Sukta 11
Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (often treated as Atharvan/Angiras-type domestic fertility lore; specific r̥ṣi not explicit in the supplied excerpt).
Devata: Pumsavana-śakti (generative potency); implicitly Prajāpati as procreative lord across the hymn.
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (probable; AV domestic verses commonly in anuṣṭubh—requires metrical confirmation against full pada-count).
AV 6.11 est un bref charme de pumsavana (pour engendrer un fils) qui transfère et installe chez les femmes la puissance génératrice afin d’assurer « l’obtention d’un fils ». Il relie un symbolisme botanique (Śamī sur Aśvattha) à l’ordonnance de Prajāpati et invoque des puissances de consentement et de fécondité (Anumati, Sinīvālī) pour orienter l’issue de la reproduction vers un enfant mâle.
Mantras
Mantra 1
पुंसवनम्। श॒मीम॑श्व॒त्थ आरू॑ढ॒स्तत्र॑ पुं॒सु॑व॑नं कृ॒तम्। तद् वै पु॒त्रस्य॒ वेद॑नं॒ तत् स्त्री॒ष्वा भ॑रामसि
Puṃsavana (rite de « l’engendrement d’un fils »). La Śamī, montée sur l’Aśvattha—là s’accomplit le Puṃsavana. En vérité, c’est l’obtention d’un fils ; cette puissance, nous l’apportons et la déposons au-dedans des femmes.
Mantra 2
पुं॒सि वै रेतो॑ भवति॒ तत् स्त्रि॒यामनु॑ षिच्यते । तद् वै पु॒त्रस्य॒ वेद॑नं॒ तत् प्र॒जाप॑तिरब्रवीत्
En vérité, dans l’homme se trouve la semence ; ensuite elle est versée dans la femme. En vérité, c’est l’obtention d’un fils : ainsi parla Prajāpati.
Mantra 3
प्र॒जाप॑ति॒रनु॑मतिः सिनीवा॒ल्यऽचीक्लृपत्। स्त्रषू॑यम॒न्यत्र॒ दध॒त् पुंमां॑समु दधदि॒ह
Prajāpati, Anumati, Sinīvālī l’ont ordonné comme il convient : plaçant la féminité ailleurs, ici ils établissent et font naître le mâle.
Frequently Asked Questions
Its stated aim is pumsavana—installing generative potency so that conception results in a male child, described as the “winning of a son.”
They function as botanical carriers of fertility power: the hymn locates pumsavana efficacy in the image of Śamī ‘mounted upon’ Aśvattha, then ritually transfers that potency into the woman.
Anumati is the power of assent/permission and Sinīvālī is a fertility-and-pregnancy deity; together with Prajāpati they ‘set the rite in order,’ stabilizing conception and directing the desired outcome.
Ask anything about Sukta 11 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.