Sukta 18
Rishi: Atharvanic seer (often anonymous/Angirasa in anukramaṇī for such charms; varies).
Devata: Oṣadhi/Vanaspati (plant-power) as operative deity
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (typical for compact domestic charms)
AV 3.18 এটা সংক্ষিপ্ত আথৰ্বণিক মন্ত্র-চৰ্ম, য’ত ওষধি/বনস্পতিৰ শক্তি আৰু বশীকৰণধৰ্মী মন্ত্রবল ব্যৱহাৰ কৰি প্ৰতিদ্বন্দ্বী সহধৰ্মিণীক বহিষ্কাৰ কৰা হয় আৰু একান্ত দাম্পত্য-আসক্তি নিশ্চিত কৰা হয়। ইয়াত এটা ব্যৱহাৰিক বিধি (শক্তিশালী ঔষধি খুঁদি উলিয়াই প্ৰয়োগ কৰা)ৰ সৈতে সামাজিক-স্থানিক আধিপত্যৰ সূত্ৰ (“মই ওপৰত; সি তলত”) আৰু মন-নিয়ন্ত্ৰণকাৰী চিত্ৰকল্প সংযোজিত—যাৰ ফলত স্বামীৰ স্নেহ পানী নিজৰ গতিপথে বোৱাৰ দৰে কৰ্ত্ৰীৰ দিশলৈ ধাৱিত হয়।
Kind of charm
Mantras
Mantra 1
वनस्पतिः। इ॒मां ख॑ना॒म्योष॑धिं वी॒रुधां॒ बल॑वत्तमाम्। यया॑ स॒पत्नीं॒ बाध॑ते॒ यया॑ संवि॒न्दते॒ पति॑म्
হে বনস্পতিঃ! মই এই ঔষধি খুঁদি উলিয়াওঁ—বীৰুধাসকলৰ ভিতৰত আটাইতকৈ বলৱতী। যাৰ দ্বাৰা সপত্নীক বাধা দি দূৰ কৰা যায়, যাৰ দ্বাৰা স্বামীক লাভ কৰি পোৱা যায়।
Mantra 2
उत्ता॑नपर्णे॒ सुभ॑गे॒ देव॑जूते॒ सह॑स्वति । स॒पत्नीं॑ मे॒ परा॑ णुद॒ पतिं॑ मे॒ केव॑लं कृधि
হে উত্তানপৰ্ণে, সুভগে, দেবজূতে, সহস্বতি! মোৰ সপত্নীক দূৰলৈ খেদাই দে; মোৰ স্বামীক কেৱল মোৰেই কৰি দে।
Mantra 3
न॒हि ते॒ नाम॑ ज॒ग्राह॒ नो अ॒स्मिन् र॑मसे॒ पतौ॑ । परा॑मे॒व प॑रा॒वतं॑ स॒पत्नीं॑ गमयामसि
সঁচাকৈ, তোৰ নাম এই আমাৰ আনন্দৰ স্বামীৰ ওপৰত ধৰা নপৰে; তই এই স্বামীত ৰম নকৰ। দূৰলৈ—অতি দূৰ, পৰাৱত দেশলৈ—আমি সপত্নীক পঠাই দিওঁ।
Mantra 4
उत्त॑रा॒हमु॑त्तर॒ उत्त॒रेदुत्त॑राभ्यः । अ॒धः स॒पत्नी॒ या ममाध॑रा॒ साध॑राभ्यः
মই উচ্চ; মই অধিক উচ্চ। উচ্চসকলৰ ওপৰলৈ মই উঠোঁ। তলত থাকক মোৰ সপত্নী—যি মোৰতকৈ অধম—তলত, অধমসকলৰ মাজত।
Mantra 5
अ॒हम॑स्मि॒ सह॑मा॒नाथो॒ त्वम॑सि सास॒हिः । उ॒भे सह॑स्वती भू॒त्वा स॒पत्नीं॑ मे सहावहै
মই প্ৰভুৰ বাবে জয়-সহায়স্বৰূপ; তুমি শক্তিশালী আক্রমণকাৰী। আমি দুয়ো সহন-জয়শক্তিত সমৃদ্ধ হৈ, মোৰ সতিনীক পৰাভূত কৰি, বিজয়-ভাৰ বহি আনোঁ।
Mantra 6
अ॒भि ते॑ऽधां॒ सह॑माना॒मुप॑ तेऽधां॒ सही॑यसीम्। मामनु॒ प्र ते॒ मनो॑ व॒त्सं गौरि॑व धावतु प॒था वारि॑व धावतु
তোমাৰ বিৰুদ্ধে মই এক দমনকাৰী শক্তি স্থাপন কৰোঁ; তোমাৰ ওপৰত মই তাতোকৈও অধিক বলৱতী শক্তি স্থাপন কৰোঁ। গাই যেন নিজৰ বাছুৰ পিছে পিছে দৌৰে, তেনেকৈ তোমাৰ মন মোৰ পিছে আগবাঢ়ি দৌৰক; পানী যেন নিজৰ পথেদি বেগেৰে বয়, তেনেকৈ ই নিজৰ পথেদি দৌৰক।
Inside Sukta 18
How it unfolds
- How it opens
Begins by addressing Vanaspati and asserting the retrieval of a uniquely strong herb from the earth as the rite’s material foundation.
