Rig Veda 10.97.23: Mandala 10, Sukta 97, Mantra 23
Sukta 10.97
- Rishi
- Bhiṣaj / Oṣadhi hymn tradition
- Devata
- Oṣadhi
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Shanta (peace)
त्वमुत्तमास्योषधे तव वृक्षा उपस्तयः । उपस्तिरस्तु सोऽस्माकं यो अस्माँ अभिदासति ॥
tvám uttamā́sy oṣadhe táva vṛkṣā́ úpastayaḥ | úpastir astu só 'smā́kaṃ yó asmā́n abhídāsati ||
तू सबसे बड़ी दवाई है। तेरे पेड़ सारे सहारे हैं, छाने हैं। जो हम पे हमला करे, उससे हमारा सहारे हो।
Word by Word
- त्वम्
- youPronounपुं/स्त्री/नपुं; प्रथमा; एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- उत्तमास्य
- having the best mouth/faceAdjectiveस्त्री; प्रथमा; एकवचनRole कर्तृ (विशेषणम्)Root उत्तम-आस्य (समास: कर्मधारय; प्रातिपदिक)
- ओषधे
- O herb/plantNoun (vocative)स्त्री; संबोधन; एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot ओषधि (प्रातिपदिक)
- तव
- of you / yourPronounषष्ठी; एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी)Root युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- वृक्षाः
- treesNounपुं; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole कर्तृ (द्वितीय-वाक्ये)Root वृक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
- उपस्तयः
- supports, attendants; (lit.) coverings/beddingsNounस्त्री; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole प्रधानीय-नाम (सम्बन्ध/विधेय)Root उपस्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
- उपस्तिः
- support/coveringNounस्त्री; प्रथमा; एकवचनRole कर्तृ (आशीर्वाद-वाक्ये)Root उपस्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
- अस्तु
- let it beVerbलोट् (आशीर्लिङर्थे/विधिलिङर्थे); प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचनRole क्रियाRoot अस् (धातु)
- सः
- that / hePronounपुं; प्रथमा; एकवचनRole कर्तृ/निर्देशकRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- अस्माकम्
- of us / ourPronounषष्ठी; बहुवचनRole सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी)Root अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- यः
- whoRelative pronounपुं; प्रथमा; एकवचनRole कर्तृ (उपवाक्ये)Root यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- अस्मान्
- usPronounद्वितीया; बहुवचनRole कर्मRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- अभिदासति
- attacks/harms; acts hostile towardVerbलट्; प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचनRole क्रियाRoot अभि-दस् (धातु; उपसर्ग: अभि) अथवा अभि-दास् (नामधातु/धातु-प्रयोगः)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः (sandhi-resolved): त्वम् | उत्तमास्य | ओषधे | तव | वृक्षाः | उपस्तयः | उपस्तिः | अस्तु | सः | अस्माकम् | यः | अस्मान् | अभिदासति । मुख्य-सन्धयः: (1) त्वम्+उत्तमास्यः → त्वमु॑त्त॒मास्यो॑ (अनुस्वार/विसर्ग-लोपः; पदान्त-म् + स्वरादि)
- (2) उत्तमास्यः+ओषधे → उत्तमास्यो॑षधे (विसर्ग-लोपः; ओ-आदौ संहितायाम्)
- (3) अस्तु+सः → अस्तु॒ सो॒ (उकारान्त + स-आदिः; संहितायां ‘अस्तु सः’)
- (4) सः+अस्माकम् → सोऽस्माकम् (विसर्गस्य ‘ओ’ आदेशः + अवग्रहः)
The meaning
Outer meaning
O healing plant/power, you are the best; your trees are supports/coverings. Let that protection be ours against anyone who attacks or harms us.
Inner meaning
The supreme healing force is invoked as a single Presence. Its ‘trees’ are stable structures of life-energy (supports) that can shelter the seeker. The mantra asks not only cure but a protective envelope against hostile forces—outer aggression and inner ‘assailing’ movements (fear, relapse, intrusive impulses).
Universal truth
When one aligns with the highest restorative power, protection arises naturally: a living support forms around the being, resisting injury from without and within.
Themes
Supreme herb, Protection and refuge, Defense against harm, Stabilization
The seer
- Rishi
- Bhiṣaj (healer-seer) of the Oṣadhi hymn tradition
- Other hymns
- RV 10.97
Family tradition
Healing hymncraft that personifies remedies as conscious powers capable of protection and warding-off.
Significance
Moves from collective invocation to the One behind the many: a monistic turn where the ‘best’ oṣadhi becomes a single refuge.
The deity
- Devata
- Oṣadhi (singular supreme healing power)
- Epithets
- uttamā (most excellent), upastī (supporting/sheltering)
- Related deities
- Aśvins, Soma, Durgā-like protective aspect (conceptual, later resonance)
Cosmic role
Guardian-restorer of embodied life; sustains growth while shielding from injury.
Inner power
A protective healing Śakti that strengthens boundaries, restores coherence, and repels hostile vibrations.
