Books by Natalia Korneeva
Жертвоприношение Ваджапея (vājapeya, букв. «испитие силы») — древнейший ведийский шраута-ритуал, ... more Жертвоприношение Ваджапея (vājapeya, букв. «испитие силы») — древнейший ведийский шраута-ритуал, однодневное жертвоприношение сомы (ekāhá); базовым для него является обряд Агништома (agniṣṭoma, букв. «Восхваление Агни»). Все специфические обряды Ваджапеи (гонки на колесницах, питье суры, восхождение на жертвенный столб и др.) совершаются в день отжима и возлияний сомы. Особенностью Ваджапеи является преобладание числа 17. В статье дается краткий обзор основных характеристик ритуала Ваджапея на основе текстов шраутасутр, самхит и брахман, а также современных практик.
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In antiquity, Vedic sacrifices constituted very important part of religious and cultural life, bu... more In antiquity, Vedic sacrifices constituted very important part of religious and cultural life, but over the time they lost successively their position under influence of metaphysical concepts, social, economic and other factors. If the study of Vedic ritual texts were in the focus of the most outstanding scholars from the very beginning of Vedic studies, actual performing of śrauta rituals was neglected during long time. Only after F. Staal's famous Agnicayana Project, the scholars began to pay attention to today’s śrauta sacrifices.
The Atirātra Agnicayana is a rarely performed ancient Vedic twelve-day śrauta ritual. It also calls Atirātra as continues through last nights. Agnicayana means ‘construction of the fire altar’ — after three days of preliminary rites during next five days a big bird-shaped altar (śyena-citi) of 1000 bricks (200 in each of the five layers) is being constructed for Soma offerings. This very complex ritual consisting of numerous unique rites has been kept alive by Nambudiri Brahmins of Kerela. The Nambudiri tradition of Vedic recitations and rituals is an uninterrupted living tradition for centuries handed down mostly orally.
This paper analyzes several points of the Atirātra Agnicayana comparing them with related fragments of the śrautasūtras (Baudhāyana, Āśvalāyana, Āpastamba), with the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa, where the Agnicayana rites are presented most fully, with the modern reports of the Agnicayana and other śrauta rituals and with the author's own experience of the Atirātra Agnicayana in Śukapuram performed by Nambudiri Brahmins in 2015. The paper demonstrates that in some cases the deviations concern not only the ancient texts but today's performances often bring various innovations. However, despite the fact that the changes of modern life provide more convenient conditions for performing the ritual and inevitably bring artificial elements to it, the study of today's śrauta rituals gives important information for better understanding Vedic tradition.
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https://www.eventscribe.com/2019/ICAS11/agenda.asp?startdate=7/19/2019&enddate=7/19/2019&BCFO=M&t... more https://www.eventscribe.com/2019/ICAS11/agenda.asp?startdate=7/19/2019&enddate=7/19/2019&BCFO=M&tn=&cpf2=&cus2=&pta=&h=Fri,%20Jul%2019&pfp=FullSchedule
After the pioneering work of Martin Haug, who attended śrauta rituals in Poona in 1861-62, it was only a century later that Indian scholars working on the Śrautakośa found it necessary to study actual śrauta performances. Next, with Frits Staal’s outstanding Agnicayana Project (1975), a new era begins in the study of śrauta performances through photo, audio and video documentation.
The video-registration of śrauta rituals is of great importance for their analysis and study. One reason is that deviations from prescriptions of the texts, which took place since ancient times, have multiplied due to modern conditions. This process is reflected in several available films (Staal 1975, Houben 1996 etc.) — made decades ago, they have become historical documents. Another reason is that sometimes it is difficult to understand details of prescriptions in ancient texts. The substitution of animals in the prescribed offerings during the Atirātra Agnicayana is an example. Animal sacrifices are an inseparable part of the soma rituals, and those brahmins who do not accept it find themselves in a difficult situation — leaving out the sacrificial offerings of animals and consequently leaving out the recitations of accompanying mantras would destroy the structure of the ritual. Just before the performance of the Atirātra of 1975 there were heated debates about this, and, partly under public pressure, it was decided to have recourse to a substitution already in use for funeral ceremonies (śrāddha): the sacrificial goat was represented by a paste of rice flour (aṭa) folded in a banana leaf.
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https://iocs.hse.ru/en/news/268281343.html
https://iocs.hse.ru/news/266828577.html
The first par... more https://iocs.hse.ru/en/news/268281343.html
https://iocs.hse.ru/news/266828577.html
The first part of the paper analysed the structure of the daily colorful morning ritual of Ganges worship at Assi Ghat (Assī-ghāṭ) in Varanasi, which is the main segment of an inspiring morning program Subah-e-Banaras (lit. “Morning of Banaras”). The program has been held daily since November 2014 and includes Vedic chanting by female students from the Pāṇini Kanyā Mahāvidyālaya, the Gaṅgā-ārati/aarti, the yajña, a concert of Indian classical music and a yoga class.
The second part of the paper was devoted to the preparation of the Pāṇini Kanyā Mahāvidyālaya’s students and the traditions of the school.
My hearty thanks go to Maggie Barron for smoothing my English.
Утренний ритуал почитания Ганги на Асси гхат в Варанаси — основная составляющая красочных вдохновляющих утренных церемоний Subah-e-Banaras (букв. «утро Варанаси»), которые проводятся ежедневно с ноября 2014. Ритуал начинается до восхода солнца и включает Ганга-арати и агнихотру. Все ритуальные действия сопровождается рецитацией ведийских мантр девочками из Панини Канья Махавидьялая (Pāṇini Kanyā Mahāvidyālaya). В завершении ритуала все участники, включая зрителей, вместе воздают хвалу Ганге, Индии, природе и т.д., желающие получают прасад. Далее следует концерт индийской классической музыки и занятия йогой.
