Atharva Veda 1.30.2: Kanda 1, Anuvaka 3, Sukta 30, Mantra 2
Sukta 30
ये वो॑ देवाः पि॒तरो॒ ये च॑ पु॒त्राः सचे॑तसो मे शृणुते॒दमु॒क्तम्। सर्वे॑भ्यो वः॒ प॑रि ददाम्ये॒तं स्व॒स्त्येऽनं ज॒रसे॑ वहाथ
yé vó devā́ḥ pitáraḥ yé ca putrā́ḥ sacétaso me śṛṇutédám uktám | sárvebhyo vaḥ pári dadāmy etáṃ svastý ènaṃ járase vahātha ||
Ye Gods, ye Fathers, and ye Sons beside, in concord of mind, hear ye this my spoken word. To all of you I give it forth, encompassing: bear ye this weal onward unto old age.
Wahai para Dewa, wahai para Pitara (leluhur), dan juga para Putra; dengan sehati-sefikiran, dengarkanlah kata-kataku yang terucap ini. Kepada kamu semua aku serahkan ini, meliputi semuanya: bawalah kesejahteraan ini hingga ke usia tua.
The meaning
What it says
A welfare-and-longevity appeal: gods, ancestors, and sons (the living lineage) are asked—united in mind—to hear the utterance; the speaker ‘gives’ it to all, asking them to carry svasti (weal) to old age.
The inner meaning
Integrates three supports of life—divine order, ancestral continuity, and family cooperation—so the practitioner’s word becomes a shared vehicle of safety and long-term flourishing.
The truth in it
Well-being lasts when blessing is socially transmitted: across generations (pitṛ–putra) and across the visible/invisible community (deva–pitaraḥ).
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Paustika (Prosperity/Longevity) with apotropaic coloration
Its aim
To secure ‘svasti’ (auspicious safety) and convey it to the petitioner so that it endures ‘unto old age’—a longevity and welfare charm addressed to divine, ancestral, and filial agencies.
Word by Word
Pada patha
ये । वः । देवाः । पितरः । ये । च । पुत्राः । सचेतसः । मे । शृणुत । इदम् । उक्तम् । सर्वेभ्यः । वः । परि । ददामि । एतम् । स्वस्ति । एनम् । जरसे । वहाथ ।
- ये
- who (those who)ye who; whichever (invocatory relative pronoun introducing addressed classes)Pronounपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्Role KartāRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- वः
- of you / yourto/for you (2nd pl. enclitic; recipients of the offering/charge)Pronounषष्ठी बहुवचनम् (एन्क्लिटिक)Role AdhikaraṇaRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- देवाः
- godsthe Gods; divine powers invoked as protectors and conveyors of welfareNounपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्Role KartāRoot देव (प्रातिपदिक)
- पितरः
- fathers / ancestorsthe Fathers (ancestral Manes), guardians of lineage and longevityNounपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्Role KartāRoot पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
- ये
- whoye who (resuming/adding another addressed group)Pronounपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्Role KartāRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- च
- andand also (coordinating particle, extending the invocation)Indeclinableसमुच्चयार्थक अव्ययम्Root च (निपात)
- पुत्राः
- sonssons/descendants; the living continuers of the line, implicated in social continuityNounपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्Role KartāRoot पुत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- सचेतसः
- of one mind / concordantof one mind, consenting, attentive; (Sayana: ‘saha-cetas’—well-disposed and concordant toward the speaker)Adjectiveपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम् (देवाः/पितरः/पुत्राः इत्येषां विशेषणम्)Role KartāRoot स-चेतस् (प्रातिपदिक; बहुव्रीहिः/कर्मधारयः)
- मे
- my / of memy; of me (speaker’s claim/ownership of the utterance and rite)Pronounषष्ठी एकवचनम् (एन्क्लिटिक)Role AdhikaraṇaRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- शृणुत
- hear!hear! listen! (imperative; perform the receptive act that enables efficacy)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुषः, बहुवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Root श्रु (धातु)
- इदम्
- thisPronounनपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम्Role KarmaRoot इदम् (सर्वनाम)
- उक्तम्
- spoken / utteredspoken word, utterance; the formulated mantra as efficacious speechParticipleनपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया/प्रथमा एकवचनम् (इदम् इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)Role KarmaRoot वच् (धातु) → उक्त (कृदन्त, क्त)
- सर्वेभ्यः
- to allPronoun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्गे चतुर्थी/पञ्चमी बहुवचनम्Role SampradānaRoot सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
- वः
- to youto/for you (again marking the addressed recipients)Pronounचतुर्थी बहुवचनम् (एन्क्लिटिक)Role SampradānaRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- परि
- around; fullyaround, fully, in encompassing fashion; (ritually: ‘all-round’ bestowal/protection)Indeclinableउपसर्गः (ददामि इत्यस्य)Root परि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- ददामि
