Atharva Veda 4.36.2: Kanda 4, Anuvaka 4, Sukta 36, Mantra 2
Sukta 36
यो नो॒ दिप्स॒ददि॑प्सतो॒ दिप्स॑तो॒ यश्च॒ दिप्स॑ति । वै॒श्वा॒न॒रस्य॒ दंष्ट्र॑योर॒ग्नेरपि॑ दधामि॒ तम्
yó no dípsad adípsato dípsato yáś ca dípsati | vaiśvānarásya dáṃṣṭrayor agnér ápi dadhāmi tám
Whoever would harm us—whether he harm not, or harm, and whoever harms—I set him within the fangs of Vaiśvānara Agni.
जो भी हमें तकलीफ देना चाहे, चाहे वो अभी तक कुछ किया हो या नहीं, और जो अभी हर्म कर रहा है, मैं उसे अग्नि के दाँतों में डाल देता हूँ। यह अग्नि का रूप है जो सबको जला देता है। दुआ है कि दुश्मन उसकी पकड़ में आ जाए।
The meaning
What it says
The speaker consigns any would-be harmer—overt, covert, or ambiguous—into the ‘fangs’ (daṃṣṭrā) of Vaiśvānara Agni.
The inner meaning
The mind names the entire spectrum of threat (actual, potential, hidden) and places it into a single transformative container: the purifying intelligence of fire. ‘Fangs’ symbolize discriminating power that grips and neutralizes intrusive impulses.
The truth in it
When protective discernment is strong, even ambiguous threats lose power: what cannot be confronted socially can still be metabolized inwardly through clarity and boundaries.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Raksha (Protective) / Abhicarika (counter-harm)
Its aim
To consign all potential harmers—overt or covert—into the consuming power of Vaiśvānara Agni.
Word by Word
Pada patha
यः । नः । दिप्सत् । अदिप्सतः । दिप्सतः । यः । च । दिप्सति । वैश्वानरस्य । दंष्ट्रयोः । अग्नेः । अपि । दधामि । तम् ।
- यः
- who (he who)who (whoever)Pronounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- नः
- of us / ourus (our people)Pronounषष्ठी, बहुवचनम् (एन्क्लिटिक) — ‘our/of us’Role SampradānaRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- दिप्सत्
- desiring to harm / intending to injureseeking to harm; intending injury (hostile intent)Verb (participle)वर्तमान-कृदन्त (शतृ), पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot दिप्स् (धातु; desiderative base from दभ्/दप् ‘to harm/deceive’ in Vedic usage)
- अदिप्सतः
- from one who does not wish to harmnot seeking to harm (even if pretending innocence); the non-harmer (often read as ‘whether openly or not’ in protective formulas)Verb (participle)वर्तमान-कृदन्त (शतृ) का षष्ठी/पञ्चमी एकवचनम्; अ-नकारेण ‘not desiring to harm’Role ApādānaRoot दिप्स् (धातु) + अ- (निषेध)
- दिप्सतः
- from one who wishes to harmthe harmer; one who seeks to injure (reiterated for total coverage)Verb (participle)वर्तमान-कृदन्त (शतृ), षष्ठी/पञ्चमी, एकवचनम्Role ApādānaRoot दिप्स् (धातु)
- यः
- and whowhoPronounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- च
- andIndeclinableअव्ययम्Root च
- दिप्सति
- (he) seeks to harm / intends to injureharms/seeks to harm (present: active injurer)Verbलट् (वर्तमान), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot दिप्स् (धातु)
- वैश्वानरस्य
- of VaiśvānaraNoun (proper/epithet)पुंलिङ्गः, षष्ठी, एकवचनम्Role AdhikaraṇaRoot वैश्वानर (प्रातिपदिक; ‘Vaiśvānara’, epithet of Agni)
- दंष्ट्रयोः
- in/at the two fangs (jaws)in the two fangs/jaws (metaphor: consuming, biting fire)Nounस्त्रीलिङ्गः, सप्तमी/षष्ठी, द्विवचनम् (द्विवचन-रूप ‘-योः’)Role AdhikaraṇaRoot दंष्ट्रा (प्रातिपदिक)
- अग्नेः
- of AgniNoun (deity)पुंलिङ्गः, षष्ठी, एकवचनम्Role AdhikaraṇaRoot अग्नि (प्रातिपदिक)
