Hindu Salutations

Author(s): E. Washburn Hopkins

Source: Bulletin of the School of Oriental Studies, University of London , 1931, Vol. 6,
No. 2, A Volume of Indian Studies Presented by His Friends and Pupils to Edward James
Rapson, Professor of Sanskrit in the University of Cambridge, on His Seventieth
Birthday, 12th May, 1931 (1931), pp. 369-383
Published by: Cambridge University Press on behalf of the School of Oriental and
African Studies

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 Hindu Salutations
By E. WASHBURN HOPKINS

ACCORDING to the description in the Land of the Lamas, the

Tibetan salutation consists in sticking out the tongue, pulling
the right ear, and rubbing the left hip, while making a slight bow at
the same time. Nothing quite so picturesque is to be found in India,
but the etiquette of salutation is nevertheless not without interest.
Moreover, the subject is treated gravely by the native law-makers
and deserves more attention than it has hitherto received. The matter
too is not unsuitable for a volume dedicated to the salutation of one
who is lokaprapi-jita, and to whom, in common with many, I extend
herewith the greeting:
balamr tavS'yu' ca ciriya vardhatam.
But because of the limitation of space I shall confine myself to
epic data and give but an outline of approved ceremonial.
The simplest and oldest form of salutation between men seems to
have been that expressing " reverence " in its literal sense of fear,
instinctively exhibited by shrinking and bending, which becomes the
formal bow, for which there is no general Indo-European word,
though this namas is familiar from the earliest Vedic period, and
fra-nam in Avestan indicates that the bow was still earlier. In the
epic this bow is united so closely with the later aijali that they make
one gesture. The anijali, also called udagranakha, is formed by placing
the cupped hands, with fingers up, against the forehead, while the head
at the same time is bent, sometimes even to the feet of the revered
person. The cupping of the hand is implied not only by the earlier
use (drinking water with the aijali, Manu 4.63, etc.) but by the
phraseology employed in describing the a'jali, krtaijaliputa, baddhaii-

jaliputa,
(R. 5.33.2 baddhva karaput.?ijalim,
; 36.32 ; 64.5). As an attitudekrtvd (or idhiya)
of propitiation it girasy anijalim
is assumed

to 1avert
39) ; or inwrath, s5entreaty,
desperate ca prahva~Jalir bhfitv5i
as when Dame siras5
Death bows caran.au
to Brahman, gata (R. 7.25.
kAyena vinayopet5 miirdhno'dagranakhena ca (7.54.6; cf. 3.64.68,
vinaydvanat5 sthitS, followed by kugalam, etc.); or to win a favour,

as when a husband wishes something from his wife, raktdiigutiprabhah.

1 In K. (South Indian recension) 4.18.3 (not in B.), s8a tu mfirdhny a-jalim k'rtvi
bhaginyd1 cara~&v ubhdu, the accusative is governed by the verbal idea = aiijalikrtya
"put his hands to his brow (to) his sister's feet "

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 370 E. WASHBURN HOPKINS-

padmapatranibhah
'ijalih (1.122.29 f.); or .merely
. . prasddirtharm mayd
to show respect te'yam.
before dirasy
speaking to a abhyudyato-

superior, k.rt~ajaliput sarvi (Sakram abruvan, 5.9.18). So the

distressed fowler begs for protection from the tree-spirits, siinjalih
pranatirm kIrtv (12.143.32). The humility of the bow is explicit, as
Arjuna, after meeting and greeting Indra, "stood before him bent

like a servant," abhivddya padav pr~ijalih . . bh.rtyavat pranatas

tasthiu (3.166.9; cf. 163.2 f.). Indra, in turn, as a sign of approval
as well as of farewell, " touches him, Arjuna, on the head with his
two hands " (ibid. 168.62). In epic descriptions, either bow or anijali

may be ignored, though both are implied, pranamya .irasi RImam

evam astv
(5.178.71 andity
90,abruvan and tato'ham abruvam devim abhivdya k rtg*jalih.
respectively).
The abhivdda(na) has so far lost its derivative meaning of speech
that like the verb it is used of greeting with or without words, thus
interchanging with abhivandana in usage and occasionally in a varied
reading (cf. K. 12.140.17, dirasa pdiibhivandanam as v. 1.), ubhayor
eva diras5 cakre pidibhivddanam (3.294.3). Compare the verbal use,

abhivddya tasyapiddu,
abhivadya guroh paddukrtvi
pran.cd'pi
amya ca (3.100.20);
pradaksinam (R. upaspirya
6.85.25 and .29).
Laksmana, on leaving Sita, both being rather angry, " bows somewhat "
on making the aijali, S0itm abhividya . . . ktr-ijalih kicmcid abhi-
praynamya (R. 3.45.40). This greeting is in itself a wordless gesture.
Amba tells her uncle her tale, tam abhivddayitv5 sirasa, and he lifted
her to his lap (an expression sometimes used metaphorically, as in
5.64.27, aiske kurusva raij~anam) and consoles her, telling her to go to
Rama with an obeisance, abhivadya ca tarm mirdhn5 (5.176.28 and 32).
The motion of the head may imply acceptance, as it is said in the next
section, " If Bhisma had not taken you to Nagpur, Salva would have

