Atharva Veda 2.24.3: Kanda 2, Anuvaka 3, Sukta 24, Mantra 3
Sukta 24
म्रोकानु॑म्रोक॒ पुन॑र्वो यन्तु या॒तवः॒ पुन॑र्हे॒तिः कि॑मीदिनः । यस्य॒ स्थ तम॑त्त॒ यो वः॒ प्राहै॒त् तम॑त्त॒ स्वा मां॒सान्य॑त्त
mrókā́numróka púnar vo yantu yā́tavaḥ púnar hetíḥ kimī́dinaḥ | yásya sthá tám atta yó vaḥ práhāit tám atta svā́ mā́ṃsāni atta
O Mrok and after-Mrok, back let your sorcerous crew depart; back too the weapon, back the gnawing Kimīdins. Whose ye are, him devour; who hath sent you forth against us, him devour—eat ye your own flesh-meat.
O Mroka und Nach‑Mroka, zurück sollen eure zauberischen Scharen ziehen; zurück auch die Waffe, zurück die nagenden Kimīdins. Wessen ihr seid, den verzehrt; wer euch gegen uns ausgesandt hat, den verzehrt—esst euer eigenes Fleisch.
The meaning
What it says
Mrok and After-Mrok are invoked as named hostile figures; the yātavaḥ, the hostile weapon-stroke (heti), and the gnawing Kimīdins are commanded to return and devour their owner and the sender—eating ‘their own flesh.’
The inner meaning
Naming the threat (“Mrok/Anu-Mrok”) externalizes and limits it; the mind ceases to ruminate and instead asserts a legalistic reversal: what is projected outward rebounds inward.
The truth in it
To name a fear is to reduce its power; disciplined speech can reverse cycles of aggression by refusing to host them.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Abhicarika (Counter-sorcery / Apotropaic reversal)
Its aim
To repel yātu/kimīdin-based affliction and to reverse a magically sent attack back upon its sender/owner.
Word by Word
Pada patha
म्रोक-अनु॑-म्रोक । पुनः॑ । वः॒ । यन्तु । या॒तवः॒ । पुनः॑ । हे॒तिः । कि॑मीदिनः । यस्य॑ । स्थ । तम् । अत्त । यः । वः॒ । प्र-अहै॒त् । तम् । अत्त । स्वाः । मां॒सानि । अत्त
- म्रोकानु
- the ‘mroka’ pests/creatures, along with (others)Nounपुंलिङ्ग (अनुमान), द्वितीया, बहुवचन (समूह-निर्देश)Role कर्मRoot म्रोक (प्रातिपदिक; कीट/कृमि-नाम) + अनु (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) (समास/योग)
- म्रोक
- mroka pests/creaturesa devouring/gnawing demon or noxious being (a class-name of flesh-eaters; used apotropaically as a vocative/label)Nounपुंलिङ्ग (अनुमान), द्वितीया, बहुवचन/एकवचन (पाठभेद-संभव; यहाँ पुनरुक्ति-बल)Role कर्मRoot म्रोक (प्रातिपदिक; कीट/कृमि-नाम)
- पुनः
- again/backback, again (i.e., return to your own place; reversal of approach)Indeclinableअव्ययRoot पुनः (अव्यय)
- वः
- of you / to youof you, your (addressing the hostile beings collectively)Pronounषष्ठी/चतुर्थी, बहुवचन (एन्क्लिटिक ‘वः’)Role सम्बन्ध/सम्प्रदान (संदर्भानुसार)Root युष्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- यन्तु
- let them golet them go; let them depart (injunctive/imperative of motion used for expulsion)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचनRoot या (धातु) → यान्ति/यन्तु
- यातवः
- the yātus (harmful beings/witchcraft-agents)the yātus: sorcerous beings/witchcraft-agents; hostile magical entitiesNounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot यातु (प्रातिपदिक; ‘यातु’ = जादू/राक्षस/हानिकर प्राणी) → यातव (बहुवचन-प्रातिपदिक)
- पुनः
- again/backback again (reiterated banishment; sealing the dismissal)Indeclinableअव्ययRoot पुनः (अव्यय)
- हेतिः
