Atharva Veda 6.122.3: Kanda 6, Anuvaka 13, Sukta 122, Mantra 3
Sukta 122
अ॒न्वार॑भेथामनु॒संर॑भेथामे॒तं लो॒कं श्र॒द्दधा॑नाः सचन्ते । यद् वां॑ प॒क्वं परि॑विष्टम॒ग्नौ तस्य॒ गुप्त॑ये दम्पती॒ सं श्र॑येथाम्
anvā́rabhēthām anusáṃrabhēthām etáṃ lókaṃ śraddádhānāḥ sacante | yád vāṃ pakváṃ pári-viṣṭam agnáu tásya gúptaye dampatī́ sáṃ śrayēthām
Take hold thereafter, take hold together: with faith they cleave unto this world. What cooked oblation of you twain is laid within the fire—for its safe-keeping, O wedded pair, together do ye resort.
ఆపై పట్టుకోండి, కలిసి పట్టుకోండి; శ్రద్ధగలవారు ఈ లోకంతో అనుసంధానమవుతారు. మీ ఇద్దరిది అయిన పక్వ హవి అగ్నిలో పరివేశించబడినదేదో—దాని రక్షణకై, ఓ దంపతులారా, మీరు ఇద్దరూ కలిసి ఆశ్రయించండి.
The meaning
What it says
Husband and wife are instructed to ‘take hold’ (anvārabh-, anu-saṃrabh-)—to unite and proceed with faith toward the destined loka. Their cooked offering placed in Agni is to be guarded; as a wedded pair (dampatī), they should resort together for its protection.
The inner meaning
Marital unity is framed as a single ritual agency: shared intention and trust (śraddhā) protect the fruits of action. The ‘cooked offering’ symbolizes mature, digested life-experience; guarding it means safeguarding shared values from dissipation.
The truth in it
Shared commitments become durable when consciously held together; faith plus coordinated action preserves long-term outcomes better than solitary striving.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Gṛhya-Paustika (Domestic prosperity/afterlife continuity for the household)
Its aim
Secure and ‘protect’ the merit of a joint husband-wife offering, ensuring attachment to the desired loka
Word by Word
Pada patha
अ॒न्वा॒र॑भेथाम् । अनु॒-सम्-र॑भेथाम् । ए॒तम् । लो॒कम् । श्र॒द्दधा॑नाः । सचन्ते । यत् । वाम् । प॒क्वम् । परि॑-विष्टम् । अ॒ग्नौ । तस्य॑ । गुप्त॑ये । दम्पती॑ । सम् । श्र॑येथाम्
- अन्वारभेथाम्
- (you two) should take hold of / undertake (it)take hold after/along; grasp in sequence (dual impv.; ritual ‘seizing’)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुष, द्विवचन, परस्मैपदम्Role वाक्ये क्रियाRoot अनु-आ-√रभ् (रभँ) / रभ्
- अनु
- after, along; in sequenceIndeclinableउपसर्ग/अव्ययRoot अनु
- संरभेथाम्
- (you two) should grasp/embrace togetherVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुष, द्विवचन, परस्मैपदम्Role वाक्ये क्रियाRoot सम्-√रभ् (रभँ) / रभ्
- एतम्
- thisPronoun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्मRoot एतद्
- लोकम्
- world; realmworld/realm (here: the attained loka)Nounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्मRoot लोक
- श्रद्दधानाः
- having faith; believinghaving faith, trusting (ritual confidence as enabling condition)Adjective/Participleवर्तमानकृदन्त (शतृ/शानच्-प्रकार), प्रथमा, बहुवचन, पुंलिङ्गRole कर्तृRoot श्रद्-√धा (धा) → श्रद्दध (वर्तमान-प्रत्यय) / प्रातिपदिक: श्रद्दधान
- सचन्ते
- they associate/attach themselves; they followthey attach themselves, join, follow (adhere to the loka/path)Verbलट्, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन, आत्मनेपदम्Role वाक्ये क्रियाRoot √सच् (सचँ) / सच्
- यत्
- that whichwhat/that which (relative clause introducing offering)Pronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (सम्बन्धवाचक)Role कर्म (अन्तर्भूतं) / सम्बन्धRoot यद्
- वाम्
- of you twoPronounषष्ठी (सम्बन्ध), द्विवचनRole सम्बन्धRoot युष्मद्
- पक्वम्
- cooked; ripenedcooked, ripened (cooked oblation/food offering)Adjective/Participleभूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्म (यत्-सम्बद्धम्)Root √पच् (पचँ) → पक्व (क्त) / प्रातिपदिक: पक्व
- परिविष्टम्
