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VII.
CHARMS TO SECURE PROSPERITY IN HOUSE,
FIELD, CATTLE, BUSINESS, GAMBLING, AND
KINDRED MATTERS.
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III, 12. Prayer at the building of a house.
1. Right here do I erect a firm house: may it stand upon a (good) foundation,
dripping with ghee! Thee may we inhabit, O house, with heroes all, with strong
heroes, with uninjured heroes!
2. Right here, do thou, O house, stand firmly, full of horses, full of cattle,
full of abundance! Full of sap, full of ghee, full of milk, elevate thyself
unto great happiness!
3. A supporter art thou, O house, with broad roof, containing purified grain!
To thee may the calf come, to thee the child, to thee the milch-cows, when
they return in the evening!
4. May Savitar, Vāyu, Indra, Bṛhaspati cunningly erect this house! May the
Maruts sprinkle it with moisture and with ghee; may king Bhaga let our
ploughing take root!
5. O mistress of dwelling, as a sheltering and kindly goddess thou wast
erected by the gods in the beginning; clothed in grass, be thou kindly
disposed; give us, moreover, wealth along with heroes!
6. Do thou, O cross-beam, according to regulation ascend the post, do thou,
mightily ruling, hold off the enemies! May they that approach thee reverently,
O house, not suffer injury, may we with all our heroes live a hundred autumns!
7. Hither to this (house) hath come the tender child, hither the calf along
with (the other) domestic animals; hither the vessel (full) of liquor,
together with bowls of sour milk!
8. Carry forth, O woman, this full jar, a stream of ghee mixed with ambrosia!
Do thou these drinkers supply with ambrosia; the sacrifice and the gifts (to
the Brahmans) shall it (the house) protect!
9. These waters, free from disease, destructive of disease, do I carry forth.
The chambers do I enter in upon together with the immortal Agni (fire).
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VI, 142. Blessing during the sowing of seed.
1. Raise thyself up, grow thick by thy own might, O grain! Burst every vessel!
The lightning in the heavens shall not destroy thee!
2. When we invoke thee, god grain, and thou dost listen, then do thou raise
thyself up like the sky, be inexhaustible as the sea!
3. Inexhaustible shall be those that attend to thee, inexhaustible thy heaps!
They who give thee as a present shall be inexhaustible, they who eat thee
shall be inexhaustible!
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VI, 79. Charm for procuring increase of grain.
1. May this bounteous Nabhasaspati (the lord of the cloud) preserve for us
(possessions) without measure in our house!
2. Do thou, O Nabhasaspati, keep strengthening food in our house, may
prosperity and goods come hither!
3. O bounteous god, thou dost command thousandfold prosperity: of that do thou
bestow upon us, of that do thou give us, in that may we share with thee!
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VI, 50. Exorcism of vermin infesting grain in the field.
1. Slay ye the tarda ('borer'), the samanka ('hook'), and the mole, O Aśvins;
cut off their heads, and crush their ribs! Shut their mouths, that they shall
not eat the barley; free ye, moreover, the grain from danger!
2. Ho tarda ('borer'), ho locust, ho gabhya ('snapper'), upakvasa! As a
Brahman (eats not) an uncompleted sacrifice, do ye, not eating this barley,
without working injury, get out!
3. O husband of the tardā (-female), O husband of the vaghā (-female), ye of
the sharp teeth, listen to me! The vyadvāras ('rodents') of the forest, and
whatever other vyadvāras (there are), all these we do crush.
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VII, 11. Charm to protect grain from lightning.
1. With thy broad thunder, with the beacon, elevated by the gods that pervade
this all, with the lightning do thou not destroy our grain, O god; nor do thou
destroy it with the rays of the sun!
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II, 26. Charm for the prosperity of cattle.
1. Hither shall come the cattle which have strayed to a distance, whose
companionship Vāyu (the wind) enjoys! (The cattle) whose structure of form
Tvaṣṭar knows, Savitar shall hold in place in this stable!
