Atharva Veda 4.20.1: Kanda 4, Anuvaka 2, Sukta 20, Mantra 1
Sukta 20
पिशाचक्षयणम्। आ प॑श्यति॒ प्रति॑ पश्यति॒ परा॑ पश्यति॒ पश्य॑ति । दिव॑म॒न्तरि॑क्ष॒माद् भूमिं॒ सर्वं॒ तद् दे॑वि पश्यति
piśācakṣáyaṇam | ā́ paśyati práti paśyati párā paśyati páśyati | dívaṃ antárikṣam ā́d bhū́miṃ sárvaṃ tád devi paśyati
A Piśāca-destroyer is she: she looketh hither, she looketh back in answer, she looketh forth afar—she looketh. From heaven, from mid-air, down unto earth, all that is, O Goddess, she beholdeth.
Niszczycielką Piśāców jest ona: spogląda tutaj, spogląda w odpowiedzi, spogląda w dal - spogląda. Z nieba, z powietrza, aż do ziemi, wszystko, co jest, o Bogini, ogląda.
The meaning
What it says
A goddess (a deified medicinal plant) is called a ‘Piśāca-destroyer.’ She sees in all directions—near, back, far—seeing from heaven through mid-air to earth, beholding all.
The inner meaning
The healing power is framed as vigilant awareness: what harms (piśāca) thrives in darkness, secrecy, and confusion; the plant-goddess is an all-seeing diagnostic intelligence that detects and expels intrusive forces.
The truth in it
Protection begins with attention. When awareness becomes panoramic—across levels of experience—parasitic fears and obsessions lose their hiding places.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Rakṣoghna (Demon-expelling) / Bhaisajya
Its aim
To empower a plant-goddess/medicine as an omniscient detector and expeller of piśācas across the three worlds.
Word by Word
Pada patha
पि॒शा॒च॒क्ष॒य॒णम् । आ । प॒श्य॒ति॒ । प्रति॑ । प॒श्य॒ति॒ । परा॑ । प॒श्य॒ति॒ । पश्य॑ति । दिव॑म् । अ॒न्तरि॑क्षम् । आ॒त् । भूमि॑म् । सर्व॑म् । तत् । दे॒वि॒ । प॒श्य॒ति॒ ।
- आ
- towards; forth; (prefix)toward, hither (bringing sight/power into presence)Indeclinableउपसर्ग/निपात (क्रियाविशेषण)Root आ (उपसर्ग) अथवा आ (अव्यय)
- पश्यति
- he/she seesshe sees (the goddess/plant as all-seeing detector)Verbलट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRoot √पश् (दृश्-अर्थे)
- प्रति
- towards; in return; backback against, in return (counter-gaze; reflective detection)Indeclinableउपसर्ग/क्रियाविशेषणRoot प्रति (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- पश्यति
- seesshe sees (repeated: iterative scanning)Verbलट्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRoot √पश्
- परा
- away; beyond; forthaway, afar (remote perception; driving away by sight)Indeclinableउपसर्ग/क्रियाविशेषणRoot परा (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- पश्यति
- seesshe sees (extends surveillance outward)Verbलट्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRoot √पश्
- पश्यति
- seesshe sees (culminating assertion of omnivision)Verbलट्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRoot √पश्
- दिवम्
- the heaven/skyheaven (upper domain searched for afflictors)Nounस्त्रीलिङ्ग (द्यौः), द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot दिव् (प्रातिपदिक: द्यौ/दिव्)
- अन्तरिक्षम्
- the midspace/atmospheremidspace/atmosphere (intermediate domain of spirits)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot अन्तरिक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
- आत्
- then; also (Vedic particle)from, down from (range of vision from above to below)Indeclinableनिपात (छान्दस)Root आत् (अव्यय; छान्दस रूप, = अथ/अथात्/अथ वा ‘from’ अर्थे)
- भूमिम्
- the earthearth (human habitation; locus of piśāca-attack)Nounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot भूमि (प्रातिपदिक)
- सर्वम्
