Anuvaka 4
Suktas in Anuvaka 4
Sukta 32
This one-verse āyuṣya hymn approaches the beloved, youthful power “grown by oblations” (āhuti-vṛdh), asking it to bestow long life on the reciter. By reverent nearness (upa…aganma) and the carrying of homage (bibhṛto namaḥ), the mantra frames longevity as a gift released through properly fed sacred power—most naturally Agni in the domestic fire.
Sukta 33
This one-verse Āyuṣya–Paustika hymn is a compact consecration-prayer asking the gods to “sprinkle” the beneficiary with integrated vitality and auspicious increase. By invoking Maruts (vigor), Pūṣan (nourishment and safe passage), Bṛhaspati (sacred speech and effective rite), and Agni (consecrating fire), it seeks a complete infusion of progeny, wealth, and long life.
Sukta 34
AV 7.34 is a compact but forceful apotropaic charm that commissions Agni Jātavedas to expel rivals—both those already established and those newly arising “over against” the petitioner. It seeks not merely removal but a ritual lowering of the adversaries’ standing (adhaḥ-pada), while placing the guiltless client within Aditi’s wide, unbinding protection.
Sukta 35
This three-verse Atharvanic hymn combines royal prosperity (rāṣṭra-paustika) with apotropaic force: Agni Jātavedas is urged to drive out rival claimants and stabilize the realm under the assent of the Viśve Devāḥ. It then pivots to a “sealing” technology—using a stone as an apidhāna (stopper/cover)—to shut harmful outlets, whether read as stemming loss of vital fluids or as controlling fertility. The hymn’s power lies in coupling public order (expelling enemies) with bodily/sexual containment (closing openings) through the same logic of forceful exclusion and secure closure.
Sukta 36
This one-verse charm deifies añjana (collyrium) as a psycho-erotic force that works through the eyes and the radiance of the face to secure mutual attraction. By applying the dark ointment and voicing the mantra, the performer seeks to “blacken” themselves within the other’s heart—i.e., to become indelibly present in the beloved’s mind—so that the two minds move in concord.
Sukta 37
This one-verse Atharvanic charm employs a garment (vāsaḥ) as the physical carrier of intention to bind a man’s attention and affection exclusively to the speaker. By placing/using one’s own cloth upon the man, the hymn aims to redirect his mind (manas) and desire (kāma) away from rival women, even those socially “renowned,” establishing singular attachment through contact-magic.
Sukta 38
AV 7.38 is a compact vaśīkaraṇa (coercive attraction) hymn used in women’s rites to reclaim or secure a husband/lover and make his affection exclusive. It works by invoking Āsurī as a personified binding-power that can “bring down” even Indra, then applying that same subduing force to the target’s mind, speech, and social behavior.
Sukta 39
This single-verse hymn invokes the Waters as the divine carrier of rain-born nourishment, envisioned as a heavenly, fair-winged power that descends to refresh the world. By linking rain, herbs, and cattle-wealth, it seeks to “install” prosperity concretely at the homestead—especially in the cow-stall—through the life-giving cycle of waters feeding plants and herds.
Sukta 40
This brief Paustika hymn invokes Sarasvant as the overseer of a cosmic “ordinance” (vrata) under which cattle, the Waters, and the Lord of Nourishment (Puṣṭapati) operate in harmony. By calling Sarasvant “turned toward the giver,” it aims to draw prosperity, increase of cattle-wealth, and a stable ‘seat of treasures’ into the patron’s dwelling, along with reputation and social standing.
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