- What it asks
Drive away the saptnī (rival-wife) and secure the husband—both socially (rank) and psychologically (mind/attachment).
- Where its power lies
The operator declares superiority (‘I am higher’) and sets overpowering sahas (coercive force) upon the target, making the husband’s manas move irresistibly toward her like water on its path.
- How it closes
Ends with a binding directional command: the mind is ordered to follow the operator, sealing the outcome through natural analogies (cow-calf, water-flow) that present the compulsion as inevitable.
Famous verses
yayā sapatnīṃ bādhate yayā saṃvindate patim
uttarāham uttara
māmanu pra te mano ... pathā vāriv dhāvatu
Kind of hymn
Strīkarmāṇi (Women’s Rites) / Abhicārika (Rival-subduing)
What it is for
To expel or demote the rival co-wife and to bind the husband/lover’s attention and preference exclusively to the ritual performer/client.
Who it is for
Householders—especially a wife (or her female kin/ritual helper) seeking precedence, exclusivity, and protection against a rival within a polygynous or contested domestic setting.
Also used as
- Strīkarmāṇi (women’s rites)
- Ākarṣaṇa (attraction/attachment)
- Stambhana/Abhibhava (subduing, overmastering)
The deity
The hymn treats the living potency of plants—especially a dug-up charm-herb—as an intelligent, commandable force that can dislodge a rival and re-route desire and loyalty. Vanaspati functions as the lord and amplifier of vegetal power, while the mantra targets manas (mind) as the controllable seat of attachment.
Powers of the deity
- Bestowing victory in domestic rivalry (saptnī-bādhana)
- Compelling and redirecting manas (affection/attention)
- Raising the operator’s rank and lowering the rival (symbolic ‘upper/lower’ control)
- Securing exclusive marital possession and household stability for the client
- Acting through contact-magic: dug herb, touched earth, and spoken formula
Why the deity is called
Invoked to ‘activate’ the strongest herb among creepers, making it an instrument to drive away the rival-wife and to make the husband’s mind reliably return to the operator.
The seer
- Atharvanic (Angirasa-type) seer (anonymous in practice)Atharvan. Domestic abhicāra and strīkarmāṇi: rival-subduing, attraction/attachment (ākarṣaṇa), and status-precedence charms using herbs, knots, and spoken compulsion
Other hymns of this seer
- AV 3.19 (related domestic charm-cycle context)
- AV 6.8 (saptnī-bādhana / rival-woman themes in later books)
- AV 6.130 (ākarṣaṇa / mind-turning type formulas, thematic parallels)
Preparing for the rite
- Select a potent oṣadhi (unnamed in the text) identified as ‘strongest of the creepers’; approach a living patch rather than dried stock.
- Purify by bathing and keeping silence briefly; set intention: ‘rival below, husband toward me’.
- Dig with a clean implement (wood/stone/iron as locally available), taking some surrounding earth as the herb’s ‘seat’ of power.
The rite
- Recite 3.18.1 while digging up and lifting the herb, explicitly naming its rival-expelling and husband-winning function.
- Deploy the ‘upper/lower’ formula (cf. 3.18.4) while placing the herb in a ‘higher’ position (on the person, bed, threshold, or hair-knot) and imagining the rival ‘below’.
- Recite the mind-compulsion verse (cf. 3.18.6) while touching the husband’s seat/garment/bed-space or while wearing the herb as a concealed charm, directing his manas to ‘run after me’.
- Conclude by keeping the herb secured (knot/packet) and maintaining the operator’s ‘upper’ placement in household space (seat, sleeping side, threshold precedence).
What it needs
- Oṣadhi/vanaspati (a charm-herb, preferably freshly dug)
- A little earth from the herb’s root-site
- Cloth packet or cord for tying (amulet-bundle)
- Optional: water for sprinkling and ‘flow’ symbolism aligned with the mantra
When
Traditionally performed at a liminal domestic time (dawn/evening) or before conjugal reunion; practically, when rivalry is active and the husband is expected to return home.
The main substance
Oṣadhi (a freshly dug charm-herb)
Herbs
- Unnamed oṣadhi described as ‘vīrudhāṃ balavattamā’ (strongest among creepers)
Amulets
- Herb-bundle tied in cloth
- Cord/knot for fastening the herb on the body, hair, bed, or threshold
How it is prepared
Dig up the herb with some root-earth; wrap and tie it as a small concealed packet; place/wear it in a ‘higher’ position while reciting the relevant verses to align material placement with the ‘upper/lower’ command.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is used to subdue or expel a rival co-wife and to secure the husband’s exclusive attachment to the client, using a dug-up charm-herb plus spoken compulsion formulas.
In Atharvanic practice, plants are treated as living power. The herb functions as the physical carrier of the mantra’s intent—especially effective for domestic rivalry where a tangible charm is desired.
They are ritualized social directions: ‘higher’ signals precedence and authority for the operator, while ‘below’ symbolically pushes the rival into inferiority and exclusion within household space and status.
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