В докладе анализируется структура ритуалов (Ганга-арати и агнихотры), основное внимание уделяется девочкам из Панини Канья Махавидьялая, рецитирующим ведийские мантры — их обучение, подтовка к проведению ритуалов и проч.
Доклад сопровождается фото- и видеодокументацией.
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https://iocs.hse.ru/news/262509980.html
Владимир Николаевич Романов внес огромный вклад в изучен... more https://iocs.hse.ru/news/262509980.html
Владимир Николаевич Романов внес огромный вклад в изучение брахман, его перевод «Шатапатха-брахманы» важен не только для исследования этого жанра, но и для изучения традиции шраута. Связь брахман и шраутасутр неоднократно отмечалась – в шраутасутрах в форме предписаний выражено то, о чем говорится в брахманах. Шраутасутры не являются откровением-шрути и обычно предполагают знание ведийских самхит и брахман своих школ и иногда на них ссылаются. Однако не всегда эта связь очевидна, т.к. до нас дошла лишь небольшая часть текстов. В докладе было показано, насколько важно для понимания шраута-ритуалов знание ведийского происхождение определенных предписаний шраутасутр, о которых составители сутр уже не говорят, а комментаторы могут интерпретировать по-своему.
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«Апастамба-яджна-парибхашасутра» входит в состав «Апастамба-шраутасутры» (первые четыре главы XXI... more «Апастамба-яджна-парибхашасутра» входит в состав «Апастамба-шраутасутры» (первые четыре главы XXIV-й книги). Сутры парибхаша, по большей части являются мета-правилами к предписаниям шраутасутр и в сжатом виде описывают структуру, основные принципы ведийских жертвоприношений и объясняют ритуальную терминологию — без них ряд предписаний шраутасутр понять невозможно. Анализируя происхождение жанра сутр, основные характеристики и виды сутр, а также структуру «Апастамба-яджна-парибхашасутры», докладчик ставит вопрос о методологии перевода данного текста и возможности переноса этой методологии на другие тексты кальпасутры.
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Письменные памятники Востока. М.: Наука — Восточная литература. , 2016
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The first part of the article deals with the history of studying śrauta rituals and reveals the r... more The first part of the article deals with the history of studying śrauta rituals and reveals the reasons of why research related to their performance has been neglected for so long. Then the author examines the most important deviations from the prescriptions of ancient texts during performing of modern śrauta rituals: publicity, expansion of the audience and places of rituals; the role of yajamāna, the funding and purpose of rituals; Hinduization; changes related with the prohibitions of Kaliyuga; the training of priests and preparation of ritual utensils, etc. This research assumes that the form of Vedic śrauta rituals now has much in common with Hinduism. From rituals performed in a limited circle of brahmins and elites, śrauta rituals turned into a public Hindu festivals with thousands of participants, including the media. Much attention is paid to Nambudiri brahmins who maintained authentic living tradition of performing śrauta rituals along with Vedic recitations and chantings.
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The vrātyas are regarded as the most mysterious characters in the Sanskrit literary tradition. Fo... more The vrātyas are regarded as the most mysterious characters in the Sanskrit literary tradition. For more than a hundred years, scholars all over the world have been trying to identify them. This paper is an attempt to address the vrātya problem from the perspective of the ritual reception of the guest of honour (atithi) and certain peculiarities of its treatment in the Sanskrit textual tradition.
Analysing the position of the vrātyas in different contexts gives an opportunity to understand certain abstruse instances of mantra application in the Gṛhyasūtras. Particular attention is paid to obscure and even aggressive mantras in the Gṛhyasūtras used in the ritual of the respectful reception of a guest. These mantras do not belong to the Vedic Saṃhitās and they show no connection with a particular Vedic śākhā. Taking into consideration (a) the coincidence of some of their elements with contexts associated with the vrātyas in other Vedic texts; (b) recent research connecting the vrātyas with members of a roaming Männerbund and Kṣatriyas; (c) the fact that the Āpastamba-dharmasūtra treats the guest of honour (atithi) as a vrātya; as well as some other evidence concerning vrātyas — the present paper hypothesises that the above-mentioned obscure mantras could be associated with the vrātyas as well.
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Яджамана (yajamāna) — ключевая фигура ведийских ритуалов шраута — жертвователь, устроитель или уч... more Яджамана (yajamāna) — ключевая фигура ведийских ритуалов шраута — жертвователь, устроитель или учредитель ритуала.
В соответствии с предписаниями древних текстов и свидетельствами недавней традиции яджамана оплачивал проведение шраута-ритуала и ритуал проводился ради его духовных или других благ.
Опираясь на свои наблюдения ритуала Атиратра Агничаяна 2015 г. в Шукапурам (Śukapuram, Керала) и обзоры исследователей, присутствовавших при выполнении этого и других ведийских жертвоприношений, в докладе показано как постепенно менялась роль яджаманы, финансирование и цель шраута-ритуалов.
Доклад сопровождается фото и видео документацией.
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http://east-west.rsuh.ru/article.html?id=2637587
Первая часть доклада посвящена обзору традиции ... more http://east-west.rsuh.ru/article.html?id=2637587
Первая часть доклада посвящена обзору традиции изучения шраута-ритуалов и выявлению причин долгого игнорирования исследований, связанных с их выполнением. Если не считать первой попытки Мартина Хауга и реконструкции ритуала Ваджапея (Vājapeya) в Пуне в 1955 г., к изучению реальных шраута-ритуалов обратились лишь после осуществления Ф. Стаалем грандиозного проекта (Agnicayana Project), когда живая традиция брахманов намбудири (малаял. nampūtiri) уже находилась на грани исчезновения. Стааль считал и это мнение было растиражировано, что Атиратра Агничаяна (Atirātra Agnicayana) 1975 г. — последние проведение этого ритуала. Однако на практике сложилось иначе, предполагаемая лебединая песня стала началом возрождения новой эпохи шраута-ритуалов. Информация о намбудири и их традиции вышла за пределы не только Кералы, но и Индии, что дало мощный импульс для изучения ведийских ритуалов, а также оживлению традиции намбудири.
