Kanda 14
Wedding Hymns
《阿闼婆吠陀》第14卷为“婚礼卷”（Vivāha-kāṇḍa），保存了著名的婚姻赞歌，以“真实”（satya）与“宇宙秩序”（ṛta）为凭据，将新娘自父家迁入夫家之过渡加以神圣化。全卷由两首篇幅较长的颂歌构成，整体如同一部仪式脚本：祝福语、迎送行列与家内诸行事，以及确立夫妻和合的祈愿，皆以咒辞形式在婚礼各个特定时刻宣诵并施行。本卷将婚姻界定为社会上合法、并受宇宙与神明支持的制度。
Kinds of hymn
Anuvakas in Kanda 14
1 anuvakas (sections) to explore.
Inside Kanda 14
What sets it apart
- Contains the canonical Atharvavedic vivāha (marriage) hymns used as a detailed ritual template
- Focuses on the bride’s lawful transfer (gṛha-praveśa/household incorporation) and the sanctification of conjugal life
- Strong integration of mantra with rite: blessings align with discrete wedding actions and social-legal motifs
- Auspicious (paustika) orientation: prosperity, fertility, concord, and lineage continuity rather than healing or sorcery
- Prominent mythic-ritual imagery around Sūryā (the bridal figure) and divine escorts (Aśvins, Pūṣan, Savitṛ)
Its themes
- Vivāha-saṃskāra and lawful transition of the brideMantras that authorize and sanctify marriage, presenting the bride’s movement to the husband’s home as a dharmic, socially legitimate transfer upheld by satya and ṛta, with divine witnessing and protection.
- Auspiciousness, prosperity, and fertility for the householdBlessings for abundance, offspring, longevity, and thriving domestic life; the union is treated as the seed of lineage continuity and household prosperity.
- Conjugal concord and social harmonyPrayers for mutual affection, shared intent, freedom from discord, and stable companionship—marriage as a harmonizing bond within the wider kin-network.
- Divine guardianship of the rite and the coupleInvocations of deities associated with guidance, safe passage, and domestic fire/ritual order (e.g., Savitṛ, Pūṣan, Aśvins, Agni, Soma) to remove obstacles and secure auspicious beginnings.
Its seers
- Atharvanic (Anonymously transmitted in the Atharvavedic śākhā tradition)Ritual-poetic formulation of domestic sacraments (saṃskāras), especially vivāha; integrating social law with cosmic order (ṛta). Notable: AV 14.1 (Vivāha-sūkta); AV 14.2 (Vivāha-continuation / domestic establishment hymns)
Frequently Asked Questions
Because it consists of two extended sūktas that function as marriage liturgy, giving mantras and blessings aligned to wedding actions and the bride’s entry into the husband’s household.
Its dominant purpose is paustika (auspicious/prosperity) and secondarily śāntika (pacificatory): it seeks concord, fertility, protection, and stable household order, not sorcery or medical healing.
Deities linked to guidance, safe passage, and domestic ritual order are prominent—Savitṛ, Pūṣan, the Aśvins, Agni, Soma, and the bridal figure Sūryā—invoked to bless and stabilize the union.
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