Atharva Veda 3.21.2: Kanda 3, Anuvaka 3, Sukta 21, Mantra 2
Sukta 21
यः सोमे॑ अ॒न्तर्यो गोष्व॒न्तर्य आवि॑ष्टो॒ वयः॑सु॒ यो मृ॒गेषु॑ । य आ॑वि॒वेश॑ द्वि॒पदो॒ यश्चतु॑ष्पद॒स्तेभ्यो॑ अ॒ग्निभ्यो॑ हु॒तम॑स्त्वे॒तत्
yáḥ sóme ántaḥ yó góṣv ántaḥ yá āvíṣṭo váyaḥsu yó mṛgéṣu | yá āvivéśa dvipádo yáś cátuṣpadas tébhyo agníbhyo hútam astv etát
He who is within Soma, who is within the cows, who hath entered the birds, who is in the wild creatures; he who hath entered the two-footed and who the four-footed—to those Fires let this oblation be offered.
Aquel que está dentro del Soma, el que está dentro de las vacas, el que ha entrado en las aves, el que está en las bestias salvajes; el que ha entrado en los bípedos y el que ha entrado en los cuadrúpedos: a esos Agni sea ofrecida esta oblación (huta).
Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (anukramaṇī attribution varies)
Devata: Agni (immanent in Soma and beings)
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh-like (Atharvanic mixed)
Primary: shanta
Secondary: adbhuta
Sāyaṇa treats Soma, cattle, birds, and beasts as successive ‘supports’ (ādhāra) of Agni’s power: in Soma as sacrificial/tonic vigor, in cattle as nutritive heat (milk, ghee), and in living beings as the internal fire sustaining life. The two-footed/four-footed pairing universalizes the scope: the offering is meant to reach all embodied fires and thereby avert disease and misfortune affecting humans and livestock.
To secure well-being of humans and animals by pacifying and strengthening the internal ‘fires’ that sustain life, fertility, and nourishment (especially cattle-wealth).
General debility affecting humans and livestock; digestive/metabolic imbalance; epidemic anxiety in herd/community (broad Atharvanic framing).
Pacifies and strengthens the internal fires that sustain nourishment and immunity-like resilience; sacralizes food sources (Soma/milk).
Agni and ojas support (conceptual); cows/milk as rasāyana symbolism; Soma as cooling restorative principle balancing pitta.
Community/household health routines; nutrition-centered well-being; stress buffering around livelihood (animal husbandry/food security).
mixed
Household and herd (dvipad/catuṣpad totality).
To secure well-being and prosperity by harmonizing the life-sustaining fires in nourishment (Soma), cattle, birds, wild creatures, and all humans/animals.
Totalizing enumeration + offering formula; creates a ‘net’ of protection across species and food sources.
Disease in livestock, loss of nourishment, ecological imbalance, fear of wildness.
Cattle-wealth, nourishment, vitality, communal peace.
Offers to the Fires immanent in Soma, cows, birds, wild creatures, and all two-footed and four-footed beings—may this oblation be offered to those Fires.
Life is sustained by an inner fire across species and nourishment streams (Soma, milk, food-chain). Pacifying this shared agni reduces fear of nature and illness, replacing it with kinship and regulated vitality.
Vitality is a shared principle across beings; well-being increases when one harmonizes the life-force in oneself with that in animals, food, and environment.
- सोम (soma)
- nourishing cool essence; restorative joy/ojas
- गोषु (goṣu)
- cattle-wealth; nourishment; maternal support
- वयःसु (vayaḥsu)
- breath, mobility, prāṇa-like circulation
- मृगेषु (mṛgeṣu)
- instinctual life-force; untamed vitality
- द्विपद / चतुष्पद (dvipad / catuṣpad)
- totality of living community; household and herd together
- अग्निभ्यः (agnibhyaḥ)
- to the sustaining metabolic sparks in all beings
Cultivate gratitude for nourishment and kinship with all beings; stabilize inner fire with calm attention.
anahata
moderate
A gentle flame in the heart spreading as warm light to family, animals, and the wider living world; Soma as cool moonlight balancing the flame.
Inclusive, steady-hearted awareness that supports vitality.
Recite before eating; on each listed category (Soma, cows, birds, wilds, two-/four-footed), extend a silent blessing outward.
Even śānti recitation; slightly brighten tone on ‘some’ and ‘goṣu’ (nourishment loci), then return to calm on the offering closure.
Keep parallelism clear: (yaḥ … antar) (yaḥ … antar) (yaḥ āviṣṭaḥ …) (yo …) then the final offering line.
some: long o (sōme), goṣvantar: maintain ṣv cluster cleanly, vayaḥsu: visarga ḥ audible, mṛgeṣu: syllabic ṛ, dvipado/catuṣpadaḥ: retroflex ṣ in catuṣ-; final ḥ released
gentle, inclusive, blessing-like.
Best paired with a simple offering or at least a mindful ‘inner offering’ before meals—aligning mantra with nourishment streams it names.
Concern for family health, livestock/pets, food security, communal well-being; recovery periods needing steady nourishment.
Before meals; during morning household routines; when animals are sick or stressed (as supportive prayer).
Calm, gratitude, and a felt protective field around nourishment and living community; supports disciplined care routines.
Do not replace veterinary/medical treatment; ensure hygienic food and animal care as the practical ‘offering’.
पदच्छेदः (सन्धिविग्रहः): यः | सोमे | अन्तर्यः | गोषु | अन्तर्यः | आविष्टः | वयःसु | यः | मृगेषु | यः | आविवेश | द्विपदः | यः | चतुष्पदः | तेभ्यः | अग्निभ्यः | हुतम् | अस्तु | एतत् । प्रमुख-सन्धयः: (1) सोमे॑ अ॒न्तर्यः → सोमे + अन्तर्यः (स्वर-सन्धिः/पदसन्धिः). (2) गोष्व॒न्तर्यः → गोषु + अन्तर्यः (उकारस्य वकारादेशः: गोषु + अन्तर्यः → गोष्वन्तर्यः). (3) आवि॑ष्टो॒ वयः॑सु → आविष्टः + वयःसु (विसर्गलोपः/स्वरसमायोजनम्). (4) यश्चतु॑ष्पदः → यः + चतुष्पदः (विसर्गः + च → यश्च). (5) पदान्त-स्वर/निग्रह-चिह्नाः (॑, ॒) वैदिकस्वरनिर्देशाः; पदच्छेदे रूपपरिवर्तनं न कुर्वन्ति।
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