Sukta 23
किलासं च पलितं च निरितो नाशया पृषत्। आ त्वा स्वो विशतां वर्णः परा शुक्लानि पातय
kilā́saṃ ca palitáṃ ca nír̥to nāśayā́ pṛ́ṣat | ā́ tvā svó viśatāṃ várṇaḥ párā śuklā́ni pātaya ||
Both kilāsa and grayness, from Nirṛti do thou destroy, O Spotted One. Let thine own proper colour enter into thee; cast off afar the whitenesses.
Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (often transmitted under Atharvan/Angiras lineages; specific r̥ṣi attribution varies by anukramaṇī)
Devata: Bhaiṣajya/Apotropaic force; operative agent addressed as Pṛṣat; Nirṛti as the hostile locus to be overcome
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (8+8+8+8, with Atharvanic flexibility)
{"primary_rasa":"shanta","secondary_rasa":"vira","emotional_arc":"Resolve to remove disorder → decisive casting away → quiet restoration of the self’s proper state.","listener_experience":"Empowerment without aggression; relief as ‘whiteness’ is imagined falling off.","intensity":6}