Atharva Veda 5.29.6: Kanda 5, Anuvaka 3, Sukta 29, Mantra 6
Sukta 29
आ॒मे सुप॑क्वे श॒बले॒ विप॑क्वे॒ यो मा॑ पिशा॒चो अश॑ने द॒दम्भ॑ । तदा॒त्मना॑ प्र॒जया॑ पिशा॒चा वि या॑तयन्तामग॒दो॒३यम॑स्तु
āmé supákve śabále vípakve yó mā piśācó áśane dadámbha | tád ātmánā prajā́yā piśācā́ ví yātayantām agadó ayám astu
In raw, in well-cooked, in mixed, in over-cooked—what Piśāca hath injured me in the eating: that, with its own self, with its progeny, let the Piśācas be driven apart; let this be an antidote.
कच्चा खाने में, पक्के खाने में, या जले हुए में जो पिसाच ने मुझे तकलीफ़ दी, वो अपने आप को और अपने बच्चों को सज़ा मिले। यह मंत्र दवा की तरह काम करे।
The meaning
What it says
The speaker identifies possible points of contamination in food—raw, well-cooked, mixed, overcooked—and declares: whatever Piśāca-affliction has “bitten/injured” him while eating, let those Piśācas be driven away along with their own bodies and progeny; may this utterance be an agada (antidote).
The inner meaning
Anxiety around nourishment and trust is addressed by naming every culinary state: the mind stops searching for “which exact food caused it” and instead performs a total psychic quarantine. The command to expel the affliction “with its progeny” symbolizes ending recursive thought-loops and relapse-patterns.
The truth in it
What enters us (food, impressions, influences) can carry unseen harm; clarity comes from comprehensive recognition plus decisive boundary-setting. Naming the whole field of possibilities and then releasing it is itself a medicine.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Bhaisajya (Healing) / Rakṣoghna
Its aim
Neutralize and expel Piśāca-affliction contracted through eating/food contamination
Word by Word
Pada patha
आमे । सुपक्वे । शबले । विपक्वे । यः । मा । पिशाचः । अशने । ददम्भ । तत् । आत्मना । प्रजया । पिशाचाः । वि । यातयन्ताम् । अगदः । अयम् । अस्तु
- आमे
- in the raw (unripe) [state]in the raw/uncooked (food); a locus of contamination and demonic accessAdjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-एकवचन (लोकेटिव; 'in/at the raw [state]')Role अधिकरणRoot आम (प्रातिपदिक)
- सुपक्वे
- in the well-cooked/fully ripe [state]in the well-cooked; even proper food can be demon-touchedAdjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-एकवचनRole अधिकरणRoot सुपक्व (प्रातिपदिक; सु- + पक्व)
- शबले
- in the speckled/variegated [state]in the variegated/mixed; food of mixed kinds, potentially ritually ambiguousAdjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-एकवचनRole अधिकरणRoot शबल (प्रातिपदिक)
- विपक्वे
- in the overcooked/overripe [state]in the over-cooked/fully cooked; exhaustive coverage of dietary statesAdjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-एकवचनRole अधिकरणRoot विपक्व (प्रातिपदिक; वि- + पक्व)
- यः
- who (that one who)whoever; the particular offending agentPronounपुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-एकवचनRole कर्ताRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- माम्
- mePronounद्वितीया-एकवचनRole कर्मRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- पिशाचः
- a piśāca (demonic being)Piśāca; eater/possessor entering via foodNounपुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-एकवचनRole कर्ताRoot पिशाच (प्रातिपदिक)
- अशने
- in food / in eatingin eating, in food; the act/medium of ingestionNounनपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-एकवचन (लोकेटिव; 'in/at eating/food')Role अधिकरणRoot अशन (प्रातिपदिक)
- ददम्भ
- has harmed/afflictedhas harmed/bitten/afflicted (√dambh ‘injure, deceive’); here ‘attacked while I ate’Verbलिट् (परोक्षभूत/परफेक्ट), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRole क्रियाRoot ददम्भ (धातु-रूप; √दभ्/दम्भ् ‘to harm, injure, deceive’—वैदिक परस्मैपद)
- तत्
- that (him/that one)that (harm/that demon)Pronounनपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-एकवचन (object of 'drive away')Role कर्मRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- आत्मना
- by (one’s) self / with one’s own personwith (its own) self; by its own force—let it be expelled with its essenceNounपुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया-एकवचनRole करणRoot आत्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
- प्रजया
- with offspring/progenywith progeny; including its brood/attachments—total removalNounस्त्रीलिङ्गे, तृतीया-एकवचनRole करणRoot प्रजा (प्रातिपदिक)
- पिशाचाः
- the piśācasthe Piśācas (collective); the class of beings to be driven offNounपुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-बहुवचनRole कर्ताRoot पिशाच (प्रातिपदिक)
- वि
- apart, away (intensifier/separator)apart, away; dispersalIndeclinableउपसर्ग (क्रियाविशेषक)Root वि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- यातयन्ताम्