taken
Rama's you with his
appearance, head,"
Ambi tvdnm
" stood dirasi
before him,g.rhn.yat (as his
after revering hisbride).
feet On
with her head and touching them with her lotus-hands ", tato'bhividya
carandu Rdmasya siras5 subhau sprstvi . . . panibhyim agratah
sthit5 (5.177.10 and 24).1 The " fair feet " are sometimes pressed
with the head, murdhnd carandu pratyapdayat (R. 5.62.39), instead of

with the hand (nipd.ya Tpddu in 1.191.20, etc.). Instead of "take

1 B. has Rirasdu (for K.'s Airasa), which Nil. explains as the two excellent (feet),
8resthau (pulmrstvam drsam !). Compare 7.112.10, tavd'jfinm Siras& grhya, " taking
thy that
etc.) orders
theon my
dual is head (I go)."
used even of aThe phrase (1.140.29),
quadruped caran.dv abhivadya
though the is so constant
plural padas (5.132.1,
follows.

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 HINDU SALUTATIONS 371

thee ", the phrase " take thy feet with h

dirasd grahsyati, is used in the same me
added respect, as the speaker grimly adds
him " (to do so ; 5.178.6).
Incidentally, with the unusual respect p
may be compared the unusual mark of af
when Matali on leaving home walks the
"kisses his daughter on the head ", kanydim
Usually, in law and epic, only a male rela
sniff that passes for a kiss, as in R. 1.77.5
father and mother kiss (so to speak) t
R. 7.71.12, where Satrughna is addressed:

snehasydi's.
head, pari gatih,
sirasa pranatah, and (Mbh.)
and takes 8.71.32feet
Yudhisthira's f.,inwhere Arjuna
his hands and bows his
Yudhisthira raises him, embracing and sniffing at his head, and
12.55.21 f., where Yudhisthira takes Bhisma's feet and Bhisma sniffs
at the former's head and says nisda. As I have already published a
paper (JAOS. 28.120) on this form of greeting, these examples may here
suffice. It is naturally accompanied by other forms, as when Yudhi-
sthira gives Bhima, his favourite brother, this greeting and with it his
good wishes, dghrdtal ca tathe mi~rdhni 4rdvita4 cd'8isah Subhdh (7.127.13).
The verb appears to have lost its original meaning, for even fishes
"kiss the lips " of half-drowned Cyavana, upajighranta tasyo'stham
(13.50.10). The later word cumb is used in H. 8745 of a real kiss but
in Mbh. itself only of heroes "kissing " or touching the conch-shells
they are blowing: " the two best of men with their two best mouths
touched the two best conch-shells and blew together " (8.94.59). The
pari-cumb of R. Gorr. 3.79.17 is not in the Bombay edition.
To continue with the silent greeting involving hand and foot, the

bow alone when offered to Krsna ensures salvation, K.rsnaprandam

na punarbhaviya (12.47.91). Reverence is shown also by a simple
touch of the hand, as when the parivrdt ascetic meets the great seers
and abhigamya yath5 nyayam pdnisparsam atha'carat, greeted them
with the hand-touch (13.93.72). One is left to imagine whose hand,
but presumably the ascetic's hand touched the seers' feet, as in
nip7dya plddu, but in other cases the hands meet as if in a hand-shake,
like that of 3.262.25, karena ca karam grhya Karnasya mudito bhr4am,
" greatly delighted he seized Karna's hand with his own," indicating
joy, as again in 3.238.24, tatah praharsitdh sarve 'nyonyasya talan
daduh, " they shook hands in their delight," or in 9.32.44, te'nyonyasya

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372 E. WASHBURN HOPKINS-

talin daduh, all shook hands in their joy. T

name
or of pan.i-praddna
promise, andR.panisamgrahana
as in friendship, is used
4.5.11 (agnisdksikam) in giving a pledge
or marriage,
panibandha, 12.267.36; cf. in joy, H. 15741, talan dattvd parasparam
. . . hsi~ya samavasthitih). The king is told to wail and " seize the
arms ", plural; but bdhfi must be read, "extend his two arms." He
should also " extend an arm " and cry out 'the enemy are beaten',
pragrhya bhuym kro.eta bhagna bhagna 'pare iti (12.100.48; 102.38;
v.1. hanta bhagni). These are royal tricks. Compare the somewhat
incoherent advice of 12.140.17, a~ijalim apathalm sdntvacm siras5
pddavandanam, airuprapdtanarm cdi'va kartavyaTm bhiitimn icchatd, with
the v.1. as4rumirjanam and pranamya dirasi vadet. To touch " hand
with hand " is customary when one comes as a guest, though social
rank may determine this. When Rama visits Yudhisthira, " all rose
and saluted RMdma and Y. touched R.'s hand with his own hand,"
abhyavdtayan ... tam kare paspar'a ipayini (5.157.22).
When two courteous wrestlers meet before actually embracing,
sam~ilisiya, limb to limb, they " seize each other's hands and make

