Sukta 25
Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (often transmitted under Atharvan/Angiras attribution for Takman hymns; exact r̥ṣi assignment depends on Anukramaṇī).
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (with Atharvanic cadence; pāda segmentation as transmitted).
AV 1.25 is a concise Atharvanic healing charm that confronts Takman (fever) as a sentient, name-bound affliction and commands it to “strip away” from the patient on every side. The hymn identifies fever’s hidden origins and forms—burning heat, intermittent fits, grief-like wasting, even a punitive linkage to Varuṇa—then neutralizes it through coercive knowledge (secret name, birthplace) and repeated expulsion formulae.
Kind of charm
In this hymn
Addressed to
Mantras
Mantra 1
ज्वर-नाशनम्। यद॒ग्निरापो॒ अद॑हत् प्र॒विश्य॒ यत्राकृ॑ण्वन् धर्म॒धृतो॒ नमां॑सि । तत्र॑ त आहुः पर॒मं ज॒नित्रं॒ स नः॑ संवि॒द्वान् परि॑ वृङ्ग्धि तक्मन्
जब अग्नि ने पानी में घुस कर आग लगाई, वहाँ धरम रखने वाले लोगों ने पूजा की। लोग कहते हैं वहाँ तेरा असली घर है। बुखार, तू जान ले और हमसे दूर हो जा, हमें छोड़ दे।
Mantra 2
यद्य॒र्चि॑र्यदि॒ वासि॑ शो॒चिः श॑कल्ये॒षि यदि॑ वा ते ज॒नित्र॑म्। ह्रूडु॒र्नामा॑सि हरितस्य देव॒ स नः॑ संवि॒द्वान् परि॑ वृङ्ग्धि तक्मन्
अगर तू आग है, या बहुत गरम है, या थोड़ा-थोड़ा आता है। चाहे तेरा जनम कहीं भी हो, तेरा नाम ह्रुडु है। तू हरिते देवता का हो। अब जान के हमसे दूर हो जा, बुखार वापस ले जा।
Mantra 3
यदि॑ शो॒को यदि॑ वाभिशो॒को यदि॑ वा॒ राज्ञो॒ वरु॑ण॒स्यासि॑ पु॒त्रः । ह्रू॒डु॒र्नामा॑सि हरितस्य देव॒ स नः॑ संवि॒द्वान् परि॑ वृङ्ग्धि तक्मन्
अगर तू दुख है, या बहुत बड़ा दुख है, या तू राजा वरुण का बेटा है। तेरा नाम ह्रुडु है, तू हरिते देवता का है। बुखार, तू जान ले और हमसे दूर हो जा, हमें छोड़ दे।
Mantra 4
नमः॑ शी॒ताय॑ त॒क्मने॒ नमो॑ रू॒राय॑ शो॒चिषे॑ कृणोमि । यो अ॑न्ये॒द्युरु॑भय॒द्युर॒भ्येति॒ तृती॑यकाय॒ नमो॑ अस्तु त॒क्मने॑
ठंडी बुखार को नमस्कार है, गरम बुखार को भी नमस्कार है। जो बुखार एक दिन आता है, दो दिन आता है, या तीसरे दिन आता है, उसको भी नमस्कार है। सब तरह की बुखार को हम प्रणाम करते हैं।
Inside Sukta 25
How it unfolds
- How it opens
Begins by locating fever within a mythic frame—Agni entering and ‘burning the waters’—to declare knowledge of Takman’s supreme ‘birthplace’ (janitra).
- What it asks
A direct, repeated command that Takman, once known and named, must ‘pluck/strip himself away’ from the patient on every side.
- Where its power lies
Efficacy is grounded in saṃvid (knowing): knowledge of origin, forms, and secret name (Hrūḍu) is presented as inherently coercive over the disease-agent.
- How it closes
Ends by reiterating the expulsion formula with the binding name/epithet, sealing the charm through repetition and comprehensive removal (‘pari’—all around).
Famous verses
sa naḥ saṃvidvān pari vṛṅgdhi takman
hrūḍur nāmāsi haritasya deva
yadi śoko yady abhiśoko
Kind of hymn
Bhaisajya (Healing)
What it is for
Immediate recession of fever—especially burning, intermittent, and pallor-marked fever—together with restoration of calm and bodily stability.
