Atharva Veda on Compassion

1. Right here do I erect a firm house: may it stand upon a (good) foundation, dripping with ghee! Thee may we inhabit, O house, with heroes all, with strong heroes, with uninjured heroes! 2. Right here, do thou, O house, stand firmly, full of horses, full of cattle, full of abundance! Full of sap, ful.] of ghee, full of milk, elevate thyself unto great happiness! 3. A supporter art thou, O house, with broad roof, containing purified grain! To thee may the calf come, to thee the child, to thee the milch-cows, when they return in the evening! 4. May Savitar, Vâyu, Indra, Brihaspati cunningly erect this house! Alay the Alaruts sprinkle it with moisture and with ghee; may king Bhaga let our ploughing take root! 5. O mistress of dwelling, as a sheltering and kindly goddess thou wast erected by the gods in the bealrinina; clothed in grass, be thou kindly disposed; give us, moreover, wealth along with heroes! 6. Do thou, O cross-beam, according to regulation ascend the post, do thou, mightily ruling, hold off the enemies! May they that approach thee reverently, O house, not suffer injury, may we with all our heroes live a hundred autumns! 7. Hither to this (house) hath come the tender child, hither the calf along with (the other) domestic animals; hither the vessel (full) of liquor, together with bowls of sour milk! 8. Carry forth, O woman, this full jar, a stream of ghee mixed with ambrosia! Do thou these drinkers supply with ambrosia; the sacrifice and the gifts (to the Brahmans) shall it (the house) protect! 9. These waters, free from disease, destructive of disease, do I carry forth. The chambers do I enter in upon together with the immortal Agni (fire).

1. Let me go, O evil; being powerful, take thou pity on us! Set me, O evil, unharmed, into the world of happiness! 2. If, O evil, thou dost not abandon us, then do we abandon thee at the fork of the road. May evil follow after another (man)! 3. Away from us may thousand-eyed, immortal (evil) dwell! Him whom we hate may it strike, and him whom we hate do thou surely smite!

Thy forest animals, the wild animals homed in the woods, the man-eating lions, and tigers that roam; the ula, the wolf, mishap, injury (rikshikâ), and demons (rakshas), O earth, drive away from us! 50. The Gandharvas, the Apsaras, the Arâyas and Kimîdins; the Pisâkas and all demons (rakshas), these, O earth, hold from us! 51. The earth upon whom the biped birds fly together, the flamingoes, eagles, birds of prey, and fowls; upon whom Mâtarisvan, the wind, hastens, raising the dust, and tossing the trees-as the wind blows forth and back the flame bursts after;-- 52. The earth upon whom day and night jointly, black and bright, have been decreed, the broad earth covered and enveloped with rain, shall kindly place us into every pleasant abode! 53. Heaven, and earth, and air have here given me expanse; Agni, Sûrya, the waters, and all the gods together have given me wisdom. 54. Mighty am I, 'Superior' (uttara) by name, upon the earth, conquering am I, all-conquering, completely conquering every region. 55. At that time, O goddess, when, spreading., (prathamânâ) forth, named (prithivî 'broad') by the gods, thou didst extend to greatness, then prosperity did enter thee, (and) thou didst fashion the four regions. 56. In the villages and in the wilderness, in the assembly-halls that are upon the earth; in the gatherings, and in the meetings, may we hold forth agreeably to thee! 57. As dust a steed did she, as soon as she was born, scatter these people, that dwelt upon the earth, she the lovely one, the leader, the guardian of the world, that holds the trees and plants. 58. The words I speak, honied do I speak them: the things I see they furnish me with. Brilliant I am and alert: the others that rush (against me) do I beat down. 59. Gentle, fragrant, kindly, with the sweet drink (kîlâla) in her udder, rich in milk, the broad earth together with (her) milk shall give us courage! 60.

