Sukta 8
Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (love-charm corpus; specific r̥ṣi per anukramaṇī varies)
Devata: Kāma (Desire) / the binding power of attraction
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (probable; Atharvanic love-charms commonly in anuṣṭubh-like cadence)
हे लघु आथर्वण प्रेम-मंत्रसूक्त कामाला (इच्छेला) बंधनशक्ती म्हणून वापरून आलिंगन, आसक्ती आणि निघून न जाणे घडवते. वेल झाडाला बिलगते, पक्षी जमिनीवर आदळतो, आणि सूर्य सर्वांना व्यापून परिभ्रमण करतो—या तीन जिवंत उपमांद्वारे लक्ष्याचे मन (मनस्) वक्त्याशी विधिपूर्वक ‘बांधले’ जाते आणि विभक्त होणे रोखले जाते.
Kind of charm
Mantras
Mantra 1
कामात्मा यथा॑ वृ॒क्षं लिबु॑जा सम॒न्तं प॑रिषस्व॒जे। ए॒वा परि॑ ष्वजस्व॒ मां यथा॒ मां का॒मिन्यसो॒ यथा॒ मन्नाप॑गा॒ असः॑
जशी कामात्मा वेल झाडाला सर्व बाजूंनी घट्ट कवेत घेते, तशी तू मला सर्व बाजूंनी कवेत घे—जेणेकरून कामिनी युवती माझ्याच होतील, आणि त्या माझ्यापासून दूर जाऊ नयेत.
Mantra 2
यथा॑ सुप॒र्णः प्र॒पत॑न् प॒क्षौ नि॒हन्ति॒ भूम्या॑म्। ए॒वा नि ह॑न्मि ते॒ मनो॒ यथा॒ मां का॒मिन्यसो॒ यथा॒ मन्नाप॑गा॒ असः॑
जसा सुपर्ण पक्षी झेप घेऊन आपले पंख भूमीवर आपटतो, तसाच मी तुझे मन दाबून टाकतो—जेणेकरून कामिनी युवती माझ्याच होतील, आणि त्या माझ्यापासून दूर जाऊ नयेत.
Mantra 3
यथे॒मे द्यावा॑पृथि॒वी स॒द्यः प॒र्येति॒ सूर्यः॑ । ए॒वा पर्ये॑मि ते॒ मनो॒ यथा॒ मां का॒मिन्यसो॒ यथा॒ मन्नाप॑गा॒ असः॑
जसा हा सूर्य या द्यावा-पृथिवी (स्वर्ग व पृथ्वी) यांभोवती तत्क्षणी परिक्रमा करतो, तसाच मी तुझे मन सर्व बाजूंनी वेढून घेतो/घेते—जेणेकरून कामनेने भरलेल्या युवती माझ्याच होतील, आणि त्या माझ्यापासून दूर जाऊन निघून जाऊ नयेत.
Inside Sukta 8
How it unfolds
- How it opens
Begins with a binding simile: the desire-ensouled creeper clasping a tree on every side (physical model of attachment).
- What it asks
May the desired persons embrace and remain; may their minds be subdued/encircled so they do not go away from me.
- Where its power lies
The hymn asserts efficacy by aligning the spell with unstoppable natural forces—clinging vegetation, the bird’s forceful strike, and the sun’s inevitable circuit.
- How it closes
Each verse closes with the same refrain-like aim: ‘so that the longing maidens may be mine, so that they be not gone away from me.’
Famous verses
pari ṣvajasva māṃ
ni hanmi te manaḥ
paryemi te manaḥ
Kind of hymn
Strīkarmāṇi / Vaśīkaraṇa (erotic attraction, subjugation by desire)
What it is for
To compel affectionate attachment—especially embrace—and to subdue/encircle the target’s mind so separation does not occur.
Who it is for
A practitioner seeking erotic attraction or retention of a desired person/partner (traditional love-charm users within Atharvanic domestic/folk-ritual settings).
Also used as
- Strīkarmāṇi
- Vaśīkaraṇa
- Saṃgrahaṇa (retention/keeping close)
The deity
Kāma here is not merely emotion but a coercive, adhesive power that makes bodies and minds ‘cling’ and remain. Sūrya is invoked as the cosmic exemplar of inescapable, all-encompassing movement—mirrored in the speaker’s encircling of the target’s mind.
Powers of the deity
- To generate irresistible attraction and longing
- To bind/fasten the target’s mind (manas) to the practitioner
- To prevent departure, separation, or cooling of affection
- To ‘encircle’ and dominate attention through repeated mantra-pressure
Why the deity is called
To transform desire into a binding spell: the beloved (or desired persons) embrace, remain attached, and do not go away from the speaker.
The seer
- Atharvanic seer (anukramaṇī-variant attribution)Atharvan. Strīkarmāṇi / vaśīkaraṇa mantras: attraction, mental binding (manas-niyama), and preventing the beloved’s departure
Other hymns of this seer
- AV 6.9 (adjacent love/attraction charm in the same corpus; attribution varies by tradition)
- AV 6.130 (representative vaśīkaraṇa-type hymn in Book 6; attributions vary in recensions)
Preparing for the rite
- Choose a private, undisturbed place; maintain focused intention (saṅkalpa) toward attraction/retention.
- If available, obtain a clinging creeper identified as libujā (or a locally known ‘embracing’ vine used in folk practice).
- Optional: bathe and wear clean garments as a basic purity measure common in Atharvanic rites.
The rite
- Recite 6.8.1 while touching/holding the creeper and visualizing the ‘embrace’ (pariṣvaj) tightening around the target.
- Recite 6.8.2 while making a firm downward gesture (as if ‘beating down’), aligning with the verse’s wing-beating image to subdue the target’s manas.
- Recite 6.8.3 while circling the creeper/one’s own head or making a slow encircling motion, mirroring Sūrya’s circuit to ‘encompass’ the target’s mind.
- Conclude by mentally ‘sealing’ the refrain: that the longing ones be mine and not depart (mat-na-apagāḥ).
What it needs
- libujā (clinging creeper/embracing vine; botanical identity uncertain)
When
Preferably at twilight or night (contexts associated with Kāma and love-charms), or whenever the practitioner can maintain secrecy and concentration.
The main substance
libujā (clinging creeper/embracing vine)
Herbs
- libujā (identification uncertain; any locally recognized clinging vine used symbolically for ‘embrace’)
How it is prepared
Use a fresh piece of the creeper as a tactile ritual support; hold or touch it during recitation to ‘transfer’ clinging/embracing quality to the intended relationship.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is a traditional vaśīkaraṇa (attraction/subjugation) charm aimed at producing embrace and attachment, and at preventing the desired person from leaving.
They are ‘models’ of irresistible action: the creeper clings, the bird forcefully strikes down, and the sun inevitably encircles—each image is used to bind and control the target’s mind and presence.
Only 6.8.1 explicitly mentions libujā, a clinging creeper/vine. In practice it functions as a symbolic support for the mantra’s ‘embracing’ effect; the other verses work through gesture and focused recitation.
Ask anything about Sukta 8 of the Atharva Veda
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