2. To this stable the cattle shall flow together, Bṛhaspati skilfully shall
conduct them hither! Sinīvālī shall conduct hither their van: do thou, O
Anumati, hold them in place after they have arrived!
3. May the cattle, may the horses, and may the domestics flow together; may
the increase of the grain flow together! I sacrifice with an oblation that
causeth to flow together!
4. I pour together the milk of the cows, I pour together strength and sap with
the ghee. Poured together shall be our heroes, constant shall be the cows with
me the owner of the cows!
5. I bring hither the milk of the cows, I have brought hither the sap of the
grain. Brought hither are our heroes, brought hither to this house are our
wives.
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III, 14. Charm for the prosperity of cattle.
1. With a firmly founded stable, with wealth, with well-being, with the name
of that which is born on a lucky day do we unite you (O cattle)!
2. May Aryaman unite you, may Pūṣan, Bṛhaspati, and Indra, the conqueror of
booty, unite you! Do ye prosper my possessions!
3. Flocking together without fear, making ordure in this stable, holding honey
fit for soma, free from disease, ye shall come hither!
4. Right here come, ye cows, and prosper here like the śakā-bird! And right
here do ye beget (your young)! May ye be in accord with me!
5. May your stable be auspicious to you, prosper ye like the sārī-birds and
parrots! And right here do ye beget (your young)! With us do we unite you.
6. Attach yourselves, O cows, to me as your possessor; may this stable here
cause you to prosper! Upon you, growing numerous, and living, may we,
increasing in wealth, alive, attend!
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VI, 59. Prayer to the plant arundhatī for protection to cattle.
1. Thy foremost protection, O Arundhatī, do thou bestow upon steer and
milch-kine, upon (cattle of) the age when weaned from their mother, upon (all)
four-footed creatures!
2. May Arundhatī, the herb, bestow protection along with the gods, render full
of sap the stable, free from disease our men!
3. The variegated, lovely, life-giving (plant) do I invoke. May she carry away
for us, far from the cattle, the missile hurled by Rudra!
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VI, 70. Charm to secure the attachment of a cow to her calf.
1. As meat, and liquor, and dice (abound) at the gambling-place, as the heart
of the lusty male hankers after the woman, thus shall thy heart, O cow, hanker
after the calf!
2. As the elephant directs his steps after the steps of the female, as the
heart of the lusty male hankers after the woman, thus shall thy heart, O cow,
hanker after the calf!
3. As the felloe, and as the spokes, and as the nave (of the wheel is joined)
to the felloe, as the heart of the lusty male hankers after the woman, thus
shall thy heart, O cow, hanker after the calf!
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III, 28. Formula in expiation of the birth of twin-calves.
1. Through one creation at a time this (cow) was born, when the fashioners of
the beings did create the cows of many colours. (Therefore), when a cow doth
beget twins portentously, growling and cross she injureth the cattle.
2. This (cow) doth injure our cattle: a flesh-eater, devourer, she hath
become. Hence to a Brahman he shall give her; in this way she may be kindly
and auspicious!
3. Auspicious be to (our) men, auspicious to (our) cows and horses, auspicious
to this entire field, auspicious be to us right here!
4. Here be prosperity, here be sap! Be thou here one that especially gives a
thousandfold! Make the cattle prosper, thou mother of twins!
5. Where our pious friends live joyously, having left behind the ailments of
their bodies, to that world the mother of twins did attain: may she not injure
our men and our cattle!
6. Where is the world of our pious friends, where the world of them that
sacrifice with the agnihotra, to that world the mother of twins did attain:
may she not injure our men and our cattle!
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VI, 92. Charm to endow a horse with swiftness.
1. Swift as the wind be thou, O steed, when joined (to the chariot); at
Indra's urging go, fleet as the mind! The Maruts, the all-possessing, shall
harness thee, Tvaṣṭar shall put fleetness into thy feet!