Во второй части доклада, опираясь на свои наблюдения ритуала Атиратра Агничаяна 2015 г. в Шукапурам (Śukapuram, Керала) и обзоры исследователей, присутствовавших при выполнении этого и других ведийских жертвоприношений, докладчик демонстрирует наиболее важные отклонения при проведении современных шраута-ритуалов от предписаний древних текстов (публичность, расширение аудитории и места проведения ритуалов; роль яджаманы, финансирование и цель ритуалов; индуизация; изменения, связанные запретами Калиюги; подготовка жрецов и ритуальной утвари и др.). Отклонения от предписаний текстов начинают появляться уже в древности, шраутасутры также допускают варианты, замены и послабления древних практик, поэтому не удивительно, что проведение современных шраута-ритуалов не всегда детально соответствует предписаниям, составленным более двух тысяч лет назад, и в какой-то мере это даже может рассматриваться как доказательства их подлинности, а не реконструкции.
В докладе показано, что та форма, которую сейчас принимают ведийские шраута-ритуалы, имеет много общего с индуизмом. Из ритуалов, совершаемых в ограниченным кругу брахманов и элиты, шраута-ритуалы превратились в публичный индуистский праздник с тысячами участников, включая средства массовой информации и маркетинговые услуги. Однако неизменной остается уникальная практика рецитаций ведийских мантр брахманами намбудири, что соответствует традиции — меняться могут материальные составляющие шраута-ритуалов, но не мантры, которые их сопровождают.
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The article deals with issues connected with animal sacrifice in ritual. According to the Indian ... more The article deals with issues connected with animal sacrifice in ritual. According to the Indian tradition, a number of limitations are prescribed during Kāliyuga; in particular, sacrifices of animals are to be avoided. Yet animal sacrifice is an inseparable part of the soma sacrifice ritual, and those brāhmans who do not accept it find themselves in a difficult situation. A refusal to perform sacrificial offerings of animals and consequently
to recite specific mantras that generally accompany them destroys the structure of the ritual, which is a much more serious violation of the ritual than animal sacrifice for the brāhmans who perform it. The article emphasizes the importance of ceremonies connected with animal sacrifice during Atirātra Agnicayana and shows how brāhmans resolve the problem of animal sacrifice.
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Апастамба-дхармасутра. Апастамба-грихьясутра. Мантрапатха / вступит. ст., пер. с санскрита, комм... more Апастамба-дхармасутра. Апастамба-грихьясутра. Мантрапатха / вступит. ст., пер. с санскрита, коммент., прил. Н.А. Корнеевой. — М.: Вост. лит., 2015 (Памятники письменности Востока. CXLV / редкол.: А.Б. Куделин (пред.) и др.).
Āpastamba-dharmasūtra, Āpastamba-gṛhyasūtra, Mantrapāṭha. Perevod s sanksrita, predislovie, kommentarij i prilojenia N.A. Korneevoi. Moskva: Vostochnaya literatura, RAN, 2015 (Series: Pamiatniki pismennosti Vostoka, CXLV / redkol.: A.B. Kudelin (pred.) i dr.). [Āpastamba-dharmasūtra, Āpastamba-gṛhyasūtra, Mantrapāṭha. Translation from Sanskrit, Introduction, Notes and Appendixes by N.A. Korneeva]
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This book presents the first complete Russian translation of Viṣṇusmṛti, also known as Viṣṇu-dhar... more This book presents the first complete Russian translation of Viṣṇusmṛti, also known as Viṣṇu-dharmasūtra or Vaiṣṇava-dharmaśāstra. The translation is based on the critical edition: Viṣṇusmṛti with the Commentary of Nandapaṇḍdita. Vol. 1-2. Ed. by V. Krishnamacharya. Madras, 1964 (Adyar Library and Research Centre. Vol. 93). J. Jolly's edition of the text was also taken into consideration {Viṣṇusmṛti: The Institutes of Vishnu. Together with Extracts from the Sanskrit Commentary of Nandapaṇḍita Called Vaijayanti.Ed. with Critical Notes, an Anukramaṇika, and Indexes of Words and Mantras by J. Jolly. Calcutta, 1881).
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Papers by Natalia Korneeva
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The article deals with specific textual features of the Āpastamba-dharmasūtra and Āpastamba-gṛhya... more The article deals with specific textual features of the Āpastamba-dharmasūtra and Āpastamba-gṛhyasūtra. The basic characteristic of their compositional structure is double parallel arrangement — the division of the texts into paṭalas and kaṇḍikās/khaṇḍas. The article demonstrated a unique feature of the Sūtras’ composition — topics and subtopics and often even single sentences do not match the division on kaṇḍikās/khaṇḍas, coinciding only with paṭalas. The author makes an assumption that the division into paṭalas appears when the texts are already written, and the division into kaṇḍikās/khaṇḍas reflects the oral existence of the texts and is associated with the process of learning — the memorization of the text by heart. A large number of repetitions and clichés in the texts also facilitate the process of memorizing. It can be assumed that the composition of the ĀpDhS and ĀpGS have been influenced by the necessity of oral transmission of the texts. This is reflected in both the formal division into paṭalas and kaṇḍikās and also in the organization of the Sūtra’s content.
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Ya evaṃ veda ... Кто так знает ... Памяти Владимира Николаевича Романова. Ред. И.С. Смирнов, Н.Ю.... more Ya evaṃ veda ... Кто так знает ... Памяти Владимира Николаевича Романова. Ред. И.С. Смирнов, Н.Ю.Чалисова. М.: РГГУ, 2016 («Orientalia et Classica: Труды Института восточных культур и античности»; вып. LXI.).
