around the poles to make various measurements7. The sulva-sutras begin by giving the names and measures of the units that will be used. To give you an idea of the kind of units that were used: "The following is the measure of an Angula: Fourteen grains of the anu-plant."8Then, they go on to give the rules for various "constructions" which will be used later on to build the actual altars. These constructions are what give us most of our information about the Hindus' mathematical knowledge. One striking discovery is that there were many examples included of the wrongly named "Pythagorean theorem", or the rule for the lengths of sides of right triangles (now written as a2+b2=c2). It was expressed as "the cord stretched in the diagonal of a rectangle produces both areas which the cords forming the longer and the shorter side of a rectangle produce separately."9 In other words, the sum of the squares of the two different sides of the rectangle equals the square of its diagonal. ("Squares" probably meant the area of actual squares drawn on the three sides of the triangle formed.) "Pythagorean triplets", sets of side lengths that can be expressed as integers (for example 3,4,5 and 5,12,13), were used as a sort of proof of that proposition, and were also used to make right angles. One problem which the priests must have run into was that they could not find any squares with the sides and diagonal of integral lengths.10 In the end, they came up with an incredibly close approximation (6 digits of accuracy) to the square root of 2 (the length of the diagonal of a square whose sides are one unit).

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Another of their most famous problems is that of getting a square and circle to be equal in area. Two authors used very different constructions (neither of which actually uses pi) which both lead to a value of pi very close to 3.08831 (pi is actually about 3.14159). What's remarkable is the similarity of the two values, but one must wonder how this particular value was reached. (It might be noted that only one of the authors showed knowledge that his method was an approximation.)11 Along with the "simple" mathematics involved in altar-building, there were very complicated problems to decide what math to use where. One of these problems can be understood just by the fact that the most basic altar was in the form of a falcon! However, all of the bricks retained a square, rectangular, triangular, or circular shape. So the precise dimensions and area of every brick had to be calculated, after the specific design was decided upon. Usually, the total area was 7-1/2 units, because that was convenient for the falcon shape. But to make matters exponentially "worse", when two or more altars were made for the same purpose, subsequent ones usually had to be one unit bigger than the last; and the areas of each brick had to stay proportional.12 As you can infer, this was one heck of a math problem! And it had to be done twice for each altar, because a different design was needed for alternating layers, so that spaces between bricks weren't directly over each other.13 There are also many reasons to believe that the Vedic and Hindu math discussed herein was a prominent factor of (or possibly even the basis of) other societies' mathematics. One of the primary reasons to believe this lies not in actual mathematics, but in the words used for numbers. The following is a table of Sanskrit, Latin, Italian, and French words for certain numbers.14

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It doesn't take a genius to understand that most of the Latin words were obviously derived from those of Sanskrit. And the fact that the names of the numbers were copied into Latin (and then other languages) very heavily suggests that the ideas of the numbers were transferred as well. Even the order of "digits" remains the same from Sanskrit to Latin. And simply the fact that the decimal system remains in use heavily testifies to the Indian origin. The other concept which Mr. Pandit thinks originated in India is that of zero. Firstly, the name for "zero" in Sanskrit is sunya. The Arab word is assifr, then sifra, the Latin word is cifra, and then the Italian words are zefiro, zefro, and then zevero -- which leads to the English zero.15 This is somewhat of a long stretch in my opinion, but it does deserve merit. Looking back at the table, another thing that comes to mind is the fact that the symbol for "ten" isn't a compound word in any of the languages. This is further similarity between the languages, and it also brings up another point in Indian mathematics -- the positional system. Although we think of this as positions of powers of ten, the single dasa (ten) indicates that the ancient Indians probably thought of it more as multiple "numberseries".16 In other words, 43 would mean "the third number in the fourth series of tens." So when you just have 10, it would just be "the 1st series of tens", or "ten" or dasa. The zero in the "ones place" is either not represented, or represented by nothing. In any case, Mr. Pandit firmly believes that "the concept of 'the zero or sunya' definitely originated in the Vedas... And it must be said that it is from and in Vedic mathematics that the zero is born. And it is from the Vedas that all other civilizations have borrowed the concept and device of positional notation of numbers and consequently of zero."17 The final topic which I wish to discuss is the way Indian mathematics differ from that of the Greeks and Romans (the civilizations that are given the most attention mathematically). In India, mathematics was developed to aid in rituals to please the gods. 42

Most probably, the originators of math in both the Vedas and the Sulva-sutras were priests. This contrasts sharply with the philosophers of Greece and Rome, proving every theorem and analyzing every math form. The Vedas and Sulva-sutras were not concerned with proofs or reasons, only with the correct performance of rituals so that their crops would grow. This may seem primitive or even inferior18, but (1.) the Indians produced an amazing amount of mathematics, many of which are still in use today, and (2.) their rules are still correct. What more could you ask for? Conclusion

The essence of what I am saying is that the world is filled with eurocentric scholars who believe that Indian pagan religions, and the math that goes along with them, could not have been the basis of their high monotheistic culture. Although these scholars have been convinced that this is true ever since "the Christian religion effectively monopolized schools and universities in medieval Europe,"19 modern evidence is proving more and more of it wrong. I find it unbelievable how little work has been done in the field; and just offensive the fact that the vast majority of the work has been done only by Indians.20 Most of the books on the subject are written in Sanskrit or Hindi. So I conclude that, not only does it seem that "there is still much scope for the study of Vedic Mathematics,"21 but that it definitely should be studied since there is so much evidence that Indian math played such a large role in the history of mathematics. Much more work can and should be done to analyze ancient documents and to look for archaeological evidence of this very intelligent society. Bibliography Agrawala, Vasudeva Sharana, ed. Vedic Mathematics. Delphi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1992 Amma, Saraswarti. Geometry in Ancient and Medieval India. Motilal Banarsidas, 1979. Bag, A. K. Mathematics in Ancient and Medieval India. Varanasi: Chaukhambha Orientalia, 1979. Banerjee, Gauranga Nath. Hellenism in ancient India. 2d ed. Calcutta, 1920. Basham, A. L. The Wonder That Was India. Calcutta: Rupa & Co., 1967. Bharati Krishna Tirthaji Majaraja. Vedic Mathematics. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1988. Bhaskaracarya. Lilavati. Trans. H. T. Colebrooke. Notes: Haran Chandra Banerji. Allahabad: Kitab Mahal, 1967. Bidyaranya, Swami. History of Hindu Mathematics: a source book. Bombay, New York: Asia Pub. House, 1962. Birodkar, Sudheer. "Ancient India's Contribution to Mathematics." http://india.coolatlanta.com/GreatPages/sudheer/maths.html (viewed Feb. 1999) [source evaluation] Boas, Ralph P. and Jean Dieudonne. "Mathematics." Collier's Encyclopedia, Edition 1997. Cajori, F. A History of Mathematics. New York: The Macmillon Company, [date not found]

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Chattopadhyaya, D. P., et. al. Mathematics, astronomy, and biology in Indian tradition: some conceptual preliminaries. New Delhi: Project of History of Indian Science, Philosophy, and Culture, 1995. Dilke, Oswald Ashton Wentworth. Mathematics and Measurement. Berkeley, CA: U. of Cal. Press, 1987. Eves, Howard. An Introduction to the History of Mathematics. New York: Rinehart and Company Inc., 1953. Filliozat, Pierre-Sylvain. "Making something out of nothing." UNESCO Courier. Nov 1993, p. 30-34. [source evaluation] Ganeri, Anita. The story of numbers and counting. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1996. Grover, Sudarshan. History of development of mathematics in India. Delhi: Atma Ram & Sons, 1994. Gurjar, L. V. Ancient Indian Mathematics and Vedha. [Publisher not found]: Pune, 1947. Haldane, John Burdon Sanderson. Science and Indian culture. 1st ed. Calcutta: New Age Publishers, 1965. Jaggi, O. P. Science and Technology in Medieval India. New Delhi: Atma Ram & Sons, 1977. Jain, Laxmi Chandra. Basic mathematics. Jaipur: Rajasthan Prakrit Bharti Sansthan; New Delhi: Sitarambhartia Institute of Scientific Research, 1982. [source evaluation] Jueneman, Frederic B. "60-40: how cultures have developed numerical systems." Research & Development. April 1986, volume 28, p. 17. Kline, Morris. Mathematical Thought from Ancient to Modern Times. New York: Oxford U. Press, 1990. [source evaluation] Kline, Morris. "Mathematics, History of." Collier's Encyclopedia, Edition 1997. Kulakarni, Raghunatha Purushottama. Geometry according to Sulba sutra. Pune: Tilak Maharastra Vidyapitha, Vaidika Samsodhana Mandala, 1983. Kumara, Virendra. Vaidika bijaganita. (Virendra Kumara by Sailendra Bhushana.) Samskarana 1. Nai Dilli: Grantha Akakami, 1997. Kuppuram, G & K. Kumudamani, ed. History of science and technology in India. Delhi: Sundeep Prakashan, 1990. Marathe, Syama. Bharatiya drutaganitacya adbhuta riti. Satara: Ajinkya Prakasana; Pune: Rasika Sahitya, 1983. Menninger, Karl. Number-Words and Number-Symbols. trans. Paul Broneer. London: MIT, 1969. McLeish, John. Number. New York: Fawcett Columbine, 1991. North, John. The Norton History of Astronomy and Cosmology. New York: W.W.Norton, 1995. Pappas, Theoni. The Magic of Mathematics. San Carlos, CA: Wide World Publishing / Tetra, 1994. Pandit, M. D. Mathematics as known to the Vedic Samhitas. 1st ed. Delhi, India: Sri Satguru Publications, 1993. [source evaluation] Peterson, Ivars. "The formula man; the legacy of India's greatest mathematician continues to influence modern mathematics." (Srinivasa Ramanujan) Science News, April 25, 1987, volume 131, p. 266-268.

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Prakash, Satya. A critical study of Brahmagupta and his works. New Delhi: Indian Institute of Astronomical & Sanskrit Research, 1968. Radhakrishnan, S. History of Indian Philosophy. Vols. I & II. London: George Allen and Unwin Ltd, 1930. Rotman, Brian. "Indian Infinites -- The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics by George Gheverghese Joseph". TLS, the Times Literary Supplement. London: Nov 15, 1991. Russel, Bertrand. Introduction to Mathematical Philosophy. Simon and Schuster: A Touchstone Book, [no date found]. Smith, D. E. History of Mathematics. Vols. I & II. New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1951. Srinivasiengar, C. N. The History of Ancient Indian Mathematics. Calcutta, World Press, 1967. Struik, Dirk J. "Everybody counts." Technology Review. August-Sep 1995, volume 98, number 6, p. 36-44 Struik, Dirk. "Multiculturalism and the history of mathematics". Monthly Review. New York: Mar 1995, Volume 46, Issue 10, p. 28. Thibaut, George. Mathematics in the making in ancient India. Calcutta: K.P. Bagchi, 1984. [source evaluation] Thibaut, George, trans. Baudhayana Sulva-sutra, "Adhyaya I". p 69 in Mathematics in the Making in Ancient India. (see above) Visnu, Swami B. B. "Mathematics and the Spiritual Dimension." http://www.gosai.com/chaitanya/saranagati/html/math/math_1.html (viewed Sept. 2000) [source evaluation] Zimmerman, Francis. "Lilavati, gracious lady of arithmetic." (part of "A Mathematical Mystery Tour.") UNESCO Courier. Nov 1989, p. 18-22. [source evaluation] [No Author Found]. Notable Mathematicians from Ancient times to the Present. Detroit: Gale Research, 1997. Source evaluation Birodkar, Sudheer. This was the only web site I found on math in ancient India, so I'm glad it's there; however, from his "guestbook", his pages seemed to be quite controversial. Entries in the guestbook ranged from immense praise to swearing at his untruthfulness. It's hard to know if the signers of the guestbook know what they're talking about, too... I came to the basic conclusion that his facts were creditable, but his opinions very controversial. [click here for his web site]

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Filliozat, Pierre-Sylvain. ("Making something out of nothing.") Information on the use of symbols in Indian math. This didn't help me too much. Jain, Laxmi Chandra. This book's information was more recent than the scope of my paper, so I didn't get very far into it. Kline, Morris. If there is anyone to counter Birodkar's web site, it's Morris Kline. His book took the absolute opposite opinion. In this book, on the history of mathematics, he included only half a chapter (out of 50 chapterstotal) on Indian math. Everything he said seemed to sneer at them, put them down, and belittle their accomplishments. The absolute only thing that agreed with Birodkar was the bare facts. McLeish, John. This was another "general history of math" book, and included a full chapter (out of 20 total) on India. Although that statistic isn't much better than Kline's, I much preferred this book because he said that the reason there wasn't much on Indian math was because not enough research had been done; but from other sources, I found that more research HAD been done than he had included information on. Pandit, M. D. I got most of my information on the Vedas from this extremely well-written book. In the Foreword, Dr. V.N. Jha and Dr. T.T. Raghunathan say "Mr. M.D. Pandit is an extremely devoted scholar.... He has restricted himself only to the arithmetical aspect of Vedic Mathematics. We hope the other aspects, such as algebraic, geometric etc. will be considered by him in his later works." I completely agree. Thibaut, George. I got most of my info on the Sulva-Sutras from this book. It was well written and contained a lot of information. Included was a translation of one of the sulvasutras, which was very helpful because I could read that primary source. Visnu, Swami B. B. Although the theme of this web site is about the link between science and religion, it is a great place to go for further examples. (And he even writes: "Unfortunately, Eurocentrism has effectively concealed the fact that we owe much in the way of mathematics to ancient India.") Concerning the Vedas, he covers its poetic nature and the difference in purpose of Vedic and Western mathematics. He briefly discusses the Sulva-Sutras and goes on to give 3 examples of Sutras "in action", if you really want to get into the mathematical side of things. A definite recommendation! Includes bibliography. [click here for his site index] Zimmerman, Francis. This article talked about the Lilavati, which was written around 1000 AD, which is later than the scope of my paper. However, it does contain some hints 46

of what math was like earlier - especially parallels to the religious nature of the mathematical documents. But I didn't learn a heck of a lot from this article.

http://www.robinstewart.com/personal/learn/indiamath/seval.html

Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 12 POSTED AT APRIL 16, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

Several sashtrams were performed on the last day. These include Hothan’s Shodashi Sasthram, Paryaaya Sasthrams aand Aaswina Sasthram. This was followed by Anuyaajam and Haariyojanam which marks the end of the soma rituals. Yajaman performed Pindam (homam) at Maarjaaleeyam. All rithwiks performed homam at Agneendriyam (Palacharani Praayaschitham). The performances like “Dhaana Iduka”, Adhwaryu’s Sruvaahuthi (Saakala homam), Chamasa Visargam (detatching the rithwiks from the respective chamasam), Sakhya-Visargam (releasing the bond of Camaraderie among the Rithwiks, undertaken earlier with Thaanoonasthram), “Pathnee Samyojam”, Performance of Praayaschitham (here, Kalpa-Praayaschitham), in order to overcome any imperfections in the performance.

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Avabhrutham Ishti (starting in the Saala and ending in the pond, lake or river), in which most of the used items were deposited in a water body (pond, lake or river), everyone bathed (Avabhrutham Snaanam) and returned to the Saala. This is followed by Upasthaanam. After returning from the pond, the three Ishti (homams) namely Udayananiyeshti, Maithraavaruneshti, and Sakthu homam were performed.

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Udayaneeyeshti, followed by Prathiprasthaathan’s Ishti and finally the Maithraavaruneeyeshti (a long ritual of 2½ hours with 4 Charus and a Purodaasam, as five havissu or offering to five Gods namely Anumathi, Ila, Sineevaali, Kuhu, Dhathaa). Powdered rice is then used for Sakthu Homam. This is followed by Agnervimoka homam, Aapthyu Upasthaanam, termination of Agneendriyam, 5-chamatha Homam, Upasthaanam to Aadithyan, Dadidrafsam Bhakshanam, & Namaskaaram. Thus ends Thritheeya Savanam. Thus ends Suthyam. Thereafter, the Threthaagnis (the three spiritual fires attained through Yaagam) are shown (Kaachi) at and invoked back to the Arani. Once the Threthaagni is invoked back to Arani, the remaining fire in the Yaagasala has conceptually become forest fire with no spiritual content. Also, the Yaagasala has lost its divine nature. The Yaagasaala is then set on fire. Back Home: On the way (Prathyaagamanam), either Ubhavaneeya Ishti or Poornaahuthi is performed and this Threthaagni is taken to the Yajaman’s residence (Illam) and placed in an appropriate location like Vadukkini or Padinjaatti (two rooms in a Namboothiri Illam). The Athiraathram is now over and the Yajaman now becomes a Akkithiri while his wife remains as Paththanaadi.

Agnihothram Rituals: It is using this Threthaagni that the Somayaaji and Paththanaadi perform the rituals, viz., Agnihothram, twice daily, and Darsesthi and Poornamaaseeyesthi on every Prathipadam (first day after full moon or new moon), through out their life. Darsesthi and Poornamaaseeyesthi (about two hours long) require, apart from Yajaman, four Rithwiks, namely, Adhwaryu, Brahman, Agneedharan and Hothan, who can be members of Yajaman’s family, unless they have Pula. Though Pula (defilement) (Click here to know more about Pula) forces the Yajaman to stop the Yaagam; it does not affect the Agnihothram rituals, which are continued to be performed. Life of Threthaagni: Whoever dies first – the Akkithiri or Pathanaadi – is cremated using this fire, preceded and followed by special cremation rituals, much different from the usual cremation procedure of Namboothiris. The Threthaagni then ceases to exist, and the survivor discontinues Agnihothram and the Ishtis. The Akkithiri is eligible to revive Threthaagni only if any one Pathanaadi is alive and both are ready to repeat Aadhanam (called Punaraadhaanam). (It may be noted that they must have done Adhaanam prior to performing any 49

Yaagam). Here, Somayaagam or Athiraathram need not be repeated (just a performance of Aadhaanam will do) to revive Threthaagni. In case of his wife’s death, if the Yajaman did not revive Threthaagni, he is cremated in the usual Namboothiri manner.

