Atharvaveda Kanda 3 Anuvaka 3 in Modern Hindi

Various Rishis

Kanda 310 Suktas68 Mantras

Anuvaka 3

Household security and thriving: pacifying inner/outer dangers while installing prosperity, fertility, cohesion, and life-protection through Atharvanic rites

Kinds of charm

Paushtika (prosperity): 3Bhaishajya (healing): 2Abhicharika (against foes): 1Shantika (pacifying): 1

Suktas in Anuvaka 3

Sukta 21

AV 3.21 is a śānti hymn that addresses Agni in his many immanent forms—present in waters, stones, plants, and the human body—so that all dangerous heat is pacified and turned protective. By repeatedly offering (havis) “to those Agnis,” it appeases especially the kravyād (flesh-consuming, perilous) aspect and re-establishes Agni as Vaiśvānara, the universal, life-supporting fire. Its power lies in naming Agni’s hidden locations and ranks, thereby ritually “covering” every possible source of burning harm and converting it into well-being, splendour, and safe order.

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (often transmitted under Atharvan/Angiras lineages for śānti hymns; specific r̥ṣi attribution depends on anukramaṇī) | Devata: Agni (plural forms), especially Vaiśvānara; implicitly the kravyād aspect to be appeased | 10 Mantras

Sukta 22

This paustika hymn concentrates and transfers sovereign prosperity (bhaga) and public lustre/charisma (varcas) into the practitioner by invoking archetypes of supremacy—especially the elephant as the most eminent among beasts. Through Agni as the ritual transformer and through the expansive reach of the four quarters, the hymn aims to make the reciter varcasvin: visibly radiant, socially dominant, and successful. Its mantras function as a self-anointing and empowerment formula that models kingship-like precedence and wide-ranging mastery (indriya).

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (attributed generically to Atharvan/Angiras line in many paustika contexts) | Devata: Bhaga and Varcas (personified fortune and lustre), with the elephant as exemplary locus of power | 6 Mantras

Sukta 23

AV 3.23 is a domestic fertility-healing hymn that treats barrenness (vehát) as a removable, transferable defect and restores the woman’s capacity to conceive. Through a speech-act of displacement and the enlistment of auspicious “seed” and divine herbs, the sukta aims to reestablish prajā/garbha (progeny and pregnancy), explicitly favoring the successful begetting and carrying of a son.

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (domestic fertility corpus) | Devata: Implicitly the generative power (prajā/garbha); the ‘vehát’ defect is treated as an adversarial entity | 6 Mantras

Sukta 24

AV 3.24 is a paustika hymn that “sets” abundance into a household’s stores and fields by invoking inexhaustible flow (akṣiti) in the image of a many-streamed spring. It calls prosperity not as a vague wish but as an organized power—gathering, stewarding, and distributing grain—while also washing away blight/curse like rain-fed rivers. The hymn’s operative aim is stable, repeatable increase: plenty that does not dwindle, spoil, or slip away.

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (Anukramaṇī attribution for this prosperity hymn; commonly Atharvan/Angiras-type seer) | Devata: Dhānya/Annasaṁpatti (personified abundance); also implicit Prajāpati/Br̥haspati-style prosperity agency | 7 Mantras

Sukta 25

AV 3.25 is a Kāma-driven vaśīkaraṇa hymn that seeks to ignite restless longing in the target, break resistance, and force approach, speech-sweetness, and exclusive attachment. It frames desire as a weapon—Kāma’s terrifying arrow—while also recruiting Mitra–Varuṇa’s binding authority to disrupt independent resolve and place the person under control.

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (Kāma-charm attribution) | Devata: Kāma (Desire), personified as archer/force | 6 Mantras

Sukta 26

AV 3.26 is a directional self-protection (dik-rakṣā) hymn that secures the ritual space by addressing the deities stationed in the quarters and requesting their favor rather than their harm. Each verse identifies a quarter, names its guardian-group, and treats a cosmic force (e.g., Agni, Vāta) as their “arrows,” converting potentially dangerous missile-power into protective guardianship. The repeated refrain—“be gracious, speak over us, to you reverence, to you svāhā”—functions as both appeasement and sealing of a protective boundary.

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (often treated as anonymous/collective for dik-rakṣā hymns in later indexing) | Devata: Deities of the eastern quarter called Hetayaḥ; Agni as their missile-force | 6 Mantras

Sukta 27

This short rakṣā-sūkta secures the ritual boundary by invoking the personified Quarters (Diśaḥ) together with their regents (adhipati), guardians (rakṣitṛ), and weapon-forces (iṣavaḥ). Each direction is made “firm” through homage and enlistment, and hostility is ritually transferred outward—“placed in the jaws” of the directional powers—so that the sacrificer’s space becomes inviolate.

