THE TEXT · ATHARVAVEDA
Hymns discussed in this article
Begin with the verses shown here. Open the other cited hymns to compare their images and aims.
ATHARVAVEDA · BOOK III IN FOCUS
The same: with imprecation on enemies
Eastern quarter; Agni overlord; black serpent defender; the Ādityas arrows: homage to those overlords; homage to the defenders; homage to the arrows; homage be to them; who hates us, whom we hate, him we put in your jaws (jámbha).
Southern quarter; Indra overlord; cross-lined [serpent] defender; the Fathers arrows: homage to those etc. etc.
Western quarter; Varuna overlord; the adder (pṛ́dāku) defender; food the arrows: homage to those etc. etc.
Northern quarter; Soma overlord; the constrictor (svajá) defender; the thunderbolt (açáni) arrows: homage to those etc. etc.
Read the remaining 2 verses of III.27
Fixed quarter; Vishṇu overlord; the serpent with black-spotted (kalmā́ṣa-) neck defender; the plants arrows: homage to those etc. etc.
Upward quarter; Brihaspati overlord; the white (çvitrá) [serpent] defender; rain the arrows: homage to those etc. etc.
Whitney–Lanman translation as printed (1905) · Read III.27 at Wikisource ↗
ATHARVAVEDA · BOOK III ALSO CITED
Homage to the gods of the quarters etc. ⌊snake charms?⌋
Read comparison hymn III.26 (6 verses)
Ye gods that are in this eastern quarter, missiles by name—of you there the arrows are fire: do ye be gracious to us, do ye bless (adhi-brū) us; to you there be homage, to you there hail!
Ye gods that are in this southern quarter, impetuous (? aviṣyú) by name—of you there the arrows are love (kā́ma): do ye be etc. etc.
Ye gods that are in this western quarter, vāirājás by name—of you there the arrows are the waters: do ye be etc. etc.
Ye gods that are in this northern quarter, piercing by name—of you there the arrows are wind: do ye be etc. etc.
Ye gods that are in this fixed quarter, smearers (nilimpá) by name—of you there the arrows are the herbs: do ye be etc. etc.
Ye gods that are in this upward quarter, helpful (ávasvant) by name—of you there the arrows are Brihaspati: do ye be etc. etc.
Whitney–Lanman translation as printed (1905) · Read III.26 at Wikisource ↗
A repeated map creates enclosure
The eastern quarter belongs to Agni, has a black serpent as defender, and names the Ādityas as arrows. The southern quarter shifts to Indra, another serpent, and the Fathers. Each unit repeats homage to overlords, defenders, and arrows before the hostile clause returns. The homage is not incidental decoration. It recognizes the authority of the forces to which the speaker then hands over a hater. The enemy is described reciprocally, one who hates us and whom we hate. This phrase presents conflict from one side’s view, while the sixfold map enlarges that local hostility into a cosmic judgment. The prose rhythm is as important as any single weapon image.
Arrows need not be ordinary weapons
As the catalog continues, the west has food for arrows, the north the thunderbolt, the fixed or downward quarter plants, and the upward quarter rain. These are not six copies of a soldier’s arrow. The term names whatever force belongs to a direction’s defended domain. The serpent figures also change from a black serpent to cross-lined, adder, constrictor, spotted-neck, and white forms. Their variety helps the map feel inhabited and guarded. Reading only the concluding curse would erase the poem’s main work: naming a complete environment of powers and converting their diverse capacities into a threat of capture.
The neighboring hymn asks for favor
III.26 follows the same sequence of quarters but asks their forces to be gracious and blessing toward the speaker. Its east has fire as arrows; other quarters have love, water, wind, herbs, and Bṛhaspati. III.27 replaces that protective appeal with an imprecation on the hater, adding named overseers and serpent defenders. The pair reveals a two-stage relation to a dangerous world: solicit its goodwill for one’s side and then place an adversary under its power. Whitney and Lanman discuss later uses of both hymns in battle and perhaps in snake-related rites, but even the editorial discussion records disagreement. The repeated directional speech itself is the secure feature.
Edition differences change the map
Whitney reports that the Pāippalāda version of III.27 lacks verse 3, apparently through omission, and adds an extra imprecation after the first unit. Other Vedic parallels omit the arrows entirely and assign different overlords or serpents to some quarters. These are substantive changes: remove the arrows and the compass remains a set of guardians, but loses one layer of projected force. Change an overlord and a direction’s identity changes. A reader should therefore describe the Śaunaka poem as one powerful arrangement of a directional scheme, not as the sole immutable ancient map. The text’s certainty about an enemy’s fate is the speaker’s wish, not an observed result.
WORKED READING
East and west as a reading pair
Read III.27.1, with Agni, a black serpent, and the Ādityas, then III.27.3, with Varuṇa, an adder, and food as arrows. The structure repeats, but the imagery shifts from bright divine assault to a startling everyday substance acting as force. Compare III.26’s eastern unit, which asks the directional gods to bless the speaker and names fire as their arrows. The same map can serve protection or imprecation depending on what the speaker asks of its occupants. Food named as an arrow in Varuṇa's direction resists a literal weapons list; the repeated grid gives ordinary substances hostile rhetorical force.