At the end of most Yaagam, it is known to rain. The Panjal Athirathram of 1975 witnessed rains sometime after the yagashala was set on fire. So this time also, everywhere the topic of discussion was the rain. By evening itself people started gathering. The ritual of setting the yagashala on fire got delayed and was done at 10 p.m.

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With a few minutes to spare for the yagashala to be set on fire, there was a heavy downpour in Panjal. Lakhs of people who had gathered to witness the ritual cheered and clapped. A few minutes later, the other rites were concluded and the yagashala was set on fire.

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The culmination of Athirathram was truly magical. Lokah Samastah Sukhino bhavantu! “While Pyramids, temples, cathedrals and skyscrapers were built and fell into decay, languages and religions came and went, and inumerable wars were fought, the vedas and their ritual continued to be transmitted by word of mouth, from teacher to pupil, and from father to son. What a triumph of human spirit over the limitation of matter and physical body….” Frits Staal, professor of philosophy and South Asian Languages at the University of California, Berkeley. Tags : panjal athirathram 2011, panjal athirathram 2011 last day ritual Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 6 Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 11 POSTED AT APRIL 15, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

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At 3 am on Thursday, as part of the rites, Panjal Athirathram Yajaman Ramanujan was coronated as Akkithirripad, an honour reserved for the main priest of any Athirathram. Abhishekam is the ritual (after a series of six homams) performed by Adhwaryu before formally christening the Yajaman as ‘Akkithiripad’. Athirathram is seen as the ultimate sacrifice of the Yajaman who commits his entire life to the ritual. After the end of Athirathram, the Yajaman carries the fire from the ritual which will be kept burning at his house. He will perform daily rituals for as long as he lives and this fire will be used to light the pyre when he or his wife passes away. The Yajaman of Panjal Athirathram 2011 is Ramanujan Akkithiripad, 57, from Chembra in Palakkad District. He did his Soma Yaga in Trichur in 2003. He was a priest at the Trikovil Vishu Shetram temple in Chembra before performing Athirathram. He and his wife Dhanyapaththanaadi have three sons Ravindranath, Umanath and Narayanan.

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A rite called Sowmyam was also conducted today. Sowmyam is made using Charu (a product made of rice) and is prepared by Prathiprasthhaathan, after which ghee is poured into the Charu and the Thaithareeyas as well as the Saamavedis in the Sadass see their own reflection in the ghee. The Homa Sesham (remains of the offer), if consumed by pregnant women, particularly if she is in the first 2 months of pregnancy, is believed to cause be good for her child. It is also believed that consuming the remains of homam, is good for fertility. Some cases of childless couples bearing children after consuming Saumya have been reported in the past. Hundreds of couples received Saumya today.

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The other rites performed during the 11th day of Athirathram include: Thrutheeya savanam which is recital of Sama stutis, Extraction of Soma juice, Aarbhava Pavamana Sthuthi, Havir Homam, Mahavaiswadeva Sasthram, Agnishoma Sthuthi, Agnimaarutha Sasathram (Sasthram intended for Agni and Maruth, God of wind), Ukthya Stuthis, Ukthya Sasthras, Shodasi Sthuthi (Recited when the Sun is Half set in praise of Indra), Shodasi Sasthram (1000 mantras of 16 words each), Rathri Paryaya Sthuthis, Rathri Paryaya Sasthras, Aaswina Sthuthi and Aaswina Sasthram.

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Tags : panjal athirathram, panjal athirathram 2011, panjal athirathram 2011 day 11, Vedic ritual in Kerala Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 1 Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 10 POSTED AT APRIL 14, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

The tenth day started at 2 am and saw several important rites being performed including Somaabhishavam or Soma pressing. Soma is an important offering in the Athirathram Yagya. After the morning recital (Praatharanuvaakam), the morning pressing of Soma stalks began (Somaabhishavam) and the first oblations were offered. The Soma was taken out of the cart and the important ‘Praatharana Uvaakam’ was performed (Agneedhran and Hothan).

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Formal Abhishavam is to be done separately for each Savanam. The first two Somaahuthys on the Suthyam day, using the containers called Upaamsu and Antharyaamam, are the most important ones. They are to be done just before and after sunrise, respectively, supported by the very important Shodasi sasthram of Hothan. The first Somaahuthi, called Upaamsuhomam, is done by Adhwaryu and poured into the Upaamsu, and the Yajaman performs Somaahuthi with it.

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The preparation of Soma juice for the second Somaahuthi is an important ritual. A cloth piece (Dasaapavithram) is kept stretched for straining Soma into the vessel (Dronakalasam) kept underneath on the Uparavappalaka. The Soma juice is taken from the vessel with an earthen pot (Kindi) and poured over Dasaapavithram and the strained juice drops down as a stream – Dhaara – into the Dronakalasam. It is from this Dhaara that Soma is collected as and when needed, using wooden Oordhwa-Paathrams. Eleven of these are required for most ordinary Yaagams. Nine are made of Peraal (banyan – Ficus bengalensis). For Athiraathram, 3 more pots, called Athigraahyas, are also needed.

Photo by Surekha Pillai As part of the tenth day rites, the Ritwiks occupied their respective positions, a process known as ‘Kutipukkirikkuka’ and sing Bahish – Pavamaana Sthuthi for cleansing the mind, and other Sthuthis and Sasthrams, before the Savanam rituals. It is believed that Aswinidevathas hear this Stuthi. After Sthuthi, Soma is caught (Grahanam) in the Aaswina-Paathram. After this, a general and specific Upasthaanam (Somopasthaanam) is done with the Soma juice kept in the different vessels. Vaapa homam was also performed by preparing vaapa in earthern pots.

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The other rituals performed include Praathassavanam, Bahish Pavamaana Sthuthi, Graha Grahanam, Savaneeya Yagam, Sthuthi-Sasthras- Somaahuthis, First Aajya Sasthram, First Aajya Sthuthi, Pra uga Sasthram, Second Aajya Sasthram, Second Aajya Sthuthi, Third Aajya Sasthram, Third Aajya Sthuthi, Fourth Aajya Sasthram, Fourth Aajya Sthuthi, Extracting Soma juice, Maadhyandina Pavamaana Sthuthi, Savaneeya Pasupurodaasa Homam, Savaneeya Purodasa Homam, Dakshina Maruthwatjya Sasthram, Abhishekam of Yajamana, Bruhat Saamasthuthi, Nishkaivalya Sasthram, Vaamadevya Sthuthi, Second Nishkaivalya sasthram, Naudhasa Sthuthi, Third Nishkaivalya sasthram, Kaaleya Sthuthi and Fourth Nishkaivalya sasthram. Maadhyandina Savanam is a ritual when after Sthuthis, Soma is caught (Grahanam) in the Aaswina-Paathram. After this, a general and specific Upasthaanam (Somopasthaanam) is done with the Soma juice kept in the different vessels. Embers from Agneedhriyam Dhishnyam are taken and placed in the other seven Dhishnyams and Homams are performed. This is called Dhishnya Vyaaghaaranam.     

Tags : Athirathram 2011, panjal athirathram, panjal athirathram 2011, panjal athirathram Day 10 Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 2 Panjal Athirathram 2011: The Yajamana POSTED AT APRIL 13, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011 58

The Yajamana, chief priest makes so many personal sacrifices, both mental and physical, during the 12 day Yaga. Only those who have performed the somayaga can perform the Athirathram. Once you perform a Somayaga, you become a Somayaajipad and after Athirathram you get the title of Akkithiripad. The Yajamana of Panjal Athirathram is Bhatti Puthillath Ramanujan Somayaajipad

Before the commencement of the Yaga, The Yajamana takes a vow, that he would always tell the truth and would do all the rituals as mentioned. There are so many Dos and Don’ts for Yajamana, here are few During entire 12 days his fists will be closed. Closed fist is the symbol of “Alertness” in natyasasthra, derived from this vedic tradition. This gesture symbolises that all throughout the Yaga, he will be alert. Yajamana should always carry a stick and Deer skin (Krishnajana), he is not supposed to lie down and sleep, he should not ridicule anyone, should not scratch his body with nails. If the itching is irresistible, he can use the horn of the deer skin he is carrying. He should speak only Sanskrit that too if it is necessary, should not laugh, if out of control, can laugh without showing the teeth.

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He should not take bath, cut nails and hair in these 12 days. His movements are restricted inside the Yagasala. There are restrictions on food too. He drinks only cow’s milk during the entire 12 days Inputs from Nakul Madhavan, a ritwik at Panjal Athirathram Tags : Athirathram, Bhatti Puthillath Ramanujan Somayaajipad, panjal athirathram, panjal athirathram 2011,Yajamana of Panjal Athirathram 2011 Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 8 Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 9 POSTED AT APRIL 13, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

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Athirathram entered its tenth day and the rituals will now continue without a break for over 65 hours till it concludes on April 15th in the evening when the yagashala will be set on fire. While the rites will continue through the night on the 12th day (April 14-15), some rites may extend through the night during the next two days.

Among the rites performed on the 9th day, the most significant one was Agni Prayanam, invitation of Agni to the main altar and installing it on the Shianachithi. A homam was performed followed by transportation of all the items including the Mahavira pot and other implements used in the Pravargya in a traditional manner to the Dasapadam (east of the altar). These were then placed on the Shianachithi and arranged in the form of a male human figure, known as Yajnapurusha. The implements used for Pravargya were arranged to symbolise the organs of Yajnapurusha.

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Agni was then carried to the new altar and installed in the centre of the bird altar. A long continuous oblation of clarified butter was made into the sacrificial fire through a large ladle and this rite is called Vasordhaara (‘flow of wealth’). During Vasordhaara, ghee is poured continuously into the fire accompanied by chamaka mantram, which is a Yajurveda mantra meant to energise.

Other rites performed include Pravargyam, Upasath Ishti, Subrahmanyaahwaanam, Chithi samskaaram (for purification of main altar), Gharmodwaasanam: (disposal of the pravargya implements), Brahmovdhanam: (preparation of food for Brahma), Vaajaprashaveeyam: an 62

offering of many medicinal plants to the fire praying for cure to all illnesses, Pashuishti (offering of Vaapa, originally comes from goat and now symbolically made with rice and havis) and panchadoham: preparation of milk.

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Tags : Athirathram, panjal athirathram, panjal athirathram 2011, Panjal Athirathram 2011 Day 9, Vedic ritual in Kerala Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 4 Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 8 POSTED AT APRIL 12, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

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The main altar of Athirathram (Shianachithi) was complete at Athirathram with the last and fifth layer of the altar laid out on Day 8. The altar is constructed such that layers 1, 3 and 5 are different from 2 and 4 with the layers signifying the changing seasons. The Garuda-shaped chithi has been used for centuries by rishis who created the shape on the basis of Vaastu Shashtra.

An important rite Ksheeradhara was performed today which involves pouring of goat’s milk on the altar. During Ksheeradhara, a powerful Rig veda chant called Sreerudra, the impact of which is said to be high, was chanted. Recitation of Sreerudra has great significance. With the construction of the altar now complete, all mantras will now be chanted on this altar and all yagyas will be held here. The Chithi will therefore house ample amount of energy. Sreerudra is chanted to pacify the Chithi. Goat’s milk is poured over the Chithi in a steady stream during Ksheeradhara. Incidentally, goat’s milk is prescribed as part of Ayurvedic treatment for Pitha dosha.

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A wooden frog was also placed on the chithi to as part of the cooling down process.

A kite was seen flying over Panjal today where Athirathram is being held. The bird was also spotted yesterday. This is seen as a very good omen. The day’s other rites included Pravargyam, Upasath and Subramanyaaahwaanam. The day’s rites ended with Chithi namaskaram and Chithi Dakshina, and repetition of Pravargyam and Upasath.

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Tags : Athirathram, Athirathram at Panjal, Garuda shaped platform for Panjal Athirathram 2011, panjal athirathram, panjal athirathram 2011, Panjal Athirathram 2011 Day 8 Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 2 Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 7 POSTED AT APRIL 11, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011 Artists at Athirathram At Panjal Athirathram I happend to meet two artists, who are very much involved with the event. Artist Gireesan Bhattathiripad Gireesan is one of the very few people to be allowed inside the yagashala who are not directly involved in the performance of Athirathram. His role is to number the tiles used for Shianachithi and also draw sketches of Bull (It symbolises the arrival of Bull, the carrier of Lord Siva on day one when the Shianachithi layer is laid out. The Bull waits for Him till the last layer is laid); Vyaali (Dragon face seen in the entrance of temples seen as good omen, this is drawn on the Chithi entrance); and Vikarni on the tiles used for the main altar. He uses dissolved rice power to make the drawings.

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The story behind Vikarni is interesting. Legend has it that she was a washerwoman with no ears. One day she saw smoke coming out of a Yagashala. She enquired about it to the passersby and was told all Devas had gathered for a Yaga and that they could even bless her with ears. Vikarni left her work midway and ran to the Yagashala oblivious of her scantily clad status. She lost her clothes as she ran to the Yagashala where the devas blessed her, gave her clothes to wear and she was also given ears. She was then given a permanent seat at the Yagashala.

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Gireesan has been roped in by the organisers of Athirathram, Varthathe Trust, to also shoot the ritual. Gireesan has already shot over 2000 photographs and would have shot 3-4 thousand more by the end of Athirathram.

When he gets time off, he has been making sketches from inside the Yagashala for his own personal collection. Gireesan is primarily an artist who paints oil and acrylic on canvas and his work has been commissioned by companies like HLL for interior decoration purposes.

Gireesan captured a rare phenomenon during the day’s Pravargyam, an important rite that involves adding milk to ghee heated in very high tempature.

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A huge ball of fire erupted out of the Mahavira pot which was photographed by him. This is a sight that has been rarely witnessed in the Pravargyams done in any Athirathram. Venu Another artist I met during Athirathram was Venu, a freelance artist from near by town.

When I met him, he was sketching the Yagasala. He is planning to do a series of sketches on Panjal Athirathram 2011

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Hope to catch these two artists after Athirathram and get the complete sketches on the event Tags : Artists at Panjal Athirathram 2011, Athirathram 2011, panjal athirathram, panjal athirathram 2011,panjal athirathram 2011 Day 7 Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 2 Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 6 POSTED AT APRIL 9, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

Athirathram entered its sixth day, with almost 50 per cent of the rites completed in the 12-day vedic ritual. The rites conducted today included Pravagyam, offering of milk and ghee for Ashwini Devas in the Mahaveera pot; Upasath(offering ghee for Agni, Soma and Vishnu) and Subhramanya Ahwanam(Inviting Lord Indra).

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The third layer of Garuda shaped fire altar was layed

Eight-year- old Sankarnarayanan from Kaapramaarathu mana, a parikrami (assistant) at Athirathram, was part of the rites for the laying out of 3rd layer for Shianachitthi (main birdshaped altar).

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Sankaranarayanan has been studying Vedas for one year now from Brahmaswam Madham (Vedic Research Centre). His grandfather Sankaranarayanan akkithirippad was the Yajaman of an Athirathram in a private function by a family in 2006. Panjal Athirathram 2011: Meeting Prof. Frits Staal POSTED AT APRIL 9, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

Prof. Staal is a renowned Indologist and one of the driving forces behind the preservation of Athirathram. Prof Staal, currently Emeritus Professor of Philosophy and South & Southeast Asian Studies at the University of California, Berkeley, authored the two-volume book ‘AG I – The Vedic Ritual of the ire Altar’ which is a meticulous record of Athirathram that was held in Panjal in 1975. Staal’s specialized in the study of Vedic ritual and mantras, and the scientific exploration of ritual and mysticism. He was educated in Greek and Indian logic and philosophy and Sanskrit grammar.

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On why Frits Staal chose to spend years of his life documenting Athirathram, he writes in the Preface:“I have long stood in awe of this unique survival, so archaic yet so sophisticated, so close to the early history of man, and so lovingly preserved through millennia that elsewhere saw the birth and death of entire civilizations. While pyramids, temples, cathedrals, and skyscrapers were built and fell into decay, languages and religions came and went, and innumerable wars were fought, the Vedas and their ritual continued to be transmitted by word of mouth, from teacher to pupil, and from father to son. What a triumph of human spirit over the limitations of matter and the physical body!”

On April 8, Prof Staal delivered a special lecture on ‘A Theory of Ritual’ at Brahmaswam Madham (Vedic Research Centre) in Trichur, Kerala

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I had the rare opportunity to meet Prof Staal and talk to him at Panjal.     

Tags : panjal athirathram 2011, Prof Frits Staal, Prof Frits Staal at Athirathram 2011 Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 0 Weekend Media Workout: Shekar Dattatri POSTED AT APRIL 8, 2011 // EVENTS

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‘Weekend Media Workout’ is an initiative by Access Atlantech Edutainment to get together various forms of talent from the Media & Entertainment industry to talk to the next generation of media enthusiasts. The idea is to inspire the next generation through highly relevant thought leadership and a careful dose of walk-the-talk. Through this initiative, Access Atlantech hopes to collaborate with professionals from ilm…, TV, Print, Books, Radio, Theatre and ew Media formats to create some public wisdom about the rapidly changing facets of the Media & Entertainment industry. This week’s program is a session on ‘Incorporating Sound in Wildlife ilms’ and is to be handled by Shekar Dattatri, an award-winning wildlife and conservation filmmaker from Chennai. The session will start at 6 30 PM sharp on April 9th evening. The session is only for Final year media students as the session has a little bit of technicalities used while making wildlife films. Tags : Events in chennai, events in media, Shekar Dattatri, Weekend Media Workout Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 0 Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 5 POSTED AT APRIL 8, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011 75

The fifth day’s rites started at 6.3 am with AparahnikaPravargyam and Poorvahnika Pravargyam, which is offering of milk for Ashwini Devas in the Mahaveera pot.

