(As. Res., vol. III. p. 274.)
[95] फणी Phani, from Phana, “the expanded hood or neck of the Cobra di Capello”—(Wilson).
[96] For a more detailed account, see Ward on the Hindoos, vol. II. p. 29, etc.—The abstract given in the Dabistán is inaccurate, agreeing neither with Manu nor Ward: in Manu, it is as follows (l. II. sl. 58): Let a Brahman at all times perform the ablution with the pure part of his hand, denominated from the Veda, or with the part sacred to the Lord of creatures, or with that dedicated to the gods: but never with the part named from the Pitris. (sl. 59) The pure part under the root of the thumb is called Brahma; that at the root of the little finger, Cáya; that at the tips of the fingers, Daiva; and the part between the thumb and index, Pitrya. (sl. 60) Let him sip water thrice; then twice wipe his mouth; and lastly, touch with water the six cavities (or his eyes, ears, and nostrils), his breast, and his head. (61) He who knows the law and seeks purity, will ever perform his ablution with the pure part of his hand, and with water neither hot nor frothy, standing in a lonely place, and turning to the east or north. (62) A Brahman is purified by water that reaches his bosom; a Chatríya, by water descending to his throat; a Vaisya, by water barely taken into his mouth; a Sutra, by water touched with the extremity of his lips.—D. S.
[97] This rite is called Achamana, performed by taking up water in the palm of the right hand three times, and drinking it as it runs towards the wrist; then, with the right hand, the Brahman is to touch his lips, nose, ears, navel, breast, forehead, and shoulders, repeating an incantation; wash his hands again, and perform achamana; repeat an incantatian; then sitting to the N. or E., before sunrise, cleanse his teeth with the end of a green stick, about six or seven inches long. If he clean his teeth after sunrise, in the next birth he will be born an insect feeding on ordure. He must now wash from his face the mark on his forehead made the day before. Lastly, he puts a dry and new-washed cloth round his loins and sitting down, let him cleanse his poita by rinsing it in the water; then taking up some earth in his hand and diluting it with water, put the middle finger of his right hand in this earth, and make a line botwixt his eyes up to the top of his forehead; then draw his three first fingers across his forehead; make a round dot with his little finger in the centre at the top of his head; another on the upper part of his nose; and another on his throat; etc., etc. (Ward, vol. II. p. 31).—D. S.
[98] Sandhya. The Brahman must offer up many prayers; pour out water to different gods; repeat certain forms of prayer in honor of the sun, which he must worship; and repeat the Gáyatrí; then take up water with his Kosha (small copper cup), and pour it out to his deceased ancestors; after which he must return home and read some part of the Veda—(Ward, vol. II. p. 31-32).
The Gáyatrí here means a sacred verse from the Vedas, to be recited only mentally: this is usually personified and considered as a goddess, the metaphorical mother of the three first classes, in their capacity of twice-born; investiture with the sacred and distinguishing string, viz.: being regarded as a new birth. There is but one Gayatri of the Vedas; but, according to the system of the Tantricas, a number of mystical verses are called Gáyatrís, each deity having one in particular. From Gaya, “who sings;” and Trai, “to preserve.”—D. S.
[99] We read in Colebrooke’s Treatise on the Védas (As. Res., vol. VIII. p. 370) what follows: “It is well known, that the original Véda is believed by Hindus to have been revealed by Brahma, and to have been preserved by tradition, until it was arranged in its present order by a sage, who thence obtained the surname of Vyása, or Véda Vyaśa, that is, ‘compiler of the Védas.’ He distributed the Indian scripture into four parts, which are severally entitled Rich, Yajush, Sáman, and At´harvańa; and each of which bears the common denomination of Véda.”
After having discussed the question whether the fourth Véda be more modern than the other three, the celebrated Indianist concludes (p. 372): “That the three first-mentioned Védas are the three principal portions of the Véda; that the At´harvańa is commonly admitted as a fourth; and that divers mythological poems, entitled Itihása and Puránás, are reckoned a supplement to the scripture, and, as such, constitute a fifth Véda.” He says further (ibid., p. 378): “Each Véda consists of two parts, denominated the Mantras and the Bráhmańas, or ‘prayers’ and ‘precepts.’ The complete collection of the hymns, prayers, and invocations belonging to one Véda is entitled its Sanhita. Every other portion of Indian scripture is included under the general head of divinity (Bráhmańa). This comprises precepts which inculcate religious duties; maxims, which explain those precepts; and arguments, which relate to theology.—The theology of the Indian scripture, comprehending the argumentative portion entitled Védanta, is contained in tracts denominated Upanishads.”—A. T.
The Hindus have, besides, Upavédas. Upa is a preposition importing resemblance in an inferior degree; and Véda, from Vida, “knowledge.” The four Upavedas comprise the Ayu, on the science of medicine, drawn from the Rig Veda; the Gandharva, on music, from the Sama-Véda; the Dhanu, on military tactics, from the Yajush; and the Silpa, on mechanics, from the Atharvańa.
Hindu learning has six divisions, called Angas, that is, “parts,” or “members.” The six Angas are: Sikshya, on pronunciation; Kalpa, on ceremonies; Vyákarana, on grammar; Chanda, on prosody and verse; Jyotisha, on astronomy; and Nirukta, an explanation of difficult words, etc., in the Véda. These divisions, as dependant upon the Védas, are also called Védangas. The Hindus count besides four secondary portions of science, called Upangás: these are: the Puranas, or poetical histories; the Náya, on ethics; the Mímánsa, on divine wisdom and on ceremonies; and the D’harma s astra, or the civil and canon laws (Ward, vol. IV. p. 55).—D. S.