Animal sacrifice in Hinduism

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Practices of Hindu animal sacrifice are mostly associated with

Shaktism, and in currents of folk Hinduism strongly rooted in local
tribal traditions. Animal sacrifices were carried out in ancient times
in India. Hindu scriptures such as the Gita,[1][2] and some Puranas
forbid animal sacrifice.[3][4][5][6]

Contents
1 Terminology
2 Practice A goat being sacrificed in a Temple
2.1 In history and Hindu mythology festival in Tamil Nadu.
2.2 Animal sacrifice in contemporary Hindu society
3 Method of sacrifice
4 See also
5 References
5.1 Bibliography
6 Further reading
7 External links

Terminology
A Sanskrit term used for animal sacrifice is bali, in origin meaning
A rooster sacrificed by decapitation in the
"tribute, offering or oblation" generically ("vegetable oblations [... month of Aadi Tamil Nadu.
and] animal oblations,").[7] Bali among other things "refers to the
blood of an animal"[7] and is sometimes known as Jhatka Bali[8][9]
among Hindus.

The Kalika Purana distinguishes bali (sacrifice), mahabali (great sacrifice), for the ritual killing of goats,
elephant, respectively, though the reference to humans in Shakti theology is symbolic and done in effigy in
modern times.[10] For instance, Sir John Woodroffe published a commentary on the Karpuradistotram, where he
writes that the sacrificial animals listed in verse 19 are symbols for the six enemies, with "man" representing
pride.[11]

Practice
It is a ritual that is practiced today and is mentioned in Medieval Hinduism too. It is important to note that the
practice of animal sacrifice is not a required ritual in some sects of Hinduism. The majority of practicing
Hindus today choose not to participate in or acknowledge the practice.[12] Adherents of the Sakta sect of
Hinduism hold this to be a central tenet of their belief.[13]

In history and Hindu mythology

The Ashvamedha ritual - in which a horse is sacrificed - is described in the Rigveda, the Shukla Yajurveda, the
Taittiriya Shakha of Yajurveda, the Shatapatha Brahmana and in the Srauta-sutras of the Aitareya Brahmana
and in the Kaushtikati Brahmana of the Rigveda. In the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad the symbolism of the
sacrifice is described, with the horse symbolising the cosmos. In the
Ramayana, Rama performed the Ashvamedha sacrifice for becoming
the Chakravartin emperor. In the Mahabharata, Yudhishtra performs the
Ashwamedha after winning the Kurukshetra war to become the
Chakravartin emperor. The Mahabharata also contains a description of
an Ashvamedha performed by the Chedi king Uparichara Vasu,
however, no animals were sacrificed. The rulers of the Gupta empire,
the Chalukya dynasty, and the Chola dynasty all performed the A 1652 illustration of the
Ashvamedha.[14][15][16][17][18] Ashvamedha of Kaushalya in the
Ramayana epic.
In the Vedas, there are mention of animal sacrifices, such as mantras for
the sacrifice of a Goat in the Rig;[19] and the Jyotistoma sacrifice in
which three animal-sacrifices are performed, namely, Agnisomiya, Savaniya and Anubandhya.[20][21]
Agnisomiya was the simplest of all Soma sacrifices in which animal sacrifice played an important part; it
required that a goat be sacrificed to Agni and Soma preceding the day of offering of nectar to the gods. In the
Savaniya sacrifice, victims were offered throughout the day of offering to Agni.[22]

In the Anubandhya sacrifice either a barren was offered to Varuna and Mitra on the day of Soma sacrifice.[23]
The Yajurveda is considered the Veda of sacrifices and rituals,[24][25] and consists of a number of animal
sacrifices, such as mantras and procedures for the sacrifices of a white goat to Vayu,[26] a calf to Sarasvati, a
speckled ox to Savitr, a bull to Indra, a castrated ox to Varuna and so on.[27]

In some cases the sacrifice of a goat to Agni and Soma was replaced by Nirudha Pashu-Bandha. This form of
sacrifice is described in the Aitareya Brahmana and the Rig-Vedic Brahmanas. The rite was performed by a
man yearly or half-yearly before he ate meat. The goat was sacrificed to either Indra, Agni, Varuna or Prajapati
while a Maitravaruna priest gave directions to a Hotṛ priest to recite the verses. The sacrificial goat had to be
completely healthy and free of any disabilities.[28]

The animal sacrifices often required a large number of sacrifices and high costs, which virtually ensured they
could only be performed by the royal families and the nobility.[29] These rituals didn't focus on the killing of
the animal but as a symbol to the powers it was sacrificed.[30]

In the Bhagavata Purana, Krishna tells people not to perform animal sacrifices. Animal sacrifices are forbidden
by the Bhagavata Purana in the Kaliyuga, the present age.[31] The Brahma Vaivarta Purana describes animal
sacrifices as kali-varjya or prohibited in the Kaliyuga.[32] The Adi Purana, Brihan-naradiya Purana and Aditya
Purana also forbid animal sacrifice in Kaliyuga.[33]

The practice of animal sacrifice is a part of Tamil society since it is rooted in Tamil culture. It has been
mentioned in the Sangam period literature.

Animal sacrifice in contemporary Hindu society

Animals are sacrificed by Hindus in all parts of India, mainly at temples of Goddesses such as Bhavani or Kali.