This was followed by Upasath(offering ghee for Agni, Soma and Vishnu) and Subhramanya Ahwanam(Inviting Lord Indra). The construction of second layer of Chithi was also done.

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The evening rites will be a repeat of the morning rituals Aparahnika Pravargyam, Upasath and Subhramanya Ahwanam.

Tags : Athirathram 2011, panjal athirathram, panjal athirathram 2011, panjal athirathram 2011 Day 5 5 Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 4 POSTED AT APRIL 7, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

The highlight of the day was Pravargyeisti. In this rite, ghee is poured in the Mahavira pot and burnt. Cow’s milk is added to the pot which causes a tall column of fire. Sometimes the fire could go up to 30 feet. This rite is not meant to be witnessed by women, one of the reasons being the fumes emanating from this homam is not good for women’s health.

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The other main ritual performed was Shianachitthi in which the first layer of the birdshaped altar is laid out. This will be the main altar for Athirathram. The garuda-shaped altar houses positive energy.

In addition to Pravargyesthi and Shianachitthi, the following rituals were performed during the day: Garhapathyachitthi: preparation of the chitthi named garhapatya

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Aahawaniyaagni (fire from the first three days of Athirathram) is removed and fresh soil is laid on the chitthi and water purified through mantra is sprinkled on the fresh soil. Adhwaryu (main Yajur Veda Ritwik who assists the Yajaman) prepares the chitthi

Before the altar is laid out, the ground is prepared and a range of items are buried in the ground. These include lotus leaf, a golden locket, golden shape of a man, wooden material, wooden tortoise, ukha pots, wooden ‘ural’, and five figurines that include the head of a horse, man, bull and goats with and without horn.

After praayaneeya ishti (offerings to the new chitthi), Somasadanam follows where Soma plant is kept in the aasana. Padhagrahanam: A calf is brought in and it takes seven steps. The area where the calf lays its seventh step is marked Somakrayam: Purchase of soma from the cart Adhitheishti: Somalatha is brought in the bullock cart and kept in the peedha Sakhyam: The Ritwiks’ pledge to work as a team for the success of Athirathram Upasath: Part of yajaman’s deeksha. Subrahmanyaaahwaanam: The subrahmanya priest extends an invitation to Lord Indra 79

Vedikaranam and Kuzhipada: Arrangement of the vedi (platform for the yaga) Pravargyeishti was repeated in the evening.

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Tags : Athirathram, Athirathram in Kerala, panjal athirathram 2011, panjal athirathram 2011 Day 4, Vedic ritual in Kerala Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 0

Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 3 POSTED AT APRIL 6, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

The following rituals were performed during the day: Vishnukramanam: A gold coin is threaded in a piece of coir and put around yajaman’s neck

Krishnajana (deer skin) is worn by the yajamanan who then with his fist up in the air takes his vows for the day. He then recites over 5 do’s and don’ts of the third day. These include: no sleep during the day, will not think anything negative, will not mock anybody, wont eat anything unnecessary, wont cut nails or hair and wont apply oil, among others. Valsapraupasthaanam: recite mantra for Valsapra maharishi 80

Vedikaranam: The measurements of the mahavedi and the bird-shaped offering altar are laid out.

Yoopa Sampaadanam: A sacrificial pole is made by cutting a tree and it is installed at the yagashala. Mantras are chanted for protection of five pranas present in the tree. The mantras are also chanted to prevent the secreted gum from the tree to not rob it of its satvik qualities and for non-disturbance of any living being or inhabitants of the tree.

Devayagnaadhyavasaanam: restricting space for the yajamanan, he declares places he can visit within the yagashala. Shetramaapavam: Measurement of the main hall and chiddi (One of the few processes of Athirathram where no mantra is recited).

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Mahavedeekaranam: The main hall and chiddi (bird-shaped altar) are prepared. The model of Garuda shaped fire altar (Panchapathrika) was arranged. This was the first layer of Panchapathrika, the fire altar. Coming days, based on this model, the real fire alter will be made.

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The day ended with Vratha Doham ( milking the cow, and boiling the milk, all with the accompanying manthrams) and Vratha Paanam (consumption of the boiled milk). Vratham is the milk for the consumption of the yajamanan and the Pathni (Yajaman’s wife). Tags : Athirathram in Kerala, panjal athirathram 2011, Panjanl Athirathram 2011 day 3 Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 0

Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 2 POSTED AT APRIL 5, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

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Day 1 of the Panjal Athirathram witnessed a rare feat. Manjeri vellaykkattu nakul madhavan, a 12 years boy performed praisharttham. This is first time in the history of yaga in modern times that such a very young boy doing this ritual.

The rituals on the second day included Vatsapra Upasthaanam (adoration of the Ukha fire) sani graham (formal collection of money for the yagna) Pravargya Sambhaaram, the formal collection and Samskaaram of the items required for Pravargyam

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The day ended with Vratha Doham (milking the cow, and boiling the milk with accompanying manthrams) and Vratha Paanam (consumption of the boiled milk)

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Vratham is the milk for the consumption of the Yajaman and the Pathni (Yajaman’s wife). To Be continued… Tags : Athirathram, Athirathram 2011, Athirathram in Kerala, panjal athirathram 2011, Panjal Athirathram 2011 Day 2 Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 12

Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 1 POSTED AT APRIL 5, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

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Day one of Panjal Athirathram saw the following rituals being performed: Ishti, measurement of yajaman’s height, collection of ukha (pots, etc.), vayavya ishti (worship of air): for the mental preparation Rituals performed on Day 1 Rakshapurushavaranam: Appointment of rakshapurusha (for security of yaga) Ritwikvarana: Appointment of ritwiks Naandhimukam: Ritual for conclusion of yaga without any obstruction Shuddhi: Bahyashuddhi (external purification) by bathing, punyaha (recitation of the punyaha mantra), Abhyantara (internal purification) by pranayama Shraddhaahwaanam: Invitation of the shraddha devatha (concentration) Sankalpa: Explanation of performance of Athirathram

Shaalapravesha: Ritwiks entering through the western gate. Invitation of the horse, donkey Saavitrihoma: Preparation of sacred ghee Agnimathanam: Churning of sacred fire through friction Agniviharanam: Distribution of the sacred fire into three homa kundas Hotrahoma: Function for avoiding impurities like pula (death in the family)

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Agnimathanam: Churning of sacred fire through friction Kushmaandihomam: Repenting mistakes committed in the past by the ritwiks Apsudeeksha: Purification bath Deekshaneyashti: Starting of the vratha, explaining the rules for ritwiks during Athirathram Praishartha: Satwik food

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Prof. Frits Staal, an Indologist and one of the driving forces behind the preservation of the world’s oldest surviving Vedic ritual Athirathram also attending the ritual. Prof Staal,Emeritus Professor of Philosophy and South & Southeast Asian Studies at the Universityof California, Berkeley, authored the two-volume book ‘AG I – The Vedic Ritual of the ire Altar’ which is a meticulous record of Athirathram that was held in Panjal in 1975. To Be continued…. Tags : Athirathram 2011, Athirathram in Kerala, panjal athirathram 2011, Panjanl Athirathram 2011 Day 1 Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 5

Panjal Athirathram 2011: Day 0 POSTED AT APRIL 3, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011

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Panjal is all set for Athirathram, the oldest surviving vedic ritual on Earth. Here are the latest pictures from Panjal

Entrance of Vedic village, Yaagasala, Media centre, volunteer meeting, last minute preparatons

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To Be continued…. Tags : Athirathram, Athirathram in Kerala, panjal athirathram 2011 Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 0

Panjal Athirathram 2011 POSTED AT MARCH 28, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011 Part V: Stages in Yaagam

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The rituals are basically related to body. Seventeen priests are required for performing the ‘Agni’. The course of time is 12 days.

First day: Naandeemukham to Saalaapravesham, Deekshaahassu The Yajamana and his priests enter into the ritual enclosure carrying three sacred fires in pots. The ‘Ukha pot’, the main ritual vessel is prepared from clay. An animal sacrifice (symbolic) is performed for Vayu. The five chief priests (adhvaryu, brahman, hota, udgata, and sadasya) are officially selected. Fire is produced by friction. An isti is performed and is followed by the consecration of (diksa) of the Yajamana (a turban is tied around his head, he is protected by a golden breast plate, he is given a staff and he closes his fists and deprived of speaking (except for recitations), from bathing etc. The Yajamana picks up the Ukha pot, which is filled with fire, and takes three steps with it. Second day: Pravargya Samhaaram The mahavira pot, main ritual vessel of the pravargya, is prepared from clay. Third day: Yoopam Kollal A sacrificial pole is made. To the east of the old enclosure , in which the three altars have already been made, the measurements of the mahavedi and of the bird-shaped offering altar are laid out. Fourth day: Agnichayanam (construction of the Altar) The new domestic altar replaces the old offering altar one. The adhvaryu consecrates each brick. The fire from Ukha pot is added to the installed fire An introductory istiis performed .The ‘purchased’ Soma stalks are measured , transport in Somacart on the bullock skin. King somais installed on a throne and an isti is performed in honor of him .Except Yajamana and chanters, sprinkle Soma. The Indra , god’s etc is invited to attend the forth -coming Somapressing . The first pavargya and Upasad are performed. The seeds are sown in the plowed ground and buried several items like tortoise, the Ukha pot, The hiranmaya Purusha etc…The construction of bird shaped altar started with a stone at the center. All bricks are consecrated by adhvryu. The Pravargya and Upsad performed. 88

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Fourth day to Ninth day : Pravargyam & Upaasath After the morning pravargya and Upasa , the second, third, fourth layer of the altar is laid on respective days. The evening Pravargya and Upsad follows. Next day, after the morningPravargya and Upasad ,the fifth layer is laid with svayamatranna in the center. The Yajamanawishes the bricks to turn into cows. Offerings are made to Rudra. The udgata chants around the bird, and a man pours continuous stream of water around the bird, three times. The evening Pravargya and Upsad follows. The implements used in the pravargya are put down on the new altar in the shape of a man .The agni from new domestic altar is installed on the new offering altar. Long continuous oblation of ghee is made followed by other oblation and offerings. The hall of recitation is made .The animal sacrifice is performed. Tenth to Twelfth day: Suthy Suthyam days and finally Yajnapuchham The ceremonies from tenth day will continue throughout out the next two days and nights. The tenth day is known as sutya. Pressing of soma begins after the hota’s morning recital andSoma oblations are offered. Some priests including Yajamana crawl in snake like procession on to altar for offering. In the north of altar the three chant bahispavamana– stothra. Numerous rites are performed simultaneously .Fires are installed in hearths in the recital hall also. Eleven animals are sacrificed( 1975 ,only symbolic).Except Acchavaka Soma juice in the sadas. and hota recites sastra recitation. .Like this four Soma sequence are performed. Soma offering is made into the offering fire. During the pressing on the mid day, gravastut recites Rgveda verses with blind folded cloth in which Soma was wrapped. .The Yajamana is anointed . The remaining 14 Soma sequences continue through eleventh day ,night upto the dawn of twelfth day. On the twelfth day unnetha priest make two Soma offering for Indra Ancestral rites are performed. The Yajamana and Yajamanapathni take avabhratha bath followed by a concluding isti is performed and final goat is sacrificed(1975 ,only symbolic). The Yajamanainstalls three fires on his home after returning to the home .He perform morning and eveningAgnihothra for the rest of his life! To Be continued…. Tags : Athirathram, Athirathram 2011, Athirathram in Kerala, panjal athirathram 2011, Stages in Yaagam,Vedic ritual in Kerala Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 0

Panjal Athirathram 2011 POSTED AT MARCH 25, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011 Part IV: Yagasala , ritual enclosure

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The construction of the Yagasala , ritual enclosure, requires precise measurement .The measurements are derived from the size of Yajamana. So the yagasala become ‘his own’. The Soma rituals are never performed near cremeation grounds, in temples, or on temple grounds. In 1975 a paddy field in Panjal was selected. In 2011 also the rituals are going to be performed in a paddy field, in Panjal

The preparation of Yagasala in progress at Panjal The ritual enclosure consists of two main areas The Prachinavamsa or Old hall The Mahavedi or Great Altar space The prachinavamsa 1. Domestic altar (garhapathya) a squre shaped altar, with two concentric circles inside. 2. The offerng altar(old)-ahavaniya. 3. The southern altar (dakshinagni)-: Inside there is a rectangle to the north and a semi circle to the south. 4. Vedi: Immediately west of the offering altar is the vedi. It has the shape of an hourglass. The corners are determined by measurement, but the curve by rule of thumb. 5. Utkara: made from clay in the shape of a turtle. 6. Uchchistakhara: a small square made against the northern wall, with a drainage (for washing some utensils).

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Content and Image courtsey: http://www.athirathram.org The Mahavedi 1. sadas (hall of recitation ): this having two doors on opposite sides. 2. Agnidhriya shed : square shaped. 3. Marjaliya shed : square shaped. 4. A gosala south of patnisala. 5. Abavaniya or offering altar : Built in shape of bird 6. Soma hall. Inside the mahavedi , the new offering Altar will be built to the east ,in the agniksethra or field of agni. To the west there are two special sheds: The Sadas or hall of recitation. The Havirdhana ( Soma hall ) or Hall for preparing Soma oblations. The old Hall, The hall of Recitation and the soma hall together called Sala or Enclosure, which is having roofs and supported by 41-pole,of which 22 poles are for Old Hall. To Be continued….. Tags : Athirathram, Athirathram at Panjal, Athirathram in Kerala, panjal athirathram 2011, ritual enclosure,ritual enclosure of Panjal Athirathram 2011, Vedic ritual in Kerala, Yagasala Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 3

Panjal Athirathram 2011

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POSTED AT MARCH 23, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011 Part III: The Garuda-shaped platform

Athirathram is performed either with Garuda-shaped platform, ( chithy) or without this platform. Panjal Athirathram 2011 will have the hearth shaped like the mythical bird “Garuda” or eagle, and made of special bricks laid out to the ancient Vedic measurement.

The Garuda shaped chithy of Panjal Athirathram 2011 is called ‘Panchapathrika’, as Garuda has 5 wings!

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Th e Panchapathrika, 5 winged Garuda! Now there are 200 bricks in one layer of platform and there will be 5 layers for the platform. The bricks used for the platform are of 5 different shapes

Five different shapes used to construct the Garuda platform The basis is Square, “Chathurthi” and all the other four shapes are from the square i.e “Chathurthyardha“, half of the square. “Chathurtheepaadya“, 1/4 th of a square, “Chathurasrapadya” and “Hamsamukhi“.

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There will be more than 1100 bricks in total for the platform.

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Bricks for the construction of Garuda shaped platform for Panjal Athirathram 2011 To Be continued…. Tags : Athirathram, Athirathram 2011, Athirathram in Kerala, Garuda shaped Chithy for A, Garuda shaped platform for Panjal Athirathram 2011, panjal athirathram 2011, thirathram, Vedic ritual in Kerala Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 2

Panjal Athirathram 2011 POSTED AT MARCH 21, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011 94

Part II The Vessels and ladles for Athirathram

The Vessels and ladles used for Athirathram are of unusual shapes. Clay and wood vessels are shaped differently to make identification easier. The clay has to be unearthed, kneaded and baked in a particular manner and wood of certain trees used to make the vessels and ladles.

Some of the vessels used are ukha pot. The eight breast-like protuberances, ukha is the main ritual vessel and symbolises Shakti, the womb of all creation. Mahavira, another key vessel used, is made of soil dug out by special equipment, wetted and kneaded with goat’s milk, and mixed in particular proportions of ant-hill soil, Poothika grass, goat’s hair and iron powder.

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To be continued…… Tags : Athirathram, Athirathram 2011, Athirathram in Kerala, panjal athirathram 2011, Vedic ritual in Kerala Digg Stumbleupon Del.icio.us twitter Technorati 58

Panjal Athirathram 2011 POSTED AT MARCH 19, 2011 // EVENTS, PANJAL ATHIRATHRAM 2011 Part I

“While Pyramids, temples, cathedrals and skyscrapers were built and fell into decay, languages and religions came and went, and inumerable wars were fought, the vedas and their ritual continued to be transmitted by word of mouth, from teacher to pupil, and from father to son. What a triumph of human spirit over the limitation of matter and physical body….” Frits Staal, professor pf philosophy and South Asian Languages at the University of California, Berkeley. Panjal is all getting ready for “Athirathram”, the 45 year old Vedic ritual. Athirathram is a 12 day event, a great spectacle and display of learning. Last Athirathram was performed 96

in 2006 at Kizhakkancherry. Panjal hosted the 1975 Athirathram. Panjal Athirathram is planned from April 4-15,2011. Varthathe Trust is organising the event, So why Yaagam? The goal of all yaagams is the prosperity of the people at large y energizing and protecting the environment. As Sun is the main supply of energy, fire is considered as the representation of Sun and yaagam is an offer to Fire and inturn Sun, as a God

Banner announcing the Panjal Athirathram at shoranur Camp in full swing The Namboothiris participating in Panjal Athirathram are already camping at Panjal and practising the rendition of mantras. The prepration started last August.