- I giveI give, I bestow (performative donation of the mantra/boon/charge)Verbलट्, उत्तमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Root दा (धातु)
- एतम्
- this (one)this (specific item: the utterance/boon just mentioned)Pronounपुंलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम्Role KarmaRoot एतद् (सर्वनाम)
- स्वस्ति
- well-being; blessingwell-being, welfare, auspicious safety; (apotropaic ‘svasti’ as protective force)Indeclinableमङ्गलार्थक अव्ययम्Root स्वस्ति (अव्यय/निपात)
- एनम्
- him / this (person)this (him/it), i.e., the welfare/boon as a carried objectPronounपुंलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम्Role KarmaRoot एतद्/इदम् (सर्वनाम; एनद्-प्रयोगः)
- जरसे
- for old age; for long lifeunto old age; for long life and ripened longevity (jarā as desired life-stage)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्गे चतुर्थी एकवचनम्Role SampradānaRoot जरस् (प्रातिपदिक)
- वहाथ
- carry / convey (you all)!bear, carry, convey (2nd pl.; transport the ‘svasti’ to the goal of longevity)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुषः, बहुवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Root वह् (धातु)
Sandhi Notes
- (1) शृणुते॒दमु॒क्तम् → शृणुत + इदम् + उक्तम् (त् + इ → द्; external sandhi)
- (2) ददाम्ये॒तं → ददामि + एतम् (इ + ए → ये)
- (3) स्व॒स्त्येऽनं → स्वस्ति + एनम् (इ + ए → ये)
- Other words are already padapāṭha-like or require no further splitting
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Atharvanic/anonymous (as commonly transmitted for many AVŚ charms; specific r̥ṣi assignment depends on anukramaṇī tradition for AV 1.30).
- Devata
- Svasti (Auspicious Welfare) mediated by Devāḥ and Pitaraḥ; also implicates the social unit (putrāḥ) as ritual stakeholders.
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh (probable; four pādas of ~8 syllables typical—exact scansion depends on pada resolution).
- Rasa
- Shanta and Adbhuta
Sayana takes ‘devāḥ’ as the deities competent to confer protection, ‘pitaraḥ’ as ancestral powers sustaining the sacrificer’s line, and ‘putrāḥ’ as the living continuers whose assent secures social and ritual continuity. ‘sacetasaḥ’ is glossed as ‘saha-cetas’—well-disposed, unanimous, and attentive to the petitioner. ‘idam uktam’ is the mantra itself treated as a transferable efficacious entity. ‘pari dadāmi’ indicates a complete bestowal (as though placing protection all around). ‘svasti’ is the auspicious safety to be conveyed; ‘jarase’ specifies the telos: longevity culminating in old age.
Anonymous Atharvanic transmitter (hymn-level attribution varies)
Paustika svasti-charms: longevity, household concord, and transmission of blessing through speech.
Shows Atharvan domestic magic as intergenerational: blessing is ‘carried’ by gods, ancestors, and descendants when minds are harmonized.
Svasti (Auspicious Welfare) mediated by Devāḥ–Pitaraḥ–Putrāḥ
Svasti is the stable condition of safety and thriving; it is made durable through alignment of cosmic (deva), ancestral (pitṛ), and familial (putra) agencies.
Supports longevity, recovery, and resilience by stabilizing the ‘life-course’ (āyus) rather than targeting a single disease.
General apotropaic safety: warding mishap, premature death, and household disharmony.
4 pādas of ~8 syllables; some resolution depends on sandhi and pada reading.
AV anuṣṭubh often tolerates heavy clusters and extended compounds; the first pāda may feel ‘long’ due to enumerations (devāḥ/pitaraḥ/putrāḥ).
Invocatory roll-call → distribution formula → long-life sending-off.
Creates a sense of communal assent; the mantra feels like a formal announcement that becomes a protective object.
Prepare a protective setting (svastyayana): the Atharvan priest seats the beneficiary facing east; establishes a clean ritual space.
Recite the mantra as a formal ‘uktam’ (spoken charge), explicitly addressing gods, ancestors, and descendants as cooperating agencies.
Perform a ‘pari’-gesture: circumambulate or symbolically ‘encircle’ the beneficiary (or the ritual implement/amulet) to enact ‘pari dadāmi’—the all-around bestowal of protection.
Conclude by directing the ‘svasti’ toward longevity: touch the beneficiary’s head/shoulders (or the amulet) while uttering ‘jarase vahātha,’ commissioning the invoked powers to ‘carry’ welfare into old age.
Optionally integrate into a household blessing sequence with oblations or sprinkling (prokṣaṇa) as the domestic rite requires.
Kauśika Sūtra: general svastyayana/āyuṣya-prayoga context (exact sutra-number varies by edition; applied within the svastyayana and āyuṣya rites where ‘svasti’ mantras are recited for longevity and protection).