1. Take hold of this (charm) that subjects to immortality (life), may thy life unto old age not be cut off! I bring to thee anew breath and life: not to mist and darkness, do not waste away! 2. Come hither to the light of the living; I rescue thee unto a life of a hundred autumns! Loosing the bands of death and imprecation, I bestow upon thee long life extended very far. 3. From the wind thy breath I have obtained, from the sun thine eye; thy soul I hold fast in thee: be together with thy limbs, speak articulating with thy tongue! 4. With the breath of two-footed and four-footed creatures I blow upon thee, as on Agni when he is born (as on fire when kindled). I have paid reverence, O death, to thine eye, reverence to thy breath. 5. This (man) shall live and shall not die: we rouse this man (to life)! I make for him a remedy: O death, do not slay the man! 6. The plant gîvalâ (quickening'), na-ghâ-rishâ ('forsooth-no-harm'), and gîvantî ('living), a victorious, mighty saviour-plant do I invoke, that he may be exempt from injury. 7. Befriend him, do not seize him, let him go, (O death); though he be thy very own, let him abide here with unimpaired strength! O Bhava and Sarva, take pity, grant Protection; misfortune drive away, and life bestow! 8. Befriend him, death, and pity him: may he from here arise! Unharmed, with sound limbs, hearing perfectly, through old age carrying a hundred years, let him get enjoyment by himself (unaided)! 9. The missile of the gods shall pass thee by! I pass thee across the mist (of death); from death I have rescued thee. Removing far the flesh-devouring Agni, a barrier do I set around thee, that thou mayest live. 10. From thy misty road that cannot be withstood, O death, from this path (of thine) we guard this (man), and make our charm a protection for him. 11. In-breathing and out-breathing. do I prepare for thee, death in old age, long life, and prosperity.

1. To the 'Ender,' to Death be reverence! May thy in-breathing and thy out-breathing remain here! United here with (life's) spirit this man shall be, sharing in the sun, in the world of immortality (amrita)! 2. Bhaga has raised him up, Soma with his rays (has raised) him up, the Maruts, the gods, (have raised) him up, Indra and Agni (have raised) him up unto well-being. 3. Here (shall be) thy (life's) spirit, here thy inbreathing, here thy life, here thy mind! We rescue thee from the toils of Nirriti (destruction) by means of our divine utterance. 4. Rise up hence, O man! Casting off the footshackles of death, do not sink down! Be not cut off from this world, from the sight of Agni and the sun! 5. The wind, Mâtarisvan, shall blow for thee, the waters shall shower amrita (ambrosia) upon thee, the sun shall shine kindly for thy body! Death shall pity thee: do not waste away! 6. Thou shalt ascend and not descend, O man! Life and alertness do I prepare for thee. Mount, forsooth, this imperishable, pleasant car; then in old age thou shalt hold converse with thy family! 7. Thy mind shall not go thither, shall not disappear! Do not become heedless of the living, do not follow the Fathers! All the gods shall preserve thee here! 8. Do not long after the departed, who conduct (men) afar! Ascend from the darkness, come to the light! We lay hold of thy hands. 9. The two dogs of Yama, the black and the brindled one, that guard the road (to heaven), that have been despatched, shall not (go after) thee! Come hither, do not long to be away; do not tarry here with thy mind turned to a distance! 10. Do not follow this path: it is terrible! I speak of that by which thou hast not hitherto gone. Darkness is this, O man, do not enter it! Danger is beyond, security here for thee. 11. May the fires that are within the waters gLiard thee, may (the fire) which men kindle guard thee, may Gâtavedas Vaisvânara (the fire common to all men) guard thee!

woman. 1. The (foul) mark, the lalâmî (with spot on the forehead), the Arâti (grudging demon), do we drive out. Then the (signs) that are auspicious (shall remain) with us; (yet) to beget offspring do we bring the Arâti! 2. May Savitar drive out uncouthness from her feet, may Varuna, Mitra, and Aryaman (drive it) out from her hands; may Anumati kindly drive it out for us! For happiness the gods have created this woman. 3. The fierceness that is in thyself, in thy body, or in thy look, all that do we strike away with our charm. May god Savitar prosper thee! 4. The goat-footed, the bull-toothed, her who scares the cattle, the snorting one, the vilîdhî (the driveling one), the lalâmî (with spot on the forehead), these do we drive from us.

She whom Visvakarman (the creator of all) did search out by means of oblations, when she had entered the surging (flood of the) atmosphere, she, the vessel destined to nourish, deposited in a secret place, became visible (to the gods) and the (heavenly) mothers. 61. Thou art the scatterer of men, the broadly expanding Aditi that yields milk according to wish. What is wanting in thee Pragâpati, first-born of the divine order (rita), shall supply for thee 62. Thy laps, O earth, free from ailment! Free from disease, shall be produced for us! May we attentively, throuoh our long lives, be bearers of bali-offerings to thee! 63. O mother earth, kindly set me down upon a well-founded place! With (father) heaven cooperating, O thou wise one, do thou place me into happiness and prosperity!

