Upanishads · Chāndogya 1,12.5
॥
Devanāgarī
ओम् अदाम ओम् पिबाम ओम् देवः वरुणः प्रजापतिः सविता अन्नम् इह आहरत् अन्नपते अन्नम् इह आहर आहर ओम् इति
Transliteration (IAST)
om adāma om pibāma om devaḥ varuṇaḥ prajāpatiḥ savitā annam iha āharat annapate annam iha āhara āhara om iti
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
ओम्omoṁ; the sacred syllable
अदामadāmalet us eat (from √ad, first plural); we may eat; let us partake
ओम्omoṁ; the sacred syllable
पिबामpibāmalet us drink (from √pā, first plural); we shall drink; let us take our draught
ओम्omoṁ; the sacred syllable
देवःdevaḥgod; radiant
वरुणःvaruṇaḥVaruṇa; the god Varuṇa
प्रजापतिःprajāpatiḥPrajāpati; the lord of creatures
सविताsavitāSavitṛ (savitṛ — the sun as impeller); the Impeller; Savitṛ
अन्नम्annamfood; food
इहihahere; in this world
आहरत्āharatlet him bring; he has brought
अन्नपतेannapateO Lord of food (anna-pati); O Master of sustenance; O Keeper of bread
अन्नम्annamfood; food
इहihahere; in this world
आहरāharabring (ā-√hṛ, imperative); fetch; give
आहरāharabring (ā-√hṛ, imperative); fetch; give
ओम्omoṁ; the sacred syllable
इतिitithus; how
Translation
"Oṁ! Let us eat! Oṁ! Let us drink! Oṁ! May the god, Varuṇa, Prajāpati, Savitṛ bring food hither! O Lord of food, bring food hither — bring it! Oṁ!"
Version
b1475ce2edd6 · published Jul 26, 2026, 10:34:59 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The dogs' hymn — and it is faultless: oṁ adāma… oṁ pibāma — "Oṁ, let us eat; Oṁ, let us drink": every clause is opened by the praṇava (as is proper — khaṇḍa 4!); invoked are deva, Varuṇa (moisture!), Prajāpati (the lord of creatures!), Savitṛ (the impelling sun!) — an exact pantheon of feeding; and then the refrain: annapate 'nnam ihāhara — "O Lord of food, bring food hither — bring it! Oṁ!"
The key to the hymn is the address anna-pate: "Lord of food"! The dogs pray not to food but to the Lord of food: their hunger knows the Giver (which mere greed would not). Here is the resolution of the whole khaṇḍa: a prayer for bread is no low genre if it knows to Whom: the Lord himself taught all living things this first prayer, and in the mouths of the hungry it is pure (Gītā 15.14: "I am the fire of digestion in all that breathes"; Taittirīya: "do not revile food — that is a vow!"). The satire has turned into an apology: even a dogs' service is holy when it has Oṁ in it — and a Lord.