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
For success in trade
I stir up (cud) the trader Indra; let him come to us, be our forerunner; thrusting [away] the niggard, the waylaying wild animal, let him, having the power (īç), be giver of riches to me.
The many roads, travelled by the gods, that go about (sam-car) between heaven-and-earth—let them enjoy me with milk, with ghee, that dealing (krī) I may get (ā-hṛ) riches.
With fuel, O Agni, with ghee, I, desiring, offer the oblation, in order to energy (táras), to strength;—revering with worship (bráhman), so far as I am able—this divine prayer (dhī́), in order to hundred-fold winning.
This offense (? çaráṇi) of ours mayest thou, O Agni, bear with (mṛṣ), what distant road we have gone. Successful (çuná) for us be bargain and sale; let return-dealing make me fruitful; do ye two enjoy this oblation in concord; successful for us be our going about and rising.
Read the remaining 4 verses of III.15
With what riches I practise (car) bargaining, seeking riches with riches, ye gods—let that become more for me, not less; O Agni, put down (ni-sidh) with the oblation the gain-slaying gods.
With what riches I practise bargaining, seeking riches with riches, ye gods—therein let Indra assign me pleasure (? rúci), let Prajāpati, Savitar, Soma, Agni.
Unto thee with homage do we, O priest Vāiçvānara ('for all men'), give praise; do thou watch over our progeny, our selves, our kine, our breaths.
Every day may we bring constantly for thee as for a standing horse, O Jātavedas; rejoicing together with abundance of wealth, with food, may we thy neighbors, O Agni, take no harm.
Whitney–Lanman translation as printed (1905) · Read III.15 at Wikisource ↗
ATHARVAVEDA · BOOK VII ALSO CITED
For success in the assembly
Read comparison hymn VII.12 (13) (4 verses)
Let both assembly (sabhā́) and gathering (sámiti), the two daughters of Prajāpati, accordant, favor me; with whom I shall come together, may he desire to aid (? upa-çikṣ) me; may I speak what is pleasant among those who have come together, O Fathers.
We know thy name, O assembly; verily sport (naríṣṭā) by name art thou; whoever are thine assembly-sitters, let them be of like speech with me.
Of these that sit together I take to myself the splendor, the discernment (vijñā́na); of this whole gathering (saṁsád) make me, O Indra, possessor of the fortune (bhagín).
Your mind that is gone away, that is bound either here or here—that of you we cause to turn hither; in me let your mind rest.
Whitney–Lanman translation as printed (1905) · Read VII.12 (13) at Wikisource ↗
ATHARVAVEDA · BOOK III ALSO CITED
Morning invocation to various gods, especially Bhaga
Read comparison hymn III.16 (7 verses)
Early (prātár) do we call Agni, early Indra, early Mitra-and-Varuṇa, early the (two) Açvins, early Bhaga, Pūshan, Brahmaṇaspati, early Soma and Rudra do we call.
The early-conquering formidable Bhaga do we call, the son of Aditi who is disposer (vidhartár), to whom every one that thinks himself weak [or] strong, ⌊to whom even the king⌋ says: "apportion [me] a portion."
O Bhaga, conductor, Bhaga, thou of true bestowal, Bhaga, help upward this prayer (dhī́), giving to us; O Bhaga, cause us to multiply with kine, with horses, O Bhaga, with men,—rich in men may we be.
Both now may we be fortunate (bhágavant), and in the advance (? prapitvá) and in the middle of the days; and, O bounteous one, at the up-going of the sun, may we be in the favor of the gods.
Let the god Bhaga himself be fortunate; through him may we be fortunate; on thee here, Bhaga, do I call entire; do thou, O Bhaga, be our forerunner here.
The dawns submit themselves (? sam-nam) to the sacrifice (adhvará), as Dadhikrāvan to the bright place; hitherward let them convey for me Bhaga, acquirer of good things, as vigorous (vājín) horses a chariot.
Let excellent dawns, rich in horses, rich in kine, rich in heroes, always shine for us, yielding (duh) ghee, on all sides drunk of: do ye protect us ever with well-beings.
Whitney–Lanman translation as printed (1905) · Read III.16 at Wikisource ↗
A trader carries value toward a market
III.15 opens by asking Indra to lead a trader safely along the road. In verse 2, many paths offer the possibility of acquiring riches through dealing. A collectible may have a narrow audience, so reaching the right people is a plausible modern analogy to the route. Yet the ancient poem names neither rare objects nor a specialist collector. Its road is physical and hazardous; a current marketplace may be digital or local. The useful historical insight is that possession alone does not yield profit. Value must enter a social field of possible exchange, and even then the trader asks for success because the outcome remains uncertain.
Price appears in an open bargain
Verse 4 of III.15 asks for successful bargain and sale; verse 5 wants wealth used in dealing to become more rather than less. A collectible's price may depend on condition, provenance, demand, and what a buyer believes the object is worth. The hymn does not define any of these modern appraisal factors, nor does it state that a seller's preferred number is automatically fair. It offers a commercial frame in which an offer is proposed, tested, and accepted or refused. A collector paying well is a completed human decision within that frame, not a fortune guaranteed by the ancient words.
VII.12 adds the problem of recognition
VII.12 asks assembly and gathering to favor the speaker and values pleasant speech and discernment among those present. In a modern sale, an expert audience may notice qualities that a casual shopper misses. That is a limited comparison for recognition before bargaining. But the hymn's assembly is not an appraisal panel, and favor from listeners cannot certify authenticity or a price. III.16's Bhaga prayer could describe a seller feeling fortunate when a generous offer arrives, yet it offers even less about why this buyer values this object. Keeping the audience, share, and bargain texts separate stops a special-interest sale from becoming a generic luck story.
The modern collector remains free to decide
The attached working asks a collector to pay well for an item the user owns. That person, property, and price are contemporary elements. The Atharvaveda sources cannot verify ownership, the item's condition, or a buyer's valuation. They also do not promise a sale. A reader can learn from the trader's sequence: find a path to a likely audience, present the object, then bargain. The historical hymn gives that sequence a vivid divine and ritual setting; it does not teach modern authentication or compel a collector. Its value lies in showing the difference between being noticed by the right people and receiving an agreed price.
WORKED READING
Worked reading: two audiences for one object
A seller shows an old instrument to general shoppers, who admire it but offer little. VII.12's favorable hearing is a loose comparison for admiration without commitment. A specialist collector later recognizes a feature and proposes a higher price, bringing III.15's bargain into play. If the claim about the instrument proves mistaken, the offer may change; no ancient hymn authenticates it. III.16 might express the seller's feeling of fortune after a completed good sale, but that feeling cannot replace the evidence behind the buyer's decision. The spell seeks the final payment, not merely the compliment.