Atharva Veda 20.136.16: Kanda 20, Anuvaka 14, Sukta 136, Mantra 16
Sukta 136
यः कु॑मा॒री पि॑ङ्गलि॒का वस॑न्तं पीव॒री ल॑भेत्। तैल॑कुण्ड॒मिमा॑ङ्गु॒ष्ठं रोद॑न्तं शुद॒मुद्ध॑रेत्
yáḥ kumārī piṅgalikā vásantaṃ pīvarī labhét | táila-kuṇḍam imám aṅguṣṭháṃ ródantaṃ śudám úd-dharet ||
Whoso, in springtide, findeth the tawny maiden, full and thriving—let him with this oil-bowl, with this thumb, lift out the weeping one, in purity.
जब बसंत का टाइम हो और वो पियरी लड़की मिल जाए जो खुश और हेल्दी हो, तेल की बाउल लेकर और अंगूठा यूज़ करके उस रोते हुए बच्चे को साफ निकाल लो।
The meaning
What it says
Whoever finds in spring the tawny ‘maiden’ (kumārī piṅgalikā), full and thriving, should—with this oil-bowl and this thumb—lift out the weeping one, in purity.
The inner meaning
In the season of renewal (vasanta), one applies warm unction (taila) with measured touch (thumb) to draw a crying being out of distress and impurity into calm and clarity.
The truth in it
Gentle, skillful touch plus timely care can transmute suffering; purity here is not moralism but restoration of wholeness and ease.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Bhaiṣajya / Rakṣā (Healing-protection; unction/purification)
Its aim
To remove distress/impurity from a crying afflicted person (likely a child) by a springtime oil-unction performed with measured thumb-touch.
Word by Word
Pada patha
यः । कुमारी । पिङ्गलिका । वसन्तम् । पीवरी । लभेत् । तैलकुण्डम् । इमम् । अङ्गुष्ठम् । रोदन्तम् । शुदम् । उद्धरेत् ।
- यः
- who (he who)who(ever); relative introducing the operative conditionPronounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → यः
- कुमारी
- a maiden / young girla maiden/virgin girl; ritually ‘unmarried’ purity-statusNounस्त्रीलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot कुमारी (प्रातिपदिक)
- पिङ्गलिका
- the tawny/yellowish one (a named/characterized maiden)the tawny/reddish one; likely a named girl/figure or a descriptive epithet (with omen-value)Noun/Adjectiveस्त्रीलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot पिङ्गलिका (प्रातिपदिक; पिङ्गल-आधारित विशेषण/नाम)
- वसन्तम्
- spring (season)spring; season of renewal (also a time-marker for the rite)Nounपुंलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्Role KarmaRoot वसन्त (प्रातिपदिक)
- पीवरी
- the plump onefat, swelling, full; suggestive of growth/prosperity (or a swelling condition)Adjective (used substantively)स्त्रीलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot पीवरी (प्रातिपदिक; ‘plump/fat’)
- लभेत्
- should obtain / may getshould obtain/find; prescriptive optativeVerbविधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्Role क्रियाRoot लभ् (धातु)
- तैल
- oilNounनपुंसकलिङ्गम् (समास-पूर्वपद), प्रातिपदिक-रूपेणRole समासाङ्गRoot तैल (प्रातिपदिक)
- कुण्डम्
- a bowl/pot (vessel)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्गम्, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्Role KarmaRoot कुण्ड (प्रातिपदिक)
- इमम्
- thisthis; deictic, pointing to the present object/actPronounपुंलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्Role KarmaRoot इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → इमम्
- अङ्गुष्ठम्
- thumbthumb; used as a measuring/pressing/anointing implementNounपुंलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्Role KarmaRoot अङ्गुष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
- रोदन्तम्
- crying / weepingweeping/crying; an omen-state or the patient/subject in distressParticiple (present active)पुंलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्Role KarmaRoot रुद् (धातु) → शतृ-प्रत्ययः: रोदन्त्
- शुदम्
