mythological tales that are meant to bolster the status of individual rites, as well
as much incidental ritual speculation.
An all-important point of discussion in this period is how to avoid evil (agha,
enas,pa ̄pa) and pollution. This wish – and not the avoidance of violence as such
(Heesterman 1985), which always remains involved in the classical ritual – is
one of the important driving forces behind the Kuru time S ́rauta reform. The
little studied and less understood myth of Indra cutting off the head of Dadhyañc
is the “charter myth” of the main priests acting in ritual, the Adhvaryus, who
want to avoid directinvolvement in the evil and pollution caused by killing nec-
essary in ritual. They delegate these actions to helpers, working outside the sac-
rificial ground, and killing is not even referred to overtly: the animal is “pacified”
(s ́am) (Witzel 1987a: n. 103); similarly, evil and illnesses are sent off in all
directions (Witzel 1980).
Theactual reformof the ritual, and its origins in the early Kuru realm,
however, can clearly be attributed to a combination of late/post-RV political,
social and religious changes (Witzel 1989b, 1995/1997a,b). The relationship
between the development of Vedic ritual and changing social and political struc-
tures still is a promising field for further inquiry (Zimmer, 1879: 425–8; W. Rau
1957, Falk 1986, Witzel 1989b, 1997a,b).
The A ̄ran.yaka Texts
A ̄ran.yaka (A ̄r.) should have been translated, for nearly a century (Oldenberg
1915), as “wilderness (texts),” notas frequently still met with, as “forest texts.”
For, these texts are nottexts meant for ascetics but as regular bra ̄hman.astyle
texts which discuss the more secret and dangerous rituals. Therefore, they have
been prescribed to be learned and recited outside, “from where one cannot see
the roofs of the settlement.” The main focus are the Maha ̄vrata (RV A ̄r.) and the
Pravargya (YV A ̄r.) rituals. The treatment of the Pravargya in S ́atapatha Br. is
not only part of the Br. itself (S ́B 14) but even is referred to in S ́B 4 (Witzel,
1987a).
Because of their special position as additional texts the A ̄r. have become an
open category where one could add all sorts of later Vedic texts, such as many
Upanis.ads and even one early Su ̄tra (in S ́A ̄). Many extraneous items have added
to the nucleus of dangerous S ́rauta rituals, including even post-Vedic Upanis.ads
(MNU).
The often maintained connection of the A ̄r. texts with the post-Vedic life stage
of the va ̄naprasthais only a medieval fiction. Also, the idea that these texts are
spiritually more complex and evolved than the Bra ̄hman.as is modern myth. In
effect, it is only the Upanis.ads (often part of the A ̄ran.yakas) that are of philo-
sophical content. In sum, the view that both the A ̄r. and the Upanis.ads should
be aligned with the latter two of the (classical, medieval) four life stages
(va ̄naprastha,sannya ̄sin) is to be rejected as later, post-Vedic interpretation.
82 michael witzel