Women in the Atharva-veda Samhita

by Pranab Jyoti Kalita | 2017 | 62,142 words

This page relates ‘6e. Hymn to Cause to Return of a Truant Woman’ of the study on women in the Vedic society reflecting the Atharva-veda Samhita in English. These pages discusses the social aspects of women, education, customs of marriage, practices of polyandry and polygamy, descriptions of female deities and various rites and rituals. It is shown how women earned much praise in ancient Indian society. Included are Sanskrit text and references of the Atharvaveda and commentary by Sayana-Acharya.

6e. Hymn to Cause to Return of a Truant Woman

[Full title: 6. Hymns Related to Love and Jealousy (e): Hymn to Cause to Return of a Truant Woman]

In case of the woman, who absconds from her husband’s house, then, to cause the return of such a woman, Jātavedas is eulogized in the hymn, starting with the mantra, asthād dyau[1] …, etc. It is stated here that as the Heaven stands according to the laws of the Almighty God, as the earth do so and the mountains also and even the entire universe maintains the same laws, likewise, a husband also wants to bind his wife within the house.[2] Comparing himself to a horseman, who ties the vicious horses with the rope, the man declares to bind his wife within the house.[3] With this purpose, he calls the god who has control of departure, control of coming home and return.[4]

Further, he lauds Jātavedas to bring back the truant woman.[5] He prays him to apply all his hundred ways through which he may cause the return of the eloping woman.[6] The man calls Jātavedas to bring his wife to him by means of his thousands of modes.[7]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Atharvaveda, 6.77

[2]:

asthād dyaurasthāt pṛthivyasthād viśvamidaṃ jagat / āsthāne parvatā asthu sthāmnyaśvā atiṣṭhipam // Ibid., 6.77.1

[3]:

yathā duṣṭān aśvān sādino rajjubhirbadhnanti tadvat / yadvā sthāmni sthāne gṛhe aśvāniva tvām anena karmaṇā sthāpayāmi / Sāyaṇa, Ibid.

[4]:

Atharvaveda, 6.77.2

[5]:

jātavedo ni vartaya … / Ibid., 6.77.3

[6]:

śataṃ te santvāvṛtaḥ / Ibid. te tava śatasaṃkhyakāḥ āvartanopāyāḥ śatam śatasaṃkhyākāḥ asmin viṣaye santu bhavantu / Sāyaṇa, Ibid.

[7]:

sahasraṃ ta upāvṛtastābhirnaḥ punarā kṛdhi / Atharvaveda, 6.77.3 tathā sahasram / sahasrasaṃkhyākāḥ te tvadīyā upāvṛtaḥ samīpadeśaprāptyupāyāḥ santu bhavantu / tābhirāvṛdbhiḥ naḥ asmākam imāṃ striyaṃ punarā kṛdhi abhimukhīṃ kuru / Sāyaṇa, Ibid.

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