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (directional rakṣā hymn) | Devata: Dik (the Quarter) with Viṣṇu as adhipati; Kalmāṣagrīva as rakṣitṛ; personified iṣavaḥ (missiles) | 6 Mantras

Sukta 28

AV 3.28 is a paustika hymn for stabilizing and increasing herd-prosperity by “bringing” Puṣṭi (nourishing increase) and Rasa (vital sap) to the sacrificer’s place. It also recognizes a cattle-wasting agency called Yaminī (with allied names Rifatī, Ruśatī) and turns that dangerous, untimely force into a śivā (benign, thriving) presence for people, fields, and animals.

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (hymn-family attribution uncertain in this excerpt) | Devata: Puṣṭi/Rasa; addressed agent ‘Yamini’ | 6 Mantras

Sukta 29

AV 3.29 frames a funerary-legal “ransom” logic: Yama’s due is acknowledged, then redirected and satisfied through a correctly offered gift—especially a white-footed ewe—so the threatened person is released from death’s claim. The hymn also sacralizes the act of giving and receiving (pratigraha) by grounding the exchange in Kāma (purposeful desire/will), promising inexhaustible merit and secure standing in the Fathers’ world.

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (hymn-family attribution uncertain in this excerpt) | Devata: Yama; Pitṛs (via svadhā) | 8 Mantras

Sukta 30

This hymn is a classic Atharvavedic concord-charm that “installs” shared heart and shared mind within a household or assembly, explicitly removing hatred and faction. It models human unity on divine cooperation—“as the gods do not separate”—so that agreement becomes stable across daily life (evening and morning) and supports prosperity through social cohesion.

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (often attributed to an Atharvan/Angiras seer in anukramaṇī lists) | Devata: Saṃmanasya (personified Concord) / implicit social deities of harmony | 7 Mantras

Deities of Anuvaka 3

Agni
Pacifier/protector
In 1 hymn
Bhaga
Bestower of prosperity
In 1 hymn
Varcaslustre
Empowerer/charisma-giver
In 1 hymn
PushtiPuṣṭi
Nourisher/increaser
In 1 hymn
Rasa
Vitalizer/strength-giver
In 1 hymn
KamaKāma
Impeller/compeller
In 1 hymn
Disha (Quarters) with their Adhipatis / RakshitrisDiśaḥ (Quarters) with their Adhipatis / Rakṣitṛs
Boundary-protectors
In 2 hymns
Yama
Judge/receiver of due (death-regent)
In 1 hymn
SammanasyaSaṃmanasya (Concord; shared mind/heart)
Unifier/peacemaker
In 1 hymn

Inside Anuvaka 3

The theme

Household security and thriving: pacifying inner/outer dangers while installing prosperity, fertility, cohesion, and life-protection through Atharvanic rites

Threads through it

Śānti of dangerous heat and its conversion into protection (Agni as immanent fire)
Paustika increase: stores, fields, cattle, bhaga and varcas (sovereign prosperity and public lustre)
Fertility-restoration and removal/transfer of barrenness
Directional and boundary protection (dik-rakṣā; Quarters and their regents)
Kāma/vaśīkaraṇa for compelling approach and exclusive attachment
Ransom-from-death logic (Yama’s due satisfied and redirected)
Concord-charm: shared mind/heart and removal of faction

Who it serves

Domestic and community life—securing the ritual/household perimeter, building wealth and cattle-increase, restoring conception, resolving conflict, managing desire/attachment, and averting untimely death through correct offerings.

What it heals

Dangerous inner heat/fever-like burning and general harm from ‘fire’ in body and environmentSukta 3.21
Barrenness/infertility (vehát) and blocked conceptionSukta 3.23
Cattle-decline, wasting, or loss of herd-prosperitySukta 3.28
Threat of untimely death or being ‘claimed’ by Yama; need for life-extension via substitutionary giftSukta 3.29
Fear of directional harms, hostile influences, and boundary-breach around ritual space/householdSukta 3.26, 3.27
Household/assembly discord, hatred, faction, and social fragmentationSukta 3.30

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the unifying purpose of Atharvaveda Kanda 3 Anuvaka 3?

It aims to make the household and its ritual space secure and flourishing: pacify harmful forces, protect the quarters, install prosperity and cattle-increase, restore fertility, avert death through ransom-logic, and create concord.

Which sūktas are primarily protective in this anuvaka?

AV 3.21 pacifies dangerous heat through Agni; AV 3.26 and 3.27 protect the ritual boundary by invoking the Quarters and their regents; AV 3.29 protects life by satisfying Yama’s due through a correctly offered substitute gift.

Which hymns focus on prosperity and social stability rather than illness?

AV 3.22 concentrates bhaga and varcas (sovereign prosperity and lustre), AV 3.24 ‘sets’ abundance into stores and fields, AV 3.28 stabilizes herd-prosperity, and AV 3.30 installs shared heart and mind to remove faction in a household or assembly.

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