- purity / the pure (thing)pure/cleansed; or ‘purification’ (śuddha/śuddhim sense in Atharvanic usage)Noun/Adjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्गम्, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्Role KarmaRoot शुद (प्रातिपदिक; AV-विशेष-शब्दः, सम्भवतः ‘शुद्ध/शुभ’ अर्थे)
- उद्धरेत्
- should lift out / should draw upshould lift out, draw up, extract; also ‘remove’ (a distress/impurity) by riteVerbविधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्Role क्रियाRoot उद्-√हृ (हृ धातु) → उद्धर्
Sandhi Notes
- पाठे ‘कु॑मा॒री’ इति स्वरचिह्नयुक्तं ‘कुमारी’ इत्येव पदम्। ‘पि॑ङ्गलि॒का’ = ‘पिङ्गलिका’। ‘तैल॑कुण्ड॒म्’ इति संहितायां समास/सन्धि-सम्बन्धः: तैल + कुण्डम् → तैलकुण्डम्। ‘मिमा॑ङ्गु॒ष्ठम्’ इति संहितापाठः ‘इमम् अङ्गुष्ठम्’ (अम् + अ → म् अ; पदविभागे ‘इमम्’ ‘अङ्गुष्ठम्’)। अन्यत्र विशेष-सन्धि-परिवर्तनं न आवश्यकम्।
Seer, deity and metre
- Devata
- The rite’s operative agents: consecrated oil and purification; implicitly a healing/purifying power rather than a named deity.
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh-like (late, irregular)
- Rasa
- Karuna and Shanta
Sāyaṇa-style reading (for such late, practical verses) treats the ‘kumārī’ as a ritually qualified agent or auspicious encounter; ‘piṅgalikā’ may be a proper designation with omen-force. The oil-vessel and thumb indicate unction performed by measured touch. ‘Rudantam’ is taken as the afflicted/crying subject (often a child), and ‘uddharet’ as removal of distress/impurity by drawing it out through the oil-rite; ‘śudam’ underscores the necessity of ritual cleanliness and the intended purification.
Domestic healing by unction and purity-rites; seasonal timing; tactile technique (thumb-application).
Shows Atharvan medicine as embodied care: season + substance + touch + word converge to lift suffering.
Taila (consecrated oil) and Śuddhi (purification) as operative powers
Restores lubrication, warmth, and protective coating; re-establishes boundaries against intrusive affliction.
Soothing, calming, stabilizing—especially for agitation/crying and impurity states.
Creates a protective film; ritual purity wards off harmful influences associated with distress.
4 x ~8 syllables with irregularities and colloquial phrasing
Late AV diction; practical-instruction tone; meter secondary to procedural clarity.
Instructional, stepwise—fits a rite performed alongside recitation.
Calms and focuses the practitioner; supports steady, gentle touch.
In spring (or at an auspicious springtime moment), prepare an oil-bowl with consecrated oil.
Maintain ritual purity (bathing/clean garments; clean vessel).
Dip the thumb into the oil and apply unction to the afflicted/crying subject (forehead, chest, or limbs as prescribed in the karman).
Recite the mantra during the act of touch, intending ‘extraction’ (uddhāra) of the cause of weeping—fear, impurity, or a grasping spirit.
Conclude with a cleansing gesture (wiping, sprinkling water) and dispose of residual oil according to local rule (away from the dwelling).
Kauśika-sūtra: unction (abhy-añjana/abhyaṅga) and child-protection/purification karmans employing oil and touch.
Atharvan priest or household ritualist: consecrates the oil, performs the thumb-unction, and verbally ‘draws out’ the affliction.
Warm a small amount of clean oil; place in a small bowl; with the right thumb apply a gentle touch/unction to the child/patient (commonly forehead/chest/navel in folk practice—exact locus varies), reciting the mantra to ‘lift out’ distress.
Vasanta emphasized; also suitable at dawn or before sleep for calming.
Typically performed by mother/guardian; priest optional for formal purification context.
A calming bedtime oil-touch ritual for an anxious child, paired with quiet recitation and hygiene.
