Atharva Veda 20.98.3: Kanda 20, Anuvaka 10, Sukta 98, Mantra 3
Sukta 98
कदू॒ न्व॑१स्याकृ॑त॒मिन्द्र॑स्यास्ति॒ पौंस्य॑म्। केनो॒ नु कं॒ श्रोम॑तेन॒ न शु॑श्रुवे ज॒नुषः॒ परि॑ वृत्र॒हा
kadā́ nv àsyā́kṛtam índrasyā́sti paúṃsyam | kénō nú kaṃ śrómatená ná śuśruve janúṣaḥ pári vṛtrahā́ ||
When, then, is there aught unaccomplished of Indra’s manly puissance? By what renowned deed—by whom—hath it not been heard, the Vṛtra-slayer, from birth onward, far and wide?
इंद्र की ताकत कब कोई काम नहीं कर पायी? उन्होंने वृत्र को मारा, यह बात सबने सुनी है। जनम से लेकर अब तक, उनकी यह बड़ाई सब जगह फैली है। कोई ऐसा नहीं जो सुना न हो।
The meaning
What it says
A rhetorical praise asks: what manly feat of Indra remains undone? By what famed deed has the Vṛtra-slayer not been heard of, from birth onward, everywhere?
The inner meaning
The verse builds confidence by invoking an archetype of unstoppable efficacy. Psychologically it counters helplessness: if the cosmic champion has never lacked a deed, then obstacles in one’s life can be reframed as ‘Vṛtra-like’ and therefore defeatable.
The truth in it
Hope is strengthened by exemplary narratives: remembering proven strength (in oneself or a higher power) dissolves paralysis and reopens possibility.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Paustika (Prosperity/Strength) / Apotropaic (Obstacle-removal) (RV-derived Indra-stuti within AV 20)
Its aim
To magnify Indra’s obstacle-slaying power so that the patron’s impediments (vṛtra-like obstructions) are removed and strength/fame accrue.
Word by Word
Pada patha
कदा । नु । अस्य । अकृतम् । इन्द्रस्य । अस्ति । पौंस्यम् । केन । नु । कम् । श्रोमतेन । न । शुश्रुवे । जनुषः । परि । वृत्रहा ।
- कदू
- when indeed?/how ever?Indeclinableप्रश्नार्थ-अव्यय (काल/कारण-प्रश्न), अव्ययRoot कदा (प्रश्नार्थ-अव्यय) + ऊ (निपात/एवकारार्थ) → कदू
- नु
- now/then indeednow/indeed (enclitic intensifier; ritual urgency)Indeclinableनिपात (अनुनासिक/अन्वय-प्रबोधक)Root नु (निपात)
- अस्य
- of this (one)of him/this one (here: of Indra, the invoked agent)Pronounपुं/नपुं, षष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive)Root इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- आकृतम्
- the deed/formation; what has been madeNoun/Adjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्म/विषय (contextual object: ‘what has been done/formed’)Root आ + कृ (धातु) → आकृत (कृदन्त-भूतकृत) / आकृति (प्रातिपदिक) से नपुं. रूप
- इन्द्रस्य
- of IndraNounपुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive)Root इन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- अस्ति
- is/existsVerbलट् (वर्तमाने), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनRole क्रियाRoot अस् (धातु)
- पौंस्यम्
- manly power, prowessmanly power, virility, heroic force (Indra’s effective might)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्तृ-विशेष्य/विषय (predicate-noun)Root पुंस् → पौंस्य (प्रातिपदिक; ‘manliness, virility’)
- केन
- by what?/with what?by what? by which means? (seeking the operative instrument/rite)Pronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचनRole करणRoot किम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- नु
- then/indeedIndeclinableनिपातRoot नु (निपात)
- कम्
- whom?whom? which one? (object of hearing/praise; rhetorical)Pronounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्मRoot क (किम्-प्रातिपदिक का रूप)
- श्रोमतेन
- by (his) renown/fameby the famed/renowned (instrumental; ‘by what renowned deed/means’)—i.e., by what celebrated exploit/riteAdjectiveपुं/नपुं, तृतीया, एकवचनRole करण (instrumental of means/quality)Root श्रोमत् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘famed/heard-of, renowned’)