1. Through one creation at a time this (cow) was born, when the fashioners of the beings did create the cows of many colours. (Therefore), when a cow doth beget twins portentously, growling and cross she injureth the cattle. 2. This (cow) doth injure our cattle: a flesh-eater, devourer, she hath become. Hence to a Brahman he shall give her; in this way she may be kindly and auspicious! 3. Auspicious be to (our) men, auspicious to (our) cows and horses, auspicious to this entire field, auspicious be to us right here! 4. Here be prosperity, licre be sap! Be thou here one that especially gives a thousandfold! Make the cattle prosper, thou mother of twins! 5. Where our pious friends live joyously, having left behind the ailments of their bodies, to that world the mother of twins did attain: may she not injure our men and our cattle! 6. Where is the world of our pious friends, where the world of thern that sacrifice with the agnihotra, to that world the mother of twins did attain: may she not injure our imen and our cattle!

of fractures. 1. Rohan! art thou, causing to heal (rohanî), the broken bone thou causest to heal (rohanî): cause this here to heal (rohaya), O arundhatî! 2. That bone of thine which, injured and burst, exists in thy person, Dhâtar shall kindly knit together again, joint with joint! 3. Thy marrow shall unite with marrow, and thy joint (unite) with joint; the part of thy flesh that has fallen off, and thy bone shall grow together again! 4. Thy marrow shall be joined together with marrow, thy skin grow together with skin! Thy blood, thy bone shall grow, thy flesh grow together with flesh! 5. Fit together hair with hair, and fit together skin with skin! Thy blood, thy bone shall grow: what is cut join thou together, O plant! 6. Do thou here rise up, go forth, run forth, (as) a chariot with sound wheels, firm feloe, and strong nave; stand upright firmly! 7. If he has been injured by falling into a pit, or if a stone was cast and hurt him, may he (Dhâtar, the fashioner) fit him together, joint to joint, as the wagoner (Ribhu) the parts of a chariot!

1. Because of yore, when the (cloud-) serpent was slain (by Indra), ye did rush forth and shout (anadatâ), therefore is your name 'shouters' (nadyah rivers'): that is your designation, ye streams! 2. Because, when sent forth by Varuna, ye then quickly did bubble up; then Indra met (âpnot) you, as ye went, therefore anon are ye 'meeters' (âpah waters')! 3. When reluctantly ye flowed, Indra, forsooth, did with might choose (avîvarata) you as his own, ye goddesses! Therefore 'choice' (vâr 'water') has been given you as your name! 4. One god stood upon you, as ye flowed according to will. Up breathed (ud ânishuh) they who are known as 'the great' (mahîh). Therefore 'upbreather' (udakam 'water') are they called! 5. The waters are kindly, the waters in truth were ghee. These waters, truly, do support Agni and Soma. May the readily flowing, strong sap of the honey-dripping (waters) come to me, together with life's breath and lustre! 6. Then do I see them and also do I hear them; their sound, their voice doth come to me. When, ye golden-coloured, I have refreshed myself with you, then I ween, ambrosia (amrita) am I tasting! 7. Here, ye waters, is your heart, here is your calf, ye righteous ones! Come ye, mighty ones, by this way here, by which I am conducting you here!

1. Unity of heart, and unity of mind, freedom from hatred, do I procure for you. Do ye take delight in one another, as a cow in her (new-) born calf! 2. The son shall be devoted to his father, be of the same mind with his mother; the wife shall speak honied, sweet, words to her husband! 3. The brother shall not hate the brother, and the sister not the sister! Harmonious, devoted to the same purpose, speak ye words in kindly spirit! 4. That charm which causes the gods not to disagree, and not to hate one another, that do we prepare in your house, as a means of agreement for your folk. 5. Following your leader, of (the same) mind, do ye not hold yourselves apart! Do ye come here, co-operating, going along the same wagon-pole, speaking agreeably to one another! I render you of the same aim, of the same mind. 6. Identical shall be your drink, in common shall be your share of food! I yoke you together in the same traces: do ye worship Agni, joining together, as spokes around about the hub! 7. I render you of the same aim, of the same mind, all paying deference to one (person) through my harmonising charm. Like the gods that are guarding the ambrosia, may he (the leader) be welldisposed towards you, night and day!

