Rig Veda 1.23.2: Mandala 1, Sukta 23, Mantra 2

Sukta 1.23

Rishi

Medhātithi Kāṇva

Devata

Indra-Vāyu as Soma-drinkers

Chandas

Gāyatrī

Rasa

Adbhuta (wonder) and Shanta (peace)

Samhita Patha (Devanagari)

उभा देवा दिविस्पृशेन्द्रवायू हवामहे । अस्य सोमस्य पीतये ॥

Recitation with translationRig Veda 1.23.2

Transliteration

ubhā devā divispṛśendravāyū havāmahe | asya somasya pītaye ||

Translation

उभा देवा दिविस्पृशेन्द्रवायू हवामहे। अस्य सोमस्य पीतये॥

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Word by Word

उभा

both (two)Adjective/Pronoun · पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचनRole Kartā · Root उभ (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) / उभय-

देवा

the two godsNoun · पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचनRole Kartā · Root देव (प्रातिपदिक)

दिविस्पृशा

touching heaven / heaven-reachingAdjective (compound) · पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचनRole Kartā · Root दिवि-स्पृश् (समास; ‘heaven-touching’)

इन्द्रवायू

Indra and VāyuNoun (dual deity name) · पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचनRole Kartā · Root इन्द्र-वायु (द्वन्द्व-समास)

हवामहे

we invoke / we callVerb · लट् (वर्तमान), आत्मनेपद, उत्तमपुरुष, बहुवचनRole (क्रिया) — · Root √ह्वा (ह्वयति/हवते) ‘to call, invoke’

अस्य

of thisPronoun · पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive relation) · Root इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

सोमस्य

of SomaNoun · पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive relation) · Root सोम (प्रातिपदिक)

पीतये

for drinkingNoun (verbal noun) · स्त्रीलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी, एकवचनRole Sampradāna (purpose/for) · Root पीति (प्रातिपदिक; action-noun from √पा ‘to drink’)

Sandhi Notes

• पदच्छेदः: उभा देवा दिविस्पृशा इन्द्रवायू हवामहे । अस्य सोमस्य पीतये ॥ 1) दिवि + स्पृशा → दिविस्पृशा (समास/सन्धि-समुच्चय; ‘heaven’ + ‘touching’)
• 2) इन्द्र + वायू → इन्द्रवायू (द्वन्द्व-समास; द्विवचन-रूप)
• 3) अस्य सोमस्य: षष्ठी-सम्बन्धः ‘of this Soma’
• 4) पीतये: चतुर्थी एकवचन ‘for drinking’ (प्रयोजनार्थे दत्तिविभक्ति)

The meaning

Outer meaning

The two gods Indra and Vāyu, who reach to heaven, are invoked to drink this Soma offering.

Inner meaning

The seeker calls the paired powers of illumined Mind (Indra) and Life-breath/Prāṇa-force (Vāyu) that “touch heaven” (rise to the supramental/upper consciousness) to drink Soma—i.e., to take up and intensify the delight-substance in us, so the mind and life become clarified, uplifted, and capable of higher reception.

Universal truth

When mind and life work together and are fed by inner joy (Soma), consciousness naturally ascends toward its highest range; delight is not an after-effect but a power that purifies and elevates the instruments of action and knowing.

Themes

Soma-ritual, Invocation, Dual-deity hymn, Inner ascent/descent

The seer

Rishi

Medhātithi Kāṇva

Lineage

Kāṇva

Other hymns

RV 1.23.1-30 (Kāṇva collection, traditional attribution)

Family tradition

Kāṇva seer-line noted for practical yogic invocation of deva-powers through concise Gāyatrī verses, often pairing powers (dvandva) to harmonize inner faculties.

Significance

Medhātithi’s voice emphasizes effective inner calling (havana as aspiration) where Soma is not merely ritual drink but the delight that enables ascent; his hymns often read as a program for aligning the instruments—mind, breath, will—with higher Light.

The deity

Devata

Indra-Vāyu (dvandva devatā)

Epithets

divispṛśā (heaven-touching), soma-pā (Soma-drinkers; implied)

Related deities

Agni, Soma, Uṣas, Maruts

Cosmic role

Indra opens the luminous worlds by breaking obstructions; Vāyu moves, purifies, and carries the offering, establishing the circulation between earth and heaven.

Inner power

Indra: decisive illumined mind that conquers the Coverer; Vāyu: prāṇic dynamism that lifts and distributes the gained light and delight through the system.

In ritual

Where it is used

Soma-yajña: Indra-Vāyu graha (cup) invocation in Soma pressing sequences (general Vedic usage for Indra-Vāyu as Soma-drinkers).

Accents and Padapatha

Chandas Analysis

Key Symbols

Ritual Application

Etymology

Philosophical Concepts

Vedic Cosmology

Natural Symbolism

Academic Analysis

Yogic Application

Chanting Notes