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172 NIRMALA KULKARNI

rśtri, in front of the king. The image was called ⁴ rśtri⁹ ot ⁴ pistarśtri.⁹ It was invoked by the verse ⁴i rśtri⁹ etc. It is possible that as the set of hymns is called ⁴śrśtryśni⁹ as the rite related is called 'śrśtrika⁹, similarly the image used for waving is called ⁴i rśtri.⁹ When the image is substitutcd by mere lamps, the term was transfcrred and thus any lamp used for waving is called śratl

Thus, in this discussion we have seen that the rite śrśtrika and śratl share many ritualistic features and therefore we can point out to the rite ⁴śrśtrika⁹ as the earliest form of the śratlritual.

(B) Etymological correspondence : When we say that the form ⁴śratl⁹ is derivcd from the word ⁴śrśtrika', certainly some people will oppose. The word ⁴śrtikya⁹ is much closer to the word ⁴śratl⁹ phonetically. Why should one accept a longcr term when a closer term is at hand ? Moreover, tradition givcs us two three verses recited at the time of waving of lamps, which employ the word ⁴śrtikya \ The vcrses are as follows:

caksurdarh sarvalokśnam timirasya nivśranam / śrtikyam kalpitam bhaktyś grhśna parameśvari II tvarh jyotih sarvadcvśnśrti timirasya nivśranam I śrtikyam kalpitam bhaktyś dipoSyam pratigrhyatśm II etc.

In addition to this Moropant (a famous poet of Maharashtra) had composed many Sanskrit śratT verscs undcr the tille śratikya sańgraha. Kashinath Upadhyaya, Dharmasindhukśra bclonging to the 18th cen. had composed śratikyakadamba which contains certain śratT compositions in Sanskrit. RSmadSsa (17th cen.) and EkanStha bclonging to 18lh cenlury had composed a considcrablc number of Marathi śratTs which are still recited in Maharashtra. When wc can tracę such a tradition Irom I7lh cenlury and the term śrślikya ot śratikya, why should one be obslinate to tracę it from śrśtrika which is comparativcly less closer to the term?

With this background let us cxplain our stand — ⁴śrśtT⁹— is a changed form of śrśtrika. It is explained above that the term ś rśtrika has come into exislcnce because of the verse employed in the ritual ⁴ś rśtri pśrthivam, etc. It is changed to śrśti . Such a change in the linguislic form is not an abrupt change. If we rcad some religious tcxts, we can tracę the derivationaI stages shown as follows:

(i)    The AVP, SSyana and the KP use the word śrśtrika;

(ii)    The Agni Purśna, the Vtramitrodaya (pujśprakśia) and the lśśnaśivagurudevapaddhati also had employed the word in the same sense. Iśśnaśivagurudeva had tried to give the etymology of the term, though it cannot be called a proper one. He says ⁴śrśd bhrśmyam śrśtrikam⁹ i.e., a (rite) of waving from a dislancc. Thus, it scems that when the rite was