2. With the fleetness, O runner, that has been deposited in thee in a secret
place, (with the fleetness) that has been made over to the eagle, the wind,
and moves in them, with that, O steed, strong with strength, do thou win the
race, reaching the goal in the contest!
3. Thy body, O steed, leading (our) body, shall run, a pleasure to ourselves,
delight to thyself! A god, not stumbling, for the support of the great, he
shall, as if upon the heaven, found his own light!
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III, 13. Charm for conducting a river into a new channel.
1. Because of yore, when the (cloud-) serpent was slain (by Indra), ye did
rush forth and shout (anadatā), therefore is your name 'shouters' (nadyaḥ
'rivers'): that is your designation, ye streams!
2. Because, when sent forth by Varuṇa, ye then quickly did bubble up; then
Indra met (āpnot) you, as ye went, therefore anon are ye 'meeters' (āpaḥ
'waters')!
3. When reluctantly ye flowed, Indra, forsooth, did with might choose
(avīvarata) you as his own, ye goddesses! Therefore 'choice' (vār 'water')
has been given you as your name!
4. One god stood upon you, as ye flowed according to will. Up breathed (ud
āniṣuḥ) they who are known as 'the great' (mahīḥ). Therefore 'upbreather'
(udakam 'water') are they called!
5. The waters are kindly, the waters in truth were ghee. These waters, truly,
do support Agni and Soma. May the readily flowing, strong sap of the
honey-dripping (waters) come to me, together with life's breath and lustre!
6. Then do I see them and also do I hear them; their sound, their voice doth
come to me. When, ye golden-coloured, I have refreshed myself with you, then I
ween, ambrosia (amṛta) am I tasting!
7. Here, ye waters, is your heart, here is your calf, ye righteous ones! Come
ye, mighty ones, by this way here, by which I am conducting you here!
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VI, 106. Charm to ward off danger from fire.
1. Where thou comest, (O fire), and where thou goest away, the blooming
dūrvā-plant shall grow: a well-spring there shall rise up, or a lotus-laden
pool!
2. Here (shall be) the gathering place of the waters, here the dwelling-place
of the sea! In the midst of a pond our house shall be: turn, (O fire), away
thy jaws!
3. With a covering of coolness do we envelop thee, O house; cool as a pond be
thou for us! Agni shall furnish the remedy!
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IV, 3. Shepherd's charm against wild beasts and robbers.
1. Three have gone away from here, the tiger, man, and wolf. Out of sight,
forsooth, come the rivers, out of sight grows the divine tree (the
banyan-tree?): out of sight the enemies shall retreat!
2. The wolf shall tread a distant path, and the robber one still more distant!
On a distant path shall move the biting rope (the serpent), on a distant path
the plotter of evil!
3. Thy eyes and thy jaw we crush, O tiger, and also all thy twenty claws.
4. We crush the tiger, the foremost of animals, armed with teeth. Next, too,
the thief, and then the serpent, the wizard, and also the wolf.
5. The thief that approacheth to-day, crushed to pieces he goeth away. Where
the paths are precipitate he shall go, Indra shall slay him with his bolt!
6. The teeth of the wild beast are dulled, and broken are his ribs. Out of thy
sight the dragon shall go, down shall tumble the hare-hunting beast!
7. The (jaw, O beast,) that thou shuttest together, thou shalt not open up;
that which thou openest up, thou shalt not shut together! — Born of Indra,
born of Soma, thou, (my charm), art Atharvan's crusher of tigers.
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III, 15. A merchant's prayer.
1. Indra, the merchant, do I summon: may he come to us, may he be our van;
driving away the demon of grudge, the waylayers, and wild beasts, may he, the
possessor, bestow wealth upon me!
2. May the many paths, the roads of the gods, which come together between
heaven and earth, gladden me with milk and ghee, so that I may gather in
wealth from my purchases!
3. Desirous do I, O Agni, with firewood and ghee offer oblations (to thee),
for success and strength; according to ability praising (thee) with my prayer,
do I sing this divine song, that I may gain a hundredfold!