- the weapon/strikemissile/weapon; here the ‘hurtful stroke’ or attacking force personifiedNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot हेति (प्रातिपदिक; ‘missile/weapon; hurt/strike’)
- किम्
- what?Pronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRoot किम् (सर्वनाम)
- ईदिनः
- the attackers/afflictersAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole कर्तृ (विशेषण-रूपेण)Root ईदिन् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘injuring/attacking’—वेदिक विशेषण) अथवा ईड्/ईद्-सम्बद्ध
- यस्य
- whosewhose, of whom (introducing the one to whom the demons belong/with whom they are allied)Pronounषष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्धRoot यद् (सर्वनाम)
- स्थः
- standing / stationedAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (सम्बोधन/निर्देश-संभव)Role कर्तृ (विशेषण)Root स्था (धातु) → स्थ (कृदन्त/विशेषण ‘standing’)
- तम्
- him/that onehim, that one (the hostile owner/instigator)Pronounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्मRoot तद् (सर्वनाम)
- अत्त
- eat/devoureat! devour! (imperative; turning the devourers back upon their source)Verbलोट्/लङ्-रूपसदृश (वेदिक आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचनRoot अद् (धातु) → अत्त
- यः
- whoPronounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot यद् (सर्वनाम)
- वः
- of you / to youyou (accus./gen. in address; ‘against you/at you’ in sense with the verb of sending)Pronounषष्ठी/चतुर्थी, बहुवचन (एन्क्लिटिक)Role सम्बन्ध/सम्प्रदानRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- प्राहैट्
- struck/assailedVerbलङ् (अनद्यतन भूत), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनRoot प्र + आ + हि (धातु ‘to impel/strike’—वेदिक) / अथवा प्र + आ + हन् (पाठभेद-संभव)
- तम्
- him/that onehim (the sender/instigator)Pronounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्मRoot तद् (सर्वनाम)
- अत्त
- eat/devoureat! devour! (repeated command; ritual ‘rebound’ of harm)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचनRoot अद् (धातु) → अत्त
- स्वा
- one’s ownAdjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्ग/स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन (पाठ-रूप ‘स्वा’ = ‘स्वानि/स्वानि’ का वेदिक संक्षेप)Role कर्म (अगले पद के साथ)Root स्व (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक; ‘own’)
- मांसानि
- flesh (pieces)fleshes (the tangible substance of the victim; also a trope for total consumption/destruction)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचनRole कर्मRoot मांस (प्रातिपदिक)
- अत्त
- eat/devoureat! devour! (final sealing imperative; consummation of reversal)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचनRoot अद् (धातु) → अत्त
Sandhi Notes
- पाठ में ‘म्रोकानु॑म्रोक’ को ‘म्रोकानु म्रोक’ (पुनरुक्ति/अनु-योग) रूपेण लिया गया। ‘पुन॑र्हे॒तिः’ = ‘पुनः हेतिः’। ‘कि॑मीदिनः’ को ‘किम् ईदिनः’ (सन्धि-विच्छेद) माना गया। ‘प्राहै॒त्’ को ‘प्र-आ-हैट्/हेट्’ (वेदिक धातु/पाठभेद) रूपेण ग्रहण किया गया। अंतिम ‘स्वा मां॒सान्य॑त्त’ = ‘स्वा मांसानि अत्त’ (स्वा < स्वानि का वेदिक संक्षेप; मांसानि + अत्त में य्-आगम/सन्धि-लोप के साथ पाठरूप)।
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Atharvanic/Angirasa tradition (as typical for anti-yātu material; specific attribution depends on Anukramaṇī tradition).
- Devata
- Apotropaic address to yātavaḥ/kimīdin-s and the personified heti (hostile stroke).
