Sukta 27
Rishi: Atharvanic/Angirasa tradition (specific r̥ṣi not securely determinable from the single-verse input; commonly transmitted as Atharvanic in śatru-parājaya contexts).
Devata: Oṣadhi (the Herb) as personified healing and protective power; secondarily the abstract force of abhibhū (overpowering).
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (4 pādas of ~8 syllables; Atharvanic anuṣṭubh with minor irregularities possible).
AVŚ 2.27は、人格化された薬草オーシャディ（Oṣadhi）を中心とする護身・治癒の呪であり、食事という決定的な瞬間にそれを用いて、敵対する力が「一口（食塊）を勝ち取る」ことを許さない。『一口と対抗の一口』という定型句を反復することで、摂食そのものを対呪術（カウンター・ソーサリー）の行為へと転化し、害する者や精髄を吸い取る者（arāsaḥ）を無力化し、インドラ的な勝利の様式で敵に対する勝利を確保する。
Kind of charm
Mantras
Mantra 1
शत्रुपराजयः। नेच्छत्रुः॒ प्राशं॑ जयाति॒ सह॑मानाभि॒भूर॑सि । प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑न्वोषधे
（敵を）打ち破るもの。敵たらんとする者がこの一口（morsel）に勝ち得ぬように。汝は耐え忍びて圧倒する者なり。この一口に対する返しの一口として、害する者どもを打ち倒せ、無力となせ、薬草よ（Oṣadhi）。
Mantra 2
सु॒प॒र्णस्त्वान्व॑विन्दत् सूक॒रस्त्वा॑खनन्न॒सा। प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑ण्वोषधे
美しき翼あるものが汝を見いだし、猪がその鼻先で汝を掘り出した。噛み（प्राश）に対する反噛み（प्रतिप्राश）として、汁気なき禍を打ち砕け。われらを全きものとなせ、薬草（ओषधि）よ。
Mantra 3
इन्द्रो॑ ह चक्रे त्वा बा॒हावसु॑रेभ्य॒ स्तरी॑तवे । प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑ण्वोषधे
インドラはまことに汝を、腕の力として造り、アスラを踏み伏せるために定めた。噛みに対して対噛みをもって、汁なき敵を打ち滅ぼせ。彼らを無力ならしめよ、オーシャディ（薬草）よ。
Mantra 4
पा॒टामिन्द्रो॒ व्याऽश्ना॒दसु॑रेभ्य॒ स्तरी॑तवे । प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑ण्वोषधे
インドラがPāṭā（パーター）を食し、アスラに勝ち越さんことを。投与に対して対投与をもって、汁を滅ぼす者どもを打ち滅ぼせ。われらを全からしめよ、オーシャディ（薬草）よ。
Mantra 5
तया॒हं शत्रू॑न्त्साक्ष॒ इन्द्रः॑ सालावृ॒काँ इ॑व । प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑ण्वोषधे
その（薬草）によって、われは敵どもに勝たん、インドラが豺狼を制するがごとく。噛み（प्राश）により、反噛み（प्रतिप्राश）により、彼らを打て。汁気を奪え、薬草（ओषधि）よ。
Mantra 6
रुद्र॒ जला॑षभेषज॒ नील॑शिखण्ड॒ कर्म॑कृत्। प्राशं॒ प्रति॑प्राशो जह्यर॒सान् कृ॑ण्वोषधे
ルドラよ、水の癒やしの霊薬よ、青き頂（しこう）を戴く者、祭式の業をなす者よ。服に対して対服をもって、汁なき病を打ち滅ぼせ。われらを全からしめよ、オーシャディ（薬草）よ。
Mantra 7
तस्य॒ प्राशं॒ त्वं ज॑हि॒ यो न॑ इन्द्राभि॒दास॑ति । अधि॑ नो ब्रूहि॒ शक्ति॑भिः प्रा॒शि मामुत्त॑रं कृधि
その者の噛みかかる襲いを汝は打て――悪意をもってわれらを攻める者を、インドラよ。さらに汝の力もてわれらに告げよ。害を喰らい尽くし、われを上位の者、勝ち越す者となせ。
Inside Sukta 27
How it unfolds
- How it opens
The hymn opens by denying victory to the ‘would-be foe’ over the morsel, immediately identifying the Herb as the steadfast Overpowerer (abhibhū).
- What it asks
May the herb, through the paired logic of bite and counter-bite, smite injurers and prevent any hostile agency from taking hold through food/medicine.
- Where its power lies
The charm asserts efficacy by casting the herb as inherently victorious and by aligning the user’s triumph with Indra’s archetypal conquest (e.g., over jackals/Asuras).
- How it closes
It seals the rite with a repeated expulsion/neutralization formula—‘smite the arāsaḥ, make them sapless’—fixing the enemy’s defeat and the eater’s protection.
