A Theory of Ritual?

FritsStaal

INDO-IRANIANFIRE OFFERING

TRANSMISSIONOF THE VEDA

THE FOUR VEDAS

1. Rigveda

2. SËmaveda

3. Yajurveda

KÎÛÙa Yajurveda “Black YV”

Éukla Yajurveda “White YV”

4. Atharvaveda

VEDIC SCHOOLS (ÚËkhË)

Jaiminīya-Upaniṣad-Brahmāṇa

ÉRU- “to hear”

Úrava “fame” (Greek kleos)

RIGVEDA akÛiti ÚravaÒ

SAPPHO kleos aphthiton

“imperishable fame”

Úruta “heard”

Úruti “what is heard” i.e. the tradition of the Vedas

Úrotra “ear”

Úrauta “to be heard”: A THEORY OF RITUAL

A THEORY OF RITUAL =

ÉRAUTA RITUAL

SIXTEEN OFFICIANTS:

RIGVEDA SĀMAVEDA YAJURVEDA AVHOTĀ etc UDGĀTĀ etc ADHVARYU etc

PATRON: YAJAMĀNA with YAJAMĀNA-PATNῙIn SATTRA rituals there is no YAJAMĀNA

MEASURINGTHE GREATALTAR SPACE

“May these bricks be cows for me”

RITUAL DISCUSSIONS

The oldest expert

The youngest expert

Bespectacled genius

METALANGUAGE (paribhËṣË) OF ACTS, MANTRAS AND BRICKS

Each act is accompanied by one mantra ekamantrËÙi karmËÙi

He lets the beginning of the act coincide with the end of the mantras mantrËntaiÒ karmËdÌn saÑnipatayet

“(rules like) ‘he deposits them toward the east’ imply thatthe agent (who does the depositing) faces that direction”

prācīm upadadhātīti kartur mukhavādaḥ

BRAHMAN FACING THE DIRECTION

Aristotle: contradictions cannot be true of the same Andronicus of Rhodes: metaphysics David Hilbert: meta-mathematics Alfred Tarski: object- and meta-languageGµdel's theorems of 1931 etcAlan Turing: artificial intelligence

EUROPE

TuringTarski Gµdel

DEFAULT OPTIONS¼pastamba Érauta SÍ tra 24.1.23-6

23. When an oblation is enjoined, he uses clarified butter juhotÌti codyamËne sarpirËjyam pratÌyËt

24. The officiant is the Adhvaryu (adhvaryuÑ kartËram)

25. The implement is the juhÍ ladle (juhÍ m pËtram)

26. When the juhÍ ladle is already used (and no other implement is specified, the oblation is made)

with the help of the sruva (vyËprtËyËÑ sruveÙa)

LADLES

POURING BUTTER FROM THE juhū

sruva IS WAITING ON SMALL DISH

SĀMAVEDAAniruktagāna (ineffable chant)

obhitvāśūranonumo vā ādugdhā iva dhenavaḥwe cry out for you, hero like unmilked cows

obhitvāśūranonumo vā o bhubhā bhibha bhebhabha

bha syllables are called stobhas or embellishments

RIGVEDA

S¼MAVEDAWEST EAST

THE YAJURVEDINS ARE IN CHARGE OF THE SADAS

NORTH

SOUTH

INSIDE THE SADAS

CONCLUSION

ŚRAUTA SŪTRAS ARE CONCERNED WITH CONTINUITY AND SURVIVAL OF THE VEDIC TRADITION

SUBSTANCES, INDIVIDUALS ETC. CHANGE, MANTRAS AND SYNTAX REMAIN THE SAME