[Advaita-l] Purusamedha

[Kathirasan K]

Namaste

Do read up the chapter on Purusamedha in the following book for more info on
this subject:
http://books.google.com.sg/books?id=0tPjVJF8roYC&pg=PA179&dq=purusamedha#v=onepage&q=purusamedha&f=false

Kathirasan


2009/9/21 BV Giri <research at devavision.org>

> >As for the story of Sunasepha, it also shows this theme.  His greedy
> >father sells him as the sacrificial victim for 100 cows.  When he is bound
> >to the yupa the Rshis, Vishvamitra, Vasishtha, Jamadagni, and Ayasya who
> >are the hotrs, decline to actually sacrifice him.  It is the father in
> >return for more cows who offers to do the deed.  This is portrayed as
> >shocking and Sunasepha ends up adopted by Vishvamitra (i.e. he renounces
> >his birth family.)
>
> But if one reads the various accounts of the Sunasepha story, it seems
> pretty clear that Purusamedha involved the actual sacrifice of a human.
>
> After all, it if were merely symbolic, why would Rajarishi Harishchandra
> need to substitute his own son Rohita with Sunasepha? What would be the
> necessity?
>
> Also. why would Sunasepha's brahmin father want to literally sacrifice his
> son in the first place if the Purusamedha was simply meant to be symbolic?
> One would expect a Vedika brahmana to know whether or not the sacrifice was
> symbolic or not ­ however, the old man is more than willing to kill his own
> son.
>
> BV Giri
>
>
>
>
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-- 
Kathirasan