Atharva Veda 3.13.1: Kanda 3, Anuvaka 2, Sukta 13, Mantra 1
Sukta 13
आपः। यद॒दः सं॑प्रय॒तीरहा॒वन॑दता हते॑। तस्मा॒दा न॒द्यो॒३ नाम॑ स्थ॒ ता वो॒ नामा॑नि सिन्धवः
ā́paḥ | yád adáḥ saṁprayatī́r áhāvanádatā haté | tásmād ā́ nádyo nā́ma stha tā́ vo nā́māni síndhavaḥ ||
O Waters: when yonder, flowing on together, ye roared aloud day after day at the smiting—therefore are ye called ‘Rivers’: those are your names, O Sindhus.
О Воды! Когда там, сходясь в единый поток, вы день за днём громко ревели при поражении, — потому вы и зовётесь «Реки». Таковы ваши имена, о Синдху.
The meaning
What it says
Addressing the Waters: when they flowed together yonder and roared day after day at the time of a ‘smiting,’ therefore they are called ‘Rivers’; these are their names, O Sindhus. The verse provides an etiological naming that empowers invocation.
The inner meaning
Naming is therapeutic: to call a force by its true name is to relate to it correctly. The ‘roaring at the smiting’ encodes the psyche’s capacity to mobilize cleansing power in response to injury/threat. Rivers are the mind’s moving currents—when allowed to flow together, they can carry away stagnation and trauma residues.
The truth in it
Origins and names matter: understanding a power’s story and true designation is itself an activation—knowledge becomes efficacy.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Bhaisajya (Purificatory/Healing Waters) with Cosmological-Etiological framing
Its aim
To invoke the Waters/Rivers by their mythic origin and true ‘names,’ thereby activating their purificatory and healing efficacy in subsequent rites (sprinkling, bathing, ingestion).
Word by Word
Pada patha
आपः । यत् । अ॒दः । सं॒प्र॒य॒तीः । अ॒हा॒व॒न॑दताः । ह॒ते । तस्मा॑त् । आ । न॒द्यः॑ । नाम॑ । स्थ॒ । ताः । वः॒ । नामा॑नि । सि॒न्ध॒वः
- आपः
- watersO Waters; deified waters as purifiers and healersNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot अप् (प्रातिपदिक) / आपस्-
- यत्
- that whichwhen/that which; introducing the mythic-etymic explanationPronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया; एकवचनRole कर्मRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- अदः
- that (yonder)that (yonder); the primordial/remote eventPronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया; एकवचनRole विशेषण/सम्बन्धRoot अदस् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- सम्
- together, completelyIndeclinableउपसर्ग (क्रियाविशेषक)Root सम् (उपसर्ग)
- प्रयतीः
- going forth, flowing onwardAdjective (participle)स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot प्र-√या (धातु) → प्रयती- (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; वर्तमानकाले शतृ/शानच्-प्रायः ‘going forth’)
- अहावनदता
- resounding in the daytimeAdjective (participle/compound)स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot अहा-वनदत् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; ‘day-resounding/roaring by day’)
- हते
- when struck / having been struckwhen smitten/struck; at the striking (mythic impetus causing flow/sound)Verb/Participle (contextual)(कृदन्ते) नपुंसक/पुं; सप्तमी/लोके—; (तिङन्ते) लुङ्; 3पुरुष; एकवचन; आत्मनेपदRole अधिकरण (if ‘when/where struck’) / कर्म-भावRoot √हन् (धातु) → हत (कृदन्त) / अथवा √हन् लुङ्-आत्मनेपद 3एक ‘was struck’
- तस्मात्
- from that, thereforetherefore, from that; causal inferencePronounपुं/नपुंसक; पञ्चमी; एकवचनRole अपादानRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- नद्यः
- riversrivers; flowing waters as named entitiesNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot नदी (प्रातिपदिक)
- नाम
- (as) a name; ‘by the name’name; designation (etiological naming)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया; एकवचन (अव्ययीभाववत् ‘as name’)Role कर्म/प्रकारRoot नामन् (प्रातिपदिक)
