# यजमान (yajamāna)

Canonical page: https://sanskritlexicon.com/word/yajamana

यजमान (yajamāna) is a Sanskrit word meaning sacrificing or worshipping, the person who sponsors or pays for a sacrifice, the wife of a sacrificial sponsor, any patron, host, rich man, or head of a family or tribe, worshipping or sacrificing, a patron, host, householder, or head of a family. Its 17 recorded definitions are grouped into 4 contexts, among them Institutor/Sponsor/Performer of Sacrifice (Noun), Patron, Host, or Leader (Noun), Engaged in Sacrifice/Worship (Adjective).

- **Etymology:** E. यज् to worship, शानच् aff. of the present participle — E. yaj to worship, śānac aff. of the present participle
- **SLP1:** `yajamAna`  **IAST:** yajamāna  **Devanagari:** यजमान
- **Wikipedia:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yajamana
- **Declensions:** 48 forms — https://sanskritlexicon.com/word/yajamana/declensions.md
- **Other headwords romanised the same way:** याजमान (yājamāna)

## Meanings by context

### Institutor/Sponsor/Performer of Sacrifice (Noun) (9 definitions)
- 1. The person who sponsors or pays for a sacrifice. 2. The wife of a sacrificial sponsor.  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > यजमान (yajamāna) m. the person paying the cost of a sacrifice, the institutor of a s° (who to perform it employs a priest or priests, who are often hereditary functionaries in a family), ŚBr. &c. &c. ( f( ई (ī) ). the wife of a Y°, BhP. ) [ ID=169142 ]
- A person who performs a regular sacrifice and pays its expenses  
  *Apte Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > — नः (naḥ) 1 A person who performs a regular sacrifice and pays its expenses; Raghuvaṃśa (Bombay) 18. 12
- A person who employs a priest to sacrifice for them.  
  *Apte Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > — नः (naḥ) 2 A person who employs a priest or priests to sacrifice for him
- 1. Sacrificing. 2. The institutor of a sacrifice who pays its expenses. 3. A wealthy man.  
  *Macdonell Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > यजमान (yajamāna) [Printed book page 238-1 ] यजमान (yajamāna) yája-māna, pr. pt. sacrificing; m. institutor of a sacrifice ( who pays its expense ); man capable of paying the expenses of a sacrifice, wealthy man: -bhāgá, m. share of the institutor of a sacrifice; -loka, m. world of sacrificers. [ ID=14640 ]
- 1. Worshipping. 2. The sponsor or patron of a sacrifice who employs priests and pays for the ceremony.  
  *Wilson Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > यज (yaja) मान (yajamāna) [Printed book page 678 ] यज (yaja) मान (yajamāna) mfn. ( - नः (-naḥ)- ना - नं (-naḥ-nā-naṃ) ) Worshipping. m. ( - नः (-naḥ) ) An employer of priests at a sacrifice, the person who institutes its performance, and pays the expence of it. E. यज (yaja) to worship, शानच् (śānac) aff. of the present participle, with मक् (mak) augment. [ ID=31160 ]
- 1. One who institutes and pays for a sacrifice. 2. A patron, rich man, or host.  
  *Vaidya Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > यजमान (yajamāna) [Printed book page 589-12 ] यजमान (yajamāna) m. 1. A person who institutes a regular sacrifice and pays its expenses; 2. one who employs priests to perform a sacrifice for his behoof; 3. a patron, a rich man, a host. [ ID=31115 ]
- 1. Worshipping. 2. The person who commissions and pays for a sacrifice. 3. A patron or host.  
  *Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > यजमान (yajamāna) [Printed book page 582-a ] यजमान (yajamāna) mfn. ( - नः (-naḥ)- ना - नं (-naḥ-nā-naṃ) ) Worshipping. m. ( - नः (-naḥ) ) 1. An employer of priests at sacrifice, the person who institutes its performance, and pays the expence of it. 2. A patron, a host. E. यज् (yaj) to worship, शानच् (śānac) aff. of the present participle, with मक् (mak) augment. [ ID=32361 ]
- 1. One who institutes or pays for a sacrifice. 2. A sacrificer.  
  *Cappeller Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > यजमान (yajamāna) [Printed book page 424 ] यजमान (yajamāna) m. a person who institutes or performs a sacrifice and pays the expenses of it; also sacrificer, Brahman i.g. [ ID=25555 ]
- 1. Worshipping or sacrificing. 2. A person who institutes a sacrifice and pays for it, or who employs priests for religious ceremonies. 3. A patron, host, householder, or head of a family. 4. Female: the wife of a sacrificer.  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1872)*
  > यजमान (yajamāna) [Printed book page 0802-a ] Yajamāna, as, ā, am, worshipping, sacrificing, &c. ( as ), m. a person who institutes or performs a regular sacrifice and pays the expences of it, a person who employs a priest or priests to perform a sacrifice or any fixed or occasional religious cere- monies, any person who intends performing or is able to bear the cost of a regular sacrifice; a patron, host, rich man, householder, respectable person, gentleman, (as the person who employs priests to sacrifice is generally a householder, the title Yajamāna has come to signify in modern times ‘the head of a family,’ ‘chief of a caste or tribe,’ ‘head man of a community;’ the family priest employed by a Yajamāna is sometimes an hereditary functionary, and cannot be dismissed as long as he performs his functions efficiently); ( ī ), f. the wife of a Yajamāna. —Yajamāna-tva, am, n. the rank or position of a Yajamāna. —Yajamāna-brāhmaṇa, am, n., Ved. the Brāhmaṇa of the Yajamāna. —Yajamāna-loka, Page0802-b+ 81 as, m. the world or heaven of sacrificers. —Yaja- māna-śiṣya, as, m. the pupil of a Brāhman who defrays the expences of a sacrifice. [ ID=38295 ]

### Patron, Host, or Leader (Noun) (4 definitions)
- any patron, host, rich man, or head of a family or tribe  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > यजमान (yajamāna) m. any patron, host, rich man, head of a family or tribe, Pañcat. [ ID=169143 ]
- A host, patron, or rich man  
  *Apte Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > — नः (naḥ) 3 (Hence) A host, patron, rich man
- The head of a family  
  *Apte Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > — नः (naḥ) 4 The head of a family
- The head of a tribe.  
  *Apte Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > — नः (naḥ) 5 The head of a tribe

### Engaged in Sacrifice/Worship (Adjective) (3 definitions)
- sacrificing or worshipping  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (H2) [Printed book page 839,1] यजमान (yajamāna) mfn. sacrificing, worshipping &c. [ ID=169141 ]
- Sacrificing, worshipping  
  *Apte Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > यजमान (yajamāna) [Printed book page 0883-c ] यजमान (yajamāna) a. [ यज् - शानच् (yaj-śānac) ] Sacrificing, worshipping
- Sacrificing or employing priests to sacrifice  
  *Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > यजमान (yajamāna) [Printed book page 607-b ] यजमान (yajamāna) ( नः - ना - नं ) ((naḥ-nā-naṃ)) a. Sacrificing, employing priests to sacrifice. [ ID=30714 ]

### Specific Contexts or Related Terms (1 definition)
- the man who installs a new image  
  *The Purana Index*
  > यजमान (yajamāna) [Printed book page 3-003 ] Yajamāna — the man who installs a new image, becomes part of the deity; the presiding deity is Ugra. M. 265. 38, 41. [ ID=11132 ]

## Sources

Definitions from Apte Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Cappeller Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Macdonell Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1872); Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899); Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English Dictionary; The Purana Index; Vaidya Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Wilson Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary.
Text from the Cologne Digital Sanskrit Lexicon, University of Cologne.

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