Purushamedha

Purushamedha (or Naramedha) is a Śrauta ritual. The Vajasaneyi Samhita-Sataphatha Brahmana-Katyayana Srauta Sutra sequence of Shukla Yajur Veda texts contains the most details.^[1]

purushamedha translates to "sacrifice of purusha (human)" but katyayana srauta sutra describes that purusha is not killed but freed at end of sacrifice.^[2] The dhatupatha of Aṣṭādhyāyī by Pāṇini defines the root medha as synergizing the energy to perform something fruitful. This is root of a common misconception that it involved actual human sacrifice. this yajna is described as having huge merit and results in yajmana (sacrificer) attaining position of narayana (or supiriority to all creatures).

Historical development

During the Vedic period

Scholars doubt the Purushamedha as actual human sacrifice was ever performed.^[1]^{[note 1]}^[3] discription of naramedha in srautasutras and brahamanas (which are primary source for injunction for yajnas) includes no human injury, it is less likely that early aryans were involved in such things. the symbolic pasu in naramedha should be a man of brahmin caste and he is bought by yajamana in exchange of 1000 cows and 100 horses (1000 gold coins in some texts). then just like asvamedha, pasu (here a brahmin) is allowed to roam for one year and after which he is tied to yupa and worshipped with purusasukta, then rite of revolving a burning wood is performed and pasu (brahmin man) is set free.

Rise of Sramanic Religions

According to Jan Houben, the Later Vedic period was followed by a period of embarrassment about violence in rituals. This period corresponds to the rise of Sramanic religions such as Buddhism and Jainism, both of which place emphasis on nonviolence (ahimsa). This period also corresponds to the composition of the Shatapatha Brahmana, which states that the victims of a Purushamedha are supposed to be released, and the composition of the Chandogya Upanishad, which lists nonviolence as a virtue.^[4]^[5]

Medieval period

By the 10th century, the Purushamedha was included in lists of Kali-varjyas, or actions which were prohibited for the Kali Yuga. This suggests that human sacrifice had become obsolete by the time the texts were composed. However, it also suggests that the Purushamedha may have in some cases consummated with the actual sacrificing of a human. That is, the existence of inclusion of the prohibition in the list of Kali-varjyas demonstrates that at least one author seriously feared the possibility that a ritual practitioner might take the description of the ritual as a moral license to perform the rite to the extent of murder and cannibalism. This is a plausible reason to include it in the list of Kali-varjyas, even if it was a purely symbolic ceremony during the period of the composition of the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa.^[4] Whether or not the rite ever consummated in the slaughter of a human and the consumption of their flesh, however, remains so far a matter of scholarly speculation.

Performance in Hindu epics

The Aitareya Brahmana tells the story of a sacrifice carried out by King Harischandra. The childless king asked Varuna to provide him with a son, and in return, Varuna asks him to sacrifice the child to him. Harischandra delays the performance of the sacrifice and allows his son, named Rohita, to grow older. Eventually, Rohita wanders into the forest to find a substitute for himself. He comes across a poor Brahmin named Ajigarta, who sells his son Sunahsepa to him. Sunahsepa is bound to the stake, but was saved by the goddess Ushas, invocation of whom was taught to him by Vishvamitra.^[6] This story is reproduced in the Bhagavata Purana.^[7]^{[non-primary source needed]}

In Vedanta and the Puranas

Human sacrifice and cannibalism are explicitly condemned in the Bhagavata Purana (5.26.31). The Chandogya Upanishad (3.16) states that the Purushamedha is actually a metaphor for life itself, and it compares the various stages of life to the oblations that are offered. The Mahabharta section XXII of the Sabha Parva in the Jarasandha-Badha Parva when the evil king Jarasandha is doing a human sacrifice. Sri Krishna states, "But you, O king, treating other kings with cruelty, seeks to offer them as sacrifice unto the god Rudra! O son of Vrihadratha, this sin committed by you may touch even us, for as we are virtuous in our practices, we are capable of protecting virtue. The slaughter of human being as sacrifice unto the gods is never seen. Why dost you, therefore, seek to perform a sacrifice unto god Sankara by slaughtering human beings? You are addressing persons belonging to your own order as animals (fit for sacrifice)!",^[8] which is yet another example of Hindu scripture berating human sacrifice. It is unclear if such sacrifice was their and is now condemned or if it never existed.

