Hiranyagarbha (donation)

Hiranyagarbha (IAST: hiraṇya-garbha) is an ancient Indian ceremony involving the donation of a golden vessel. It is mentioned as one of the sixteen great gifts in the historical texts.[1]

Ritual

The word hiranyagarbha literally means "golden womb": it signifies a golden pot (kunda) donated to a brahmana, and also refers to the god Vishnu.[2]

The donor performs an archana (worship ritual), and utters a mantra praising the lord Hiranyagarbha, that is, Vishnu. The performer then enters into the "golden womb", as the priests perform the rites usually performed for a pregnant woman: garbhadhana, pumsavana, and simantonnayana.[2]

Next, the donor is taken out of the "golden womb", and the priests perform jatakarma and other rites usually performed for a newborn. The donor utters a mantra announcing a "rebirth" from the divine womb, and is called "born of the hiranyagarbha".[2]

After the ceremony, the donor gives away the "golden womb" and other gifts to the priests.[3]

History

The Atharvaveda-parishishta, composed in the 1st millennium BCE, describes hiranyagarbha, besides tulapurusha and gosahasra donations.[4] These three donations are included among the sixteen great gifts in the later text Matsya Purana; the relevant section of the text appears to have been composed during 550-650 CE.[5] It states that several ancient kings performed the great gifts.[4] The Linga Purana also mentions the sixteen great donations; according to R. C. Hazara, the relevant portion of the text was composed during c. 600-1000 CE, most probably after 800 CE. The great gifts are also described in the later digests devoted to the topic of charity (dāna), such as Ballala's Dana-sagara, and the Danakhanda section of Hemadri's Chaturvarga-chintamani (13th century).[4]

The Chalukya king Pulakeshin I (c. 540-567) is known to have performed the hiranyagarbha ritual (although not mentioned as a great gift) to proclaim his sovereignty.[6] The 7th century Pandya king Jayantavarman (alias Cendan), according to one of his inscriptions, performed three of the great gifts: hiranyagarbha, gosahasra, and tulapursuha.[7]

The great gifts went on to become the principal sign of a king's beneficence, overlordship, and independence in the subsequent centuries.[8] In particular, hiranyagarbha finds a mention in multiple historical inscriptions of Indian kings, including:[9]

References
  1. D. C. Sircar 1971, p. 164.
  2. D. C. Sircar 1971, p. 166.
  3. D. C. Sircar 1971, p. 167.
  4. Annette Schmiedchen 2006, p. 146.
  5. Annette Schmiedchen 2006, pp. 145-146.
  6. Daud Ali 2000, p. 146.
  7. Florinda De Simini 2016, p. 32.
  8. Nicholas B. Dirks 1993, p. 37.
  9. D. C. Sircar 1971, pp. 164-165.
  10. Vijay Nath 2001, p. 120.
  11. D. C. Sircar 1971, p. 165.

Bibliography
  • Annette Schmiedchen (2006). "The Ceremony of Tulāpuruṣa: The Purāṇic Concept and the Epigraphical Evidence". In Adalbert J. Gail; Gerd J. R. Mevissen; Richard Salomon (eds.). Script and Image: Papers on Art and Epigraphy. Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN 978-81-208-2944-2.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • D. C. Sircar (1971). Studies in the Religious Life of Ancient and Medieval India. Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN 978-81-208-2790-5.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Daud Ali (2000). "Royal Eulogy as World History: Rethinking Copper-Plate Inscriptions in Cola India". Querying the Medieval: Texts and the History of Practices in South Asia. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-512430-9.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Florinda De Simini (2016). "Manuscripts, Ritual, and the State in Indian Sources". Of Gods and Books: Ritual and Knowledge Transmission in the Manuscript Cultures of Premodern India. De Gruyter. ISBN 978-3-11-047881-5.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Nicholas B. Dirks (1993). The Hollow Crown: Ethnohistory of an Indian Kingdom. University of Michigan Press. ISBN 0-472-08187-X.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Vijay Nath (2001). Purāṇas and acculturation: a historico-anthropological perspective. Munshiram Manoharlal.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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