Atharva Veda 7.56.3: Kanda 7, Anuvaka 6, Sukta 56, Mantra 3
Sukta 56
यतो॑ द॒ष्टं यतो॑ धी॒तं तत॑स्ते॒ निर्ह्व॑यामसि । अ॒र्भस्य॑ तृप्रदं॒शिनो॑ म॒शक॑स्यार॒सं वि॒षम्
yató daṣṭáṃ yató dhītáṃ tátas te nírhvayāmasi | árbhasya tṛpradaṃśíno maśakásyārásaṃ viṣám
Whencesoever it was bitten, whencesoever it was lodged—thence we call it forth: the sapless poison of the tiny, sharp-biting mosquito.
जहां से भी मच्छर ने काटा है, जहां भी उसका ज़हर फैला है, वहां से हम उसे बाहर निकाल रहे हैं। यह छोटा मच्छर तेज़ी से काटा है, लेकिन उसका ज़हर अब खत्म हो रहा है।
The meaning
What it says
From wherever the bite and lodged poison came, the speaker calls it out: the sapless poison of the tiny, sharp-biting mosquito.
The inner meaning
The mantra trains ‘extraction’: locate the origin of disturbance, then summon it out into awareness so it loses its hidden hold. ‘Sapless’ (arasa) suggests a harm that offers no nourishment—pure depletion; it must be expelled, not integrated.
The truth in it
What enters from outside and does not belong to life’s ‘sap’ must be identified and removed. Naming the source is the first act of healing.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Bhaiṣajya (Healing) / Apotropaic (Expulsion of venom)
Its aim
To draw out and render powerless the mosquito’s venom from the bite-site and the body.
Word by Word
Pada patha
यतः । दष्टम् । यतः । धीतम् । ततः । ते । निर्ह्वयामसि । अर्भस्य । तृप्रदंशिनः । मशकस्य । अरसम् । विषम् ।
- यतः
- from wherefrom where; from whatever source/originIndeclinableअपादानार्थे अव्ययम् (ablatival adverb) — ‘from where/whence’Role ApādānaRoot यतस् (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक) < यद्- (सर्वनाम)
- दष्टम्
- (that which is) bitten/stungbitten; the bite-wound (site/event) of envenomationAdjective/Participleनपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचनम्; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्तम् (PPP) ‘bitten/stung’Role KarmaRoot √दंश् (दंशने) → दष्ट (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
- यतः
- from wherefrom where; again marking uncertain originIndeclinableअपादानार्थे अव्ययम् — ‘from where/whence’Role ApādānaRoot यतस् (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक) < यद्- (सर्वनाम)
- धीतम्
- (that which is) thought/ponderedplaced/settled, deposited; venom ‘lodged’ in the body (Sāyaṇa: nihitam)Adjective/Participleनपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचनम्; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्तम् (PPP) ‘thought/considered/meditated’Role KarmaRoot √धी (धी-धारणे/चिन्तायाम्) → धीत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
- ततः
- from that (source)thence; from that very placeIndeclinableअपादानार्थे अव्ययम् — ‘from that/therefrom’Role ApādānaRoot ततस् (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक) < तद्- (सर्वनाम)
- ते
- of you / yourthy/that (poison’s); referring to the venom addressed as an entityPronounषष्ठी एकवचनम् (enclitic) — ‘of you/thy’Role SampradānaRoot त्वद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- निः
- out, awayIndeclinableउपसर्गः; ‘out, away’ (verb-prefix)Root निः (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- ह्वयामसि
- we call (away)Verbलट् (वर्तमान), उत्तमपुरुषः, बहुवचनम्; परस्मैपदम् — ‘we call/invoke’Role KartāRoot √ह्वे/√ह्वा (आह्वाने)
- अर्भस्य
- of the small/young oneof the small/young one; here: of the tiny creature (mosquito) as ‘small’ biterNounपुंलिङ्गे षष्ठी एकवचनम् — ‘of the young/weak (creature)’Role Sambandha (genitive relation)Root अर्भ (प्रातिपदिक)
- तृप्रदंशिनः
- of the sharp-biting/stinging (one)sharp-biting, piercing-biter; intensifier of the mosquito’s injuring actAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गे षष्ठी एकवचनम् — qualifying ‘मशकस्य’ (genitive)Role Sambandha (genitive relation)Root तृप्रदंशिन् (प्रातिपदिक; बहुव्रीहि/तत्पुरुष-समासः: तृप्र- + दंशिन् ‘biter/stinger’)
- मशकस्य
- of the mosquitoof the mosquito; the biting agentNounपुंलिङ्गे षष्ठी एकवचनम् — ‘of the mosquito/gnat’Role Sambandha (genitive relation)Root मशक (प्रातिपदिक)
- अरसम्
- sapless/harmless (lit. without ‘rasa’)sapless, tasteless, without ‘rasa’; deprived of potency—rendered ineffectiveAdjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम् — qualifying ‘विषम्’Role KarmaRoot अरस् (प्रातिपदिक) → अरस (नञ्-अर्थे ‘tasteless/insipid; sapless’)
- विषम्
- poison/venompoison; the harmful essence to be evacuated and de-potentiatedNounनपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम् — object of ‘ह्वयामसि’Role KarmaRoot विष (प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- (1) ‘निर्ह्वयामसि’ = ‘निः + ह्वयामसि’ (विसर्गः + ह् → र्: निः → निर्)
- (2) ‘मशकस्यारसम्’ = ‘मशकस्य + अरसम्’ (अ + अ → आ)
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Bhṛgu (sectional attribution)
- Devata
- Viṣa (poison) / Maśaka (mosquito) as adversarial agent
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh (probable; requires metrical verification)
- Rasa
- Vira and Shanta
Sāyaṇa explains the double ‘yatas’ as covering unknown provenance: whether the poison entered by bite or became fixed within. ‘Nirhvayāmasi’ is a technical expulsion by vocative force—calling the poison out of concealment. ‘Arasa’ is interpreted as making the venom devoid of effective essence (rasa), i.e., ritually and physiologically impotent.
