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The Grihya Sutras, Part 1 (SBE29), by Hermann Oldenberg, [1886], at sacred-texts.com
1. Now (follows) the Adhyâyopâkarana (i.e. the ceremony by which the annual course of study is opened);
2 2-3. When the herbs appear, (when the moon stands in conjunction) with Sravana, in the Srâvana month,
3. Or on the fifth (Tithi of that month), under (the Nakshatra) Hasta.
4 4. Having sacrificed the two Âgya portions, he should offer Âgya oblations (to the following deities, viz.) Sâvitrî, Brahman, Belief, Insight, Wisdom, Memory, Sadasaspati, Anumati, the metres, and the Rishis.
5. He then sacrifices grains with curds (with the following texts):
6. 'I praise Agni the Purohita'—this one verse (Rig-Veda I, 1, 1),
7 7. 'The Kushumbhaka (mungoose?) has said it'—'If thou criest, O bird, announce luck to us Sung by Gamadagni'—'In thy abode the whole world rests'
[paragraph continues] —'Come to our sacrifice, O you that are worthy of sacrifice, with care'—'Whosoever, be he ours, be he alien'—'Look on, look about'—'Come here, Agni, the Maruts' friend'—'The oblation, O king, cooked for thee'—each time two verses;
8. 'United is your will' (Rig-veda X, 191, 4)—this one verse;
9 9. 'That blessing and bliss we choose'—this one verse.
10 10. When he intends to study (the Veda together with pupils), he should, while the pupils take hold of him, sacrifice to those deities, and sacrifice to (Agni) Svishtakrit, and partake of the grains with curds; then (follows) the 'cleaning.'
11 11. Sitting down to the west of the fire on Darbha grass, the tufts of which are directed towards the east, he should put Darbha blades into a water-pot, and making a Brahmâñgali (i.e. joining his hands as a sign of veneration for the Brahman), he should murmur (the following texts):
12. The Vyâhritis preceded by (the syllable) Om (stand first); (these) and the Sâvitrî he should repeat three times and then recite the beginning of the Veda.
13. In the same way at the Utsarga (i.e. at the ceremony performed at the end of the term of Vedic study).
14. He should study six months.
15 15. One who has performed the Samâvartana (should live during that time) according to the regulations for Brahmakârins.
16 16. The others according to the rules.
17 17. Some say that he should have intercourse with his wife.
18. That (is a practice) sacred to Pragâpati.
19. This (Upâkarana) they call vârshika (i.e. belonging to the rainy season).
20 20. On the middle Ashtakâ they offer food to those deities, and descend into water.
21. They satiate those same deities (with water oblations),
22. (And besides) the Âkâryas, the Rishis, and the Fathers.
23 23. This is the Utsargana.
221:2-3 5, 2, 3. Perhaps the division of these Sûtras should be altered, so that srâvanasya would belong to Sûtra 2. In this case we should have to translate, '2. When the herbs appear, (on a day on which the moon stands in conjunction) with Sravana. 3. Or on the fifth (Tithi) of the Srâvana month, under (the Nakshatra) Hasta.' Comp. srâvanasya pañkamîm, Par. II, 10, 2. If we count the month beginning with the bright fortnight, and assume that the full moon day of Srâvana falls, as the name of the month implies, on Sravana, the fifth Tithi of that month will fall indeed on Hasta. Comp. on the dates of the Upâkarana, Prof. Weber's remarks, Die vedischen Nachrichten von den Naxatra II, 322, and on the special symbolical signification of the Nakshatra Sravana in this connection, my note on Sâṅkhâyana IV, 5, 2.
221:4 On the two Âgya portions, comp. above, I, 3, 5; 10, 13 seqq.
221:7 Comp. Sâṅkhâyana IV, 5, 8. The verses with which the oblations are performed, are the first and last verses of each Mandala.
222:9 This is the last verse of the Rik-Samhitâ in the Bâshkala Sâkhâ. See my note on Sâṅkhâyana IV, 5, 9.
222:10 The expression, 'Those deities' would, according to Nârâyana, refer not only to the deities stated in Sûtra 4, but also to the deities of the first and last verses of the Mandalas (Sûtras 6 seqq.). On the grains with curds, comp. Sûtra 5. The technical sense of the 'cleaning' is explained in the Srauta-sûtra I, 8, 2; comp. Hillebrandt, Das altindische Neu- and Vollmondsopfer, p. 130, note 1. The sacrificer covers his joined hands with the Kusa grass spread out round the fire, and has water sprinkled on them.
222:11 On the term brahmâñgali, comp. Manu II, 71.
223:15 On the Samâvartana, see below, chap. 8 seq. The restrictions referred to consist in the interdiction of eating honey and meat, of having sexual intercourse, of sleeping in a bedstead and in the day-time, &c. Nârâyana.
223:16 I.e. the Brahmakârins.
223:17 I.e. one who has performed the Samâvartana.
223:20 After the six months (Sûtra 14) have elapsed, on the Ashtakâ of Mâgha.
223:23 Or Utsarga, see Sûtra 13.