Atharva Veda 4.3.2: Kanda 4, Anuvaka 1, Sukta 3, Mantra 2
Sukta 3
परे॑णैतु प॒था वृकः॑ पर॒मेणो॒त तस्क॑रः । परे॑ण द॒त्वती॒ रज्जुः॒ परे॑णाघा॒युर॑र्षतु
paréṇaitu pathā́ vṛkáḥ paraméṇóta taskaráḥ | paréṇa datvatī́ rájjuḥ paréṇāghāyúr arṣatu
By the farther path let the wolf depart; by the farthest, yea, the thief. By the farther way let the toothed cord (the noose) pass; by the farther let the evil-willed one rush away.
Dengan jalan yang lebih jauh biarlah serigala berlalu; dengan yang paling jauh, bahkan si pencuri. Dengan jalan yang lebih jauh biarlah tali bergigi (jerat) melintas; dengan yang lebih jauh biarlah orang yang berniat jahat meluru pergi.
The meaning
What it says
A banishment charm: let the wolf go by the farther path; the thief by the farthest; let the ‘toothed cord/noose’ pass by the farther way; let the evil-intentioned one rush away by the farther route.
The inner meaning
Boundary psychology: threats are not fought head-on but redirected—moved onto ‘other paths.’ The ‘toothed cord’ evokes the predator’s bite and the thief’s snare alike: instruments of harm are displaced from the household’s orbit.
The truth in it
Many dangers are best neutralized by rerouting rather than confrontation. Spatial imagination (near/far paths) structures safety: what is ‘far’ is ritually rendered irrelevant.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Rakṣoghna / Apotropaic (protective expulsion)
Its aim
To divert predators, thieves, and malefic influences away from the settlement/household by ritually ‘sending them on the farther path’.
Word by Word
Pada patha
परेण । एतु । पथा । वृकः । परमेण । उत । तस्करः । परेण । दत्वती । रज्जुः । परेण । अघायुः । अर्षतु ।
- परेण
- by the farther way / awayby the farther (remote) way; away from us (apotropaic displacement)Indeclinable (used adverbially as instrumental)नपुंसकलिङ्गे तृतीया-एकवचनम् (परेण = ‘by/along the farther (way)’)Role अधिकरण (मार्ग/पथ-निर्देशः)Root परा (प्रातिपदिक) / पर (प्रातिपदिक)
- एतु
- let (him/it) golet (him/it) go; may it departVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे) प्रथमपुरुषः एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Role क्रियाRoot इ (धातु)
- पथा
- by the pathby a path; along a route (ritually redirected)Nounपुंलिङ्गे तृतीया-एकवचनम्Role अधिकरण (मार्गे) / करण (मार्ग-उपायः)Root पथ् (प्रातिपदिक: पथ)
- वृकः
- the wolfthe wolf; emblem of predatory dangerNounपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा-एकवचनम्Role कर्तृRoot वृक (प्रातिपदिक)
- परेण
- by the farther way / awayby the farther way; away from hereIndeclinable (adverbial instrumental)नपुंसकलिङ्गे तृतीया-एकवचनम्Role अधिकरण (मार्ग/दिशा-निर्देशः)Root परा/पर (प्रातिपदिक)
- उत
- and alsoand also; moreoverIndeclinableसमुच्चयार्थक-निपातःRoot उत (निपात)
- तस्करः
- the thiefthe thief/robber; social threat to household wealthNounपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा-एकवचनम्Role कर्तृ (एतु इत्यस्य) / समुच्चित-कर्तृRoot तस्कर (प्रातिपदिक)
- परेण
- by the farther way / awayby the farther way; awayIndeclinable (adverbial instrumental)नपुंसकलिङ्गे तृतीया-एकवचनम्Role अधिकरण (मार्ग/दिशा-निर्देशः)Root परा/पर (प्रातिपदिक)
- दत्वती
- toothed / bitinghaving teeth; toothed (of a snare/cord), i.e., biting/holding fast (Sayana: bandhana-śakti)Adjectiveस्त्रीलिङ्गे प्रथमा-एकवचनम्Role विशेषणम् (रज्जोः)Root दत्वत् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘having teeth/biting’)
