Atharva Veda 3.18.6: Kanda 3, Anuvaka 2, Sukta 18, Mantra 6
Sukta 18
अ॒भि ते॑ऽधां॒ सह॑माना॒मुप॑ तेऽधां॒ सही॑यसीम्। मामनु॒ प्र ते॒ मनो॑ व॒त्सं गौरि॑व धावतु प॒था वारि॑व धावतु
abhí te ’dhāṃ sáhamānām úpa te ’dhāṃ sáhīyasīm | mām ánu prá te máno vatsáṃ gáur iva dhāvatu pathā́ vā́r iva dhāvatu
Against thee I set an overpowering power; upon thee I set a power yet stronger. Let thy mind run forth after me, as a cow to her calf; let it run along its path, as water runs.
ข้าพเจ้าตั้งอำนาจอันครอบงำไว้ต่อท่าน; ข้าพเจ้าวางอำนาจที่ยิ่งแข็งแรงกว่านั้นลงเหนือท่าน. ขอให้จิตของท่านแล่นออกตามข้าพเจ้าไป ดุจแม่โควิ่งหาลูกวัว; ขอให้มันแล่นไปตามทางของมัน ดุจสายน้ำไหลไป
Rishi: Atharvanic household tradition (as transmitted with AV 3.18)
Devata: Manas (mind) as the manipulable target; Sahas as coercive force
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (probable)
Primary: raudra
Secondary: shringara
Sāyaṇa glosses ‘adhām’ as a deliberate superimposition (ādhāna) of sahas upon the rival, to weaken her hold. The second hemistich is an ākarṣaṇa (attraction) formula: the husband’s manas is compelled to follow the client with the inevitability of bovine maternal pursuit and the natural, unstoppable flow of water.
To redirect the husband/lover’s affection (manas) toward the client and away from the rival co-wife.
Manas as a subtle faculty; water imagery aligns with ‘flow’ regulation (vāta/pitta metaphors) but not a direct medical charm.
Attention redirection and attachment cues resemble behavioral conditioning; ethically, parallels persuasion/relationship repair techniques when consensual.
stri_karman
The addressed person (often husband/lover) and specifically their manas
Compel the target’s mind/affection to pursue the speaker and detach from rival influence; enforce attraction and dominance.
Layered imposition (two strengths) + simile-magic (maternal attachment; water-course inevitability) + direct mind-command.
Rival’s influence, abandonment, loss of affection
The speaker sets an overpowering power against/over the addressed person, then an even stronger one upon them. The target’s mind is commanded to run after the speaker like a cow to her calf, and like water running along its course.
A classic Atharvanic attraction/compulsion technique: it combines domination (placing ‘sahas’) with irresistible natural analogies (maternal bond; gravity of water). The mind (manas) is treated as a movable substance that can be redirected by verbal force.
Attention follows deep patterns: attachment (cow/calf) and momentum (water). Speech and imagery can re-route attention—ethically used, this is persuasion; unethically, coercion.
- अभि/उप (abhi/upa)
- two-stage ‘pressing’ of force: confront then overlay
- सहमानाम् (sahamānām)
- dominating efficacy; force that makes the other yield
- सहीयसीम् (sahīyasīm)
- escalation of compulsion; tightening the bind
- मनः (manaḥ)
- attention/affection as a controllable current
- वत्सं गौरिव (vatsaṃ gaur iva)
- instinctive attachment; inevitable return
- पथा वारिव (pathā vār iva)
- unstoppable flow; channeling rather than forcing
Redirect the ‘runaway mind’ back to the chosen anchor (self, breath, dharma) using the water-course metaphor.
anahata
Whispered exhale-recitation while visualizing mind flowing into the heart-center like water into a channel.
Mind as water returning to its riverbed; calf returning to the mother—used inwardly for self-regulation.
One-pointedness achieved by channeling rather than suppression.
For ethical practice, aim the command at your own attention: ‘let my mind run along its path to steadiness.’ Pair with a clear boundary vow before recitation.
Start with clipped, forceful phrasing in the first half; let the similes lengthen slightly to create ‘pull’.
Emphasize the two-step: abhí te ’dhām … úpa te ’dhām …; then soften into the similes to ‘carry’ the mind.
adhām: clear dh aspiration, sahīyasīm: long ī, nasalized m at end, gaur iva: keep au diphthong, vār iva: long ā, light v
Focused, slightly whispered at the similes for hypnotic effect.
In Atharvanic logic, similes are not decorative—they are the ‘proof’ that compulsion is natural. Treat them as the operative core.
21
Traditional: marital rivalry/attraction. Modern ethical reframing: reclaiming one’s own scattered attention or repairing a bond only with consent.
For self-directed use: when mind is compulsively drawn to distraction; before difficult conversations to anchor intention.
Greater focus and emotional steadiness; if used consensually in relationship work, can support reconnection rituals.
Do not use to coerce another person’s will. If jealousy/obsession is intense, seek professional support.
पाठ-समाधान (Vedic sandhi resolution): ते॑ऽधाम् = ते + अधाम् (अवग्रहः). उप॑ तेऽधाम् = उप + ते + अधाम् (अवग्रहः). गौरि॑व = गौर् + इव (र् + इ → रि). वारि॑व = वारि + इव. अन्यत्र संधि-परिवर्तन विशेषं न।
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