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Practicing of taittiriyam of Yajurveda by Poothillathu Ramanujan Somayajippadu, who is the ‘Yajamanan’ for the Athirathram and Kapra Sankaranarayanan Akkithiripad, ‘Yajamanan’ of the previous Athirathram

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Practicing of Kaushithakam, Rig Veda by Cherumukku Vallabhan Somayajippadu and Naras Parameshwaran Namboothiri! To be continued… http://sandeepvarma.com/tag/athirathram-in-kerala/ VEDA EN VEDISCH RITUEEL: AGNI, SOMA EN PRAVARGYA JEM Houben o Home o Inleiding o De Jyotistoma of het "Lof van het Licht" ritueel o Agni: het goddelijke vuur o Soma: plant, drank en god o De Pravargya: inzicht in zon en mens o Moderne uitvoeringen van rituelen o Vedic schools in South Asia: a few observations and a bibliography o Links o Over deze site

Inleiding

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Het Vedisch ritueel heeft in Zuid-Azië een lange geschiedenis die meer dan drieduizend jaar geleden begint, en in zekere zin tot op de dag van vandaag doorgaat. De oudste Vedische tekst, de Rgveda (1500 – 1000 voor onze jaartelling), bestaat uit hymnen die voorgedragen werden tijdens Vediche rituelen. Gedetailleerde beschrijvingen van Vedische rituelen vinden we pas veel later in de Srauta-Sutras (vanaf ca. 2e eeuw voor onze jaartelling). Rituelen die al in de Rgvedische tijd belangrijk zijn betreffen Agni (Vuur), Soma (een heilige drank), en de Pravargya, een pot van klei, Pravargya genaamd, die gloeiend heet wordt gestookt, waarna men een hete drank (Gharma) offert vanuit de pot. Het Gharmaoffer ontwikkelde zich al in laat-Rgvedische tijd tot een ritueel dat in grote lijnen overeenkomt met de Pravargya die in Yajurvedische teksten en in de Srauta-Sutras besproken wordt.1 (boven) De Jyotistoma of het "Lof van het Licht"-ritueel In een groep Vedische rituelen die Jyotistoma of "Lof van het Licht"-ritueel genoemd worden zijn Agni en Soma van groot belang. De Jyotistoma is een Soma-offer, waarin ook de Pravargya kan voorkomen.2 De Jyotistoma is de eenvoudigste rituele eenheid waarin de drie eerste Veda's een volledige rol spelen: 1. de Rgveda, waarin de metrische hymnen voor Vedische rituelen verzameld zijn; 2. de Yajurveda, de verzameling van offerformules voor de verschillende rituelen; 3. de Samaveda, die gezangen bevat met als tekst meestal delen van Rgvedische hymnen. Deze rol spelen zij in de Jyotistoma dankzij de deelname van priesters die in de betreffende Veda geschoold zijn: 1. de Hotr-priester, geschoold in de Rgveda, verzorgt de recitaties die de offeringen begeleiden. Hij wordt bijgestaan door enkele assistenten: de Maitravaruna (of Prasastr), de Acchavaka, de Gravastut. 2. de Adhvaryu, geschoold in de Yajurveda, prevelt de offerformules terwijl hij het "management" van het offer op zich neemt. Ook hij wordt bijgestaan door assistenten: de Pratiprasthatr, de Nestr, de Unnetr. 3. de Udgatr, geschoold in de Yajurveda, verzorgt de gezangen. Hij wordt bijgestaan door de Prastotr, de Pratihartr en de Subrahmanya. 4. Er is een vierde groep priesters, waarvan de belangrijkste de Brahman is. Hij is een soort "opzichter" van het offer. Hij geeft bijvoorbeeld andere priesters toestemming om te beginnen met bepaalde belangrijke onderdelen van het offer, en hij moet weten welke correcties uitgevoerd kunnen worden als er iets mis gaat. Hij kan tot een van de drie genoemde Veda's behoren, of tot de vierde Veda, de Atharvaveda. Tot de groep van de Brahman behoren de Brahmanacchamsin, die in de praktijk samenwerkt met de Hotr; de Agnidh, die in de praktijk samenwerkt met de Hotr en de Adhvaryu; en de Potr, die in de praktijk samenwerkt met de Hotr. In totaal zijn er 16 priesters (soms met nog een 17e, de toekijkende Sadasya): gezamenlijk voeren zij het offer uit ten behoeve van de offerheer en zijn echtgenote, die hen hebben uitgenodigd en hun een offerloon beloofd hebben. 100

Het is de bedoeling dat de offerheer en zijn echtgenote tijdens de vijf à zes dagen van het offer een belangrijke transformatie doorgaan. Op de eerste dag vindt de Diksa of "consecratie" plaats. De offerheer wordt geschoren, en kan vanaf dat moment alleen nog maar zeer beperkt voedsel tot zich nemen. Ook houdt hij vanaf dat moment zijn handen zoveel mogelijk in de vorm van een vuist: dit wijst op de embryonale status waarin hij nu volgens de oudste interpretaties verkeert.

Offerheer en echtgenote vlak na de consecratie. Pas na het afsluitende bad, de Avabhrtha, waaruit hij en zijn echtgenote als "herboren" tevoorschijn komen, mag hij de handen weer helemaal ontstpannen. Ook aan de echtgenote worden bepaalde beperkingen opgelegd, maar minder streng. (boven)

Offerheer en echtgenote tijdens het afsluitende bad. Agni: het goddelijke vuur Het maken, vervoeren en onderhouden van vuur nam een belangrijke plaats in het leven van de semi-nomadische, Vedische mens. De eerste hymne van de Rgveda is gewijd aan 101

Agni. Het vuur staat centraal in veel Vedische rituelen, onder andere in het eenvoudige twee-maal daagse Agnihotra. De offerheer is normaal gesproken reeds ingewijd in het Agnihotra en verricht dit dagelijks totdat hij op de eerste dag van de Jyotistoma, na zijn ochtend-Agnihotra, de priesters officieel uitnodigt het offer voor hem te verrichten. Daarna laat hij het vuur van het dagelijks Agnihotra in zijn huis "opstijgen" in de houten vuurplank en vuurstok (de Arani's) waaruit ooit zijn Agnihotravuur voor het eerst "gekarnd" of gewreven werd. De offerheer neemt dan deze Arani's, en samen met zijn echtgenote, en met de door hun uitgenodigde 16 priesters, begeeft hij zich in een kleine processie naar de plaats waar het offer gehouden zal worden. Tijdens het lopen naar de offerplaats wordt onder andere de eerste hymne van de Rgveda gereciteerd. Aangekomen op de offerplaats wordt het eerste vuur van het Jyotistoma ritueel gemaakt door de vuurplank en -stok van de offerheer onder druk tegen elkaar te wrijven. Videostream: Maken van vuur (Breedband) / (Modem) De offerplaats is ontworpen volgens vastgestelde richtlijnen.

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Kaart zoals die gebruikt werd door de priesters om het offergebied in te richten (Barsi 2001).

Schema van het offergebied. Legenda Garh. = Garhapatya of Huisaltaar Vuur Ahav. = Ahavaniya of Offer Vuur Daksin. = Daksinagni or Zuidelijk Vuur R. = Rajasandi, de Konings-troon voor de Soma-stengels S. = Samrad-asandi, de Keizers-troon voor de Pravargya-potten m. = methi en mayukhas, de paal en pennen voor de koe, het kalf, de geit en het lam kh. = khara of aardverhoging Utt.v. = Uttaravedi n. = nabhi -Aanvankelijk vinden de offerhandelingen plaats in de Pracinavamsa of "hut met oostelijk gerichte nokbalk". Op de dag voor de persingsdag (minimaal de vierde dag) verschuift het centrum van rituele activiteit zich naar de in precieze verhoudingen uitgemeten Mahavedi of grote offerplaats. Het vuur (dit kan in vorm van gloeiende kooltjes zijn) wordt in een 104

plechtige processie vanuit het offeraltaar in de Pracinavamsa naar de Uttaravedi, het altaar in het oosten van de Mahavedi gebracht. Videostream: Het voortschrijden met Agni (Breedband) / (Modem) Het persen van de Soma, het offeren van de Somadrank aan de goden door het in het vuur van de Uttaravedi te plengen, en het nuttigen van de overgebleven Somadrank, vindt allemaal plaats in de Mahavedi, op de dag van het Somapersen. Op de Mahavedi is veel speciaal gras uitgespreid dat als zitplaats moet dienen voor de goden en voor de priesters. Ook zijn hier twee grote en twee kleinere hutten of afscheidingen gebouwd. Na het afsluitende bad worden het gras en de hutten op de Mahavedi verbrand met het vuur van de Uttaravedi. Videostream: Eindverbranding van heilig gras (Breedband) / (Modem) Daarna laat men het vuur van de drie altaren in de overgebleven oude offerhut, de Pracinavamsa, weer opstijgen in de Arani's (vuurplank en -stok) van de offerheer, en gaat de offerheer met zijn echtgenote terug naar huis. Hier wordt vuur gemaakt uit de Arani's. Vanaf dat moment gaan de offerheer en zijn echtgenote door met hun dagelijkse Agnihotra, 's avonds en 's ochtends. (boven) Soma: plant, drank en god Soma is de naam van een raadselachtige plant waaruit een drank geperst wordt waaraan bepaalde effecten op het bewustzijn toegeschreven worden. De plant en drank worden ook aanbeden als god. De identiteit van de Soma-plant is sinds meer dan honderd jaar onderwerp van discussie van Vedisten en Indologen. Allerlei tekstplaatsen suggereren dat Soma opgewektheid, alertheid en waakzaamheid vermeerdert. De poëtische uitingen waarin de Soma geprezen wordt staan bol van metaforen en hyperbolen. Als deze gezien worden als uitdrukkingen van directe waarnemingen zou men kunnen concluderen dat de waarneming van de Soma-gebruikers sterk "veranderd" is, en dat men dus met een halucinogeen te maken zou hebben. De metaforen en hyperbolen zijn echter tamelijk stereotyp: het uit een zeef druppelende Soma-sap wordt telkens weer vergeleken met regen, het vat waar het in terecht komt wordt herhaaldelijk gelijkgesteld met een oceaan, etc. Vertaalde citaten. Men zou kunnen stellen dat de dichters van de Soma-hymnen in het algemeen eerder een bestaande traditie volgen dan dat ze uitdrukking zouden geven aan directe halucinatoire ervaringen. De gecompliceerde recitaties, gezangen en rituele handelingen waar de offerheer en de priesters zich mee bezighouden maken het onwaarschijnlijk dat de Soma een sterke halucinogeen zou zijn in de vorm en hoeveelheden waarin deze door de deelnemers geconsumeerd werd. Dat de Soma een sterke halucinogeen zou zijn was de theorie die enkele decennia geleden gepresenteerd werd door R.G. Wasson (1968). Hij verdedigde dat de rode vliegenzwam, Amanita muscaria, de meest waarschijnlijke kandidaat zou zijn voor de Soma-plant. J. Brough en F.B.J. Kuiper, onder anderen, hebben aangetoond dat Wasson's theorie niet goed strookt met de informatie die gegeven wordt in de oude teksten. Men heeft ook gesuggereerd dat de Soma een alcoholische drank zou zijn. Het probleem met deze theorie is dat de procedures in het Soma-offer (e.g. de Jyotistoma) geen passende gelegenheid bieden voor het proces van fermentatie dat nodg is om een alcoholische drank te bereiden. Bovendien schrijven de Vedische teksten het nuttigen van 105

alcohol wanneer iemand teveel Soma heeft gedronken. Men zou daarom verwachten dat de twee een tegengestelde werking hebben. Andere voorstellen voor Soma zijn Sarcostemma brevistigma en Peganum harmala. Een oude kandidaat, de Ephedra (verdedigd o.a. door K.F. Geldner, auteur van de meest gebruikte wetenschappelijke vertaling van de Rgveda), heeft de laatste jaren nieuwe steun gekregen van geleerden zoals H. Falk en C.G. Kashikar. Andere geleerden, zoals Th. Oberlies en F. Staal, hebben opnieuw gesteld dat de Soma een duidelijk halucinogene werking moet hebben, ook al geven ze toe dat het concrete voorstel van de vliegenzwam problematisch is. Waar vaak onvoldoende aandacht aan besteed wordt is dat de deelnemers aan een Somaoffer zichzelf onderwerpen aan bepaalde restricties. Rituele voorschriften zeggen expliciet dat de offeraar moet vasten todat hij duidelijk vermagerd is, vóórdat hij met het Somaoffer kan beginnen. Zoals bekend is kan zelfs alleen vasten leiden tot halucinaties. Daar komt nog bij dat de uitvoering van een Soma-offer altijd gepaard gaat met extreem vroeg op staan in ieder geval op de persingsdag, en soms gaat men daarna niet alleen de hele dag maar ook de hele daarop volgende nacht door (dit laatste in het geval van het Atiratra Soma-offer, waarnaar al in de Rgveda verwezen wordt). Het zoeken naar een substantie die een sterk halucinogeen effect heeft op moderne mensen wier physiologie gewend is aan volle maaltijden met veel koffie etc. zou daarom wel eens misplaatst kunnen zijn. Er zijn enkele plaatsen in de Rgveda (bijv. de zgn. Laba-sukta in het 10e boek) waar halucinatie-achtige ervaringen in verband gebracht worden met Soma, maar dit zou ook heel goed kunnen wijzen op een stimulant met hoogstens faciliterende eigenschappen voor halucinogene ervaringen. In elk geval, de Ephedra past in het algemeen in de de Vedische gegevens zoals boven kort geschetst en bovendien in de gegevens van het oude Iran (waar Haoma geperst wordt op een manier die parallel loopt aan de manier waarop Soma geperst wordt). Videostream: Het soma-persen (Breedband) / (Modem) Het identificeren van de Soma-plant is een belangrijke uitdaging, en als er overtuigende evidentie en argumenten gevonden worden in een bepaalde richting zou dat een belangrijke bijdrage zijn aan het contextualiseren van de Vedische cultuur.3 Echter, vanuit het oogpunt van het Soma-offer of de Jyotistoma is het duidelijk dat de Soma-plant in de loop der tijd naar de achtergrond geschoven is. Al in de Brahmana teksten van de verschillende Veda's worden allerlei alternatieve planten genoemd voor het geval de echte Soma niet gevonden wordt. Brahmanen in het huidige India kunnen meestal niet een echte Soma-plant aanwijzen; in Soma-offers die nu en dan nog plaatsvinden wordt veelal de Putika (volgens C.G. Kashikar "Ran Sher" of Sarcostemma Brevistigma) gebruikt, dat al in oude bronnen als substituut genoemd wordt.

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Putika, substituut van Soma. Het huidige Soma-offer lijkt dus op een bruiloft die gewoon doorgaat ook al weet niemand wie de bruid is of waar zij gebleven is. Al in een later boek van de Rgveda (boek 10) vinden we echter het idee dat de "echte" Soma niet de plant is die geperst wordt. Een belangrijk "ingredient" bij de bereiding van Soma zijn de recitaties en gezangen, en deze zijn wel heel nadrukkelijk aanwezig. Dat in het Soma-ritueel de aandacht van de offersubstantie, de Soma, naar de gezangen is gegaan blijkt ook uit de naam van veel specifieke Soma-rituelen: deze heeft vaak iets te maken met de het karakter van de gezangen die erin voorkomen. De naam Jyotistoma wordt in de Jaiminiya Brahmana bijvoorbeeld uitgelegd door erop te wijzen dat het laatste gezang bij de derde persing op de persingsdag gewijd is aan Agni, en Agni is licht of Jyotis. De naam Jyotistoma is hier equivalent aan Agnistoma, die de eerste basisvorm is van de groep rituelen die later Jyotistoma in de ruime zin van het woord genoemd worden. De Sodasi wordt zo genoemd omdat er zestien (sodasa) recitaties en gezangen zijn, in plaats van twaalf in de Agnistoma. De Soma als god is in de Vedische cultuur en mythologie blijkbaar steeds meer een zelfstandige rol gaan spelen, onafhankelijk van de materiële basis in de vorm van het uitgeperste Soma-sap. In de hymnen verschijnt hij als een god die onder andere een helder bewustzijn geeft, die het licht vindt en een uitweg uit benauwenis, die ziekten verdrijft, die faam geeft, geluk en rijkdom. Zie bijvoorbeeld de eerste hymne van het negende boek van de Rgveda. De Samaveda, die in het Soma-offer zo belangrijk is geworden, kent ook teksten die allerlei positieve effecten rechtstreeks aan de melodie van het gezang toekent, bijvoorbeeld de Samavidhana-Brahmana. Men vindt hier een bevestiging van het verminderde belang van de "materiële" Soma die ook al bleek uit het verloren gaan van zekere kennis van de oorspronkelijke Somaplant. De belangrijke rol die de Samaveda is gaan spelen in het Soma-offer heeft mogelijk ook te maken met het feit dat muziek een meer onmiddellijk effect heeft op mensen dan de recitaties in vaak gecompliceerde poëtische taaluitingen die men meestal pas begrijpt als men de tekst al kent en bestudeerd heeft. De Samavedische gezangen, die Samans genoemd worden, zijn boordevol ritmische melodiën, repeterende en varierende patronen, etc. Audio: Voorbeeld van een Saman: de Rathantara Saman gedurende de middagpersing van de Aty-Agnistoma in Barsi, februari 2001. 107

