In praise of healing herbs, for the restoring of 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 hitherward.

2 This man let them deliver from the consumption which hath come upon him. Heaven is their father, Earth their mother, the Sea their root, by God's decree.

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 angels, powerful, giving life to men by God's leave.

5 The conquering strength, the power and might which ye, victorious 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, Arundhati, the rescuer, strengthening, rich in sweets, I call, to free this man from scath and harm.

7 Hitherward let the sapient come, the friendly sharers of my speech, that we may give this man relief and raise him from his evil plight.

8 Germ of the waters, plants ever growing fresh and new, sure, healing, bearing a thousand names, let them be all collected here.

9 Let plants whose soul is water, girt with Avakas, piercing with their sharp horns expel the malady.

10 Strong antidotes of poison, those releasers, free from every ill, 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 nectar: 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 sickness and misery.

14 May the mightiest of the plants, 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.

16 Freed from the burning of fire, go, covering the earth, ye plants whose ruler is the lord of the forest.

17 May these be pleasant to our heart, auspicious, rich in store of milk, these healing plants 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,

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 The fig-tree, the sacred grass, the soma, king of plants, the unfailing offering; barley and rice are healing balms, gifts from heaven that never fail.

21 Lift yourselves up, ye healing plants, loud is the thunder's crash and roar when with full flow the rain-cloud, ye children of the Earth, blesseth you.

22 We give the essence of that stream of nectar to 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 mongoose knows the healing herb. I call, to aid this man, the plants which serpents know.

24 Plants 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 perfect health.

28 From the Five-arrowed, from the Ten-arrowed have I delivered thee, freed thee from the fetter of death and from all offence against God.