- स्थ
- be / stand (you are called)you are/you became; 2nd pl. ‘ye are called’Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ); मध्यमपुरुष; बहुवचन; परस्मैपदRole विधेय-क्रियाRoot √अस् (धातु) → स्थ (लोट्/आज्ञार्थे 2पुरुष बहुवचन; वैदिक)
- ताः
- those (f.)those; those waters/riversPronounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- वः
- of you / to youyour; of you (O rivers)Pronounषष्ठी/चतुर्थी; बहुवचन (enclitic)Role सम्प्रदान/सम्बन्धRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- नामानि
- namesnames; the individual appellationsNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया; बहुवचनRole कर्मRoot नामन् (प्रातिपदिक)
- सिन्धवः
- O Sindhus / O rivers (Sindhu-waters)O Sindhus (rivers/streams); collective address to river-deitiesNounपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole सम्बोधन/कर्तृRoot सिन्धु (प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- आपः | यत् अदः | सम्-प्रयतीः | अहा-वनदताः | हते | तस्मात् | नद्यः | नाम | स्थ | ताः | वः | नामानि | सिन्धवः ।
- 1) यद॒दः = यत् + अदः (त् + अ → द्/दः-प्रवृत्ति; वैदिक संधि-लेखन)
- 2) सं॑प्रय॒तीः = सम् + प्रयतीः (उपसर्ग-समास/संधि)
- 3) तस्मा॒दा = तस्मात् + (अ) (त् + अ → द्; वैदिक)
- 4) न॒द्यो॒३ = नद्यः (विसर्ग-लोप/ओ-लेखन in पदपाठ-परम्परा)
- 5) ता = ताः (विसर्ग-लोप)
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Atharvanic water-hymn tradition (anukramaṇī attribution varies)
- Devata
- Āpas / Sindhavaḥ (Waters/Rivers)
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh (with etiological narrative phrasing)
- Rasa
- Adbhuta and Shanta
Sāyaṇa treats the verse as an etiological praise of the Waters: their ‘roaring’ upon being ‘struck’ (hata) explains the designation ‘nadyaḥ’ (from the root nad-, ‘to sound/roar’). The mantra thus sacralizes river-noise as a sign of living potency; naming is itself a mode of ritual control and invocation.
Anukramaṇī attribution varies (water-hymn tradition)
Āpas-invocation for purification, bathing, sprinkling, and medicinal water rites; etiological ‘naming’ as activation technique.
Demonstrates Atharvan philological magic: the ‘true name’ (nāman) is a lever of power; mythic memory becomes ritual efficacy.
Āpas / Sindhavaḥ (Waters/Rivers)
Waters are primordial purifiers and conveyors; as rivers they are ordered, named channels that carry away impurity and sustain life.
Purificatory and restorative—washing, dilution of toxins, cooling fevers (general Atharvan water logic).
Cleansing-based protection: removing pollution/inauspicious residues that attract harm.
4 pādas of ~8 syllables; narrative/etiological style within tight meter.
Anuṣṭubh used for ‘explanatory’ charm logic—why a name works—compressing myth into a functional spell.
Story-like, flowing cadence; sonic mimicry in ‘roaring’ phrasing.
Elicits the felt presence of moving water; naming at the end produces a ‘seal’ of recognition.
Collect water (preferably flowing) in a clean vessel; face toward the water-source.
Recite the mantra to ‘name’ and awaken the waters’ potency through etymic praise.
Use the invoked water for sprinkling (prokṣaṇa) on patient/household, or for washing/bathing as prescribed by the larger rite.
Optionally repeat while pouring, aligning the audible ‘roar’ (nad-) with the water’s movement.
Kauśika Sūtra: āpaḥ-prayoga (water rites) used in purification, healing, and protection; specific sūtra numbering varies by edition.
Atharvan priest performs the invocation over collected water, ensuring correct address (āpaḥ/sindhavaḥ) and deploying it in the subsequent purificatory action.
