Sukta 27
Rishi: Atharvanic/Angirasa tradition (specific r̥ṣi not securely determinable from the single-verse input; commonly transmitted as Atharvanic in śatru-parājaya contexts).
Devata: Oṣadhi (the Herb) as personified healing and protective power; secondarily the abstract force of abhibhū (overpowering).
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (4 pādas of ~8 syllables; Atharvanic anuṣṭubh with minor irregularities possible).
AVŚ 2.27 est un charme de guérison protecteur centré sur l’Herbe personnifiée (Oṣadhi), administrée au moment critique du repas afin que les forces hostiles ne puissent pas « gagner la bouchée ». En répétant la formule « bouchée et contre‑bouchée », l’hymne transforme l’ingestion en acte de contre‑sorcellerie, rendant impuissants les agresseurs et les draineurs d’essence (arāsaḥ) et assurant la victoire sur les ennemis sur un mode indraïque.
Kind of charm
Mantras
Mantra 1
शत्रुपराजयः। नेच्छत्रुः॒ प्राशं॑ जयाति॒ सह॑मानाभि॒भूर॑सि । प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑न्वोषधे
Victoire sur l’ennemi. Que l’ennemi ne l’emporte pas sur la bouchée (prāśa) : tu es l’Endurante, la Dompteuse. Comme contre-bouchée (pratiprāśa) face à la bouchée, frappe les agresseurs; rends-les impuissants, ô Plante médicinale (oṣadhi).
Mantra 2
सु॒प॒र्णस्त्वान्व॑विन्दत् सूक॒रस्त्वा॑खनन्न॒सा। प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑ण्वोषधे
Le Beau-Ailé (Suparṇa) t’a découverte ; le sanglier t’a déterrée de son groin. Comme contre-morsure à la morsure, frappe les maux sans sève ; rends(-nous) entiers, ô Oṣadhi, Plante de guérison.
Mantra 3
इन्द्रो॑ ह चक्रे त्वा बा॒हावसु॑रेभ्य॒ स्तरी॑तवे । प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑ण्वोषधे
Indra, en vérité, t’a faite pour le bras, afin de piétiner les Asura. Par morsure contre morsure : frappe les ennemis sans sève ; réduis-les à néant, ô Herbe.
Mantra 4
पा॒टामिन्द्रो॒ व्याऽश्ना॒दसु॑रेभ्य॒ स्तरी॑तवे । प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑ण्वोषधे
Qu’Indra mange la Pāṭā pour l’emporter sur les Asura. Par dose contre contre-dose : frappe les destructeurs de sève ; rends-nous entiers, ô Herbe.
Mantra 5
तया॒हं शत्रू॑न्त्साक्ष॒ इन्द्रः॑ सालावृ॒काँ इ॑व । प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑ण्वोषधे
Par elle (cette plante) puissé-je vaincre les ennemis, comme Indra (vainc) les chacals. Par la morsure, par la contre-morsure, frappe-les ; rends-les sans sève, ô Oṣadhi, Plante.
Mantra 6
रुद्र॒ जला॑षभेषज॒ नील॑शिखण्ड॒ कर्म॑कृत्। प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑ण्वोषधे
Ô Rudra, remède guérisseur par l’eau, à la crête bleue, accomplisseur de l’acte rituel ! Que l’ingestion devienne contre-ingestion : frappe les maux sans sève ; rends-nous entiers, ô Plante.
Mantra 7
तस्य॒ प्राशं॒ त्वं ज॑हि॒ यो न॑ इन्द्राभि॒दास॑ति । अधि॑ नो ब्रूहि॒ शक्ति॑भिः प्रा॒शि मामुत्त॑रं कृधि
Frappe l’assaut mordant de cet homme qui, ô Indra, nous attaque avec malveillance. Et de plus, parle-nous par tes puissances : dévore (le mal) et fais de moi le supérieur, le prévalant.
Inside Sukta 27
How it unfolds
- How it opens
The hymn opens by denying victory to the ‘would-be foe’ over the morsel, immediately identifying the Herb as the steadfast Overpowerer (abhibhū).
- What it asks
May the herb, through the paired logic of bite and counter-bite, smite injurers and prevent any hostile agency from taking hold through food/medicine.
- Where its power lies
The charm asserts efficacy by casting the herb as inherently victorious and by aligning the user’s triumph with Indra’s archetypal conquest (e.g., over jackals/Asuras).
- How it closes
It seals the rite with a repeated expulsion/neutralization formula—‘smite the arāsaḥ, make them sapless’—fixing the enemy’s defeat and the eater’s protection.
