Atharva Veda 6.87.2: Kanda 6, Anuvaka 9, Sukta 87, Mantra 2
Sukta 87
इ॒हैवैधि॒ माप॑ च्योष्ठाः॒ पर्व॑त इ॒वावि॑चाचलत्। इन्द्र॑ इवे॒ह ध्रु॒वस्ति॑ष्ठे॒ह रा॒ष्ट्रमु॑ धारय
iháivédhi mā́pa cyóṣṭhāḥ párvata ivā́vicācalat | índra ivehá dhruvás tiṣṭhehá rāṣṭrám úd dhāraya
Here, even here, do thou prosper; slip not away. Like a mountain, unshaken: like Indra, stand thou firm here, and here uphold the kingdom.
ณ ที่นี่เอง ณ ที่นี่เอง ขอท่านจงรุ่งเรือง; อย่าลื่นไถลจากไป. มั่นคงดุจภูผาไม่หวั่นไหว; ดุจอินทรา จงยืนหยัดมั่นคง ณ ที่นี่ และ ณ ที่นี่จงค้ำจุนราชอาณาจักร (rāṣṭra).
The meaning
What it says
The performer addresses a ruler (or oneself in a royal role): “Prosper here; do not slip away. Be unshaken like a mountain. Stand firm like Indra and uphold the realm.”
The inner meaning
A psychological installation of steadiness: resist inner “slipping” (fear, doubt, indecision), become immovable in purpose, and hold one’s responsibilities without wavering.
The truth in it
Stability is not mere inertia but a consciously upheld order: when the center holds (mind/leader), the collective field (family/community/realm) coheres.
What it is for
- Kind of hymn
- Paustika (Prosperity/Political stability)
Its aim
To prevent the king’s displacement and to ensure firm, Indra-like maintenance of the realm.
Word by Word
Pada patha
इह । एव । एधि । मा । अप । च्योष्ठाः । पर्वतः । इव । अवि-चाचलत् । इन्द्रः । इव । इह । ध्रुवः । तिष्ठ । इह । राष्ट्रम् । उत् । धारय ।
- इह
- hereIndeclinableस्थानवाचक-अव्ययRole AdhikaraṇaRoot इह (अव्यय)
- एव
- indeed, justindeed, just so (emphatic fixation)Indeclinableनिश्चय/अवधारण-अव्ययRoot एव (अव्यय)
- एधि
- grow, thrive (become strong)thrive, prosper; be strong (injunction of increase and vigor)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यम-पुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRoot इध् (धातु) / एध् (वृद्धौ/वर्धने)
- मा
- do notnot; do not (prohibition)Indeclinableनिषेध (prohibitive particle), लोट्/विधिलिङ् के साथRoot मा (निषेध-अव्यय)
- अप
- away, offIndeclinableउपसर्ग (away/off)Root अप (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- च्योष्ठाः
- (do not) slip/move away; do not waverthou shouldst slip/move away (from √cyu: to fall, swerve; political ‘slipping’)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यम-पुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद; नकार ‘मा’ के साथ निषेधाज्ञाRoot च्युत्/च्यु (धातु: च्यवने) + स्था (धातु: तिष्ठति) → च्यव्-स्था (प्रयोग: ‘च्यव्’/‘च्युत्’ अर्थे ‘डगमगाना/हटना’)
- पर्वतः
- a mountainmountain (paradigm of immovability)Nounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole KartāRoot पर्वत (प्रातिपदिक)
- इव
- like, asIndeclinableउपमानवाचक-अव्ययRoot इव (अव्यय)
- अविचाचलत्
- did not shake/moveunshakingly, without trembling (steadfastness)Verbलङ् (अनद्यतन-भूत), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद; ‘अ-’ नकारार्थ: ‘न चाचलत्’Root चल् (धातु: चलने) + उपसर्ग वि + (अ) (नञ्/नकारार्थ) ; वैदिक-रूप: वि-चाचलत् (चालने का पुनरुक्त/आवृत्ति-आधारित रूप)
- इन्द्रः
- IndraNounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole KartāRoot इन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- इव
- likeIndeclinableउपमानवाचक-अव्ययRoot इव (अव्यय)
- इह
- hereIndeclinableस्थानवाचक-अव्ययRole AdhikaraṇaRoot इह (अव्यय)
