Page:Hindu Feasts Fasts and Ceremonies.djvu/24



PAKARMA, or Avani Avittam, as it is called in Tamil, is a holy day with the twice-born castes, especially the Brahmans. It always falls on the day when the moon is in the asterism of Sravishtha in the fifth lunar month of Avani—July and August. It is the day of the annual renewal of the sacred thread of the twice-born castes,—Brahmans, Kshatriyas and Vaisyas. ‘The daily rites of a Brahman are several and every Brahman must, properly speaking, go through every one of these rites, though the rule now is more honoured in the breach than in the observance. The rites are as follows:—

A Brahman, as soon as he rises from his bed, must clean his teeth with the twig of the Ficus Racemosa (fig tree) or mango leaf. He must then rinse his mouth twelve times with water. He must then proceed to bathe in a river or in other water and pray before