Atharva Veda 12.2.45: Kanda 12, Anuvaka 1, Sukta 2, Mantra 45

Sukta 2

Sanskrit (Devanagari)

जी॒वाना॒मायुः॒ प्र ति॑र॒ त्वम॑ग्ने पितॄ॒णां लो॒कमपि॑ गच्छन्तु॒ ये मृ॒ताः । सु॒गा॒र्ह॒प॒त्यो वि॒तप॒न्नरा॑तिमुषामु॑षां॒ श्रेय॑सीं धेह्य॒स्मै

IAST Transliteration

jīvā́nām ā́yuḥ prá tira tvám agne pitṝṇā́ṃ lokám ápi gacchantu yé mṛtā́ḥ | su-gārhapatyó vi-tápann arātím uṣā́m-uṣām śréyasīṃ dhehy asmáí ||

English Translation (Griffith/Whitney)

Bear thou the life of living men clean through, O Agni; and let the dead depart unto the Fathers’ world. Thou good House-Fire, scorching off malignity, bestow on him, from dawn to dawn, a better, higher weal.

Translation

Trage, o Agni, das Leben der Lebenden unversehrt bis ans Ende; und die Verstorbenen mögen in die Welt der Väter gehen. O guter Gārhapatya, der Bosheit versengt, verleihe ihm, von Morgenröte zu Morgenröte, ein besseres, höheres Heil.

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Word by Word

• जीवानाम्: of the living
• जीवानाम्: सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जीव (प्रातिपदिक) < √जीव्

• आयुः: life-span, vital life
• आयुः: कर्म (object of ‘extend/bring forward’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आयुस् (प्रातिपदिक)

• प्र: forth, forward (intensifier)
• प्र: —
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्र (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)

• तिर: over, beyond; across
• तिर: —
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तिरस्/तिर (अव्यय; ‘across, beyond, over’)

• त्वम्: you
• त्वम्: कर्तृ (agent)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• अग्ने: O Agni
• अग्ने: सम्बोधन
• Type: Noun
• Root: अग्नि (प्रातिपदिक)

• पितॄणाम्: of the Fathers/ancestors
• पितॄणाम्: सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)

• लोकम्: world, realm
• लोकम्: कर्म (goal/object of motion)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक)

• अपि: also; indeed
• अपि: —
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)

• गच्छन्तु: let them go
• गच्छन्तु: क्रिया
• Type: Verb
• Root: √गम् (गच्छ-)

• ये: who (those who)
• ये: कर्तृ (of ‘गच्छन्तु’)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• मृताः: dead, deceased
• मृताः: कर्तृ-विशेषण
• Type: Adjective/Participle
• Root: √मृ (कृदन्त: मृत)

• सुगार्हपत्यः: (Agni) good as the gārhapatya (household fire)
• सुगार्हपत्यः: कर्तृ-विशेषण (of Agni implied)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु- + गार्हपत्य (प्रातिपदिक)

• वितपन्: burning forth; blazing
• वितपन्: कर्तृ-विशेषण (of Agni implied)
• Type: Adjective/Participle
• Root: √तप् (कृदन्त: वितपन्त्; वि-उपसर्ग)

• अरातिम्: harm, hostility, misfortune
• अरातिम्: कर्म (that which is removed/repelled)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अराति (प्रातिपदिक)

• उषाम्: dawn; (a) dawn
• उषाम्: कर्म (object of ‘धेहि’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उषस् (प्रातिपदिक)

• उषाम्: dawn (again; each dawn)
• उषाम्: कर्म (repetition for distributive sense)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उषस् (प्रातिपदिक)

• श्रेयसीम्: better, more auspicious
• श्रेयसीम्: कर्म-विशेषण (of उषाम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्रेयस् (प्रातिपदिक; तुलनात्मक-विशेषण)

• धेहि: place; grant; bestow
• धेहि: क्रिया
• Type: Verb
• Root: √धा

• अस्मै: to this (person), for him
• अस्मै: सम्प्रदान (recipient)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

Attribution

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (funerary corpus)

Devata: Agni (Gārhapatya) with Pitṛs as destination

Chandas: Mixed/expanded Anuṣṭubh-like cadence (as transmitted in AV prose-leaning anuṣṭubh)

Mantra Rasa

Primary: shanta

Secondary: karuna