- रज्जुः
- the roperope/cord; especially a noose/snare used for bindingNounस्त्रीलिङ्गे प्रथमा-एकवचनम्Role कर्तृ (अर्षतु इत्यस्य) / समुच्चित-कर्तृRoot रज्जु (प्रातिपदिक)
- परेण
- by the farther way / awayby the farther way; awayIndeclinable (adverbial instrumental)नपुंसकलिङ्गे तृतीया-एकवचनम्Role अधिकरण (मार्ग/दिशा-निर्देशः)Root परा/पर (प्रातिपदिक)
- अघायुः
- the evil-doer / evil-minded oneevil-minded, harm-intending (malefic agent)Noun/Adjective (substantivized)पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा-एकवचनम्Role कर्तृ (अर्षतु इत्यस्य)Root अघायु (प्रातिपदिक; ‘evil-living/evil-intending’)
- अर्षतु
- let (him/it) rush away / pass awaylet him/it run/flow away; rush off (banishment formula)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे) प्रथमपुरुषः एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Role क्रियाRoot ऋष् (धातु; ‘to flow/move swiftly’)
Sandhi Notes
- परेण एतु पथा वृकः | परेण उत तस्करः | परेण दत्वती रज्जुः | परेण अघायुः अर्षतु ||
- 1) परेणैतु = परेण + एतु (ए-आगमः; संधिः: ए + ए → ऐ)
- 2) परमेणोत (पाठान्तर-रूपे) = परेण + उत (ए + उ → ओ)
- 3) परेणाघायुः = परेण + अघायुः (ए + अ → एऽ; लेखने दीर्घ-समास/संधि-लोपः)
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Atharvanic/Angiras-type attribution.
- Devata
- Apotropaic ‘Path’/Banishment; implicitly Indraic protection against thieves and predators.
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh (predominant in AV protective charms)
- Rasa
- Vira and Shanta
Sāyaṇa construes the repeated pareṇa/paraméṇa as ritual ‘removal to a distance’ (apakarṣaṇa). The ‘datvatī rajjuḥ’ is glossed as a binding-snare endowed with seizing power; the mantra redirects both natural predators (wolf) and human predators (thief), and even the instrument of capture, away from the sacrificer’s sphere.
Unspecified (Atharvanic/Angiras-type protective household tradition)
Rakṣoghna/apotropaic banishment: diverting predators, thieves, and malefic forces away from settlement space using ‘path’ logic.
Encodes the Atharvanic art of ‘making space’: protection achieved by ritually re-mapping movement patterns of threats.
Apotropaic Path / Banishment-force (with Indraic undertone)
Orders dangerous beings to move away; establishes safe perimeter around the home and herd.
Strong: expels predators (vṛka), thieves (taskara), snares (rajju), and ill-will (aghāyu).
4x8 with parallelism: pareṇa… paremeṇa… pareṇa… pareṇa…
Incremental intensification (farther → farthest) and list of threats is classic AV apotropaic style.
Driving, directive; each pāda is a push outward.
Creates a felt ‘shooing away’ motion; effective when recited while gesturing outward.
The Atharvan priest establishes a protective boundary at the house/village edge.
Facing outward (toward the ‘away’ direction), he recites the mantra while indicating a ‘far path’ with hand/rod.
A cord/noose may be displayed or symbolically cast outward to ‘carry away’ the threat.
The rite concludes with a sealing gesture (paridhi-like circling or sprinkling) to prevent return.
Kauśika Sūtra: domestic protective rites for warding thieves/wild beasts (rakṣā-karman; exact sūtra numbering varies by edition).
