Articles used in Worship

Modern Lists.

Divine worship, as it is in general practice today, may be divided into sixteen อุปจาร or reverential acts : -

1. The offering of a seat (อาสน)

2. Pronouncing welcome (สฺวาคต “good coming”)

3. Offering water to clean the feet (ปาทฺย)

4. Offering อรฺฆฺย (a mixture of water, milk, tips of กุศ or ทูรฺว grass, clarified butter, grains of rice and white mustards; or simply water perfumed with flowers)

5. Offering อาจมน (water for sipping to purify the interior of the body)

6. Offering Honey mixture (มธุปรฺก)

7. Offering Water again for sipping.

8. Offering Water for bathing (สฺนาน)

9. Offering Clothes

10. Offering Ornaments

11. Offering Perfumes

12. Offering Flowers

13. Offering Incense (ธูป)

14. Offering Light (ทีป)

15. Offering Food (นิเวทน)

16. Offering Homage (วนฺทนมฺ)

(Extracted from the cyclopedia “Vãcaspatya”)

“อาจาเรนฺทุ” a work belonging to some time about the middle of the 16th century prescribes two briefest mode consisting of ten or even five อุปจาร only for occassions when the worship cannot be performed more fully,

The offering of อรฺฆฺย, ปาทฺย, อาจมน, มธุปรฺก, seat, perfumes, flowers, incense, light, and food only constitute the worship with ten “upacãras”. The briefest mode consists of an offering of perfumes, flowers, incense, light and food alone.

“มทน ปาริชาต”, the author of which, King Madana, was born about 1375 A.C.; quoting from one yogi yajñavalkya gives a slightly different list : - อาวาหน i e inviting the deity to be present in the image used in worship; offering seat; ปาทฺย; อรฺฆฺย; อาจมน; สฺนาน; clothes; ยชฺโญปวีต (sacrificial cords worn by brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaiśyas); urgents; flowers; incense; light; food; นมสฺการ; ปฺรทกฺษิณ (going round); farewell (or inviting the deity to depart from the image).

It can be deduced from the foregoing lists that the articles which have been used in worship were water, flowers, incense, light, มธุปรฺก (honey-mixture), clothes, ornaments, perfumes and food.

Articles of worship in the Vedic age

But in the earlier stage of the Aryan civilization in India (Vedic) the offerings to gods were much less varied. They were :

1. The Soma Juice

2. Cakes (ปุโรฑาศ) and mess (จรุ) of various kinds of cereals.

3. The three products of the cow-milk, curds and clarified butter.

4. The flesh of certain prescribed animals.

All these can be brought under the single heading นิเวทน of the later day lists. The vedic worship also comprised a prayer inviting the god to be present at the place of sacrifice and receive his portion of the offerings.

The custom of offering ปาทฺย, อรฺฆฺย, อาจมนีย and มธุปรฺก were certainly not unknown in the vedic age as these are all enumerated by the Grhya Sútras (“Manuals of Domestic rites”.) The latest of which class of writings is of a date earlier than the second century before Christ. But the Gṛhya Sútras all agree in prescribing ปาทฺย etc. only for some honoured human guests and never for any deity. The persons who are entitled to those honours are, according to Āpastamba (who belongs to a period not later than the 2nd. century B.C.) are (1) a Snātaka (one who has just finished his study of the Veda) when he comes as a guest to ones house (2) the King (3) ones spiritual guide (4) the priest who has been invited to officiate at ones sacrifice (5) ones father-in-law (6) a reknowned vedic teacher.

The offering of flowers or bath formed no part of Vedic worship probably for the reason that in the Vedic age the gods were worshipped through the medium of the fire.

Chronology

I venture to believe that the prescribing of ปาทฺย, bath, clothes, ornaments, perfumes and flowers do presuppose the presence not merely of the conception that the gods were more or less anthropomorphous as the bards of Rig Veda conceived, but also presupposes the presence of the images of those gods even. It is true that images were not unknown even in the Rig Vedic age. But they seem to have obtained only among the non-Aryans. At least in one place of the Rig Veda (VII. 2, 5) the enemies of the Aryans are referred to as those who have the male organ for their god. This must refer to the worship of the Phallus which, as we know, was a cultus universally prevalent among the oldest races in Asia, in Europe, and even in America.

Image worship must have been adopted by the Aryans before Paṇiṇi wrote his grammar (5th, century B.C.) for Panini refers to its popularity. Patanjali who commented on Paṇiṇis work in the 2 nd. century B.C. says that Mauryan Kings in their desire for money instituted festivals for the gods. But perhaps the oldest representation extant of any “Hindu” god is the figure of Síva on the coins of Wema Khadpises who reigned about the middle of the third century after Christ. Thus the earliest date at which the “Upacāra” could have come into practice would be the same as the time at which the image worship was adopted by the Aryans, say the 5 th. century before Christ.

The evidence of the Purāṇas

A more exact date can attempted at with the aid of the Purāṇas. Now, Chapters 66 and 204 of the Bhavishyat Purāṇa mention flowers, incense, light, perfumes, and food. Chapter II of the Padma Purāṇa mentions ปาทฺย, อรฺฆฺย, อาจมนีย food, incense, light, betel leaves, and homage.

The Bhavishyat of all the Purāṇas has the earliest outside reference being mentioned by name in the Dharma Sūtras of Āpastamba (II 9, 24, 3-6) who cannot be placed later than the 2nd. century B.C. and probably belongs to a much earlier time. F.E. Pargiter (Ancient Indian Historical Tradition. Oxf. Uni. Press.) assigns to the Padma a date much earlier than the 4th century A.C. on the ground that some verses occurring in some grants dated 475 - 6 and 482-3 A.C. are found only in the Padma and Bhavishyat and no where else.

Notes.

อรฺฆย :- The explanation of this term as given on the 1st. page of this paper has been taken from อาเจรนฺทุ.

มธุปรฺก :- อาจาเรนฺทุ explains that มธุปรฺก is a mixture of curds, clarified butter, water, honey and sugar. But according to Āpastanba it is a mixture of curds and honey to which clarified butter, grains and flour can also be added.

Clothes and ornaments :- Clothes and ornaments are offered to the deity only in the temples. In the ordinary domestic worship merely grains of rice are offered as substitutes for clothes and jewels !

Perfumes :- Camphor (พิมเสน not กรบูร); also Wood (ไม้กฤษณา) and sandal wood (“Śāradā Telaka”) other lists add musk, and saffron. These are ground with water into a paste. The paste of the sandal wood obtained from the Malaya a range of mountains on the western coast of India, is considered to be the perfume par excellence.

Flowers :- The tastes of the gods differ much. The Varsha Kriyā Kaumudī says that the dūrvā grass, Tulau (basil) and Ketaki are forbidden in the case of Uma, Vighnesa and Siva respectively. As a general rule the flowers used in worship should be gathered from ones one garden or from mountains forests and takes which are considered to be the common property of ฟ! or no mans.

Incense :- Usually Kam Yān

Light :- If the worshipper can afford he feeds the light with melted butter otherwise with oils of various kinds.

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