Sukta 122
Rishi: Atharvanic/Aṅgirasa tradition (requires Anukramaṇī check).
Devata: Indra (marutvat) as boon-granter; implicitly the consecratory power of abhiṣeka.
Chandas: Likely Anuṣṭubh (requires metrical verification against full pada-count).
Dieser Hymnus verknüpft die Ethik des dāna (Schenkens), den aufwärts führenden „Faden“ der Ahnenverdienste und den himmelwärts drängenden Impuls des yajña und mündet in eine abhiṣeka-artige Weihe, die Indra-mit-den-Maruts um die Gewährung der ersehnten Gabe bittet. Seine Kraft liegt darin, sozial-religiöses Handeln (Geben, priesterliche Vermittlung, Opfer) mit einem konsekratorischen Akt (Besprengung) zu synchronisieren, der Wohlstand, Schutz und glückverheißenden Rang besiegelt. So fungiert die Sūkta als paustika-saṃskāra-Zauber: Sie autorisiert Erfolg im Diesseits und einen gesicherten Weg darüber hinaus, unter brahmanischer ritueller Obhut.
Kind of charm
Mantras
Mantra 1
तृतीयो नाकः। ए॒तं भा॒गं परि॑ ददामि वि॒द्वान् विश्व॑कर्मन् प्रथम॒जा ऋ॒तस्य॑ । अ॒स्माभि॑र्द॒त्तं ज॒रसः॑ प॒रस्ता॒दच्छि॑न्नं॒ तन्तु॒मनु॒ सं त॑रेम
Der dritte Himmel: diesen Anteil gebe ich, der Wissende, hin — o Viśvakarman, Erstgeborener des ṛta (der Ordnung). Was von uns gegeben ist, jenseits des Alters: entlang des ungerissenen Fadens mögen wir ganz hinübergehen.
Mantra 2
त॒तं तन्तु॒मन्वेके॑ तरन्ति॒ येषां॑ द॒त्तं पित्र्य॒माय॑नेन । अ॒ब॒न्ध्वेके॒ दद॑तः प्र॒यच्छ॑न्तो॒ दातुं॒ चेच्छिक्षा॒न्त्स स्व॒र्ग ए॒व
Am gespannten Faden gehen manche hinüber – jene, denen nach dem Weg der Väter die Gabe zuteil wird. Andere aber, auch ohne Sippe, gebend und austeilend – wenn sie zu geben lernen wollen, ist für sie wahrlich der Himmel (svarga).
Mantra 3
अ॒न्वार॑भेथामनु॒संर॑भेथामे॒तं लो॒कं श्र॒द्दधा॑नाः सचन्ते । यद् वां॑ प॒क्वं परि॑विष्टम॒ग्नौ तस्य॒ गुप्त॑ये दम्पती॒ सं श्र॑येथाम्
Ergreift danach, ergreift gemeinsam: im Glauben halten sie sich an diese Welt. Was von euch beiden gekocht und in Agni niedergelegt ist – zu seinem Schutz, o Ehepaar, sucht gemeinsam Zuflucht (dort).
Mantra 4
य॒ज्ञं यन्तं॒ मन॑सा बृ॒हन्त॑म॒न्वारो॑हामि॒ तप॑सा॒ सयो॑निः । उप॑हूता अग्ने ज॒रसः॑ प॒रस्ता॑त् तृ॒तीये॒ नाके॑ सध॒मादं॑ मदेम
Das Opfer, das voranschreitet, groß an Geist – darauf steige ich, mit Tapas, wesensgleich (mit ihm). Gerufen, o Agni, jenseits des Alters, mögen wir im dritten Himmel beim gemeinsamen Mahl uns freuen.
Mantra 5
शु॒द्धाः पू॒ता यो॒षितो॑ य॒ज्ञिया॑ इ॒मा ब्र॒ह्मणां॒ हस्ते॑षु प्रपृ॒थक् सा॑दयामि । यत्का॑म इ॒दम॑भिषि॒ञ्चामि॑ वो॒ऽहमिन्द्रो॑ म॒रुत्वा॒न्त्स ददातु॒ तन्मे॑
Rein, geläutert sind diese Frauen, opferwürdig: sie setze ich, jede für sich, in die Hände der Brahmanen. Mit welchem Wunsch ich euch hiermit besprenge – ich, Indra mit den Maruts –, das möge er mir gewähren.
Inside Sukta 122
How it unfolds
- How it opens
The hymn opens by establishing a ‘thread’ (tantu) of passage—an image of the Fathers’ path and the continuity created by rightful giving.
- What it asks
That giving (dāna) and yajña carry the performer safely across to svarga/nāka, and that the consecratory sprinkling be efficacious in securing the specific desired boon.
- Where its power lies
Even those ‘kinless’ (abandhu) can attain heaven if they learn to give; sacrifice becomes a mount/vehicle to the ‘third heaven,’ and Indra-with-Maruts is named as the decisive granter of results.
