61 - Consecration of doors of the temple and the erection of banner

 The Lord said: 

1. Ishall describe the purificatory bathing of Vishņu. The offering to the fire is made (with the mantra) na tva². Having placed eightyone pitchers (at their respective places) Lord Harishould be invoked and installed. 

2. One of the many hymns beginning with these words. 

2. Heshould be worshipped with perfumes and flowers. Having made the offering, the priestshould be worshipped. Ishall describe the (mode of) consecrating the door. (A piece of) goldshould be placed beneath the door (frame). 

3. The priestshould placeshoots of udumbara (fig tree) in the (mouth of the) eight pitchers and worship them with perfumes etc. and vedic mantras. 

4. Twigs, fried paddy and sesamumshould be offered unto the fire in the pits. Having offered the bed etc., the supporting energyshould be placed underneath. 

5. Gods Chaņda and Prachandashould be located at the bottom of theshoots, Goddess Lakshmi worshipped by the celestialsshould be placed above (theshoot of) the fig (trec). 

6. Having assigned the four-faced (Brahman) and duly worshipping (him) (by reciting) the Srisükta¹ the fruits of the bilva (tree)should be offered to him and the feesshould be paid to the priest. 

1. See above, p. 151 and fn 1 thereon. 

7. (Ishall describe) the consecration of the divine edifice the doors of which have been consecrated and wherein the image of Hari has been duly installed. It is in the consecration of the adytum. Listen. 

8-9. Pitcher made of gold, silver or bell-metal filled with eight kinds of gems, herbs, minerals, seeds of grains, iron and water and covered with a clothshould be placed on the darbha (grass) in a circle to the east of the altar after the sukanasa (the keystone) has been got ready. 

10. Fallen twigs which have been gatheredshould be offered into fire with (the mantra of) Nrusimha. Then (the temple)should be enlivened with the principle known as nārayanatattva. 

11. (That lord) who is the life of the templeshould be contemplated (as) “O Lord of celestials”. Then a wise man has to imagine the temple as the god himself. 

12. (A piece of) goldshould be placed below the golden pitcher. The priests and othersshould be paid their fees and the brahminsshould be fed. 

13-14. Threadsshould be wound round the altar, neck, top and the globe of the temple after that. Then the metallic ring known as the sudarśana discshould be placed. Itshould be known as the form of (Lord) Vasudeva offering protection from fear. 

15. Alternatively a pitchershould be placed (in the place of a globe) and the disc above that. O birthless one! eight lords of obstacles (Vighnesvara)should be placed around the altar in the temple. 

16. Or four images of Garuda (vehicle of Lord Vishnu)should be placed in the four quarters. Ishall describe now the erection of the flagstaff which destroys the evil spirits. 

17. One who performs this remains in the regions of Vishņu for so many thousands of years as the number of atoms in the image of the god in the temple. 

18. O sinless! Itshould be known that (a man gets) a crore times more merit by erecting the flag-staff, since it surrounds the neck of the temple and it wasts the wind around the globe, altar and image. 

19. The flagshould be known as the prakruti and the staff as thc purusha and you know that the temple is another form of image of Vasudeva (Vishņu). 

20. (In a temple) the dharani (earth) is so called from its ability to hold, its internal cavity stands for the sky, the illumination inside represents the fire, and its touch represents the wind. 

21. The earthly waters found in the stone slabs (of the temple) (represent) the earthly attributes. Its echo stands for the principles of sound. Its touch represents roughness. 

22. Its colour which may be white or otherwise stands for the subtle principle of colour. The food (and other eatables) offered (to the deity) stand for the sense of taste. The perfumes represent the sense of smell. The sense of speech lies in the down (used in the temple). 

23. The keystone is the nose (of the temple). The two apertures (on either side) represent the two hands. The arched terrace above is to be taken for its head and the pitcher on the head. 

24. Its neckshould be known as the neck. The platform over the fault is spoken as theshoulder. The outlets for water are the anus and genitals. The lime-plaster is spoken as the skin. 

25. The door would be the mouth. The image (installed in the temple) is said to be its life. The pedestalshould be known as its energy. Itsshapeshould likewise be known as its animation. 

