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The Atharvanic magic is a complex phenomenon and is usually made up of several constituent elements. The first and foremost among these elements is of course the mantras. It is mainly with their help that magic is effected. The magical potency of the words in the mantras is best brought out by H.Webster who points out that the utilization of occult power requires a vocal expression of the operator's will, that is a spell or incantation. If there is power in wish, how much more in words! Speech wings its way to destination, it carries the wish home. 8. The spell or uttered "must", as Marett says, will tend to embody the very life and soul of 8. Magic, A sociological study, p.92.

521 the affair. Nothing initiates an imperative more clearly, cutting it away from the formative matrix of thought and launching it on its free career, than the spoken word. It is the very type of a spiritual projectile. 9 It is further believed that the magical potence belongs to the sound of the word rather than to its sense. This might explain the occurrence of many apparently meaningless words in the mantras Indeed it seems to have been 10 11 The assumed that the greater the obscurity of sense, the greater is the magical efficacy of a mantra. The repitition of certain words is also regarded as conducive to greater effects peculiar sound produced by the words in the mantras is traditionally believed to be producing a distinct atmosphere of magic which endows the action done or the desire entertained in that atmosphere with great efficaciousness. It is for this reason that not a word, nor even a letter or an accent, is allowed to be changed in the mantras. In the Rgveda a prayer is very significantly characterised as the inner armour The poet has full faith in the power 9. 10. 12 Folk-lore XV, p.150. e.g. phat (Rgveda X.87.13, Cf. Atharvaveda-Parisistas 40.2.8), Vasat (Satapatha Brahmana 1.5.2. 18; 1.6.3.28; Aitareya Brahmana III.5-8; Gopatha Brahmana II.3.2), him (Satapatha Brahmana II.4.11. 12), brhat (Satapatha Brahmana IV.3.3.1), also words like tabuva and tastuva (Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension V.13.11). 11. Incidentally it may be pointed out that certain numbers also are regarded as possessing magic significance. Cf. Keith, Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanisads , p.393. 12. brahma varma mama 'ntaram: Rgveda Vedic Index 75.19; cf. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension I.19.4.

522 of his prayer. While uttering the mantra, the poet-priest is fully confident of the potency of his speech. He consoles the dying man by saying, "Here is your life, here your breath, here your life-period, here your mind. I release you from the snares of Nirrti by my divine speech (Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension VIII.1.3)." He is confident of killing the germs that cause diseases merely 13 A hymn may be used for sorcery and by the power of speech. in such a case "a s curse alone purely vocal is quoted as a 14 mind weapon. 'By this truth' a knight is slain', this is Atharvan magic, pure and simple. "15 emphasize the power of speech. 16 The Brahmanas also "It is with speech that I drive away Nirrti" says a poet. Such confidence in the magic power of the mantras, indeed, constitutes the very basis of their magical employment. It It needs to be pointed out here that the Vedic mantras, which were originally intended, in the hieratic religion, as prayers for propitating gods, came to be employed in the popular religion as magic spells. It was assumed that these mantras themselves were magically so potent that even the gods, to whom they were related, could not go against them 17.] 13. Krimin vacasa jambhayamasi: Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension II.31.2,4.Cf.Gopatha Brahmana II.1.10: vag ghi sastram. 14. 15. Cf. Luders, "Magic potence of Truth", Zeitschrift der deuschen morgenlandischen Gesellschaft 98. E.W.Hopkins, "The position of the ruling caste in ancient India", Journal of the American Oriental Society XIII, p.313. 16. paracim vaca nirrtim nudami: Taittiriya Brahmana III.1.2.3. 17. Macdonell ("Hymn as prayer and spell", Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics XII, p.50) says in this connection: "This may vouchsafe for the degradation of Vedic hymn from the 'higher side of religion' to the 'lower side of religion'.

523 The fact that purely magical significance came to be ascribed to many of the mantras by usage is quite evident. For example, Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension IV.16 is used as an imprecation. It is actually a hymn addressed to Varuna. Roth says about this hymn: "There is no other hymn in the entire Vedic literature which presents divine omniscience in terms so emphatic, and yet this beautiful fabric has been degraded to serve as an introduction 18 to an imprecation." The first five stanzas of this hymn glorify the greatness of Varuna. The sixth and the seventh verses implore the God to fetter a person who indulges in falsehood and to release a truthful person. The eighth and the ninth stanzas together constitute an imprecatory formula, which pins down the person against whom the imprecation is directed, by naming him as the son of so and so; he is to be caught in the snares of Varuna. Thus we find that stanzas which were originally meant as mantras in the sense of prayers came to be regarded as mantras in the sense of 'magical formulas' Similar is also the case with many cosmogonic and theosophic hymns, as for instance with the hymn addressed to Kama (Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension XIX 52). There are other hymns in which plants, herbs etc. are deified, mysterious power is ascribed to them and they are used for magical and medicinal purposes. 18. Abhandlung uber den Atharvaveda, p. 30. Roth continues: "One may surmise, however, in this case as well as in the case of many other parts of this Veda, that fragments of older hymns have been utilised to deck out charms for sorcery."

