Seemantam

सीमन्तोन्नयनं

According to the Indian tradition, very person undergoes several samskArAs during his or her lifetime. The exact number and names of the samskArAs vary from region to region. The vedic shAkha and kalpa sUtra followed by a family as well as the family traditions determine what, how and when the various samskArAs are performed.

In the next few posts, I will talk about some of the important samskArAs that are prescribed by Apastamba in his Grihya- and Dharma-sutrAs. SeemantaM/ seemantonnayaM is one such important garbha-samskAra. Lets looks into the details of this samskAra as described in the ApastambIya Grihya sUtra.

सीमन्तोन्नयनं प्रथमे गर्भे चतुर्थे मासि।१।

(सीमन्तोन्नयनमिति कर्मनामधेयम्, यस्मिन् कर्मणि गर्भिण्यास्सीमन्त उन्नीयते तत् व्याख्यास्याम इति शेषः। तच्च प्रथमे गर्भे, न तु गर्भे गर्भे। स्त्रीसंस्कारत्त्वात् कृतस्सीमन्तः सर्वान् गर्भान् संस्करोति।)

The seemantaM samskAra must be performed for the first garbha during the 4th month of pregnency (other dharma-shAstrAs permit upto the 8th month though). It refers to the samskAra where the women's hair (at the partition above the eyebrow) is lifted. It must be performed only for the first garbha. Through this samskAra for the women during her first pregnancy, all subsequent garbhAs get this samskAra.

ब्राह्मणान् भोजयित्वाऽऽशिषो वाचयित्वा अग्नेः उपसमाधानादि आज्यभागान्ते उत्तरा आहुतीर्हुत्वा जयादि प्रतिपद्यते।२॥

Feed the brahmins, make them chant aashirvacanAs and do the homA, consisting of establishing agni upto offering 2 aagyabhaagAs, main homA offerings and jayAdi. (Note that the aforementioned procedure for doing  a homa is frequently mentioned at multiple places in the Apastamba sUtra).

परिषेचनान्तं कृत्वा अपरेणग्निं प्राचीमुपवेश्य त्रेण्या शल्ल्या त्रिभिर्दर्भपुञ्जीलैः शलालुग्लप्सेनेत्यूर्ध्वं सीमन्तम् उन्नयति व्याहृतिभिरुत्तराभ्यां च​।३।

Sprinkle water on all sides of agni, make wife sit on the west facing agni to the east and use treNI shalli (the medieval commentators interpret this as a porcupine quill) to trace a line over the head of the wife while chanting the 3 vyAhritIs and "rAkAmahaM...|yAste rAkA.....". [1]

गायत-मिति वीणागाथिनौ स​ँशास्ति।४।

Husband should command 2 muscians to play veena. 

उत्तरयोः पूर्वां साल्वानां ब्राह्मणानामितरा।५। नदीनिर्देशश्च यस्यां वसन्ति।६।

This sUtra asks for chanting of 2 specific mantrAs by the priests, starting "soma eva...". The name of the river close to one’s place is to be replaced in place of "asou" in the second mantrA. [2]

यवान् विरूढानाबध्य वाचं यच्छत्यानक्षत्रेभ्यः।७।

Tie sprouts of barley to the hair of the wife and ask her to keep mouna-vrata until the stars appear.

व्याहृतीश्च जपित्वा वाचं विसृजेत्।८।

Once the stars appear, chant the names of the vyAhritis and break the vow of silience.

[1]  भूर्भहव॒स्सुवः॑। रा॒काम॒हं–सु॒हवां॑–सु॒ष्टु॒ती–हु॒वे॒–श्रृ॒णो॑तु–नः॒–सु॒भगा॑–बोध॑तु–त्मना॑। सीव्यत्वपः॑–सू॒च्या–अच्छि॑द्य–मानया–ददा॑तु–वी॒रं–श॒तदा॑यं–उ॒क्थ्य॑म्। यास्ते॑ राके–सु॒म॒त॒यः॑–सु॒पेश॑सः–याभिः॑–ददा॑सि–दा॒शुषे॑–वसू॑नि। ताभि॑र्नः–अ॒द्य–सु॒मनाः–उ॒पाग॑हि–स॒ह॒स्र॒पो॒षं–सु॒भ॒गे॒–ररा॑णाः॥

[2] सोम॑ ए॒व नो॒ राजेत्या॑हु–र्ब्राह्म॒णीः–प्र॒जा। विवृ॑त्तचक्रा॒ आसी॑ना॒ –स्तीरे॑ण कावेरि॒ तव॑॥