Atharva-Veda Samhita/Book IV/Hymn 40

40. Against enemies from the different quarters.

[Çukra.—*kṛtyāpratiharaṇam. bahudevatyam. trāiṣṭubham: 2, 8. jagatī (8. puro’tiçakvarī pādayuj).]

Not found in Pāipp. Somewhat similar formulas are met with in TB. (iii. 11. 5) and ĀpÇS. (vi. 18. 3). Used in Kāuç., with ii. 11 etc., in the preparation of holy water for the counteraction of witchcraft (39. 7), and reckoned to the kṛtyāpratiharaṇa gaṇa (ib., note). *⌊The Berlin ms. of the Anukr. adds the expected aṣṭarcam.—Weber, in a footnote, p. 152, says that the remarks of the Anukr. on vs. 8 suggest that the author of the Anukr. was a Vedantist. Hence his attribution of hymns 37 and 38 to Bādarāyaṇi.⌋

Translated: Griffith, i. 185; Weber, xviii. 152.

1. They who make offering from in front, O Jātavedas, [who] from the eastern quarter vex us—having come upon (ṛ) Agni, let them stagger (vyath) away; I smite them back with the reverter (pratisará).

Pratisara, the comm. says, means pratimukhaṁ nivartata ābhicārikaṁ karmā ’nena; and juhvati means homenā ’smān abhicaranti. The analogous formula in the other texts reads thus: prā́cī díg agnír devátā: agníṁ sá diçā́ṁ deváṁ devátānām ṛcchatu yó māi ’tásyāi diçò ‘bhidā́sati (so TB.; ĀpÇS. omits diçā́ṁ deváṁ devátānām).

The verses have slight metrical irregularities which are ignored by the Anukr.

2. They who make offering from the right, O Jātavedas, [who] from the southern quarter vex us—having come upon Yama, let them etc. etc.

The other texts make Indra the god of the southern quarter. ⌊See Weber's note, p. 1 53.⌋

3. They who make offering from behind, O Jātavedas, [who] from the western quarter vex us—having come upon Varuṇa, let them etc. etc.

The other texts say Soma instead of Varuṇa.

5. They who make offering from above, O Jātavedas, [who] from the northern quarter vex us—having come upon Soma, let them etc. etc.

Nearly all the mss. (all ours save O.Op.; all but three of SPP's) strangely accent somám in this verse; both editions emend to sómam. In the other texts, Mitra and Varuṇa are the divinities invoked for the northern quarter.

5. They who make offering from below, O Jātavedas, [who] from the fixed quarter vex us—having come upon Earth, let them etc. etc.

Here, again, part of our mss. (E.I.H.), and nearly all SPP's, give the false accent bhūmím; both editions read bhū́mim. The other texts associate Aditi with "this quarter," or "the quarter here," as they style it.

6. They who make offering from the atmosphere, O Jātavedas, [who] from the midway (vyadhvá) quarter vex us—having come upon Vāyu, let them etc. etc.

The comm. understands vyadhva as "trackless" (vigatā adhvāno yasyām). The other texts take no notice of such a quarter.

7. They who make offering from aloft, O Jātavedas, [who] from the upward quarter vex us—having come upon Sūrya, let them etc. etc.

The other texts associate Bṛhaspati with this quarter.

8. They who make offering from the intermediate directions of the quarters, O Jātavedas, [who] from all the quarters vex us—having come upon the bráhman, let them etc. etc.

Several of our mss. accent digbhyó ‘bhidā́s-. The other texts have nothing that corresponds to this verse.

This, the eighth and concluding anuvāka of the book, has 5 hymns and 47 verses; the quotation from the old Anukr. is saptadaçā ’ntyaḥ, to which is added ṣaḑarcavac ca.

Here ends also the ninth prapāṭhaka.

One of our mss. (I.) sums up the content of the book as 323 verses; the true number is 324. ⌊Observe that the last vs. of hymn 20 is numbered 7 when it should be 9.⌋