May Indra and Agni, to whom belong the children (of men), protect us! 22. King Soma, who guards and pities us, and the lords of the beings shall take pity on us! 23. May Bhava and Sarva cast the lightning, the divine missile, upon him that performs evil, fashions a spell, and does wrong! 24. If thou art come two-footed, (or) four-footed, prepared by the fashioner of the spell, multiform, do thou, having become eight-footed, again go away from here, O misfortune! 25. Anointed, ornamented, and well equipped, go away, carrying every misfortune! Know, O spell, thy maker, as a daughter her own father! 26. Go away, O spell, do not stand still, track (the enemy) as a wounded (animal)! He is the game, thou the hunter: he is not able to put thee down. 27. Him that first hurls (the arrow), the other, laying on in defence, slays with the arrow, and while the first deals the blow, the other returns the blow. 28. Hear, verily, this speech of mine, and then return whence thou camest, against the one that fashioned thee! 29. Slaughter of an innocent is heinous, O spell: do not slay our cow, horse, or serving-man! Wherever thou hast been put down, thence thee do we remove. Be lighter than a leaf! 30. If ye are enveloped in darkness, covered as if by a net--we tear all spells out from here, send them back again to him that fashioned them. 31. The offspring of them that fashion the spell, practise magic, or plot against us, crush thou, O spell, leave none of them! Slay those that fashion the spell! 32. As the sun is released from darkness, abandons the night, and the streaks of the dawn, thus every misery, (every) device prepared by the fashioner of the spell, (every) misfortune, do I leave behind, as an elephant the dust.

Below the superior (region), above the inferior (region) here, the cow has arisen supporting (her) calf by the foot. Whither is she turned; to which half (of the universe), forsooth, has she aone away; where, forsooth, does she beget? Verily not in this herd! 42. One-footed, two-footed, four-footed is she; eight-footed, nine-footed became she, the thousand-syllabled (consisting of thousand elements) pankti (quinary stanza) of the universe: the oceans from her flow forth upon (the world). 43. Ascending the heaven, immortal, receive kindly my song! The sacrifices purified by prayer lead thee forth; the bay steeds that travel upon the road carry thee. 44. That do I know of thee, O immortal, where thy march is upon the sky, where thy habitation is in the highest heaven. 45. Sûrya (the sun) surveys the sky, Sûrya the earth, Sûrya the waters. Sûrya is the single eye of being: he has ascended the great heavens. 46. The broad (directions) where the fagots that fence in (the fire), the earth turned itself into a fire-altar. There Rohita laid on for himself these two fires, cold and heat. 47. Laying on cold and heat, using the mountains as sacrificial posts, the two fires of Rohita who knows the (heavenly) light, into which (the fires) rain (flowed) as ghee, carried out the sacrifice. 48. The fire of Rohita who knows the (heavenly) light is kindled by prayer. From it heat, from it cold, from it the sacrifice was produced. 49. The two fires swelling through prayer, increased through prayer, sacrificed into with prayer; the two fires of Rohita who knows the (heavenly) light, kindled through prayer, carried out the sacrifice. 50. One is deposited in truth, the other is kindled in the waters. The two fires of Rohita who knows the (heavenly) light, kindled through prayer, carried out the sacrifice. 51.

given as a fee to the Brahmans. 1. O Agni, come into being! Aditi here in her throes, longing for sons, is cooking the porridge for the Brahmans, The seven Rishis, that did create the beings, shall here churn thee, along with progeny! 2. Produce the smoke, ye lusty friends; unharmed by wiles go ye into the contest! Here is the Agni (fire) who gains battles, and commands powerful warriors, with whom the gods did conquer the demons. 3. O Agni, to a great heroic deed thou wast aroused, to cook the Brahman's porridge, O Gâtavedas! The seven Rishis, that did create the beings, have produced thee. Grant her (the wife) wealth together with undiminished heroes! 4. Burn, O Agni, after having been kindled by the firewood, bring skilfully hither the gods that are to be revered! Causing the oblation to cook for these (Brahmans), do thou raise this (sacrificer) to the highest firmament! 5. The, threefold share which was of yore assigned to you (belongs) to the gods, the (departed) Fathers, and to the mortals (the priests). Know your shares! I divide them for you: the (share) of the gods shall protect this (woman)! 6. O Agni, possessed of might, superior, thou dost without fail prevail! Bend down to the ground our hateful rivals!--This measure, that is being measured, and has been measured, may constitute thy kin into (people) that render thee tribute! 7. Mayest thou together with thy kin be endowed with sap! Elevate her (the wife) to great heroism! Ascend on high to the base of the firmament, which they call 'the world of brightness'! 8. This great goddess earth, kindly disposed, shall receive the (sacrificial) skin! Then may we go to the world of well-doing (heaven)! 9. Lay these two press-stones, well coupled, upon the skin; crush skilfully the (soma-) shoots for the sacrificer! Crush down, (O earth), and beat down, those who are hostile to her (the wife); lift up high, and elevate her offspring! 10.