- let them drive away / let them cause to departlet them be driven away/banished (causative of √yā ‘send’); formal expulsionVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन, आत्मनेपदRole क्रियाRoot √यातय् (णिजन्त; causative of √या/यात् ‘to go’ → ‘to cause to go/drive away’)
- अगदः
- a remedy; antidote; healing charmantidote, non-poison; a counter-charm/medicineNounपुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-एकवचनRole कर्ता (वाक्ये ‘अस्तु’ इत्यस्य)Root अगद (प्रातिपदिक)
- अयम्
- thisthis (mantra/rite) here and nowPronounपुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-एकवचनRole विशेषण (अगदस्य)Root इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- अस्तु
- let it belet it be; performative sealing of efficacyVerbलोट् (आशीर्लिङ्/आज्ञार्थ-प्रयोग), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRole क्रियाRoot √अस् (भू-सत्तायाम्)
Sandhi Notes
- आ॒मे | सुप॑क्वे | श॒बले॒ | विप॑क्वे॒ | यः | माम् | पिशा॒चः | अश॑ने | द॒दम्भ॑ । तत् | आत्मना | प्रजया | पिशा॒चाः | वि | यातयन्ताम् | अगदः | अयम् | अस्तु । (१) ‘यो मा’ → ‘यः माम्’ (ओ/अः + म् संधि-प्रयोगः; पदपाठे ‘यः’ ‘माम्’)। (२) ‘तदात्मना’ → ‘तत् आत्मना’ (द् + आ = दा; संहितायां दीर्घसन्धिः)। (३) ‘यातयन्तामगदः’ → ‘यातयन्ताम् अगदः’ (म् + अ- आरम्भे पदविभागः)। (४) ‘अगदो३यम्’ → ‘अगदः अयम्’ (विसर्गसन्धिः: अः + अ → ओ; प्लुत/अवग्रह-चिह्नेन ‘३’ दर्शितः)।
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Atharvanic/Angiras tradition (exorcistic healing corpus)
- Devata
- Piśācas (as adversary) and the ‘Agada’ power of the charm; implicitly Agni as purifier
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh-like (probable; requires metrical verification)
- Rasa
- Vira and Bhayankara
Sāyaṇa reads the food-categories as an exhaustive net: no dietary condition is exempt from possible piśāca-contact. ‘With self and progeny’ is a standard Atharvanic totalizing expulsion—remove the demon and its ‘line’ (all traces, satellites, and recurrence). ‘Agada’ is the mantra’s medicinal status: a verbal antidote.
AVŚ 5.29.1-10 (Piśāca-expulsion / agada refrain); AVŚ 2.9 (rakṣas/piśāca repulsion themes, general parallels); AVŚ 6.14 (disease extirpation by cutting root—shared logic of non-recurrence)
Unknown (Atharvanic exorcistic-healing corpus; transmitted under Atharvan/Āṅgiras strata)
Rakṣoghna and bhaiṣajya praxis: expelling Piśāca-type afflictions contracted through food/ingestion; consecratory ‘agada’ speech-acts.
Embodies the Atharvan healer’s method: identify the liminal entry-point (food), universalize the suspect domain (all cooking states), then command total removal (root + lineage) and seal with ‘agada’—speech as antidotal substance.
Agada (antidotal power) against Piśāca-adversaries
Restores ṛta at the bodily threshold (mouth/ingestion) by re-separating the human from impure, predatory forces that cling through consumption.
Neutralizes poison/impurity metaphorically and ritually; counters possession-like symptom clusters associated with contaminated food.
Creates an apotropaic seal over meals and the eater; prevents relapse by expelling ‘progeny’ (recurrence vectors).
4 pādas of ~8 syllables; with Atharvanic flexibility (resolution/extra syllable around compounded qualifiers and enclitics).
Cataloguing qualifiers (āme/supakve/śabale/vipakve) can slightly load the opening pāda(s), producing a ‘list-chant’ cadence typical of AV charms.
Incantatory, enumerative opening followed by a firm expulsive cadence (vi yātayantām) and sealing closure (agado ’yam astu).
The list induces cognitive completeness; the imperative and refrain produce a felt ‘cut-off’ and protective closure.
Identify suspected ingestion context; place a portion of the food (or a representative sample) before the fire or on a clean surface.
Recite the mantra over the food and then over water for sipping/sprinkling, declaring it ‘agada’.
Sprinkle the patient and/or have the patient sip the consecrated water; optionally discard the suspect food to an unclean place while reciting ‘vi yātayantām’.
Seal with a small oblation to Agni or a fumigation pass to prevent re-attachment.
Kauśika Sūtra: domestic healing for food-borne graha/piśāca; recitation over food/water and patient (edition-dependent numbering)
Atharvan as domestic ritual-technologist: diagnoses ingestion as vector, consecrates water/food as ‘antidote’, and performs banishment formulae
Recite over food before eating when contamination/affliction is feared; or over a small portion/water used as a ‘carrier’ for the antidotal speech.
Before meals; at onset of nausea/unease after eating; liminal evening hours often preferred for rakṣas-related rites.