- न
- notIndeclinableनिषेधRoot न (निषेध-अव्यय)
- शुश्रुवे
- has been heard/was heardhas been heard (perfect middle; ‘is reported/known’)Verbलिट् (परोक्ष/परिपूर्ण), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनRole क्रियाRoot श्रु (धातु) → शुश्रुवे
- जनुषः
- of (his) birth/originfrom birth, by origin (gen.-abl.; from the very beginning)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचनRole अपादान/सम्बन्ध (ablatival-genitive sense: ‘from/with respect to birth’)Root जनुस् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘birth, origin’)
- परि
- around/aboutaround, beyond, from all sides (preverb; ‘surpassing/encircling’)—totality of fame/effectIndeclinableउपसर्ग/अव्यय (परितः/समन्तात्)Root परि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- वृत्रहा
- Vṛtra-slayer (Indra)Vrtra-slayer (epithet of Indra; the archetype of obstacle-removal)Noun (epithet)पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole कर्तृ (subject, vocative-like address possible)Root वृत्रहन् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘Vṛtra-slayer’)
Sandhi Notes
- कदू नु अस्य आकृतम् इन्द्रस्य अस्ति पौंस्यम् । केन नु कम् श्रोमतेन न शुश्रुवे जनुषः परि वृत्रहा ।
- 1) न्वस्य = नु + अस्य (उकारस्य वकारादेशः) ।
- 2) इन्द्रस्यास्ति = इन्द्रस्य + अस्ति (अ + अ → आ) ।
- 3) केनो = केन + उ (उकार-प्रगृह्य/निपात; संहितायां ‘ओ’ लेखन) ।
- 4) कं श्रोमतेन = कम् + श्रोमतेन (म् + श् → ंश्) ।
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- RV provenance (Indra-stuti); in AV 20 these are adopted from the Rigvedic corpus (exact RV ṛṣi attribution requires hymn-level concordance).
- Devata
- Indra (Vṛtrahan)
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh/Jagatī-type RV meter (requires padic scansion confirmation from the RV source hymn).
- Rasa
- Vira and Adbhuta
Sāyaṇa takes the interrogatives as rhetorical praise: Indra’s paúṃsya (vīrya) is complete; nothing remains ‘unmade’ (akṛtam) in his sphere of victory. ‘śrómatenā’ is glossed as ‘yaśasā prasiddhena karmaṇā’—by a famous exploit—implying that Indra’s efficacy is universally attested ‘from birth’ (janúṣaḥ) and ‘all around’ (pári). The verse functions as stuti that itself becomes a means (upāya) to draw Indra’s aid.
Rigvedic provenance (exact r̥ṣi requires RV concordance for AVŚ 20.98)
Indra-stuti: martial praise poetry repurposed in AV as strength/protection liturgy.
AV Book 20 preserves RV praise as a reservoir of ‘public power’—a liturgical technology for generating courage, victory, and apotropaic force.
Indra (Vṛtrahan)
Breaker of cosmic obstruction; releases waters/light; patron of victory and expansive life.
Removes obstacles, defeats hostile forces, strengthens the patron’s resolve and social standing.
Triṣṭubh (RV-type; to be confirmed by source hymn scansion)
4 pādas × ~11 syllables (RV triṣṭubh cadence)
In AV recitation, RV triṣṭubh is often delivered with slightly more even pacing; rhetorical questions can be emphasized at pāda ends.
Expansive and declamatory; suited to public praise and confidence-building.
Elicits uplift and forward momentum; the interrogative style energizes the listener into assent.
Seat the sacrificer/patron facing east; establish a calm (śānti) setting with regulated breath and silence.
Recite the mantra as stuti (praise) to ‘activate’ Indra’s vīrya as an apotropaic force against obstacles.
Conclude with a brief oblation or libation (as locally prescribed) while repeating the epithet vṛtrahā́ to ‘seal’ the obstacle-slaying intent.