Bhṛgu
Diagnostic speech and expulsive therapeutics: identifying locus (yatas…) and performing verbal extraction (nir-hvayāmasi).
Bhṛgu-style healing emphasizes precise verbal operations: tracing origin, then commanding removal—vāc as surgical instrument.
Viṣa (poison) as adversary; Maśaka as agent
Poison is treated as a mobile force that can be dislodged by ritual speech; the mosquito is a minor demon of depletion.
Mantra-power to mobilize and expel localized toxin/irritant.
Prevents the poison from ‘settling’ deeper; establishes a command over the entry-point of harm.
4×8 with strong caesura after yato…yato…; second hemistich compresses compounds (tṛpradaṃśinaḥ).
Alliterative yato…yato… supports incantatory ‘tracking’ rather than strict metrical purity.
Searching, then extracting: the first half scans like ‘locate-locate’; the second half ‘name-and-expel’.
Creates a felt sense of the toxin moving outward under verbal command.
Locate the bite; the priest touches the site while reciting ‘yato daṣṭam…’ to specify the locus of harm.
Perform a physical ‘drawing out’ gesture (stroking away from the wound) synchronized with ‘nirhvayāmasi’.
Apply herb/paste or wash the site; conclude by symbolically ‘de-essencing’ the poison (arasa) through a final touch and recitation.
Kauśika Sūtra: expulsion (nirhavana) patterns in bite/poison rites; recitation during extraction/smearing (general prayoga for AV 7.56).
Atharvan as exorcist-physician: uses voice plus extraction-gesture to externalize and nullify the venom.
Recite while gently rubbing outward from the bite-site (without damaging skin), or while applying herbal/cooling paste.
Immediately after bite; repeat if itching returns.
Householder; healer may combine with oṣadhi application from 7.56.2.
KauśS: bite/poison expulsion procedures associated with AVŚ 7.56 recitation (edition-dependent).
Use alongside standard first aid; avoid harmful ‘suction’ practices.
vīrúd (implied from the hymn context)
‘Sapless poison’ contrasts with the hymn’s honey-sap remedy: depletion is expelled so sweetness can re-enter.
Mosquito-bite irritation; ‘venom/poison’ effects (itch, swelling; possibly fever risk in broader cultural reading).
Bite-site (implicit).
Expulsion formula: identify entry/lodging locus and verbally summon poison out of the body.
Viṣa-cikitsā logic: mobilize and expel; arasa suggests depletion of rasa-dhātu—restore by removing the depleting agent first.
Topical/first-aid framing: reduce local reaction; conceptually akin to ‘drawing out’ irritants and preventing secondary infection from scratching.
The poison/irritant in the patient; the mosquito as causal agent.
Draw out and nullify mosquito poison from wherever it is lodged.
Nirdeśa (pointing to origin) + āhvāna (summoning) + viṣa-naming for containment and removal.
Spread of irritation; lingering inflammatory response.
- दष्ट (daṣṭa)
- a puncture event—sudden intrusion into the body-mind boundary
- धीत (dhīta)
- the way toxins/traumas ‘settle’ and persist if not addressed
- निर्ह्वयामसि (nir-hvayāmasi)
- therapeutic summoning: drawing poison to the surface for release
- अर्भ (arbha)
- minor causes with major downstream effects
- तृप्रदंशिन् (tṛpra-daṃśin)
- repetitive micro-aggressions that pierce attention
- अरसम् विषम् (arasaṃ viṣam)
- life-draining influence; sterile negativity
Somatic scanning: locate the exact point of irritation, then exhale ‘calling it out’ with attention moving outward.
Long exhale (recite on exhalation), imagining toxin leaving with the breath.
A dark, dry speck (arasa viṣa) loosens and exits the skin as golden warmth replaces it.
Alert clarity (sattvic vigilance).
Chant 11 or 21 times; between rounds, rest attention on the bite-site without scratching, letting sensation dissipate.
Keep the ‘yato…yato…tataḥ’ with a steady, searching rise; drop firmly on nir-hvayāmasi.
Articulate contrasts: daṣṭam (bitten) vs dhītam (lodged); emphasize nir- (out!) in nirhva̍yāmasi.
Commanding, clinical clarity rather than devotional softness.
Often paired with tactile outward stroking/application; the verbal ‘summons’ is synchronized with the gesture.
21 times
Mosquito bite with persistent itch/swelling; anxiety about ‘something lodged’.
Right after cleaning the area; during recurrence of itching (especially at night).
Subjective reduction of itch and agitation; supports disciplined non-scratching and focused care.
Seek medical help for signs of infection, severe allergy, or fever; keep nails short to prevent skin damage.
The mantra supplies the ‘extraction logic’ (call out from wherever lodged) that complements topical therapy. Even if an herb is applied, the verse frames cure as relocation: poison must be made external and ‘sapless’ (arasa).
It models illness as an agentive intrusion requiring ritual speech to compel disclosure and exit. This reinforces the Atharvan’s jurisdiction over hidden harms—an authority distinct from ordinary household knowledge.
The verb nir-hvay (call out/evoke forth) in a medical-exorcistic sense is a functional specialization. The semantic move ‘arasa’ (de-potentiation) is characteristic of Atharvanic therapeutic rhetoric.
Gopatha’s framework supports the idea that naming the locus and commanding separation effects cure. The verse operationalizes that by (1) covering uncertain etiology, (2) compelling emergence, and (3) ritually stripping ‘rasa’ (effective essence) from the poison.
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