This collection dedicated to the memory of V. N. Romanov (d. 2013) is a modest tribute of his grateful colleagues. The book's structure reflects the diverse academic interests of the scholar: Indian studies, history and theory of culture. In addition to analytic papers dealing with religions and literary traditions of Ancient India and works discussing various lands and cultures of the East and the West (Russia, Japan, the Arab world), the collection in- cludes some original translations of classical texts from Arabic and Persian. The book is aimed at specialists in different fields of philology and cultural history as well as at the general reader interested in the humanities.
The article deals with Malayalam-speaking Nambudiri Brahmins residing in Kerala (a south-west region of India), who are still isolated from other Brahmins of India and differ from them in a number of customs. The Nambudiri tradition of Vedic recitations, their rituals, mnemonic techniques, and so forth, form an uninterrupted living tradition, handed down orally from father to son, from teacher to student. The Vedic recensions that follow the Nambudiris are more ancient than other surviving versions, most of them not found anywhere else. The awareness that the Vedas are non-human in origin, beginningless and eternal prompted Brahmins of India to create unique methods for their preservation and transmission without any modification. The article deals with these sophisticated mnemonic techniques in general and particular ways of the Nambudiris, which have conserved a number of distinctive and ancient features.
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Priem pochetnogo gostya-atithi i obryad samāvartana // Zografskii sbornik. Vypusk 3. Ed. Y.V. Vasilkov. St. Petersburg: MAE RAN, 2013, p. 51–68. [Rite of Reception of the Guest of Honour (atithi) and samāvartana]
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Books by Natalia Korneeva
The Atirātra Agnicayana is a rarely performed ancient Vedic twelve-day śrauta ritual. It also calls Atirātra as continues through last nights. Agnicayana means ‘construction of the fire altar’ — after three days of preliminary rites during next five days a big bird-shaped altar (śyena-citi) of 1000 bricks (200 in each of the five layers) is being constructed for Soma offerings. This very complex ritual consisting of numerous unique rites has been kept alive by Nambudiri Brahmins of Kerela. The Nambudiri tradition of Vedic recitations and rituals is an uninterrupted living tradition for centuries handed down mostly orally.
This paper analyzes several points of the Atirātra Agnicayana comparing them with related fragments of the śrautasūtras (Baudhāyana, Āśvalāyana, Āpastamba), with the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa, where the Agnicayana rites are presented most fully, with the modern reports of the Agnicayana and other śrauta rituals and with the author's own experience of the Atirātra Agnicayana in Śukapuram performed by Nambudiri Brahmins in 2015. The paper demonstrates that in some cases the deviations concern not only the ancient texts but today's performances often bring various innovations. However, despite the fact that the changes of modern life provide more convenient conditions for performing the ritual and inevitably bring artificial elements to it, the study of today's śrauta rituals gives important information for better understanding Vedic tradition.
After the pioneering work of Martin Haug, who attended śrauta rituals in Poona in 1861-62, it was only a century later that Indian scholars working on the Śrautakośa found it necessary to study actual śrauta performances. Next, with Frits Staal’s outstanding Agnicayana Project (1975), a new era begins in the study of śrauta performances through photo, audio and video documentation.
The video-registration of śrauta rituals is of great importance for their analysis and study. One reason is that deviations from prescriptions of the texts, which took place since ancient times, have multiplied due to modern conditions. This process is reflected in several available films (Staal 1975, Houben 1996 etc.) — made decades ago, they have become historical documents. Another reason is that sometimes it is difficult to understand details of prescriptions in ancient texts. The substitution of animals in the prescribed offerings during the Atirātra Agnicayana is an example. Animal sacrifices are an inseparable part of the soma rituals, and those brahmins who do not accept it find themselves in a difficult situation — leaving out the sacrificial offerings of animals and consequently leaving out the recitations of accompanying mantras would destroy the structure of the ritual. Just before the performance of the Atirātra of 1975 there were heated debates about this, and, partly under public pressure, it was decided to have recourse to a substitution already in use for funeral ceremonies (śrāddha): the sacrificial goat was represented by a paste of rice flour (aṭa) folded in a banana leaf.
https://iocs.hse.ru/news/266828577.html
The first part of the paper analysed the structure of the daily colorful morning ritual of Ganges worship at Assi Ghat (Assī-ghāṭ) in Varanasi, which is the main segment of an inspiring morning program Subah-e-Banaras (lit. “Morning of Banaras”). The program has been held daily since November 2014 and includes Vedic chanting by female students from the Pāṇini Kanyā Mahāvidyālaya, the Gaṅgā-ārati/aarti, the yajña, a concert of Indian classical music and a yoga class.
The second part of the paper was devoted to the preparation of the Pāṇini Kanyā Mahāvidyālaya’s students and the traditions of the school.
My hearty thanks go to Maggie Barron for smoothing my English.
Утренний ритуал почитания Ганги на Асси гхат в Варанаси — основная составляющая красочных вдохновляющих утренных церемоний Subah-e-Banaras (букв. «утро Варанаси»), которые проводятся ежедневно с ноября 2014. Ритуал начинается до восхода солнца и включает Ганга-арати и агнихотру. Все ритуальные действия сопровождается рецитацией ведийских мантр девочками из Панини Канья Махавидьялая (Pāṇini Kanyā Mahāvidyālaya). В завершении ритуала все участники, включая зрителей, вместе воздают хвалу Ганге, Индии, природе и т.д., желающие получают прасад. Далее следует концерт индийской классической музыки и занятия йогой.
В докладе анализируется структура ритуалов (Ганга-арати и агнихотры), основное внимание уделяется девочкам из Панини Канья Махавидьялая, рецитирующим ведийские мантры — их обучение, подтовка к проведению ритуалов и проч.
Доклад сопровождается фото- и видеодокументацией.