4. (Pardon, O Agni, this sin of ours [incurred upon] the far road which we
have travelled!) May our purchases and our sales be successful for us; may
what I get in barter render me a gainer! May ye two (Indra and Agni) in accord
take pleasure in this oblation! May our transactions and the accruing gain be
auspicious to us!
5. The wealth with which I go to purchase, desiring, ye gods, to gain wealth
through wealth, may that grow more, not less! Drive away, O Agni, in return
for the oblation, the gods who shut off gain!
6. The wealth with which I go to purchase, desiring, ye gods, to gain wealth
through wealth, may Indra, Prajāpati, Savitar, Soma, Agni, place lustre into
it for me!
7. We praise with reverence thee, O priest (Agni) Vaiśvānara. Do thou over our
children, selves, cattle, and life's breath watch!
8. Daily, never failing, shall we bring (oblations to thee), O Jātavedas, (as
if fodder) to a horse standing (in the stable). In growth of wealth and
nutriment rejoicing, may we, O Agni, thy neighbours, not take harm!
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IV, 38. A. Prayer for success in gambling.
1. The successful, victorious, skilfully gaming Apsarā, that Apsarā who makes
the winnings in the game of dice, do I call hither.
2. The skilfully gaming Apsarā who sweeps and heaps up (the stakes), that
Apsarā who takes the winnings in the game of dice, do I call hither.
3. May she, who dances about with the dice, when she takes the stakes from the
game of dice, when she desires to win for us, obtain the advantage by (her)
magic! May she come to us full of abundance! Let them not win this wealth of
ours!
4. The (Apsarās) who rejoice in dice, who carry grief and wrath — that joyful
and exulting Apsarā, do I call hither.
B. Prayer to secure the return of calves that have strayed to a distance.
5. They (the cattle) who wander along the rays of the sun, or they who wander
along the flood of light — they whose bull (the sun), full of strength, from
afar protecting, with the day wanders about all the worlds — may he (the
bull), full of strength, delighting in this offering, come to us together with
the atmosphere!
6. Together with the atmosphere, O thou who art full of strength, protect the
white (karkī) calf, O thou swift steed (the sun)! Here are many drops (of
ghee) for thee; come hither! May this white calf (karkī) of thine, may thy
mind, be here!
7. Together with the atmosphere, O thou who art full of strength, protect the
white (karkī) calf, O thou swift steed (the sun)! Here is the fodder, here the
stall, here do we tie down the calf. Whatever (are your) names, we own you.
Hail!
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{07050}
VII, 50. Prayer for success at dice.
1. As the lightning at all times smites irresistibly the tree, thus would I
to-day irresistibly beat the gamesters with my dice!
2. Whether they be alert, or not alert, the fortune of (these) folks,
unresisting, shall assemble from all sides, the gain (collect) within my
hands!
3. I invoke with reverence Agni, who has his own riches; here attached he
shall heap up gain for us! I procure (wealth) for myself, as if with chariots
that win the race. May I accomplish auspiciously the song of praise to the
Maruts!
4. May we by thy aid conquer the (adversary's) troop; help us (to obtain) our
share in every contest! Make for us, O Indra, a good and ample road; crush, O
Maghavan, the lusty power of our enemies!
5. I have conquered and cleaned thee out (?); I have also gained thy reserve.
As the wolf plucks to pieces the sheep, thus do I pluck thy winnings.
6. Even the strong hand the bold player conquers, as the skilled gambler heaps
up his winnings at the proper time. Upon him that loves the game (the god),
and does not spare his money, (the game, the god) verily bestows the delights
of wealth.
7. Through (the possession of) cattle we all would suppress (our) wretched
poverty, or with grain our hunger, O thou oft implored (god)! May we foremost
among rulers, unharmed, gain wealth by our cunning devices!
8. Gain is deposited in my right hand, victory in my left. Let me become a
conqueror of cattle, horses, wealth, and gold!
