Sacrifices and Debates The mid-first millennium BCE is often regarded as a turning point in world history: it saw the emergence of thinkers such as Zarathustra in Iran, Kong Zi in China, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle in Greece, and Mahavira and Gautama Buddha, among many others, in India. They tried to understand the mysteries of existence and the relationship between human beings and the cosmic order. This was also the time when new kingdoms and cities were developing and social and economic life was changing in a variety of ways in the Ganga valley (Chapters and ). These thinkers attempted to understand these developments as well.
. The sacrificial tradition There were several pre-existing traditions of thought, religious belief and practice, including the early Vedic tradition, known from the Rigveda , compiled between c . and BCE . The Rigveda consists of hymns in praise of a variety of deities, especially Agni, Indra and Soma.
Many of these hymns were chanted when sacrifices were performed, where people prayed for cattle, sons, good health, long life, etc. At first, sacrifices were performed collectively. Later ( c . BCE - BCE onwards) some were performed by the heads of households for the well- being of the domestic unit.
More elaborate sacrifices, such as the rajasuya and ashvamedha , were performed by chiefs and kings who depended on Brahmana priests to conduct the ritual. . New questions Many ideas found in the Upanishads ( c. sixth century BCE onwards) show that people were curious about the meaning of life, the possibility of life after death, A prayer to Agni Here are two verses from the Rigveda invoking Agni, the god of fire, often identified with the sacrificial fire, into which offerings were made so as to reach the other deities: Bring, O strong one, this sacrifice of ours to the gods, O wise one, as a liberal giver.
Bestow on us, O priest, abundant food. Agni, obtain, by sacrificing, mighty wealth for us. Procure, O Agni, for ever to him who prays to you (the gift of) nourishment, the wonderful cow. May a son be ours, offspring that continues our line … Verses such as these were composed in a special kind of Sanskrit, known as Vedic Sanskrit.
They were taught orally to men belonging to priestly families. Ü Discuss... Compare what Shahjehan Begum described with what you see in Fig. .
. What similarities and differences do you notice? Ü List the objectives of the sacrifice. Source