Владимир Николаевич Романов внес огромный вклад в изучение брахман, его перевод «Шатапатха-брахманы» важен не только для исследования этого жанра, но и для изучения традиции шраута. Связь брахман и шраутасутр неоднократно отмечалась – в шраутасутрах в форме предписаний выражено то, о чем говорится в брахманах. Шраутасутры не являются откровением-шрути и обычно предполагают знание ведийских самхит и брахман своих школ и иногда на них ссылаются. Однако не всегда эта связь очевидна, т.к. до нас дошла лишь небольшая часть текстов. В докладе было показано, насколько важно для понимания шраута-ритуалов знание ведийского происхождение определенных предписаний шраутасутр, о которых составители сутр уже не говорят, а комментаторы могут интерпретировать по-своему.
Analysing the position of the vrātyas in different contexts gives an opportunity to understand certain abstruse instances of mantra application in the Gṛhyasūtras. Particular attention is paid to obscure and even aggressive mantras in the Gṛhyasūtras used in the ritual of the respectful reception of a guest. These mantras do not belong to the Vedic Saṃhitās and they show no connection with a particular Vedic śākhā. Taking into consideration (a) the coincidence of some of their elements with contexts associated with the vrātyas in other Vedic texts; (b) recent research connecting the vrātyas with members of a roaming Männerbund and Kṣatriyas; (c) the fact that the Āpastamba-dharmasūtra treats the guest of honour (atithi) as a vrātya; as well as some other evidence concerning vrātyas — the present paper hypothesises that the above-mentioned obscure mantras could be associated with the vrātyas as well.
В соответствии с предписаниями древних текстов и свидетельствами недавней традиции яджамана оплачивал проведение шраута-ритуала и ритуал проводился ради его духовных или других благ.
Опираясь на свои наблюдения ритуала Атиратра Агничаяна 2015 г. в Шукапурам (Śukapuram, Керала) и обзоры исследователей, присутствовавших при выполнении этого и других ведийских жертвоприношений, в докладе показано как постепенно менялась роль яджаманы, финансирование и цель шраута-ритуалов.
Доклад сопровождается фото и видео документацией.
Первая часть доклада посвящена обзору традиции изучения шраута-ритуалов и выявлению причин долгого игнорирования исследований, связанных с их выполнением. Если не считать первой попытки Мартина Хауга и реконструкции ритуала Ваджапея (Vājapeya) в Пуне в 1955 г., к изучению реальных шраута-ритуалов обратились лишь после осуществления Ф. Стаалем грандиозного проекта (Agnicayana Project), когда живая традиция брахманов намбудири (малаял. nampūtiri) уже находилась на грани исчезновения. Стааль считал и это мнение было растиражировано, что Атиратра Агничаяна (Atirātra Agnicayana) 1975 г. — последние проведение этого ритуала. Однако на практике сложилось иначе, предполагаемая лебединая песня стала началом возрождения новой эпохи шраута-ритуалов. Информация о намбудири и их традиции вышла за пределы не только Кералы, но и Индии, что дало мощный импульс для изучения ведийских ритуалов, а также оживлению традиции намбудири.
Во второй части доклада, опираясь на свои наблюдения ритуала Атиратра Агничаяна 2015 г. в Шукапурам (Śukapuram, Керала) и обзоры исследователей, присутствовавших при выполнении этого и других ведийских жертвоприношений, докладчик демонстрирует наиболее важные отклонения при проведении современных шраута-ритуалов от предписаний древних текстов (публичность, расширение аудитории и места проведения ритуалов; роль яджаманы, финансирование и цель ритуалов; индуизация; изменения, связанные запретами Калиюги; подготовка жрецов и ритуальной утвари и др.). Отклонения от предписаний текстов начинают появляться уже в древности, шраутасутры также допускают варианты, замены и послабления древних практик, поэтому не удивительно, что проведение современных шраута-ритуалов не всегда детально соответствует предписаниям, составленным более двух тысяч лет назад, и в какой-то мере это даже может рассматриваться как доказательства их подлинности, а не реконструкции.
В докладе показано, что та форма, которую сейчас принимают ведийские шраута-ритуалы, имеет много общего с индуизмом. Из ритуалов, совершаемых в ограниченным кругу брахманов и элиты, шраута-ритуалы превратились в публичный индуистский праздник с тысячами участников, включая средства массовой информации и маркетинговые услуги. Однако неизменной остается уникальная практика рецитаций ведийских мантр брахманами намбудири, что соответствует традиции — меняться могут материальные составляющие шраута-ритуалов, но не мантры, которые их сопровождают.
to recite specific mantras that generally accompany them destroys the structure of the ritual, which is a much more serious violation of the ritual than animal sacrifice for the brāhmans who perform it. The article emphasizes the importance of ceremonies connected with animal sacrifice during Atirātra Agnicayana and shows how brāhmans resolve the problem of animal sacrifice.
Āpastamba-dharmasūtra, Āpastamba-gṛhyasūtra, Mantrapāṭha. Perevod s sanksrita, predislovie, kommentarij i prilojenia N.A. Korneevoi. Moskva: Vostochnaya literatura, RAN, 2015 (Series: Pamiatniki pismennosti Vostoka, CXLV / redkol.: A.B. Kudelin (pred.) i dr.). [Āpastamba-dharmasūtra, Āpastamba-gṛhyasūtra, Mantrapāṭha. Translation from Sanskrit, Introduction, Notes and Appendixes by N.A. Korneeva]
Papers by Natalia Korneeva
The links for videos work from pdf: http://www.iias.nl/sites/default/files/IIAS_NL69_0607.pdf
This collection dedicated to the memory of V. N. Romanov (d. 2013) is a modest tribute of his grateful colleagues. The book's structure reflects the diverse academic interests of the scholar: Indian studies, history and theory of culture. In addition to analytic papers dealing with religions and literary traditions of Ancient India and works discussing various lands and cultures of the East and the West (Russia, Japan, the Arab world), the collection in- cludes some original translations of classical texts from Arabic and Persian. The book is aimed at specialists in different fields of philology and cultural history as well as at the general reader interested in the humanities.