obeisance " to each other, karagrahanapiirvam tu krtvd padbbhivan-

danam (2.23.11; in 4.22.58 the samrnilesa is without this preliminary
courtesy). A voiceless applause, called " speaking by hand ", is the
equivalent of our hand-clapping, which appears on occasion to have been
a more or less artificial exhibition by those called pdnivddakas and
pdnisvanikas. Compare vijahruh . . . utkrstatalandditdih (mahdna-
ddih, 1.221.60). Wringing the hands is of course a sign of anger or
grief, vidhunvna5 kardu muhuh, of an angry woman (3.278.41). One
form of greeting is noteworthy, since apparently it is like the salute
of the American Indian and the Fascist, namely that given by raising
the right arm : rsin abhyarcaynm asuh kardn udyamya daksindn, " (the
kings) saluted the seers by raising aloft their right hands " (12.53.26).
When " the righteous king " heads a procession, he " receives the salute
of joined hands, raised on all sides, by bringing out (elevating ?) from

time to time his right arm ", daksinam dakpsinah, kale sambh.rtya
svabhujam tada . .. Sdiksam . . . prag.rhnann aiijalin n.rn.m udyatan
sarvato
The diah.daksinam
expression (6.97.28;panim
Nil. uddharet
sambh.rtya
means =extend
samuddhrtya
in such a Siksam).
rule as that of 12.193.20: " In a temple, among cows, in Brahmanic
rites, kriyipathe, and in studying, one should extend the right
hand." In wrath one seizes the left hand, R. 3.57.16.
In most of the scenes of greeting and parting, words are exchanged

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 HINDU SALUTATIONS 373

as well as these unvoiced salutations. But Krsna's visit to Prthd is

pathetic in its simplicity. When he called upon her, his paterna
aunt, pitrsvasr, " she began to lament, putting her arm about his neck,
remembering her children," kanthe grhTtva (5.90.1 f.), even before he
was krtatithya, that is, had received the rites of hospitality. The parting
benediction of 5.126.12-16 gives a good picture of the courtesies o
royal life. It is addressed to one going to see the king: "May th
king receive thee with his two hands as thou greetest him with th

head, abhivtdayamanarm tvdam ,irasa; may the righteous (king) pu

around thy shoulder his right arm marked with standard, hook, an
banner, dvajah'ku'apatdka~ikam, and as thou sittest beside him may

he stroke thy
ornamented with back, pyrsthaym
rings and te palm
dyed red on pan.in5 parimarjatu,
and fingers, with his hand
and when
saluted by the king's brothers do thou, kissing their heads, greet them
with affection," mrfrdhni tin samupighraya prem~n'bhivada.
When Duryodhana is exhorted to go and greet Yudhisthira, he
is told to " embrace him with both hands ", after greeting him; then
the king, " out of goodness of heart shall seize thee with both hands "

(parisvaja;remarkable
somewhat pratigrhen.tu, 5.138.14
that when f.). isApropos
a herald of the
sent to give embrace, it is
a belligerent
but courtly message (5.30.14 and 35 f.), he is told to " touch with the
hand the feet " of this and that man, to make kindly inquiries as to the
welfare of each member of the family visited, to give special messages
to the servants, to salute the old ladies and other ladies, saying " are
you blameless in conduct, do you behave properly toward your

fathers-in-law
asking after their? health
"and finally to "them
and wishing embrace the girls
handsome ", kanyh, svajethi.h,
husbands,
jewellery, etc. The herald's farewell is here couched in stereotyped

form:
svasti 5imantraye
te'stu, to which thetvam,
" god ofnaradevadeva,
the gods of men "gacchdmy aham
replies, anuj~iatah Pan.dava,
. svasti gaccha, and, in response to a hint given by the herald that
the king and his brothers should look with "kindly eye " on the
message he has been forced to deliver (hivarm sukhar yvah, sdumyena

mdm paiyata caksusa n.rpah), the King says na nah smarasy apriyam
jAtu, vidvan. An eye that is not kindly, sdumya, is dangerous,

fortuldra4mim
vii in 3.263.35 we read:
iva'nalah, Vdsudevapariyanih.
and just kruddhis
before (32), mS'sman adhaksur te nirdaheyur
drstvdi'-

va Pn.davdh
and kriracaksusd.
it will be remembered that Consuming wrath
Gandhqri's anger wasYudhisthira's
burned believed in literally,
toe. A preceding passage also illustrates the politeness of special

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 374 E. WASHBURN HOPKINS-

inquiry as to the health of every member of t

the host has stated that he himself is in g
I am very glad to see you and know you are
as are my brothers. And how are all the fam

illness
But and pain
before ? " (kaccid
passing ete conventional
on to the 'py arogh. (and avyalikih,
verbal 5.23.6 f., 14).
salutations,