In ritual
Where it is used
Protective healing charm alongside herbal treatment
त्वमु॑त्त॒मास्यो॑षधे॒ तव॑ वृ॒क्षा उप॑स्तयः । उप॑स्तिरस्तु॒ सो॒३॒॑ऽस्माकं॒ यो अ॒स्माँ अ॑भि॒दास॑ति ॥
त्वम् । उ॒त्ऽत॒मा । अ॒सि॒ । ओ॒ष॒धे॒ । तव॑ । वृ॒क्षाः । उप॑स्तयः । उप॑स्तिः । अ॒स्तु॒ । सः । अ॒स्माक॑म् । यः । अ॒स्मान् । अ॒भि॒ऽदास॑ति ॥
tvam | ut-tamā | asi | oṣadhe | tava | vṛkṣāḥ | upastayaḥ | upastiḥ | astu | saḥ | asmākam | yaḥ | asmān | abhi-dāsati
44
4 x ~11
Protective, declarative; strong closures at pāda ends suitable for warding formulas.
Builds a felt ‘shield’; the listener senses stabilizing support around the heart and spine.
- उत्तमा (uttamā)
- Literal: most excellent, highest. Symbolic: the supreme healing intelligence in nature and consciousness
- ओषधे (oṣadhe)
- Literal: O plant/healing power. Symbolic: the one remedial Shakti that can manifest through many forms
- वृक्षाः (vṛkṣāḥ)
- Literal: trees. Symbolic: firm life-structures; stable channels of vitality and endurance
- उपस्तयः / उपस्तिः (upastayaḥ / upastiḥ)
- Literal: supports, coverings, shelter. Symbolic: protective field; stabilizing prāṇa that ‘covers’ vulnerable parts
- अभिदासति (abhidāsati)
- Literal: attacks, seeks to harm. Symbolic: hostile forces: illness-impulses, negativity, external malice, inner sabotage
Protective adjunct to healing: used as a warding mantra against hostile influences (seen/unseen) that threaten the patient/community; can be applied as rakṣā during treatment.
When vulnerability is felt—during illness, after injury, before travel, or when threatened.
Invoke the ‘best’ healing power and establish its shelter against attackers.
As a short protection-and-recovery mantra during convalescence or anxiety; can be paired with visualization of a green canopy.
upásti ‘support, seat, refuge’ (upa-√sthā ‘stand near/support’) makes the herb a protective foundation. vṛkṣá ‘tree’ (√vṛkṣ/√vraśc ‘cut’ historically debated) here functions symbolically as stable life-structures that uphold the healer’s work. abhi-√das ‘to assail, harm’ portrays hostile forces—outer enemies or inner disruptors (disease-impulses). The verse shifts from cure to protection, indicating health includes spiritual defense.
Protection as stabilization of ṛta in the being, Support (upasti) as grounding of consciousness, Hostility as forces of disorder (inner/outer)
Protection is maintenance of ṛta against forces of disorder that ‘assail’.
Calling the oṣadhi ‘uttamā’ is an act of recognition that strengthens its manifestation (truth-naming).
Sustaining creation: the ‘tree’ as world-support motif applied to the body’s integrity.
Symbolic monism: many herbs as expressions of one healing consciousness.
Tree = axis of stability (rootedness and ascent); shelter = auric boundary and nervous-system regulation.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The mythologem is ‘the supreme protector-herb as refuge’: the healing power is not only medicinal but a fortress/support against hostile forces. Innerly, the restored consciousness establishes a stable upasti that repels disruptive impulses.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √sthā in upa-sti reflects PIE *steh₂- ‘stand’—support as ‘standing near’. The abhi- prefix + harm-verb construction is a common IE way to mark directed aggression. The protective ‘refuge’ motif is a shared Indo-Iranian ritual theme.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The r̥ṣi elevates the herb to a sovereign ally: ‘you are the best’ and ‘be our support’. The reciprocity is protection—divine stability granted to the human collective against attackers, whether physical or psychological.
Establishing an inner shelter: feel a living protective canopy of healing energy around the body.
muladhara (safety)
4-4-6 breathing (inhale-hold-exhale) to build steadiness; on exhale, ‘seal’ the boundary.
Grounded protection; alert calm.
Visualize a vast healing tree above you; roots in the earth, canopy over the head. On ‘upastir astu’, feel the canopy densify; on ‘abhidāsati’, let all hostility dissolve at the boundary.
Observe Vedic accents; let the vocative ‘oṣadhe’ be clearly lifted according to udātta marking in your text.
Slightly emphasize ‘uttamā’ and the protective clause ‘upastir astu’. Keep the final relative clause steady and firm.
(uttamā): double ‘tt’ crisp, (oṣadhe): retroflex ṣ; final ‘e’ long-ish, (upastayaḥ): keep ‘st’ cluster clean, (abhidāsati): separate ‘abhi-’ prefix lightly; long ā in dāsati if marked
protective, grounded, slightly lower pitch; clear stops on dentals.
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