Intro
Some unusual rituals involve some unusual components, some of which people may not like. But denying that such rituals exist is not a tenable response. They were proposed because of some benefit in terms of enjoyment or refinement of sentiment. Rather, the performer should use his discretion to modify rituals to suit his and his society’s temperaments.
Unusual offerings
- In an AV practice taught by AchArya kAnkAyana, the paddhati says a sthalipakam cooked in retas and sutaka jala is offered. In practice samidhs dipped in those are offered.
- Oil instead of ghee in tAntrika and AtharvaNa homa-s
- “ashvattha-parNa-darvyA i~NgiDa-tailena juhoti | atharvavede sUktam 6.75 tasya prayogaH”
- AV practices include offering poisonous seeds etc.. [TW1]
- Animal and human sacrifice (considered here)
Drinking and offering liquor
- Certain vaidika and tAntrika rituals
- sautramaNi - MT. Said to counter the effect of too much soma- “The Asvins performed the Sautramani ritual to cure Indra from the effects of drinking too much Soma. "
Exchange of abuses
Ritual fights
- Certain vaidika rituals
Imitation of animals (mimesis)
- In shrauta tradition - gosava rite. (ghorAngIrasa)
- Motivation - Ananda (TW16), various other rewards
- Modern examples: Joe Hutto.
Sex
- Consider various sexual symbolisms used in adoring deities. (See pUjA pages)
ashvamedha
अधीवासेनाश्वमहिष्यौ छादयति अध उपरिष्टाच्चाच्छादनक्षमं वासोऽधीवासः । … महिषी स्वयमेवाश्वशिश्नमाकृष्य स्वयोनौ स्थापयति ।
इत्य् उवट-भाष्यं वाजसनेय-संहितायाः।
niyoga (sperm donation)
- ashvamedha having a niyoga component at one point in time.
- The queen ritually sleeps with the horse, is given over to the Rtvik-s and then taken back.
- MT: “obscene yajuSh recited when the queen likes near the horse: ambe ambAlyambike na mA yabhati kashchana | sa sastyashvakaH | haye cha haye asau ||” (Note c)
- MT: “this has deep roots in the Indo-European world with parallel sexual connotations in the horse rituals in other tradiitons e.g. in Rome” To check: gaulish iipomidvos.
- MT points out that a literal and realist reading of rAmAyaNa clearly imlies niyoga performed by the fecund Rtvik RShyashRnga. (Of course, the text must be read from other perspectives as well.)
- MT: “Now it is not explicit as in the mahAbhArata where vyAsa fathers the protagonists (stated clearly) but the parallel is important: 1. vyAsa fathers on ambikA, ambAlikA and sUtA(names parallel to the chant in the ashvamedha see above). 2. He asks for a 1 year vrata ike horse ritual but they don’t observe and the outcome is a disaster.”
- As an indication of fertility
For spiritual highs
- Promiscuity in vAmadevya practice - ChU 2.13.
- “स्वातन्त्र्यम्, विधीनां निषेधः, जातिशीलाद्य्-अभिमान-नाशः” as motivation - see sthAneshvara-note.
- group sex
- some tAntrika chakrapUjA
Exceptional incest
-
abhinavagupta in tantrAloka itself at 29.102d: śvapatnī bhaginī mātā duhitā vā subhā sakhī. Such allowances were rarely followed through, as kalhaNa reveals.
-
kalhaNa records in 7:
द्विजेन्द्रे ऽमरकण्ठे तु
याते शिवसमानताम्।
राजा प्रमदकण्ठस्य
ययौ तज्जस्य सिष्यताम् ॥
दुःशीलस्य प्रकृत्यैव
तस्याकृत्योपदेशकृत् ।
गम्यागम्यविचारस्य
परिहर्ताभवद् गुरुः॥
गुरोर् गतविकल्पत्वम्
तस्यान्यत् किम् इवोच्यताम्।
त्यक्तशङ्कः प्रववृते
स्वसुतासुरते ऽपि यः॥
- gosava rite (Ap. XXII.13.1-3 - tene.s.tvaa samvatsaram pazuvrato bhavati / upaavahaayodakam pibet t.r.naani caacchindyaat / upa maataram iyaad upa svasaaram upa sagotraam / indology list, ghorAngIrasa)
- " The controversial acts are limited to the variant given in the jaiminīya Brāhmaṇa (2.113), the āpastamba śrautasūtra (22.13.1-3) that seems to have replicated the verses in the jaiminīya text and the brahmāṇḍa purāṇa (2.36-64). " (ghorAngIrasa)
- “Others don’t talk about it or assume you know the details. Panchaviṃśa comes out and says these are no longer performed.””
Gambling
- Certain vaidika rituals
Unusual ritual equipment
- Turbans
- shyenayAga is a sAmavediya abhicAra prayoga referred to in Sdv.Br and LSS involves the Rtviks wearing red turbans and red garments. [TW]
- Weapon displays
- Certain vaidika and tAntrika rituals
- 5th sAdhyaHkra soma ritual: The shuklayajurvedin-s specify the deity there as agni-rudravat to whom a red animal is sacrificed. Also the ritualists where their upavita around the neck like a garland for the ritual. They carry bows strap quivers to back full of arrows while performing the yAga.
- Threatening the deities! Some stretch the concept of deities coming under the control of the invoker a bit too far.
- Several shabara (non-sanskrit) mantra-s threaten a deity with dire consequences if the requests of the chanter are not granted. Example: rati-threatening.
Skulls
- In chayana during vaidika yAga-s here.
- SYV tradition
- “by the time of the shatapatha, the use of actual heads had been out of vogue for long…with the last one to use it being shyAparNa sAyakAyana”. shatapatha brAhmaNa admonishes against the usage of golden and clay heads for agnicayana.
- But katyayana accepts the clay n gold options.
- Hence, commentator karka says: “Build a shed near the yAgashAla; kill him there like any pashu.”; but allows substitutions.
- Apastamba asks for skulls to be purchased. kSatriya or vaishya who got killed by arrow or struck by lightning.
- SYV tradition
- Famously carried around by kapAlika-s and such.
Posession and wildly altered behavior
- Avesha considered separately.
Drama
Prohibitions and support
- ““kAvyAlApanshca varjayet” is often quoted by AlankArikas. They go into the defensive to prove that kAvya is not adhArmika. What Abhinvagupta quotes however from Manu is “kAmajo daSamo gaNaH” as being varjaneeya. In this group, he includes tauryatrikam as varjanIya. Tauryatrika includes nrtyageetavaadyam (tauryatrikam nRtyagItavAdyam nATyamidam trayam, Amarakosa).” (The smR^itikAra is only forbidding it for the king.)
- “Abhinavagupta says “etena kāmajo daśako gaṇaḥ (manu. 7-47) iti varjanīyatvena nāṭyasyānupādeyateti yatkecidāśaśaṅkire tadayuktīkṛtam”. Natya brings kavya within its scope. Also, yājñavalkyasmṛtipurāṇādau cāsya praśaṃsā-bhūyastvaśravaṇāt (Abhinavagupta)”