Markata-Mukha and Varaha-Mukhi: Decoding the Sacred Form of the Atharva Veda Murti
In the vast visual theology of Sanatana Dharma, abstract
sacred knowledge is rarely left formless. The four Vedas — Rig, Yajur, Sama and
Atharva — are not merely texts to be studied; they are living presences, each
endowed with a body, a face, a gesture and a companion Shakti. This tradition
of rendering the Vedas into anthropomorphic forms, known as Veda Murtis, serves
a profound ritual and contemplative purpose: to allow the devotee to approach
infinite wisdom through a finite, graspable form. Among the four, the Atharva
Veda Murti stands apart in its striking iconography, its animal-faced
countenance, and the healing power it embodies.
The Form of Markata-Mukha
The Atharva Veda Murti is described in dhyana traditions as
markata-mukha, meaning monkey-faced, and dvibhuja, or two-armed. The choice of
the monkey face is deeply intentional. In Hindu sacred tradition, the monkey is
associated with Hanuman, the embodiment of devotion, strength, swift action and
the power to ward off evil and disease. The Atharva Veda itself is primarily
concerned with protective and healing knowledge — mantras against disease,
rituals for longevity, formulas for warding off malevolent forces. The markata
or monkey face thus becomes the perfect visual symbol of the Veda's essential
function: alert, agile, protective and fiercely loyal to the well-being of
humanity.
The deity is seated in a composed posture with one leg
pendant, a position that conveys both contemplative stability and readiness for
action — grounded yet not withdrawn from the world's concerns.
The Symbolism of the Hands and Attributes
In the right hand, the Atharva Veda Murti holds the
akshamala, the rosary of beads. In Hindu iconography, the akshamala represents
the repetition of sacred sound — japa — through which mantras are counted and
their power accumulated. The Atharva Veda is fundamentally a Veda of
mantra-power; its hymns are not merely prayers but operative formulas meant to
produce tangible results in the world of the living. The rosary therefore
perfectly encapsulates this tradition of applied mantra.
The left hand holds a pot or vessel, a kamandalu in many
interpretations. The pot is among the oldest symbols of sustenance, healing and
contained sacred energy in Hindu iconography. Water held in a sacred vessel is
used across Vedic and Tantric rituals for purification, healing and blessing.
For a Veda devoted to health and protection, the pot is an emblem of the
healing draught, the medicinal preparation and the sacred water offered for the
welfare of the devotee.
The Color of Nilotpala
The complexion of the Atharva Veda Murti is described as
nilotpala — the hue of the blue lotus. This is not mere aesthetic choice. The
blue-black color in Hindu sacred iconography is consistently associated with
the infinite, the boundless sky, the deep ocean and the transcendent. Bhagavan
Vishnu, Bhagavan Shiva as Nilakantha and Bhagavan Krishna all bear this deep
blue-black hue, indicating their connection to the absolute and the
all-encompassing. For the Atharva Veda Murti, this color signals that while this
Veda works within the practical world of healing and protection, its source and
power are rooted in the infinite and the cosmic.
The Atharvaveda itself declares in one of its celebrated
healing hymns, Bhaisajyani te, indicating the healing medicines and formulas
drawn from cosmic sources for the benefit of embodied life.
The Shakti: Varaha-Mukhi
Seated on the left lap of the Atharva Veda Murti is his
corresponding Shakti, shown as Varaha-Mukhi — boar-faced — and chaturbhuja or
four-armed. The Varaha or boar is one of the most powerful symbols in the
Vaishnava tradition. Bhagavan Vishnu's Varaha avatar descended into the
primordial waters to retrieve the earth itself, representing the power that
rescues, restores and upholds what is endangered. The Varaha-Mukhi Shakti thus
embodies the restorative, earth-saving energy that is the feminine counterpart
to the Atharva Veda's healing mission.
Her four arms carry specific attributes, each laden with
meaning. The upper right hand holds the surva, an offering spoon used in Vedic
fire rituals, representing the act of giving — offering healing energies into
the sacred fire for the benefit of the world. The upper left hand holds the
sruk, the longer ladle used in yajnas, reinforcing the theme of ritual action
and the active channeling of cosmic energy. The lower right hand carries the
padma, the lotus, symbol of purity arising from the mud of worldly suffering —
the promise that healing and beauty are possible even within pain and
affliction. The lower left hand holds the kamandalu, the water pot, mirroring
the male form's attribute and doubling the iconographic emphasis on healing
waters, medicinal preparation and sacred sustenance.
The Bhava: Protection and Healing
The functional identity or bhava of the Atharva Veda Murti
is explicitly protection and healing. The Atharva Veda, often called the Veda
of the householder and the healer, contains some of the oldest documented
medicinal knowledge in human history. Its hymns address fevers, wounds,
difficult births, the evil eye, hostile forces and existential anxieties. The
Atharvaveda states, addressing the healing power of plants and the cosmos:
"Ye oshadhayah soma-rajnih" — addressing the
healing herbs ruled over by Soma, the moon, who governs medicine and
nourishment. This Veda recognized early that healing operates simultaneously on
the physical, the psychological and the spiritual plane.
The Atharva Veda Murti thus personifies a complete system of
well-being — not merely the absence of disease but the positive presence of
vitality, protection from harm, and harmony between the individual and the
forces of the cosmos.
Worship and Ritual Significance
In temple traditions and Veda-Murti worship, these forms are
invoked to access the specific power and blessing of each Veda. The Atharva
Veda Murti is particularly propitiated during times of illness, danger, fear of
malevolent forces or when undertaking healing work. The akshamala he holds
invites the devotee into the practice of mantra japa drawn from the Atharva
Veda's vast treasury of protective and healing chants. His composed posture and
the balanced presence of his Shakti remind the worshipper that true protection
arises from inner equipoise combined with active, compassionate engagement with
the world.
Modern Day Relevance
In an age marked by rising anxieties, environmental distress, widespread illness and a search for holistic healing, the Atharva Veda Murti speaks with renewed relevance. The Atharva Veda's integration of physical medicine, psychological healing, ecological awareness and spiritual protection anticipates what modern thought is only now rediscovering — that well-being is whole and indivisible. The iconography of this Murti, far from being an antiquated religious convention, is a compressed visual philosophy: that knowledge must ultimately serve life, protect the vulnerable and restore what has been broken. The monkey-faced guardian and his boar-faced Shakti, together, embody the ancient conviction that the highest wisdom is not that which withdraws from the world, but that which heals it.