Atharva Veda 8.2.12: Kanda 8, Anuvaka 1, Sukta 2, Mantra 12

Sukta 2

Sanskrit (Devanagari)

आ॒रादरा॑तिं॒ निरृ॑तिं प॒रो ग्राहिं॑ क्र॒व्यादः॑ पिशा॒चान्। रक्षो॒ यत् सर्वं॑ दुर्भू॒तं तत् तम॑ इ॒वाप॑ हन्मसि

Recitation with translationAtharva Veda 8.2.12

IAST Transliteration

ārā́d arātíṃ nírṛtiṃ paráḥ grāhíṃ krav-yā́daḥ piśācā́n | rákṣo yát sárvaṃ durbhūtáṃ tát táma ivápá hanmasi

English Translation (Griffith/Whitney)

Far away [be] malignity and Nirṛti; far away the Seizer, the flesh-eaters, the Piśācas. Whatsoever Rakṣas, all that is ill-formed, that we smite away, as [one smites] darkness.

Translation

Jauhkanlah kebusukan dan Nirṛti; jauhkanlah Sang Penyergap, para pemakan daging, para Piśāca. Apa jua Rakṣas, segala yang buruk-rupa—itulah kami hentam pergi, seperti menghalau gelap.

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Word by Word

• आ॒रात्: from afar; away
• आ॒रात्: Apādāna (separation: ‘away from/afar’)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: आ॒रात् (avyaya-prātipadika)

• अरा॑तिम्: harm; hostility; mischief
• अरा॑तिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: अराति (prātipadika)

• निरृ॑तिम्: calamity; destruction (Nirṛti)
• निरृ॑तिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: निरृति (prātipadika)

• प॒रः: beyond; away
• प॒रः: Apādāna/Adhikaraṇa (directional: ‘beyond/away’)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर (prātipadika)

• ग्रा॒हिम्: seizure; grasping affliction (esp. disease-spirit)
• ग्रा॒हिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: ग्राहि (prātipadika)

• क्र॒व्यादः॑: flesh-eater (demon)
• क्र॒व्यादः॑: Karma (as object class being struck/repelled) / appositional to following beings
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्रव्याद (prātipadika)

• पिशा॒चान्: Piśācas; ghouls
• पिशा॒चान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: पिशाच (prātipadika)

• रक्षः: demon; Rākṣas-power
• रक्षः: Karma (as class of beings to be destroyed)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रक्षस् (prātipadika)

• यत्: whatever; that which
• यत्: Kartā (of ‘अस्ति’ implied) / correlating relative
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद् (sarvanāma-prātipadika)

• सर्वम्: all; entire
• सर्वम्: Kartā (with यत्; ‘whatever is all…’)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (prātipadika)

• दुर्भू॒तम्: evil-being; ill-formed/inauspicious entity
• दुर्भू॒तम्: Kartā (predicate with यत्/सर्वम्)
• Type: Adjective/Noun
• Root: दुर्भूत (prātipadika; दुḥ + भूत)

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद् (sarvanāma-prātipadika)

• तमः: darkness
• तमः: Karma (goal of casting away: ‘into darkness’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तमस् (prātipadika)

• इव: like; as if
• इव: —
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव (avyaya)

• अप: away; off
• अप: Apādāna (sense of removal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अप (avyaya; preverb/adverb)

• हन्मसि: we strike down; we slay
• हन्मसि: Kriyā (main verb); Kartā = ‘वयम्’ implied
• Type: Verb
• Root: हन् (धातु)

Attribution

Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (rakṣoghna corpus; specific anukramaṇī attribution varies).

Devata: Rakṣoghna-brahman (the demon-smiting power of the mantra); adversarial focus on Nirṛti/Rakṣas/Piśācas.

Chandas: Likely Anuṣṭubh (requires metrical confirmation).

Mantra Rasa

Primary: raudra

Secondary: vira