The article deals with Malayalam-speaking Nambudiri Brahmins residing in Kerala (a south-west region of India), who are still isolated from other Brahmins of India and differ from them in a number of customs. The Nambudiri tradition of Vedic recitations, their rituals, mnemonic techniques, and so forth, form an uninterrupted living tradition, handed down orally from father to son, from teacher to student. The Vedic recensions that follow the Nambudiris are more ancient than other surviving versions, most of them not found anywhere else. The awareness that the Vedas are non-human in origin, beginningless and eternal prompted Brahmins of India to create unique methods for their preservation and transmission without any modification. The article deals with these sophisticated mnemonic techniques in general and particular ways of the Nambudiris, which have conserved a number of distinctive and ancient features.
The Atirātra Agnicayana is a rarely performed ancient Vedic twelve-day śrauta ritual. It also calls Atirātra as continues through last nights. Agnicayana means ‘construction of the fire altar’ — after three days of preliminary rites during next five days a big bird-shaped altar (śyena-citi) of 1000 bricks (200 in each of the five layers) is being constructed for Soma offerings. This very complex ritual consisting of numerous unique rites has been kept alive by Nambudiri Brahmins of Kerela. The Nambudiri tradition of Vedic recitations and rituals is an uninterrupted living tradition for centuries handed down mostly orally.
This paper analyzes several points of the Atirātra Agnicayana comparing them with related fragments of the śrautasūtras (Baudhāyana, Āśvalāyana, Āpastamba), with the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa, where the Agnicayana rites are presented most fully, with the modern reports of the Agnicayana and other śrauta rituals and with the author's own experience of the Atirātra Agnicayana in Śukapuram performed by Nambudiri Brahmins in 2015. The paper demonstrates that in some cases the deviations concern not only the ancient texts but today's performances often bring various innovations. However, despite the fact that the changes of modern life provide more convenient conditions for performing the ritual and inevitably bring artificial elements to it, the study of today's śrauta rituals gives important information for better understanding Vedic tradition.
After the pioneering work of Martin Haug, who attended śrauta rituals in Poona in 1861-62, it was only a century later that Indian scholars working on the Śrautakośa found it necessary to study actual śrauta performances. Next, with Frits Staal’s outstanding Agnicayana Project (1975), a new era begins in the study of śrauta performances through photo, audio and video documentation.
The video-registration of śrauta rituals is of great importance for their analysis and study. One reason is that deviations from prescriptions of the texts, which took place since ancient times, have multiplied due to modern conditions. This process is reflected in several available films (Staal 1975, Houben 1996 etc.) — made decades ago, they have become historical documents. Another reason is that sometimes it is difficult to understand details of prescriptions in ancient texts. The substitution of animals in the prescribed offerings during the Atirātra Agnicayana is an example. Animal sacrifices are an inseparable part of the soma rituals, and those brahmins who do not accept it find themselves in a difficult situation — leaving out the sacrificial offerings of animals and consequently leaving out the recitations of accompanying mantras would destroy the structure of the ritual. Just before the performance of the Atirātra of 1975 there were heated debates about this, and, partly under public pressure, it was decided to have recourse to a substitution already in use for funeral ceremonies (śrāddha): the sacrificial goat was represented by a paste of rice flour (aṭa) folded in a banana leaf.
https://iocs.hse.ru/news/266828577.html
The first part of the paper analysed the structure of the daily colorful morning ritual of Ganges worship at Assi Ghat (Assī-ghāṭ) in Varanasi, which is the main segment of an inspiring morning program Subah-e-Banaras (lit. “Morning of Banaras”). The program has been held daily since November 2014 and includes Vedic chanting by female students from the Pāṇini Kanyā Mahāvidyālaya, the Gaṅgā-ārati/aarti, the yajña, a concert of Indian classical music and a yoga class.
The second part of the paper was devoted to the preparation of the Pāṇini Kanyā Mahāvidyālaya’s students and the traditions of the school.
My hearty thanks go to Maggie Barron for smoothing my English.
Утренний ритуал почитания Ганги на Асси гхат в Варанаси — основная составляющая красочных вдохновляющих утренных церемоний Subah-e-Banaras (букв. «утро Варанаси»), которые проводятся ежедневно с ноября 2014. Ритуал начинается до восхода солнца и включает Ганга-арати и агнихотру. Все ритуальные действия сопровождается рецитацией ведийских мантр девочками из Панини Канья Махавидьялая (Pāṇini Kanyā Mahāvidyālaya). В завершении ритуала все участники, включая зрителей, вместе воздают хвалу Ганге, Индии, природе и т.д., желающие получают прасад. Далее следует концерт индийской классической музыки и занятия йогой.
В докладе анализируется структура ритуалов (Ганга-арати и агнихотры), основное внимание уделяется девочкам из Панини Канья Махавидьялая, рецитирующим ведийские мантры — их обучение, подтовка к проведению ритуалов и проч.
Доклад сопровождается фото- и видеодокументацией.
Владимир Николаевич Романов внес огромный вклад в изучение брахман, его перевод «Шатапатха-брахманы» важен не только для исследования этого жанра, но и для изучения традиции шраута. Связь брахман и шраутасутр неоднократно отмечалась – в шраутасутрах в форме предписаний выражено то, о чем говорится в брахманах. Шраутасутры не являются откровением-шрути и обычно предполагают знание ведийских самхит и брахман своих школ и иногда на них ссылаются. Однако не всегда эта связь очевидна, т.к. до нас дошла лишь небольшая часть текстов. В докладе было показано, насколько важно для понимания шраута-ритуалов знание ведийского происхождение определенных предписаний шраутасутр, о которых составители сутр уже не говорят, а комментаторы могут интерпретировать по-своему.