Householder-healer (gṛhapati) or Atharvan specialist; may accompany with fumigation at the hearth.
KauśS: general rakṣoghna/bhaiṣajya procedures for Piśāca/Yātu expulsion and agada-style consecrations (exact sūtra varies by edition; often grouped with AVŚ 5.29 applications).
Mindful pre-meal protective recitation; hygienic measures paired with mantra as psychological and ritual seal.
Food in various states (raw/cooked/mixed/overcooked); Agada (antidote) as mantra-medicine
Implicit Agni/household fire as purifier of cooked food-states; not named.
Food is the porous boundary between world and self. By spanning raw→cooked→mixed→overcooked, the charm claims total jurisdiction over the meal-spectrum; ‘agada’ converts speech into a counter-substance that redefines the meal as safe.
Piśāca-affliction via food (possession/impurity/food-borne harm; also ‘poisoning’ frame via agada).
Mouth/digestive tract implied via aśana (eating).
Exorcistic expulsion plus antidotal sealing: identify ingestion as vector, command separation/banishment, prevent recurrence by removing ‘progeny’.
Conceptually aligns with āma/toxicity and agada as viṣa-pratyanīka (anti-poison). Not a classical Ayurvedic prescription, but shares the detox/ama-clearing logic.
Food poisoning, intolerance reactions, anxiety around contamination; also psychosomatic nausea linked to fear of ingestion.
Piśācas (adversarial beings/forces) attached through eating.
Neutralize and expel the Piśāca-force associated with ingested food in any culinary state; establish the mantra as an antidote.
Enumerative totalization (cover all cases) + imperative banishment (vi-yāt-) + ‘antidote’ declaration (agado ’yam astu) as performative sealing.
Contaminated food, impurity-demons, relapse/recurrence of symptoms after meals.
- āma
- the unprocessed/undigested—both food and emotion; ama-like toxicity
- supakva
- properly transformed experience; even ‘right’ things can be implicated in fear, so the charm covers all cases
- śabala
- confused mixtures—dietary incompatibility, mixed motives, blended influences
- vipakva
- excess/overprocessing; burnout, rancidity, stale impressions
- piśāca
- intrusive forces: infection, contamination, compulsion, parasitic thoughts
- aśana
- the gateway of incorporation—what we ‘take in’
- dadambha
- a sudden breach—sting, poisoning, invasive symptom onset
- ātmanā prajayā
- root-cause plus its reproducing chain; prevent recurrence
- agada
- speech as pharmakon; mantra as counter-toxin
Boundary purification: what I ingest (food/impressions) is sifted; what is harmful is released.
Maṇipūra (digestive fire) and Viśuddha (ingestion/voice)
Moderate nāsikā-prāṇāyāma before meals; exhale on ‘vi yātayantām’ as a releasing cue.
A ring of clean fire around the food-bowl; shadowy forms disperse outward and dissolve.
Protective clarity (rakṣā-buddhi) without paranoia.
Chant once slowly to ‘scan’ the meal, then again with firm cadence to seal; end with a brief silent pause on ‘astu’ (completion).
Keep retroflex ṣ in piśāca distinct from ś.; Maintain long vowels: āme, supākve (u is short but pāda flow), vipākve; ātmānā.; Sandhi: agado ’yam (clear avagraha break).
Atharvavedic recitation with clear udātta on key imperatives; keep refrain ‘vi yātayantām … agado ’yam astu’ steady and emphatic.
Stress semantic pivots: piśāco/ piśācāḥ; vi yātayantām; agadaḥ; astu. Avoid rushing the opening list.
Firm, apotropaic; slightly percussive on ‘vi yā-’.
Common Atharvan pattern: enumerate vectors → identify agent → expel with progeny → seal as ‘agada’. Repetition often done over the suspected food or the eater’s drinking water.
3 times
Fear of food contamination; nausea or unease after eating; travel meals; communal feasts where purity is uncertain.
Before eating (preventive) or immediately after symptoms begin (supportive).
A felt sense of protection and ‘closure’; traditional aim is expulsion of the afflicting force and prevention of recurrence.
Not a substitute for medical care in suspected poisoning, severe allergy, or infection; seek urgent help if severe symptoms occur.
The ‘substance’ is dietary matter itself; the verse maps demon-entry onto ingestion. The mantra converts ordinary water/food into agada (counter-poison), showing Atharvanic medicine as semiotic transformation: naming + ritual handling produces pharmacological status.
Food—normally domestic and often managed by household members—becomes a site requiring priestly intervention when framed as demonic. The priest’s speech re-authorizes what is safe to consume, reinforcing ritual expertise as a form of social control over purity and health.
The enumerative food-states and the technical term agada are more characteristic of Atharvanic therapeutic diction than RV praise-poetry. The expulsion formula ‘with progeny’ is a developed magical legalism aimed at preventing recurrence.
Gopatha’s framework that brahman can ‘unbind’ afflictions supports the idea that contamination acquired through eating is reversible by consecration and banishment. The mantra’s performative ‘ayám astu’ aligns with Brahmana-style efficacy through explicit verbal sealing.
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