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The article analyzes a specific text from the Atharvaveda to explore its implications for Vedic law.

March 28, 2026Open Access

Dharma in the Atharvaveda

Key Points

The article analyzes a specific text from the Atharvaveda to explore its implications for Vedic law.
Presents a new critical edition of Paippalādasaṁhitā (PS) 19.46.13–15
Translates the text for the first time
Investigates the context of ritual expiation related to murder
Identifies the didhiṣu-man as a figure in the guilt transfer process
Suggests the text was used in royal contexts for expiation rituals
Provides insights into potential characteristics of a Vedic law code

Abstract

This article proposes that Paippalādasaṁhitā (PS) 19.46.13–15, a tṛca presented in a new critical edition and translated for the first time here, was used in the ritual expiation of murder of family members, probably in a royal context. The guilt is transferred to the didhiṣu-man, an ambiguous figure in Dharma texts. Passages like these in the Atharvaveda could provide a possible answer to Stephanie Jamison’s 2022 Bühler lecture question, ‘What would a Vedic law code look like?’

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Dharma in the Atharvaveda

Key Points

Abstract

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