- served; set out (as food)placed around/put in, deposited (set into the fire)Adjective/Participleभूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्म (यत्-सम्बद्धम्)Root परि-√विश् (विशँ) → परिविष्ट (क्त) / प्रातिपदिक: परिविष्ट
- अग्नौ
- in the fireNounपुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचनRole अधिकरणRoot अग्नि
- तस्य
- of thatPronounषष्ठी, एकवचन, नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्गRole सम्बन्धRoot तद्
- गुप्तये
- for protection; for safeguardingfor guarding, protection, safekeeping (ensure it is not ‘lost’)Noun (action noun)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी, एकवचनRole सम्प्रदान (प्रयोजन)Root √गुप् (गुपँ) → गुप्ति (क्तिन्) / प्रातिपदिक: गुप्ति
- दम्पती
- the married couple (husband and wife)the wedded pair, husband and wife (domestic ritual unit)Noun (dual)पुंलिङ्ग (युगलवाचक), प्रथमा, द्विवचनRole कर्तृRoot दम्पति (दम्+पति) / प्रातिपदिक: दम्पति
- सम्
- together; completelytogether (conjoint action and conjoint fruit)Indeclinableउपसर्ग/अव्ययRoot सम्
- श्रयेथाम्
- (you two) should resort to / take refuge in; should lean ontake refuge/lean upon; resort to (dual impv.; secure the merit)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुष, द्विवचन, आत्मनेपदम्Role वाक्ये क्रियाRoot √श्रि (श्रिञ्) / श्रि
Sandhi Notes
- अन्वारभेथाम् = अनु + आ + रभेथाम् (उपसर्ग-संयोगे ‘अनु’ + ‘आ’ → ‘अन्वा’)
- अनुसंरभेथाम् = अनु + सं + रभेथाम् (अनु + सं → अनुसं)
- यद् वां = यत् + वाम् (द्/त्-सन्धिः)
- तस्य गुप्तये (सन्धिः न विशेषः)
- दम्पती सं श्रयेथाम् = दम्पती + सम् + श्रयेथाम् (सम् → सं ‘श्’ परे अनुस्वारः)
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Atharvanic tradition
- Devata
- Agni; the attained Loka as goal-state
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh-like (requires full hymn scansion)
- Rasa
- Shanta and Shringara
Sāyaṇa reads the dual imperatives as addressed to the married couple as a single ritual corporation (dampatī). Their jointly offered ‘pakva’ (cooked offering) placed in Agni must be ‘guarded’—i.e., secured from ritual failure and from being cut off—by continued adherence (śraddhā, saṃ-śraya) to the rite and its observances. The verse underscores domestic sacrifice as the mechanism of loka-attainment.
Gṛhya-paustika theology: securing household merit through joint rite; Agni-centered domestic continuity.
Encodes the Atharvan view that domestic harmony and correct joint performance are themselves apotropaic—protecting the ‘stored’ results of offerings.
Agni (as guardian of the offering) / Loka as goal-state
Agni receives, transforms, and preserves offerings; he mediates between household and cosmic realm, ensuring the offering’s efficacy and safe transmission.
Guards the cooked oblation and its merit from loss, impurity, or ritual error; protects household unity as a ritual instrument.
Likely 4 pādas of ~11 syllables; imperative-heavy openings create a strong initial beat.
Atharvanic domestic verses often foreground ritual verbs; metrical regularity can yield to clarity of instruction.
Directive and binding—two paired imperatives set a ‘knotting’ rhythm mirroring marital joining.
Creates a ritual ‘clasp’—psychologically unifies participants and seals the offering.
Husband and wife sit together at the domestic fire; prepare a cooked offering (odana/puroḍāśa-like).
At ‘pakvaṃ pari-viṣṭam agnau’, the couple jointly places the offering into the fire (hands coordinated).
On the dual imperatives, the priest instructs them to touch/hold a shared implement (ladle or a cord), symbolizing ‘taking hold together’.
A brief silent observance follows (guarding the merit), then a concluding oblation or water-sprinkling seals the act.