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh (probable; requires full pada-count verification against a critical text).
- Rasa
- Raudra and Vira
Sāyaṇa takes the addressed beings as yātudhāna-like devourers and kimīdin-s as wasting, gnawing agents (whether worms or demonized disease-causes). The repeated ‘punaḥ’ is expulsion and reversal. ‘Heti’ is the hostile stroke/weapon (including magically projected harm). The core karman is pratiprasava—turning the attack back: the devourers are commanded to consume the very person to whom they belong (‘yasya stha’) and the one who dispatched them (‘yo vaḥ prāhait’). ‘svā māṃsāni’ is glossed as ‘your own rightful portion,’ i.e., the sender’s flesh becoming their due prey.
Atharvan/Āṅgiras (anti-yātu hymn tradition; specific verse seer varies by anukramaṇī)
Rakṣoghna and abhicāra-pratīkara formulas; mastery of naming-and-binding (nāma-grahaṇa) as a magical technique.
Shows the Atharvanic method: identify the hostile current by name, then compel its reversal through brahman—speech as binding law.
Mrok/Anu-Mrok (named hostile powers) under the coercion of brahman; addressed along with yātavaḥ/hetí/kīmīdin
Represents recurring malefic sequences; the mantra’s role is to interrupt recurrence and send it back.
Breaks perceived cycles of relapse or ‘second strike’ after an initial harm.
Stops follow-on attacks (anu-) by forcing retreat at the first boundary.
4×8 (approx.); refrain stabilizes meter despite obscure names (mrokānumroka).
Name-compounds can create heavy clusters; reciters often maintain cadence by crisp segmentation (mrokā | anu-mroka).
Incantatory; the opening name-pair creates a ‘hook,’ followed by steady recoil commands.
Builds a sense of identification then expulsion; effective for repeated recitation.
The Atharvan priest prepares a protective boundary for the patient/householder (often by circumambulation and delimiting the space).
Reciting this mantra, he performs an expulsion gesture (casting away to the quarters), synchronizing each ‘punaḥ’ with a dismissive motion.
He then performs the ‘reversal’ act: symbolically ‘sending back’ the harm (e.g., by throwing away a clod/ashes/effigy or directing breath/spittle outward, depending on local prayoga).
The final imperatives ‘atta… atta… atta’ are spoken as a binding command, fixing the transfer of the affliction onto the aggressor (the presumed sender/owner).
Kauśika Sūtra: counter-sorcery (yātu/kimīdin-pratiṣedha) section; exact sūtra numbering varies by edition (Keśava/Caland).
Atharvan/Brahman as apotropaic operator: identifies the hostile agency, expels it, and ritually redirects its force (pratiprasava) away from the client and onto the instigator.
Spoken when a household suspects repeated ‘hits’—misfortune that returns in waves; recited over the patient and at entryways.
At the moment of perceived recurrence; also on consecutive evenings as a ‘closing’ practice.
Householder or atharvanic specialist; may pair with a boundary-marking act (drawing a line, circling).
Kauśika: pratyāvartana/rakṣoghna sections for yātu/kṛtyā-type harms (exact citation to be fixed by hymn rubric).
Used as a protective refrain against recurring intimidation; best combined with practical safety steps.
hetí (weapon/hostile stroke, personified); kimīdin (gnawing pest/worm as disease-agent); māṃsa (flesh, as trope of total consumption)
The mantra uses ‘weapon’ and ‘flesh’ as totalizing metaphors: harm is a launched object; vitality is the ultimate stake. No herb is needed because the operative substance is vāc itself.
Bewitchment-like affliction with recurrence/after-effects; gnawing/wasting ‘kimīdin’ conditions; psychosomatic relapse anxiety.
Flesh (māṃsa) as total bodily integrity.
Interruptive naming + reversal (pratyāvartana). The ‘after-attack’ (anu-) is explicitly targeted, suggesting relapse-prevention logic.