Recite over collected water before bathing, sprinkling rooms, washing ritual implements, or preparing medicinal water.
Before sunrise bath; before/after rites involving impurity removal; after funerary contact or illness-care.
Householder or ritual specialist; emphasis on correct recitation of names.
Mindful bathing/handwashing with short recitation; keep a dedicated water vessel for ritual sprinkling.
waters/rivers (āpas/nadyaḥ/sindhavaḥ)
āpaḥ/nadyaḥ/sindhavaḥ explicitly
Rivers are ‘named flow’—not random water but ordered, story-bearing potency. The roar signifies cleansing force that responds to harm and carries it away.
General impurity/pollution; preparatory to many healing acts rather than a single named disease.
Onomastic activation: invoking waters by origin-story and correct names to empower subsequent sprinkling/bathing/ingestion.
Water as śodhana support and pitta-cooling; also as anupāna (carrier) conceptually, though here primarily ritual.
Hydrotherapy/cleansing routines; the psychological effect of ritual framing and mindful washing.
Waters used in rite; secondarily the person/space to be purified.
Activate the purificatory efficacy of waters by recalling their mythic ‘roaring’ origin and naming them as rivers/Sindhus.
Etymological/etiological charm: ‘because X happened, you are called Y’—a classic Atharvan strategy to compel function through name-power.
Pollution (aśauca), inauspicious residue, unseen harms that cling to persons/places.
Health and domestic well-being through cleanliness and auspicious flow.
- āpaḥ
- purifying intelligence; life-flow; emotional and physiological cleansing
- saṃprayatīḥ
- integration of scattered energies; coordinated healing response
- ahāvanadatāḥ
- persistent life-force; continual cleansing action
- hate
- crisis that triggers purification; contact with harm/impurity
- nadyaḥ
- channels of release and renewal; pathways of prāṇa
- sindhavaḥ
- mighty collective waters; the ‘great currents’ of healing
Let attention become ‘river-like’: continuous, cleansing, non-clinging; contemplate the power of naming (nāma) to shape experience.
svadhisthana
slow_meditative
Visualize converging streams washing through the body’s channels (nāḍīs), carrying away heaviness; silently repeat ‘āpaḥ… nadyaḥ… sindhavaḥ’.
Flowing, receptive awareness with gentle alertness.
Use as a pre-practice purifier: recite, then perform a brief water offering/splash to face and crown, then sit.
Keep clear udātta on ā́paḥ and nā́ma; allow the narrative middle to flow, then ‘land’ firmly on nadyo nāma stha.
Mark the caesura after āpaḥ; articulate the etiological hinge tasmād.
Fluid, resonant, slightly ‘watery’ timbre; avoid percussive attack.
Best paired with actual water contact (touching vessel, sprinkling) immediately after naming—name then act.
3 times
Need for purification before prayer/medicine; after stressful events; before entering a sickroom; after travel.
Over bathing water, drinking water (if ritually appropriate), or a sprinkling bowl; especially at daybreak.
Greater sense of clarity, cleanliness, and readiness for healing/protective work.
Use clean potable water for ingestion; ritual water should not substitute for hygiene/sanitation.
No plant is invoked; the ‘medicine’ is water itself. The mantra’s etymological naming (nad- ‘to roar’) functions as a verbal activation of the waters’ inherent healing/purifying agency.
It encodes a priestly epistemology: knowing the ‘true’ derivation and names of powers (waters/rivers) is a form of mastery. Such philological-theological knowledge underwrites ritual authority in domestic and medical contexts.
The verse foregrounds nirukta-like etymologizing (nadyaḥ from nad-), a style that becomes increasingly explicit in later Vedic discourse. While RV also plays with roots, the Atharvanic charm-context makes the etymology directly instrumental.
Gopatha’s Atharvanic hermeneutic often treats naming and etymology as efficacy-generating: to speak the correct designation is to align with the power’s essence. Thus, the ‘nadyaḥ’ explanation is not mere lore but a ritual key for water’s purificatory deployment.
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