Sukta 30
Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (specific r̥ṣi attribution varies by anukramaṇī for this kāmya cluster)
Devata: Vāta (Wind) as the operative model; the effective ‘deity’ is the mantra’s coercive power over manas (mind).
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (with Atharvanic cadence; some editions treat it as anuṣṭubh-like with minor irregularities)
हा पाच ऋचांचा अथर्वणीय मंत्र उपमात्मक बळजबरीने कार्य करतो: जसा वारा पृथ्वीवर गवत ढवळून काढतो व फिरवतो, तसाच साधक लक्ष्याच्या मनास स्वतःकडे ‘ढवळून’ वळवतो, उत्कंठा निर्माण करतो आणि दूर जाणे थांबवतो. स्त्रीकर्मणी/पौष्टिक-अभिचारिक आकर्षणाबरोबरच यात एक हाकलण्याचा संकेतही आहे—जणू आवरणातून काटा उपटावा तसे घुसलेल्या अपायाला बाहेर काढून दूर पाठवणे—यातून मन व देहावर ‘ओढून घेणे’ आणि ‘हुसकावून लावणे’ या दोन्ही तंत्रज्ञानांची जोड देण्याची अथर्वणीय प्रवृत्ती दिसते.
Kind of charm
Mantras
Mantra 1
कामिनीमनोऽभिमुखीकरणम्। यथे॒दं भूम्या॒ अधि॒ तृणं॒ वातो॑ मथा॒य॑ति । ए॒वा म॑थ्नामि ते मनो॒ यथा॒ मां का॒मिन्यसो॒ यथा॒ मन्नाप॑गा॒ असः॑
(कामिनी-मनाचे अभिमुखीकरण) जशी या भूमीवर तृणाला वारा हलवून मथतो, तसाच मी तुझे मन मथतो—तू कामिनी जशी आस धरते तशी माझी आस धरावी, आणि माझ्यापासून दूर न जाणारा व्हावा.
Mantra 2
सं चेन्नया॑थो अश्विना का॒मिना॒ सं च॒ वक्ष॑थः । सं वां॒ भगा॑सो अग्मत॒ सं चि॒त्तानि॒ समु॑ व्र॒ता
हे अश्विनौ! कामप्रेरित होऊन तुम्ही आम्हांला एकत्र नेवो आणि एकत्रच पुढे वाहून नेवो; तुमचे भाग्याचे भाग एकत्र येवोत; चित्ते एकत्र असोत, आणि व्रतेही पूर्णपणे एकरूप असोत.
Mantra 3
यत् सु॑प॒र्णा वि॑व॒क्षवो॑ अनमी॒वा वि॑व॒क्षवः॑ । तत्र॑ मे गछता॒द्धवं॑ श॒ल्य इ॑व॒ कुल्म॑लं॒ यथा॑
जिथे सु-पर्ण (सुंदर पंखांचे) वाहक, नेऊन जाण्याच्या उत्कंठेने, स्वतः निरामय होऊन, नेऊन जाण्यास उत्सुक आहेत—तिथेच माझ्यापासून आपल्या मार्गाने निघून जा; जसा आवरण/भुशीतून काटा ओढून काढतात, तसाच (हा दोष) निघून जावो.
Mantra 4
यदन्त॑रं॒ तद् बाह्यं॒ यद् बाह्यं॒ तदन्त॑रम्। क॒न्याऽनां वि॒श्वरू॑पाणां॒ मनो॑ गृभायौषधे
जे अंतरी आहे तेच बाहेरी आहे; जे बाहेरी आहे तेच अंतरी आहे. विश्वरूप कन्यांचे मन तू आवर, हे औषधी (औषधदेवते).
Mantra 5
एयम॑ग॒न् पति॑कामा॒ जनि॑कामो॒ऽहमाग॑मम्। अश्वः॒ कनि॑क्रद॒द् यथा॒ भगे॑ना॒हं स॒हाग॑मम्
ती इथे आली आहे—पतीची इच्छा धरून; आणि मीही तिच्याकडे आलो आहे—पत्नीची इच्छा धरून. जसा अश्व मोठ्याने हिणहिणतो, तसा भगाच्या अनुग्रहाने मी तिच्याशी संगमास आलो आहे.
Inside Sukta 30
How it unfolds
- How it opens
Begins with a forceful simile: Wind churning grass on earth, establishing a natural model for compelled motion and mental agitation (manomathana).
- What it asks
That the target’s mind be turned toward the operator—longing for him and not going away—while the herb is commanded to seize the maiden’s mind.
- Where its power lies
Efficacy is asserted through performative equivalence: ‘as the Wind churns… so I churn your mind’; and through the extraction image: harm departs like a thorn drawn from its sheath.
- How it closes
The hymn seals by directing motion and containment: the mind is seized/held, and whatever opposes is sent away on its path, leaving the intended attraction stabilized.
