WRITTEN BY LONDON SWAMINATHAN
Post No. 10,453
Date uploaded in London – – 16 DECEMBER 2021
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How did Vedic seers find magical herbs?. There are lots of names of herbs in the Vedas, particularly Atharvana Veda. Vedic seers might have found the herbs by intuition or trial and error methods. But a few Suktas/hymns clearly show that they found the magical herbs by watching animals like mongoose, boar and snakes.
Tamils used Tiger nail and tiger tooth as amulets. Veera Shivaji of Maharashtra used tiger claws to kill his enemy Afzal Khan. But thousands of years before the Tamils, this Vedic hymn refers to Tiger Amulet. All amulets are referred to as ‘Mani’ in Vedas.
There is a belief among the the Tamil Siddhas (medicine men cum miracle men) that the the mongoose gained its anti dote to poison from the Arukam Pul . They have watched mogoose going back to the field where there is more Arukam pul and come back to fight the snake; eventually the snake is killed; mongoose survived. This grass has magical powers.
Cynodon Dactylon = Arukam Pul in Tamil; Duurvaa, Dhoob in Sanskrit
Vedic seers, who lived long ago, also wondered how the mongose survives after biting highly venomous cobra and other snakes. Then they found out that the secret lies in the medicinal grass.
They have been observing eagles bringing the magical Soma herb. Throughout the Vedas, they have been singing about eagles bringing Soma herb. Now in this hymn Vedci seers praise the animals for brinhg herbs.
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My Comments
First let me draw your attention to the important messages inthe 28 mantra hymn.
Mantra 14
Tiger amulet : Tamil epic Silappadikaram, dated 2nd century CE, refers to Tiger Tooth Amulet in Tamil Nadu. Later Peria Puranam also refers to it in the Kannappa Nayanar episode. Atharvana Veda called it ‘Vaiyagro Mani’. (Vyaagra becomes Tiger in English)
Rama is praised as Tiger among Men by Valmiki. That sloka of Valmiki is used in Tirupati Venkateswara Subrapatha as the first sloka.
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Mantra 23
Wild boars find the roots just by smelling. They are very quick in identifying the edible roots.
Mongoose- Also referred in VI-139-5
Mantra 23 says,
” Well doth the wild boar know a Plant, the mongoose knows the Healing Herb.
I call , to aid this man, the Plants which the serpents and Gandharvas know.
This mantra and other mantras proove that the Vedic seers observed the animals and learnt many herbal secrets.
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Mantra 2
It says the Father of the herb- Heaven, Mother – Earth and the Root- Sea.
Wherver the word ‘sea’ comes, interpreters say it is ‘Sky’ or water in the sky, in the form of clouds. But there may be other meanings. We need to look for a better interprtation.
Mantra 16
It priases the mysterious Soma plant.
Mantra 21
Addressed the herbs as HEALING PLANTS. They are called Children of Prisini/earth.
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Mantra 20
It praises Asvaththa (Ficus religiosa which he Buddha used to attain wisdom), Darba, King of Herbs Soma, barley and rice.
Asvaththa or Peepul is praised through out the Vedas. Dharba grass is used in every Brahmin house even today without which they cant do any ritual.
Sticks of Asvaththa are used as fuel in Havan or Yaga or Yagna
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Mantra 6
A plant called Arundhati is also mentioned in many hymns. It is identified as Silachi. It is also in IV-12-1; V-5; VI-I-59-1
Mantra 9
The herb AVAKA is identified as Blyxa octandra; it is also mentioned in IV-37-8
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Mantra 28
Foreigners culd not explain this and rejected it as FANCIFUL EPITHETS. No body knows the exact meaning of Five Arrows and Ten Arrows; We have to do more research. All numbers such 99 rivers, 9+90 rivers, 3, 330, 3330 Gods are all ignored by foreigners.
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Theme of the Mantra according to commentators:-
The hymn, which extols the excellence of Medicinal Herbs, is an incantation designed to restore a sick man to health.
This verse can be compared with the Rig Vedic hymn 10-97, Praise of Herbs.
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FULL HYMN:–
Hymns of the Atharva Veda, by Ralph T.H. Griffith, [1895], at sacred-texts.com
HYMN VII; ATHARVANA VEDA; BOOK 8; SUKTA 440 ; MEDICINES
A charm to restore a sick man to health
1.The tawny-coloured, and the pale, the variegated and the red,
The dusky-tinted, and the black,—all Plants we summon hither-
ward.