Āgantuka/bhūtābhiṣaṅga framing; relapse/anuvṛtti parallels chronicity where external triggers are blamed; ‘gnawing’ resonates with krimi imagery.
Relapse anxiety, panic after an initial event, rumination; the ‘second wave’ phenomenon after stressors.
Named hostile agencies (Mrok/Anu-Mrok) and the human sender (implicit).
Counter-sorcery with explicit targeting of primary and secondary (‘after-’) attack; return-to-sender devouring.
Nāma-grahaṇa (naming) + pratyāvartana (return) + ownership-test (yasya stha…) + coercive devouring imperative (atta).
Recurrence, follow-on bewitchment, devouring afflictions.
- म्रोक (mrok)
- specific, personalized sorcery—‘the named curse’ or signature attack
- अनु-म्रोक (anu-mrok)
- secondary waves of harm—after-effects, lingering recurrence
- यातवः (yātavaḥ)
- mobile malefic agencies, intrusive influences
- किमीदिनः (kīmīdinaḥ)
- wasting/consuming disease-forces; parasitic ‘chewing’ affliction
- प्र-अहैत् (prāhait)
- intentional projection of harm; the ‘dispatch’ of a curse
- स्वाः मांसानि (svā māṃsāni)
- total recoil: the perpetrator’s own vitality becomes the target
Cutting the ‘second wave’: notice recurrence patterns and refuse identification with them.
maṇipūra
Two-part practice: inhale naming (mrokānumroka), exhale expelling (punaḥ…yantu / atta).
Two shadow-forms detach from your field and are pulled back along a cord to their origin; your aura seals.
Steady vigilance without hyperarousal.
After chanting, sit briefly in quiet to prevent the mind from re-latching onto the named threat.
Maintain padapāṭha accents; keep the opening name-compound clearly segmented to avoid slurring.
Stress the name-pair first, then keep a consistent refrain accent on yantu/heti/kīmīdinaḥ/atta.
Commanding, clipped diction at the opening; steady force through the refrain.
Name-invocation is part of the binding; do not omit the opening even if obscure—its obscurity is itself typical of Atharvanic ‘secret names’.
7 times
Repeated misfortune, recurring nightmares, sense of ‘second hit’ after an initial problem; culturally framed recurring bewitchment.
At recurrence; before sleep during a streak of repeated disturbances.
Sense of interruption and closure; reduced recurrence anxiety; protective framing.
If recurrence involves real-world threats, prioritize practical protection/legal help; use mantra as supportive, not substitutive.
No explicit herb is named in this verse; efficacy is achieved through verbal coercion and juridical ‘reversal’ logic. The ‘substance’ is conceptual—hetí (attack) and kimīdin (wasting agent) are treated as manipulable entities. In applied ritual, practitioners often pair such verses with tangible media (ashes, clods, effigies), but the mantra itself operates without a stated botanical correlate.
The verse presumes a specialist who can diagnose misfortune as externally ‘sent’ (prāhait) and can authoritatively command hostile beings. This reflects the Atharvan priest’s social function as domestic protector and counter-sorcerer, mediating unseen aggression within competitive social relations (neighbors/rivals) while maintaining the client’s ritual purity and security.
The diction is characteristically Atharvanic in its direct imprecatory imperatives (‘atta’ repeated) and in demonological cataloguing (mrok/kimīdin/yātavaḥ). The legalistic reversal formula (‘yasya stha… yo… prāhait…’) is more typical of Atharvavedic counter-magic than of most Rigvedic praise-hymn syntax, though the relative-correlative structure itself is inherited.
Gopatha-style Atharvan theology generally grounds efficacy in brahman (formulated speech) and in the priest’s correct deployment of mantras as instruments that bind and redirect hostile forces. While a specific Gopatha citation for this exact verse must be checked in the relevant adhyāya, the operative principle aligns with Gopatha’s recurrent theme: properly uttered Atharvan speech compels malevolent agencies and restores order by transferring harm back to its source.
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