- How it closes
A final consecratory seal: the purified auspicious women are ritually positioned under Brahmanic mediation, and the performer’s abhiṣeka is explicitly bound to Indra Marutvat’s bestowal—“may he grant that to me.”
Famous verses
tataṃ tantum (the stretched thread)
tṛtīye nāke sadhamādaṃ madema
indro marutvān sa dadātu tan me
Kind of hymn
Paustika (Prosperity) / Saṃskāra-Apotropaic (Consecratory protection)
What it is for
Successful consecration and boon-attainment, with protection of fortune (śrī/saubhāgya) and an affirmed merit-path that leads to heavenly participation beyond old age.
Who it is for
Householders and patrons (yajamāna) performing consecrations and prosperity rites; priests (brahmans) officiating abhiṣeka and gift-ritual contexts; communities seeking auspicious stabilization.
Also used as
- Saṃskāra-Apotropaic (consecratory protection)
- Śāntika (stabilizing auspicious order)
- Eschatological (svarga/nāka ascent via yajña)
- Dāna-ethics (merit and social integration)
The deity
Indra as the sovereign boon-granter whose force is amplified ‘with the Maruts’ (marutvat), here invoked to ratify a consecratory sprinkling and to turn ritual intention into tangible success. In the hymn’s inner theology, Pitṛs anchor the merit-thread of giving, while Agni/Yajña provides the vehicle of ascent to heavenly fellowship.
Powers of the deity
- Grants boons and fulfills vowed desires (kāma-siddhi)
- Consecrates and stabilizes auspiciousness through abhiṣeka
- Protects prosperity and social standing via ritual sanction
- Enables heaven-attainment when aligned with dāna and yajña
- Strengthens communal/collective power through Marut association
Why the deity is called
To seal the performer’s intended boon through consecratory sprinkling mediated by Brahmans, and to ensure prosperity and an auspicious post-mortem trajectory grounded in dāna and yajña.
The seer
- Aṅgirasa/Atharvanic seerAtharvan. Paustika and saṃskāra-linked charms: consecration (abhiṣeka), securing boons through Indraic favor, and merit-making frames (dāna–pitṛpatha) that protect status and destiny.
Other hymns of this seer
- AV 6.121 (contextually adjacent paustika material; exact r̥ṣi per Anukramaṇī)
- AV 6.123 (contextually adjacent; exact r̥ṣi per Anukramaṇī)
Preparing for the rite
- Establish a clean ritual space; perform basic śauca (washing hands/feet; mental composure).
- Prepare consecratory liquid (typically water; optionally mixed with milk/ghṛta per local karman).
- Seat/arrange officiating Brahmans; arrange auspicious women (yoṣitaḥ) as śrī/saubhāgya-bearers in a controlled, ritually ‘set apart’ formation.
- Assemble a thread (tantu) as a visible emblem of continuity/merit, if used in the local rite; prepare gifts for dāna.
The rite
- Recite the sukta over the prepared liquid and/or during the abhiṣeka act.
- Perform sprinkling (abhiṣeka) while articulating the specific desire (kāma) to be granted.
- Place or symbolically ‘set’ the auspicious women into the ritual economy ‘in the hands of the Brahmans’ (priestly custody/mediation).
- Conclude with offering to Agni (if integrated into a yajña setting) and complete dāna to Brahmans/others to activate the merit-thread.
What it needs
- Consecratory liquid (water; optionally milk/ghṛta)
- Tantu (thread) as symbolic implement (optional but thematically apt)
- Gifts for dāna (food, cloth, cattle/coin as feasible)
- Fire/Agni setup if performed within a yajña frame
When
Auspicious daytime (morning/forenoon) on a śubha tithi/nakṣatra; especially suitable at the completion of a rite (yajña end) or during a formal abhiṣeka/consecration moment.
The main substance
Consecratory liquid for abhiṣeka (primarily water; optionally milk/ghṛta according to rite)
Amulets
- Tantu (thread) used as a symbolic continuity/merit-object when adopted in practice
How it is prepared
Collect clean water in a ritually pure vessel; optionally enrich with milk and/or ghṛta. Recite the sukta over the liquid, then sprinkle during the stated intention (kāma-saṅkalpa), completing with dāna to ‘tie’ the merit-thread.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is used for prosperity and consecratory protection—especially in contexts resembling abhiṣeka—so that a stated desire is granted and auspicious fortune is stabilized through priestly mediation and right giving.
The ‘thread’ is a metaphor (and sometimes a ritual token) for continuity: the merit-path connected with the Fathers and sustained by dāna. It signals that giving creates a reliable passage toward svarga.
Indra ‘with the Maruts’ (Indra Marutvat) is explicitly asked to bestow the intended boon, making him the hymn’s decisive boon-granting power at the consecratory moment.
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