Sukta 140
Rishi: RV-derived Aśvin hymn material (Nāsatyā address)
Devata: Aśvinau (Nāsatyā)
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh / RV-style mixed cadence
This brief Atharvavedic hymn, drawn from Ṛgvedic Aśvin material, compels the Nāsatyā-Aśvins to arrive swiftly as divine physicians and restore well-being. It frames healing as ritually “economical”: mere intention does not secure their help, while a patron who offers havis and voiced praise reliably draws their chariot. By citing earlier successful invokers, it asserts precedent-based efficacy and presses the gods to “take heed” here and now.
Kind of charm
Mantras
Mantra 1
यन्ना॑सत्या भुर॒ण्यथो॒ यद्वा॑ देव भिष॒ज्यथः॑ । अ॒यं वां॑ व॒त्सो म॒तिभि॒र्न वि॑न्धते ह॒विष्म॑न्तं॒ हि गच्छ॑थः
नसत्य, तुम दोनों तेज़ हो और डॉक्टर की तरह इलाज करते हो। यह बच्चा सिर्फ सोच से तुम्हे नहीं ढूंढ सकता। तुम लोग उसके पास जाते हो जो हवि दे रहा है।
Mantra 2
आ नू॒नम॒श्विनो॒र्ऋषि॒ स्तोमं॑ चिकेत वा॒मया॑ । आ सोमं॒ मधु॑मत्तमं घ॒र्मं सि॑ञ्चा॒दथ॑र्वणि
अब रिशि को अश्विन भाइयों की स्तुति याद रखनी चाहिए। यह उनके लिए है। यहाँ सोम का जूस, जो मीठा है, उस्से गरम करके चढ़ाना है। यह अथर्वन रिशि का काम है।
Mantra 3
आ नू॒नं र॒घुव॑र्तनिं॒ रथं॑ तिष्ठाथो अश्विना । आ वां॒ स्तोमा॑ इ॒मे मम॒ नभो॒ न चु॑च्यवीरत
अश्विन भाई, अब अपनी गाड़ी पे बैठो। यह गाड़ी जल्दी चलती है। मेरी स्तुति तुम्हारे लिए बढ़ रही है, जैसे बादल आता है। वो तुम तक पहुँच रही है।
Mantra 4
यद॒द्य वां॑ नासत्यो॒क्थैरा॑चुच्युवी॒महि॑ । यद्वा॒ वाणी॑भिरश्विने॒वेत्क॒ण्वस्य॑ बोधतम्
नासत्य भाई, आज हमने जो भी गाना गाया है तुम्हारे लिए, वो सब सुनो। जो भी हमने आवाज़ में कहा है, अश्विन भाई, उसका ध्यान रखो। जैसे कण्व रिशि की बात सुनी थी, वैसे ही मेरी भी सुनो।
Mantra 5
यद्वां॑ क॒क्षीवां॑ उ॒त यद्व्य॑श्व॒ ऋषि॒र्यद्वां॑ दी॒र्घत॑मा जु॒हाव॑ । पृथी॒ यद्वां॑ वै॒न्यः साद॑नेष्वे॒वेदतो॑ अश्विना चेतयेथाम्
कक्षिवान रिशि ने जो किया तुम्हारे लिए, और व्यश्व रिशि ने जो किया। दीर्घतमस रिशि ने तुम्हे बुलाया था। पृथि और वैन्य ने जब बैठ के पूजा की थी, तब भी तुम थे। अश्विन भाई, वैसे ही अब मेरी बात सुनो।
Inside Sukta 140
How it unfolds
- How it opens
Begins by naming the Nāsatyās as swift-moving and explicitly ‘healers’ (bhiṣajyā), establishing their identity and responsiveness.
- What it asks
‘Come here’—mount the swift-turning chariot and attend this caller; grant healing/rescue as you do for oblation-bearers.
- Where its power lies
Efficacy is argued by ritual principle and precedent: they go to the havis-holder, and earlier seers/patrons successfully invoked them—therefore they must respond here too.
- How it closes
Ends by pressing immediate attention—‘even so, from hence, O Aśvins, take heed’—a sealing imperative that fixes the request to the present rite.
Famous verses
हविष्मन्तं हि गच्छथःरघुवर्तनिं रथं तिष्ठाथःअश्विना चेतयेथामKind of hymn
Bhaisajya (Healing) with explicit ritual-economic framing
What it is for
Secures prompt Aśvinic visitation and medical aid, stabilizing health and fortune by aligning speech (stoma) with offering (havis).
Who it is for
Householder/patron and family; ritual specialist reciting for a patient or for a sponsor seeking swift divine medical support.
Also used as
- Paustika (prosperity-through-ritual exchange)
- Shantika (calming, safety, assured help)
- Saṃjñāpanī (attention-compelling invocation)
The deity
Twin divine horsemen and physicians, famed for swift arrival, rescue from danger, and restorative healing; they respond readily to praise and sacrifice and are invoked as immediate helpers.
Powers of the deity
- Rapid approach on a swift-turning chariot (raghu-vartani ratha)
- Healing and rejuvenation (bhiṣajyā)
- Rescue and protection in crises; restoring vitality
- Hearing/attending to stoma and responding to havis
- Granting prosperity and successful outcomes to the offering patron
Why the deity is called
To hasten the Aśvins’ arrival for healing and relief, explicitly binding their help to the presence of oblation and authoritative praise rather than to unoffered mental wishing.
The seer
- RV-derived Aśvin-hymn tradition (Nāsatyā address; composite seer-lineage)Atharvan. Bhaiṣajya-invocations that secure rapid divine attendance through stoma (praise) and havis (oblation), especially for rescue, recovery, and restoration of strength
Other hymns of this seer
- AV 20.139
- AV 20.141
- AV 20.142
- RV Aśvin-hymn corpus (general RV tradition reused in AV 20)
Preparing for the rite
- Establish a clean recitation space near the domestic fire or a simple offering place.
- Prepare havis (commonly ghee and/or milk-based offering) and a small ladle; keep water for sipping/cleansing.
- Seat the patient (or sponsor) facing east; set intention for ‘Aśvinic arrival and healing’.
- If available, arrange a simple seat/spot (sādana) for the invoked guests as per hospitality idiom.
The rite
- Recite the 5 mantras with clear address to Nāsatyā/Aśvinau, emphasizing their swiftness and medical function.
- At the oblation-linked verses, offer havis into fire (or present as formal offering) to mark the hymn’s exchange-logic.
- Optionally repeat the arrival-verse (20.140.3) to ‘mount the chariot’ imagery and hasten response.
- Conclude with a final attentive call (cetayethām) and a quiet pause for ‘hearing/arrival’.
What it needs
- Havis (ghee; optionally milk/curd as customary Aśvin-friendly dairy offering)
- Fire (gārhapatya/household fire) or a simple offering flame
- Water for ācamana/cleansing
When
Preferably at dawn/twilight (Aśvin-associated liminal times) or at the onset of illness/crisis when rapid aid is sought.
The main substance
Havis (ghee; optionally dairy-based offerings aligned with Aśvin reception)
How it is prepared
Warm/clarify ghee; keep a measured portion for offering during recitation, especially at verses emphasizing oblation and invocation (hu-/havis imagery).
Frequently Asked Questions
To bring the Aśvins quickly as divine physicians and secure healing/rescue, stressing that offering (havis) and voiced praise are what draw them.
It teaches a ritual principle: good intentions are not enough; the gods are portrayed as responding to the concrete act of oblation and the spoken stoma.
They are remembered exemplars—seers and patrons whose successful invocations serve as precedent, strengthening the present request and compelling Aśvinic attention.
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