Famous verses
eva mathnāmi te manaḥ ("even so I churn thy mind")
yad antaraṃ tad bāhyaṃ ("what is within is without")
śalya iva kulmalam ("like a thorn from its husk")
Kind of hymn
Strikarmani (Women’s Rites) / Abhicarika (Coercive attraction)
What it is for
To arouse longing, turn the woman’s mind toward the operator, keep her from leaving, and (secondarily) remove obstructive or intrusive influences as something extractable and sendable.
Who it is for
A suitor/operator (or ritual specialist acting for him) seeking attraction/retention; secondarily a healer-exorcist using the expulsion verse as an obstacle-removal adjunct.
Also used as
- Strīkarmāṇi (Women’s Rites)
- Paustika (attraction/securing favor)
- Apotropaic expulsion (genre-overlap with bhaisajya imagery)
The deity
Vāta functions as the operative model of irresistible motion—unseen, pervasive, and forceful—used to conceptualize the mantra’s capacity to agitate and redirect manas. Oṣadhi appears as personified plant-power that can ‘grasp’ and fix the maiden’s mind, while ‘supárṇa’ bearers figure as carriers that remove and transport away a harmful presence.
Powers of the deity
- Agitation and ‘churning’ of mind (manomathana)
- Abhimukhīkaraṇa: turning the target’s intention toward the operator
- Bandhana/nirodha: preventing the target from going away
- Apotropaic expulsion: sending an affliction/impurity to a distant ‘elsewhere’
- Grasping/seizing through herbal potency (oṣadhi-grahaṇa)
Why the deity is called
To harness the Wind’s paradigm of compelled movement and the herb’s grasping force so the target’s mind is redirected, held fast, and any opposing influence is extracted and dispatched.
The seer
- Atharvanic (anukramaṇī varies for this kāmya cluster; often transmitted under Atharvan/Āṅgirasa style attribution)Atharvan. Kāmya-mantras for abhimukhīkaraṇa (turning the mind), strīkarmāṇi (women’s attraction/retention rites), and allied apotropaic ‘extraction’ formulas that remove obstacles or rival influences.
Other hymns of this seer
- AVŚ 2.29 (adjacent kāmya/ritual cluster, varying attributions)
- AVŚ 3.25 (representative strīkarman/attraction complex in many recensional listings)
- AVŚ 6.130 (representative mind-binding/attraction style charm, Atharvanic genre-parallel)
Preparing for the rite
- Maintain ritual privacy; choose a quiet spot with access to earth/ground (bhūmi) and grass (tṛṇa) for the simile’s ‘support.’
- If using an herb, obtain a fresh oṣadhi (unspecified in-text; local tradition may substitute a ‘mind-seizing’ plant) and keep it clean and intact.
- Establish the target in mind by name and lineage (optional Atharvanic practice), avoiding public disclosure of the rite.
The rite
- Recite 2.30.1 while touching or lightly stirring grass on the ground to enact the vāta–tṛṇa simile (symbolic ‘churning’).
- Recite 2.30.4 while holding the chosen herb and making a grasping gesture (gṛbhāya) toward the imagined/represented target.
- Use 2.30.3 as an obstruction-removal adjunct: gesture outward/away as if extracting a thorn from a husk and sending it along a road (adhvan) to ‘elsewhere.’
- Conclude by mentally ‘fixing’ the result: the target’s mind turned, held, and returning (standard Atharvanic sealing intention).
What it needs
- Tṛṇa (grass) and contact with bhūmi (earth/ground)
- Oṣadhi (a herb used as the grasping medium; not specified by name in the verse)
- Optional: small cord/amulet thread for ‘binding’ intention (later praxis; not explicit in the cited mantras)
When
Typically performed in private; traditional praxis often prefers twilight/night for attraction rites, or any time when the operator can remain undisturbed and focused.
The main substance
Oṣadhi (unspecified ‘mind-seizing’ herb used as the grasping medium)
Herbs
- Unspecified oṣadhi in-text; later/local practice may select a fragrant or adhesive/‘binding’ plant as a functional substitute
Amulets
- Optional binding thread/cord (rakṣā-sūtra style)
- Optional small herb packet (oṣadhi-puṭa) carried or placed near the operator
How it is prepared
Keep the herb fresh and clean; hold it during 2.30.4 while making a firm grasping gesture. If making a packet, wrap the herb in clean cloth and tie with a single knot while reciting the seizing line (gṛbhāya).
Frequently Asked Questions
It aims to turn a woman’s mind toward the operator, create longing, and keep her from going away. One verse also functions to remove opposing influences by ‘sending them away’ like an extracted thorn.
Wind is the model for irresistible, unseen force. The hymn uses the image of Wind churning grass to claim that the mantra can similarly churn and redirect the target’s mind.
No specific plant name is given in the cited verse; it simply commands ‘O Herb’ (oṣadhe) to seize the mind. Traditions may choose a locally valued ‘binding’ or fragrant herb, but that identification is extra-textual.
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