Atharva Veda 20.127.2: Kanda 20, Anuvaka 13, Sukta 127, Mantra 2
Sukta 127
उष्ट्रा॒ यस्य॑ प्रवा॒हणो॑ व॒धूम॑न्तो द्वि॒र्दश॑ । व॒र्ष्मा रथ॑स्य॒ नि जि॑हीडते दि॒व ई॒षमा॑णा उप॒स्पृशः॑
uṣṭrā́ yásya pravāháṇo vadhū́manto dvírdaśa | varṣmā́ ráthasya ní jihīḍate divá ī́ṣamāṇā́ upaspṛ́śaḥ ||
Camels are his forward-bearing team, with brides in train, twice ten in number. The chariot’s lofty frame is set firm; heavenward they strain, drawing near to touch.
Unta-unta menjadi pasukan penariknya yang maju; dengan para pengantin perempuan mengiring, bilangannya dua kali sepuluh. Rangka tinggi kereta ditegakkan teguh; ke arah langit mereka merentang, mendekat untuk menyentuh.
Rishi: Uncertain (khila/RV-style attribution not fixed here).
Devata: Implicitly the praised patron/wealth; secondarily Nārāśaṃsa as laud-power across the hymn.
Chandas: RV-style meter, likely Triṣṭubh/Jagatī mixture; requires full syllable audit.
Primary: shringara
Secondary: adbhuta
Sāyaṇa-style reading treats the verse as descriptive praise of a wealthy/powerful figure: camels as conveyance, a bridal retinue as sign of prosperity, and the chariot’s ‘varṣman’ as magnificence. The motion imagery (‘striving heavenward’) heightens the hyperbolic grandeur typical of laudatory stanzas.
Augment the patron’s prestige and the rite’s auspiciousness by verbalizing elite mobility, bridal wealth, and chariot-magnificence.
Wellbeing via social support and mobility resources; imagery can be used for motivational visualization (goal-approach behavior).
paustika
Patron/household reputation and continuity
Augment prestige and auspiciousness by verbalizing elite conveyance, bridal wealth, and stable chariot-magnificence; keep prosperity ‘in motion’ and socially affirmed.
Iconic description (dṛṣṭānta) + enumeration; prosperity is ‘fixed’ by being pictured and heard.
Decline of status, stagnation of fortune, social envy
Wealth, marriage alliances, mobility, fame
A vivid wealth-and-status image: the patron’s team is camels; a bridal train of ‘twice ten’ follows; the chariot’s lofty structure is set firm; they strive heavenward, drawing near to touch. It continues the dānastuti mood—displaying elite mobility and abundance.
The chariot and camels symbolize the psyche’s capacity to carry life forward with resources and alliances (brides/relationships). “Straining toward heaven” suggests aspiration: prosperity is not only possession but upward-directed purpose.
Prosperity is dynamic: it moves, connects, and lifts aspiration. Wealth becomes meaningful when it supports relationships, stability (a firm frame), and a higher aim rather than mere accumulation.
- उष्ट्राः (uṣṭrāḥ)
- endurance, desert-crossing capacity; long-range prosperity
- प्रवाहणः (pravāhaṇaḥ)
- life’s momentum; resources that carry one through transitions
- वधूमन्तः (vadhūmantaḥ)
- alliances, fertility, social integration, auspicious continuity
- द्विर्दश (dvirdaśa)
- complete retinue; socially recognized abundance
- रथ (ratha)
- embodied agency; vehicle of status and purposeful movement
- वर्ष्मा (varṣmā)
- dignity, elevated standing; aspirational structure
- दिवः ईषमाणाः (divaḥ īṣamāṇāḥ)
- aiming higher; prosperity as aspiration
- उपस्पृशः (upaspṛśaḥ)
- approaching the goal; success within reach
Prosperity-in-motion: cultivate endurance, stable structure, and upward aim; visualize resources serving dharma.
svādhiṣṭhāna (relationship/continuity) and maṇipūra (agency/movement)
Moderate rhythmic breathing synchronized with pādas to evoke procession-like steadiness.
Buoyant, expansive, socially connected.
Reflect: What ‘vehicles’ carry you (skills, allies, routines)? Strengthen the ‘frame’ (discipline), then aim ‘heavenward’ (higher purpose) without losing grounded stability.
Keep a light rising contour on divaḥ īṣamāṇāḥ to mirror ‘straining upward’; articulate the list-like openings clearly.
Mark pāda breaks to keep the procession imagery legible; avoid rushing dvirdaśa and varṣmā.
uṣṭrāḥ: clear retroflex ṣṭ., pravāhaṇaḥ: keep long ā; avoid collapsing v+h., upaspṛśaḥ: keep spṛ cluster with syllabic ṛ.
Celebratory, resonant, ‘processional’ tone.
As a prosperity-display verse, it is best used with humility and gratitude; Atharvanic framing keeps paustika intent from sliding into pride or social harm.
3
Wedding celebrations, inaugurating travel/vehicle, marking a family’s rise in fortune responsibly.
During a procession, before a journey, or at a public family celebration where blessings are spoken.
Sense of auspicious momentum, social cohesion, and confidence in stable progress toward goals.
Avoid using to provoke envy or humiliation; if resources are unequal, adapt toward inclusive blessing rather than display.
पदच्छेदः (सन्धिविग्रह): उष्ट्राः | यस्य | प्रवाहणः | वधूमन्तः | द्विर्दश | वर्ष्मा | रथस्य | नि | जिहीडते | दिवः | ईषमाणाः | उपस्पृशः । 1) उष्ट्रा॒ → उष्ट्राः (प्रथमा बहुवचन विसर्गः). 2) द्वि॒र्दश॑ → द्विर्दश (द्वि + दश; ‘द्वादश’). 3) रथ॑स्य॒ नि → रथस्य | नि (पदसीमा; सन्धिः न आवश्यकः). 4) दि॒व ई॒षमा॑णा → दिवः | ईषमाणाः (पदपाठानुसारं ‘दिवः’ इति षष्ठी/पञ्चमी एकवचन; ‘ईषमाणाः’ प्रथमा बहुवचन).
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