already
svasti, andillustrated by the
kukalam of these svdgatam,
scenes, priyemahe
there are still te vayam,
a few remarks to make darsanena,
concerning the feet. The deep bow of respect ends with " falling with the
head at the feet " of the respected person, in 3.217.7, for example,
of parents. But to be "at one's feet " may imply more. Urvasi
is requested to let Arjuna be " at her feet ", that is, be her lover,
tava pddiv adya prapadyataem, but Arjuna, full of gurupuijd, says to her
abhividaye tvaim sirasi presyas te 'ham upasthitah, gaccha murdhna
prapanno 'smi pddSu te, " it is as thy slave I greet thee with my head,"
tvaym hi me mitrvat puijyd (3.45.13 and 46.20 and 47). A saint will
put Visnu's feet on his head (3.188.133; cf. 204.4). Visnu himself
says that " priests and one's own feet should be revered " as a daily
rite (13.126.3, nity5 'bhivddyi viprendrdi, bhuktva, pdaiu tatha'tmanah).
To " see the feet " is to get audience (cf. pddamidlan). Thus: " Sire,
Vidura has arrived and wishes to see thy feet. Tell me what he is to do,"
drastzum icchati te padiu, kim karotu praiddhi mdm (5.33.4; the king
replies that he is " not indisposed to see him ", expressed by asya
nS'kalpo jatu dariane, ibid. 5). A peculiar situation, in view of the
characters, is revealed by Saiijaya's report as to his visit on Krsna
and Arjuna : " I saw K.'s feet on A.'s lap and A.'s feet held up from
the foot-stool, pddapitha, in the laps of Krfsni and Satyabhami "
(the heroes were both drunk, madhvdsavaksibdu, 5.59.5 and 7).
The armed soldier, who acts as warden at the palace door, on
announcing a visitor, first " bows with the head ", and then " on his
two knees " gives his message, janubhyTm, bhiitale sthitah irasai van-,
danAyamr tam abhivddya janesivaram (7.82.31). But the complete
prostration seems to belong only to the later epic. Thus Narada says
to Samaiija (12.287.3): urase'va pranamase, bdhubhyum tarasi'va ca,
"thou bowest as if (prone) on thy chest; with two arms (alone) thou
crossest (life's river), as it were."
Other allusions to the feet are, so to speak, the converse of those
above. Thus the foot to the head is the opposite of pddaibhivddana:

tv'm 5kramisye padi 7 miirdhna, "I will trample on thy head with
my foot" (5.163.36); mu vo miirdhni Dhanaijayah pidam krtv5

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 HINDU SALUTATIONS 375

'pnuyil laksyam, "may A. not attain his ob

on thy head " (7.75.15). " Kicking the head
(K. 7.77.21, padbhyiim pramathitd'si tvam)
to Subhadra's anticipated pleasure; the B t
that his head has been taken off and cast out ". To touch with the
left foot aggravates an insult, as Bhima touched Duryodhana vdmena
padi (9.59.5 ; also R. 5.26.8). Compare, as to the left, 2.71.12:

Driupadydh preksamn.ynih savyam ilrum adar'ayat, and 16.3.20,

nirdidann
by pointingiva sS'vajiSm,
with the lefttad5 savyena
hand." To be piSnini, " indicating
on tip-toe disrespect
is to be eager:
agrapadasthitaym ce'mam viddhi rajan vadhiijanam, " Know that all
the women-folk are eager to go " (15.22.17). Finally, foot-washing,
though performed as worship by a devotee,' is ordinarily a sign of
servitude: na kuryiym pidadhivanam, says Damayanti (3.65.68).
It is also for that reason a sign of defeat, like eating grass, so that
Sudhanvan grants Virocana his life only on condition that the latter,
" in the presence of the girl (who made the trouble) shall wash S.'s

feet,"
Thepidapraksalanam.
whole subject of kuryat kumaryahi
the silent salutationsam.nidhiu mama is
given by bowing (5.35.38).
brusquely disposed of by Duryodhana, when he refuses to bow to the
king. He says that for himself he is willing to bow to Law and to the
priests, but as to bowing to a mere man (such as a king), he will not;
citing in defence of this view an old warrior-precept: " One should
strive upwards and not bend downwards; manliness is in up-striving
alone." Up-striving is exertion and the meaning is merely that one
should not bow to misfortune but meet it bravely, though the angry
prince chooses to take it in the sense that a brave man should not bow
to a king (udyacched eva na named udyamo hy eva pdurusam, 5.127.19).
There is also an equally futile discussion of the use of the word " thou ",
which may be mentioned here before turning to verbal courtesies.
It seems that the theory of " thou " being an insult is well established,
as a theory, since it is referrred to more than once, although in practice
the two methods of addressing a superior (only superiors are involved
in the discussion) are used interchangeably and even the same sentence
confuses the two. But on one occasion the ever-fiery Bhima said he
would kill his brother the king and when he repented immediately
afterwards he found himself in a dilemma. If he killed Yudhisthira

1 The washing of the feet (of priests) is as religiously fruitful as is the gift of
a cow; " it pleases the Manes, as the word ' welcome ' pleases Agni, and a seat for
a guest pleases Indra, and as food given the guest pleases Prajapati " (3.200.66 f.).
VOL. VI. PART 2. 25

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 376 E. WASHBURN HOPKINS-

he would sin and if he broke his word he would sin. It was then
suggested to him that by calling his brother " thou ", instead of saying
"your honour ", he would escape from his dilemma, since "thou "
is equivalent, being an insult, to slaying, without its practical dis-
advantage. It is (it is argued) an Atharvan gruti that "thou " is
equal to killing, vadha, when applied to a superior (guru; 8.69.83 and
70.51). This precept, gurlna-m avamano hi vadhah, is found again in