9. O dice, yield play, profitable as a cow that is rich in milk! Bind me to a
streak of gain, as the bow (is bound) with the string!
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{06056}
VI, 56. Exorcism of serpents from the premises.
1. May the serpent, ye gods, not slay us along with our children and our men!
The closed (jaw) shall not snap open, the open one not close! Reverence (be)
to the divine folk!
2. Reverence be to the black serpent, reverence to the one that is striped
across! To the brown svaja reverence; reverence to the divine folk!
3. I clap thy teeth upon thy teeth, and also thy jaw upon thy jaw; I press thy
tongue against thy tongue, and close up, O serpent, thy mouth.
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X, 4. Charm against serpents, invoking the horse of Pedu that slays serpents.
1. To Indra belongs the first chariot, to the gods the second chariot, to
Varuṇa, forsooth, the third. The serpents' chariot is the last: it shall hit a
post, and come to grief!
2. The young darbha-grass burns (the serpents?), the tail of the horse, the
tail of the shaggy one, the seat of the wagon (burns the serpents?).
3. Strike down, O white (horse), with thy forefoot and thy hind-foot! As
timber floating in water, the poison of the serpents, the fierce fluid, is
devoid of strength.
4. Neighing loudly he dived down, and, again diving up, said: 'As timber
floating in water, the poison of the serpents, the fierce fluid, is devoid of
strength.'
5. The horse of Pedu slays the kasarnīla, the horse of Pedu slays the white
(serpent), and also the black. The horse of Pedu cleaves the head of the
ratharvī, the adder.
6. O horse of Pedu, go thou first: we come after thee! Thou shalt cast out the
serpents from the road upon which we come!
7. Here the horse of Pedu was born; from here is his departure. Here are the
tracks of the serpent-killing, powerful steed!
8. May the closed (serpent's jaw) not snap open, may the open one not close!
The two serpents in this field, man and wife, they are both bereft of
strength.
9. Without strength here are the serpents, those that are near, and those that
are far. With a club do I slay the vṛścika (scorpion), with a staff the
serpent that has approached.
10. Here is the remedy for both the aghāśva and the svaja! Indra (and) Pedu's
horse have put to naught the evil-planning (aghāyantam) serpent.
11. The horse of Pedu do we remember, the strong, with strong footing: behind
he, staring forth, these adders.
12. Deprived are they of life's spirit, deprived of poison, slain by Indra
with his bolt. Indra hath slain them: we have slain them.
13. Slain are they that are striped across, crushed are the adders! Slay thou
the one that produces a hood, (slay) the white and the black in the
darbha-grass!
14. The maiden of the Kirāta-tribe, the little one digs up the remedy, with
golden spades, on the mountain's back.
15. Hither has come a youthful physician: he slays the speckled (serpent), is
irresistible. He, forsooth, crushes the svaja and the vṛścika both.
16. Indra did set at naught for me the serpent, (and so did) Mitra and
Varuṇa, Vāta and Parjanya both.
17. Indra did set at naught for me the serpent, the adder, male and female,
the svaja, (the serpent) that is striped across, the kasarnīla, and the
dasonasi.
18. Indra slew thy first ancestor, O serpent, and since they are crushed, what
strength, forsooth, can be theirs?
19. I have gathered up their heads, as the fisherman the karvara (fish). I
have gone off into the river's midst, and washed out the serpent's poison.
20. The poison of all serpents the rivers shall carry off! Slain are they that
are striped across, crushed are the adders!
21. As skilfully I cull the fibre of the plants, as I guide the mares, (thus),
O serpent, shall thy poison go away!
22. The poison that is in the fire, in the sun, in the earth, and in the
plants, the kāṇḍā-poison, the kanaknaka, thy poison shall go forth, and come!
23. The serpents that are sprung from the fire, that are sprung from the
plants, that are sprung from the water, and originate from the lightning; they
from whom great brood has sprung in many ways, those serpents do we revere
with obeisance.
