Sukta 40
Rishi: Atharvanic tradition (often anonymous/Angiras-type in AV counter-sorcery hymns)
Devata: Agni Jātavedas; with Soma invoked as supporting power; directions as operative field
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (predominant in AV protective formulae; verse is anuṣṭubh-like)
《阿闼婆吠陀》4.40 为一首以方位为场域的反巫术护身赞歌：它侦知来自任何方向与夹角的敌对供献与巫蛊，并将其强力反转回施害者。诗中呼唤“知一切者”火神阿耆尼·阇多吠陀为祭仪的全知见证，使攻击者转为“背离”（parāñcaḥ），以回返之力（pratyag）震慑并击退之，最终以 pratisara（缚结/护符）封固防护。其效力在于把威胁定位于空间（四方与四隅），并借火、神圣威能与实体护结加以消解。
Kind of charm
Mantras
Mantra 1
शत्रुनाशनम्। ये पु॒रस्ता॒ज्जुह्व॑ति जातवेदः॒ प्राच्या॑ दि॒शोऽभि॒दास॑न्त्य॒स्मान्। अ॒ग्निमृ॒त्वा ते परा॑ञ्चो व्यथन्तां प्र॒त्यगे॑नान् प्रतिस॒रेण॑ हन्मि
为诛灭仇敌。凡在前方献供者，哦阇多吠陀（Jātavedas）——凡自东方来侵袭我等者：依正序取阿耆尼（Agni），愿他们转身退却而战栗；以反转之法、以反制之咒，我击倒他们。
Mantra 2
ये द॑क्षिण॒तो जुह्व॑ति जातवेदो॒ दक्षि॑णाया दि॒शोऽभि॒दास॑न्त्य॒स्मान्। य॒ममृ॒त्वा ते परा॑ञ्चो व्यथन्तां प्र॒त्यगे॑नान् प्रतिस॒रेण॑ हन्मि
凡在南方献供者，哦阇多吠陀（Jātavedas）——凡自南方来侵袭我等者：依正序取阎摩（Yama），愿他们转身退却而战栗；以反转之法、以反制之咒，我击倒他们。
Mantra 3
ये प॒श्चाज्जुह्व॑ति जातवेदः प्र॒तीच्या॑ दि॒शोऽभि॒दास॑न्त्य॒स्मान्। वरु॑णमृ॒त्वा ते परा॑ञ्चो व्यथन्तां प्र॒त्यगे॑नान् प्रतिस॒रेण॑ हन्मि
凡从背后献祭者啊，贾塔韦达斯（Jātavedas）；凡自西方之方来侵害我们者：依次奉持伐楼那（Varuṇa）之法，愿他们转身退却而战栗；我以“反转”之力、以“反咒”（counter-charm）击倒他们。
Mantra 4
य उ॑त्तर॒तो जुह्व॑ति जातवेद॒ उदी॑च्या दि॒शोऽभि॒दास॑न्त्य॒स्मान्। सोम॑मृ॒त्वा ते परा॑ञ्चो व्यथन्तां प्र॒त्यगे॑नान् प्रतिस॒रेण॑ हन्मि
凡从北方献供者，噢阇多吠陀（Jātavedas）——北方诸域来侵袭我等。取苏摩（Soma）为有效之依止，愿彼等转身退去而战栗；我以回返之反制之力，以普拉提萨拉（Pratisara，护符/反制）击倒之。
Mantra 5
ये॒३धस्ता॒ज्जुह्व॑ति जातवेदो ध्रु॒वाया॑ दि॒शोऽभिदास॑न्त्य॒स्मान्। भूमि॑मृ॒त्वा ते परा॑ञ्चो व्यथन्तां प्र॒त्यगे॑नान् प्रतिस॒रेण॑ हन्मि
凡从下方献供者，噢阇多吠陀（Jātavedas）——坚固之诸域来侵袭我等。取大地为有效之依止，愿彼等转身退去而战栗；我以回返之反制之力，以普拉提萨拉（Pratisara，护符/反制）击倒之。
Mantra 6
ये॒३ऽन्तरि॑क्षा॒ज्जुह्व॑ति जातवेदो व्य॒ध्वाया॑ दि॒शोऽभि॒दास॑न्त्य॒स्मान्। वा॒युमृ॒त्वा ते परा॑ञ्चो व्यथन्तां प्र॒त्यगे॑नान् प्रतिस॒रेण॑ हन्मि
凡自中空（空际）行献祭者，噢“生知者”（Jātavedas）啊——游移的诸方来侵扰我们。以风（Vāyu）为有效的依止，愿他们转身退去而战栗；我以回返之反制力，并以护符“普拉提萨拉”（Pratisara），击倒他们。
Mantra 7
य उ॒परि॑ष्टा॒ज्जुह्व॑ति जातवेद ऊ॒र्ध्वाया॑ दि॒शोऽभि॒दास॑न्त्य॒स्मान्। सूर्य॑मृ॒त्वा ते परा॑ञ्चो व्यथन्तां प्र॒त्यगे॑नान् प्रतिस॒रेण॑ हन्मि
凡自上方行献祭者，噢“生知者”（Jātavedas）啊——上方诸界来侵扰我们。以太阳（Sūrya）为有效的依止，愿他们转身退去而战栗；我以回返之反制力，并以护符“普拉提萨拉”（Pratisara），击倒他们。
Mantra 8
ये दि॒शाम॑न्तर्दे॒शेभ्यो॒ जुह्व॑ति जातवेदः सर्वा॑भ्यो दि॒ग्भ्योऽभि॒दास॑न्त्य॒स्मान्। ब्रह्म॒र्त्वा ते परा॑ञ्चो व्यथन्तां प्र॒त्यगे॑नान् प्रतिस॒रेण॑ हन्मि
凡自诸方之间的中间地带行献祭者，噢“生知者”（Jātavedas）啊——他们从一切方向来侵扰我们。以梵（Brahman）为有效的依止，愿他们转身退去而战栗；我以回返之反制力，并以护符“普拉提萨拉”（Pratisara），击倒他们。
Inside Sukta 40
How it unfolds
- How it opens
Addresses Agni Jātavedas as the witness of offerings and the power who can detect hostile rites coming from a particular quarter.