13.163.53, na jitu tvam iti brityid ipanno 'pi mahattaram, tvam.kiro

va vadho ve'ti vidvatsu na visisyate ; avaranim, samdndndrm sisyarnam
ca samJcaret ; and also in 12.193.25, tvam.kiram namadheyamn ca
jyesthandm parivarjayet, avarinrnm saminanim ubhayesay na dusyati,
a variant which makes the use of the proper name, as well as that of
"thou ", applied to superiors, a misdemeanour rather than a "deadly"
insult. But examples given in this paper will show that this was a
precept rather than an observance. Compare, for a good example,
R. 3.7.6: Ramo'ham asmi bhagavan bhavantam drastum 5gatah, tvam
mS'bhivada, and ibid. 8.6, bhavdn gacchatu, 5gantavyam tvayi tita punar
ev'sJramam mama, " may your honour go and do thou return again to
my asylum " (varied readings change tvam in the first sentence to tan
and substitute,for tvayi tita . . . mama, the words ca te drstvd . . . prati).
In an earlier scene than that above, Bhima uses the second person (but
without using the word tvam) along with bhavat, while Yudhisthira
uses tvam (na tvrm vigarhe, as contrasted with Bhima's kim rajan
duhkhesu paritapyase, bhavato'navadhanena, "why sufferest thou ?
because of your honour's recklessness," 3.33.5 f. and 34.2). Tvam
is not really tabooed. Compare 5.23.3 f., where a messenger says to the

king : distya rjayias tvim arogam, prapasye ; gives his master's greeting
in the words: andmayam prcchati tvS'mbikeyah; and receives the
reply: andmayam pratijane tavr'ham. The seer says to the god,
j~itum icchmi deva tvem ; icchdmi j itum tvS'ham (3.188.135 and
139 ; on the ace., see below).
The verbal greeting is usually an inquiry as to health. Manu and
Suvarna met each other and " made mutual inquiries as to health,
kusalapralnam .. . . cakratuh (13.98.5). The courteous man doing this
is sukhaprahnada (12.116.7). The commonest formula is either with
andmayam or kuhalam, sometimes with both, as both are also parting
benedictions. Kunti's farewell to Karnia is andmayamn svasti ca
(5.146.27). But epic usage is not in conformity with legal prescription
in this regard. Manu (2.127) says that andmayam is a greeting used
to a warrior, in distinction from kudalam addressed to a priest, while

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 HINDU SALUTATIONS 377

&ogyam should be addressed to a fild

(R. 4.55.12 f.) sends this greeting: abhivid
eva ca vdcyah . .. . rogyaparvarm kusalarm

ageneral,
widow," avaidhavya' isah.
is spoken of as subhqih,
a casual " here
morning is hoping
greeting you
(perhaps will not become
with
tragic irony, as Savitri, soon widowed, receives it, 3.296.12). To a king,
special greetings with hopes of long life and victory are of course
conventional: krtvajayiisisah (1.146.3); jaydsisah prayujya (1.149.14) ;
di;irbhirjayayuktdbhir 5inarcus tam (Ramam, 3.291.2); distyd jayasi
satriln, bhava nas tvamr mahdrajan raje'ha 4araddSmy atam (notice tvam,
12.38.11); jTvatu dharmdtma rajS, " long live our noble king " (R.
2.6.24), etc. His uninvited guests greet Jarasandha with svasty astu
ku'alama rqjan, and he politely welcomes them with svdgatamy vo'stu . . .
asyatdm (2.21.32-9). More emphatic is susvcgatarm te'stu (1.76.21).
Drona visits Rama and touches with his head the feet of Rama,
bowing to the ground, 4irasa bhumdu pidau cai'va'bhyavddayat, as
well as giving his own name and lineage, and Rama says svdgatam
te . . . yad icchasi vadasva me, without the roundabout approach
to be expected (both use the second person here, 1.130.56 f.). As
farewell, svasti te'stu appears in 1.183.4, and in 2.1.4 it is associated
with a phrase which is more conventional than it appears, krtam eva
tvay5 sarvam, svasti gaccha, addressed to Maya, on the completion of
his work; but the identical phrase occurs again when Hanumat is
bidden farewell by Bhima, who accepts an offer to do something for
him as done: " I accept it as if done for me; farewell," krtam eva
tvay5 sarvam mama . . . svasti te'stu . .. . kmaye 1 tvim (I beg of you)
prasida me (3.151.13). One thus accosted goes " with a benediction ",
krtasvastyayanah (2.39.9), as contrasted with svagatenircitas (tay&,
sukhasznas sukhismanm smitapairvamr vaco'bravit, 3.45.5). As a slight
change in form sukhdgatam interchanges with svagatam as " welcome ",
and " au revoir " is often said to the departing guest, gaccha te'stu
sivah panthdh, 4ighram agamanam kuru (RG. 6.82.62 and 70) ; punar
draksydvah (Mbh. 5.115.15); svasti vo'stu 4ivah panthdh, draksy-mi
punarigatdn, "a pleasant journey! I shall look forward to seeing

you again" (K. 4.5.86); agadamrn vo'stu, bhadram vo, drast.a'smi

punaragatan . . . svasti prapnuhi . .. .aprsto'si'ha . . . svasti
prdpnuhi (2.78.21 f.; cf. 2.3.1 ap.rcche tvam gamisyami, punar esyami
cc'py aham, "good-bye, I'm going, but I shall return "); tat svasti
1 Probably, like aprcche tvam (below), " I beg your permission to go, be gracious,"
a conventional good-bye.

