THE TEXT · ATHARVAVEDA
Hymns discussed in this article
These verses give the wording and sequence examined in the article below.
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 I IN FOCUS
With an oblation: for confluence of wealth
Together, together let the rivers flow, together the winds, together the birds (patatrín); this my sacrifice let them enjoy of old; I offer with a confluent (saṁsrāvyà) oblation.
Come straight hither to my call, hither ye confluents also; increase this man, ye songs; let every beast (paçú) there is come hither; let what wealth (rayí) there is stay (sthā) with him.
What fountains of the streams flow together, ever unexhausted, with all those confluences we make riches (dhána) flow together for me.
What [fountains] of butter (sarpís) flow together, and of milk, and of water, with all those confluences we make riches flow together for me.
Whitney–Lanman translation as printed (1905) · Read I.15 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 ↗
III.20 asks broadly for riches
The fire hymn opens with Agni increasing wealth and later asks several gods to bestow riches. Verse 6 hopes people met will be well disposed and ready to give. Royalty payers, however, ordinarily remit money because usage terms require it, not because they spontaneously become generous. The hymn therefore provides only a broad prosperity image. Whitney points out its composite textual history, with verses shared with other Vedic works and a different status for its ending. An article should not relabel this mixed blessing as an ancient royalties charm. Its interest lies in the speaker's desire for continuing resources, not a specific mechanism of payment.
I.15 draws several streams together
I.15 calls rivers, winds, and birds into confluence, then asks wealth to arrive and remain. Its final verses compare riches with fountains of water, milk, and butter. A creator may picture payments from several uses of one work as such streams. But the poem does not say why those sources owe anything, how often they pay, or whether they will continue. Whitney notes a different verse order in a Paippalāda witness, a reminder that the confluence image belongs to a historical text with variants. Its language can describe the experience of royalties reaching a household while leaving the modern agreement that creates them entirely outside the source.
The exchange comes before the stream
III.15's trader asks for good bargain and sale and hopes the riches committed to dealing become more. A royalty arrangement may involve a negotiated right to use a creation in return for payments. This is more structurally specific than III.20's giving or I.15's flow, though it is still not the same as the ancient trader's route and goods. Without an agreement or use, there may be no royalty at all. The stream image can hide that dependency. The texts together allow a careful sequence: a work is created, terms are accepted, use occurs, and money may arrive. Only the middle commercial relation has a close, limited analogy in III.15.
The modern royalty boundary
The attached working seeks royalties from the user's creations. The rights system, rates, reporting, and payment channels are contemporary. No cited hymn guarantees uses of a work, a continuing stream, or a profitable deal. A reader can nevertheless learn why royalties are unlike a one-time prize or gift: they may be repeated returns linked to particular uses under agreed terms. III.20 contributes desire for wealth; I.15 contributes confluence; III.15 contributes risk and bargain. The article should preserve those differences while refusing the fantasy that an ancient fountain image predicts a modern royalty statement or that every creation will produce passive income.
WORKED READING
Worked reading: one work, three payments
A musician licenses a recording for three uses. III.15's bargain is the closest ancient comparison for accepting terms. I.15 can picture three payments reaching the musician over time, and III.20 can express the wish for ample provision. If no one uses the recording, the agreement may produce nothing; if one payer is late, flow and obligation diverge. The hymns do not define usage rights or rates. This example shows why repeated deposits are not simply spontaneous abundance: they depend on distinct acts of use and the current contract that assigns a return.