We have already seen in section 4.2 that Jainas emphasize careful speech using the ordinary, not figurative, meanings of words. Mīmāṃsā has a similar emphasis on correct speech, especially in the context of Vedic rituals. The utterances of mantras—parts of the Veda which accompany ritual practice—had to be performed precisely in order to guarantee the efficacy of the procedure (and mispronunciation in a ritual context was equal to sinful lying). Thus the study of grammatical rules was important, as these included pronunciation and modification of words to fit a new context (declining nouns into the plural, adjusting utterances to incorporate different deity names, and so forth). Further, grammar was a corrective to ordinary use, which is only an imperfect a guide to correct interpretation of Vedic words. Distinguishing between commands in the primary sense of words and figurative language exhortations was also crucial for Mīmāṃsā, since the proper interpretation of the latter was relevant for the performance of the ritual. For example, the exhortation, “The grass-bedding is the ritual patron” (TV 1.4.13) is a case of secondary meaning of the qualitative type (gauṇavṛtti), which praises the central role of the ritual patron. Kumārila observes that misunderstanding this meaning would lead to absurdity, since the grass-bedding (a woven mat of grass on which ritual implements are placed) is burned up—and taking the phrase literally would mean putting an early stop to the ritual process if the patron himself were burned (Harikai 2017).