24. Thou art, (O plant), a maiden, Taudī by name; Ghṛtācī, forsooth, is thy
name. Underfoot is thy place: I take in hand what destroys the poison.
25. From every limb make the poison start; shut it out from the heart! Now the
force that is in thy poison shall go down below!
26. The poison has gone to a distance: he has shut it out; he has fused the
poison with poison. Agni has put away the poison of the serpent, Soma has led
it out. The poison has gone back to the biter. The serpent is dead!
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{11002}
XI, 2. Prayer to Bhava and Śarva for protection from dangers.
1. O Bhava and Śarva, be merciful, do not attack (us); ye lords of beings,
lords of cattle, reverence be to you twain! Discharge not your arrow even
after it has been laid on (the bow), and has been drawn! Destroy not our
bipeds and our quadrupeds!
2. Prepare not our bodies for the dog, or the jackal; for the aliklavas, the
vultures, and the black birds! Thy greedy insects, O lord of cattle
(paśupate), and thy birds shall not get us to devour!
3. Reverence we offer, O Bhava, to thy roaring, to thy breath, and to thy
injurious qualities; reverence to thee, O Rudra, thousand-eyed, immortal!
4. We offer reverence to thee from the east, from the north, and from the
south; from (every) domain, and from heaven. Reverence be to thy atmosphere!
5. To thy face, O lord of cattle, to thy eyes, O Bhava, to thy skin, to thy
form, thy appearance, (and to thy aspect) from behind, reverence be!
6. To thy limbs, to thy belly, to thy tongue, to thy mouth, to thy teeth, to
thy smell (nose), reverence be!
7. May we not conflict with Rudra, the archer with the dark crest, the
thousand-eyed, powerful one, the slayer of Andhaka!
8. Bhava shall steer clear from us on all sides, Bhava shall steer clear from
us, as fire from water! May he not bear malice towards us: reverence be to
him!
9. Four times, eight times, be reverence to Bhava, ten times be reverence to
thee, O lord of cattle! To thy (charge) have been assigned these five (kinds
of) cattle: cows, horses, men, goats and sheep.
10. Thine, O strong god (ugra), are the four regions, thine the sky, thine the
earth, and thine this broad atmosphere; thine is this all that has a spirit
and has breath upon the earth.
11. Thine is this broad, treasure-holding receptacle within which all worlds
are contained. Do thou spare us, O lord of cattle: reverence be to thee! Far
from us shall go the jackals, evil omens, dogs; far shall go (the mourning
women) who bewail misfortune with dishevelled hair!
12. Thou, O crested (god), carriest in (thy hand), that smites thousands, a
yellow, golden bow that slays hundreds; Rudra's arrow, the missile of the
gods, flies abroad: reverence be to it, in whatever direction from here (it
flies)!
13. The adversary who lurks and seeks to overcome thee, O Rudra, upon him thou
dost fasten thyself from behind, as (the hunter) that follows the trail of a
wounded (animal).
14. Bhava and Rudra, united and concordant, both strong (ugrau), ye advance to
deeds of heroism: reverence be to both of them, in whatever direction (they
are) from here!
15. Reverence be to thee coming, reverence to thee going; reverence, O Rudra,
be to thee standing, and reverence, also, to thee sitting!
16. Reverence in the evening, reverence in the morning, reverence by night,
reverence by day! I have offered reverence to Bhava and to Śarva, both.
17. Let us not with our tongue offend Rudra, who rushes on, thousand-eyed,
overseeing all, who hurls (his shafts) forward, who is manifoldly wise!
18. We approach first the (god) that has dark horses, is black, sable,
destructive, terrible, who casts down the car of Keśin: reverence be to him!
19. Do not hurl at us thy club, thy divine bolt; be not incensed at us, O lord
of cattle! Shake over some other than us the celestial branch!
20. Injure us not, interpose for us, spare us, be not angry with us! Let us
not contend with thee!