Views

Helmer Ringgren regarded that the traces of Purushameda are not clearly detectable.^[9]

Dayananda Sarasvati, founder of Arya Samaj had rejected all human sacrifices and animal sacrifice in vaidika yajnas.^{[citation needed]}

In November 2000 CE, a modern version of Purushamedha was organised by All World Gayatri Pariwar at Shantikunja Haridvara, marking the completion of 12 year Yugsandhi Mahapurascharana. In this program, named Srijana Sankalpa Vibhuti Mahayajna, participants had to tie themselves with Yupas and take an oath to dedicate their life to social causes as a sacrifice.^[10] Yajnas was performed on 1551 kundas on the bank of the Ganga river and was attended by four million devotees.^{[citation needed]}

Notes

^ "There is no inscriptional or other record that a purusamedha was ever performed, leading some scholars to suggest it was simply invented to round out sacrificial possibilities." (pg. 237)

References

^ ^a ^b Knipe 2015, p. 237.
^ Parpola (2007) p. 159
^ Oliver Leaman (2006), Encyclopedia of Asian Philosophy, Routledge, ISBN 978-0415172813, page 557, Quote: "It should be mentioned that although provision is made for human sacrifice (purusha-medha) this was purely symbolic and did not involve harm to anyone".
^ ^a ^b Houben, Jan E. M.; Kooij, Karel Rijk van (1999). Violence Denied: Violence, Non-Violence, and the Rationalization of Violence in South Asian Cultural History. BRILL. pp. 120–124, 133, 153. ISBN 9004113444.
^ Chandogya Upanishad, 3.17.4
^ Parpola (2007) pp. 161–164
^ Bhagavata Purana, Canto 9, Chapter 7
^ The Mahabharata Mohan
^ "Paths to the Divine: Ancient and Indian", by Vensus A. George, p. 169, ISBN 9781565182486
^ Akhand Jyoti. 64 (1). Akhand Jyoti Sansthan, Mathura: 59–62. January 2001. {{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

Sources

Printed sources

Knipe, David M. (2015), Vedic Voices: Intimate Narratives of a Living Andhra Tradition, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Parpola, A. 'Human Sacrifice in India in Vedic Times and Before' in Bremmer, J.N. (2007): The Strange World of Human Sacrifice, Peeters

Web sources

[3] "There is no inscriptional or other record that a purusamedha was ever performed, leading some scholars to suggest it was simply invented to round out sacrificial possibilities." (pg. 237)

[FOOTNOTEKnipe2015237-1] Knipe 2015, p. 237.

[2] Parpola (2007) p. 159

[4] Oliver Leaman (2006), Encyclopedia of Asian Philosophy, Routledge, ISBN 978-0415172813, page 557, Quote: "It should be mentioned that although provision is made for human sacrifice (purusha-medha) this was purely symbolic and did not involve harm to anyone".

[Violence-5] Houben, Jan E. M.; Kooij, Karel Rijk van (1999). Violence Denied: Violence, Non-Violence, and the Rationalization of Violence in South Asian Cultural History. BRILL. pp. 120–124, 133, 153. ISBN 9004113444.

[Chandogya_Upanishad-6] Chandogya Upanishad, 3.17.4

[7] Parpola (2007) pp. 161–164

[Bhagavata-8] Bhagavata Purana, Canto 9, Chapter 7

[9] The Mahabharata Mohan

[10] "Paths to the Divine: Ancient and Indian", by Vensus A. George, p. 169, ISBN 9781565182486

[11] Akhand Jyoti. 64 (1). Akhand Jyoti Sansthan, Mathura: 59–62. January 2001. {{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

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