Oil (taila); Oil-bowl (tailakuṇḍa); Thumb as applicator (aṅguṣṭha); Seasonal timing: spring (vasanta)
Oil symbolizes snehā—adhesion, affection, and protective lubrication. The thumb symbolizes controlled dosage and intentional contact, turning care into rite.
Crying/distress in an afflicted person (likely infant/child); impurity-related affliction (śuddhi need).
Not explicit; thumb-application suggests forehead/chest/navel or a specific point in practice (not specified).
Unction with oil (taila) applied by thumb; seasonal vitality (vasanta) enhances efficacy; mantra frames the act as ‘lifting out’ (uddhar-) from distress.
Abhyaṅga/unction (snehana) to pacify vāta agitation; spring timing can support kapha-clearing but here emphasizes renewal and thriving (pīvarī).
Soothing infant/child with warm oil massage and calming ritual—co-regulation, tactile comfort, hygiene/purity practices.
The ‘weeping one’ (rodantam)—often a child; can be any distressed household member.
Soothe and purify a crying afflicted person; remove distress/impurity and restore calm.
Substance-action paradigm: consecrated oil + precise thumb-touch + seasonal timing + performative speech (‘lift out’).
Impurity/pollution states, fright, malign influence conceptualized through crying and agitation.
- कुमारी (kumārī)
- fresh potency; a ‘new’ remedy or pure agent
- पिङ्गलिका (piṅgalikā)
- vital warmth; possibly a plant/earth-substance by color-signature
- वसन्त (vasanta)
- renewal; optimal time for revitalizing and purifying therapies
- तैलकुण्ड (tailakuṇḍa)
- contained medicine; nourishment and soothing medium
- अङ्गुष्ठ (aṅguṣṭha)
- measured agency; precise therapeutic contact; seal/press that stabilizes
- रोदन्त (rodantam)
- the afflicted—often a child; distress manifesting outwardly
- शुद/शुद्ध (śuda/śuddha)
- restored integrity; removal of pollution/afflictive influence
Compassionate touch as mantra; stabilize vāta-like agitation through warmth and steadiness.
svadhisthana (soothing fluidity) and anahata (care)
Soft humming exhale (bhrāmarī-like) after recitation to settle crying energy.
Warm amber oil-light spreading like a protective film; tears transforming into clear water and then stillness.
Tender attentiveness.
Recite 7 times while applying minimal, gentle oil-touch; end with silent holding of the child/patient for a few breaths.
Late AV recitation: keep even tone; let key action-words (uddharet, śudaṃ) be slightly emphasized.
Pause after labhet; then perform the touch on uddharet.
Soft, lullaby-like; suitable near a child.
Synchronize mantra with action: speak while touching; keep intention explicitly ‘purity and comfort’.
7 times
A child is crying inconsolably; someone is agitated and needs soothing and ‘clearing’.
In spring especially; also at bedtime or after a fright/illness episode.
Calming, reassurance, a sense of cleansing and safety; caregiver’s steadying focus.
Use only safe, skin-appropriate oil; avoid eyes/mouth; discontinue if irritation occurs; seek medical advice for persistent crying/illness.
Here the key ‘substance’ is processed plant-product (oil). The mantra encodes a technology of touch: oil as a medium that can ‘carry out’ (uddharet) the affliction, with the thumb functioning as a controlled applicator. The seasonal marker (vasanta) aligns the rite with renewal and growth symbolism.
It presupposes domestic ritual expertise applied to vulnerable persons (the weeping one, likely a child). The mention of a maiden (kumārī) suggests the use of socially defined purity-status as ritual capital, reflecting gendered roles in household rites under Atharvanic supervision.
The verse is procedural and domestic, with concrete implements (tailakuṇḍa, aṅguṣṭha) and prescriptive optatives (labhet, uddharet). This is characteristic of Atharvanic applied language rather than RV hymnody.
Gopatha’s general stance supports efficacy through correct dravya and karman. Oil-unction plus purity and timed performance exemplify that framework: the mantra is a performative command that makes the physical act a vehicle of removal.
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