Vajapeya
Topic: The Vedic Age · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The vājapeya was a later Vedic sacrifice performed by a king. The name is usually explained as "drink of strength" (vāja = strength, peya = drink). Its key event was a chariot race that the king was made to win. People believed the ritual gave him new strength and raised his rank among other rulers. It shows how later Vedic kings used grand rituals to show their power.
Example
The Śhatapatha Brāhmaṇa describes the vājapeya. In it, the king races against his kinsmen in a chariot race arranged so that he comes first. This was a ritual show of his higher position.
Don't confuse with
- Rājasūya: the sacrifice held to crown the king. The vājapeya was about renewing his strength and status through a chariot race.
- Aśhvamedha: the horse sacrifice, used to claim rule over the land the horse crossed.