Atharva Veda 6.67.1: Kanda 6, Anuvaka 7, Sukta 67, Mantra 1
Sukta 67
शत्रुनाशनम्। परि॒ व॑र्त्मा॑नि स॒र्वत॒ इन्द्रः॑ पू॒षा च॑ सस्रतुः । मुह्य॑न्त्व॒द्यामूः सेना॑ अ॒मित्रा॑णां परस्त॒राम्
śatrunāśánam | pári vártmanī sárvata índraḥ pūṣā́ ca sasratúḥ | múhyantv adyā́mūḥ sénā́ amítrāṇāṃ parastarā́m
Enemy-destruction. Around the paths on every side have Indra and Pūṣan sped: let those armies of the foemen, this day, be confounded most utterly.
यह मंत्र दुश्मनों को बरबाद करने के लिए है। इंद्र और पुषन सब तरफ से रस्ते देख रहे हैं। आज दुश्मन की सेना घबरा जाए। वो भटकने लगें, समझ में न आए उन्हें क्या हो रहा है।
The meaning
What it says
Indra and Pūṣan rush around all paths on every side; may the enemies’ armies today be utterly confounded.
The inner meaning
Secure the ‘routes’ of attention and habit; the guiding power (Pūṣan) and the forceful protector (Indra) prevent intrusive thoughts from finding an entry, causing disruptive impulses to lose orientation.
The truth in it
Protection is not only confrontation; it is control of pathways—access, movement, and orientation. When pathways are guarded, hostile forces become confused and ineffective.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Apotropaic (Protective) / Abhicarika (Confusion of enemies)
Its aim
To secure all approaches and induce disorientation in enemy armies.
Word by Word
Pada patha
शत्रु-नाशनम् । परि । वर्त्मानि । सर्वतः । इन्द्रः । पूषा । च । सस्रतुः । मुह्यन्तु । अद्य । अमूः । सेनाः । अमित्राणाम् । परस्तराम् ।
- परि
- around, all aboutaround, all about; encircling (protective enclosure)Indeclinableउपसर्ग/अव्ययRoot परि
- वर्त्मानि
- paths, tracks, coursespaths, tracks, approaches; routes of advanceNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया/प्रथमा बहुवचन (अधिकरणार्थे)Role AdhikaraṇaRoot वर्त्मन्
- सर्वतः
- from all sides, everywherefrom every side; in all directionsIndeclinableअव्यय (दिशावाचक)Root सर्वतः
- इन्द्रः
- IndraNoun (proper)पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा एकवचनRole KartāRoot इन्द्र
- पूषा
- PūṣanPūṣan; guardian of roads, guide and protector of waysNoun (proper)पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा एकवचनRole KartāRoot पूषन्
- च
- andIndeclinableसमुच्चयार्थक अव्ययRoot च
- सस्रतुः
- (the two) have run/advancedhave run/hastened; have sped (to guard/encircle)Verbलिट् (परस्मैपद); प्रथमपुरुष; द्विवचनRole KriyāRoot सृ
- मुह्यन्तु
- let (them) be bewilderedlet them be bewildered, confounded; lose directionVerbलोट् (परस्मैपद); प्रथमपुरुष; बहुवचनRole KriyāRoot मुह्
- अद्य
- today, nowIndeclinableकालवाचक अव्ययRole AdhikaraṇaRoot अद्य
- अमूः
- those (yonder)those (yonder), those very (hostile) onesPronounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा बहुवचनRole KartāRoot अदस् (स्त्री.)
- सेनाः
- armiesarmies, hostsNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा बहुवचनRole KartāRoot सेना
- अमित्राणाम्
- of the enemiesof the foes, of the non-friends (hostile parties)Nounपुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी बहुवचनRole Sambandha (genitive)Root अमित्र
- परस्तराम्
- farther away, more remote (away)most utterly, exceedingly; to the farthest degree (intensifier of confusion)Adjective/Adverb (comparative)नपुंसक/अव्ययीभाववत्; द्वितीया एकवचन (क्रियाविशेषणत्वे)Root परस्तर (comparative of परस्) / परस्तरम् (adv.)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: परि | वर्त्मानि | सर्वतः | इन्द्रः | पूषा | च | सस्रतुः || मुह्यन्तु | अद्य | अमूः | सेनाः | अमित्राणाम् | परस्तराम् । विशेष-सन्धि/रूप:
- (1) वर्त्मानि—वर्त्मन्-शब्दस्य नपुंसक बहुवचनम्।
- (2) इन्द्रः पूषा च—समुच्चयेन द्वौ कर्तारौ
- तयोः क्रिया सस्रतुः (द्विवचन) इति।
- (3) मुह्यन्त्वद्यामूः—संहितायां मुह्यन्तु + अद्य + अमूः → मुह्यन्त्वद्यामूः (उकारस्य वकारादेशः, ततः संयोग-सन्धिः)।
- (4) परस्तराम्—परस्-शब्दस्य तुलनात्मक-रूपं
- क्रियाविशेषणवत् ‘अधिकं दूरम्’ इत्यर्थे।
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Atharvanic tradition
- Devata
- Indra and Pūṣan
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh-like (probable; not fully verified)
- Rasa
- Vira and Raudra
Sayana emphasizes Pūṣan’s road-guardianship: Indra and Pūṣan ‘run around’ the approaches to block and mislead. The desired effect is moha—battlefield bewilderment and loss of route—so that hostile hosts cannot find the way or coordinate an advance.
