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Rule-extension strategiesin Mms, rautastra
(and Vykaraa):tantra and prasaga
Elisa Freschi
IKGA, Vienna, FWF M1437
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Summary
1.A short history of tantra in rS and Mms
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Summary
1.A short history of tantra in rS and Mms
2.A short history ofprasaga in rS and
Mms
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Summary
1.A short history of tantra in rS and Mms
2.A short history ofprasaga in rS andMms
3. Comparison of the two
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Summary
1.A short history of tantra in rS and Mms2.A short history ofprasaga in rS and
Mms
3. Comparison of the two
4. Comparison with Vykaraa
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Summary
1.A short history of tantra in rS and Mms
2.A short history ofprasaga in rS andMms
3. Comparison of the two
4. Comparison with Vykaraa
5. General Conclusions on space and time in
ritual and linguistic speculations
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Caveat
In Ancient and Classical India, hermeneutics(Mms) and ritualistics (rauta Stra)focused on texts about ritual, rather than on the
ritual themselves
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Caveat
In Ancient and Classical India, hermeneutics(Mms) and ritualistics (rauta Stra)focused on texts about ritual, rather than on the
ritual themselves
Forget all you think you know about the termstantra and prasaga
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Tantra
In rauta Stras and in Mms it oftenmeans basic procedure. This means that it isthe paradigm against which one notices
differences and absences
In Mms it also means: device throughwhich a ritual element is performed once, but
automatically applies to the whole ritual
How could the transition from the one to the
other happen?
At first sight, the situation is asfollows:
this also means that through
tantra one can avoid the
problem of an absence.
This is the question which
made me consider the
problem at first.
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Tantra
In fact, tantra has more than one meaning in
Mms:
1. basic procedure
2. device through which a ritual element is
performed once, but automatically applies to
the whole ritual
3. each of these elements
But the situation is in fact more
complicated
Initially, I did not focus on the distinction
between 2 and 3, then I started taking it
seriously
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Tantra An hypothesis about the historical evolution
Meaning no. 1. is historically the most ancient
one
The shift from 1 to 3 is a case of metonimy
(pars pro toto)
The shift from 3 to 2 is a case of metaphor (thedevice instead of each element it applies to),
perhaps influenced by the case ofprasagaas we will see in short
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In other words:
the basic procedure (tantra) has been
explained once and for all (sakt) and remainsvalid (BaudhrS 13.1.1)
thus, extensively, each element which remains
valid for the whole time of the ritual is part of
tantra (tantrasthna bhajate, BaudhrS24.3)
hence, the simultaneous application itself is
said to be tantra
Tantraet passim in the whole rSe Mms literature
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Tantra
An element continues to remain valid althoughit is actually absent through tantra (tantrea),because it has become part of the basic
procedure of the ritual, which is present in each
moment of its performance
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Tantra in Grammar
Similarly, Patajali describes some elementswithin a straby Pini by saying that they arenot tantra. For instance, the gender andnumber endings found in the stras, onlyregard that stra and do not have to be appliedto all cases ad A 3.3.18
nirdeaatantram
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Prasaga
It is a further case of multiple application
What distinguishes it from tantra?
you might remember that I
said that tantra (meaning 3)
might have been influencedby prasaga, which, in fact,does not denote an element,
but rather a function.
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Prasaga
What distinguishes it from tantra?
1.Already in Jaiminis MS: an element appliesto several rites through tantra since it
becomes part of the basic structure of the
sacrifice
By contrast, through prasaga a functionapplies to several rites vertically, drippingfrom one to the other, without becoming part
of a shared centre
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Prasaga
What distinguishes it from tantra?
1. Non-structural
2. Consequently, the multiple application takes
place due to external circumstances and hasno internal rationale
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Prasaga
What distinguishes it from tantra?
1. Non-structural
2. Due to external circumstances
3. Consequently, prasaga occurs only when acertain function is needed by a later rite
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Prasaga
What distinguishes it from tantra?
1. Non-structural
2. Due to external circumstances
3. Need by a later rite
in the case of tantra, there isa centre which emanates to
the periphery, independent of
the periphery need for it.
Example of prayjas.
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Prasaga in Grammar
prasaga/prsagika/prasakta in Patajali:
the expected procedure
Through the comparison with Mms we nowknow that this procedure is not the general rule
(as it has been frequently translated, e.g. byMylius), but rather what applies automatically,
dripping down from what precedes.it is the default option. prasad apavdo balyadoes not mean the exception is stronger than thegeneral rule, but rather that, unless exceptionally
required, one just keeps on with the behaviour which
was already at hand.
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tantra/prasaga
A few examples:
1. For the ritual X one needs a large altar
(mahvedi); for the subsequent ritual Y oneneeds an altar (vedi) where to place the offerts.
Since one already has the mahvedi at hands,through prasaga (prasagena) one uses itssupport
please note that it is not the
element which is multiplied
used, but rather its function.
The element is, in fact, not
the same, but the former can
perform the same function of
the latter
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tantra/prasaga
A few examples:
1. The supporting function of an already availablealtar can be used for a subsequent ritual
(prasaga).
2. In contrast, within the Darapramsasacrifice, everything is applied, through tantra(tantrea) six times, i.e., to each of the six ritescomposing it
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tantra/prasaga
rite
rite
tantra rite
prasaga1. please remember thatprasaga regards the function,not the material elements (the
support, not the altar)
2. tantra, by contrast, candenote both the elements and
the device
please note that the rites arenot outside the
circumference. For tantra
(device) to work they must be
part of the same basic
structure (also called tantra)
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tantra/prasaga
Brahmin
Brahmin
lamp Brahmin
prasaga
house
street
tantra
these same examples are
found in abara (ad MS12.1.1)
the light (i.e., the lamps function) isapplied through prasaga
the lamp is said to be tantra (or to apply
to many Brahmins through tantra)
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tantra
A school bus bringing to school all children,
willing or not, insofar as they belong to the
same group
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prasaga
Disparate people taking advantage of the
transit of a car because they need it
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Conclusions
i i b bl h h ld l
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Conclusions
rauta Stra, Mms and Vykaraa oftenshare the same technical terminology
It is not possible to trace a single direction of
influence
It is, hence, more likely that they share acommon prehistory (rather than that the one
influenced the other)
it is probably that the same would apply
to Dharmastra, although I did notcheck there (I am saying it because
whenever I checked on the Ghyastras Ifound similar results and the GS arethe background of the Dh, andbecause of other analyses of mine on
their shared terminology (as for
pratisakha/niyama/vidhi)). This is not thecase, by contrast, for the Vedic Sahits.
historical conclusions
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Conclusions
The texts never mention the disappearanceof something
Rather, they discuss spatially organisedabsences
An empty slot can be filled in various ways
(through tantra, prasaga, atidea,pratinidhi), which all require the extension ofan element/a function, which is already present
elsewhere within the ritual space
Both rS stress a spatial and nottemporal organization of ritual
Eivind Kahrs, Indian Semantic Analysis
(map/territory, ablative vs. genitive))
conceptual conclusions
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