Analysing the position of the vrātyas in different contexts gives an opportunity to understand certain abstruse instances of mantra application in the Gṛhyasūtras. Particular attention is paid to obscure and even aggressive mantras in the Gṛhyasūtras used in the ritual of the respectful reception of a guest. These mantras do not belong to the Vedic Saṃhitās and they show no connection with a particular Vedic śākhā. Taking into consideration (a) the coincidence of some of their elements with contexts associated with the vrātyas in other Vedic texts; (b) recent research connecting the vrātyas with members of a roaming Männerbund and Kṣatriyas; (c) the fact that the Āpastamba-dharmasūtra treats the guest of honour (atithi) as a vrātya; as well as some other evidence concerning vrātyas — the present paper hypothesises that the above-mentioned obscure mantras could be associated with the vrātyas as well.
В соответствии с предписаниями древних текстов и свидетельствами недавней традиции яджамана оплачивал проведение шраута-ритуала и ритуал проводился ради его духовных или других благ.
Опираясь на свои наблюдения ритуала Атиратра Агничаяна 2015 г. в Шукапурам (Śukapuram, Керала) и обзоры исследователей, присутствовавших при выполнении этого и других ведийских жертвоприношений, в докладе показано как постепенно менялась роль яджаманы, финансирование и цель шраута-ритуалов.
Доклад сопровождается фото и видео документацией.
Первая часть доклада посвящена обзору традиции изучения шраута-ритуалов и выявлению причин долгого игнорирования исследований, связанных с их выполнением. Если не считать первой попытки Мартина Хауга и реконструкции ритуала Ваджапея (Vājapeya) в Пуне в 1955 г., к изучению реальных шраута-ритуалов обратились лишь после осуществления Ф. Стаалем грандиозного проекта (Agnicayana Project), когда живая традиция брахманов намбудири (малаял. nampūtiri) уже находилась на грани исчезновения. Стааль считал и это мнение было растиражировано, что Атиратра Агничаяна (Atirātra Agnicayana) 1975 г. — последние проведение этого ритуала. Однако на практике сложилось иначе, предполагаемая лебединая песня стала началом возрождения новой эпохи шраута-ритуалов. Информация о намбудири и их традиции вышла за пределы не только Кералы, но и Индии, что дало мощный импульс для изучения ведийских ритуалов, а также оживлению традиции намбудири.
Во второй части доклада, опираясь на свои наблюдения ритуала Атиратра Агничаяна 2015 г. в Шукапурам (Śukapuram, Керала) и обзоры исследователей, присутствовавших при выполнении этого и других ведийских жертвоприношений, докладчик демонстрирует наиболее важные отклонения при проведении современных шраута-ритуалов от предписаний древних текстов (публичность, расширение аудитории и места проведения ритуалов; роль яджаманы, финансирование и цель ритуалов; индуизация; изменения, связанные запретами Калиюги; подготовка жрецов и ритуальной утвари и др.). Отклонения от предписаний текстов начинают появляться уже в древности, шраутасутры также допускают варианты, замены и послабления древних практик, поэтому не удивительно, что проведение современных шраута-ритуалов не всегда детально соответствует предписаниям, составленным более двух тысяч лет назад, и в какой-то мере это даже может рассматриваться как доказательства их подлинности, а не реконструкции.
В докладе показано, что та форма, которую сейчас принимают ведийские шраута-ритуалы, имеет много общего с индуизмом. Из ритуалов, совершаемых в ограниченным кругу брахманов и элиты, шраута-ритуалы превратились в публичный индуистский праздник с тысячами участников, включая средства массовой информации и маркетинговые услуги. Однако неизменной остается уникальная практика рецитаций ведийских мантр брахманами намбудири, что соответствует традиции — меняться могут материальные составляющие шраута-ритуалов, но не мантры, которые их сопровождают.
to recite specific mantras that generally accompany them destroys the structure of the ritual, which is a much more serious violation of the ritual than animal sacrifice for the brāhmans who perform it. The article emphasizes the importance of ceremonies connected with animal sacrifice during Atirātra Agnicayana and shows how brāhmans resolve the problem of animal sacrifice.
Āpastamba-dharmasūtra, Āpastamba-gṛhyasūtra, Mantrapāṭha. Perevod s sanksrita, predislovie, kommentarij i prilojenia N.A. Korneevoi. Moskva: Vostochnaya literatura, RAN, 2015 (Series: Pamiatniki pismennosti Vostoka, CXLV / redkol.: A.B. Kudelin (pred.) i dr.). [Āpastamba-dharmasūtra, Āpastamba-gṛhyasūtra, Mantrapāṭha. Translation from Sanskrit, Introduction, Notes and Appendixes by N.A. Korneeva]
The links for videos work from pdf: http://www.iias.nl/sites/default/files/IIAS_NL69_0607.pdf
This collection dedicated to the memory of V. N. Romanov (d. 2013) is a modest tribute of his grateful colleagues. The book's structure reflects the diverse academic interests of the scholar: Indian studies, history and theory of culture. In addition to analytic papers dealing with religions and literary traditions of Ancient India and works discussing various lands and cultures of the East and the West (Russia, Japan, the Arab world), the collection in- cludes some original translations of classical texts from Arabic and Persian. The book is aimed at specialists in different fields of philology and cultural history as well as at the general reader interested in the humanities.
The article deals with Malayalam-speaking Nambudiri Brahmins residing in Kerala (a south-west region of India), who are still isolated from other Brahmins of India and differ from them in a number of customs. The Nambudiri tradition of Vedic recitations, their rituals, mnemonic techniques, and so forth, form an uninterrupted living tradition, handed down orally from father to son, from teacher to student. The Vedic recensions that follow the Nambudiris are more ancient than other surviving versions, most of them not found anywhere else. The awareness that the Vedas are non-human in origin, beginningless and eternal prompted Brahmins of India to create unique methods for their preservation and transmission without any modification. The article deals with these sophisticated mnemonic techniques in general and particular ways of the Nambudiris, which have conserved a number of distinctive and ancient features.