- अपि
- also; indeed; intointo, upon; in addition (here: ‘into the grasp of’)Indeclinableअव्ययम्Root अपि
- दधामि
- I place / I putI place, set (ritual consigning of the enemy to fire)Verbलट् (वर्तमान), परस्मैपदम्, उत्तमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot धा (धातु)
- तम्
- him (that one)him (that person/agent of harm)Pronounपुंलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्Role KarmaRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- यः | नः | दिप्सत् | अदिप्सतः | दिप्सतः | यः | च | दिप्सति | वैश्वानरस्य | दंष्ट्रयोः | अग्नेः | अपि | दधामि | तम् । Sandhi highlights:
- (1) नो॒ = नः (enclitic gen.pl. of अस्मद्)
- (2) दिप्स॒ददि॑प्सतो = दिप्सत् + अदिप्सतः (final -त् before vowel a-; written together in saṃhitā)
- (3) दिप्सतो॒ यश्च = दिप्सतः + यः + च (visarga-less junction in saṃhitā; ‘यश्च’ = ‘यः च’)
- (4) दंष्ट्र॑योर॒ग्नेरपि = दंष्ट्रयोः + अग्नेः + अपि (word-boundary coalescence in saṃhitā)
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- To be verified from Anukramaṇī for AV 4.36.
- Devata
- Agni Vaiśvānara
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh (probable; requires scan).
- Rasa
- Raudra and Vira
Sāyaṇa construes the repeated dips-forms as exhaustive enumeration of hostile agents (open, covert, or active). ‘Fangs of Agni’ is a vivid Atharvanic metaphor: consigning the enemy into fire’s consuming jaws, i.e., placing him under Agni’s punitive digestion (dahana/bhakṣaṇa).
Unknown (to be confirmed from Shaunaka Anukramaṇī for AV 4.36)
Counter-harm formulas with binding/containment imagery (placing enemies into consuming forces).
A classic Atharvanic ‘contain and consume’ move: rather than chasing threats endlessly, the rite relocates them into Agni’s jurisdiction.
Rudra (fierce removal); Nṛsiṃha-like protective archetype (by imagery, not direct Vedic identity)
Agni Vaiśvānara
Transformer of offerings and impurities; boundary-guardian; devourer of harmful forces.
Purges subtle ‘toxins’ of fear/hostility; supports inner agni as resilience.
Acts as a consuming enclosure—threats are seized and neutralized.
4 pādas of ~8; repetition of dips- roots creates rhythmic hammering.
Alliterative/iterative wordplay (dipsad–adipsato–dipsato–dipsati) can override strict euphony; AV favors incantatory repetition.
Mantric pounding through near-identical forms, culminating in a decisive ‘api dadhāmi tam’.
Hypnotic enumeration of threat-types, then a sealing action—psychologically ‘closing the case’.
Stand before the household fire (Vaiśvānara).
Recite the mantra while making an offering (ghee/fuel) as the verbal act ‘I place him in the fangs’ is performed.
Optionally cast a small pinch of offering or a marked object (e.g., a twig) into the fire as a proxy for the hostile agent, enacting consignment.
Conclude with silent watching of the flame as the enemy is imagined ‘consumed’ (internal visualization reinforcing the karman).
Kauśika Sūtra: fire-based rakṣā/counter-sorcery using AV 4.36 (edition-dependent numbering; align to AV 4.36 usage).
Atharvan priest performs the consigning act (nyāsa/saṃpradāna) through speech and offering; he ensures the rite targets generalized hostility without naming (or with naming, if prescribed elsewhere).
