The Jewel of Rituals for the Planetary Sacrifice

Planetary Procedure

...perform the pacification ritual according to the rules. This includes the honoring of the priests Ritvij: the officiating priests invited to perform specific roles in a sacrifice with perfumes, clothing, and other gifts according to one's financial capacity.

There, the Preceptor Acharya: the head priest who oversees the entire ceremony should perform the Agnyuttarana lit. "lifting out of the fire"; a ritual purification of new metal or stone idols to remove the "heat" or impurities of the crafting process of the planetary images. The procedure for this is found in the Appendix Parishishta: supplementary texts to the Kalpa Sutras providing ritual details.

The nine materials for the images are:
1. Copper
2. Crystal
3. Red Sandalwood
4. Gold
5. Silver
6. Iron
7. Lead
8. Bronze
9. Gold (again, as a substitute for others)

Alternatively, gold alone may be used for all of them. Regarding this, the sage Brihaspati also suggests that the image of Mercury should be made of gold.

Then, the Preceptor, having purified his hands, states the place and the time. With the permission of the Patron, he makes the declaration: "I shall perform the duties of the Preceptor."

He then recites:
"Whatever spirits are stationed here, having always relied on this place, let them leave this location and go wherever they belong. Let them depart!"

While reciting this, he should scatter mustard seeds in the directions starting from the East, moving clockwise.

"May the Maruts, pure and purifying, come to us with their offerings. They who are the source of truth, born of purity, the cleansers. Agni, the most observant of pure vows, the pure sage, the pure poet, shines when the oblation is offered. In his rising, the pure ones..."

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"...let them come. May the demons depart! Let it be known that this is a place for the sacrifice to the gods, and let it be protected from the Rakshasas."

With this, he should mark the ground in the various directions.

Then, he should sprinkle the area with Panchagavya the five products of the cow: milk, curd, ghee, urine, and dung; used for extreme ritual purification while reciting the three verses beginning with "Vashukadya...". Similarly, he should sprinkle the area with pure water while reciting the three verses: "O Waters, you are the source of bliss..."

Then, with palms joined in reverence, he recites the prayer for auspiciousness:
"May we mount the great ship of the gods, which provides safety and well-being, and which is free from injury. O Lord of the Word, release us from distress... I take refuge with a concentrated mind. May there be well-being in our hardships, may there be fearlessness for us."

After praying to the gods with these two mantras, he should perform the Agnyuttarana of the nine planetary images.

The Procedure for Cooling the Images:
For the mantra "Agni, I bring the sacrifice...", the sage is Ghrina, the deity is Agni, and the meter is Trishtubh A Vedic meter consisting of four padas of eleven syllables each. This mantra is used for the Agnyuttarana. After bathing the image with the verse containing the word "Agni," one should bathe it again with the verse containing the seven-fold Fire. Thus concludes the Agnyuttarana.

Thereafter, the Preceptor, after making a formal vow of action, begins the preparation in the North-East (Ishanya) corner of the courtyard. He marks a square area measuring one hand-length hasta: approx. 18 inches in each of the four directions, or thirty-four fingers wide...