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
To Agni and other gods: for various blessings
This is thy seasonable womb (yóni), whence born thou didst shine; knowing it, O Agni, ascend thou; then increase our wealth.
O Agni, speak unto us here; be turned toward us with good-will; bestow upon us, O lord of the people (víç); giver of riches art thou to us.
Let Aryaman bestow upon us, let Bhaga, let Brihaspati, let the goddesses; let the divine Sūnṛtā also assign wealth to me.
King Soma [and] Agni we call to aid with [our] songs (gír); [also] Āditya, Vishṇu, Sūrya, and the priest (brahmán) Brihaspati.
Read the remaining 6 verses of III.20
Do thou, O Agni, with the fires (agní), increase our worship (bráhman) and sacrifice; do thou, O god, stir us up to give, unto giving wealth.
Indra-and-Vāyu, both of them here, we call here with good call, that to us even every man may be well-willing in intercourse, and may become desirous of giving to us.
Do thou stir up Aryaman, Brihaspati, Indra, unto giving; [also] Vāta (wind), Vishṇu, Sarasvatī, and the vigorous (vājín) Savitar.
In the impulse (prasavá) of vigor (? vā́ja) now have we come into being, and all these beings within. Both let him, foreknowing, cause him to give who is unwilling to give, and do thou confirm to us wealth having all heroes.
Let the five directions yield (duh) to me, let the wide ones yield according to their strength; may I obtain all my designs, with mind and heart.
A kine-winning voice may I speak; with splendor do thou arise upon me; let Vāyu (wind) enclose (ā-rudh) on all sides; let Tvashṭar assign to me abundance.
Whitney–Lanman translation as printed (1905) · Read III.20 at Wikisource ↗
ATHARVAVEDA · BOOK III IN FOCUS
To the gods: for splendor (várcas)
Let elephant-splendor, great glory, spread itself, which came into being from Aditi's body; that same have all together given to me—all the gods, Aditi, in unison.
Let both Mitra and Varuṇa, Indra and Rudra, [each] take notice; the all-nourishing gods—let them anoint me with splendor.
With what splendor the elephant came into being, with what the king among men (manuṣyà), among waters, with what the gods in the beginning went to godhood—with that splendor do thou, O Agni, now make me splendid.
What great splendor becomes thine, O Jātavedas, from the offering; how great splendor there is of the sun, and of the ásura-like elephant—so great splendor let the (two) Açvins, lotus-wreathed, assign unto me.
Read the remaining 2 verses of III.22
As far as the four directions, as far as the eye reaches (sam-aç), let so great force (indriyá) come together, that elephant-splendor, in me.
Since the elephant has become the superior (atiṣṭhā́vant) of the comfortable (? suṣád) wild beasts, with his fortune [and] splendor do I pour (sic) upon myself.
Whitney–Lanman translation as printed (1905) · Read III.22 at Wikisource ↗
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 VI ALSO CITED
For glory
Read comparison hymn VI.58 (3 verses)
Glorious let the bounteous Indra make me; glorious both heaven-and-earth here; glorious let god Savitar make me; may I be dear here to the giver of the sacrificial gift.
As Indra is possessed of glory in heaven-and-earth, as the waters are possessed of glory in the herbs, so among all the gods may we, among all, be glorious.
Glorious was Indra, glorious was Agni, glorious was Soma born; glorious, of all existence am I most glorious.
Whitney–Lanman translation as printed (1905) · Read VI.58 at Wikisource ↗
III.20 joins resources and plans
The fire hymn begins with Agni and a wish for increased wealth. Verse 9 imagines the directions yielding and asks that designs be attained with mind and heart. Verse 10 brings in a voice associated with winning cattle and asks for abundance. These are broad religious wishes, not an ancient training program or job marketplace. Whitney notes that the last verses have a different textual relation from much of the reused Rigvedic body of the hymn. That matters because an article should not pretend the full sequence is a single straight argument from talent to income. Its useful contribution is the conjunction of aspiration, expression, and hoped-for provision.
III.22 makes ability visible as splendor
III.22 seeks elephant splendor and asks deities to take notice and anoint the speaker. Verse 3 invokes the radiance of elephant and king. Modern workers may hope their abilities become visible to people who can pay for them, which is a fair thematic comparison. But the old poem names symbolic force and recognition, not a portfolio review or proof of competence. A highly visible person may still have no market for a particular skill. Splendor is therefore an analogy for being noticed, not evidence of a profitable offer. It also differs from VI.58's glory, which focuses more directly on renown rather than a completed sale.
III.15 supplies the missing exchange
The trader of III.15 seeks riches through dealing, asks for fruitful bargaining and sale, and hopes wealth risked in exchange grows. That is the stage where a modern skill might become income: someone needs a result, agrees to a price, and receives work. The ancient merchant's goods and travel differ from a specialist's service, but the structure of stake and return is instructive. A skill may be respected without being purchased. The hymns therefore resist a magical shortcut from recognition to money. III.22 can illuminate visibility, III.20 the wish for resources, and III.15 the transaction that actually links provider and payer.
The modern working's boundary
The attached spell asks that the user's skills open a profitable opportunity. It is original contemporary material. The ancient sources do not verify the skill, identify a buyer, determine profit, or promise an offer. A useful historical comparison instead shows why the modern benefit has several conditions: capacity must be expressed, someone must value it, and an exchange must prove fruitful. The reader can see in the Vedic poems different images for those conditions without treating them as a single ancient career rite. That approach respects the poems' divine and commercial settings and keeps the present-day outcome a hope rather than a historical claim.
WORKED READING
Worked reading: admired skill, paid skill
A woodworker's carving draws praise at a gathering. III.22's wish for noticeable splendor is a loose comparison for visibility, and III.20's wealth language can name the hope for more resources. No income has yet appeared. When a buyer commissions a piece at an agreed price, III.15's bargaining and fruitful return become relevant. If the price barely covers materials, the skill produced an opportunity but perhaps not a profitable one. The worked reading separates talent, notice, sale, and net gain, the four ideas packed into the modern spell's short intention.