Atharva Veda 7.65.2: Kanda 7, Anuvaka 7, Sukta 65, Mantra 2
Sukta 65
यद् दु॑ष्कृ॒तं यच्छम॑लं॒ यद् वा चेरि॒म पा॒पया॑ । त्वया॒ तद् वि॑श्वतोमु॒खापा॑मा॒र्गाप॑ मृज्महे
yád duṣkṛtáṃ yác chamálaṃ yád vā́ cerím pāpáyā | tváyā tád viśvatomukhā́pāmārgā́pa mṛjmahe ||
What ill we have done, what stain there is, or what in evil wise we have practised—by thee, O Apāmārga of faces turned to every side, from that we cleanse us wholly away.
हमने जो बुरा किया है, जो गंदगी है, या जो पाप का काम किया है, उस सब को अपमार्ग से साफ करते हैं। यह अपमार्ग चारों तरफ से देखने वाला है। वो हमें पूरा धोकेगा।
The meaning
What it says
Whatever wrongdoing, stain, or evil practice has been committed, the speaker declares cleansing ‘away’ by means of Apāmārga, called ‘all-faced’ (viśvatomukha), i.e., effective from every direction.
The inner meaning
Guilt and impurity are treated as removable layers rather than fixed identity. ‘All-faced’ suggests awareness that can look at the whole life from every angle without denial, then release it.
The truth in it
Healing often requires confession without self-crushing: naming the stain enables removal; a reliable cleansing practice restores integrity.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Bhaisajya / Prāyaścitta (Moral-ritual cleansing with plant medium)
Its aim
To wipe away wrongdoing, impurity, and evil conduct from the performer/patient through Apāmārga.
Word by Word
Pada patha
यत् । दुष्कृ॒तम् । यत् । शम॑लम् । यत् । वा । चेरि॒म । पा॒पया॑ । त्वया॑ । तत् । वि॒श्व॒तः॒-मु॒खा॒ । अ॒पा॒मार्ग॒ । अप॑ । मृ॒ज्म॒हे॒ ।
- यत्
- whatever (that which)whatever (any instance)Pronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- दुष्कृतम्
- evil deed, wrongdoingill-done deed, wrongdoing (karmic/ritual fault)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot दुष्कृत (प्रातिपदिक; दुर् + कृत, कृ-धातु से)
- यत्
- whateverPronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- शमलम्
- stain, impurity, sinstain, impurity, defilement (moral-ritual grime)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot शमल (प्रातिपदिक)
- यत्
- whateverPronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- वा
- orIndeclinableविकल्पार्थक अव्ययRoot वा (निपात)
- चेरिम
- I/one has done/committed (has acted)we have gone about/committed (performed in conduct; ‘we have practised’)Verbलिट् (परिपूर्णभूत/परफेक्ट), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनRole KartāRoot चर् (धातु) → चेरिम् (लिट्/परिपूर्ण-भूत; 1पु., एक.)
- पापया
- by/with evil (wickedly)with evil, in an evil way (instrumental of manner)Noun (instrumental used adverbially)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचनRole KaraṇaRoot पाप (प्रातिपदिक)
- त्वया
- by you, through youwith thee/by thee (by means of Apāmārga)Pronounतृतीया, एकवचनRole KaraṇaRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- तत्
- that (all that)that (sum of faults)Pronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- विश्वतोमुखात्
- from every side/front (lit. from all-faced)Adjective (ablative used adverbially)नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, एकवचनRole ApādānaRoot विश्वतोमुख (प्रातिपदिक; विश्वतः + मुख)
- अपामार्गात्
- from/with apāmārga (the herb Achyranthes aspera)Nounपुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, एकवचनRole ApādānaRoot अपामार्ग (प्रातिपदिक; औषधि/वनस्पति-नाम)
- मृज्महे
- we wipe off, we cleansewe wipe/cleanse (ritual scrubbing; self-purification act)Verbलट् (वर्तमान), आत्मनेपद, उत्तमपुरुष, बहुवचनRole KartāRoot मृज् (धातु)
Sandhi Notes
- (1) यद् + दु॑ष्कृ॒तम् → यत् दुष्कृतम् (जश्त्व/परसवर्ण; द् → त् before voiceless द्/दु-).
- (2) यत् + शमलम् → यत् शमलम् (no change in writing here).
- (3) यद् + वा → यत् वा (final द् → त् before voiceless/pausa-like junction).
- (4) त्वया + तत् → त्वया तत्.
- (5) विश्वतोमुखा + अपामार्गा(त्) in saṃhitā appears as विश्वतोमु॒खापा॑मा॒र्गाप॑
- padapāṭha-style resolution taken as विश्वतोमुखात् अपामार्गात् (both abl. sg.; final -āt + initial a- gives ā in saṃhitā)
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Atharvanic tradition
- Devata
- Apāmārga
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh (probable)
- Rasa
- Shanta and Karuna
Sāyaṇa treats duṣkṛta, chamala, and pāpa-caryā as overlapping categories of enas-like pollution. ‘Viśvatomukhā’ is explained as removing impurity from all directions/aspects of the person. The verb mṛj (‘wipe’) is taken literally: the plant is used in a wiping rite to detach and expel the moral-ritual residue.
Unknown (Atharvanic expiation and cleansing tradition)
Prāyaścitta-style plant purifications: removing śamala via wiping, brushing, and verbal confession formulae.
Atharvanic spirituality here is repair-oriented: ritual speech plus a humble herb becomes a technology for moral reintegration.
