Hiraṇyagarbha-kalaśa

Hiraṇyagarbha-kalaśa · hiraṇya-garbha-kalaśa, “the kalaśa of the golden womb”

Grammar: masculine noun; a compound of hiraṇya (gold), garbha (womb) and kalaśa (a sacred pot).

Meaning: the golden kalaśa at the heart of the Hiraṇyagarbha-dāna.

In the scriptures: Śrī Kṛshṇa tells Yudhishṭhira the rule of this great dāna. A vedī of five hastas stands in the middle of a maṇḍapa of twelve hastas, and the Hiraṇyagarbha-kalaśa is set on it. After the śilpī has been honoured with cloth and ornaments and the brāhmaṇas have said svastivācana, he makes it of excellent gold.

  • Its height is sixty-four aṅgulas.
  • Its mouth is one third of the height, and its base is half the mouth.
  • It is round as a karṇikā, the heart of a lotus, beautiful and without joints.
  • Its lid is one aṅgula greater than the mouth.

Near it are placed ten astras, a golden nāla, a Sūrya-mūrti, a golden needle, a razor, a kamaṇḍalu, a chatra, pādukās and all the materials, and a mūrti of Brahmā is installed. With Veda-recitation and the sound of the conch the brāhmaṇas bring the kalaśa by elephant or chariot and set it on one droṇa of tila spread on the vedī. It is smeared with kuṅkuma, covered with silk, adorned with garlands and honoured with dhūpa and dīpa, and all bow to it, saying that the lokas from Bhūloka on and the devatās from Brahmā on stand in its womb.

The yajamāna bathes, wears white, does pūjā to it and goes round it in pradakshiṇā, praying: born of a mother and subject to death, may he now be of divine body by birth from its womb. The kalaśa, full of milk, curd and ghee, is made to enter the maṇḍapa. The brāhmaṇas perform garbhādhāna, puṃsavana, sīmantonnayana, jātakarma and the rest on the Hiraṇyagarbha-pratimā, and with saṅkalpa the yajamāna gives the pratimā to the brāhmaṇas.

One who gives Hiraṇyagarbha by this rule uplifts his kula and goes on a divine vimāna to Svargaloka, where for a hundred manvantaras he enjoys happiness like Indra‘s. Born on earth, he becomes king of all Jambūdvīpa.

Source: Bhavishya Purāṇa, Uttara Parva, Chapter 176

Related terms: Hiraṇyagarbha · Kalaśa · Dāna · Maṇḍapa

Sources

  • Bhavishya Purāṇa, Uttara Parva, Chapter 176