Als zodanig zou men ze kunnen vergelijken met Europese muziekwerken zoals de Fuges van Bach. In een Saman worden uitgaande van een Rg-vedisch vers bestaande syllabes uitgerekt of anderszins gemodificeerd, en worden er ook allerlei syllabes ingevoegd. In dit opzicht is de Samaveda te vergelijken met het Gregoriaans, waar men uitgaande van een bepaalde tekst, bijv. een regel uit een Psalm (in de Latijnse versie), uitgebreide gezangen creëert door syllabes op te rekken en andere syllabes in te voegen.(boven) Gharma en Pravargya Het belangrijkste object in de Pravargya is een pot van klei die gevuld is met geklaarde boter ("ghee") en die verhit wordt met vuur. Als versgemolken koeie- en geitemelk toegevoegd worden aan de kokende ghee, ontstaan er indrukwekkende steekvlammen. Begeleidende liederen en recitaties associëren de verhitte pot met, onder andere, licht en de zon. In het volgende stadium wordt hete melk en yoghurt (dadhi) geofferd in het offervuur vanuit de pot. Tenslotte consumeren de deelnemers (offeraars en priesters) dat wat na de offeringen overgebleven is. Het Pravargyaritueel zit vol symbolen die intieme relaties suggereren tussen het nivo van de cosmos, het ritueel en de mens. Een aantal verzen die in het klassieke Pravargyaritueel gereciteerd worden komen uit de zgn. Raadselhymne van de Rgveda. Een nadere studie van deze hymne heeft uitgewezen dat de hymne geheel bestaat uit groepen verzen die toepasselijk zijn bij specifieke episodes in het klassieke Pravargya ritueel. Als de hymne tegen deze rituele achtergrond geplaatst wordt blijken er overtuigende oplossingen mogelijk voor een groot aantal raadsels in deze oude hymne. De relatie tussen de klassieke Pravargya en de raadselhymne wijst op een "initiatie" karakter van de Pravargya, iets dat ook uit allerlei andere.htmlecten van de Pravargya naar voren komt.4 De Pravargya wordt nooit op zichzelf uitgevoerd, maar altijd in de context van het Somaoffer, bijv. in de vorm van de Jyotistoma. Hier wordt het uitgevoerd op de inleidende dagen vóór de daadwerkelijke persing van de Soma, in de ochtend en in de namiddag. Elke uitvoering begint met een uitgebreide "begin vrede-recitatie" (purva santi) en eindigt met een nog uitgebreidere "afsluitende vrede-recitatie" (uttara santi). (boven) Audio: Afsluitende vrede-recitatie. Moderne uitvoeringen van Vedische rituelen 5 Al in de 19e eeuw slaagde Martin Haug erin Brahmanen in Pune zover te krijgen dat ze een Soma-offer uitvoerden dat hij van dichtbij kon meemaken. Ook werd hem toegestaan offerlepels en andere instrumenten te fotograferen en mee te nemen naar Europa. Deze ervaringen waren voor Haug van groot belang om een beter inzicht te krijgen in de materie waar het Aitareya Brahmana, de Vedische tekst die hij voor het eerst aan het uitgeven en vertalen was. Van Haug's verzameling en foto's werd ook dankbaar gebruik gemaakt door andere geleerden die zich bezighielden met de bestudering van het Vedisch ritueel, bijv. Willem Caland en Victor Henry. De eerste uitvoering die men met recht "modern" kan noemen is het door Frits Staal georganiseerde Agnicayana in Kerala, India, 1975. De traditie van Vedische rituelen was ondertussen erg zwak geworden, en zonder Staal's aansporingen en stimuleringen zou het Agnicayana waarschijnlijk helemaal niet plaatsgevonden hebben. Er moest bij deze 108

uitvoering rekening gehouden worden met allerlei nieuwe omstandigheden waarin de traditionele regels voor het ritueel niet voorzien: het was de bedoeling dat het ritueel in detail gefilmd zou worden, en dat uitgebreid geluidopnamen gemaakt zouden worden; er was veel aandacht van de media voor het offer, en er kwamen protestacties tegen het doden van offerdieren zodat op het laatste moment besloten werd deze te vervangen door vegetarische substanties. De succesvolle uitvoering door Staal stimuleerde ook traditionele Brahmanen weer de organisatie van grotere Srauta rituelen op zich te nemen. Sinds de 1980'er jaren zijn in Maharashtra twee personen erg actief geweest in het organiseren van grotere Vedische rituelen, Dhr. Selukar Maharaj en Dhr. Nana Kale. Beiden zijn erin geslaagd in 1999-2000 een Gavam-Ayana te houden: een langdurige offersessie (Sattra) waarbij een jaarlang soma geperst en geofferd wordt (de Jyotistoma/Agnistoma en de Pravargya zijn telkens terugkerende elementen in dit complexe ritueel). Kleurnet Kabeltelevisie Amsterdam zond in het voorjaar 2001 een interview uit met Dr. J.E.M. Houben over het Vedisch ritueel. Dit geeft een aardige eerste introductie tot het onderwerp. De opnamen hierin zijn gemaakt bij een Aty-Agnistoma in Barsi, februari 2001. Videostream: Kleurnet Interview over Vedisch ritueel (Breedband) / (Modem) De film The Vedic Pravargya Ritual: Performances in Delhi, December 11-12, 1996, laat de Pravargya zien zoals die uitgevoerd werd in een elf-daags Soma-offer, d.w.z. een Soma-offer waarbij er niet slechts één persingsdag is, zoals in het basistype de Jyotistoma, maar elf. Voor de Pravargya maakt het grotere aantal persingsdagen niets uit. (boven) Videostream: Pravargya-film: Introductie (Breedband) / (Modem) Videostream: Pravargya-film: Part I: the regular performance (Breedband) / (Modem) In voorbereiding: Vedische scholen in Zuid Azië: inleidende opmerkingen en een bibliografie De Vedas en het Vedisch ritueel overleven in Zuid Azië in een complex van Vedische scholen die zeldzaam geworden zijn in de laatste paar eeuwen. De geschiedenis van deze Vedische scholen vormt een belangrijk onderdeel van de culturele geschiedenis van Zuid Azië. Een belangrijk overzicht van kennis die tot dan toe beschikbaar was werd gepubliceerd door Louis Renou in 1947, Les écoles Védiques et la formation du Veda; sindsdien is veel nieuw onderzoek gedaan. Op deze plaats zal een bibliografie beschikbaar gemaakt worden van belangrijk onderzoek op het gebied van de Vedische scholen sinds Louis Renou's publicatie. Van belang in dit verband is ook een essay geschreven door Willem Caland in 1918, De ontdekkingsgeschiedenis van den Veda. Hierin geeft hij een overzicht van de ontdekking en studie van de Veda door Westerse geleerden tot ca. de 19e eeuw. Wat betreft de studie van de Veda in moderne tijden: bij wijze van illustratie laten we een recente groep studenten zien die het begin van de Rgveda leren in de Veda Vijnan Ashram in Barsi. (boven) Videostream: Het bestuderen van de eerste hymne van de Rgveda (Broadband) / (Modem)

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Voetnoten 1. Zie o.a. "On the earliest attestable forms of the Pravargya ritual: Rg-Vedic references to the Gharma-Pravargya, especially in the Atri family book (book 5)", Indo-Iranian Journal 43 (2000):1-25. (terug) 2. Letterlijke betekenis v. Jyotistoma: "Lof van het Licht", van Jyotis = licht + Stoma = lofprijzing; verschillend gebruik van de term in verschillende teksten/perioden; literatuur verwijzingen betreffende Jyotistoma en Agnistoma: o.a. Caland en Henry's beschrijving uit 1906-07). (terug) 3. Seminar Leiden, 3-4 juli 1999. (terug) 4. Zie o.a. artikel: "Pragmatics of a Vedic Hymn" Journal of the American Oriental Society, 120.4. (terug) 5. D.w.z. van de grotere Srauta rituelen; de kleinere Srauta rituelen zoals Agnihotra hebben een redelijk goede continuiteit, evenals de meer populaire Grhya rituelen. (terug) http://www.jyotistoma.nl/NL/default.html Translation Veda and Vedic ritual: AGNI, SOMA AND pravargya Home Introduction The Jyotistoma or the "Praise of the Light" ritual Agni: the divine fire Soma: plants, beverage and god The pravargya: understanding the sun and humans Modern versions of rituals Vedic schools in South Asia: a few observations and a bibliography Left About this site

Introduction The Vedic ritual in South Asia a long history that begins more than three thousand years ago, and in a sense continues to this day. The oldest Vedic text, the Rig Veda (1500 - 1000 BC), consists of hymns were recited during Vediche rituals. Detailed descriptions of Vedic rituals we find only much later in the Srauta-Sutras (from ca. 2nd century BCE). Rituals already in the Rgvedische time are important concern Agni (Fire), Soma (a sacred drink) and pravargya, a clay pot, pravargya called, which was piping hot fired, after which a hot beverage (gharma) sacrifices from the pot. The gharma sacrifice developed already in late-Rgvedische time to a ritual that is broadly consistent with the pravargya in Yajurvedische texts and in the Srauta-Sutras discussed wordt.1 (above) 110

The Jyotistoma or the "Praise of the Light" -ritueel In a group of Vedic rituals Jyotistoma or "Praise of the Light" -ritueel called Agni and Soma are of great importance. The Jyotistoma is a Soma-sacrifice, which also pravargya can voorkomen.2 The Jyotistoma is the simplest ritual unit in which the three first Vedas play a full role: the Rig Veda, which the metrical hymns for Vedic rituals have been collected; the Yajur Veda, the collection of offering formulas for various rituals; the Samaveda containing chants with as text usually parts of Rgvedische hymns. The role they play in the Jyotistoma thanks to the participation of priests who are skilled in the relevant Veda: Hotr the priest, educated in the Rig Veda, the recitations care that accompany the offerings. He is assisted by several assistants: the Maitravaruna (or Prasastr), the Acchavaka, the Gravastut. the Adhvaryu, schooled in the Yajur Veda, the murmurs offering formulas while the "management" of the sacrifice takes on. He will also be helped by assistants: the Pratiprasthatr, the Nestr, the Unnetr. the Udgatr, schooled in the Yajur Veda, provides the songs. He is assisted by the Prastotr, the Pratihartr and Subrahmanya. There is a fourth group of priests, which the most important is Brahman. He is a kind of "overseer" of the sacrifice. He gives example, other priests to begin with certain key parts of the sacrifice, and he should know what corrections can be made if something goes wrong. He may belong to one of the three Vedas, or until the fourth Veda, the Atharvaveda. The group of Brahman include Brahmanacchamsin who in practice cooperates with the Hotr; the Agnidh who in practice cooperates with the Hotr and Adhvaryu; and the POTr, which, in practice, co-operates with the Hotr. In total there are 16 priests (sometimes with a 17th, the watching sadasya): together they perform the sacrifice for the benefit of the sacrifice gentleman and his wife who invited them and have promised a salary sacrifice. It is intended that the sacrifice gentleman and his wife during the five to six days of sacrifice continue a major transformation. On the first day, the Diksa or "consecration" instead. The sacrifice gentleman is shaved, and can from that moment only very limited food take it to them. He also keeps from that moment his hands as much as possible in the form of a fist, this points to the embryonic state in which he now finds in accordance with the oldest interpretations.

Sacrifice Lord and wife just after the consecration.

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Only after the final bath, the Avabhrtha which he and his wife as "reborn" to emerge, he may hand back all ontstpannen. Certain restrictions are imposed on the wife, but less severe. (Above)

Sacrifice Lord and wife during the concluding bath. Agni: the divine fire Making, transporting and maintaining fire took an important place in the life of the seminomadic, Vedic man. The first hymn of the Rig Veda is dedicated to Agni. The fire is central to many Vedic rituals, among other things, the simple twice-daily Agnihotra. The sacrifice lord is normally already initiated into the Agnihotra and performed this daily until the first day of the Jyotistoma, after his morning Agnihotra, priests officially invited to perform the sacrifice for him. Then he let the fire of daily Agnihotra in his house "ascend" into the wooden fire board and fire stick (the Arani etc.) which ever Agnihotravuur first "churned" or was rubbed. The sacrificial Mr. then takes these Arani's, and together with his wife, and their invited by 16 priests, he entered a small procession to the place where the offering will be held. While walking to the place of sacrifice is home to the first hymn of the Rig Veda recited. Arriving at the place of sacrifice is the first fire of the Jyotistoma ritual by the fire board and -stok rubbing the sacrifice Mr. pressure against each other. Video Stream: Making fire (Broadband) / (Modem) The sacrificial area is designed according to established guidelines.

Map as it was used by the priests to organize the sacrificial area (Barsi 2001).

Diagram of the sacrificial area. Legend Garh. = Gârhapatya or House Altar Fire Ahav. = Ahavaniya or Sacrifice Fire Daksin. = Daksinagni or Southern Fire R = Rajasandi, the throne for the King-Soma stems S. = Samråd-asandi, the Emperor's throne for the pravargya pots m. = methi and mayukhas, the pole and pins for the cow, calf, goat and lamb kh. = Khara or mound 112

Utt.v. = Uttaravedi n. = Nabhi Initially, the sacrificial actions take place in the Pracinavamsa or "hut with East facing ridge beam." On the day before the persingsdag (at least the fourth day) shifts the center of ritual activity is in the exact proportions measured Mahavedi or great sacrifice. The fire (this can be in form of glowing coals) is brought in a solemn procession from the altar in the Pracinavamsa the Uttaravedi, the altar in the east of the Mahavedi. Video Stream: The progress with Agni (Broadband) / (Modem) The pressing of the Soma, the offering of the Somadrank to the gods through the shed to the fire of the Uttaravedi, and consuming the remaining Somadrank, all takes place in the Mahavedi, on the day of the Somapersen. The Mahavedi much special grass spread which should serve as a seat for the gods and priests. There are also two large and two smaller cabins or fences built. After concluding bath are the grass and the cabins on the Mahavedi burned with the fire of Uttaravedi. Video Stream: Final Burning sacred grass (Broadband) / (Modem) Thereafter, the fire of the three altars in the remaining old offerhut, the Pracinavamsa, again ascend into the Arani (fire board and -stok) of the sacrificial lord, and will sacrifice the gentleman with his wife back home. This fire is made from the Arani's. From then sacrifice the gentleman and his wife with their daily Agnihotra, evening and morning. (Above) Soma: plants, beverage and god Soma is the name of a mysterious plant from which a beverage is forced to which certain effects are attributed to consciousness. The plant and drink are also worshiped as a god. The identity of the Soma plant since more than a century topic of discussion Vedisten and Indologists. All sorts of Text suggest that Soma cheerfulness, alertness and vigilance increases. The poetic utterances in which the Soma is praised are full of metaphors and hyperboles. If these are seen as expressions of direct observations, one might conclude that the perception of the Soma-users "changed" is strong, and that they would therefore have to deal with a hallucinatory. But the metaphors and hyperbole are fairly stereotypical: the dripping of a sieve Soma juice is repeatedly compared to rain, the barrel where it enters repeatedly equated with an ocean, etc. Translated quotations. One could argue that the poets of the Soma-hymns are generally more likely to follow an existing tradition than they would express direct halucinatoire experiences. The complicated recitations, songs and rituals where the sacrificial lord and the priests involved in this process make it unlikely that the Soma would be a strong hallucinatory in such form and quantity in which it was consumed by the participants. That Soma would be a strong hallucinatory was the theory which was presented a few decades ago by RG 113

Wasson (1968). He defended the red fly agaric, Amanita muscaria, the most likely candidate would be the Soma plant. J. Brough and F.B.J. Kuiper, among others, have shown that Wasson's theory is not well compatible with the information that is given in the ancient texts. It has also been suggested that the Soma would be an alcoholic beverage. The problem with this theory is that offering the procedures in the Soma-sacrifice (eg the Jyotistoma) no adequate opportunity for the process of fermentation which nodg to prepare an alcoholic drink. Moreover, write the Vedic texts consuming alcohol when someone has drunk too much Soma. One would therefore expect that the two have an opposite effect. Other proposals for Soma are Sarcostemma brevi stigma and Peganum harmala. An old candidate, Ephedra (defended among others by KF Geldner, author of the most widely used scientific translation of the Rig Veda) received, in recent years new support from scholars such as H. Falk and CG Kashikar. Other scholars, such as Th. Oberlies and F. Steel, have reaffirmed that the Soma must have a clear halucinogene operation, even though they admit that the specific proposal of the fly agaric is problematic. What is often insufficient attention is paid to the participants in a Soma-sacrifice themselves subject to certain restrictions. Ritual prescriptions say explicitly that the sacrificer should fast until he has clearly lost weight before he can begin the Soma offering. As is known, may even lead to only fasting hallucinations. In addition, the implementation of a Soma-sacrifice is always accompanied by extremely early start anyway on the persingsdag, and sometimes they then not only the day but also throughout the next night (the latter in the If the atirâtra Soma-sacrifice, which is already referenced in the Rig Veda). The search for a substance that a strong hallucinatory effect on modern people whose physiology is accustomed to full meals with lots of coffee etc could therefore well be misplaced. There are few places in the Rig Veda (eg. The so-called. Laba-Sukta in the 10th book) where halucinatie-like experiences are associated with Soma, but it could also very well indicate a stimulant at most facilitative properties halucinogene experiences. In any case, the Ephedra fits in general in the data such as the Vedic briefly outlined above, and in addition, in the data of the old Iran (where Haoma is pressed in a way that is parallel to the way in which Soma is pressed). Video Stream: The soma-presses (Broadband) / (Modem) Identifying the Soma-plant is a major challenge, and if there is compelling evidence and arguments to be found in a certain direction, that would be an important contribution to the contextualization of the Vedic cultuur.3 However, from the viewpoint of the Soma-sacrifice, or the Jyotistoma it is clear that the Soma-plant in the course of time has been pushed into the background. Already in the Brahmana texts of the various Vedas are all kinds of alternative plants named in case the real Soma is not found. Brahmins in India today can not usually identify a real Soma plant; Soma-sacrifices occasionally still take place is mostly used the Putika (according CG Kashikar "Ran Sher" or Sarcostemma Brevi Stigma), which is mentioned in ancient sources as a substitute.

