The Priests

A yajï a may involve the following four priests (å tviks) -

Hotå: The priest who invokes and worships the Lord, through the medium of the fire.

Udgä tå: The priest who is in charge of chanting the mantras.

Advaryu: The priest who prepares and installs the paraphernalia, and ignites the sacred fire. He sees to the smooth running of the ceremony.

Brahma: The master of ceremonies. He sees that all the mantras are recited properly, corrects any errors that occur during the proceedings and sees to the proper stoking of the fire.

If there are only three priests, there will be the adhvaryu, udgä tå and the å tvik (the hotå). If only two, the udgä tå and hotå, and one, the hotå.

Yajï a Paraphernalia

The implements used in the yajï a are known as “yajï ä yudha“ or “the weapons of the yajï a“. The reason for this name is given in the Aitareya Brä hmaë a (34.1) of the Å g Veda –

“At the time when the Lord created Yajï a, the brä hmaë as and kñ atriyas also came into being. Yajï a began running away and the brä hmaë as and kñ atriyas chased it armed with their own weapons. The weapons of the kñ atriyas were horses, chariots, swords, bows, etc., and the weapons of the brä hmaë as were the utensils used in the yajï a. When the kñ atriyas persued the Yajï a, Yajï a, being scared, ran faster and the kñ atriyas returned in defeat. However, the brä hmaë as were successful - by showing Yajï a their weapons, it recognized them as its’ own weapons, and thus consented to stay with the brä hmaë as.”

There are innumerable items used in different yajï as, but we will only list the ones that are of major importance:

Sphya: This is a small wooden sword which is used for making the lines during the paï ca-rekhä -sthä pana. It is also used for cutting dü rva-grass and for stirring the caru. Generally, the sphya is one “aratni” long (distance from elbow to tip of little finger = 24 angulas - widths of a finger = aprox. 18 inches) and is sharpened before use with kuç a grass.

Sruk: The sruk is a long ladle which has a bowl on top of it at one end with a beak shaped like an elephant's lips for ghee to be poured out. It may also have a cow’s or lion’s face. The sruk may be a bä hu (36 angulas - 27 inches), an aratni (24 angulas - 18 inches), or a prä deç a (12 angulas - 9 inches) in length. It originally manifest from the snout of Yajï a Varä ha. The sruk is generally used for offering the pü rë a-ahuti (final oblation).

Sruva: This is a spoon used for offering the main oblations of ghee during the yajï a. It is an aratni in length. The depression of the bowl is the width of the first joint of the thumb and is split into two parts, representing the sun and the moon, iò ä (the breath through the left nostril, controlled by the moon) and piì gala (the breath through the right nostril, controlled by the sun); as the sruva originally manifest from the nostrils of Yajï a Varä ha.

Prokñ ani: The prokñ ani is 12 angulas long (9 inches) with a depression shaped like a lotus leaf or lotus bud. This vessel holds purified water, for sprinkling on the various paraphenalia in order to purify them, and for pouring water around the fire during Kuç andika. Blades of dü rva-grass are placed in the water for sanctification.

Upaveç a: The fire is stoked by a wooden stick known as an “upaveç a”, the head of which is shaped like a hand. It is of a length of 12 angulas (9 inches) or one aratni (18 inches). It is also used for moving burning wood when it falls out of place.

The Yajamä na

The yajamä na is the person who sponsors and/or is the benefactor of a particular ceremony: i.e. in the case of the wedding it is the groom; in case of saà skä ras concerning the wife, it is the husband; and in case of those concerning the child, it is the father. In the case of a brä hmaë a, he may perform his own ceremonies. However, if he is unable to do this, he may invite a Vaiñ ë ava brä hmaë a to perform or guide the rites on his behalf (act as å tvik).

Dakñ ië ä or Dä na

According to Vedic custom, on the completion of the ceremony, the yajamä na should satisfy the priests and Vaiñ ë avas with gifts and prasä dam. It is said that without pleasing the brä hmaë as the ceremony has no value. As Ç ré Kå ñ ë a says in Bhagavad Gé tä 17.14:

vidhi-hé nam aså ñ ö ä nnaà

mantra-hé nam adakñ ië am

ç raddhä -viraitam yajï am

tä masaà paricakñ ate

And that sacrifice performed in defiance of the scriptural injunctions, in which no spiritual food is distributed, no hymns are chanted and no remunerations are made to the priests, and which is faithless - that sacrifice is of the nature of ignorance.