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378 E. WASHBURN HOPKINS-

vo'stu ydsyami svagrham (7.74.5). Besides suc

formulas, the most frequent of which ar
ku'alamr pitaram bri?hi, svasti te'stu, svag
7.103.8 as greeting; cf. distya vardhimahe,
svasti prdpnuhi gamyatim (" you may go
and avighnam (aristaym) gaccha panthan
there are the occasional " good-morning "
tions ; sukhena vyajani vyus.ta . . kaccij j~
tava, "I hope you passed a pleasant night
(7.83.2), both clauses being formulaic (12.4
vyustd, kaccij jiianani, etc.) ; svapa sukham

te (7.79.6);
"rest in peacevisramasva tvam
and sleep well thisavyagrah svapa ce'm.
night " (10.4.12). Cf. R. ni,~sam
2.89.5. sukham,
But ceremonious benedictions are in order when extraordinary
events take place; one might almost say, extraordinary benedictions.
An example or two will illustrate this phase of hyperbole. A traveller
is going across the Ganges and into the mountains. The Occidental
"good-bye and good luck " appears thus expanded (svasti te Varuno
rdj& YamaI ca samitacmjayah, etc., 3.139.14 f.): " May king Varuna
and Yama, winner of conflicts (an odd epithet), and Ganges and Jumna
and the mountains give you weal, and the Maruts and Advins and
streams and lakes; weal to you on the part of gods and demons and
Vasus; 0 Ganges, daughter of the mountains, shepherd him,
gopdyane'nam, and give thy protection to this king who is about to
penetrate into the mountains " (praviviksato'sya idiln im&ni chdilasute

n.rpasya); to which is cannily added to the traveller, " take care of

yourself," yatto bhavasva. A benediction for a hero going into battle
(7.94.41 f.) begins with invoking protection from Brahman and proceeds
with a long list of potential aiders in a rather curious medley, namely,

priests, the best serpents, saris.pas, royal sages (enumerated by name,

Yayiti and others, acting as protecting saints), " creatures with one
foot, those with many feet and those with no feet," apadakas, Svaha
and Svadha and 9aci (svasti kurvantu te saddi); Laksmis, Arundhati,
Asita Devala, Vi'vamitra, Afigiras, Vasistha, Kasyapa, Dhatr, Vidh-

atr loke.a, Vivasvat,

K~irtikeya, the Directions and
the four their lords,
elephants of the dig?qvar~h, thesky,
quarters, earth, six-faced
and planets, and finally the great serpent that supports the earth,

adhastdd
svasti dharan.m
tubhyaym yo 'sduInsadi
prayacchatu. the dhirayate nrpa
opening clause, K. .esaa ca pannagasresthah
has (karotu

svasti te) Brahma, svasti kurvantu brahmani. ; C. 3449, Brahma,

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 HINDU SALUTATIONS 379

Brahmsi c'pi dvijftayah ; and B., Bra

jitayah (also tava for te after svasti kurva
Such blessings, however, though for
The ritual connected with the reception o
is rigid and of almost religious signifi
very early period in a verse that is pr
and in mutilated prose (obviously redu

metrical) in the legal Sfitras, thus: t.rnni

ca sun.rt?, in both Manu and epic, wit

difference kaddcana
no'cchidyante of meaning,
(3.101) following, thus,etani
; in the epic, satam in Manu, etdny
gehesu no'cchi- api satm, gehe
dyante kadacana (5.36.34) ; in Vas., with the verse (though not marked
as such by Biihler) still apparent, trnabhfimy-agny-udakavak sunrta'-

nassiiy satam g.rhe no'cchidyante kaddcana (Vas. Dh. 13.61) ; in Apast.,

[abhdve,nascil.
sato'gare annasya]
ks7yante bhrmir
kadacana udakamr
(Ap. 2.4.14, wheretrn.ni
Biihlerkalyani vdg iti, etd-ni vai
keeps abhdive

as part of a corrupt vs. and reads t.rni); in Gaut., merely t.rnodaka-

bhiimisvdgatam (Gaut. 5.35), with the addition of antatah, that is,
the " welcome " should be given, if nothing more. The legal distinction
of guests according to caste, learning, and virtue, and of foods to be
given of different quality according to the guest, the generous epic
ignores, both in the verse cited above and in what follows, where the
same verse is repeated, in 3.2.54, with this addition: " To the suffering
should be given a couch; to him weary with standing, a seat; to the
thirsty, water; to the hungry, food; (to the guest) one should give
an eye, give his mind, give kind words, rise up and give a seat; this
is the eternal law; arise and approach the guest and honour him
according to rule " (cak.sur dadydn mano dadydt, etc., 3.2.55-6).
So much for the law and the general epic rule. The epic scenes
show how strictly the rule is followed, always in spirit and generally
in detail. An adventurer stumbles on a palace in the northern
mountains and calls out " let the people here know that a guest has
come ", atithim samanupraptam abhijdnantu ye'tra vai. Out come
seven fair maidens (" whichever he looked at, stole away his mind ")
and said " Enter, my lord ". He went in and found an old woman
there to whom he said svasti and she rose up and said " Take a seat ",
afterwards offering him more. So when Dusyanta calls at the hermitage
and cries in a loud voice, " Who is here ? " gakuntala, " sweetly

speaking,tekindly
svdgatam smiling,"
and welcomes madurabhksin.
him with cruhisini,
a seat, water for the feet,appears
and the and says