With the flesh-devouring Agni do we burn our rivals. 30. Smite them down, O Indra, with the thunderbolt, with thy (strong) arm! Then have I overpowered my rivals with Agni's brilliant strengths. 31. O Agni, subject our rivals to us; confuse, O Brihaspati, the kinsman that is puffed up! O Indra and Agni, O Mitra and Varuna, subjected they shall be, unable to vent their wrath against 32. Do thou, god Sûrya (the sun), when thou risest, beat down my rivals, beat them down with a stone: they shall go to the nethermost darkness! 33. The calf of Virâg, the bull of prayers, carrying the bright (soma) upon his back, has ascended the atmosphere. A song accompanied by ghee they sing to the calf; himself brahma (spiritual exaltation) they swell him with their brahma (prayer). 34. Ascend the heavens, ascend the earth sovereignty ascend thou, and possessions ascend thou! Offspring ascend thou, and immortality ascend thou, unite thy body with Rohita! 35. The gods that hold sovereignty, who go about the sun, with these allied, Rohita, kindly disposed, shall bestow sovereignty upon thee! 36. The sacrifices purified by prayer lead thee forth; the bay steeds that travel upon the road carry thee: thou shinest across the swelling ocean. 37. In Rohita who conquers wealth, conquers cattle, and conquers booty, heaven and earth are fixed. Of thee that hast a thousand and seven births, let me announce the origin over the extent of the world! 38. Glorious thou goest to the intermediate directions and the directions (of space), glorious (in the sight) of animals and the tribes of men, glorious in the lap of the earth, of Aditi: may I like Savitar be lovely! 39. Being yonder thou knowest (what takes place) here; being here thou beholdest these things. Here (men) behold the inspired sun that shines upon the sky. 40. A god thou praisest the gods, thou movest within the flood. They kindle (him), a universal fire; him the highest sages know. 41.

All the messengers of Yama, that roam about, dispatched by Vivasvant's son, do I drive away. 12. Arâti (grudge), Nirriti (destruction), Grâhi (seizure), and the flesh-devouring Pisâkas (do we drive) away to a distance, and hurl all wicked Rakshas away into darkness as it were. 13. I crave thy life's breath from the immortal, life-possessing Agni Gâtavedas. That thou shalt not take harm, shalt be immortal in (Agni's) company, that do I procure for thee, and that shall be fulfilled for thee! 14. May heaven and earth, the bestowers of happiness, be auspicious and harmless to thee; may the sun-shine, and the wind blow comfort to thy heart; may the heavenly waters, rich in milk, flow upon thee kindly! 15. May the plants be auspicious to thee! I have raised thee from the lower to the upper earth: there may both the Âdityas, the sun and the moon,. protect thee. 16. Whatever garment for clothing, or whatever girdle thou makest for thyself, agreeable to thy body do we render it; not rough to thy touch shall it be! 17. When thou, the barber, shearest with thy sharp well-whetted razor our hair and beard, do not, while cleansing our face, rob us of our life! 18. Rice and barley shall be auspicious to thee, causing no balâsa, inflicting no injury! They two drive away disease, they two release from calamity. 19. Whatever thou eatest or drinkest, the grain of the plough-land or milk, whatever is or is not to be eaten, all that food do I render for thee free from poison. 20. To day and to night both do we commit thee: from the demons that seek to devour, do ye preserve this (man) for me! 21. A hundred years, ten thousand years, two, three, four ages (yuga) do we allot to thee; Indra and Agni, and all the gods without anger shall favour thee! 22. To autumn thee, to winter, spring and summer, do we commit; the rains in which grow the plants shall be pleasant to thee! 23. Death rules over bipeds, death rules over quadrupeds.

