Atharva Veda — Hymns for Everyday Life, Health and Protection
The Atharva Veda: hymns for healing, protection, prosperity, marriage, kingship and the earth — including the Bhumi Sukta — and the Mundaka, Mandukya and Prashna Upanishads.
The Veda of daily life
Named after the rishis Atharvan and Angiras, the Atharva Veda has about 730 hymns (around 6,000 verses) in 20 books. Where the other Vedas focus on the great sacrifices, it speaks to everyday concerns: curing illness, protection from danger, harmony in the family, success in farming and trade, marriage and funeral rites, and the duties of kings. Traditional medicine (Ayurveda) is regarded as an upaveda connected with it.
The Bhumi Sukta
The 63-verse Bhumi Sukta (Prithvi Sukta, 12.1) is a hymn to Mother Earth — "Earth is my mother, I am her son" (mata bhumih putro aham prithivyah) — and is often quoted for its reverence for nature and its welcome to people "of many languages and many customs".
Two recensions
The Shaunaka recension is the most widely known; the Paippalada survives in manuscripts from Kashmir and Odisha and in a living tradition in Odisha.
Upanishads
The Mundaka ("satyameva jayate" — truth alone triumphs, India's national motto, comes from Mundaka 3.1.6), the Mandukya (on Om and the four states of consciousness; source of "ayam atma brahma") and the Prashna Upanishads belong to the Atharva Veda.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Atharva Veda about?
Hymns for everyday life — health, protection, prosperity, marriage, kingship and the earth — along with philosophical hymns.
Where does "Satyameva Jayate" come from?
From the Mundaka Upanishad (3.1.6), which belongs to the Atharva Veda.
More sanatana dharma — hinduism, vedas & upanishads
- What Is Sanatana Dharma? Hinduism Explained Simply
- Core Beliefs of Hinduism — Dharma, Karma, Samsara, Moksha, Atman and Brahman
- The Four Purusharthas and Four Ashramas — Goals and Stages of Life
- Hindu Scriptures — Shruti and Smriti: Vedas, Upanishads, Gita, Epics and Puranas
- The Four Vedas — Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva Veda Explained
- Rig Veda — The Oldest Veda: Hymns, Gods and Famous Suktas
- Yajur Veda — The Veda of Ritual: Shukla and Krishna Yajur Veda
- Sama Veda — The Veda of Song and the Roots of Indian Music
- The Upanishads — Principal Upanishads, Mahavakyas and Their Teaching
- The Six Schools of Hindu Philosophy (Shad Darshana)
- Ramayana, Mahabharata and the 18 Puranas — Hindu Epics Explained
- Hindu Traditions — Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Shaktism and Smartism
- The 16 Samskaras — Hindu Rites of Passage from Birth to Death