- all; the wholeall (totalizing scope; no hiding-place)Adjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (समस्तं ‘तत्’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)Role KarmaRoot सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
- तत्
- thatPronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- देवि
- O goddessNoun (vocative)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचनRoot देवी (प्रातिपदिक)
- पश्यति
- she seesVerbलट्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRole Kartā (अन्तर्निहितः: सा/देवी)Root √पश्
Sandhi Notes
- आ पश्यति | प्रति पश्यति | परा पश्यति | पश्यति | दिवम् अन्तरिक्षम् आत् भूमिम् सर्वम् तत् देवि पश्यति ।
- 1) ‘दिव॑म॒न्तरि॑क्ष॒म्’ = ‘दिवम् अन्तरिक्षम्’ (व्यञ्जन-सन्धि: म् + अ → म् अ)
- 2) ‘अन्तरिक्ष॒माद्’ पाठे ‘…माद्’ = ‘…म् आत्’ (छान्दस निपात ‘आत्’; दन्त्य-ध्वनि/उच्चारण-भेदेन ‘आद्’ इति दृश्यते)
- 3) ‘तद् दे॑वि’ = ‘तत् देवि’ (द् + द → त् द; पदान्त ‘तद्’ का नपुंसक द्वितीया ‘तत्’)
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Atharvanic tradition (hymn to a deified oṣadhi)
- Devata
- Devī Oṣadhi (plant-goddess) as piśāca-destroyer
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh-like cadence (prose-like repetitions within metrical frame)
- Rasa
- Bhayankara and Vira
The repeated ‘paśyati’ is construed as mantraic intensification: the plant-goddess is a vigilant sentinel that detects piśācas in every direction and sphere; ‘piśācakṣayaṇam’ is taken as the rite’s declared telos.
Unknown (Atharvanic tradition; hymn to a deified oṣadhi)
Rakṣoghna plant-charms: empowering an oṣadhi as sentient guardian and piśāca-expeller through omniscient ‘gaze’ technology.
Embodies a key Atharvan motif: the remedy is a goddess with surveillance and agency—healing as both pharmacology and spiritual security.
Devī Oṣadhi (plant-goddess), Piśāca-kṣayaṇī
Omnivoyant guardian spanning the three worlds; detects, exposes, and dissolves hostile beings/forces.
Counters possession-like afflictions, night-terrors, wasting spirits; supports clarity and calm by ‘seeing out’ the threat.
Directional warding—front/back/far; comprehensive apotropaic surveillance.
Repetitive paśyati phrases compress into metrical slots; can feel quasi-prose within an anuṣṭubh frame.
Characteristic Atharvanic ‘repetition for power’—semantic intensification over strict metrical elegance.
Hypnotic, scanning rhythm—like a watchman’s rounds.
Induces alert calm; listener feels ‘covered’ on all sides as the gaze enumerations accumulate.
Prepare the oṣadhi (fresh plant or amulet containing it); seat the patient facing east.
Recite while moving the herb in front of the patient’s eyes/head in three sweeps: toward (ā́), counter (práti), and away (párā), miming the mantra’s surveillance.
Perform a threefold circumambulation of the patient/household space, pausing at threshold and bed to ‘scan’ the quarters.
Conclude by placing/binding the herb on the patient or suspending it at the doorway to prevent re-entry of piśācas.
Kauśika Sūtra: piśāca-śānti/rakṣā rites employing AV 4.20 with herb/amulet and circumambulation (edition-dependent numbering).
Atharvan priest as exorcist: conducts directional ‘seeing’ gestures, establishes protective perimeter, and installs the herb as a continuing ward.
Place the empowered herb near the bed/door; circle the patient while reciting ‘paśyati’ lines; accompany with lamp-light to mirror ‘seeing.’
Nighttime, during episodes of fear/nightmare, at liminal hours (twilight), or when moving into a new dwelling.
Atharvan priest for formal exorcistic framing; householders can do simplified bedside protection.
