Sulva Sutras

(“aphorisms on measurement”) A collection of brief sayings giving the exact
rules for constructing the sacrificial
altars for the public Vedic sacrifices. The
Sulva Sutras were connected to the
Shrauta Sutras, which laid down the
ritual prescriptions for these rites, of
which the preparation of the site was
an obvious necessity. Given the
premise that the sacrifice would be
unsuccessful unless it was performed
exactly right, such precise attention
to the altar’s construction seems a
necessary consequence.