Putika, substitute Soma. 114

The current Soma offering, resembling a wedding which just continues even though no one knows who the bride is or where she went. As in a later book of the Rig Veda (book 10), however, we find the idea that the "real" Soma not the plant is being pressed. An important "ingredient" in the preparation of Soma are the recitations and chants, and these are very prominent. That in the Soma ritual sacrifice to the attention of the substance, the Soma, to the chants has been also reflected in the name of many specific Soma rituals: this is often something to do with the character of the songs it contains. The name Jyotistoma in the Jaiminiya Brahmana instance explained by pointing out that the last song at the third pressing on the persingsdag dedicated to Agni, Agni and is light or Jyotis. The name Jyotistoma here is equivalent to Agnistoma that the first basic form of the group rituals later Jyotistoma mentioned in the broad sense of the word. The Sodasi is so called because there are sixteen (sodasa) recitations and chants, instead of twelve in the Agnistoma. The Soma as god in the Vedic culture and mythology apparently increasingly play an independent role, regardless of the base material in the form of the pressed Soma juice. In the hymns he appears as a god who gives include a clear consciousness that finds the light and a way out of distress, dispelling diseases, gives fame, fortune and wealth. See for example the first hymn of the ninth book of the Rig Veda. The Sama Veda, which in the Soma-sacrifice has become so important, also has lyrics that many positive effects grants directly to the melody of the song, for example SamavidhanaBrahmana. Here one finds a confirmation of the reduced importance of the "material" Soma who also showed the loss of some knowledge of the original soma plant. The important role to make the Samaveda is going to play in the Soma-sacrifice is also the fact that music has a more immediate impact on people than the recitations in often complicated poetic utterances that one usually only understand when you know the text and studied. The Samavedische chants, called Samans are packed with rhythmic melodies, repetitive and varying patterns, etc. Audio: Example of a Saman: the Rathantara Saman during the midday pressing of the AtyAgnistoma in Barsi, February 2001. As such, one can compare them with European musical works such as extractors of Bach. In a Saman be starting from a Rg-vedically fresh existing syllables stretched or otherwise modified, and all kinds of syllables also be inserted there. In this regard, to compare the Samaveda with Gregorian chant, which is made of a certain text, eg. A line from a Psalm (in the Latin version), creates elaborate chants by syllables stretching and other add syllables in. (Above) Gharma and pravargya The main object of the pravargya a clay pot filled with clarified butter ("ghee") and is heated by fire. If freshly milked koeie- and goat milk are added to the boiling ghee, creates impressive flash fire. Accompanying songs and recitations associate the heated pot with, among others, light and the sun. In the next stage hot milk and yogurt (Dadhi) offered in the sacrificial fire from the pot. Finally, consume the participants (offerers and priests) that remains after some sacrifices. The Pravargyaritueel is full of symbols that suggest an intimate relationship between the level of the cosmos, the ritual and man. Some verses are recited in the classical Pravargyaritueel from the so-called. Riddle Hymn of the Rig Veda. 115

A closer study of this hymn has revealed that the hymn consists entirely of groups of verses that apply to specific episodes in the classical pravargya ritual. As the hymn against this ritual background is placed there appear convincing solutions for a large number of riddles in this ancient hymn. The relationship between the classical and the mystery pravargya hymn indicates an "initiation" nature of the pravargya, something also from all of the andere.htmlecten pravargya forward komt.4 The pravargya is never performed in isolation, but always in the context of the Somasacrifice, eg. In the form of Jyotistoma. Here it is performed on the introductory days before the actual pressing of the Soma, in the morning and in the afternoon. Each performance begins with an elaborate "beginning peace-recitation" (purva santi) and ends with an even more comprehensive "concluding peace-recitation" (uttara santi). (Above) Audio: Concluding peace-recitation. Modern performances of Vedic rituals 5 Already in the 19th century succeeded Martin Haug managed Brahmins in Pune to get far they carried out a Soma-sacrifice that he could experience firsthand. It was also allowed to photograph him sacrifice spoons and other instruments and take them to Europe. These experiences were Haug important to gain a better understanding of the matter where it Aitareya Brahmana, the Vedic text which he first had to editing and translating. Haug's collection and photographs were also gratefully used by other scholars who dealt with the study of Vedic ritual, eg. Willem Caland and Henry Victor. The first version that can truly "modern" can call it by Frits Staal organized Agnicayana in Kerala, India, 1975. The tradition of Vedic rituals had now become very weak, and without Staal's exhortations and incentives Agnicayana it would probably not take place at all have. There had to be taken into account in this version with many new circumstances in which the traditional rules of the ritual does not reach the intention was that the ritual would be filmed in detail, and extensive sound recordings would be made; there was a lot of media attention for the offering, and there were protests against the killing of sacrificial animals so that at the last moment it was decided to replace it with vegetarian substances. The successful performance by Staal stimulated also traditional Brahmins again organizing larger Srauta rituals to take on. Since the 1980'er years in Maharashtra two people have been very active in organizing larger Vedic rituals, Mr. Selukar Maharaj and Mr. Nana Kale. Both have succeeded in 1999-2000 to hold a Gavam-Ayana: a sacrifice prolonged session (Sattra) which squeezed a year soma and sacrificed (the Jyotistoma / Agnistoma and pravargya are recurring elements in this complex ritual). Kleurnet Cable Amsterdam sent in the spring of 2001, an interview with Dr. J.E.M. Houben Vedic ritual. This gives a good first introduction to the subject. The recordings were made herein to a Aty-Agnistoma in Barsi, February 2001. 116

Video Stream: Kleurnet Interview about Vedic ritual (Broadband) / (Modem) The film pravargya The Vedic Ritual: Performances in Delhi, December 11-12, 1996, shows the pravargya as it was performed in an eleven-day Soma offering, ie a Somasacrifice which there is not just one persingsdag, as in the basic type the Jyotistoma, but eleven. For pravargya makes the larger number of pressing days nothing. (Above) Video Stream: pravargya movie: Introduction (Broadband) / (Modem) Video Stream: pravargya movie: Part I: the regular performance (Broadband) / (Modem) In preparation: Vedic schools in South Asia: introductory remarks and a bibliography The Vedas and the Vedic ritual survive in South Asia in a complex of Vedic schools which have become rare in the last few centuries. The history of these Vedic schools is an important part of the cultural history of South Asia. A major survey of knowledge that was available until then was published by Louis Renou in 1947, Les écoles Védiques et la formation du Veda; Since then much has been done new research. In this place will be made available a bibliography of important research in the field of Vedic schools since Louis Renou's publication. Of interest in this regard is also written an essay by Willem Caland in 1918, the discovery history of the Veda. In it he provides an overview of the discovery and study of the Veda by Western scholars until about the 19th century. Regarding the study of the Vedas in modern times: by way of illustration we show a recent group of students who learn early in the Rig Veda Veda Vijnan Ashram in Barsi. (Above) Video Stream: Studying the first hymn of the Rig Veda (Broadband) / (Modem) Footnotes 1. See, eg "On the earliest forms of the certificate bootable pravargya ritual: Rg-Vedic references to the gharma-pravargya, Especially in the Atri family book (book 5)," IndoIranian Journal 43 (2000): 1-25. (Back) 2. v Jyotistoma Literal meaning: "Praise of the Light", from Jyotis = light + Stoma = praise,. different uses of the term in different texts / periods; references concerning Jyotistoma and Agnistoma: eg Caland and Henry's description from 1906-07). (Back) 3. Seminar Leiden, July 3-4 1999. (back) 4. See, eg article, "Pragmatics of a Vedic Hymn" Journal of the American Oriental Society, 120.4. (Back) 5. I.e. the bigger Srauta rituals; the smaller Srauta rituals like Agnihotra have a pretty good continuity, as well as the more popular Grhya rituals. (Back)

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Statue of Garuda. National Museum,

Indonesia. Kris, or Keris, dagger from Java, Circa 17th Century. The ivory hilt is in the form of a crouched Bhima or Garuda.

Oil lamp in the form of gods bird Garuda, Java, the end of the 19th century. Grassi Museum of Ethnology, Leipzig

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10th Century Garuda-Wisnu statue, the centrepiece of Candi Belahan, near Pandaan, Malang, now at the Museum Majapahit, Trowulan.

Garuda sur Naga (Bayon, Angkor Thom)

Vishnu riding on Garuda, clay bricks at Prasat Kravan

Garuda. Linteau Musée Guimet

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In this 9th century lintel now on display at the Musée Guimet, Garuda bears Vishnu on his shoulders.

Statuette of Vishnu riding a Garuda. Java, ca. 1000 A.D. (National Museum, Jakarta)

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Garuda from Candi Kidal : Eastern java

Statue of Vishnu and Garuda in museum of East Java province in Beautiful Indonesia Miniature Park

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Garuda with Vishnu. Parambanan,Central Java. Garuda, Central Java Garuda statue, East Java, 13th cent. Ferdinand Garrido:Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, Other sacred spaces, Cambodia Angkor Wat "Apart from its relentless symmetry, what makes Angkor Wat unique as architecture of faith, is the rich detail woven into the fabric of the building itself. Sans statuary, the temple—with the bas reliefs embedded in its galleries and pavilions, and the asparas carved into its pillars—suffices."

It's been said that if one were to travel to only two places abroad, these have to be the pyramids at Giza and Angkor Wat. We visited Angkor Wat in late March last year, when 122

my wife and I spent four days in the northeastern city and eponymous province of Siem Reap, Cambodia where Angkor is located. The photos below were taken by me with a point-and-shoot.

Angkor Wat is the apotheosis of classical Khmer architecture of faith. It is the world's largest religious monument. The temple which is dedicated to Lord Vishnu, is considered a "fully realized microcosm of the Hindu universe": from its iconic towers representing the sacred peaks of Mount Meru, to its expansive moat, the oceans abroad. Angkor Wat was commissioned by Suryavarman II (1113-1150 CE) who died before it was finished. Originally built as a royal capital and state temple, Angkor Wat was a city in its own right ("angkor" means city, "wat" is temple) and one of the largest pre-industrial urban enclaves in the world, during its heyday.*

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Pat striding towards the main entrance of Angkor Wat, on the broad 200 m. long stone causeway across the West side moat. Angkor Wat faces West rather than East, an arcane curiosity. We got there past 8 o'clock in the morning.

The North half of the West side moat viewed from causeway pier in the middle of the moat. The near treeline (center right) is the NW corner of Angkor Wat. The bend above leads to the North side moat around the corner. A road skirts the western shore of the moat at the left.

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The main entrance gopura viewed from just inside. Two other lesser gopuras flank it on either side.

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It's a half-kilometer walk from the main gate to the front of the temple whence this photo was taken. The stone-paved causeway bisects the sprawling grounds of the ancient temple. The SW quadrant seen above features a lotus pond (nearly dry, left foreground) and a "library" (center). This is replicated in the NW quadrant across the causeway, following Angkor Wat's symmetrical plan.

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Tourists gather in front of the temple's entrance terrace ("Terrace of Honor") which was undergoing restoration when we visited. Three of the five iconic towers of Angkor Wat are silhouetted against the morning sky. Those who had arrived earlier would have been rewarded with a glimpse of the sunrise over the temple. During most of our visit, the atmosphere was thick with haze which washed out the blue of the sky. I decided to convert this picture to B&W in post.

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The South wing of the West Gallery

A section of the Battle of Kurukshetra bas reliefs, West Gallery, South Wing

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Angkor Wat today, as ever, is all about the bas relief galleries on all four sides of the temple's outermost perimeter. The narrative bas reliefs in the West, North, and East Galleries of Angkor Wat depict scenes from Hindu mythology as told in the epics Ramayana andMahabharata.

The bas reliefs in the West wing of the South Gallery are depictions for the historical record. Known as the Historic Procession, it is a triumphal tribute to the Khmer warrior king Suryavarman II, the builder of Angkor Wat. On the other hand, the East wing of the South Gallery contains the Heavens and Hells bas reliefs. Based on Hindu mythology and Khmer folkloric sources, it depicts in a particularly graphic manner the punishment of the damned. (The depiction of the rewards for just souls is modestly rendered.)

Even after the Buddhist monks took over stewardship of Angkor Wat a century after it was built, these bas reliefs were left untouched, except reverentially by Khmer devotees. Some of the temple's original free-standing statuary had been moved if not removed entirely, to be replaced by Buddhist ones. The transition from Hinduism to Buddhism was probably not a wrenching one (with a few literal exceptions noted below). Perhaps, because Angkor Wat was dedicated to Vishnu. (Hindus believe that the Buddha is an avatar of Vishnu).

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Apart from its relentless symmetry, what makes Angkor Wat unique as architecture of faith, is the rich detail woven into the fabric of the building itself. Sans statuary, the temple—with the bas reliefs embedded in its galleries and pavilions, and the asparas carved into its pillars—suffices.

The North wing of the West Gallery featuring the Battle of Lanka

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A war elephant among foot soldiers bearing stylized long-shafted barbed spears

The narrative bas reliefs in the galleries of Angkor Wat measure 600 m. long, all told, or 150 m. for each gallery. The bas reliefs cover every available square foot of the display walls, from wainscot height to just below the cornice.

The galleries are connected to each other by corner pavilions. Each gallery has a center pavilion dividing it into two wings. Visitors can enter or exit the galleries (and the temple within) through these pavilions.

The Angkor Wat galleries, for aesthetic and structural reasons, are rather narrow (3 m.) given their length. The viewing distance from the center line of the gallery is just about right to fully appreciate the intricate bas reliefs. Its narrow breadth is also called for, the better to support the heavy vaulted roof made of corbelled stone blocks. When the temple was built, the arch was unbeknownst to the Khmers.

Right: The South wing of the West Gallery. 131

Above: A center crop of the photo's "vanishing point." Because of the galleries' exquisite proportions, one can shoot a wide enough shot taken at a far enough distance, of the gallery's furthest end or vanishing point, with little perspective distortion, if any. Perfectly planned and executed collonades such as these, are a beholder's delight and a builder's nightmare. Any column that is not plumb, or out of true, will be easy to spot. The roof of this wing had collapsed. It had to be restored block by block. The restoration job did justice to the original builders' handiwork.

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Lord Vishnu's army in pitch battle against the asura (underworld demons) hordes. This section is from the Victory of Vishnu bas reliefs found in the North wing of the East Gallery.

In many sections of the galleries, the figures in relief within arm's reach have been burnished from being touched by generations of Khmer devotees. A discreet rope line has since been emplaced to discourage touchy-feely tourists from following suit.

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Above: An armless Buddha standing guard at the side entrance to the corner pavilion connecting the North and West galleries. Note the silken parasol floating above his head.

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Angkor Wat is noted for its smiling celestial asparas. The one on the left has a particularly nice smile. The asparas at Angkor Wat are deep bas reliefs carved into recessed panels. Life-size asparas decorate the pillars of the pavilions. Smaller ones are scattered throughout the temple. Flying asparas are also featured in their hundreds in the Churning the Sea of Milk (East Gallery, South wing). In the Angkor "guidebooks" I've read, scholars catalogue asparas by the shape of their earrings, for one. The ones above have floral drop earrings. The Khmer stone masons carved the feet of the asparas' eccentrically: in profile and pointing sideways (see above). Sadly, the feet of the aspara at left has broken off. My hunch is that apprentice carvers cut their teeth on the asparas, while the masters worked their magic on the bas reliefs.

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Being greeted by celestial asparas in heaven is the promise that awaits the Hindu faithful after their final reincarnation.

Exterior windows in classic Khmer buildings are usually barred by sculpted stone baffles "turned" like balusters, which let in light, wind (and rain) while keeping intruders out. The one on the left (above) is located at an inside corner with another baffled window perpendicular to it beyond. Note the aspara pair decorating the narrow space between the adjacent windows at sill level (above, right). The base of free-standing columns are usually decorated like so.

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Between the 14th and 15th century, Angkor Wat became a Buddhist pilgrimage shrine (it still is), when the Khmer ruling class embraced Theravada Buddhism. The seated Buddha above had been superimposed upon a 7-headed naga "headdress" of an earlier Hindu and Khmer provenance. Its left foot is chipped and graffiti marks its pedestal. Statuary are particularly vulnerable to vandalism if not outright theft. Priceless examples of statuary from Angkor Wat and other temples are on display in the confines of the Royal Museum in Phnom Penh, safe from vandalism, theft and the elements.

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Graffiti is the least insidious form of vandalism. This seated Buddha (left) has been decapitated. Its missing head presumably sold in the black market for ill-gotten archaeological artifacts. It seems to me this Buddha is a replacement for an artifact that had been chiseled out of the unrestored wall behind it. It is ironic that this statue, which assumed its pride of place as a result of "sanctioned vandalism", would in turn become a victim itself of vandalism of the criminal kind.

For all that, Angkor Wat has sustained more damage from the elements than from human inflicted causes. Not least because it has been in continuous occupancy since it was built 9 centuries ago. It remains the best preserved monument in Angkor.

Angkor Wat consists of three concentric terraces enclosed by galleries and topped-off by towers. To make quick sense of the temple's layout, check out this satellite photo of the temple. Although the photo was taken above the Earth's atmosphere, the symmetry of Angkor Wat's plan shows through.

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The NE courtyard between the terrace walls of the temple's second level and the East (right) and North (top) Galleries. The second level is accessible from the courtyard via steep stairs at the the corner gopuras, such as the one at the NE corner above. The second level also has entrance pavilions midway between the corner gopuras facing each of the four cardinal points. The stairs leading down from them land just across the center pavilions of the concentric galleries on the first level. I took this photo on the landing of the East entrance pavilion on our way down to the East Gallery.

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Tourist resting their feet while listening to their guide at the NE inner court on the second level. The gallery behind them overlooks the North Gallery running parallel to it on the first level. Access to this inner court from the North Gallery behind and below it, is via the stairs connecting the center pavilions of both (center left, above), or via the NE corner gopura (see previous photo) from the courtyard at ground level. This photo was taken from the NE tower on the third (topmost) level.

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Tourists descending to the second level from the NE tower. Timber stairs with steel handrails have been retrofitted on top of the stone stairs where tourist traffic is heavy This protects the stone steps from wear and makes the climb up or down the steep stairs less difficult and safer.

