Atharva-Veda Samhita/Book IV/Hymn 19

19. Against enemies: with a plant.

[Çukra.—(etc.: see hymn 17). 2. pathyāpan̄kti.]

Found also, in connection with the two next preceding hymns, in Pāipp. v. Used by Kāuç. only in company with hymns 17 and 18, as described under h. 17. ⌊But vs. 2 is reckoned to the abhaya gaṇa, employed as battle-charms; see Kāuç. 16. 8, note.⌋

Translated: Grill, 34, 132; Griffith, i. 157; Bloomfield, 71, 397; Weber, xviii. 81.

1. Both art thou not relative-making, and now art thou kin-making; also do thou cut off (? ā-chid) the progeny of the witchcraft-maker, like a reed of the rainy season (vā́rṣika).

Or, perhaps, 'a last year's reed' (but comm., varṣāsu bhavam). The first half-verse is very obscure, and the translation follows the text as closely as possible (Ppp. differs only by beginning ute ’vā ’sy), understanding a-bandhukṛt, and not abandhukṛt (which would be accented on -kṛ́t); possibly the sense is "thou makest common cause with some and not with others." The comm. takes -kṛt both times from kṛt 'cut' (which is not impossible): = kartaka or chedaka; and he cites RV. iv. 4. 5 "slaughter thou our foes, the related and the unrelated." Naḑám he explains as etatsaṁjñaṁ succhedaṁ tṛṇaviçeṣam. The Anukr. seems to sanction abbreviation to ’va in d.

2. Thou art bespoken (?) by a Brāhman, by Kaṇva son of Nṛshad; thou goest like a brilliant army (?); there is no fear (bhayá) there where thou arrivest (pra-āp), O herb.

Ppp. has in a pariyukto ‘si, and this is very probably the true form of the word here used; the difficulty is that neither yuj nor vac is anywhere else found used with pari; prayukta ⌊'employed'⌋ is what we should expect. We have "Kaṇva's plant" mentioned at vi. 52. 3. The imperfect meter of b (which the Anukr. fails to notice, as it does also the like deficiency in d) gives a degree of plausibility to Grill's suggestion that the pāda is intruded on an original anuṣṭubh. The pada-mss. waver between nārsadéna and nārṣ- (our Bp. emends ṣ to s; Op. is altered obscurely; D.K. have s), but s is certainly the true reading, as required by Prāt. iv. 83; SPP. has wrongly chosen ṣ for his pada-text. The comm., with a couple of SPP's authorities that follow him, reads tvíṣīmate in c (our P.M.W.E. have tvíṣimatī.) The mss., without any statable reason, accent ásti in d, and our edition follows them; SPP. strangely gives ásti in saṁhitā-, but asti in pada-text. ⌊Are not páryuktā and pariyuktā alike awkward phonetic renderings of prá-yuktā? Cf. Ppp. çaçire (= çaçṛ-é), iv. 18. 6; and dadhire (= dadhre, Roth, ZDMG. xlviii. 116).⌋

3. Thou goest to the head (ágra) of the herbs, causing to shine (dīp) upon [us] as it were with light; also rescuer art thou of the simple (pā́ka), likewise slayer art thou of the demoniac.

Ppp. puts pākasya before trātā in c; the comm. paraphrases it with paktavyaprajñasya ⌊'one whose wisdom (prajñā) is yet to be matured'⌋ durbalasya.

4. When yonder, in the beginning, the gods by thee removed (nis-kṛ) the Asuras, from thence, O herb, wast thou born, an off-wiper.

Ppp. has in b the older form akṛṇvata, and for c reads tasmād dhi tvam oṣadhe ap-. The comm. takes adhi in c as meaning upari vartamānaḥ or çreṣṭhaḥ san.

5. Splitting apart (vi-bhid), hundred-branched—"splitting apart" by name is thy father; in return (pratyák), do thou split apart him who assails us.

Ppp. has sundry corruptions: vivindatī in a, vibinda in b, taṁ tvā at end of c. The comm. omits vi in c. Pāda c needs some such emendation as to táṁ tu-ám.

6. The non-existent came into being (sam-bhū) from the earth; that goes to the sky, the great expanse (vyácas); let that, verily, fuming abroad, come back thence on the maker.

The translation implies the obvious emendation, made in our text, of tád dyā́m for tád yā́m, which is read by all the mss. and by the comm., and retained in SPP's text, though in a note he approves our alteration; it is only another example of mistaking an abbreviated for a full reading (dy for its grammatical equivalent ddy: compare ⌊i. 22. 1, and Roth, ZDMG. xlviii. 104⌋). Ppp. reads in b bṛhat vacas; and it has for c ud it vaco vyadhūmayat. The comm. gives bhūmyām for -yās in a, and tvat for tat at beginning of b. He renders asat by asatkalpaṁ kṛtyārūpam, or, alternatively, by açobhanaṁ kṛtyārūpam. The accent -dhūpā́yat is contrary to all rule, and doubtless false; MS. (i. 10. 20; p. 160. l) has -pāyát, which is correct. The general sense of the verse is obscure; but it appears to parallel the return of the charm upon its producer with the action of water in exhaling from the earth and coming back as rain.

7. Since thou hast come into being reverted (pratyáñc), having reverted fruit, do thou repel (yu) from me all curses, [repel] very far the deadly weapon.

The verse is nearly repeated as vii. 65. i. Ppp. has for c, d. pratīṣkṛtyā amuṁ kṛtyākṛtaṁ jahi. The comm. reads in b -phala, vocative; regarding, of course, the apāmārga plant as addressed.

8. Protect me around with a hundred; defend me with a thousand; may the forceful (ugrá) Indra, O lord of the plants, assign force (ojmán) unto thee.

Ppp. has for d bhadro ’jmānam ā dadhuḥ. It can hardly be that the writer does not use here ugrá and ojmán as words felt to be related; but the comm. gives for the former his standing and always repeated udgūrṇabala, and paraphrases the other with ojasvitva.