Kauśika Sūtra: AV 20 (RV-khila/saṃhitā) stuti-mantras are generally employed in śānti and indra-karmāṇi; a precise one-to-one Kauśika citation for 20.98.3 is not securely attested in the standard Kauśika mapping (needs edition-specific concordance).
Atharvan/Brahman officiant as stuti-reciter and apotropaic controller (mantra-prayoga), ensuring correct accent and intention (saṃkalpa).
Recited before contests, negotiations, journeys, or any undertaking needing courage and breakthrough.
Morning or before departure; also before communal decision-making.
Householder or priest as leader of stuti; can be chanted collectively for morale.
Motivational recitation before exams/interviews; framed as cultivating ‘Indra-like’ agency.
No explicit substances; the ‘released waters’ motif is implicit in Vṛtra-slaying mythology—symbolizing unblocked flow of life and resources.
Used as psychospiritual support for resilience and ‘obstacle-removal’ rather than clinical healing.
Obstructions (vṛtra-like impediments), rivals, misfortune
Augment strength, fame, and obstacle-slaying capacity by invoking Indra’s undefeated record.
Stuti (praise) as empowerment; rhetorical totalization (‘nothing undone’) to create an inevitability field.
Defeat, discouragement, social threats, stagnation.
Strength, victory, reputation
- इन्द्र (indra)
- activated will, victorious agency, surge of life-force
- पौंस्य (pauṃsya)
- capacity, courage, potency to act
- वृत्रहा (vṛtrahā)
- breaker of blockage—overcoming inertia, depression, obstruction
- श्रोमत (śromata)
- validated strength; confidence grounded in remembered success
- जनुषः परि (januṣaḥ pari)
- innate power; ever-present protective competence
Break inner obstruction; cultivate decisive will and forward movement.
Maṇipūra (power/agency)
Brisk but controlled bhastrikā-like pulses (if suitable) followed by steady breathing; mentally place ‘vṛtrahā’ on exhale as ‘clearing’.
A thunderbolt splits a dark dam; bright water/light flows freely through the body-mind.
Energized determination.
Use when lethargy or fear dominates; end with a minute of stillness to stabilize the aroused energy.
If using AV plain-chant, keep triṣṭubh breadth with clear pāda endings; raise slightly on interrogatives (kadū/keno) and resolve firmly on ‘vṛtrahā’.
Mark rhetorical pivots: ‘kadū nu…?’ then ‘keno nu…?’; keep ‘pauṃsyam’ weighty.
Open, projecting, rallying tone.
Though RV-derived, AV usage often treats it as apotropaic morale-raising; group chanting amplifies effect.
9 times
Facing obstacles—career blocks, legal/administrative delays, competitive situations, loss of confidence.
Before initiating a difficult task; when motivation collapses; prior to meetings or travel.
Increased courage and clarity; sense of protected momentum; traditional aim: Indra’s obstacle-slaying favor.
Avoid overstimulation if anxious/insomniac; balance with calming practice afterward.
No botanical is named; efficacy is constructed through Indra’s paradigmatic ‘obstacle-slaying’ (vṛtra-han) rather than through materia medica. The ‘substance’ is fame/renown (śrómat) as a quasi-ritual instrument: celebrated deed becomes a transferable power through recitation.
Power is mediated by the specialist who can deploy correct Vedic speech (accented stuti). The patron accesses Indra’s might through priestly control of authoritative tradition (‘heard from birth, far and wide’), reinforcing the prestige of inherited revelation and its custodians.
The diction is thoroughly Rigvedic: interrogative stuti, epithets like vṛtrahā́, and perfect śuśruve. AV 20 largely preserves RV language with minimal Atharvanic innovation; the main ‘innovation’ is contextual—reuse in Atharvanic domestic/śānti settings.
Gopatha tends to ground efficacy in brahman (sacral speech) and correct performance; Indra-stutis function as ‘strengthening’ (vardhana) of the deity’s presence. While not commenting on this exact verse in a direct lemma-style way, its logic supports that praise, properly uttered, compels protective power.
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