26. Its cavity is its inertia. Lord Kesava is its controller. In this way Lord Hari Himself remains in the form of the temple. 

27. God Sivashould be known as theshank. God Brahman is located in theshoulder. Lord Vishņu remains in the upper portion of a temple as it is. 

28. Listen to me. Ishall describe the consecration of a temple by means of a banner. The demons were defeated by the celestial gods by erecting banners impressed with the signs of divine weapons. 

29. The pitcher (shaped part of the temple)should be placed over the top and the flagshould be placed over the same. The postshould be made to measure a half or one third of the height of the image. 

30. The flagshould have a mark of a circle of eight or twelve radii. (Thereshould be the figure) of the man-lion (form of Vishnu) or the Garuda (Tärkshya) (inside the circle) in the middle. The staff of the flagshould not have any cut. 

31. The length of the staff is spoken as the measure of the breadth of edifice. Itshould be made cither half of the terrace or a third part of it. 

32. The staffshould otherwise be made twice the length of the door. The flag staffshould be planted on the north-east or the north-west of the divine edifice. 

33. The flagshould be made of a piece of silk cloth, of a single or variegated colours. Itshould be adorned with bells, chowrics and small bells. (It is said to be) destroyer of sins. 

34. A flag which touches the ground and measures a cubit in breadth at its extremity or has a breadth cqual to one fourth of its length at its base is called a mahādhvaja. It grants all things when worshipped. 

35. The bannershould measure half (the dimension of) the staff. The breadthshould measure twenty fingers. 

36. All the rites relating to the consentration of an imageshould be done for (the consecration) of the disc, flag and the staff. Theyshould be bathed in theshed. 

37. The priestshould duly perform all rites described earlier except that of opening the eyes. The consecrationshould be done in the prescribed manner leaving them in the resting position. 

38. Then the learned priestshould assign (mentally) the hymn (called) sahasrasira¹ in the disc. Then the sudarsana mantra and the principle of mindshould be assigned. 

1. RV. 10.90. 

39. It is known as imbued with life by mental formation. O excellent among gods, (the different forms of Vishņu sach as) Keśava etc.should be assigned to the spokes. 

40. The priestshould assign twentyfive principles at the navel, and each of the arcs of the lotus. The form of Nrusimha (the man-lion form of Vishņu) representing the universeshould be assigned to the middle of the lotus. 

41. The sakala (endowed with parts) formsshould be assigned to the staff as the living soul of it. Lord Hari, the supreme being of the nishkala (undivided) formshould be contemplated and assigned to the flag. 

42. The energies Bala and Abala which manifest in the form of the bannershould be contemplated. Having placed it in theshed and worshipped it, oblationshould be made in the pit. 

43. Having placed the golden pitcher over the pitcher and putting five (kinds of) gems (at the top of the temple) a golden discshould be placed underneath that with the mantra of the disc. 

44. The discshould be washed with mercury and covered with the eye-cover. The discshould then be placed. Lord Nruhari (man-lion form of Vishņu)should be imagined there in the middle. 

45-46. Om, kshaum, salutations to Lord Nrusimha. Lord Harishould be invoked and worshipped. Then the yajamāna (the person who has arranged for the consecration) accompanied by his relativesshould hold banner and dip the tip of the banner in a vessel full of curd. The bannershould be worshipped with the mantra commencing with dhruvä¹ and ending with phat. 

1. RV.10.173.4a.

47. Holding that vessel on the head and remembering Lord Nārāyaṇa (the yajamana)should go around the temple along with auspicious sounds from the türi (a musical instrument). 

48. The staffshould then be placed with (the recitation of) the eight-syllabled mantra². Then the flagshould be (hoisted) and unfurled with (the recitation of) the hymn muñchami tva³ by the learned person. 

2. Om namo narayanaya.

3. RV.10.161.1a. 

49. The twice-born (yajamana)should give the priest the vessel, banner and elephant etc. Mode of consecration of the flag has been thus described in general. 

50. The mark which represents a particular godshould be planted with the respective mantra. By the offer of a banner one goes to heaven and becomes a strong monarch on the earth (in the next birth).