Atharva Veda 5.13.4: Kanda 5, Anuvaka 2, Sukta 13, Mantra 4
Sukta 13
चक्षु॑षा ते॒ चक्षु॑र्हन्मि वि॒षेण॑ हन्मि ते वि॒षम्। अहे॑ म्रि॒यस्व॒ मा जी॑वीः प्र॒त्यग॒भ्येऽतु त्वा वि॒षम्
cákṣuṣā te cákṣur hanmi viṣéṇa hanmi te viṣám | áhe mriyásva mā́ jīvīḥ prátyag abhí etu tvā viṣám ||
With eye I smite thine eye; with poison I smite thy poison. O serpent, die—live not: backward, upon thee, let the venom go.
我以眼击汝之眼；我以毒击汝之毒。蛇啊，死去——莫再活；愿此毒反向回返，归于汝身。
Rishi: Atharvanic (per anukramaṇī tradition).
Devata: Ahi/Sarpa (serpent) as addressed adversary; the counter-poison power as operative force.
Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (probable).
Primary: raudra
Secondary: vira
Sayana reads the verse as a direct serpent-charm: the ‘eye’ is the serpent’s baleful faculty (or the poison’s ‘perceiving’ power) countered by the priest’s controlled gaze/attention. ‘viṣeṇa viṣam’ is explained as counteracting poison by a poison-remedy (or by the poison’s own force turned against it). ‘pratyak’ marks reversal: the venom is sent back to its origin, a common Atharvanic logic of return (pratyāvartana).
To kill/disable the serpent-poison and reverse it back upon the source; immediate protection against envenomation.
Snakebite/envenomation (viṣa) and acute toxic shock
Eye (cakṣus) as locus of counter-force; implicitly the whole body threatened by venom.
Apotropaic reversal + binding of venom’s agency; psychophysiological stabilization via authoritative speech and focused gaze.
Viṣa-cikitsā logic: counteracting poison (prativiṣa/pratyanīka), arresting spread, calming vāta agitation from fear/pain.
First-aid crisis mantra used alongside urgent medical care for snakebite; psychologically akin to grounding/focus to reduce panic while seeking antivenom.
bhaisajya
Serpent/venom (personified)
Kill/disable the serpent’s venom and reverse it back upon the source; protect the victim immediately.
Pratyavartana (reversal), dṛṣṭi-yuddha (counter-gaze), verbal ‘striking’ through repeated hanmi + imperative death command.
Envenomation, panic, perceived hostile presence
The speaker confronts a serpent directly: “With my eye I strike your eye; with poison I strike your poison. O serpent, die—do not live; let the venom turn back upon you.”
A counter-gaze (focused attention) meets panic and paralysis. The mind refuses to be hypnotized by fear (the serpent’s “eye”) and reverses the intrusive force (toxin/terror) back to its source—i.e., it is named, bounded, and expelled.
What enters as harm can be met by lucid counter-force: awareness (cakṣus) and disciplined speech (vāc) can “turn back” destructive momentum, restoring agency in crisis.
- चक्षुषा (cakṣuṣā)
- focused awareness; protective gaze; ‘seeing through’ danger
- हन्मि (hanmi)
- decisive psychic/ritual intervention; cutting through fear
- विषेण (viṣeṇa)
- homeopathic/counter-agent logic; using the enemy’s category against it
- विषम् (viṣam)
- intrusive affliction (toxin, dread, malign influence)
- अहे (ahe)
- personified threat; sudden crisis
- प्रत्यक् (pratyak)
- reversal/return spell; apotropaic ‘sending back’ technique
- अभि एतु (abhi etu)
- directed expulsion; re-targeting the harm
Reversal of intrusive force: ‘I see the danger clearly; it does not enter me.’
Ājñā (brow/seeing)
Short, steady nasal breaths; exhale-directed ‘sending back’ visualization on key imperatives.
Venom as dark stream turning around and flowing away from the body back into earth/its source.
Alert, unwavering (ekāgratā under stress)
Chant with firm intent, then shift to calm breath; cultivate non-panicked clarity as the primary ‘counter-poison’ of the mind.
Vedic udātta/anudātta/svarita as per Śaunaka pada tradition; emphasize the repeated verb ‘hanmi’ with clear udātta where marked.
Keep caKṢUṢĀ / caKṢUṚ / HANMI crisp; avoid slurring sandhi across imperative breaks.
Articulate retroflex ṣ in cakṣuṣā; do not reduce to ‘kshu’ indistinctly., Hold vi-ṣe-ṇa with clear long ē where applicable by recitation tradition., Keep pratyak as prat-yak (not ‘pratya’ merged).
Firm, commanding, steady volume (not shouted).
Atharvanic charms often pair recitation with directed gesture (pointing/warding) and ‘sending away’ on pratyak.
7
Suspected snake encounter/bite; intense fear of venomous threat.
Immediately during first response while arranging urgent medical care.
Psychological stabilization, protective resolve, traditional ‘turning back’ of harm; supports calm action.
Do not delay emergency services/antivenom; avoid harmful folk interventions (cutting/sucking/tourniquet).
पाठः: चक्षु॑षा ते॒ चक्षु॑र्हन्मि वि॒षेण॑ हन्मि ते वि॒षम्। अहे॑ म्रि॒यस्व॒ मा जी॑वीः प्र॒त्यग॒भ्येऽतु त्वा वि॒षम्। Sandhi resolution: (1) चक्षु॑र् + हन्मि → चक्षुः हन्मि (visarga before h). (2) प्रत्यग् + अभि + एतु → प्रत्यक् अभि एतु (final -g of प्रत्यग् becomes -k before voiceless a-/in pada separation); (3) अभि + एतु → अभि एतु (written as अभ्येतु by sandhi: i + e → ye). Thus the continuous form प्र॒त्यग॒भ्येऽतु is segmented as प्रत्यक् | अभि | एतु. No other mandatory sandhi splits.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Atharva Veda in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.
