The Morning Sandhya - Abbe JA Dubois

He begins his religious exercises with the following prayer:

Apavitraha pavitrova sarva vastam,
Gatopiva yassmaret pundareekaksham,
Sabahiabhian tara suchihy.

This means: ‘Whether a man be pure or impure, or in whatsoever station in life he may find himself, if he thinks of him who has eyes like the lotus1 he shall be pure within and without.’

He then prays to the water in the following words:-

‘Water of the sea, of the rivers, of tanks, of wells, and of any other place whatsoever, hear favorably my prayers and vows! As the traveler, fatigued with the heat, finds rest and comfort under a tree’s shade, so may I find in you solace and assistance in all my ills, and pardon for all my sins!

‘O Water! You are the eye of sacrifice and battle! You have an agreeable flavor; you have the bowels of a mother for us, and all her feelings towards us! I call upon you with the same confidence with which a child at the approach of danger flies to the arms of a loving mother. Cleanse me from my sins, and all other men of their sins. O Water! At the time of the Flood Brahma the omniscient, whose name is spelt with one letter, existed alone, and existed under your form. This Brahma brooding over you and mingling with you2 did penance, and by the merits of his penance created night. The waters which covered the earth were drawn into one place and formed the sea. Out of the sea were created the day, the years, the sun, the moon, and Brahma with his four countenances. Brahma created anew the firmament, the earth, the air, the smaller worlds, and everything that was in existence before the Flood.’

© `Hindu Manners, Customs and Ceremonies’ published by Book Faith India, 414-416, Express Tower, Azadpur Commercial Complex, New Delhi.
1 That is, Vishnu.
2 These words recall the words of the second verse of the first chapter of Genesis. –– Dubois.

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