Atharva Veda 18.3.3: Kanda 18, Anuvaka 1, Sukta 3, Mantra 3

Sukta 3

Sanskrit (Devanagari)

अप॑श्यं युव॒तिं नी॒यमा॑नां जी॒वां मृ॒तेभ्यः॑ परिणी॒यमा॑नाम्। अ॒न्धेन॒ यत् तम॑सा॒ प्रावृ॒तासी॑त् प्रा॒क्तो अपा॑चीमनयं॒ तदे॑नाम्

IAST Transliteration

ápaśyaṃ yuvatíṃ nīyámānāṃ jī́vāṃ mṛtébhyaḥ pariṇīyámānām | andhéna yát támasā prā́vṛt ā́sīt prā́ktaḥ apā́cīm anayaṃ tád enām

English Translation (Griffith/Whitney)

I beheld a young woman, living, being led away from the dead, being escorted forth. When she had been covered with blind darkness, then did I lead her forward from the backward way.

Translation

Ich erblickte eine junge Frau, lebendig, weggeführt von den Toten, hinausgeleitet im Geleit. Als sie von blinder Finsternis umhüllt war, da führte ich sie voran, weg vom rückwärts gerichteten Weg—so leitete ich sie.

Ask anything about this verse...Ask

Word by Word

• अपश्यम्: I saw
• अपश्यम्: Kartā
• Type: Verb
• Root: √पश् (दृश्-अर्थे)

• युवतिम्: a young woman
• युवतिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: युवति- (प्रातिपदिक)

• नीयमानाम्: being led (away)
• नीयमानाम्: Karma
• Type: Participle
• Root: √नी (नयने) + यमाने (शानच्), उपसर्ग: नि-

• जीवाम्: alive
• जीवाम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जीव- (प्रातिपदिक)

• मृतेभ्यः: from the dead (ones)
• मृतेभ्यः: Apādāna
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृत- (√मृ) (प्रातिपदिक)

• परिणीयमानाम्: being led around/being brought (back)
• परिणीयमानाम्: Karma
• Type: Participle
• Root: √नी (नयने) + यमाने (शानच्), उपसर्ग: परि-

• अन्धेन: with blind (dark)
• अन्धेन: Karaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्ध- (प्रातिपदिक)

• यत्: which/that
• यत्: Adhikaraṇa
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्- (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• तमसा: with darkness
• तमसा: Karaṇa
• Type: Noun
• Root: तमस्- (प्रातिपदिक)

• प्रावृत: was covered/veiled
• प्रावृत: Adhikaraṇa
• Type: Participle
• Root: √वृ (आवरणे) + क्त (PPP), उपसर्ग: प्र-आ-

• आसीत्: was
• आसीत्: Kartā
• Type: Verb
• Root: √अस् (भुवि)

• प्राक्तः: turned eastward/forward
• प्राक्तः: Kartā
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्राक्त- (प्रातिपदिक; ‘turned/going eastward/forward’)

• अपाचीम्: to the west/backward direction
• अपाचीम्: Karma
• Type: Noun/Adjective
• Root: अपाची- (प्रातिपदिक)

• अनयम्: I led/followed (led along)
• अनयम्: Kartā
• Type: Verb
• Root: √नी (नयने), उपसर्ग: अनु-

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्- (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• एनाम्: her
• एनाम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: एना- (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

Attribution

Rishi: Pitṛmedha corpus attribution (varies by anukramaṇī)

Devata: Auspicious direction/life opposed to death-darkness; implicitly Mṛtyu is the adversary

Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (with narrative cadence)

Mantra Rasa

Primary: adbhuta

Secondary: shanta