21. Do not covet our cattle, our men, our goats and sheep! Bend thy course
elsewhere, O strong god (ugra), slay the offspring of the blasphemers!
22. He whose missile, fever and cough, assails the single (victim), as the
snorting of a stallion, who snatches away (his victims) one by one, to him be
reverence!
23. He who dwells fixed in the atmosphere, smiting the blasphemers of the god
that do not sacrifice, to him be reverence with ten śakvarī-stanzas!
24. For thee the wild beasts of the forest have been placed in the forest:
flamingoes, eagles, birds of prey, and fowls. Thy spirit, O lord of cattle, is
within the waters, to strengthen thee the heavenly waters flow.
25. The dolphins, great serpents (boas), purīkayas (water-animals),
sea-monsters, fishes, rājasas at which thou shootest — there exists for thee,
O Bhava, no distance, and no barrier. At a glance thou lookest around the
entire earth; from the eastern thou slayest in the northern ocean.
26. Do not, O Rudra, contaminate us with fever, or with poison, or with
heavenly fire: cause this lightning to descend elsewhere than upon us!
27. Bhava rules the sky, Bhava rules the earth; Bhava has filled the broad
atmosphere. Reverence be to him in whatever direction from here (he abides)!
28. O king Bhava, be merciful to thy worshipper, for thou art the lord of
living beasts! He who believes the gods exist, to his quadruped and biped be
merciful!
29. Slay neither our great nor our small; neither those of us that are riding,
nor those that shall ride; neither our father, nor our mother. Cause no
injury, O Rudra, to our own persons!
30. To Rudra's howling dogs, who swallow their food without blessing, who have
wide jaws, I have made this obeisance.
31. Reverence, O god, be to thy shouting hosts, reverence to thy long-haired,
reverence to thy reverenced, reverence to thy devouring hosts! May well-being
and security be to us!
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{04028}
IV, 28. Prayer to Bhava and Śarva for protection from calamities.
1. O Bhava and Śarva, I am devoted to you. Take note of that, ye under whose
control, is all this which shines (the visible universe)! Ye who rule all
these two-footed and four-footed creatures, deliver us from calamity!
2. Ye to whom belongs all that is near by, yea, all that is far; ye who are
known as the most skilful archers among bowmen; ye who rule all these
two-footed and four-footed creatures, deliver us from calamity!
3. The thousand-eyed slayers of Vṛtra both do I invoke. I go praising the two
strong gods (ugrau) whose pastures extend far. Ye who rule all these
two-footed and four-footed creatures, deliver us from calamity!
4. Ye who, united, did undertake many (deeds) of old, and, moreover, did visit
portents upon the people; ye who rule all these two-footed and four-footed
creatures, deliver us from calamity!
5. Ye from whose blows no one either among gods or men escapes; ye who rule
all these two-footed and four-footed creatures, deliver us from calamity!
6. The sorcerer who prepares a spell, or manipulates the roots (of plants)
against us, against him, ye strong gods, launch your thunderbolt! Ye who rule
all these two-footed and four-footed creatures, deliver us from calamity!
7. Ye strong gods, favour us in battles, bring into contact with your
thunderbolt the Kimīdin! I praise you, O Bhava and Śarva, call fervently upon
you in distress: deliver us from calamity!
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{07009}
VII, 9. Charm for finding lost property.
1. On the distant path of the paths Pūṣan was born, on the distant path of
heaven, on the distant path of the earth. Upon the two most lovely places both
he walks hither and away, knowing (the way).
2. Pūṣan knows these regions all; he shall lead us by the most dangerless
(way). Bestowing well-being, of radiant glow, keeping our heroes undiminished,
he shall, alert and skilful, go before us!
3. O Pūṣan, under thy law may we never suffer harm: as praisers of thee are we
here!
4. Pūṣan shall from the east place his right hand about us, shall bring again
to us what has been lost: we shall come upon what has been lost!
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{06128}
VI, 128. Propitiation of the weather-prophet.
