Nishkraman (niṣkramaṇa): what the Gṛhyasūtras say

When

4th month (Pār, Manu). Gobh/Khād have a moon rite on the third day of the third bright fortnight.

What the texts describe

• Pāraskara Gṛhyasūtra — PārGS 1.17.5–6

  5. caturthe māsi niṣkramaṇikā | 6. sūryam udīkṣayati taccakṣuriti

  5. In the forth month (follows) the going out. 6. He makes (the child) look at the sun, pronouncing (the verse), 'That eye' (Vag. Samhita XXXVI, 24).

  Hermann Oldenberg, The Grihya-Sutras: Rules of Vedic Domestic Ceremonies, Part I, Sacred Books of the East 29 (1886), p. 298. Public domain.

• Gobhila Gṛhyasūtra — GobhGS 2.8.1–7

  1. jananād yas tṛtīyo jyautsnas tasya tṛtīyāyāṃ prātaḥ saśiraskaṃ kumāram āplāvyāstamite vīte lohitimny añjalikṛtaḥ pitopatiṣṭhate | 2. atha mātā śucinā vasanena kumāram ācchādya dakṣiṇata udañcaṃ pitre prayacchaty udakśirasam | 3. anupṛṣṭhaṃ parikramyottarato 'vatiṣṭhate | 4. atha japati yat te susīma iti yathāyaṃ na pramīyeta putro janitryā adhīti | 5. udañcaṃ mātre pradāya yathārtham | 6. atha ye 'ta ūrdhvaṃ jyautsnāḥ prathamoddiṣṭa eva teṣu pitopatiṣṭhate 'pām añjaliṃ pūrayitvābhimukhaś candramasam | 7. yad adaś candramasīti sakṛd yajuṣā dvis tūṣṇīm utsṛjya yathārtham

  1. On the third (Tithi) of the third bright fortnight after his birth, in the morning the father has the child washed, including his head, and after sunset, when the evening-red has disappeared, he worships (the moon), holding up his joined hands. 2. Then the mother, having dressed the son in a clean garment, hands him, from south to north, with his face turned to the north, to the father. 3. She then passes behind his back and stations herself to the north (of her husband). 4. He then murmurs (the three verses), 'Thy heart, O thou whose hair is well parted' (MB. I, 5, 10-12), and after he has, with the words (standing at the end of verse 12), 'That this son may not come to harm (and thus be torn) from his mother'-- 5. Handed him, from south to north, to his mother, they may do what they like. 6. Then in the following bright fortnights (at the time) stated above (Sutra I), the father, filling his joined hands with water and turning his face towards the moon, worships it-- 7. Letting (the water) flow (out of his joined hands) once with the Yagus, 'What in the moon' (MB. I, 5, 13), and twice silently. Then they may do what they like.

  Hermann Oldenberg, The Grihya-Sutras: Rules of Vedic Domestic Ceremonies, Part II, Sacred Books of the East 30 (1892), p. 56–57. Public domain.

• Khādira Gṛhyasūtra — KhādGS 2.3.1–5

  1. jananāt jyautsne tṛtīye tṛtīyāyām prātar snāpya kumāram astamite śāntāsu dikṣu pitā candramasam upatiṣṭhet prāñjaliḥ | 2. śucinā ācchādya mātā prayacchet udak śirasam | 3. anu pṛṣṭham gatvā uttaratas tiṣṭhet | 4. yat te su sīmaḥ iti tisṛbhiḥ upasthāya udañcam mātre pradāya yat adaḥ iti apām añjalim avasiñcet | 5. dvis tūṣṇīm

  1. On the third (Tithi) of the third bright fortnight after his birth, the father should have the child bathed in the morning, and after sunset he should, holding up his joined hands, towards the auspicious directions (of the horizon), worship the moon. 2. The mother, having dressed (the son) in a clean (garment), should hand him, with his face turned to the north, to the father. 3. She then should pass behind (her husband's) back, and should station herself towards the north. 4. After he has performed worship (to the moon) with the three (verses), 'Thy heart, O thou with the well-parted hair' (MB. I, 5, 10 seqq.), and has handed over the son, turning him towards the north, to his mother, he should pour water out of his joined hands with (the verse), 'What in the moon' (l.l. 13). 5. (He should do the same) twice silently.

  Hermann Oldenberg, The Grihya-Sutras: Rules of Vedic Domestic Ceremonies, Part I, Sacred Books of the East 29 (1886), p. 396. Public domain.

• Manusmṛti (Mānava-dharmaśāstra) — Manu 2.34 (Bühler numbering)

  caturthe māsi kartavyaṃ śiśor niṣkramaṇaṃ gṛhāt / ṣaṣṭhe 'nnaprāśanaṃ māsi yad veṣṭaṃ maṅgalaṃ kule

  In the fourth month the Nishkramana (the first leaving of the house) of the child should be performed, in the sixth month the Annaprasana (first feeding with rice), and optionally (any other) auspicious ceremony required by (the custom of) the family.

  Georg Bühler, The Laws of Manu, Sacred Books of the East 25 (1886), p. 36. Public domain.

• Smṛticandrikā (nibandha digest) — Smṛticandrikā, Saṃskārakāṇḍa, "niṣkramaṇam" section (print ed. page marker [56] inside the passage)

  atha niṣkramaṇam tatra manuḥ | caturthe māsi kartavyaṃ śiśor niṣkramaṇaṃ gṛhāt | iti | yasmin janmeti śeṣaḥ | purāṇe 'pi | dvādaśe 'hani kartavyaṃ siśor niṣkramaṇaṃ gṛhāt | [56] caturthe māsi kartavyaṃ tathānyeṣām mataṃ vibho || iti | tataḥ kiṃ kartavyam iti, śaṅkha āha | caturthe māsi kartavyaṃ bālasyād ity adarśanam || iti | yamo 'pi | tatas tṛtīye kartavyaṃ māsi sūryasya darśanam | caturthe māsi kartavyaṃ śiśoś candrasya darśanam || iti | logākṣir api: "tṛtīye māse darśanam ādityasya" iti | atrāpi yathāsvagṛhyaṃ vyavasthā | yeṣāṃ tu śākhinām anāmnātaṃ teṣāṃ tu vikalpa eva | iti smṛticandrikayāṃ niṣkramaṇam

  No public-domain English translation available.

Sanskrit: Oliver Hellwig, Digital Corpus of Sanskrit (DCS), 2010–2021, licensed CC BY 4.0. English: Hermann Oldenberg (trans.), The Grihya-Sutras, Sacred Books of the East 29/30 (1886/1892), public domain, except where marked otherwise.