Famous verses
prāśaṃ prati-prāśo jahi arāsān kṛṇu oṣadhe
pāṭām indro vy aśnād asurebhyaḥ starītave
tayāhaṃ śatrūn sākṣe indraḥ sālāvṛkān iva
Kind of hymn
Abhicarika (Counter-sorcery) / Rakṣoghna (Demon-expelling) with Bhaisajya overlap (protecting ingestion/medicine)
What it is for
Enemy influence is prevented from prevailing ‘over the morsel’; hostile agents are smitten and made ineffective (‘sapless’), while the consumer’s vitality and safety in ingestion are secured.
Who it is for
Householders, healers (vaidya-like practitioners), and Atharvanic ritualists performing protective medicine/food rites for a patient, traveler, or threatened person.
Also used as
- Rakṣoghna
- Bhaiṣajya
The deity
Oṣadhi is invoked not merely as a plant but as an intelligent, protective potency that enters the body through food and reverses hostile influence. Abhibhū is the hymn’s operative principle: the herb’s capacity to outmatch, counteract, and neutralize enemies, demons, and wasting agencies; Indra is cited as the archetype of such victory.
Powers of the deity
- Protects food/ingestion from hostile influence and poisoning
- Acts as an antidote via ‘counter-morsel’ (prati-prāśa) logic
- Drives away and disables injurers (arāsaḥ) and demonic/hostile agencies
- Restores ‘rasa’ (vital sap/essence), preventing wasting
- Grants victory over human and non-human foes by overpowering (abhibhū)
Why the deity is called
To consecrate a medicinal bite/dose so the eater is protected at the moment of consumption, and to strike down or neutralize any enemy-force attempting to seize the food, the body, or the life-essence.
The seer
- Atharvanic/Āṅgirasa seerAtharvan. Bhaiṣajya and rakṣoghna charms: protective ingestion rites, antidotal ‘counter-dose’ (prati-prāśa) formulae, and enemy/affliction-overpowering (abhibhū) spells.
Other hymns of this seer
- AVŚ 1.2 (selected rakṣoghna protection verses, Atharvanic corpus)
- AVŚ 2.31 (protective/expulsive charm cluster, Atharvanic corpus)
- AVŚ 6.136 (oṣadhi-centered healing charm tradition)
Preparing for the rite
- Select the primary herb (explicitly Pāṭā is named in the sukta’s internal tradition) or an equivalent protective medicinal herb.
- Prepare a small prāśa (morsel/dose) of food mixed with or accompanied by the herb; prepare a second ‘counter-portion’ (prati-prāśa) as the antidotal response.
- Seat the patient/eater facing an auspicious direction; keep clean water at hand for sipping/rinsing; maintain ritual cleanliness (śauca).
The rite
- Recite the hymn over the prāśa and the prati-prāśa, emphasizing the refrain-like striking formula against arāsaḥ.
- Administer the prāśa first and then the prati-prāśa (or administer as paired bites), ritually framing the second as the ‘counter’ that defeats hostile seizure.
- Optionally touch the herb/food to the mouth or chest while reciting the overpowering (abhibhū) portion; conclude by consigning the injurers to powerlessness.
What it needs
- Oṣadhi (medicinal herb), especially Pāṭā as named
- Prāśa (a small morsel/portion of food)
- Prati-prāśa (counter-morsel/antidotal portion)
- Water for sipping/rinsing
When
At the time of eating or administering medicine; especially when fear of hostile influence, poisoning, sorcery, or wasting affliction is present.
The main substance
Oṣadhi—especially Pāṭā (as named within the hymn’s tradition) administered as a prāśa/prati-prāśa pair
Herbs
- Pāṭā (medicinal creeper/herb)
- Oṣadhi (unspecified protective medicinal herb, used as antidotal agent)
Amulets
- Herb-tied thread or small herb packet (optional, consistent with Atharvanic protective practice)
How it is prepared
Grind or macerate the herb (or use a small measured portion), mix with a small edible carrier to form a prāśa; prepare a second portion as prati-prāśa, reciting the mantra over both before administration.
Frequently Asked Questions
It treats eating as a protective act: one portion (prāśa) is paired with an antidotal counter-portion (prati-prāśa) so any hostile influence entering through food is immediately overpowered and reversed.
No. Its language covers human foes and also non-human threats—disease-agents, demons, or wasting influences (arāsaḥ)—especially those imagined to attack through ingestion and vitality (rasa).
The hymn names Pāṭā as a key oṣadhi, but Atharvanic practice often applies the mantra to an appropriate protective medicinal herb available locally, prepared and administered as the prāśa/prati-prāśa pair.
Ask anything about Sukta 27 of the Atharva Veda
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.