The Rajput of Rajasthan offer a sacrifice of buffalo or goat to their family Goddess ( Kuldevta) during the
festival of Navaratri.[34] The ritual requires slaying of the animal with a single stroke. In the past this ritual was
considered a rite of passage for young men. The ritual is directed by a Brahmin priest.[35]

Animal Sacrifice is practiced by people in Southern Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil
Nadu by local Hindu people. It is most notably performed in front of Local Deities or Clan Deities. The ritual
involves most caste members of the village with each caste performing different roles. In Karnataka, the
Goddess receiving the sacrifice tends to be Renuka. The animal is either a male buffalo or a goat.[36] [37]
The Kathar or Kutadi community of Maharashtra while observing the Pachvi ceremony, after delivery of a
child in the family, offer worship to their family deity, Saptashrungi and also offer a sacrifice of a goat.
Following this they hold the naming ceremony of the child on the 12th day.[38]

In some Sacred groves of India, particularly in Western Maharashtra, animal sacrifice is practiced to pacify
female deities that are supposed to rule the Groves.[39] Animal sacrifice is also practiced by caste Hindus to
placate deities at temples.[40] In region around Pune, Goats and fowls are sacrificed to the God Vetala[41]

Animal sacrifice is practiced in some Eastern states of India and

Nepal.,[42][43] The Hindu temples in Assam and West Bengal in India
and Nepal where this takes place involves slaying of goats, chickens
and sometimes male Water buffalos .,[42][44] These sacrifices are mainly
performed at temples following the Shakti school of Hinduism where
the female nature of Brahman is worshipped in the form of Kali and
Durga. A number Tantric Puranas specify the ritual for how the animal
should be slain. In Bengal, a priest recites the Gayatri Mantra in the ear
of animal to be sacrificed, in order to free the animal from the cycle of
A male buffalo calf about to be
life and death.[45]
sacrificed by a priest in the Durga
Animal sacrifice en masse occurs during the three-day-long Gadhimai Puja festival.
festival in Nepal. In 2009 it was speculated that more than 250,000
animals were killed[46] while 5 million devotees attended the festival.[47]

In India, ritual of animal sacrifice is practised in many villages before local deities or certain powerful and
terrifying forms of the Devi. In this form of worship, animals, usually goats, are decapitated and the blood is
offered to deity often by smearing some of it on a post outside the temple.[29]

For instance, Kandhen Budhi is the reigning deity of Kantamal in Boudh district of Orissa, India. Every year,
animals like goat and fowl are sacrificed before the deity on the occasion of her annual Yatra/Jatra (festival)
held in the month of Aswina (September–October). The main attraction of Kandhen Budhi Yatra is Ghusuri
Puja. Ghusuri means a child pig, which is sacrificed to the goddess every three years.[48] During the Bali Jatra,
male goats are offered as a sacrifice to the goddess Samaleswari in her temple in Sambalpur, Orissa.[49][50]

Bali Jatra of Sonepur in Orissa, India is also an annual festival celebrated in the month of Aswina (September–
October) when animal sacrifice is an integral part of the ritual worship of deities namely Samaleswari,
Sureswari and Khambeswari. Bali refers to animal sacrifice and hence this annual festival is called Bali
Jatra.[51] (Barik, 2009:160-162).

Animal Sacrifice is practiced by some Hindus on the Indonesian island of Bali.[52][53][54] The religious belief of
Tabuh Rah, a form of animal sacrifice of Balinese Hinduism includes a religious cockfight where a rooster is
used in religious custom by allowing him to fight against another rooster in a religious and spiritual cockfight, a
spiritual appeasement exercise of Tabuh Rah.[55] The spilling of blood is necessary as purification to appease
the evil spirits, and ritual fights follow an ancient and complex ritual as set out in the sacred lontar
manuscripts.[56]

A popular Hindu ritual form of worship of North Malabar region in the Indian state of Kerala is the blood
offering to Theyyam gods. Theyyam deities are propitiated through the cock sacrifice where the religious
cockfight is a religious exercise of offering blood to the Theyyam gods .[57]

Method of sacrifice
Methods for sacrificing range from decapitation, strangulation, to a spike being driven into the heart of the
animal.

Jhatka is the prescribed method for Hindu ritual slaughter, however other methods such as strangulation and the
use of a wooden spile (sphya) driven into the heart is used.[58] The reason for this is priests see an animal
making a noise as a bad omen and the animal making noise indicates that it is suffering. The Jhatka method
requires the instant killing of the animal in a single decapitating blow with an axe or sword. Those Hindus who
eat meat prescribe meat killed by the Jhatka method.

See also
Cattle slaughter in India
Animal sacrifice among Nihang Sikhs

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Bibliography
Hastings, James (2003). Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics, Part 24. Whitefish, MT: Kessinger
Publishings.
Masih, Y. (2000). A Comparative Study of Religions. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.
Ryder, Richard D. Animal revolution: changing attitudes toward speciesism. Oxford: Berg Publishers.
2000.
Sehgal, Sunil (1999). Encyclopaedia of Hinduism. Delhi: Sarup & Sons.

Further reading
Vesci, Uma Marina (1 January 1992). Heat and sacrifice in the Vedas (https://books.google.com/books?i
d=ZYWFdFUfBf8C&pg=PA103). Motilal Banarsidass Publ. pp. 103–. ISBN 978-81-208-0841-6.
Retrieved 14 August 2010.
Fuller, Christopher John (26 July 2004). The camphor flame: popular Hinduism and society in India (http
s://books.google.com/books?id=To6XSeBUW3oC&pg=PA88). Princeton University Press. pp. 88–.
ISBN 978-0-691-12048-5. Retrieved 14 August 2010.

External links
Rodrigues, Hillary; Sumaiya Rizvi (10 June 2010). "Blood Sacrifice in Hinduism" (http://www.mahavidy
a.ca/). Mahavidya. p. 1. Archived from the original (http://www.mahavidya.ca/worship-rituals-and-festiv
als/blood-sacrifice-in-hinduism/) on 17 August 2010. Retrieved 17 August 2010.

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