Agnichayana

Agnichayana

अग्निचयन, agnicayana

Agnichayana – literally "foldment the Agni’s altar", also called Atiratra-agnichayana. This is one of the most complex and lengthy śrauta rituals, usually taking twelve days. This ritual is practiced to this day by the Shrauta Brahmins of Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. The first time it was documented in detail by Western researchers in 1975 and by that time it was virtually not practiced, however, this publication caused a surge of interest and later Atiratra Agnichayana was held in 1990, 2006 and 2015.

An approximate scheme of the shrauta rituals in order of complexity, where each subsequent one is more difficult than the previous one, and more complex rituals can only be performed by someone who has already performed simpler ones:

agnyādheya > agnihotra > darśapūrṇamāsa > cāturmāsya > paśubandha > agniṣṭoma > utkhya > ṣoḍaśin > atīratra > aptoryāma > atyagniṣṭoma > vājapeya > agnicayana.

Agnichayana is always combined with Soma rituals, in which a vessel (pot) called ukhā, the container of Agni, plays an important role. The main feature of agnichayana is that the altar for offerings – uttarvedi – is composed (cayana) of 1005 clay bricks (iṣṭakā), stacked in a special way in five layers. It can take different forms, more often a form of a bird of prey: a falcon, etc. The entire ritual is deeply esoteric and permeated through with symbolism associated with the story of creation of the world by Prajapati. Charles Malamoud, in the book “Bake the World”, writes about the symbolism of the agnichayana altar:

“When Prajapati had emitted living beings, he felt emptied and as if gutted. He said to the fire, Agni: "Restore me." And he said to the gods: "Restore me." And the gods turned to Agni: "In you we will heal our father Prajapati." “Well,” replied Agni, “but on condition that, when he is ready, I will be able to pervade him.” That is why, the text adds, being himself, Prajapati, since he was recreated, is also Agni. Thus, he is both the father of Agni and the gods, since he created them, and at the same time their son, since he was recreated by them. Well, in order to recreate Prajapati in Agni, the gods place offerings in the fire: the fire immediately bakes these offerings (iṣṭa), and they – for the sake (ka) of all concerned – turn into bricks (iṣṭakā). Prajapati is considered recreated when all the bricks are laid on top of each other and the construction is finished. The structure that forms the Agni’s altar will be crowned with fire, set by gods. People repeat these god’s actions in the agnichayana ritual, when they also build the Agni’s altar from bricks, layer by layer.
The five parts of his body that were scattered in the process of creation are the five seasons. Five layers of bricks reconstitute these five seasons. But Prajapati is also space: the five layers are also the five cardinal directions: east, south, west, north and zenith."

Day I

The yajamana and other brahmans enter the ritual room, while they bring in three sacred fires (ahavania, garphatya, dakshina-agni) in vessels, these fires belong to the yajamana, i.e. taken from his home. On this day, the main ritual vessel of Agnichayana – ukhā – and also the heads of a horse, a man, a bull, a ram, a goat are made from clay; along with them, several bricks are also made to frame the altar with ahavania-agni.

Five chief priests are chosen: adhvaryu, brahman, hotā, udgātā, sadasya; fire is produced by friction. For the dedication of yajamana, a yajna (iṣṭi) is held, during which the yajamana must sit on the skin of a black antelope, a turban is tied around his head in a special way, and he is given a staff.

On the first day, the first of fourteen sacrifices is also performed in the name of the Vedic gods (Vayu is honored on this day). Sacrificial animals have now been replaced by symbolic figurines.

Day II

The yajamana venerates the ukhā vessel, inside which a fire burns. The ritual consecration of the yajna instruments is also carried out: the vessel mahāvīra with two spare vessels, ritual ladles, a butter dish, pie making molds rauhiṇa – all this is accomplished by the adhvaryu together with an assistant.

Day III

On the third day of Agnichayana, the adhvaryu ritually marks out a place in space called mahavedi (the main altar place) and a place for Agni – agnikshetra – the surface of the earth on which the bird-shaped altar will be located, about 20 meters wide.

