My research till now has shown that the classical Pravargya ritual is a unique development of ancient India, without any substantial parallels in ancient Iran or in other related ancient ritual systems. It was specifically developed within one Vedic family, but was in the course of time adopted by all Vedic families and schools. On the other hand, the myths that accompany the Pravargya do overlap with Indo-European, especially Celtic, mythic themes regarding a magical pot or cauldron. These themes continued in christianized form in the legends of the Holy Cup or Grail, and they found further artistic expression in the nineteenth century in Richard Wagner's masterpiece Parsifal. Parallels between the ritual-and-myth complexes of ancient India's Pravargya and the Celtic cauldron (and hence the Holy Grail) have been partially recognized in the first decades of the twentieth century, and were happily accepted in the context of the then current racial chauvinism and emerging Nazi mysticism.
Today, in order to arrive at a satisfactory interpretation of the Pravargya ritual and myths, we cannot evade to analyse what happened with their interpretation and their association with the Holy Grail in the first half of the twentieth century. For this we have to delve into one of the least studied episodes of the European "humanities" or "Geisteswissenschaften," which can be expected to continue to have serious difficulties in finding their role and in realizing their capacity in modern times as long as they do not come to terms with that episode.
Is it possible to formulate, on the basis of a detailed study and analysis of primary data, a modern interpretation of the universally attractive and hence immensely powerful symbols of the cup (Pravargya, Holy Grail) and the sun, which is fool-proof against misinterpretation and misuse? Probably not, but the awareness that also in the "humanities" or "Geisteswissenschaften" "pure science" is not always what it seems to be will contribute to alert us at least against the most undesirable configurations of scholarship and political power. Is it, then, possible to pinpoint what made the Pravargya so captivating in Rgvedic times that it was accepted by all Vedic families and came to occupy a crucial place in the classical ritual system? The answer is apparently to be sought in terms of self-referential elements, which may also be underlying in the captivating Holy Grail legends and their later representations.