Atharva Veda 6.128.4: Kanda 6, Anuvaka 13, Sukta 128, Mantra 4
Sukta 128
यो नो॑ भद्रा॒हमक॑रः सा॒यं नक्त॒मथो॒ दिवा॑ । तस्मै॑ ते नक्षत्रराज॒ शक॑धूम॒ सदा॒ नमः॑
yó no bhadrā́ham ákaroḥ sāyáṃ náktam átho dívā | tásmai te nákṣatra-rājan śakadhū́ma sadā́ námaḥ ||
Thou who hast made for us a lucky day, at eve, at night, and also by day—to thee, O King of the Nakṣatras, O Śakadhūma, be homage evermore.
तुमने हमारे लिए अच्छा दिन बनाया है। शाम को, रात को, और दिन में भी। हे तारों के राजा शकधूम, तुम्हे हमेशा नमस्ते।
The meaning
What it says
A thanksgiving and ongoing homage: to Śakadhūma, King of the Nakṣatras, who has made a lucky day for us at evening, night, and day—homage always.
The inner meaning
Gratitude stabilizes auspiciousness: by acknowledging beneficence across liminal times (twilight, night), the psyche remains protected from fear and rumination. Continuous namas is a discipline of trust in order.
The truth in it
Sustained well-being depends on remembering and honoring what keeps life steady—especially across transitions and darkness.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Śānti (Pacification) / Paustika
Its aim
To maintain continuous auspiciousness across all times of day and avert nocturnal/liminal dangers.
Word by Word
Pada patha
यः । नः । भद्राहम् । अकरः । सायम् । नक्तम् । अथो इति । दिवा । तस्मै । ते । नक्षत्र-राजन् । शकधूम । सदा । नमः ।
- यः
- who (he)who (the beneficent agent—Śakadhūma as giver of auspicious time)Pronounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → य-
- नः
- to us / for usfor us/our (the patron group)Pronounषष्ठी/चतुर्थी, बहुवचनम् (एन्क्लिटिक)Role SampradānaRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम) → नः
- भद्राणि
- auspicious (things), blessingsNoun/Adjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, बहुवचनम्Role KarmaRoot भद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- अहम्
- IPronounप्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- अकरः
- you made / you didthou hast made (completed benefaction; establishes obligation for continued favor)Verbलुङ् (अorist), परस्मैपदम्, मध्यमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्Root कृ (धातु)
- सायम्
- in the eveningIndeclinableकालवाचक-अव्ययम्Role AdhikaraṇaRoot सायम् (अव्यय)
- नक्तम्
- at nightby night (the nocturnal segment; often feared/charged in Atharvanic rites)Indeclinableकालवाचक-अव्ययम्Role AdhikaraṇaRoot नक्तम् (अव्यय)
- अथो
- and alsoIndeclinableसमुच्चय/अन्वयार्थक-निपातःRoot अथ + उ (निपात)
- दिवा
- by day / in daytimeby day (diurnal segment; complements night)Indeclinableकालवाचक-अव्ययम्Role AdhikaraṇaRoot दिवा (अव्यय; दिव्/द्यौ-सम्बद्ध)
- तस्मै
- to himto him/therefore to that one (dative of reverence/reciprocity)Pronounपुंलिङ्गः, चतुर्थी, एकवचनम्Role SampradānaRoot तद् (सर्वनाम)
- ते
- yourto thee/thy (addressing the invoked power)Pronounषष्ठी, एकवचनम् (एन्क्लिटिक)Root त्वद् (सर्वनाम)
- नक्षत्रराज
- O king of the starsNoun (vocative)पुंलिङ्गः, सम्बोधन, एकवचनम्Root नक्षत्र-राजन् (समास; प्रातिपदिक)
- शकधूम
- O smoke of dung-fuel (epithet)Śakadhūma (named astral entity receiving homage)Noun (vocative/epithet)पुंलिङ्गः, सम्बोधन, एकवचनम्Root शक-धूम (समास; प्रातिपदिक)
- सदा
- alwaysIndeclinableनित्यत्ववाचक-अव्ययम्Role AdhikaraṇaRoot सदा (अव्यय)
- नमः
- salutationhomage (ritual submission that secures favor and averts harm)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम् (नमः-प्रयोगः)Role KarmaRoot नमस् (प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- (1) यो → यः (visarga in pada)
- (2) नो॑ → नः
- (3) भद्रा॒हमक॑रः → भद्राणि + अहम् + अकरः (भद्राणि + अहम्: -आनि + अ- → -ाहम्; अहम् + अकरः: m + a → म a)
- (4) सा॒यं नक्त॒मथो॒ दिवा॑ → सायम् + नक्तम् + अथो + दिवा
- (5) तस्मै॑ ते → तस्मै + ते
- (6) नक्षत्रराज॒ शक॑धूम॒ → नक्षत्रराज + शकधूम (both vocatives, no further sandhi)
- (7) सदा॒ नमः॑ → सदा + नमः
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Atharvanic tradition
- Devata
- Nakṣatra-rājan (Śakadhūma)
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh (probable)
- Rasa
- Shanta and Karuna
Sāyaṇa reads the verse as thanksgiving and continued propitiation: because the Nakṣatra-king has already ‘made’ bhadra-time across all divisions (evening/night/day), the sacrificer maintains perpetual namas to keep the auspicious condition stable and to prevent relapse into inauspiciousness.