Recite while looking into a steady flame; optionally gesture as if ‘placing’ the threat into the fire (without naming specific persons aloud in public settings).
When covert hostility is suspected; before sleep; before entering public assemblies.
Householder performance suitable; priest may add formal offerings and boundary rites.
To be verified for AVŚ 4.36 applications; likely recited with fire-facing and small oblations in rakṣā sequences.
Use as a protective visualization during candle meditation; keep it non-harmful in intention—aim at neutralization, not revenge.
Agni (Vaiśvānara); Offerings/fuel implied
Explicit: Agni as the consuming container.
Fire is imagined as a predator with fangs: protective power is not passive warmth but active seizure and digestion of harm.
Rakṣas/hostile influence; anxiety from perceived or real threats; ‘evil eye’ type social stress.
Containment and purification via Agni; cognitive closure by naming all contingencies of harm.
Strengthening agni and ojas by removing ‘psychic ama’ (heaviness from hostility/fear) through ritual heat and resolve.
A structured protective visualization akin to trauma-informed boundary work: identify threat categories and place them outside the self in a controlled ‘container’.
Any harmer—overt, covert, or uncertain.
Neutralize any potential harmer by placing them into Agni’s consuming fangs.
Enumerative net (cover all cases) + binding/placement into a devouring power (Agni’s daṃṣṭrā).
Hidden enemies, gossip-driven harm, covert sabotage, counter-sorcery.
- dipsat / dipsati
- hostile intention and action, including covert aggression
- adipsataḥ
- masked hostility; passive-aggressive or hidden malice
- daṃṣṭrā
- cutting discernment; consuming purification; immune ‘bite’ against intrusion
- api dadhāmi
- ritual containment; binding the threat into a controlled sphere
- Vaiśvānara Agni
- shared protective intelligence; digestive/purifying principle
Boundary containment: place intrusive thoughts/hostile projections into an inner fire without feeding them further attention.
Manipura
3 rounds of kapalabhāti (gentle) if appropriate, then slow breathing; on exhale mentally ‘place’ the threat into the flame.
A ring of flame-teeth at the solar plexus; any dark arrow or whispering thought is caught and dissolved.
Steady, vigilant, non-reactive.
Do not scan obsessively for enemies; recite once, then return to constructive action and calm awareness.
Keep the dips- repetitions even and percussive; maintain clear udātta where marked in the source tradition.
Do not rush the chain ‘dipsad adipsato dipsato yaś ca dipsati’; give each dips- a distinct beat; land firmly on ‘api dadhāmi tam’.
Low, controlled, sealing tone (as in binding rites).
Atharvanic practice often emphasizes ‘cover-all-forms’ wording; keep the enumeration audible to preserve the spell’s net-like function.
7 times
Dealing with covert hostility, gossip, passive-aggressive harm, or generalized fear of ‘someone out to get me.’
Before entering contested social spaces; after receiving disturbing messages; before sleep to reduce rumination.
Reduced anxiety, clearer boundaries, sense of energetic protection and closure.
If paranoia is present, balance with grounding and reality-checks; seek professional help if fear becomes intrusive or delusional.
Again the key medium is fire, not herb. The mantra operationalizes Agni as a juridical/penal force: the enemy is ‘placed’ into Agni’s jaws, turning combustion into a social-ritual sanction.
It encodes a world of suspicion (covert harmers) and provides a priestly-managed technology for neutralization. The household fire becomes an instrument of communal governance, mediated by Atharvanic speech.
The metaphor of Agni’s ‘fangs’ and the legalistic exhaustive listing of harmers are more Atharvanic than RV. The performative ‘dadhāmi’ (‘I place’) is a hallmark of operative charm-language.
Gopatha’s tendency to treat ritual speech as binding and Agni as executor supports the logic of ‘consignment’: once placed by mantra, the hostile agent is under Agni’s consuming jurisdiction.
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