Upon whom the seers of yore, that created the beings, brought forth with their songs the cows, they the seven active (priests), by means of the satra-offerings, the sacrifices, and (their) creative fervour (tapas);-- 40. May this earth point out to us the wealth that we-crave; may Bhaga (fortune) add his help, may Indra come here as (our) champion! 41. The earth upon whom the noisy mortals sing and dance, upon whom they fight, upon whom resounds the roaring drum, shall drive forth our enemies, shall make us free from rivals! 42. To the earth upon whom are food, and rice and barley, upon whom live these five races of men, to the earth, the wife of Parganya, that is fattened by rain, be reverence! 43. The earth upon whose ground the citadels constructed by the gods unfold themselves, every region of her that is the womb of all, Pragâpati shall make pleasant for us! 44. The earth that holds treasures manifold in secret places, wealth, jewels, and gold shall she give to me; she that bestows wealth liberally, the kindly goddess, wealth shall she bestow upon 45. The earth that holds people of manifold varied speech, of different customs, according to their habitations, as a reliable milch-cow that does not kick, shall she milk for me a thousand streams of wealth! 46. The serpent, the scorpion with thirsty fangs, that hibernating torpidly lies upon thee; the worm, and whatever living thing, O earth, moves in the rainy season, shall, when it creeps, not creep upon us: with what is auspicious (on thee) be gracious to us! 47. Thy many paths upon which people go, thy tracks for chariots and wagons to advance, upon which both good and evil men proceed, this road, free from enemies, and free from thieves, may we gain: with what is auspicious (on thee) be gracious to us! 48. The earth holds the fool and holds the wise, endures that good and bad dwell (upon her); she keeps company with the boar, gives herself up to the wild hog. 49.

All thy climbings, advances, and all thy ascents with which thou, (Rohita, the sun), fillest the heavens and the atmosphere, having strengthened thyself with their brahma and payas (spiritual and physical essence) do thou keep awake (do thou watch over) among the people in the kingdom of the (earthly) Rohita (the king)! 10. The peoples that have originated from thy tapas (heat, or creative fervour), have followed here the calf, the gâyatri. They shall enter thee with kindly spirit; the calf Rohita with its mother shall come on! 11. High on the firmament Rohita has stood, a youth, a sage, begettinu all forms. As Agni he shines with piercing light, in the third space he did assume lovely (forms). 12. A bull with a thousand horns, Gâtavedas (fire), endowed with sacrifices of ghee, carrying soma upon his back, rich in heroes, he shall, when implored, not abandon me, nor may I abandon thee: abundance in cattle and abundance in heroes procure for me! 14. Rohita is the generator of the sacrifice, and its mouth; to Rohita I offer oblations with voice, ear, and mind. To Rohita the gods resort with glad mind: he shall cause me to rise through elevation derived from the assembly! 14. Rohita arranged a sacrifice for Visvakarman; from it these brilliant, qualities have come to me. Let me announce thy origin over the extent of the world! 15, Upon thee have ascended the brihatî and the pankti (metres), upon thee the kakubh with splendour, O Gâtavedas. Upon thee the vashat-call, whose syllables make an ushnihâ, has ascended, upon thee Rohita with his seed has ascended. 16. This one clothes himself in the womb of the earth, this one clothes himself in heaven, and in the atmosphere. This one at the station of the brown (sun) did attain unto the worlds of light. 17. O Vâkaspati (lord of speech), the earth shall be pleasant to us, pleasant our dwelling, agrecable our couches! Right here life's breath shall be to our friend; thee, O Parameshthin, Agni shall envelop in life and lustre!

