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
Morning invocation to various gods, especially Bhaga
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.
Read the remaining 3 verses of III.16
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 ↗
ATHARVAVEDA · BOOK III ALSO CITED
For success in trade
Read comparison hymn III.15 (8 verses)
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.
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 ↗
The morning prayer seeks a portion
III.16 begins by calling a wide company of gods at dawn. Its second verse turns to Bhaga, the disposer of portions, whom weak and strong alike ask for a share; Whitney brackets the king as another petitioner in the transmitted comparison. The scope is broad, and the plea is not a modern theory of pay proportional to effort. Verse 3 asks for cattle, horses, and people, forms of prosperity rooted in the hymn’s social world. The petitioner seeks favor before the day unfolds. That timing matters: the poem expresses dependence on a share yet to come, without calculating an hourly rate or confirming that labor already performed has been paid fairly.
Trade puts resources at risk
III.15 has a different speaker and rhythm. The trader asks Indra to go ahead on dangerous roads, then seeks successful bargain and sale. Verse 5 hopes that what was put forth returns as more, not less. This is not simply the same wish as Bhaga’s apportionment. It names exposure to loss and the uncertain outcome of an exchange. Honest effort in a modern job can feel secure or precarious, but the ancient trader’s risk cannot be transferred unchanged to every kind of work. The two texts together allow a more precise question: is the desired increase a larger share of existing income, a better price for a service, or more transactions?
Effort is not the only variable
The benefit’s phrase every honest effort can sound as if work itself guarantees a matching payment. Neither hymn says that. III.16 petitions rather than promises; III.15 seeks protection and return precisely because trading outcomes can fail. A person might labor diligently while demand falls, a client refuses an offer, or the terms of employment fix compensation. The verses do not judge the person’s merit from the size of the resulting payment. Their value lies in showing two ancient forms of economic hope: a favorable allotted portion and a fruitful exchange. Neither supplies a rule that converts moral effort into a specific financial amount.
The modern wish needs its own boundary
The attached working is a contemporary expression of wanting honest labor to earn more. It does not reproduce a Vedic wage rite or override contracts and markets. Its best reading keeps the historical images distinct: Bhaga’s portion can stand for the hoped-for share, while the trader’s return can stand for payment flowing from particular dealings. The modern worker may negotiate, invoice, sell, or receive a salary, but those mechanisms are outside the poems. The phrase better earnings describes a goal, not a forecast. The hymns make the desire understandable without claiming that industriousness obliges fortune to pay on demand.
WORKED READING
Worked reading: more work, unchanged rate
A freelancer completes twice as many assignments but receives the same fee per assignment. III.16 verse 2 helps name the wish for a better portion; it does not prove a higher rate is due. III.15 verses 4 and 5 direct attention to each bargain and its return. More assignments may increase total receipts even without improving the rate, whereas a negotiated price change would alter the exchange itself. If new work fails to arrive, effort alone cannot produce the hoped-for increase. This comparison distinguishes volume, price, and allotted share rather than treating them as one magical outcome.