Apri (') in Sanskrit means "conciliation, propitiation" and refers to special invocations spoken previous to the offering of oblations in an

animal sacrifice Animal sacrifice is the ritual killing and offering of one or more animals, usually as part of a religious ritual or to appease or maintain favour with a deity. Animal sacrifices were common throughout Europe and the Ancient Near East until the spr ...

. Some scholars have proposed however, that these hymns were originally meant for a family ritual centered around Agni, which was then later connected to the animal sacrifice.

Aprisuktas

Of the ten Aprisuktas mentioned in Gargya Narayana's commentary, I.13 and I.142 both invoke the and manifestations of Agni, I.188, III.4, IX.5 and X.110 invoke only the manifestation and II.3, V.5, VII.2 and X.70 invoke only the manifestation.

References

*''{{IAST, āprī'' in:

Monier-Williams Sir Monier Monier-Williams (; né Williams; 12 November 1819 – 11 April 1899) was a British scholar who was the second Boden Professor of Sanskrit at Oxford University, England. He studied, documented and taught Asian languages, especially S ...

''A Sanskrit Dictionary'', 1899. *R. Fick, "Gotra" in: ed. Hastings, ''Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics'' vol. 6, 1999
p. 355
*Samir Nath, "Gotra-system" in: ''Dictionary Of Vedanta'', 2002
p. 153
Rigveda Rigvedic deities Fire in Hindu worship Gotras