Unknown (Atharvanic/Anukramaṇī not supplied)
Road-guarding and perimeter-protection charms; inducing enemy confusion (moha) as a defensive strategy.
Shows Atharvanic preference for ‘confusion’ (moha) as non-lethal disabling—making threats miss their target by losing direction.
Indra and Pūṣan
Indra breaks hostile force; Pūṣan guides, guards routes, and ensures safe passage—together forming ‘force + guidance’ protection.
Indirect: reduces fear and restores social/psychic safety by securing movement and access.
Perimeter defense; safe travel; confounding hostile troops and plots.
4 x ~8; first pāda may run slightly long due to clusters (pari vartmāni sarvataḥ).
Atharvanic anuṣṭubh often tolerates heavier openings and compounded divine pairs (indraḥ pūṣā).
March-like, with a circling motion suggested by ‘pari’ and ‘sarvataḥ’.
Creates a sense of encirclement and patrol; culminates in the bewildering command ‘muhyantu’.
The priest circumambulates the dwelling/settlement boundary, reciting while tracing a protective circuit (pari).
At crossroads or entry-points, he pauses and recites again to ‘seal’ the vārtman (approaches).
A scattering or sweeping action (dust/ash/water) is performed outward to project moha (bewilderment) onto hostile forces.
Invocation of Pūṣan is synchronized with attention to roads and tracks, aligning deity-function with ritual geography.
Kauśika Sūtra: patha-rakṣā / dig-bandha / senā-mohana (general complex; exact sūtra numbering varies by edition)
Atharvan priest as spatial-security engineer: constructs a ritual perimeter and manipulates enemy navigation/orientation.
Recite while circling the house/field boundary or before opening gates/doors; suitable for travel-start (prasthāna) protection.
At dawn before departure; or before sleep as perimeter-sealing.
Householder or Atharvan reciter; may accompany simple circumambulation (pradakṣiṇā) of dwelling.
Use as a ‘safe-travel / safe-home’ recitation before commuting or during periods of perceived threat.
No physical substance; the ‘substance’ is spatial magic—creating a guarded circumference through the spoken mapping of paths.
Situational anxiety support: ‘securing the perimeter’ resembles safety planning and reducing exposure to stressors.
amitrāṇām senāḥ (enemy armies/organized opposition).
Guard all approaches and induce disorientation in enemy forces.
Perimeter invocation (pari…sarvataḥ) + deity-patrol imagery; moha-induction (muhyantu) to disrupt approach.
Ambush, invasion, coordinated harassment, hostile travel conditions.
- वर्त्मानि (vartmāni)
- channels of approach; habits; communication lines; points of entry
- परि ... सर्वतः (pari ... sarvataḥ)
- total perimeter protection; comprehensive vigilance
- पूषा (Pūṣan)
- safe guidance, right direction, guardianship of roads and journeys
- सेनाः (senāḥ)
- organized pressure: collective fear, social opposition, systemic threat
- मुह्यन्तु (muhyantu)
- loss of coherence, disorientation, breakdown of coordination
- परस्तराम् (parastarām)
- complete neutralization beyond recovery
Perimeter awareness: sense the body and home as a protected mandala; cultivate right-direction (Pūṣan) and decisive boundary (Indra).
Mūlādhāra (safety/boundaries)
Box-breath 4-4-4-4 while mentally tracing a protective circle; exhale on ‘muhyantu’.
Visualize luminous guardians circling all routes; hostile forces outside become foggy, lose direction, and disperse.
Grounded vigilance without panic.
End with a brief inward offering: ‘May all beings find right direction’ to prevent hardening into hostility.
Keep a steady recitation with slight rise on divine names; treat ‘muhyantu’ as the decisive accent-point.
Segment clearly: pari | vartmāni | sarvataḥ; then indraḥ pūṣā ca; conclude with a strong cadence on parastarām.
Clear, projecting, as if calling guardians to patrol.
If used for travel, recite facing the intended direction of departure, then step forward deliberately (symbolic ‘secured route’).
11 times
Travel safety, protecting home from intrusion, navigating hostile social environments.
Before leaving home; before important meetings; when feeling ‘surrounded’ by problems.
Sense of guardedness and orientation; reduced fear; improved decision clarity.
Avoid escalating paranoia; combine with practical safety measures.
No botanical agent is present; the operative symbolism is spatial (paths, encirclement) and cognitive (bewilderment). Any substances used in practice (dust/ash/water) function iconically as ‘covering’ or ‘confusing’ media rather than medicine.
The hymn imagines territorial defense (roads, approaches) and presumes a settled community with defined boundaries. The priest’s role is infrastructural: he ritually manages access routes, integrating divine authority into local security.
The focus on vārtman (routes) and moha (confusion) in a tactical, applied register is characteristically Atharvanic. The pairing of Indra with Pūṣan exploits functional specialization (slayer + road-guardian) more than RV’s predominantly laudatory mode.
Gopatha’s ritual cosmology supports ‘dig-bandha’ logic: by ritually enclosing space and aligning deities with functions (Pūṣan over paths), the mantra is treated as reconfiguring the enemy’s access to the sacrificer’s domain.
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