- What it asks
Let those who assail us from the directions be turned away and shaken; reverse their act back upon them through pratyag-force and the pratisara seal.
- Where its power lies
By taking a higher stabilizing power ‘in due order’ (ṛtvā)—Soma, Varuṇa, or Brahman—the hymn claims lawful, effective counter-action that overrides the attacker’s rite.
- How it closes
Ends with the recurring act-formula: ‘with the returning counter-force, with the pratisara, I smite’—a verbal and physical sealing of protection across all directions.
Famous verses
pratyagenān pratisareṇa hanmi
somaṃ ṛtvā te parāñco vyathantām
sarvābhyo digbhyo’bhidāsanty asmān
Kind of hymn
Abhicarika (Counter-sorcery / Apotropaic protection)
What it is for
Repel and reverse hostile offerings/witchcraft from any quarter; make aggressors recoil, tremble, and lose efficacy; secure the practitioner with a sealed protective boundary.
Who it is for
Householders, ritual specialists (Atharvan priests), and anyone fearing occult attack, envy, or hostile rites directed from known or unknown directions.
Also used as
- Shantika
- Raksha (protective warding)
The deity
Agni as Jātavedas is the knower of all beings and all rites, the revealer of hidden hostile offerings; Soma functions as energizing counter-power, while Brahman denotes mantra-sacral force that stabilizes and overrules sorcery. The quarters (diśaḥ) are treated as the channels through which aggression travels and therefore as the field to be ritually sealed.
Powers of the deity
- Reveals and ‘knows’ concealed hostile rites (jātavedas)
- Carries and redirects offerings, enabling reversal of abhicāra
- Drives attackers away (parāñcaḥ-karaṇa) and induces trembling/distress (vyath-)
- Establishes protective containment through binding/warding (pratisara)
- Extends protection across all directions, including liminal inter-directions (antardeśa)
Why the deity is called
To identify hostile offerings originating from specific directions, reverse their force back upon the perpetrators, and establish a comprehensive directional shield using fire, Soma/Brahman potency, and the pratisara.
The seer
- Atharvan (Atharvanic/Āṅgirasa-type, anonymous)Atharvan. Abhicārika counter-spells: reversing hostile yajña/oblations, directional warding, and binding/repelling rites using pratisara-style protections
Other hymns of this seer
- AV 4.36
- AV 4.37
- AV 4.38
- AV 4.39
Preparing for the rite
- Purify the space (sprinkling/ācamanam as customary) and mark a protected boundary around the seat/hearth.
- Prepare or tie a pratisara (protective cord/amulet) for the person or threshold.
- Kindle or face a ritual fire (even a symbolic lamp/fire is consistent with Agni-address) and orient oneself to the quarters to ‘name’ the threat-direction.
The rite
- Recite the verses while facing or gesturing toward the named quarter (north, west, etc.), then toward inter-quarters for comprehensive sealing.
- Mentally ‘turn’ the attack back (pratyag) at the refrain point and touch/tie the pratisara as the physical seal.
- If an offering is performed, make a small oblation to Agni Jātavedas while stating the reversal intention (parāñcaḥ… vyathantām).
What it needs
- Fire/Agni (hearth, lamp, or kindled fire)
- Pratisara (protective cord/amulet/binding)
- Soma as invoked power (symbolically via soma-plant substitute or consecrated drink where appropriate)
- Water for purification
When
Performed when sorcery is suspected, after ominous signs, or before travel/entry into contested spaces; often at dusk/dawn or before sleep for warding.
The main substance
Pratisara (protective binding cord/amulet)
Amulets
- Pratisara cord/thread (often consecrated by mantra)
- Knotted thread or wrist/waist binding as a ‘seal’ against return-attack
How it is prepared
Consecrate a cord/thread by reciting the refrain-bearing verses; tie it on the person (wrist/upper arm/waist) or at the threshold while directing the mantra toward the quarters to be sealed.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is meant to repel and reverse hostile rites, curses, or occult offerings believed to be sent from particular directions (north, west, etc.) or from in-between directions.
The hymn treats harm as arriving through spatial channels; by naming each quarter and sealing it, the practitioner closes the pathways through which the attack is thought to travel.
A pratisara is a protective binding—often a consecrated cord or amulet—used as a physical ‘seal’ that supports the mantra’s reversal and warding effect.
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