1. When the stars made Sakadhūma their king they bestowed good weather upon
him: 'This shall be his dominion,' they said.
2. Let us have good weather at noon, good weather at eve, good weather in the
early morning, good weather in the night!
3. For day and night, for the stars, for sun and moon, and for us prepare good
weather, O king Sakadhūma!
4. To thee, O Sakadhūma, ruler of the stars, that gavest us good weather in
the evening, in the night, and by day, let there ever be obeisance!
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{11006}
XI, 6. Prayer for deliverance from calamity, addressed to the entire pantheon.
1. To Agni we speak and to the trees, to the plants and to the herbs; to
Indra, Bṛhaspati, and Sūrya: they shall deliver us from calamity!
2. We speak to king Varuṇa, to Mitra, Viṣṇu and Bhaga. To Aṃśa and Vivasvant
do we speak: they shall deliver us from calamity!
3. We speak to Savitar, the god, to Dhātar, and to Pūṣan; to first-born
Tvaṣṭar do we speak: they shall deliver us from calamity!
4. We speak to the Gandharvas and the Apsaras, to the Aśvins and to
Brahmaṇaspati, to the god whose name is Aryaman: they shall deliver us from
calamity!
5. Now do we speak to day and night, to Sūrya (sun) and to Candramas (moon),
the twain; to all the Ādityas we speak: they shall deliver us from calamity!
6. We speak to Vāta (wind) and Parjanya, to the atmosphere and the directions
of space. And to all the regions do we speak: they shall deliver us from
calamity!
7. Day and night, and Uṣas (dawn), too, shall deliver thee from curses! Soma
the god, whom they call Candramas (moon), shall deliver me!
8. To the animals of the earth and those of heaven, to the wild beasts of the
forest, to the winged birds, do we speak: they shall deliver us from calamity!
9. Now do we speak to Bhava and Śarva, to Rudra and Paśupati; their arrows do
we know well: these (arrows) shall be ever propitious to us!
10. We speak to the heavens, and the stars, to earth, the Yakṣas, and the
mountains; to the seas, the rivers, and the lakes: they shall deliver us from
calamity!
11. To the seven Ṛṣis now do we speak, to the divine waters and Prajāpati. To
the Fathers with Yama at their head: they shall deliver us from calamity!
12. The gods that dwell in heaven, and those that dwell in the atmosphere; the
mighty (gods) that are fixed upon the earth, they shall deliver us from
calamity!
13. The Ādityas, Rudras, Vasus, the divine Atharvans in heaven, and the wise
Aṅgiras: they shall deliver us from calamity!
14. We speak to the sacrifice and the sacrificer, to the ṛks, the sāmans, and
the healing (Atharvan) charms; we speak to the yajus-formulas and the
invocations (to the gods): they shall deliver us from calamity!
15. We speak to the five kingdoms of the plants with soma the most excellent
among them. The darbha-grass, hemp, and mighty barley: they shall deliver us
from calamity!
16. We speak to the Arāyas (demons of grudge), Rakṣas, serpents, pious men,
and Fathers; to the one and a hundred deaths: they shall deliver us from
calamity!
17. To the seasons we speak, to the lords of the seasons, and to the sections
of the year; to the half-years, years, and months: they shall deliver us from
calamity!
18. Come, ye gods, from the south and the west; ye gods in the east come
forth! From the east, from the north the mighty gods, all the gods assembled:
they shall deliver us from calamity!
19, 20. We speak here to all the gods that hold to their agreements, promote
the order (of the universe), together with all their wives: they shall deliver
us from calamity!
21. We speak to being, to the lord of being, and also to him that controls the
beings; to the beings all assembled: they shall deliver us from calamity!
22. The five divine regions, the twelve divine seasons, the teeth of the year,
they shall ever be propitious to us!
23. The amṛta (ambrosia), bought for the price of a chariot, which Mātalī
knows as a remedy, that Indra stored away in the waters: that, O ye waters,
furnish ye as a remedy!
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