Pitāmaha paid special consideration to the ordeals and it is he who gives us the most detailed information on them. Copious descriptions of the ordeals present in the texts emphasize the importance of this form of testimony. However, one should take into consideration that the dharmaśāstras aimed at developing a coherent system to comprise various phenomena, rather than giving a mere description of these phenomena. The ambiguity peculiar to dharmaśāstras directions effectively gave judges carte blanche. Different sources provide descriptions of the ordeals that are significantly different in length but not in content, though contradictions can sometimes be found therein. At the same time, real practice only followed directions of dharmaśāstras in part, as it is well known that in various regions practiced were the ordeals known from alternative sources, not only those attested in dharmaśāstras. The composers of the dharmaśāstras preferred certain ordeals and preparatory ceremonies, elements of which resembled those of the sacrifice rituals.
A scrutiny into the way the ordeals were tackled in the dharmic literature enables the reader to understand how the tradition and customs existing alongside with the texts were gradually incorporated into them. The research will not only facilitate an elaboration of the ordeals as a phenomenon, but will also help to trace a comparative chronology of dharmaśāstras and their relation to the oral tradition.
The concept of atithi does not entirely coincide with our notion of a guest and its related ideas of hospitality. As in many other cases, cultural phenomena that are prima facie similar to European ones have a completely different nature in the Indian tradition. The atithi guest is a sacralised character, a wanderer, a total stranger; and, in giving him a reception of honour, the host acquires religious merit.
The paper makes an attempt at a reconstruction of the rite for receiving an honoured guest from the texts of gr̥hyasūtras, dharmaśāstras and other Sanskrit works.
Particular attention is paid to the coincidence of large passages in the Atharvaveda (IX.6; XV.11–13) with identical ones in the Āpastamba-dharmasūtra (II.7). In style, these segments of the two texts are more reminiscent of brāhmaṇa prose, differing from the sūktas of the Atharvaveda and the terse sūtras of the Āpastamba. Book XV of the Atharvaveda deals with the vrātyas and, in the above-mentioned Āpastamba passage, the guest is also referred to as a vrātya.
The Āpastamba-dharmasūtra stands out among the dharmasūtras as the best-preserved one. Investigation of the rite for receiving the guest of honour as presented in it only confirms the antiquity and the good state of preservation of the Āpastamba.
The paper also gives attention to changes in the set of persons who could play the part of the atithi guest.
On the whole, one gets the impression that, originally, giving a reception of honour to a guest was linked exclusively to the arrival of an uninvited stranger, possibly even one with hostile intentions, who had to be propitiated, or of a śrotriya Brahman; and also that it had some connection with sacred knowledge and sacrifice. A sacrifice could be performed in honour of the atithi guest or he could have been invited to a sacrifice. The rite of receiving the honoured guest itself was also regarded as a sacrifice. It seems that, at the time when the dharmaśāstras were being compiled, the rite of receiving the atithi guest was already at the stage on disintegration.
The smartasūtras of Āpastamba and Hiraṇyakeśin are very closely related. According Dr. Bühler, Hiraṇyakeśin or his successors have appropriated Āpastamba's dharmasūtra and have inserted it with slight modifications in their own collection. But if the Hiraṇyakeśi-dharmasūtra copies the structure and the content of the Āpastamba-dharmasūtra, the most of it’s sūtras are borrowed word for word from the latter, the Hiraṇyakeśi-gṛhyasūtra not depend from Āpastamba-gṛhyasūtra so much.
The paper analyses the problems connected with the date and place of origin of the Āpastamba- and Hiraṇyakeśi-smartasūtras.
The location of the Āpastambīya school was profoundly studied by Dr. Bühler; the respected scholar concluded the southern origin of it (Andhra). Most researchers agree with him and this issue was considered resolved.
The paper attempts to show that the arguments of Dr. Bühler are not sufficient to determine the southern origin of the Āpastamba (this kind of attempt was made by Dr. R.Gopal, which was totally criticized by Dr. Kane). Till now it is unknown strong external or internal evidence indicating the southern origin of the Āpastambīya school. On the other hand Prof. M.Witzel's new approach of the development of the Vedic canon and its schools proves that the place of origin even of the late Vedic texts is Northern India.
The comparative study of the smartasūtras of Āpastamba and Hiraṇyakeśin and the historical context of the post-Vedic period support the hypothesis of the northern origin of the both schools. This research leads to the question regarding the date of these sūtras.
The vrātyas are considered as the most mysterious characters in the Sanskrit literature tradition. For more than hundred years scholars all over the world tried to identify them. This paper is an attempt to comprehend the problem of the vrātyas from the side of the ritual receiving of a guest of honour (atithi) and certain peculiarities of its treatment in the Sanskrit textual tradition. In this paper particular attention is paid to the obscure and even aggressive mantras in the Gṛhyasūtras in the context of the ritual receiving of a guest of honour. These mantras are not belong to the Vedic Samhitās and they don't show any connection with the particular Vedic śākhā. D.Kudrjavskij (1904) and J.Gonda (1977) pointed that these so called mantras are rather strange in this context.Taking into consideration coincidence of some elements of these mantras with the contexts associated with the vrātyas in other Vedic texts; the latest researches, which connect the vrātyas with the members of a roaming " Männerbund " and kṣatriyas; the fact that the Āpastamba-dharmasūtra treated the guest of honour (atithi) as a vrātya and some other evidence concerning the vrātyas, the present paper hypothesizes to associate these obscure mantras with vrātyas.
The Āpastamba-dharmasūtra is written in a brief and aphoristic sūtra style and forms the 28th and the 29th praśnas (lit. «questions») or books of the voluminous Kalpasūtra of Āpastamba.
The basic characteristic of the composition of the Āpastamba-dharmasūtra is two parallel arrangements – the division of the text into «chapters»(paṭala) and «topics» (khaṇḍikā). The Kauṭalīya Arthaśāstra and the Kāmasūtra are arranged in a similar way.
This paper, analyzing the contents and the specific characteristics of the Āpastamba-dharmasūtra, attempts to demonstrate that these characteristics have been determined by the oral transmission of the text. But the division into «chapters» (paṭala) is a result of a later editorial interference.