Sukta 2

Kind of hymn

Abhicarika (Apotropaic/Counter-sorcery)

What it is for

To neutralize and repel hostile sorcery or enemy-sent affliction conceived as a dart/arrow, while fortifying the body and confining disease-like effects (roga/āsrāva) so they become ineffective.

Who it is for

Householders, ritual specialists, and healers employing Atharvanic counter-sorcery and protection rites for personal and domestic safeguarding.

Also used as

• Rakṣoghna (protective/anti-demonic)
• Śāntika (pacificatory safety-making)
• Bhaiṣajya (healing by binding/containment)

The deity

Indra appears as the divine counter-weapon who drives away the flashing bolt/dart; Ṛbhu is praised in a scene of skill and efficacy, reinforcing the hymn’s theme of deft protective craft. Jyā and Muñja function as personified, tangible powers—encircling, hardening, and binding the threat so it cannot strike.

Powers of the deity

• Repels and diverts hostile ‘arrows’ and magical projectiles
• Creates a widened zone of safety (varīyas/uru space) around the petitioner
• Hardens the body against harm (aśman-like firmness)
• Binds, contains, and immobilizes disease/flux so it cannot spread
• Turns enmity, hatred, and arāti (hostile intent) away from the household

Why the deity is called

Indra is invoked as the decisive force to drive the dart/bolt away; the hymn also mobilizes ‘craft-power’ (Ṛbhu) and material binders (Jyā, Muñja) to encircle, harden, and restrain the incoming harm.

The seer

• Atharvan/Āṅgirasa-type seer (hymn-level colophon dependent)Atharvan. Rakṣoghna and abhicārika counter-charms: repelling hostile ‘missiles’ (śara/śaru), hardening-protection (aśman-like firmness), and binding/containment of disease-like intrusions.

Other hymns of this seer

• AVŚ 1.1 (early protective charm; attribution varies by anukramaṇī)
• AVŚ 1.3 (adjacent early kanda protective material; attribution varies by recension)
• AVŚ 1.6 (selected rakṣas-repelling verses in some anukramaṇī traditions)

Preparing for the rite

• Establish a clean protective space; seat the petitioner facing an auspicious direction (commonly east).
• Prepare a bow-string (jyā) or cord for encircling/binding and obtain muñja grass for a band/amulet tie.
• If applicable, touch or place a stone (aśman) as a symbol of bodily firmness and invulnerability.
• Mentally identify the ‘incoming śara/śaru’ (harm, curse, disease, hostility) as the object to be driven away and bound.

The rite

• Recite the hymn while encircling the petitioner with the bow-string/cord (symbolic paridhi/pari-āveṣṭana) to establish a protective perimeter.
• On the ‘aśman’ sentiment, touch the chest/limbs or the cord/amulet, affirming stone-like firmness of the body.
• On the Indra-verse, gesture outward (a pushing-away motion) to ‘send the arrow far’ from the house and lineage.
• On the Muñja-binding verse, tie muñja as a girdle/armlet/knotted amulet, visualizing disease/flux held fast and contained within.

What it needs

• Bow-string or protective cord (jyā)
• Muñja grass (amulet/girdle material)
• Stone (aśman) as emblem or touchstone of firmness
• A fastening/peg or tie-implement (tejanam) for securing the band

When

Performed when harm is suspected (envy, hostility, ominous signs) or at the onset of affliction; also suitable as a threshold/household protection recitation.

The main substance

Muñja grass (binding-amulet material)

Herbs

• Muñja (Saccharum munja / muñja-grass, traditional binding material)

Amulets

• Muñja girdle/armlet (knotted bandhana)
• Bow-string/cord (jyā) as encircling talisman
• Stone (aśman) as touch-amulet or emblem of firmness

How it is prepared

Twist muñja into a cord or small band; knot while reciting the binding verse so the ‘roga/āsrāva’ is imagined as caught and fixed. Use a bow-string/cord to encircle the petitioner and then secure the muñja band with a small peg/tie (tejanam) if needed.