- ध्रुवः
- firm, fixedAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (विशेषण)Role KartāRoot ध्रुव (प्रातिपदिक)
- तिष्ठ
- stand, remainstand (command to remain established)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यम-पुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRoot स्था (धातु: तिष्ठति)
- इह
- hereIndeclinableस्थानवाचक-अव्ययRole AdhikaraṇaRoot इह (अव्यय)
- राष्ट्रम्
- kingdom, realmkingdom/realm (the polity to be upheld)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot राष्ट्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- उ
- indeed, verilyIndeclinableपादपूरक/अनुनासिक-निपात (emphatic particle)Root उ (अव्यय)
- धारय
- hold, support, maintainVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यम-पुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRoot धृ (धातु: धारणे)
Sandhi Notes
- इह + एव + एधि
- मा + अप + च्योष्ठाः
- पर्वतः + इव + अविचाचलत्
- इन्द्रः + इव + इह
- ध्रुवः + तिष्ठ
- इह + राष्ट्रम् + उ + धारय. ‘इहैव’ = इह+एव
- ‘माप’ = मा+अप
- ‘इवावि…’ = इव+अवि…
- ‘इवेह’ = इव+इह
- ‘ध्रुवस्तिष्ठेह’ = ध्रुवः+तिष्ठ+इह
- ‘राष्ट्रमु’ = राष्ट्रम्+उ. ‘अविचाचलत्’ वैदिक-रूप है: वि-चाचलत् (चल् का पुनरुक्त-आधारित भूत) के साथ ‘अ-’ नकारार्थ (न चाचलत्) समझा जाता है।
Seer, deity and metre
- Rishi
- Atharvanic/Angirasa tradition (not specified in excerpt)
- Devata
- Indra (as royal exemplar) / Rāṣṭra
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh (probable)
- Rasa
- Vira and Shanta
Sāyaṇa reads the repeated ‘iha’ as deliberate fixation: the king is nailed to place and office. ‘mā ap cyoṣṭhāḥ’ wards off displacement (exile, defeat, loss of seat). The mountain simile supplies the dhruva-quality; ‘Indra iva’ confers the paradigmatic royal power of sustaining the world/people.
Unknown (Atharvanic/Āṅgirasa transmission; royal-stability charm)
Paustika rājakarman: enthronement/steadfastness formulas; political stabilization through mantraic injunction.
Represents Atharvanic sacral kingship: the king is “installed” as a cosmic support by speech that binds place, person, and polity.
Indra (as royal exemplar) with Rāṣṭra as the maintained order
Indra embodies victorious sovereignty and the capacity to ‘hold’ the social world against displacement; Rāṣṭra is the collective field of order and prosperity.
Protection against displacement, political instability, loss of position, and centrifugal forces within the realm/household.
4 pādas × ~8 syllables (with Atharvanic flexibility; injunctional cadence)
Mantric prose-like compression in pāda 1; emphatic deictic repetition (iha…iha) typical of charms.
Hammering, stabilizing beat—repetition creates ‘nailing down’ effect.
Produces a sense of being fixed in place; suitable for enthronement/seat-fixing recitation.
The king is stationed at a fixed point (seat, threshold, or marked spot).
The priest recites with emphatic deictics (‘iha’) while making a steadying gesture (pressing down, holding the seat, or touching the king’s feet).
The mountain simile is enacted by requiring stillness; the Indra simile by giving a staff/insignia or having the king grasp a support.
The final command ‘uphold the realm’ may be accompanied by lifting/raising a token (banner, staff) to signify ‘ud-dhāraṇa’.