Apāmārga (purifier, expiator)
A terrestrial ‘prāyaścitta instrument’ that restores right relation by removing śamala and duṣkṛta from the performer.
Purifies the ‘stain’ that manifests as misfortune, anxiety, or social-ritual vulnerability.
Prevents recurrence by re-establishing cleanliness and auspiciousness (śuci/śrī) around the person.
4 pādas of ~8 syllables; confession-catalogue in first half, cleansing act in second.
Atharvavedic diction allows slightly heavy clusters (viśvatomukha) while preserving the anuṣṭubh pulse.
Measured and penitential, then releasing on apa mṛjmahe.
Creates a ‘naming → releasing’ cadence supportive of expiation and calm.
Consecrate Apāmārga with recitation.
Wipe the patient’s limbs and especially mouth/head/heart region (common loci of ‘stain’) while reciting.
Optionally combine with water-sipping/sprinkling to complete purification.
Discard the plant to carry away the removed chamala.
Kauśika Sūtra: Apāmārga-mārjana for chamala/enas removal; brushing and disposal as prāyaścitta.
Atharvan as prāyaścitta-performer: administers the cleansing and ensures correct disposal (nirharaṇa) of the removed impurity.
Brush the body (especially hands, head, chest) with apāmārga while reciting; then discard the plant outside the home boundary or at a crossroads.
After a breach of conduct, after nightmares/ill-omens, before important rites (journey, marriage negotiations, oath-taking).
Householder can perform; Atharvan priest may prescribe repetitions and disposal direction (north/east) according to local tradition.
Apāmārga-based prāyaścitta/purification procedures are characteristic of Kauśika.
Use as a self-clearing ritual before sleep: recite mentally, then wash hands/face as the physical correlate of apa mṛjmahe.
Apāmārga (Achyranthes aspera)
The plant is treated as a living ‘eraser’: it receives the imprint of pāpa and then is removed/discarded, externalizing and ending the stain narrative.
Ritual-moral impurity (śamala) causing misfortune; guilt-driven distress; vulnerability to further affliction.
Expiatory cleansing: verbal enumeration of fault + wiping-away formula channels removal into the plant medium.
Śodhana/purification logic; aligns with concepts of mala (waste/impurity) and sattva-restoration through cleansing rites.
Guilt/shame processing; structured self-forgiveness ritual; cognitive defusion from ‘I am bad’ to ‘I did something harmful’.
Impurity/residue of actions (duṣkṛta, śamala, pāpa-ācāra)
To cleanse away wrongdoing, stain, and evil conduct comprehensively.
Confession formula + contact cleansing (wiping/brushing) using the plant as absorbent/expeller; ‘all-direction’ totalization to prevent loopholes.
Misfortune arising from impurity; social-ritual vulnerability; self-sabotaging patterns
- दुष्कृत (duṣkṛta)
- karmic/psychic residue that disrupts inner coherence
- शमल (śamala)
- moral/ritual pollution; shame-layer
- पापया (pāpayā)
- habitual misalignment; compulsive patterning
- विश्वतोमुख (viśvatomukha)
- omni-effective protection; totalizing awareness that cleanses comprehensively
- अप मृज्महे (apa mṛjmahe)
- active self-purification; expiatory erasure through contact-rite
Radical honesty (satya) and cleansing (śauca) as lived practices; releasing shame residues.
Anāhata (self-forgiveness)
Nadi-śodhana (gentle) paired with the ‘wipe away’ phrase on exhale.
A soft white-gold wind moving around the body in all directions, lifting gray smudges and carrying them outward.
Śānta, witnessing awareness that can face all directions (viśvatomukha) without fragmentation.
Recite 11 or 27 times; after recitation, do a brief resolve (saṅkalpa) for one concrete ethical correction to prevent return of śamala.
Keep viśvatomukha articulated cleanly; let apa mṛjmahe fall with a downward ‘releasing’ contour.
Slight emphasis on duṣkṛtaṃ / śamalaṃ (naming), then stronger emphasis on tvayā and apa mṛjmahe (removal).
Soft, penitential, steady
Pair with a physical wiping gesture (hands over head/heart/arms) to embody mṛj- ‘to wipe/clean’.
11 times
After a lapse in conduct, harsh speech, broken promise, or when feeling ‘unclean’ before a new beginning.
Before important meetings/rituals; after conflict; during weekly household cleansing.
Reduced guilt; renewed clarity and steadiness; sense of ritual reset.
If guilt is tied to trauma/abuse, avoid self-blame; seek appropriate support. Ritual is for repair, not self-punishment.
The mantra’s semantics (‘wipe away’) is enacted by the plant’s tactile use. Apāmārga becomes a ritual implement whose physical contact is the vehicle for transferring chamala from body to plant, then outward via disposal.
It presumes a moral economy where misdeeds create quasi-material ‘stains’ requiring specialist remediation. The rite offers a socially legible reset mechanism, likely valuable in contexts of accusation, oath, or communal suspicion.
The cluster duṣkṛta–chamala–pāpa and the explicit self-referential ‘we have practised’ is more confessional and domestic than typical RV praise-hymn diction, aligning with AV’s pragmatic ritual language.
Gopatha’s framework supports prāyaścitta as a technology of removal: faults are detachable through mantra plus dravya. ‘All-directional’ (viśvatomukha) aligns with the idea that impurity can cling in multiple loci and must be comprehensively addressed.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Atharva Veda in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.
