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==ఆర్య సమాజం==
In the [[Arya Samaj]] reform movement of [[Swami Dayananda]], the Ashvamedha is considered an [[allegory]] or a ritual to get connected to the "inner Sun" ([[Prana]])<ref>as a [[bahuvrihi]], ''saptāśva'' "having seven horses" is another name of the [[Surya|Sun]], referring to the horses of [[sun chariot|his chariot]].; [http://www.akhandjyoti.org/marapr05/article12.html?Akhand-Jyoti/2005/Jul-Aug/Ashvamedha/ akhandjyoti.org] glosses 'ashva' as "the symbol of mobility, valour and strength" and 'medha' as "the symbol of supreme wisdom and intelligence", yielding a meaning of 'ashvamedha' of "he combination of the valour and strength and illumined power of intellect"</ref>
Following Swami Dayananda, Arya Samaj disputes the very existence of the pre-Vedantic ritual; thus [[Swami Satya Prakash Saraswati]] claims that
:"the word in the sense of the Horse Sacrifice does not occur in the Samhitas [...] In the terms of cosmic analogy, ''ashva'' is the Sun. In respect to the ''adhyatma paksha'', the ''Prajapati-Agni'', or the ''[[Purusha]]'', the Creator, is the ''Ashva''; He is the same as the [[Varuna]], the Most Supreme. The word ''[[:wikt:medha|medha]]'' stands for homage; it later on became synonymous with oblations in rituology, since oblations are offered, dedicated to the one whom we pay homage. The word deteriorated further when it came to mean 'slaughter' or 'sacrifice'."<ref>''The Critical and Cultural Study of the Shatapatha Brahmana by Swami Satya Prakash Saraswati'', p. 415</ref>
arguing that the animals listed as sacrificial victims are just as symbolic as the list of human victims listed in the [[Purushamedha]]<ref>ibid., p. 476</ref> (which is generally accepted as a purely symbolic sacrifice already in Rigvedic times). Other commentators accept the existence of the sacrifice but reject the notion that the queen lay down with the dead horse. Thus [[Subhash Kak]] in a blog posting suggests that the queen lay down with a toy horse rather than with the slaughtered stallion, due to presence of the word ''Ashvaka'', similar to ''Shivaka'' meaning "idol or image of Shiva"<ref>{{cite web
| last = Kak
| first = Subhash
| title = Some Things Don't Square Up
| url = http://www.sulekha.com/blogs/blogdisplay.aspx?cid=4549#
| accessdate = 2006-07-31 }}</ref>
[[All World Gayatri Pariwar]] since 1991 has organized performances of a "modern version" of the Ashvamedha where a statue is used in place of a real horse, according to Hinduism Today with a million participants in [[Chitrakoot]], [[Madhya Pradesh]] on April 16 to 20, 1994.<ref>[http://www.hinduismtoday.com/archives/1994/6/1994-6-04.shtml Hinduism Today, June 1994]</ref> Such modern performances are [[sattvika]] [[Yajna]]s where the animal is worshipped without killing it,<ref>[http://www.hindu.com/2005/10/13/stories/2005101316990400.htm Ashwamedha Yagam in city],'''The Hindu'''</ref>, the religious motivation being prayer for overcoming enemies, the facilitation of child welfare and development, and clearance of debt,<ref>[http://www.ashwamedhayaagam.org/whyamy.html Ashwamedhayagnam.org]</ref> entirely within the allegorical interpretation of the ritual, and with no actual sacrifice of any animal, nor any sexual connotations.
==ఆధునిక వ్యాకులత, ప్రచారము==
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