Kauśika Sūtra: dhruva-sthāpana for king/realm (general placement; exact sūtra numbering varies by edition)
Atharvan as ‘stabilization engineer’: he fixes the king to place and office through speech plus embodied stillness.
Recite for ‘seat-fixing’—new job, assuming office, moving into a house; spoken over the threshold/seat.
At installation (first sitting), dawn or before public assembly.
Atharvan priest (or household officiant) recites while the subject sits facing east; community witnesses.
KauśS (general rājakarman/paustika usage for stability; exact sūtra varies by edition)
Use as a grounding affirmation before leadership decisions; pair with steady breathing.
No material pharmaka are named; the charm works by ‘verbal fastening’—speech as a peg fixing the subject to place and role.
Stress-resilience/grounding practice for leadership anxiety and fear of loss (non-clinical parallel).
King/leader (or household head)
Prevent displacement; install immovability and continuous prosperity; uphold the rāṣṭra.
Deictic fixation (‘here’), simile-binding (mountain/Indra), and performative command (edhi, tiṣṭha, dhāraya).
Coup, exile, loss of office, wavering allegiance, inner collapse of resolve
Kingship, governance, social cohesion, territorial stability
- इह (iha)
- presence, non-escapism, grounding in one’s station and duty
- एधि (edhi)
- increase of vitality, authority, and auspiciousness
- मा अप च्योष्ठाः (mā apa cyoṣṭhāḥ)
- do not lose footing—social legitimacy, mental composure, or territorial hold
- पर्वत (parvata)
- immovability, axis-like stability, unassailable support
- अवि-चाचलत् (avi-cācalat)
- unperturbed mind; political non-displacement
- इन्द्र (indra)
- sovereign force, victorious will, protector of order
- ध्रुव (dhruva)
- the “pole” of stability—constancy in rule and resolve
- राष्ट्र (rāṣṭra)
- the integrated body of people, land, law, and fortune
Dhruvatā (steadfastness): ‘I remain here—unshaken—upholding my field of duty.’
Muladhara (grounding)
Slow nasal breathing with longer exhale (e.g., 4–6 count) while repeating iha…iha.
Visualize a mountain at the base of the spine; the breath ‘roots’ into earth while the mind holds a clear boundary.
Stable, centered, non-reactive attention.
Chant seated with an upright spine; after chanting, sit silently 2–3 minutes to ‘seal’ the fixation.
Simple Atharvanic recitation; keep deictics (इह) slightly emphasized; avoid melodic ornament.
Stress imperatives: एधि, तिष्ठ, धारय; keep ‘मा अप च्योष्ठाः’ as a single prohibitive unit.
Firm, steady, chest-supported voice.
Best chanted while seated/standing immobile to embody the mantra’s ‘non-shaking’ instruction.
11 times
Taking office, defending position, stabilizing a team/family during uncertainty.
Before an important meeting, oath, installation, or when feeling ‘pulled away’ from one’s center.
Greater steadiness, confidence, perceived legitimacy, and cohesive decision-making.
Do not use as a substitute for ethical governance; mantra supports stability but does not justify coercion.
None is explicit; the verse uses geologic (mountain) and divine (Indra) models as ‘stabilizing substances’ in a semiotic sense—icons of immobility and support replacing pharmacology.
Kingship is portrayed as dependent on priestly stabilization and on Indraic ideology. The realm is something to be ‘held up’—a managed structure—rather than an automatic inheritance.
The dense repetition of deictic ‘iha’ and the pragmatic prohibitive ‘mā ap’ suit Atharvanic ritual speech. The political noun ‘rāṣṭra’ is more programmatic than in much of RV.
Gopatha’s logic of ‘support’ (dhāraṇa) treats correct mantra as a prop of the world; the king, as microcosmic supporter, is made to mirror Indra’s cosmic function through ritual identification.
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