Who it is for
Household healer/atharvan practitioner, family caregivers, or a village ritualist treating acute fever episodes.
Also used as
- Shantika (pacificatory cooling/appeasement)
- Rakṣoghna/Apotropaic (avertive expulsion of a hostile agent)
The deity
The hymn treats fever as intelligible and therefore controllable: once its ‘name’ (Hrūḍu) and ‘birthplace’ are known, it can be compelled to depart.
Powers of the deity
- Induces burning heat and internal ‘fire’
- Strikes in broken/intermittent fits (paroxysms)
- Causes wasting, grief-like oppression (śoka/abhiśoka)
- Acts as a punitive/sovereign affliction when linked with Varuṇa’s domain
- Can be constrained by true naming and mythic precedent (janitra/birthplace knowledge)
Why the deity is called
To coerce fever to detach and leave the patient by exposing its forms and origins, addressing it by a binding name (Hrūḍu), and repeating the expulsion command “pari vṛṅgdhi” (pluck/strip away).
The seer
- Atharvan/Āṅgiras-type seer (Takman-hymn tradition; Anukramaṇī varies)Atharvan. Bhaiṣajya and apotropaic charms—especially fever-expulsion (takman-nirṇij), disease-demon coercion through naming, and cooling/purificatory counterforces (Āpas/Agni paradigms).
Other hymns of this seer
- AV 1.24 (Takman-related charm, allied group)
- AV 1.26 (Takman-related charm, allied group)
- AV 5.22 (Takman-expulsion cycle, later book tradition)
- AV 6.20 (fever/disease-aversion, Atharvanic healing register)
Preparing for the rite
- Seat the patient in a calm, ventilated place; loosen constricting garments.
- Prepare cool water for sipping or sprinkling; keep a small fire or lamp available only as a symbolic counterforce (not to heat the patient).
- Establish verbal focus: identify the illness as ‘Takman’ and intend its removal (saṃkalpa).
The rite
- Recite the hymn in a steady cadence, emphasizing the imperative refrain (e.g., ‘sa naḥ saṃvidvān pari vṛṅgdhi takman’).
- Optionally sprinkle cool water over the head/chest while reciting the ‘burning heat / waters’ imagery to invert the fever’s heat.
- Name-coercion act: speak the secret name ‘Hrūḍu’ distinctly, as the verbal ‘handle’ by which Takman is seized and removed.
- Conclude by directing the fever outward (to distance/elsewhere), verbally ‘stripping’ it away from limbs and skin on every side.
What it needs
- Cool water (āpas) for sipping/sprinkling
- A small flame/lamp (agni) as symbolic witness and purifier (optional)
- No mandatory herbs specified in this sukta; supportive febrifuge herbs may be added by local practice
When
At the onset of fever or at the start of a paroxysm; repeat at each recurrence (especially for intermittent fever).
The main substance
Cool water (āpas) as the practical counter-agent to fever-heat (implied by the hymn’s Agni–Āpas frame).
Herbs
- Gudūcī (Tinospora cordifolia)
- Nimba (Azadirachta indica)
- Parpaṭa (Fumaria/related febrifuges in later Ayurveda)
Amulets
- Thread/cord for a simple protective binding while reciting (optional, later practice)
- A small green cloth token to ‘externalize’ harita-pallor (optional, interpretive practice)
How it is prepared
If using water: keep it cool and clean; sip a little and sprinkle lightly during recitation. If adding herbs (non-mandatory here): prepare a mild decoction separately and administer apart from mantra recitation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Takman is fever personified as an afflicting agent—causing burning heat, recurring fits, and weakness—treated as something that can be addressed, named, and driven away.
In Atharvanic healing, knowing and uttering the true/hidden name is a control-technique: it ‘grips’ the affliction verbally so it can be commanded to depart.
Primarily it is a mantra-based healing charm (bhaiṣajya) aimed at expulsion of fever; it can be paired with cooling measures like clean water and supportive febrifuge care, though herbs are not required by the text itself.
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