Atharvanic tradition (anonymous)
Śānti thanksgiving formulas; maintaining auspiciousness across temporal transitions; devotional sealing of a successful rite.
Completes the charm cycle: petition (6.128.3) followed by acknowledgment (6.128.4), a common Atharvanic pattern to ‘hold’ the benefit in place.
Nakṣatra-rājan Śakadhūma
Ensures continuity of auspiciousness through all watch-times; stabilizes liminal zones where misfortune is thought to enter.
Guards at twilight and night; maintains favorable omens and safe passage through time.
4×8
Devotional cadence; the final ‘sadā namaḥ’ lands like a seal.
Consolidates the prior blessing; creates a lingering protective calm.
After securing an auspicious determination (bhadra) by prior recitation, repeat this verse as a sealing formula.
Recite at the three temporal junctures named (evening, night, day) or symbolically mark them with three libations/sprinklings.
Offer a concluding namaskāra; optionally tie a protective thread/amulet as a ‘continuity device’ for sādā (always).
Kauśika Sūtra: Nakṣatra-śānti / daily-time pacification (general application; exact sūtra-number varies by edition).
Atharvan as maintainer of śānti, performing the ‘closing’ and continuity of the auspicious state.
Recite after a successful undertaking, and as an evening protective prayer to carry auspiciousness into sleep and next day.
Evening twilight (sāyam) is especially apt; also after completion of a rite begun with 6.128.3.
Householder recitation; priest optional.
KauśS: śānti maintenance/thanksgiving following a bhadrāham rite (general, edition-dependent).
Short nightly recitation as ‘closing’ gratitude and protection practice.
The ‘offering’ is verbal devotion; namas functions as the subtle oblation that keeps time pacified.
Supports sattva and reduces rajas/tamas through gratitude; aligns with dinacaryā emphasis on twilight observances.
Gratitude practice reducing stress; evening routines improving sleep and next-day performance.
Household/patron across all times
Maintain ongoing auspiciousness and protection across evening, night, and day through homage to the nakṣatra sovereign.
Thanksgiving + perpetual homage (namas) as a ‘binding’ technique to retain the boon.
Nocturnal fear, bad dreams/omens, liminal mishaps, reversal of fortune
Continuity of good luck and success
- भद्राहम् अकरः (bhadrāham akaraḥ)
- time transformed by blessing; success attributed to alignment, not ego
- सायं / नक्तम् / दिवा (sāyaṃ/naktam/divā)
- liminal thresholds; conscious/unconscious cycles; total protection
- नक्षत्रराजन् (nakṣatrarājan)
- governing principle of fate-signs; regulator of auspice
- सदा नमः (sadā namaḥ)
- continuous gratitude as a protective practice; ongoing pacification
Gratitude across transitions; protecting the mind at dusk and before sleep.
Anāhata (devotional gratitude)
Slow exhale with ‘namaḥ’; extend the final visarga softly.
Settled, trusting, ready for rest.
Use as a nightly seal: recall one ‘bhadra’ event of the day, offer namas, and release worry into the rhythm of time.
Soft, devotional; slightly lift on nakṣatrarājan and let sadā namaḥ descend gently.
Keep the time-words distinct: sāyaṃ | naktam | divā; then emphasize sadā.
Low, warm, calming—suited for evening.
Functions well as a nightly śānti-japa; treat as the ‘thanksgiving seal’ after the petition-mantra (6.128.3).
27 times
After success; before sleep; when seeking ongoing good luck and protection through liminal times.
At dusk, before bed, or after completing an important task begun with an auspicious-day prayer.
Reduced anxiety, steadier sleep, sense of continued auspicious support.
Avoid obsessive repetition driven by fear; keep it as gratitude, not compulsion.
Again none is explicit; the operative medium is temporal segmentation (sāyam/naktam/divā). The verse functions as a ‘temporal seal’ rather than a pharmacological charm.
It encodes reciprocity: cosmic power grants auspiciousness; humans respond with perpetual homage mediated by priestly speech. This reinforces a hierarchy where correct ritual language sustains worldly success.
The triadic time-listing is stylistically Atharvanic in its practical orientation. The explicit ‘nakṣatra-rājan’ address foregrounds astral taxonomy more than typical RV praise-poetry.
Gopatha’s emphasis on mantra as stabilizer of order supports reading this as a maintenance charm: namas is not mere devotion but a functional act that keeps the achieved bhadra condition from dissolving.
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