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The NE quadrant of the Sanctuary on the third (top- and innermost) level of Angkor Wat, where the towers are found. The towers are actually the corbelled roofs of the central and corner pavilions of the sanctuary. Four towers are located at the corners which are connected by perimeter galleries forming a quadrangle. The fifth and biggest tower rises above the central pavilion. The central pavilion is connected to the perimeter galleries at their midpoints by transept corridors forming a cruciform. The four quadrants thus formed are basins originally designed to contain water. These pools has since been drained by French and Cambodian restorers because water seepage was undermining the temple's foundations. The photo above shows the NE quadrant. Partially seen at left is the central pavilion at the core of the sanctuary. At right is the pavilion at the intersection of the 143

transept and the northern perimeter gallery connecting the NE and NW towers. The tip of the NW tower shows above the roof of the transept.

The central tower rising above the main Sanctuary.

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The steep stairs from the second level to the center entrance pavilion of the Sanctuary. This entrance pavilion faces East towards the rear of the temple. In general, the stairs of terraced or pyramidal temples in Angkor and beyond are inclined 45° more or less. The rise between steps is as high as it (tread) is wide. The steep incline of the temple steps was designed so that pilgrims can emulate climbing a sacred mountain.

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Above: The eastern grounds sprawling to the rear of the temple. The unpaved road fronting the East Gallery's center pavilion leads to the disused earth causeway across the East side moat.

Below: The view to the North from the Sanctuary. Following the strictly symmetrical plan of the temple, a road in front of the center pavilion of the North Gallery (which is in line with the central tower) is indicated here where there's a break in the canopy (center right, below). Likewise, on the opposite side to the South. This road along the temple's N-S axis, in conjunction with the existing E-W causeways, form a cruciform projecting from the temple's cardinal entrance pavilions with the central tower at dead center. This subdivides the Angkor Wat temple-city complex into four quadrants. Aerial and satellite remote sensing surveys do reveal that the ancient capital was laid out in a grid pattern. (See for example this satellite imagery of the Angkor Wat temple-city complex, which shows the N-S axial road described above.)

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A second growth forest covers the areas adjacent to the temple where residents of the ancient Khmer capital would have built their abodes. The population of the city during its heyday is estimated at 1 million. Following tradition, the royal residential palaces would have been located in a now forested area North of the temple (above). Presumably built of timber and lighter materials, no trace of the royal palaces let alone the houses of the commoners remains. The land area of Angkor Wat encompassed by the moat totals 82 hectares, of which the temple occupies a 9-hectare footprint at its center.

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This is a long shot (in more ways than one) of the temple's facade showing the North wing of the West Gallery, the NW corner pavilion, and the towers (of which only the tip of the SE tower can be seen). The naga on the left is missing three of its seven heads. Its counterpart on the right has broken off entirely. Naga heads terminate the guide rails demarcating causeways in and around temple grounds. The longer and thicker the rail representing the mythical snake's body, the larger the naga head (or a multiple of smaller ones) at its terminus.

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A well preserved naga head, probably the biggest and most pristine in all of Angkor. This one guards the entrance of the causeway to Angkor Wat. Unfortunately its pair is no longer extant. The backs of the naga heads and its hood (right) is carved with intricate stylized scales. The naga faces the parking lot across the street.

I took these naga photos as we were leaving Angkor Wat. We spent a little over two hours visiting Angkor Wat, not enough for a comprehensive tour. I realized how much we missed when I re-read our guidebook, after we visited, which I had only skimmed through before.

Angkor Thom

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South Gate, Angkor Thom

Angkor Thom ("Great City") succeeded Angkor Wat as the capital of the Khmer empire during the reign of Jayavarman VII. The old capital was sacked by the Chams during a surprise invasion. Jayavarman VII converted to Buddhism and made it the state religion of the Khmer empire, having been disillusioned by the lapse of divine protection under the Hindu gods of his predecessors. (Suryavarman II, Angkor Wat's builder, was killed during an abortive counter-invasion of Champa, the homeland of the Chams in what is now Vietnam.) Angkor Thom's most famous temple, the Bayon, became the state temple of the 150

ascendant Buddhist regime. Angkor Thom was already the site of pre-Angkorian temples before it became the new capital. The Bayon temple itself was not erected new from the ground up, but built upon an existing Hindu temple.

Asuras guarding the causeway across the moat before Angkor Thom's South Gate

The Bayon stands out for its sheer capacity to astound. Facing a tower with the visage of god or man oriented to the four cardinal points was unprecedented (and to my knowledge had not been replicated elsewhere outside Angkor). The identity of the face of the Bayon towers as well as those atop the South and North gates of Angkor Thom, is said to be either the Buddha's or that of its builder, Jayavarman VII. In any case, its visage has an Oriental cast: broad face, flat nose, full lips upturned in a benign smile, vestigial eyebrows over monolid eyes. Perhaps, the Khmer monarch was a spittin' image of the Buddha.

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The Bayon Face

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Looking out of the windows of the Bayon's inner galleries, the visitor can hardly miss gazing upon the faces of its many towers. There is no definitive count of their number because Jayavarman VII and his successors kept adding to them, and many had since collapsed. As of 1999, only 37 were left standing.

The Bayon towers were constructed using the same materials and methods 153

employed by the builders of Angkor Wat's towers: corbelled stone blocks (see below). However, the task of the Bayon builders was more complicated. Not only were they unable to build on bespoke footings, they were also faced with the problem of enclosing towers with non-symmetric sides (unlike Angkor Wat's symmetric cones).

Below: Dancing asparas decorate the pillars of the Bayon galleries (left), revealing the temple's earlier reincarnation as a Hindu temple. Right: A solitary tourist pausing at one end of a Bayon gallery.

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The Bayon Temple in perspective

Angkor Thom is a walled city enclosed by a moat. The walls are 3 km. long on each side enclosing a total area of 900 hectares (more than 10 times the size of Angkor Wat). It is divided into four quadrants by the N-S and E-W axial roads, which converge on The Bayon at the center and terminate at the city gates on all four cardinal points.

The other two major temples, the Baphuon and Phimeanakas are located at the city's NW quadrant near the Bayon. Both are pre-Angkorian temples which were rebuilt and repurposed by Jayavarman VII and his successors in the post-Bayon (Buddhist) style. The royal palace was located on the grounds of Phimeanakas. No trace can be found of the timber palace (stone was reserved for temple construction) except for its stone walls, gopuras, and a large pool.

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Above: Baphuon is a pre-Ankorian mountain temple which towers over the other temples in Angkor Thom. Built in the middle of the 11th century, it was already crumbling when Angkor Thom came into being. The Baphuon temple is a 5-stepped pyramid. The Khmer Buddhist kings added a reclining Buddha on the West side of the pyramid with repurposed stone blocks from its crumbling terraces. Left, below: The Baphuon temple's East causeway is a 170-m viaduct supported by sandstone columns. A large pool lined with laterite blocks lies on the South side of the gopura at the causeway's midpoint, of which only the pillars and lintels remain standing. The viaduct connects the temple to the Elephant Terrace.

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The West side of the Baphuon emple rising above the third terrace of its stepped pyramid. A reclining Buddha, which is hard to figure out even in person, had been superimposed on the western side of the temple's uppermost terraces.

A gopura through the South wall of the Phimeanakas temple and royal palace grounds North of the Baphuon

Next to the Bayon, the Elephant and Leper King terraces are Angkor Thom's most popular tourist attractions. The Elephant Terrace extends from the NE gopura of the Baphuon, past 160

the Phinemeakas and royal palace grounds, terminating at the Terrace of the Leper King. These terraces form the western perimeter of the royal square, which spills over the North road to the western half of the NE quadrant.

The Elephant Terrace is punctuated by stairways landing on the royal square grounds in front of it. A trio of "lotus-eating" elephants (see below) bracket the stairways, their trunks forming pillars. This design element is replicated at Angkor Thom's North and South gates.

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The royal square viewed from atop the Elephant Terrace. The North road, which is still much in use by tourist traffic, bisects the square. The Suor Prat towers, a series of identical post-Bayon shrines dot the eastern perimeter of the NE quadrant's side of the royal square.

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This five-headed equine statue dominates a "hidden" wall of the northernmost stairs of the Elephant Terrace just before the Terrace of the Leper King (below).

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The Terrace of the Leper King conceals a narrow trench zigzagging inside its 3-m high perimeter walls. Stone blocks carved with almost in-the-round bas reliefs of Hindu mythology denizens, line one wall of the trench. The trench, which has rightangle turns, is so narrow that visitors are able

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to negotiate it only in a single file. The bas reliefs are stacked three levels high (four stacks in a few places) with dancing or seated figures. A pair of dancing asparas and their garuda warrior escort (left, top) are supported by the upraised arms of garuda wrestlers in the lower panel. Apart from asparas and warriors, devatas and mythical animals round out the cast of characters lining the trench walls of the Leper King's terrace. The so-called "Leper King" refers to the statue seated awkwardly and holding up a mace atop the terrace. The "skin" of original stone statue had weathered poorly due to corrosion, resembling that of a leper's. The original statue is on display at the Royal Museum in Phom Penh.

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The trenches of the Leper King Terrace were filled with rubble and soil when rediscovered. Not all of the original sculptures lining its walls were recovered or restored. The sculptures were carved out of sandstone while the trench walls were built of finely joined laterite blocks.

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The North facade of the fort-like Terrace of the Leper King, whose likeness (the small figure draped with a saffron robe, above) sits on top of it.

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The touristy way to get around the ancient capital is by elephant taxi.

There are dozens of lesser temples, shrines and towers near the walls and within clearings in the forest which have overgrown the urban residential areas of Angkor Thom. These buildings are either of pre-Angkorian or post-Bayon provenance. There is also evidence of a post-Bayon revival of Hinduism as evinced from alterations to existing structures as well as "new" (post-Bayon) construction.

Post-Bayon temple: Ta Prohm

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Ta Prohm is a large post-Bayon temple-monastery, one of two other major legacy building projects started during the reign of Jayavarman VII. Located to the West of Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm is the iconic real-world example of jungle-overgrown temple ruins. In a brilliant move, the French conservators decided to leave Ta Prohm in a state of apparent neglect and disrepair to remind visitors of how Angkor looked when it was discovered in the 1800s. Ta Prohm's "natural state" has inspired lay writers to romantic paeans (including screenwriters of Hollywood preter-archaeological adventure flicks).

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"Structures may suffer multiple natural attacks. ...[U]nsound foundations of sand and laterite... promote cracks by settling and water penetration. Seeds of banyanlike fig trees from bird droppings sprout atop structures... and send roots down to the spongelike foundation... As the tree matures, its enlarging roots penetrate interstices between stones. When the tree dies, the dislodged, unsupported stones fall." Peter White in The Temples of Angkor: Ancient Glory in Stone*

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The two most common tree species found in Angkor temple grounds are the strangler fig tree (ficus gibbosa) shown above and the larger silk-cotton tree (ceiba pentandra) whose trademark thick buttress root (below) dwarfs the doorway of this wall section it has draped itself on.

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Preah Khan

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Located in northeastern Angkor, Preah Khan ("sacred sword") is a sprawling temple complex that used to be a "university town" housing more than a thousand Buddhist scholastic monks and their novices. A contemporary of Ta Prohm, Preah Khan was built by Jayavarman VII, but added to and altered by his successor, Jayavarman VIII.

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A rare well-preserved lion standing guard above the steps of the North wing of the temple's West gopura.

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The mixed heritage of Preah Khan is evident even at the temple's central sanctuary. The linga mounted on a yonipedestal (above), located at the sanctuary's main E-W axial gallery, is an example of classic Hindu iconography. Just a few doors further West, a stupa (below) sits at the intersection of the main gallery and a transept corridor.

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Timber shoring posts frame this dvarapala (guard) carved into a pillar supporting a lintel at an intersection of the main gallery. This male dvarapala is armed with a club.

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An elaborately carved lintel tying the corbelled stone roof of a transept corridor in the central sanctuary.

Seated hermits carved into a rudimentary lintel.

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The Preah Khan temple complex, like Ta Prohm, was at the center of a walled-in city, whose E-W main gates have Bayon-style entrance towers. It was also engulfed by the jungle but was proactively restored. Some trees rooting at its walls and perimeter galleries have been let be, giving it a Ta Prohm-like ambiance. It also has its fair share of collapsed galleries from the time when Angkor was abandoned during Cambodia's latter-day wars.

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Above: Vishnu, with his consort Lakshmi, reclining on his Garuda mount, in a pediment of a gallery that was added later to Preah Khan's central sanctuary

Below: Dancing asparas carved into the lintel of Preah Khan's Hall of Dancers. The Buddhist-era occupants of the niches above the asparas had been unceremoniously chiseled out.

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What is most notable to me about Preah Khan is that it bears witness to the changing religious adherence of the Khmer overlords. For one, Preah Khan was built on the site of a pre-Angkorian Hindu palace. During the reign of its builder Jayavarman VII (1181-1219), it was a Buddhist monastic university. Later, during the reign of Jayavarman VIII, Hinduism-Brahmanism became ascendant again at the expense of Preah Khan's Buddhist statuary, the reverse of what happened at Angkor Wat. (See Part 1)

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A two-storey standalone building ("library") with rare rounded columns located at the West end of Preah Khan. Curiously, the building has no stairway to its second floor.

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A precariously leaning cotton-silk tree sitting atop a wall of a collapsed gallery

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The West facade of Preah Khan temple with an elevated entrance terrace before it.

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Preah Khan has its own baray just outside its West entrance gopura.

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The warriors tugging at this naga guarding the North flank of Preah Khan's West causeway, have all lost their heads as did the naga. This tableau of the Hindu creationist myth, famously depicted in the Churning of the Sea of Milk bas reliefs in Angkor Wat, is a widely used design motif for temple causeways. Unfortunately, they also attracted the tender mercies of latter-day vandals. Angkor's temples were in no-man's land during the Vietnam War (of which Cambodia was a collateral battle field) up to the end of Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge regime. During this period, all maintenance and restoration work in Angkor were stopped.

Banteay Kdei

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Built by Jayavarman VII, Banteay Kdei is a smaller version of Preah Khan and Ta Prohm of which it is a contemporary. It is located next door (SE) to Ta Prohm with the baray Srah Srang across its East entrance. Banteay Kdei was built as a Buddhist temple as proclaimed by the Bayon-style gopuras at its East and West gates. Banteay Kdei is an active Buddhist pilgrimage shrine being known for its seated Buddha, a survivor of the temple's original Buddhist statuary.

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The terrace before the gopura of the temple's outer enclosure. The steps of the terrace are guarded by lions and the heads of the naga balustrade enclosing it.

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Another naga-enclosed terrace connects the West entrance gopura (background) and the Hall of Dancers below.

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The Hall of Dancers is a roofless enclosure of which only the pillars and wall sections are standing. Presumably, its long-span roof of tile or thatch were supported by timber trusses and purlins which aren't as long-lasting as stone. Club-wielding dvarpalas guard this opening of the hall.

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Dancing asparas decorate the pillars and lintels of the Hall of Dancers in Banteay Kdei, as well as in other temples with similar halls. The asparas are carved dancing solo or in pairs (above left). In general, the dancers are female. Asparas, by definition, are female. And so are devatas (deities). How to distinguish celestial asparas from devatas? Asparas are usually depicted either dancing or flying, but also standing still. When the latter, it is hard to tell them apart from devatas. Asparas are more beguiling than the devatas, not least because the asparas are usually depicted half-naked, while 195

devatas are fully clothed. Still, it's difficult to tell at first blush, one from the other because even devatas are portrayed with their navels bared. Below: Two of Banteay Kdei's smiling devatas in their niches within the temple's central sanctuary.

Still another class of Hindu statuary to be found in Angkor temples are the dvarapalas (guardians). The dvarapalas shown below are female rather than the usual sentinels who are either male humans or warriors sporting the heads of demons (asuras) or mythical creatures (e.g., garuda). The comely female dvarapalas below look like they can disarm an adversary with only their smiles. The one on the left is holding a dagger in her right hand, and a snake (not a bow) entwined in her left arm. The 196

one on the right is holding a sword.

Banteay Kdei's asparas, devatas, and dvarpalas are noted for the "multi-colored" stones they were carved on. This (color) is natural pigmentation leaching out from the minerals inherent in the stone. Those rich in iron oxides turn red. The "pink" or magenta-hued stones have nickel in them. Cambodia's famously red earth owes its color to iron oxide deposits as does laterite, a young (in geological time) formative rock sandwiched between the topsoil and the bedrock, and popular as building blocks in ancient Angkor. Much later, using crushed laterite as surfacing material for macadamized dirt roads was introduced by the French. (On our return from Siem Reap by bus, we were detoured to a car park outside Phnom Penh where a maintenance crew hosed down the tires of our bus. It was the week of the ASEAN summit and they didn't want inbound traffic muddying the streets of the capital.)

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2 + 2: Dvarapalas and devatas carved in niches embedded to gallery walls facing the temple's outer courtyards.

The ubiquitous blotches marring the surface of the weathered stone building blocks of Angkor's temples (usually white in exposed exterior surfaces, sometimes greenish in damp and unexposed corners) are caused by fungal efflorescence. It causes no structural damage. Photography-wise, however, it interferes with composition (by breaking up lines like camouflage) and the tonality of digital B&W pictures.

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The gallery above forms part of the central sanctuary's outer perimeter. It has lost its roof. The corbelled stone roof below is over an axial gallery of the sanctuary. The roof's pitch is probably the least possible angle required to hold the heavy stone blocks in place, as it had, for 7 centuries and counting.

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The carvings on the pediment above depict a mix of Hindu and Buddhist themes. At its apex is a seated Buddha supported by mahouts mounted on the two elephants. Between the elephants stands a devata. Standing on the lintel below it is a row of male dvarapalas whose bodies, but not their heads, had been chiseled out. The dvarapalas all have human heads, some sporting a braids-and-top-knot (Buddhist) hairstyle.