Day IV

Starting from the fourth day, in the morning and evening of every day, the yajna to Ashvins – pravargaya – and after it the upasad – yajna in honor of Agni, Soma and Vishnu is held. 

In place of the old altar with ahavaniya, a new garhapatiya-altar of bricks is being built, its dimensions are prescribed to be made based on the height of yajamana. Soma is ordered and a yajna is held, where oblations with milk are made to Soma, and Indra is invoked there. Also next to the new altar the throne of Soma is installed, where bunches of Soma grass are kept.

On the site of the future uttaravedi, the land is plowed and seeds are sown. Also, in a certain order, a living turtle or its figurine, an ukhā pot, 13 pieces of gold and five heads of living creatures that were previously made of clay, a human figurine made of gold, as well as ritual objects, and various herbs are buried in a certain order. Then adhvaryu with assistants in the name of yajamana lays the first "special" bricks and then the first layer of 200 uttarvedi bricks is laid. The central part of uttarvedi is called "Atman".

Day V

Pravargaya and upasad are held in the morning and evening, and the second layer of the bird-shaped altar of 200 bricks is built during the day.

Day VI

Pravargaya and upasad are held in the morning and evening, and the third layer of the bird-shaped altar of 200 bricks is built during the day.

Day VII

Pravargaya and upasad are held in the morning and evening, and the fourth layer of the bird-shaped altar of 200 bricks is erected during the day. 

Day VIII

Pravargaya and upasad are held in the morning and evening, and the fifth final layer for the bird-shaped altar of 205 bricks is built during the day. Yajamana ritually turns the bricks of the altar into cows. After this, a long worship of Rudra is performed by oblations with milk, water, sesame seeds and other ingredients.

Day IX

After the morning and evening pravargaya and upasad rituals, the mahāvīra pot and the remaining ingredients of these rituals are offered to a special altar that is constructed in the form of a human with the use of these ingredients.

Agni is transferred from the garhapatiya altar to the mahavedi space and is installed in the very center of the altar in the form of a bird (uttarvedi), long libations of ghee are performed together with the recitation of chamak from “Taitiriya Samhita” (4.7.1-11), this ritual is called vasor dhārā, "the flow of well-being."

Soma is transported to the mahavedi space and an agniṣomīya sacrifice is performed in the name of Marut. To do this, a specially carved octagonal yūpa pole is preliminarily erected in mahavedi (to which, apparently, a sacrificial animal had to be tied in ancient times). In this sacrifice, a rice cake is used as a substitute for a sacrificial goat. 

Day X-XI-XII

On the tenth day and beyond, Agnichayana reaches its culmination: the number of rituals increases significantly and they are performed simultaneously with each other. From the tenth to twelfth days, sutyā – the extraction of Soma – is performed, and unlike the previous days, the rituals now also continue at night.

Long before dawn, the elements for the sacrifice are prepared, Agni is invoked, and the brahmins gather together to begin the extraction of Soma. Under the appropriate recitation of stotras and shastras, Soma is squeezed out, filtered, and the brahmins, having gathered around the altar, pour Soma for Agni with a special serpentine movement, after the offering they drink Soma. In just 3 days and 2 nights, 29 such sequences are performed.

Day XII

On the last day, the 29th offering to Soma is completed by dawn. Eleven goats are symbolically sacrificed to Agni, Saraswati, Soma, Pushan, Brihaspati, Vishvadevas, Indra, Marutas, Indragni, Savitri, and Varuna. Animals are symbolically replaced with rice flour wrapped in banana leaves. 

The yajamana makes offerings to ancestors and asks for forgiveness for the mistakes made (prāyaścitta). The ceremony moves to the temple, where everyone performs ablution. After that, all the brahmins return and the final sacrifice of a goat (also in the form of a rice cake), symbolizing the barren cow, to Mitravaruna is performed.

At the end of the whole ritual, the yajamana takes with him ahavania, garphatya and dakshina-agni, and the adhvaryu makes a farewell offering, pouring ghee on the fires and thus all the spaces in which the rituals were performed are completely burned. After burning, only the bird-shaped altar remains.