2..This man let them deliver from Consumption which the Gods
have sent.
The father of these Herbs was Heaven, their mother Earth, the
Sea their root.
3.The Waters are the best, and heavenly Plants.
From every limb of thine have they removed Consumption
caused by sin.
4.I speak to Healing Herbs spreading, and bushy, to creepers, and
to those whose sheath is single,
I call for thee the fibrous and the reed-like, and branching.
Plants, dear to the Visve Devas, powerful, giving life to men.
5.The conquering strength, the power and might which ye, victo-
rious Plants, possess,
Therewith deliver this man here from this Consumption, O ye
Plants: so I prepare the remedy.
6.The living Plant that giveth life, that driveth malady away,
Arundhatr, the rescuer, strengthening, rich a sweets I call, to free
this man from scath and harm.
7.Hitherward let the sapient come, the friendly sharers o f my
speech. p. a341
That we may give this man relief and raise him from his evil
plight.
8.Germ of the Waters, Agni’s food, Plants ever growing fresh and
new,
Sure, healing, bearing thousand names, let them be all collected
here.
9.Let Plants whose soul is water, girt with Avakās, piercing with
their sharp horns expel the malady.
10.Strong, antidotes of poison, those releasers, free from Varuna,
And those that drive away Catarrh, and those that frustrate
magic arts, let all those Plants come hitherward.
11.Let purchased Plants of mightier power, Plants that are praised
for excellence.
Here in this village safely keep cattle and horses, man and beast.
12.Sweet is their root, sweet are these Plants’ top branches, sweet
also is their intermediate portion;
Sweet is their foliage, and sweet their blossom, combined with
sweetness is their taste of Amrit: food, fatness let them yield,
with kine preceding.
13.These Plants that grow upon the earth, whate’er their number
and their size,
Let these with all their thousand leaves free me from Death and
misery.
14.May the Plants’ Tiger-amulet, protective, guardian from the
curse,
Beat off the brood of demons, drive all maladies afar from us.
15.Before the gathered Plants they fly and scatter, as though a lion’s
roar or fire dismayed them.
Expelled by Plants, let men’s and kine’s Consumption pass from
us to the navigable rivers.
16Emancipated from the sway of Agni, of Vaisvānara, go, covering
the earth, ye Plants whose ruler is Vanaspati.
17.May these be pleasant to our heart, auspicious, rich in store of
milk,
These Plants of the Angirases which grow on mountains and on
plains.
18.The Plants I know myself, the plants that with mine eye I look
upon,
Plants yet unknown, and those we know, wherein we find that
power is stored, p. a342
19.Let all the congregated Plants attend and mark mine utterance,
That we may rescue this man here and save him from severe
distress.
20.Asvattha, Darbha, King of Plants, is Soma, deathless sacrifice
Barley and Rice are healing balms, the sons of Heaven who
never die.
21.Lift yourselves up, ye Healing Plants, loud is the thunder’s crash
and roar.
When with full flow Parjanya, ye Children of Prisni! blesseth;
you.
22.We give the essence of that stream of nectar of this man to
drink:
So I prepare a remedy that he may live a hundred years.
23.Well doth the wild boar know a Plant, the mungoose knows the
Healing Herb.
I call, to aid this man, the Plants which Serpents and Gandhar-
vas know.
24.Plants of Angirases which hawks, celestial Plants which eagles.
know;
Plants known to swans and lesser fowl, Plants known to all the
birds that fly.
Plants that are known to sylvan beasts,—I call them all to aid
this man.
25.The multitude of herbs whereon the Cows whom none may
slaughter feed, all that are food for goats and sheep,
So many Plants, brought hitherward, give shelter and defence to
thee!
26.Hitherward unto thee I bring the Plants that cure all maladies,
All Plants wherein physicians have discovered health-bestowing
power.
27.Let Plants with flower and Plants with bud, the fruitful and the
fruitless, all,
Like children of one mother, yield their stores for this man’s
perfeet health.
28.From the Five-arrowed, from the Ten-arrowed have I delivered
thee,
Freed thee from Yama’s fetter and from all offence against the
Gods,
—- Subham–
tags- Animals, Healing Herbs, Vedas, Mongoose, Wild boar, Tiger amulet
Tamil and Vedas 
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