transmission of disease. 1. In the essence of earthly bliss, O ye gods, in strength of body (may he live)! May Agni, Sûrya, Brihaspati bestow upon him life's vigour! 2. Give life to him, O Gâtavedas, bestow in addition progeny upon him, O Tvashtar; procure, O Savitar, increase of wealth for him; may this one, who belongs to thee, live a hundred autumns! 3. May our prayer bestow upon us vigour, and possession of sound. progeny; ability and property do ye two, (O heaven and earth), bestow upon us!, May he, conquering lands with might, (live), O Indra, subjecting the others, his enemies! 4. Given by Indra, instructed by Varuna, sent by the Maruts, strong, he has come to us; may he, in the lap of ye two, heaven and earth, not suffer from hunger and not from thirst! 5. Strength may ye two, that are rich in strength, bestow upon him; milk may ye two, that are rich in milk, bestow upon him! Strength heaven and earth did bestow upon him; strength all the gods, the Maruts, and the waters. 6. With the gracious (waters) do I delight thy heart, mayest thou, free from disease, full of force, rejoice! Clothed in the same garment do ye two drink this stirred drink, taking on as a magic form the shape of the two Asvins! 7. Indra, having been wounded, first created this vigour, and this ever fresh divine food: that same belongs to thee. By means of that do thou, full of force, live (a hundred) autumns; may it not flow out of thee: physicians have prepared it for thee! PRAYERS FOR LONG LIFE AND HEALTH (ÂYUSHYÂNI).

1. For thee alone, O (death from) old age, this (boy) shall grow up: the other hundred kinds of death shall not harm him! Like a provident mother in her lap Mitra shall befriend him, shall save him from misfortune! 2. May Mitra or Varuna, the illustrious, cooperating, grant him death from old age! Then Agni, the priest, who knows the ways, promulgates all the races of the gods. 3. Thou, (O Agni), rulest over all the animals of the earth, those which have been born, and those which are to be born: may not in-breathing leave this one, nor yet out-breathing, may neither friends nor foes slay him! 4. May father Dyaus (sky) and mother Prithivi (earth), co-operating, grant thee death from old age, that thou mayest live in the lap of Aditi a hundred winters, guarded by in-breathing and outbreathing! 5. Lead this dear child to life and vigour, O Agni, Varuna, and king Mitra! As a mother afford him protection, O Aditi, and all ye gods, that he may attain to old age!

1. The gods are free from decrepitude; thou, O Agni, art removed from the demon of hostility. I free thee from all evil and disease, (and) unite thee with life. 2. (Vâyu), the purifying (wind), shall free thee from misfortune, Sakra (Indra) from evil sorcery! I free thee from all evil and disease, (and) unite thee with life. 3. The tame (village) animals are separate from the wild (forest animals); the water has flowed apart from thirst. I free thee from all evil and disease, (and) unite thee with life. 4. Heaven and earth here go apart; the paths go in every direction. I free thee from all evil and disease, (and) unite thee with life. 5. 'Tvashtar is preparing a wedding for his daughter,' thus (saying) does this whole world pass through. I free thee from all evil and disease, (and) unite thee with life. 6. Agni unites (life's) breaths, the moon is united with (life's) breath. I free thee from all evil and disease, (and) unite thee with life. 7. By means of (life's) breath the gods aroused the everywhere mighty sun. I free thee from all evil and disease, (and) unite thee with life. 8. Live thou by the (life's) breath of them that have life, and that create life; do not die! I free thee from all evil and disease, (and) unite thee with life. 9. Breathe thou with the (life's) breath of those that breathe; do not die! I free thee from all evil and disease, (and) unite thee with life. 10. Do thou (rise) up with life, unite thyself with life, (rise) up with the sap of the plants! I free thee from all evil and disease, (and) unite thee with life. 11. From the rain of Parganya we have risen up, immortal. I free thee from all evil and disease, (and) unite thee with life.

1. The eyes of us two shine like honey, our foreheads gleam like ointment. Place me within thy heart; may one mind be in common to us both!

1. As the wind tears this grass from the surface of the earth, thus do I tear thy soul, so that thou, woman, shalt love, shalt not be averse to me! 2. If ye, O two Asvins, shall unite and bring together the loving pair-united are the fortunes of,both of you (lovers), united the thoughts, united the purposes! 3. When birds desire to chirp, lustily desire to chirp, may my call go there, as an arrow-point upon the shaft! 4. What is within shall be without, what is without shall be within! Take captive, O herb, the, soul of the maidens endowed with every chai-m! 5. Longing for a husband this woman hath come, I have come longing for a wife, As a loudly neighing horFe I have attained to my good fortune!