524 In addition to the use of speech (in the form of the mantras), the Atharvanic magician employs various objects animate as well as inanimate. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension V.31 mentions a number of such objects. They are: an unbaked earthen pot, mixed corn, raw flesh, a cock, a goat, a sheep, animals with single hoofs, animals having a double set of teeth, an ass, a rootless plant, fire, dice etc. Elsewhere in the Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension we also come across various kinds of corns which are used for magical purpose. , and beans are some of them. Similarly we 21 22 23 24 Yava 19, sesame 20 come across plants like apamarga, prani parni , rohani etc. There are also mentioned various kinds of amulets (pratisara) 25 19. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension II.8.3; Vedic Index 30.1 etc. "The power of Yava lies in the name yava which is constantly connected in the Vedic mind with the root yu 'to restrain' (demons)." Keith, Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanisads , p.420. 20. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension II.8.33; Vedic Index 140.2. Sesame are used for curing hereditary diseases. 21. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension XII.2.53. Beans are employed for curing yaksma. 22. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension IV.17-19; VII.65. The power of Apamarga lies in its name derived from apa mri 'to wipe away' (Cf.VI, I, pp. 25-26). It is called punahsara as its reverted leaves are supposed to make a spell recoil (Cf. Zimmer, 23. 23 + Altindisches Leben, p.66). Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension II.25. It is used against abortion. 24. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension IV.12. The herb is used for healing a serious wound. 25. See Gonda, "Altind. pratisara, sraj und Verwandtes", Acta Orientails XV, 1937; also "alamkara" New Indian Antiquary I, pp. 97 ff.; "utsava", India Antiqua (1947), pp. 146-55.

26 525 27 29 made of jangida darbha sankha 28 audumbara and 2 varana 30. The Atharvan believes that these objects possess a peculiar magical potence which can be made effective through the various rites. The two Parisistas of the Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension (35-36) which deal with magic, mention a number of other things to be employed in sorcery. They are used as fuel for the magical fire, for anointing the fire-sticks, for offerings, for making a curna with which the enemy is to be touched or for making an image representing the foe. The magical fire is kindled and made to flare up by means of fire-sticks derived from the following plants and trees: 1) Arka 2) Palasa 3) Suresvari 4) Tagara 5) Kustha 6) Mansi 7) Khadira 8) Udumbara 9) Bilva and 10) Sirisa. Reeds, canes and durvas also are used. It is prescribed that the fire-sticks should be anointed with the following substances: 1) clarified butter 2) jaggery 3) curds 4) bitter oil 5) milk (of a cow) 6) honey 7) milk of a goat 8) blood 9) poison and 10) the juice coming out of the tree Arka when it is cut. Among the objects to be 26. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension XIX.34-35. The jangida-amulet is used against sorcery perpetrated by the enemies. 27. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension XIX.28-30, 32-33. It is fastened for securing a long happy life. 28. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension IV.10. The Samkha is used as an amulet for protection against sin. 29. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension XIX.31. The audumbara-mani is prescribed for the prosperity of cattle. 30. Atharvaveda, Saunakiya recension X.3. This amubet is used for destroying the enemies.

526 offered on the fire in a magical rite are mentioned: 1) black mustard 2) salt 3) hairs of a dog 4) kukusa 5) coriander seeds (tumbara) 6) parched grain 7) onions 8) garlic 9) mire (utkarana) from a lotus-pond and similar other things. A number of strange substances are listed in the Parisistas substances which are to be finely powdered and mixed up together. These mixtures are used for various magical purposes. These substances include 1) the flesh of a dead animal 2) faded flowers (over a dead body) 3) ashes from the cemetery 4) mustard 5) red arsenic 6) the ichor of an elephant and several other plants and herbs. Then there is the mention of a stake or a wedge made of the wood of Khadira tree (36.16.1) or of a reed (36.6.2) which is to be implanted in the house of the enemy. Also the horn of a cow is similarly made use of (36.29.1). One of the most important aspects of the Atharvanic magic involves the making of an image of the enemy and the piercing or the burning of it. It corresponds to what may be called iconic magic which makes use of effigies, models or other representations of anything to be affected magically; these representations serve as something upon which one can vent his emotions whether of affection or of envy and hatred. The Parisistas prescribe that the image of the enemy, who is 31. These have been described in the sequel. 32. Cf. Hutton Webster, op. cit, p. 70.

527 to be destroyed, should be made of finely powdered black mustard (35.1.6) or of the flour of rice or black gram (masa) (36.5.1,3). It may also be made of earth 33 (33.6.6). Even the mere writing of the name of the enemy and the piercing of it with the nails of the hand is said to be sufficient to make him ill or go mad (Atharvaveda-Parisistas 36.8.1).