KauśS: Piśāca- and rakṣas-expelling plant/amulet rites (edition-dependent)
Use as a calming ‘scanning’ mantra before sleep; combine with light, grounding, and clinical care when symptoms are severe.
oṣadhi (deified medicinal plant; unspecified here); directional ‘gaze’ as apotropaic technology
Likely: the oṣadhi can be worn/placed as a protective charm in rakṣā contexts.
The plant is a living ‘sensor’: medicine as awareness that scans the environment and the psyche, turning darkness into legibility.
Piśāca-affliction (possession, nocturnal terror, wasting, delirium, intrusive states) in Atharvan idiom.
Apotropaic omnivision: the goddess-remedy ‘spots’ and thereby weakens/expels the piśāca across realms; ritual surveillance replaces fear with certainty.
Intrusive fear/delirium aligns with manas doṣa disturbance and vāta aggravation; the mantra supports sattva (clarity) and protective routines (rakṣā).
Night terrors, sleep paralysis anxiety, paranoia/panic episodes, trauma hypervigilance reframed into protective awareness; also infection-related delirium requires medical care.
Patient/household; piśāca as hostile entity
Empower the plant-goddess as a piśāca-destroying, all-seeing protector across the three worlds.
Directional gaze enumeration (ā/prati/parā) + three-world totalization (dyu/antarikṣa/bhūmi) to leave no hiding place for the threat
Piśācas, nightmares, unseen malevolence, fear of haunting
- पिशाचक्षयणम् (piśācakṣayaṇam)
- expeller of intrusive, consuming forces (panic, obsession, parasitic illness models)
- पश्यति (paśyati)
- diagnosis, vigilance, conscious awareness as protection
- आ/प्रति/परा (ā/prati/parā)
- 360° guardianship; past-response-future vigilance
- दिवम्-अन्तरिक्षम्-भूमिम् (divam-antari kṣam-bhūmim)
- three-level totality: mind–breath/energy–body; comprehensive coverage
- देवि (devi)
- medicine as sacred intelligence, not mere matter
Panoramic awareness (open monitoring) as protection; transforming fear into clear seeing.
Ajna (clarity/seeing)
Nadi-śodhana (alternate nostril) to stabilize; then open-awareness breathing while mentally repeating ‘paśyati’.
A goddess of green light with gaze-rays sweeping 360°; shadow-forms dissolve when illuminated; three bands of light (sky-midspace-earth) align within you.
Alert, spacious, non-reactive witnessing.
Chant softly before sleep; after each cycle, relax the eyes and widen attention to sounds/sensations without labeling them as threats.
Repetitive, mantraic; keep ‘paśyati’ uniform like a drumbeat; slight lift on directional particles (ā/prati/parā).
Do not accelerate through repetitions; each ‘paśyati’ is a ‘scan.’ Pause before ‘divam antarikṣam…’ to widen the field.
Low, steady, watchful; suitable for bedside recitation.
Pair with a small lamp or steady light to embody the mantra’s technology: seeing/illumination as exorcism.
33 times
Night fears, sense of ‘presence,’ anxious hypervigilance, moving into new spaces, or feeling psychically ‘watched.’
Before sleep; during a fear episode; while securing the home at dusk.
Calmer vigilance, reduced fear, sense of comprehensive protection; traditional piśāca-expelling assurance.
If experiencing hallucinations, severe anxiety, or delirium, seek medical/mental health care promptly; ensure sleep safety and avoid self-isolation during crises.
The herb is construed as a sensor and weapon: the mantra’s repeated ‘seeing’ installs a surveillance function, turning the plant into a diagnostic-exorcistic instrument rather than a purely pharmacological agent.
It presupposes household vulnerability to non-human afflictors and the need for a specialist who can operationalize a plant as a protective device; the Atharvan’s expertise is implicitly authoritative in domestic crisis-management.
The charm-label ‘piśācakṣayaṇam’ and the iterative verb-chain are typical Atharvanic performative style, less common in RV praise-hymns; the semantics are procedural (how to act) rather than encomiastic.
Gopatha’s Atharvanic hermeneutic privileges mantra as operative speech that assigns functions (saṃjñā) and effects (karman); the explicit functional heading and the performative repetitions exemplify that theory.
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