1. As the creeper embraces the tree on all sides, thus do thou embrace me, so that thou, woman, shalt love me, so that thou shalt not be averse to me! 2. As the eagle when he flies forth presses his wings against the earth, thus do I fasten down thy mind, so that thou, woman, shalt love me, so that thou shalt not be averse to me. 3. As the sun day by day goes about this heaven and earth, thus do I go about thy mind, so that thou, woman, shalt love me, so that thou shalt not be: averse to me.

1. Clinging to the ground thou didst grow, (O plant), that producest bliss for me; a hundred branches extend from thee, three and thirty grow down from thee: with this plant of a thousand leaves thy heart do I parch. 2. Thy heart shall parch (with love) for me, and thy mouth shall parch (with love for me)! Languish, moreover, with love for me, with parched mouth pass thy days! 3. Thou that causest affection, kindlest (love), brown, lovely (plant), draw (us) together; draw together yonder woman and myself, our hearts make the same! 4. As the mouth of him that hath not drunk dries tip, thus languish thou with love for me, with parched mouth pass thy days! 5. As the Ichneumon tears the serpent, and joins him together again, thus, O potent (plant), join together what hath been torn by love!

1. May your bodies be united, may your mindg and your purposes (be united)! Brahmanaspati here has brought you together, Bhaga has brought you together. 2. Harmony of mind (I procure) for you, and also harmony of heart. Moreover with the aid of Bhaga's exertions do I cause you to agree. 3. As the Âdityas are united with the Vasus, as the fierce (Rudras), free from grudge, with the Maruts, thus, O three-named (Agni), without grudge, do thou render these people here of the same mind!

1. May we be in harmony with our kinfolk, in harmony with strangers; do ye, O Asvins, establish here agreement among us! 2. May we agree in mind and thought, may we not struggle with one another, in a spirit displeasing to the gods! Ma not the din of frequent battle-carnage arise, may the arrow not fly when the day of Indra has arrived!

1. Do ye agree, unite yourselves, may your minds be in harmony, just as the gods of old in harmony-. sat down to their share! 2. Same be their counsel, same their assembly, same their aim, in common their thought! The 'same' oblation do I sacrifice for you: do ye enter upon the same plan! Same be your intention, same your hearts! Same be your mind, so that it may be perfectly in common to you!

1. As the bowstring from the bow, thus do I take off thy anger from thy heart, so that, having become of the same mind, we shall associate like friends! 2. Like friends we shall associate-I take off thy anger. Under a stone that is heavy do we cast thy anger. 3. I step upon thy anger with my heel and my fore-foot, so that, bereft of will, thou shalt not speak, shalt come up to my wish!

We shout to the hero with hymn and song we (shout) with a pleasing song. Take delight in our songs; may we not ever suffer harm! COSMOGONIC AND THEOSOPHIC HYMNS.

The earth which the Asvins have measured, upon which Vishnu has stepped out, which Indra, the lord of might, has made friendly to himself; she, the mother, shall pour forth milk for me, the son! 11. Thy snowy mountain heights, and thy forests, O earth, shall be kind to us! The brown, the black, the red, the multi-coloured, the firm earth, that is protected by Indra, I have settled upon, not suppressed, not slain, not wounded. 12. Into thy rniddle set us, O earth, and into thy navel, into the nourishing strength that has grown tip from thy body; purify thyself for us! The earth is the mother, and I the son of the earth; Paro-anya is the father; he, too, shall save us! 13. The earth upon which they (the priests) inclose the altar (vedi), upon which they, devoted to all (holy) works, unfold the sacrifice, upon which are set up, in front of the sacrifice, the sacrificial posts, erect and brilliant, that earth shall prosper us, herself prospering! 14. Him that hates us, O earth, him that battles against us, him that is hostile towards us with his mind and his weapons, do thou subject to us, anticipating (our wish) by deed! 15. The mortals born of thee live on thee, thou supportest both bipeds and quadrupeds. Thine, O earth, are these five races of men, the mortals, upon whom the rising sun sheds undying light with his rays. 16. These creatures all together shall yield milk for us; do thou, O earth, give us the honey of speech! 17. Upon the firm, broad earth, the all-begetting mother of the plants, that is supported by (divine) law, upon her, propitious and kind, may we ever pass-our lives! 18. A great gathering-place thou, great (earth), hast become; great haste, commotion, and agitation are upon thee. Great Indra protects thee unceasingly. Do thou, O earth, cause us to brighten as if at the sight of gold: not any one shall hate us! 19.