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 V ALSO CITED
Against niggardliness and its effects
Read comparison hymn V.7 (10 verses)
Bring to us, stand not about, O niggard; do not prevent (? rakṣ) our sacrificial gift as led [away]; homage be to baffling (vīrtsā́), to ill-success; homage be to the niggard.
What wheedling (? parirāpín) man thou puttest forward, O niggard, to him of thine we pay homage: do not thou disturb my winning (vaní).
Let our god-made winning progress (pra-kḷp) by day and by night; we go forth after the niggard; homage be to the niggard.
Sarasvatī, Anumati, Bhaga, we going call on; pleasant (juṣṭá) honeyed speech have I spoken in the god-invocations of the gods.
Whomever I solicit (yāc) with speech, with Sarasvatī, mind-yoked, him may faith find today, given by the brown soma.
Do not thou baffle our winning nor speech. Let Indra and Agni both bring good things to us. De ye all, willing today to give to us, welcome the niggard.
Go thou far away, O ill-success; we conduct away thy missile; I know thee, O niggard, as one putting (? mīv) down, thrusting down.
Likewise, greatly making thyself naked, thou fastenest on (sac) a person in dreams, O niggard, baffling the plan and design of a man (púruṣa).
She that, being great, of great height (-unmāna), permeated all regions—to her, the golden-haired, to perdition have I paid homage.
Gold-colored, fortunate, gold-cushioned, great—to her, the golden-mantled, to the niggard have I paid homage.
Whitney–Lanman translation as printed (1905) · Read V.7 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 ↗
The roads of III.15 are plural
The trade hymn's second verse imagines many roads between heaven and earth through which dealing might acquire riches. Its first verse asks Indra to precede the trader and remove dangers, and its fourth seeks successful bargain and sale. The poem gives no single predetermined buyer. Instead, it pictures a world of possible routes, encounters, and outcomes. A modern storefront, professional directory, or referral can be analogized to a route, but the road in the hymn belongs to a traveler exposed to risk. The modern keyword's today adds a tight deadline absent from the verse. The ancient text asks for a fruitful journey, not a timed customer match.
Receptive speech is not proof of fit
V.7's fifth verse imagines soliciting someone through speech and hopes confidence will meet the listener. Its fourth mentions pleasant words, while earlier verses struggle with the figure of niggardliness. This helps explain why a seller might want a person ready to hear an offer. But a receptive person may have no need for the product, no budget, or different priorities. The hymn's concern with sacrificial giving also means its listener is not simply a retail customer. VII.12 similarly seeks pleasant speech in an assembly, which is a collective hearing rather than a completed individual purchase. These texts distinguish welcome from suitability.
Fit is tested at the bargain
III.15's later verses ask for favorable bargaining and that riches staked in exchange increase rather than decrease. That is where the modern adjective right gains content: the offer meets a buyer's need, the terms are acceptable to both, and the result is fruitful. A customer who pays immediately but requires an impossible commitment may not be right for the provider. The ancient hymn does not supply modern consumer criteria or ethical rules for pricing; it simply places gain after negotiation and risk. Reading the poem in sequence keeps a same-day wish from leaping directly from visibility to money, as if the intervening exchange did not matter.
The precise modern limit
The attached working asks that a suitable customer find the user today. The identity of that customer, the schedule, and the definition of fit are contemporary inventions. The Atharvaveda provides rich comparisons for routes, speech, and bargain, but no evidence that a visitor will arrive before sunset or choose any seller. A reader can use the historical texts to ask which part of the hoped-for chain matters most. More contact may not help if the offer is wrong; a receptive audience may not be ready to buy; a bargain may happen after the requested day. The ancient poems illuminate the structure of uncertainty without claiming to remove it.
WORKED READING
Worked reading: the visitor who leaves
A client visits a workshop in the morning and asks informed questions but decides the service does not fit. VII.12 and V.7 can describe the favorable hearing and receptive speech, yet III.15's bargain never occurs. A second visitor arrives later with a need the workshop can meet and agrees on a fee. The trade hymn is a closer comparison for that completed exchange. If the second visit happens tomorrow, the modern spell's today condition still has not been met. The hymns explain why interest, fit, sale, and timing are four distinct claims compressed into one short intention.