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380 E. WASHBURN HOPKINS--

arghya (honey-mixture), and inquires after

"ku.?alar!
what maycaI papracche,
do for you ? and, smiling" Iahave
" He replies little,
comesaid
to kim kdryam, kuryatim,
wait upon,
upasitum, Kainva. Who art thou and whose (daughter) ? I wish to
know thee " (1.71.4-13). With icchdmi tvdm aham jiitum, cf. the
same tvdm above, as contrasted with Damayanti's jfiitum icchii0m te
(Nala 3.20) and tevrm jiitum in 3.188.135, 139, R.G. 3.23.34.
Instead of water alone, the weary guest may be presented with
water and also with butter for his feet, padodakam and padaghrtam,
as well as a light, food, and a resting-place, together with a shampoo
(in its literal sense of rubbing), which is, in fact, said to be a more
acceptable attention than the gift of a cow, which was also an early
form of gift to a guest. No one ever slays a cow for a guest (as goghna),
in law or in epic narrative, though beef-eating is not unknown. But
the tradition of giving a cow to a guest has survived and the
gesture is still made, so that when Bhisma hears that Rama has
enitered his territory, he goes to meet him with a retinue of priests
headed by a cow (g~m puraskrtya, 5.178.26), which Rama (Jama-
dagnya) accepts as an expression of honour or worship, piijti.
galya visited the Pandus and " accepted pdidyam, arghyam, and a cow "
(5.8.26), with the customary kusalam (said twice). Even Indra as
host, after the guest Agastya has said disty5 vdi vardhate bhavrn,
says " Welcome, I am pleased to see you ; accept water for the feet and
for rinsing the mouth, a cow and the arghyam " (pxdyam 5caman~iyam
ca gam arghyaTm ca pratrccha me, 5.17.4). The shampoo, which goes
with the plidaghrta in the passage above (3.200.23 and 25), is called
gatrasamvdhana and does not necessarily imply the use of water or
butter; most of the passages indeed exclude any meaning save that
of a gentle rubbing of the feet or legs, as when, for example, the
servitude of Devaydni's rival is manifested by the pddasamvdhana
she gives her mistress (1.81.7). The irritable ascetic Cyavana demands
this attention from the king and queen, who are his unwilling but
servile hosts, and they perform this office in person, although, on the
guest's first appearance, the king merely brought a golden jug of
water for Cyavana's feet " and caused (others) to perform the rites "

(pragrhya bh.rfgqram, padyam nyavedayat, kirayam 5sa kriyih). But

rubbed himsaid
Cyavana samv.hitavydu
(13.52.14 and 31). me pudau, and then the king and queen
Something must always be offered to a guest. " There is nothing
worse than to say I have nothing. One who goes away thus dis-

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 HINDU SALUTATIONS 381

appointed, hataiah, destroys the family

true if the guest be a poor man; it is bette
those who are well-off:

srotriydya daridriya grhasthiya 'gnihotrine

putraddribhibhiitiya tathd hy anupakdrine

evam viddhesu ddtavyd na sam.rddhesu, Bhdrata (3.200.27).

If this passage be compared with Hit. 1.10, daridrin bhara, Kdunteya,
md prayacche'gvare dhanam . . . d&tavyam iti yad ddnam d7yate
'nupakdrine, where Kaunteya alone suggests the epic, it will be seen
that it is a reflex from the Mbh., which is probably the dharmaidstra
from which this group of Hit. verses is ostensibly cited. The first of
these has Pandunandana, whereas Kauravanandana appears in the
epic verse advocating the same pity for others (13.116.20); then
Hit. prini5 yathS.'tmano'bh4stii bhiitnam api te tathM is identical with
5.39.72; and Hit. pratyikhydne ca dane ca . . atmiupamyena
purusah pramnam adhigaccati is identical with 13.113.8-9; not
to speak of Hit. na sajmsayam andruhya being identical with 1.140.73,
in the earlier part of this same Hit. section, and ijyddhyayanaddndni
identical with 5.35.56 f. This by the way; but it suggests that the
expression anyasmad granthad ikrs ya likhyate, in the Hit. prelude,
refers to Mbh.