Kauśika Sūtra: dampatī-samyāja / household joint-offering contexts (exact sūtra number requires mapping)
Atharvan priest as domestic liturgist: cues synchronized dual actions, ensures correct joint performance (a key condition for ‘gupteye’).
Recited during joint offerings at the domestic fire—especially rites emphasizing couple-unity (household prosperity, continuity, memorial offerings).
At the moment of placing a cooked offering into Agni; or when the couple physically joins hands/stands together near the hearth.
If officiated, the Atharvan priest cues synchronized gestures (hand-clasp, approach to fire) and recitation.
Use as a couple’s ‘hearth vow’ before shared meals/offerings; can be adapted as a blessing before a joint charitable act.
pakva (cooked offering); Agni (fire)
Agni as the protective container of the cooked offering.
Cooking signifies transformation from raw potential to ritually ‘fit’ substance; placing it in fire entrusts it to a cosmic guardian. The couple’s togetherness is the ‘seal’ on that deposit.
Couples’ co-regulation and shared meaning-making; protective effect of coordinated routines on stress and household stability.
Married couple/household.
Secure the merit and continuity of a joint husband-wife offering; bind the pair to the desired loka through śraddhā and coordinated grasping.
Binding by synchronized action-words (paired imperatives) + containment motif (gupti) locating the offering within Agni as a protected repository.
Loss of merit through discord, negligence, impurity, or ritual discontinuity.
Household stability, post-mortem continuity, protected ritual fruits.
- अन्वारभेथाम् (anvārabhēthām)
- continue the path; hold the thread of practice after the rite begins
- अनु-सम्-रभेथाम् (anu-saṃrabhēthām)
- marital synchronization; unified agency
- श्रद्दधा (śraddhā)
- the stabilizer that prevents merit from ‘leaking’
- लोक (loka)
- a chosen life-state/afterlife destination
- पक्व (pakva)
- matured offering/earned merit; ‘processed’ life-force
- अग्नि (agni)
- transformer and guardian; the cosmic vault for offerings
- गुप्ति (gupti/guptaye)
- ritual security; containment of spiritual capital
- दम्पती (dampatī)
- the household as a single sacred organism
Union of intentions: ‘together we hold the fruit of our actions.’
anahata (heart)
Partnered slow breathing (inhale together, exhale together) for 7–11 cycles before recitation.
Visualize a warm fire at the heart; place a ‘cooked’ golden seed into it; see it protected by a ring of light shared by both partners.
Grounded household-centered awareness; śraddhā as calm certainty.
After recitation, perform one small coordinated act (cleaning the hearth/kitchen, sharing food, mutual gratitude) to embody ‘saṃrabh-’ (joint grasp).
Follow Śaunakīya accenting; imperatives carry clear udātta lifts where marked (anvārabhēthām, saṃrabhēthām).
Mark the paired verbs with slightly stronger stress; keep ‘śraddadhānāḥ’ flowing without breaking consonant clusters.
Warm, harmonizing; ideally recited by both partners together.
Gesture-matching strengthens efficacy: hand-clasp or synchronized touch to symbolize ‘taking hold together’.
Couple seeking stability, shared prosperity, or protection of joint efforts (home, finances, caregiving).
Before a shared offering/meal-prayer; at anniversaries; during household transitions (moving house, new venture).
Reinforces unity and trust; frames joint work as protected and meaningful.
If relationship conflict is acute, avoid using the mantra as coercion; pair with practical reconciliation steps.
The operative material is food (cooked offering), not medicine. The mantra’s ‘guarding’ function treats the offering as a vulnerable asset whose efficacy depends on correct handling and continued observance.
It foregrounds the married household as a sanctioned ritual unit (dampatī), implying normative social organization. The priestly role remains supervisory, but the couple’s joint agency is essential for the rite’s success.
The explicit dual address to dampatī in a domestic-ritual frame is more gṛhya-coded than typical RV praise-hymns. The verb cluster with anu-/sam- prefixes intensifies procedural sequencing, aligning with Atharvanic ritual pragmatics.
Gopatha would explain ‘gupteye’ via bandhu: properly offered food in Agni is ‘stored’ as merit; joint performance prevents ‘cutting’ of the result. Faith (śraddhā) is treated as the internal correlate of external correctness.
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