Upanishads · Chāndogya 2,24.3
॥
Devanāgarī
पुरा प्रातरनुवाकस्य उपाकरणात् जघनेन गार्हपत्यस्य उदाङ्मुखः उपविश्य सः वासवम् साम अभिगायति
Transliteration (IAST)
purā prātaranuvākasya upākaraṇāt jaghanena gārhapatyasya udāṅmukhaḥ upaviśya saḥ vāsavam sāma abhigāyati
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
पुराpurābefore; earlier
प्रातरनुवाकस्यprātaranuvākasyaof the morning recitation (prātar-anuvāka); of the early recital; of the morning reading
उपाकरणात्upākaraṇātbefore the beginning; before setting to work
जघनेनjaghanenabehind (jaghanena); behind; from the rear
गार्हपत्यस्यgārhapatyasyaof the gārhapatya (gārhapatya — the household fire); of the domestic hearth; of the householder's fire
उदाङ्मुखःudāṅmukhaḥfacing north (udaṅ-mukha); facing north; turned northward
उपविश्यupaviśyahaving sat down; seating himself
सःsaḥhe; that one
वासवम्vāsavambelonging to the Vasus (vāsava); the vāsava; the sāman of the Vasus
सामsāmathe sāman; the chant
अभिगायतिabhigāyatisings; he sings out
Translation
Before the beginning of the morning recitation, sitting down behind the gārhapatya fire, facing north, he sings the sāman of the Vasus:
Version
90af563292e8 · published Jul 26, 2026, 10:50:29 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The practicum begins: purā prātar-anuvākasyopākaraṇāt — "before the beginning of the morning recitation": jaghanena gārhapatyasya — "behind the gārhapatya [fire]" (the household hearth — the hearth of the Vasus, the gods of ordering!), udaṅ-mukhaḥ — "facing north" (the side of the gods and the path of the devas!): an exact geometry — which fire, which quarter, which hour.
sa vāsavaṁ sāmābhigāyati — "he sings the sāman of the Vasus": before the gods of the morning receive their own, the singer turns to them — with the song the next verse will quote word for word: one of the most piercing short prayers of the Vedas — "open the door of the world!"