Atharvan/Brahman as apotropaic specialist: performs directional banishment (diśā-nirṇaya) and boundary-protection (rakṣā-bandha).
Recited at boundary points (door, cattle-pen, village edge) while symbolically pointing/throwing dust outward or walking a perimeter.
Evening/nightfall; before sleep; before leaving house/herd unattended.
Householder or Atharvan practitioner; often a practical domestic rite rather than a śrauta performance.
KauśS: protective expulsion rites (rakṣoghna) commonly deploy such ‘send away’ formulas; exact citation depends on recension numbering.
As a cultural practice: perimeter-walk with recitation as a mindfulness/security ritual.
Rope/noose (raज्जु) as binding technology; Conceptual ‘path’ as spatial-ritual vector
The rope/noose symbolizes constraint and capture; by sending it ‘farther,’ the charm displaces the very possibility of being bound or trapped.
Home security/‘risk displacement’ logic (lighting, locks, deterrence)—redirecting threats away from the target area.
Wolf, thief, noose/snares, malefic agent (generic).
To banish predators, thieves, snares, and evil-willed persons away from the household by directing them onto distant paths.
Banishment by spatial command (path-redirect), graded distance (para/parama), naming of threats.
Theft, livestock predation, ambush, hostile intent.
Protection of cattle/household goods (implicit).
- परेण पथा (pareṇa pathā)
- Ritual vector of expulsion; creating distance as protection
- परमेण (parameṇa)
- Maximal banishment; beyond the social horizon
- वृकः (vṛkaḥ)
- Wild predation; night danger to cattle/children
- तस्करः (taskaraḥ)
- Human predation; stealth threat to property
- दत्वती रज्जुः (datvatī rajjuḥ)
- Snare, trap, strangling fate; also ‘biting’ constraint
- अघायुः (aghāyuḥ)
- Malefic intention personified; hostile neighbor/enemy
Boundary-setting: distinguish ‘my space’ from intrusive impulses; practice letting threats pass without engagement.
Maṇipūra (protective will)
Exhale-focused ‘sending away’ breath: long exhale while visualizing threats moving outward.
Visualize a ring of light around home/body; see fear/threat footprints turning to the far path.
Steady alert calm (sattvic vigilance).
Use as a non-violent protection sankalpa: ‘May harmful influences take another route.’
Clear imperative cadence; each pareṇa/parama phrase delivered like a directional command.
Slight stress on pareṇa / parameṇa; keep consonant clusters crisp (vṛka, taskara).
Firm, outward-projecting voice; can be paired with a hand gesture indicating ‘go away’.
Banishment charms often coordinate with movement (stepping to boundary, casting outward), reinforcing the ‘path’ semantics.
Household protection intention-setting (non-violent), especially when feeling unsafe or after a theft scare.
At dusk while securing doors; during a perimeter check; before travel leaving home empty.
Reduced anxiety, clearer sense of boundaries, ritualized readiness/protection mindset.
Not a substitute for practical safety measures; avoid escalating paranoia—pair with grounded actions.
No plant is named here; instead, the operative ‘substance’ is a technology-object (rajju, cord/noose). The charm treats material implements as carriers of agency: the noose’s ‘teeth’ (datvatī) metaphorize its gripping potency, which is then ritually redirected away from the household.
The thief (taskara) is framed as a primary social disruptor of household prosperity; the Atharvan priest mediates security through speech-acts rather than coercive force, implying a ritualized, priestly management of social risk at the domestic level.
The formulaic spatial deictic ‘pareṇa/paraméṇa’ is RV-compatible, but the Atharvanic tendency to enumerate concrete threats (wolf + thief + evil-willed) in a single expulsion sequence reflects AV’s pragmatic, domestic orientation.
Gopatha-style reasoning typically grounds efficacy in brahman (sacral speech) as a binding/loosing force; this mantra exemplifies that logic by treating ‘path’ and ‘departure’ as speech-created realities that relocate danger beyond the ritual boundary.
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