The Atharvaveda or Atharva Veda (, , from अथर्वन्, "priest" and वेद, "knowledge") is the "knowledge storehouse of atharvans, the procedures for everyday life". The text is the fourth Veda, and is a late addition to the Vedic scriptures of Hinduism. About a sixth of the Atharvaveda texts adapt verses from the Rigveda, and except for Books 15 and 16, the text is mainly in verse deploying a diversity of Vedic meters. Reliable manuscripts of the Paippalada edition were believed to have been lost, but a well-preserved version was discovered among a collection of palm leaf manuscripts in Odisha in 1957. In contrast to the 'hieratic religion' of the other three Vedas, the Atharvaveda is said to represent a 'popular religion', incorporating not only formulas for magic, but also the daily rituals for initiation into learning (upanayana), marriage and funerals. Royal rituals and the duties of the court priests are also included in the Atharvaveda.
The Atharvaveda was likely compiled as a Veda contemporaneously with Samaveda and Yajurveda, or about 1200 BCE – 1000 BCE. Along with the Samhita layer of text, the Atharvaveda includes a Brahmana text, and a final layer of the text that covers philosophical speculations. The latter layer of Atharvaveda text includes three primary Upanishads, influential to various schools of Hindu philosophy. These include the Mundaka Upanishad, the Mandukya Upanishad and the Prashna Upanishad.
Etymology and nomenclature
The Veda may be named, states Monier Williams, after the mythical priest named Atharvan who was first to develop prayers to fire, offer Soma, and who composed "formulas and spells intended to counteract diseases and calamities". The name Atharvaveda, states Laurie Patton, is for the text being "Veda of the Atharvāṇas". The latter name Angiras which is linked to Agni and priests in the Vedas, states George Brown, may also be related to Indo-European Angirôs found in an Aramaic text from Nippur.
Michael Witzel states the etymology of Atharvan is Proto Indo-Iranian *atharwan "[ancient] priest, sorcerer", and it is cognate to Avestan āθrauuan "priest" and possibly related to Tocharian *athr, "superior force".
The Atharvaveda is also occasionally referred to as Bhrgvangirasah and Brahmaveda, after Bhrigu and Brahma, respectively. The Rigveda, the verse 3.12.9.1 of Taittiriya Brahmana, the verse 5.32-33 of Aitareya Brahmana and other Vedic era texts mention only three Vedas. Olson states that the ultimate acceptance of Atharvaveda as the fourth Veda probably came in the 2nd half of the 1st millennium BCE.
Frits Staal states that the text may be a compilation of poetry and knowledge that developed in two different regions of ancient India, the Kuru region in northern India and the Pancalas region of eastern India. corresponding to the early Kuru kingdom.
The priests who practised the Atharvaveda were considered to be the lowest tier of Brahmins, in comparison to the priests who practised the Rigveda, Samaveda, or Yajurveda [considered by whom?]. A stigma held by some against Atharvaveda priests is documented in Odisha well into the modern day.
Text
The Atharvaveda is a collection of 20 books, with a total of 730 hymns of about 6,000 stanzas.
Recensions
The ', a later era Sanskrit text, states that the Atharvaveda had nine shakhas, or schools: , , , , , , , and .
Of these, only the Shaunakiya recension, and the more recently discovered manuscripts of Paippalāda recension have survived. The two recensions differ in how they are organized, as well as content.
Organization
The Atharvaveda Samhita originally was organized into 18 books (), and the last two were added later. The 19th book was a supplement of a similar nature, likely of new compositions and was added later.
The hymns of Atharvaveda cover a motley of topics, across its twenty books. Roughly, the first seven books focus primarily on magical poems for all sorts of healing and sorcery, and Michael Witzel states these are reminiscent of Germanic and Hittite sorcery stanzas, and may likely be the oldest section. Books 8 to 12 are speculations of a variety of topics, while Books 13 to 18 tend to be about life cycle rites of passage rituals. For the Paippalada edition of Atharvaveda, corresponding texts were Agastya and Paithinasi Sutras but these are lost or yet to be discovered.
Contents
The Atharvaveda is sometimes called the "Veda of magical formulas", Many books of the Atharvaveda Samhita are dedicated to rituals without magic and to theosophy.
The Atharvaveda Samhita contains hymns many of which were charms, magic spells and incantations meant to be pronounced by the person who seeks some benefit, or more often by a sorcerer who would say it on his or her behalf. Some hymns were not about magic spells and charms, but prayer qua prayer and philosophical speculations.
The contents of the Atharvaveda contrasts with the other Vedas. The 19th century Indologist Weber summarized the contrast as follows,
Jan Gonda cautions that it would be incorrect to label Atharvaveda Samhita as mere compilation of magical formulas, witchcraft and sorcery. Additionally, the non-Samhita layers of Atharvaveda text include a Brahmana and several influential Upanishads.
Samhita
Surgical and medical treatment
The Atharvaveda includes mantras and verses for treating a variety of ailments. For example, the verses in hymn 4.15 of the recently discovered Paippalada version of the Atharvaveda, discuss how to deal with an open fracture, and how to wrap the wound with Rohini plant (Ficus infectoria, native to India):