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The central tower above the innermost sanctuary of Banteay Kdei. The tower is located at the intersection of the sanctuary's axial galleries. This shot was taken in the SW courtyard which has a stele at its center; likewise the NW courtyard across the doorway (left).

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This wing of the cruciform gopura at Banteay Kdei's West inner enclosure is an active shrine frequented by Buddhist pilgrims, local and foreign. Buddhism is the dominant religion among present-day Cambodians. Thanks to the local faithful, the shrine is replete with Buddhist symbols: an 8-spoked dharma wheel, victory banners, prayer flags, a sheltering parasol. An earthen brazier for incense joss sticks and an alms drop box have also been provided. A linoleum prayer mat has been laid on the stone floor before it.

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This seated Buddha (right) had been here since the temple was built seven centuries ago. Marvelously sculpted out of a select block of sandstone, its centuries old patina has imbued the statue with a soft sheen that is impossible to reproduce artificially. Unfortunately, the Buddha seated next to it fell victim to the depredations of vandals (see below). I don't know whether this occurred in ancient times or more recently. The guidebooks I've read mention only one seated Buddha in Banteay Kdei at this particular gopura.

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Like Preah Khan, Banteay Kdei has a mixed provenance. The details carved into the temple's pillars, lintels, and niches, as well as the design cues which informed its layout, reveal the Hindu heritage of its builder. As with all other legacy projects of Jayavarman VII, the provenance of Banteay Kdei is "confused" because of the interplay of Buddhist and Hindu influences, reflecting the ambivalence or changing allegiances of its builders and custodians.

Cambodia The rise to power of the Khmer empire in mainland Southeast Asia (Funan) came by fits and starts. The "golden age" of the Khmer Empire began during the reign of Jayavarman II, who declared himself "king of the world" in the year 802 CE at Kulen Hills. "PreAngkorian" is an appellation given to temples built before Angkor Wat (ca. 11131150), including temples located in Central Angkor, some of which had Angkorian era temples built upon their foundations (e.g., the Bayon in Angkor Thom).

The Khmer building spree during the Angkorian era would last for 3 centuries more, until the Khmer empire was dealt a death blow by its nemesis to the West, the Ayutthayans of ascendant Siam. The grandeur of the ancient Khmer empire would have been lost to us and for all posterity had not the Khmer warrior-kings built their legacy in stone.

The locations of pre-Angkorian temples indicate the turf of the reigning Khmer monarch of the time. There were battles for supremacy among rival clans early on before the Khmer nation was consolidated. Later, the challenge of neighboring powers, notably the Chams from the East in what is now Vietnam, had to be confronted and overcome. The location of the pre-Angkorian temples at one cardinal point of the compass then another reflects the shifting balance of power during the pre-Angkorian era.

In the construction of pre-Angkorian temples, the number of towers erected therein often represented the number of territories the builder had conquered. There are cases where the layout of towers is asymmetric because one or more towers are missing. It is likely that the "missing" tower was not built at all because one territory was still left unconquered when the builder died or moved his capital elsewhere. If a building was a royal or state temple, it was also the site of the reigning monarch's capital. Khmer cities were usually located in the vicinity of a state temple. Pre-Angkorian temple: Pre Rup

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Pre Rup is a mountain-temple located South of the East Baray in Central Angkor. It was the royal and state temple of Rajendravarman who built it in 961 CE on the site of an ashrama (hermitage) dedicated to Shiva. The pink sandstone of its stepped pyramid and the red brick facing of its towers glow warm in the "golden hours" after sunrise and before sunset.

For me and my wife, Pre Rup was our most delightful temple visit. We arrived there early in the morning ahead of the group tours. We shared Pre Rup's lofty and serene setting with only a few other self-guided Asian tourists and a sprightly American couple, who arrived in a chartered tuk-tuk like we did. It was also the first and only day we were blessed with haze-free blue skies.

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Above: Me at the doorway of Pre Rup's central tower which forms a quinqunx with four others at the top of the temple's stepped pyramid. Left: The open skylight atop the central tower's roof. Its simpler and symmetric pyramidal shape made it easier to corbel the roofing stone blocks firmly in place. This accounts for the longevity of the towers of pre-Angkorian temples. (Unlike the later asymmetric Bayon-style towers which are prone to collapse.)

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The stone cistern at the landing of the pyramid stairs (above) which gave the temple its current name. Pre Rup connotes "turning the body" (a cremation ritual). The cistern was thought to be a cremation platform. According to scholars, the temple's original name was Rajendrabhadresvara, after the alter-divinity of its builder, Rajendravarman. The suffix esvara associates a monarch's name with Shiva, who is represented by a lingam in Khmer iconography. The Shaivite lingam thought to have been installed in Pre Rup's central tower sanctuary is no longer there.

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The original statuary (presumably of Shiva and his consort) in the NE tower's sanctuary have missing heads. It has since been converted into a Buddhist shrine. The minders of Angkor's temples typically allow locals to make unofficial (Buddhist) shrines within temple premises.

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Lions guard the pyramid steps of Pre Rup. The one shown above has an anatomically correct profile, after its fierce stylized face and mane had broken- or been sheared off.

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Above: A cluster of three tower sanctuaries at ground level in front of the Pre Rup mountain temple. Below: The view to the SE from the second level of the temple's stepped pyramid.

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Banteay Srei Banteay Srei is a pre-Angkorian temple built during Rajendravarman's reign and contemporaneous with Pre Rup. It is also known as "Citadel of Women" or "Citadel of Beauty" on account of its proportions and delicate ornamentation. Unique among Khmer temples, it is not monumental but less than life-size in scale. Banteay Srei is not a royal temple. The temple was commissioned by Yajnavaraja, a royal courtier to Rajendravarman and guru to a future king.

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Banteay Srei is all about the elaborately decorated pediments, lintels, and pillars of its gopuras, pavilions and towers carved out of pink sandstone blocks. Shown above is the pediment of the main entrance gopura at the temple's East outer enclosure.

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The red earth causeway leading to Banteay Srei's main East entrance. Siem Reap's typically red earth is particularly saturated here.

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The East entrance gopura to the inner enclosure whose dimension is about that of a standard residential main door. It has a sinuous double-tiered pediment, exquisitely proportioned.

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Seated garuda-faced and hanuman warriors guard the mandapa pavilion in front of the central sanctuary cluster. The close-up shot below shows that practically every square foot of the South facade of this pavilion is decorated. Likewise, the North facade.

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The North tower of the central sanctuary cluster seen through the roped off alley between entrance pavilion (left) and the North "library" (right). The latter's East pediment is shown below.

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"Fire in the Khandava Forest" (from Mahabharata), East pediment, North "library." The upper pediment shows Indra astride his mount, a 3-headed elephant.

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Above: The West pediment of the North library showing Krishna killing the demon king Kamsa. Below: The brothers Valin and Sugriva fighting for the hanuman throne (West outer gopura pediment).

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This devata (deity) stand guard in a corner niche of the central sanctuary tower. Although less than life-size in scale, the devatas in Banteay Srei are statuesque in proportion. Note the swans supporting the devata's pedestal.

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The West facade of the central sanctuary. Note the false ("blind") doorways.

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The East facade of the South "library"

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Banteay Srei in perspective looks tiny as monuments go. This photo was taken from the NE, on a viewing platform outside the temple's enclosure. Relative distances have been foreshortened by my point-and-shoot's tele-zoom lens.

Roulos Temples: Lolei, Preah Ko, Bakong

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Lolei is a remote temple that is almost as far to the SE (of Siem Reap) as Banteay Srei is to the NE. It is a cluster of small towers originally built on an "island" within a baray. The baray which had long since dried up are now rice fields surrounding a small hill where the Lolei towers rise. We went there beguiled by guidebook pictures showing amber tufts of grass growing atop the red brick towers.

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The man-made "hill" upon which Lolei temple stands has eroded exposing the foundation of its towers.

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Only two of Lolei's four brick towers are relatively intact. Steel cables have been strapped around the towers (above) to prevent them from crumbling further. Timber buttresses prop up the most derelict towers from the outside while A-frames shore them up inside.

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Notwithstanding the poor condition of the Lolei towers, it has survived for more than 11 centuries. The temple was built in the 9th century (893 CE) by Yasovarman I. More towers were planned than were actually built because Yasovarman moved his capital to Angkor. Lolei is a diminutive of Hariharalaya, the old state capital of Indravarman I (the father of Yasovarman I) located in Roulos, which hosts two other pre-Angkorian temples, Preah Ko and Bakong, which we also visited.

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The towers of Lolei are guarded by male and female dvarapalas. These are made of precast limestone mortar embedded into the towers' brick facing. The brick surround of the recessed niche (above, left) is in fine condition, the ones on the right which are exposed have weathered considerably. The blind door, lintel, and colonettes of the West tower (below) are carved out of solid sandstone.

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A new Buddhist monastery has been built near the Lolei towers. The roof eaves of the monastery (above, left background) can be seen partly behind this tower. Below: This old wooden building on stilts with a tile roof is the sleeping quarters of novice monks. The wheel stops of the parking lot in front of it is presumably for visitors of the monastery or the temple.

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Lolei is the least visited temple in Roulos because of its remote location. Only one other tourist, a Japanese photographer, was on site when we visited. It was high noon when we arrived there. Because of the rather harsh noonday sun, we missed seeing the towers in their best light, earlier in the morning (like at Pre Rup) or later in the afternoon.

Preah Ko Preah Ko ("sacred bull") was built in 880 by Indravarman I as a royal temple of his capital Hariharalaya (present day Roulos). Construction of the small but elegant temple was completed just a year ahead of Indravarman's state temple in nearby Bakong (see below).

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The small pre-Angkorian temple consists of six towers clustered on a slightly elevated base. Preah Ko was dedicated to Shiva and its distinctive statuary are the seated Nandi (Shiva's mount) facing each of the three entrance steps in front of the temple The Nandi shown below bears strong resemblance to Brahman cows, the breed of cattle preferred by Cambodian farmers today.

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Above: The main entrance causeway of Preah Ko. A nandi facing the temple is framed by stone lion sentinels. Behind the nandi are the ruins of the temples inner and outer 234

gopuras. Below: An oblique view of Preah Ko's facade which features a typical design cue of pre-Angkorian tower sanctuaries: doors framed by sandstone colonettes and lintels; dvarapalas or devatas in the towers' corner niches.

Bakong Bakong is the largest temple complex in Roulos. It was built in 881 CE by Indravarman I as the state temple of Hariharalaya, a pre-Angkorian capital of the Khmer empire. The Bakong temple is the first mountain temple built by the Khmers. A single tower sanctuary crowns the fifth level of the temple's stepped pyramid.

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Bakong's central tower, seen here from the main entrance causeway on the East, is a prototype of Angkor Wat's iconic towers. Six other towers built at ground level flank the North, South, and West entrance gopuras of the temple complex.

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The silhouetted central tower as seen from the earthen causeway across the East side of the moat encircling the temple complex. The inner city of Harihalaya including the royal palaces would have been built within the moat. Only a Buddhist monastery of more recent vintage is in residence there now.

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War elephants, each with a delicately carved rope harness, guard the corners of the stepped pyramid at Bakong. The name of its builder Indravarman means "protected by Indra." Indra is the Hindu god of war and thunderstorms whose mount is an elephant, Airavata.

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One of the pair of towers on the South side of the stepped pyramid undergoing restoration.

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The NE corner of the moat (left) as seen from the earthen causeway. Walls made of laterite blocks enclose the outer perimeter of the moat.

Prasat Kravan Prasat Kravan ("cardamon sanctuary") was built in 921 during the reign of Harshavarman I, one of the short-lived Khmer monarchs. It is not a royal temple but was built under auspices of high officials of the royal court. The small temple consists of a low platform bearing a single row of five sanctuaries, oriented N-S and facing East.

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When Prasat Kravan was discovered beneath a mound overgrown by cardamon trees, only the central sanctuary had a complete superstructure (roof) and another at its South end had a truncated one. Also, only the central sanctuary and the one at its North end had been decorated on the inside These led the French-Cambodian Angkor Conservancy to believe that the construction of the temple was left unfinished by its builders.

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Prasat Kravan's almost nondescript exterior belie the exquisite contents of its central and northern sanctuaries. The temple was on my wife's short list because, on a previous visit, she was beguiled by the bas relief of Lakshmi inside the North sanctuary. Unfortunately, it was closed for restoration when we visited. The oblique or incomplete framing of the temple's western and eastern facades in the photos above was deliberate; I wanted to leave out the scaffolding and tarpaulin which covered the North sanctuary.

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Inside the main tower sanctuary of Prasat Kravan are bas reliefs of Vishnu. What makes these bas reliefs unique is that they were carved out of the brick facing of the sanctuary's inner walls. Above, left: Four-handed Vishnu stepping across the ocean, carved on the left (South) wall of the central sanctuary. Above, right: Vishnu being borne piggyback by his Garuda mount, on the right (North) wall. Left: On the wall facing the entrance, Vishnu is depicted with eight hands, as if in a blur. 243

Around him is a "wallpaper" of prayerful attendants.

Below: The skylight atop the superstructure of the central sanctuary. The superstructure forms a four-step pyramid with each higher step rising lower than the one below it. This makes it easier to corbel the structure's building blocks securely on the inside, and improves perspective on the outside. The glass seal of the skylight which was installed by the Angkor Conservancy during its restoration in 1960, was shot to pieces during the war, when the temple was in no man's land.

Srah Srang Srah Srang ("royal bath") is a small baray located across Banteay Kdei's eastern gopura. It was built in the 10th century during the reign of Ravendravarman and renovated by Jayavarman VII in the 13th century. Its name, notwithstanding, the waters of the reservoir was not off-limits to "creatures of all kinds", except dike-busting elephants (according to a 10th century inscription).

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Part of the landing terrace added by Jayavarman VII (above). Below: A Brahman cow and her calf taking a shortcut via the scaffolding of a dike undergoing restoration, followed by their young herder. Cows bathing in the refreshing waters of the barays were a common sight when we visited during Cambodia's dry season.

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The Angkorian era temples are covered in Angkor Wat (Part 1) and Angkor Thom (Part 2) of this 3-part series.

Present Day Cambodia

Cambodia lags behind its Greater Mekong Area neighbors (and rivals in classical times), Thailand and Vietnam, economically. But it is catching up with them in tourism, particularly as a destination of choice among foreign tourists. In the 1960's, before the war escalated in Vietnam, while Cambodia was a neutral country under Prince Sihanouk, it was already a tourist destination with foreign arrivals (mostly Americans and French) reaching up to 7 , † annually. The Vietnam War, which egregiously spilled over to Cambodia, put paid to its burgeoning tourism industry.

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Even as post-war consolidation and reconstruction began in war-torn Vietnam, Cambodia's troubles were only just beginning. Some 3 million Cambodians, including the best educated and most enterprising among them, perished in a fratricidal genocide which shocked the world. The economic consequences and social trauma of such a devastating loss are incalculable and difficult to recover from.

. . . [P]ractically nothing compared to the suffering of the Khmer people. The most important thing to do is to save the people. For the time being, the monuments can wait.

Bernard Philippe Groslier‡ But Cambodia is recovering. Foreign tourists are returning in droves, this time with Asians outnumbering Westerners. Tourism is a leading sector in terms of foreign exchange earnings and employment generation. Still, Cambodia's economy is largely agrarian. And in agriculture, it lags far behind Thailand and Vietnam, the world's top two rice exporters. It wasn't always so. In classical times, Khmer rice farmers were already planting and harvesting rice thrice a year, in and around the "hydraulic cities" of Angkor.

The current tourism boom in Cambodia, as ever, owes to the monuments in and around Angkor which Groslier and his Cambodian co-conservationists care so passionately about. While Cambodia has not much else to offer (e.g., the geographic and geological diversity of Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, and littoral Indonesia and the Philippines; or the worldclass amenities of multicultural, urban, and increasingly urbane Singapore), its ancient monuments are without peer in the region. Moreover, they attract the right kind of tourists: busloads of students on field trips from Bangkok and HCMC; mixed-gender tour groups from China, Japan and South Korea; families, couples, and colleagues from all over the world.

Conservationists and minders of Cambodia's monuments confront a different problem today: How to prevent long-term cumulative damage to the temples on account of the 247

onslaught of visitors. To be sure, tourist dollars (in particular, revenues from entrance passes which are efficiently collected offsite at a centralized location) are plowed back for the maintenance and preservation of the temples. Too, the benefits of tourism-related investment spill over to the rest of the economy. For instance, the moats and barays of Angkor are filling up again, the latter providing irrigation water to nearby farms as originally intended by its builders.

However, rarely does tourism lead the rest of the economy toward recovery and growth. Usually, it's the other way around (Greece and Spain are cases in point). But there's one tourism statistic which is a good indicator of a country's economic progress and the welfare of its people, namely: the number (proportion) of domestic tourists. (In neighboring Vietnam, the preponderant majority of tourists are Vietnamese. Southerners visiting Hanoi and Halong Bay; northerners visiting HCMC-Saigon and the Cu Chi tunnels. That they were once two countries doesn't detract from this indicator.)

When the time comes that Cambodians comprise a significant portion of tourists in their own country (and abroad), then all is well with Cambodia.

Below are thumbnail snapshots of present day Cambodia off the tourist trail. (Click through for a larger image; mouseover image to read its caption.)

Pnom Penh

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Siem Reap

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National Route 6 drive-by shots: Phnom Penh to Siem Reap & return

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Notes: †Peter White, "The Temples of Angkor: Ancient Glory in Stone" in National Geographic: Vol. 161, No. 5, p. 571 (May 1982) ‡Quoted by Peter White, ibid., p. 577

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Note: *My go to reference when writing this series was Claude Jacques' Ancient Angkor, 2007. Supplemental references include an excellent article in National Geographic magazine (May 1982) and Wikipedia. http://musingcarabao.blogspot.in/2013/01/pre-angkorian-and-presentday.html?view=sidebar

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