Famous verses
prāśaṃ prati-prāśo jahi arāsān kṛṇu oṣadhe
pāṭām indro vy aśnād asurebhyaḥ starītave
tayāhaṃ śatrūn sākṣe indraḥ sālāvṛkān iva
Kind of hymn
Abhicarika (Counter-sorcery) / Rakṣoghna (Demon-expelling) with Bhaisajya overlap (protecting ingestion/medicine)
What it is for
Enemy influence is prevented from prevailing ‘over the morsel’; hostile agents are smitten and made ineffective (‘sapless’), while the consumer’s vitality and safety in ingestion are secured.
Who it is for
Householders, healers (vaidya-like practitioners), and Atharvanic ritualists performing protective medicine/food rites for a patient, traveler, or threatened person.
Also used as
- Rakṣoghna
- Bhaiṣajya
The deity
Oṣadhi is invoked not merely as a plant but as an intelligent, protective potency that enters the body through food and reverses hostile influence. Abhibhū is the hymn’s operative principle: the herb’s capacity to outmatch, counteract, and neutralize enemies, demons, and wasting agencies; Indra is cited as the archetype of such victory.
Powers of the deity
- Protects food/ingestion from hostile influence and poisoning
- Acts as an antidote via ‘counter-morsel’ (prati-prāśa) logic
- Drives away and disables injurers (arāsaḥ) and demonic/hostile agencies
- Restores ‘rasa’ (vital sap/essence), preventing wasting
- Grants victory over human and non-human foes by overpowering (abhibhū)
Why the deity is called
To consecrate a medicinal bite/dose so the eater is protected at the moment of consumption, and to strike down or neutralize any enemy-force attempting to seize the food, the body, or the life-essence.
The seer
- Atharvanic/Āṅgirasa seerAtharvan. Bhaiṣajya and rakṣoghna charms: protective ingestion rites, antidotal ‘counter-dose’ (prati-prāśa) formulae, and enemy/affliction-overpowering (abhibhū) spells.
Other hymns of this seer
- AVŚ 1.2 (selected rakṣoghna protection verses, Atharvanic corpus)
- AVŚ 2.31 (protective/expulsive charm cluster, Atharvanic corpus)
- AVŚ 6.136 (oṣadhi-centered healing charm tradition)
Preparing for the rite
- Select the primary herb (explicitly Pāṭā is named in the sukta’s internal tradition) or an equivalent protective medicinal herb.
- Prepare a small prāśa (morsel/dose) of food mixed with or accompanied by the herb; prepare a second ‘counter-portion’ (prati-prāśa) as the antidotal response.
- Seat the patient/eater facing an auspicious direction; keep clean water at hand for sipping/rinsing; maintain ritual cleanliness (śauca).
The rite
- Recite the hymn over the prāśa and the prati-prāśa, emphasizing the refrain-like striking formula against arāsaḥ.
- Administer the prāśa first and then the prati-prāśa (or administer as paired bites), ritually framing the second as the ‘counter’ that defeats hostile seizure.
- Optionally touch the herb/food to the mouth or chest while reciting the overpowering (abhibhū) portion; conclude by consigning the injurers to powerlessness.
What it needs
- Oṣadhi (medicinal herb), especially Pāṭā as named
- Prāśa (a small morsel/portion of food)
- Prati-prāśa (counter-morsel/antidotal portion)
- Water for sipping/rinsing
When
At the time of eating or administering medicine; especially when fear of hostile influence, poisoning, sorcery, or wasting affliction is present.
The main substance
Oṣadhi—especially Pāṭā (as named within the hymn’s tradition) administered as a prāśa/prati-prāśa pair
Herbs
- Pāṭā (medicinal creeper/herb)
- Oṣadhi (unspecified protective medicinal herb, used as antidotal agent)
Amulets
- Herb-tied thread or small herb packet (optional, consistent with Atharvanic protective practice)
How it is prepared
Grind or macerate the herb (or use a small measured portion), mix with a small edible carrier to form a prāśa; prepare a second portion as prati-prāśa, reciting the mantra over both before administration.
Frequently Asked Questions
It treats eating as a protective act: one portion (prāśa) is paired with an antidotal counter-portion (prati-prāśa) so any hostile influence entering through food is immediately overpowered and reversed.
No. Its language covers human foes and also non-human threats—disease-agents, demons, or wasting influences (arāsaḥ)—especially those imagined to attack through ingestion and vitality (rasa).
The hymn names Pāṭā as a key oṣadhi, but Atharvanic practice often applies the mantra to an appropriate protective medicinal herb available locally, prepared and administered as the prāśa/prati-prāśa pair.
Ask anything about Sukta 27 of the Atharva Veda
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Atharva Veda in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.
