प्राचीन भारत में शिक्षा (डॉ. ए.एस. अल्तेकर - गुरुकुल एवं बौद्ध विहार शिक्षण इतिहास)

276 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [App.
probably unknown, a deer-skin was offered on the
occasion. The youth was asked to remember that the
lovely deerskin is symbolical of brahmavarchasam or
spiritual and intellectual preeminence and that its
constant use ought to urge him to attain reputation
as a man of character and scholarship¹. When
spinning and weaving became common, a piece of
cloth was offered to the boy on this occasion, spun
and woven in his own family just before the
ceremony². A survey of the Gṛihya-sūtras, which
describe the Upanayana ritual in detail, shows that
the investiture with the Sacred Thread did not form
part of the Upanayana ritual. The upper garment
that was offered to the boy was in lieu of the Sacred
Thread or rather its predecessor. This will be shown
in the Appendix D, where the whole history of the
Sacred Thread and its significance will be discussed in
details.
Presentation to Deities : Invested with the above
paraphernalia, the boy was taken to the sacred fire,
the earliest Indo-European deity known so far. He
was asked to offer a samidh (a piece of sacred fuel) to
the gleaming fire and the verses recited on the occasion
prayed that God Fire should be auspicious to the
young scholar and endow him with brilliance,
intelligence and vigour³, so that his scholarship and
strength should glow up like the resplendent flame of
fire. In order to intensify his piety, the boy was
then presented to a number of Vedic deities like Bhaga,
Yama, Aryamā and Savitrī. The last mentioned god
was charged with the special duty of protecting the

1. G. Br., I. 2. 1-3
2. वासः सद्यःकृत्वोतं । B. Gr. S., II. 5. 11
3. Cf. अयं ते इध्म आत्मा जातवेदः तेन वर्द्धस्व चेन्द्ध वर्द्धय चास्मान् ।
   Bh. Gr. S., I. 5.