References, by way of similes, to the guest-law merely indicate its

universality, adding nothing new: " like guests delighted getting to
a hospitable house," Jtitheyam grham prdpya (7.110.23 f.); " smiling
he welcomed his foes, as one receives guests with water and a seat "
(7.110.23 and 24). The "best food " is to be offered a guest after
the foot-water and rinsing-water, which follow the svdgatam te'stu
(the verb is often omitted) ; but probably this is in the case of a very
respected guest only, as in 3.260.14, which of course usually means a
priest, who is called "the guest of all creatures ", sarvabhtilndm
atithih (13.63.22, an expression used also of Agni, 3.313.66) and
prasi tdgrabhuk, especially in the didactic passages devoted to the
gift of food to priests, where " food is (said to be) life, all depends
on food ", and the giver of food, as life, to a priest receives eternal life
as his reward (Anus. ibid.). Elsewhere it is said that a priest by
caste, even if not by occupation, should still be treated " as a dear
guest ", although he may really be living an evil life, and be unchaste,
a thief, a cruel man, a drinker, a causer of miscarriage, a seller of the
Veda, srutivikrayakah, or be by profession an arrow-maker or a
physician. Moreover a guest of the third estate should be cared for

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382 E. WASHBURN HOPKINS-

by one's servants. If the guest is a sddhu, the

bow, offer a seat, pjtha, asana, bring water,
washed; and then ask about the guest's wel
and having done so, speak of his own state
comes the offer of refreshments and of a cow
accept. The youthful householder, who is instr
is told that his life-breath is liable to leave him if he fails to rise and
greet his guest, and when a guest leaves the house the host should
follow behind him (instructions in 5.38.1 f., the same verse in 13.104.64
and Manu 2.20). Much stress is laid on the rising. " Because of his
devotion and love, Arjuna never neglected to rise in the presence of
Krsna, offering him a seat; but he did not himself think of sitting "
(till told to do so, bhakty5 premn5 ca . . . na cS'sane svayamy buddhimn
vyadadhit (7.80.3 f.). But if the guest be the superior and is calling
on his inferior, then it is the guest who says " take a seat " to his host
(2.46.3 f., disty5 vardhasi dsyatdm is said by the guest after the padya

and asana are offered). The formula of departure is rp.rcche tvdmn

gamisyami (puijito'smi, ibid., repeated in 17 as svasti te'stu gamisydmi),
to which in this case the host responds by a respectful salutation and

the upasamygraha or touching of the feet offered to a Guru, abhivddyo'-

pasagq.rhya pitdmaham atha'bravtt (ibid. 7). This is the gesture of
Manu 2.72
1.139.15, (cf.
etc., Gaut.
here 1.46; of
a gesture thefarewell).
person asTheobject
phraseinstead of tyrm
pratipijya caran. u,
p-jm interchanges with pratigrhya as a v.1. in the scene of 3.214.14-16,
where the son of the family receives a visitor and announces him to the
parents waiting within. It is they who " honoured the priest with
welcome ", svagatam (vipram) arcayim 5satuh. The priest returns the
compliment, asks if all is well at home with sons and servants, and if
all are in good health. They reply " All is well with us; and has your
honour had a comfortable journey ? " " Quite so," said the priest
(kaccit tvam api avighnena saymprdpto bhagavann iti, b&dham iti).
The reading of K. adds sukham to B.'s ku'alam grhe andmayamy ca
vum, which is unnecessary (vim is dative; usually the object is gen.).
It must be added in conclusion that often the only attention a guest
is said to receive consists in pddyam and arghyam, foot-water and a drink
of scented or sweetened water (3.183.48); but the greeting and other
attentions are probably to be understood, as far as circumstances
permit. The farewell in RG. 4.10.34 is siddhdrtho gaccha.
A few ejaculations serve as salutations of a religious nature, svdha-
kardih . . dvijan daivatani sevase (3.30.11); and sadhu, sddhu

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 HINDU SALUTATIONS 383

(" good ! ") answers to bravo !, a general

Also there are some universal salutations
India and need only be mentioned here,
danam or greeting to those who are ill (exp
with which are joined " a blessing in the cas

ksute or ksuttandm abhinandanam, whic

the form 4atarym jva, " live a hundred " (
expression used when one has been shav

unique,
23, whichgmasrukarmani (say.prdpte)
latter adds " on bathing mafgalyam
and eating (13.163.52
also one should use theand 12.193.
5yusdm abhinandanam," the "long life to you " formula, which,

in epic phrase and elsewhere, is dyu.sman bhava). The same passage in

9anti says that priests should be greeted " evening and morning ",
and " one should ask about health every time one meets another ",
dariane dariane nityary sukhaprainam udkharet (ibid. 19). As well
known, Buddha objected to the superstition involved in a blessing
upon sneezing, which only shows that it was a common practice in
India, as it was in Persia (SBE. 24.265, etc.). Compare on this point,
Cullavagga, 5.33 (a dukkata), the Contemporary Review, May, 1881,
and Proceed. Am. Or. Soc., May, 1885.

NOTE: With kro'ed bdhfi(n) pragrhya, cf. R. 3.61.2, prakruLya

pragrhya bhujau and ibid. 3.18.24. In R. 2.45.27 and 62.12 the

Commentator
merely understands
falls or kneels, anusual
with the asptigapran.ma,
sirasa yace of but the suppliant
R. 4.10.10; 26, 20;

G. 5.89.21, etc. An unusual farewell is " go to hell," narakaym gaccha,

R. 2.74.4.

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