Atharva Veda 13.2.38: Kanda 13, Anuvaka 1, Sukta 2, Mantra 38
Sukta 2
स॒ह॒स्रा॒ह्ण्यं विय॑तावस्य प॒क्षौ हरे॑र्हं॒सस्य॒ पत॑तः स्व॒र्गम्। स दे॒वान्त्सर्वा॒नुर॑स्युप॒दद्य॑ सं॒पश्य॑न् याति॒ भुव॑नानि॒ विश्वा॑
sahasrā́hṇyaṃ ví-yatáu asyá pakṣáu háreḥ haṃsásya pátataḥ svargám | sá devā́n sárvān ánu asyópa-dádya saṃ-páśyan yāti bhúvanāni víśvā
A thousand-day-long are his two wings in the wide expanse, of the tawny Haṃsa flying unto heaven. He, drawing near in due course to all the Gods, goes on, beholding, through all the worlds.
Seribu-hari lamanya kedua sayapnya di bentangan luas; milik Haṃsa yang keperangan keemasan, terbang menuju syurga. Ia, pada waktunya mendekati semua Dewa, terus melangkah sambil memandang segala alam.
Rishi: Atharvanic/Angirasa milieu (Anukramaṇī varies)
Devata: Haṃsa/Sūrya (solar bird), with implicit ‘all gods’
Chandas: Triṣṭubh-like (mixed)
Primary: adbhuta
Secondary: shanta
Sāyaṇa reads the haṃsa as a solar/celestial figure whose ‘wings’ signify rays or the two daily courses (or paired powers) enabling ascent. ‘Upadadya’ is glossed as ‘upagamya prāpya’—approaching/attaining the gods; ‘saṃpaśyan’ indicates manifest vision, i.e., successful realization of the mantra’s promised passage through the bhuvanas.
Ensuring safe passage and comprehensive protection by aligning with the solar-haṃsa’s traversal of all realms
Constricted breath/anxiety states (symbolic), transition-related stress; general vulnerability during travel or change.
Breath (implicit via haṃsa tradition), eyes (saṃpaśyan)
Identification with haṃsa’s orderly traversal and panoramic seeing; expands inner space (viyat) and restores rhythmic endurance (sahasra-ahṇya).
Prāṇa-vāyu stabilization (symbolic); supports ojas through steadiness and fear-reduction.
Adjunct for travel anxiety, panic tendencies, and stress-related breath dysregulation; mindfulness for ‘big-picture’ perspective.
paustika
Obstacles across realms (physical/social/psychic)
Prosperous safe passage and comprehensive protection by aligning with the solar-haṃsa who moves through all worlds and approaches all gods in due course.
Mythic identification + totalizing formula (‘all gods’, ‘all worlds’) to seal protection universally; endurance-image (‘thousand-day wings’) to extend efficacy.
Travel mishaps, liminal dangers, disorientation, unseen harms across ‘worlds’.
Successful journeys, expanded opportunity, visionary comprehension
The tawny Haṃsa flying to heaven has two wings ‘a thousand days long’ in the wide expanse. Approaching all the gods in due order, he goes on, seeing, through all the worlds.
The Haṃsa is the breath-mind that can traverse states without being trapped. ‘Thousand-day wings’ signal endurance and rhythmic continuity. Seeing through all worlds is comprehensive awareness—integrating waking, dream, and deep rest without fear.
True protection is mobility with insight: the capacity to move through changing worlds while retaining clear vision and right timing. Endurance plus discernment yields safe passage.
- हंस (haṃsa)
- solar-breath principle; pure discriminative awareness (haṃsa as prāṇa-mantra in later yoga)
- हरि (hari)
- solar hue; auspicious vitality
- सहस्र-अह्ण्य (sahasra-ahṇya)
- vast endurance; long-cycle protection; timeless rhythm
- वियत् (viyat)
- inner spaciousness; freedom from constriction
- स्वर्ग (svarga)
- higher condition of health/order; successful outcome
- अनु…उपदद्य (anu…upadadya)
- right timing, orderly progression (ṛta) in transitions
- संपश्यन् (saṃpaśyan)
- integrative vision; panoramic awareness
- भुवनानि विश्वा (bhuvanāni viśvā)
- all life-domains; total protection across contexts
Haṃsa as breath-awareness moving through ‘worlds’ (states): cultivate spacious, continuous attention.
vishuddha
So’ham/haṃsa-style breath awareness (natural breath with silent mantra), keeping exhale long and smooth.
A tawny swan of light flying through concentric worlds; each wingbeat steadies breath; obstacles dissolve into sky-space.
Spacious, integrated awareness (saṃpaśyan).
Practice 5–10 minutes of breath awareness, then recite 7 or 14 times; finish by imagining safe arrival and clear seeing in the destination context.
Chant with steady, wingbeat-like pacing; preserve accents on sahasrāhṇyam, haṃsasya, svargam, saṃpaśyan, viśvā.
Slight pause after svargam; then flow continuously through sa devān sarvān… to mirror ongoing travel.
Keep haṃsasya nasalization clear (ṃ)., Pronounce viyatāvasya with clear palatal y., Maintain retroflex ṣ in viśvā.
Smooth, continuous, breath-led; avoid harsh attack.
Best used as a threshold-blessing; Atharvanic logic favors ‘totality’ verses for sealing protection in all directions/realms.
14
Travel, relocation, starting a long project, navigating major life transitions (job change, recovery phase).
Before departure; at crossroads; when feeling scattered across ‘too many worlds’.
Calmer breath, broader perspective, sense of protected movement and orderly timing.
If breath practices trigger dizziness, keep breathing natural and gentle; do not force retention.
पदच्छेदः: सहस्राह्ण्यम् | वियतौ अस्य पक्षौ | हरेः हंसस्य पततः स्वर्गम् | सः देवान् सर्वान् अनु रस्यु उपदद्य | संपश्यन् याति भुवनानि विश्वा। 1) वियतौ + अस्य → वियतावस्य (स्वर-संधि: औ + अ = आव). 2) हरेः + हंसस्य → हरेर्हंसस्य (विसर्ग-लोप/रेफादेशः: एः + ह-). 3) अनु + रस्यु → अनुरस्यु (अव्यय-समासवत् संधि). 4) उपदद्य is Vedic gerund (ल्यप्) from उप-दा; orthography reflects Vedic doubling. 5) संपश्यन् is present participle from सम्-पश्; final -न् before य- remains.
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