Atharvan/Brahman as svastyayana-officiant: he voices the performative donation (‘dadāmi’) and ritually ‘encircles’ the beneficiary, commissioning divine and ancestral forces to convey welfare into longevity.
Recite as a household svasti before travel, at the start of the day, or when seeking family harmony and elder well-being; may be spoken with family present to enact ‘sacetasaḥ.’
Morning; before journeys; during family gatherings; on ancestor-remembrance days.
Householder can recite; an Atharvan priest may integrate into svastyayana-style domestic rites.
Family recitation for elders’ health; can be used as a ‘blessing message’ spoken over food or water.
svasti (auspicious welfare as a quasi-substance carried by speech); mantra/uktam (efficacious utterance treated as a transferable protective object)
Implicit: the uktam functions like a portable charm-object distributed ‘to all.’
Speech is treated as a carrier medium: svasti is not only wished but ‘handed over’ and ‘borne’ forward, like an amulet passed through time.
Non-specific: prevention of misfortune and premature decline; supports convalescence and longevity.
Blessing-transfer (svasti as carried substance) + social/ancestral coherence (sacetasaḥ) reduces ‘binding’ stress and invites protective oversight.
Āyuṣya (longevity-promoting) orientation; parallels rasāyana ethos (sustaining vitality across time).
Social support and intergenerational belonging as protective factors for mental/physical health; stress buffering.
The petitioner/household
Secure enduring well-being and safe passage of life until old age through collective divine/ancestral/familial support.
Performative gifting of the utterance (uktam) as a distributed protective charm; invocation of concord (sacetasaḥ).
Accidents, ill-omens, household discord, premature decline
Longevity, family continuity, stable welfare
- देवाः (devāḥ)
- cosmic powers and norms that uphold order
- पितरः (pitaraḥ)
- lineage memory, inherited protection, continuity
- पुत्राः (putrāḥ)
- future, responsibility, the household’s living carriers of welfare
- सचेतसः (sacetasaḥ)
- collective coherence; social harmony as protective magic
- उक्तम् (uktam)
- vāc as pharmakon—transferable blessing-object
- परि ददामि (pari dadāmi)
- circumambulating protection; distributing welfare to all supports
- स्वस्ति (svasti)
- a quasi-substance of protection and luck
- जरस् (jaras)
- full lifespan; ripening without premature decay
Gratitude and alignment with three supports: cosmos (deva), lineage (pitṛ), responsibility (putra).
Anahata (belonging/connection)
Slow diaphragmatic breathing; inhale on invocation, exhale on svasti…jarase.
A warm protective current moving from ancestors through the heart into future generations, carrying ‘svasti.’
Settled, relationally supported awareness.
Speak the mantra as a benediction for others first; then for oneself—matching the ‘pari dadāmi’ distribution logic.
Keep invocatory rise on ye vo…; soften and lengthen on svasti; gentle fall on jarase vahātha.
Mark the triad clearly: devāḥ | pitaraḥ | putrāḥ; pause after uktam; emphasize svasti.
Warm, blessing-like, inclusive.
Effective when spoken ‘around’ the household (pari): recite facing the four directions or while lightly circling a lamp/food.
9 times
Seeking long-term welfare for family; supporting elders; beginning travel or a new phase of life.
Morning blessing; before leaving home; during family meals; on anniversaries of ancestors.
Calm sense of protection, improved family cohesion, strengthened intention toward longevity and safety.
If grief is acute, proceed gently; the ancestor-address can intensify emotion—pair with grounding practices.
No explicit plant or drug appears; the operative ‘substance’ is verbal and social: ‘uktam’ (the uttered formula) and ‘svasti’ (welfare) are treated as transferable, conveyable entities. This is characteristic of Atharvanic technology where speech itself functions as a carrier-medium, sometimes substituting for materia medica.
The addressees form a vertical and horizontal chain of authority: gods (cosmic sovereignty), fathers/ancestors (lineage legitimacy and inherited protection), and sons (future continuity and household agency). The petitioner’s welfare is framed as requiring consent across these strata, revealing a household-centered polity where longevity and safety are collective, not merely individual, goods.
The diction is broadly RV-compatible (devāḥ, pitaraḥ, śṛṇut, svasti), but the Atharvanic pragmatic framing is prominent: ‘idam uktam’ foregrounds the mantra as an object of transfer, and ‘pari dadāmi’ reads as a performative legal-ritual act. The inclusion of ‘putrāḥ’ as direct addressees is more domestic-social in tone than typical RV hymn address, aligning with AV’s household ritual horizon.
In Gopatha’s Atharvanic theology, efficacy is grounded in correctly deployed brahman (sacred speech) and in the alignment of domestic rite with cosmic order. A verse like this functions as a ‘commissioning’ formula: it authorizes the transfer of ‘svasti’ through speech and binds multiple agencies (deities, ancestors, household descendants) into a single efficacious network, a pattern consistent with Gopatha’s emphasis on Atharvanic mantras as operative instruments rather than mere praise.
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