Sukta 65
Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (plant-hymn complex)
Devata: Apāmārga (plant-deity/medicine as personified agent)
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (probable)
Mantras
Mantra 1
दुरितनाशनम्। प्र॒ती॒चीन॑फलो॒ हि त्वमपा॑मार्ग रु॒रोहि॑थ । सर्वा॒न् मच्छ॒पथाँ अधि॒ वरी॑यो यावया इ॒तः
Backward-fruited art thou, O Apāmārga, and thou springest up: drive hence from here, as one the stronger and the better, all curses levelled against me.
Mantra 2
यद् दु॑ष्कृ॒तं यच्छम॑लं॒ यद् वा चेरि॒म पा॒पया॑ । त्वया॒ तद् वि॑श्वतोमु॒खापा॑मा॒र्गाप॑ मृज्महे
What ill we have done, what stain there is, or what in evil wise we have practised—by thee, O Apāmārga of faces turned to every side, from that we cleanse us wholly away.
Mantra 3
श्या॒वद॑ता कुन॒खिना॑ ब॒ण्डेन॒ यत् स॒हासि॒म। अपा॑मार्ग॒ त्वया॑ व॒यं सर्वं॒ तदप॑ मृज्महे
Whatsoever with the dark-toothed, with the evil-nailed, with the binder we have consorted—O Apāmārga, by thee we wipe away from us all that utterly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Apāmārga is a medicinal plant (Achyranthes aspera) spoken to as a personified power that can repel harm and cleanse impurity, acting like a living purifier.
It targets three linked troubles: curses or hostile speech aimed at a person, inner moral/ritual “stain,” and contamination picked up through contact with harmful or binding influences.
A practitioner recites the verses while sweeping or rubbing the patient lightly with Apāmārga, intending that curses and impurities are wiped off and driven away, then the used plant is discarded outside.
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