Upanishads · Chāndogya 3,1.1
॥
Devanāgarī
असौ वै आदित्यः देवमधु तस्य द्यौः एव तिरश्चीनवंशः अन्तरिक्षम् अपूपः मरीचयः पुत्राः
Transliteration (IAST)
asau vai ādityaḥ devamadhu tasya dyauḥ eva tiraścīnavaṃśaḥ antarikṣam apūpaḥ marīcayaḥ putrāḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
असौasauthat one; yonder
वैvaiverily; indeed
आदित्यःādityaḥthe sun; Āditya
देवमधुdevamadhuthe honey of the gods (deva-madhu); the divine honey; the honey for the gods
तस्यtasyait; concerning this
द्यौःdyauḥthe sky; the heavenly world
एवevaindeed; surely
तिरश्चीनवंशःtiraścīnavaṃśaḥthe crossbeam (tiraścīna-vaṁśa — the bar of the hive); the transverse pole [of the hive]; the cross-piece
अन्तरिक्षम्antarikṣamthe intervening space; the mid-region
अपूपःapūpaḥthe comb (apūpa — 'a cake', the waxen layer); the honeycomb; the layer of comb
मरीचयःmarīcayaḥthe rays; the beams
पुत्राःputrāḥthe brood (putra — 'sons', the bee-larvae); the offspring [of the hive]; the larvae
Translation
Yonder sun is indeed the honey of the gods. Heaven is its cross-beam, the mid-region the honeycomb, the rays the brood.
Version
1c28689d81e8 · published Jul 26, 2026, 10:50:29 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The third adhyāya opens with the madhu-vidyā, "the science of honey", one of the loveliest contemplations of the Vedas: asau vā ādityo deva-madhu — "yonder sun is the honey of the gods": the luminary is seen as a hive! And the structure of the hive: dyaur eva tiraścīna-vaṁśaḥ — "heaven is the cross-beam" (the bar from which the hive is hung), antarikṣam apūpaḥ — "the mid-region is the comb" (the waxen sheet with its cells!), marīcayaḥ putrāḥ — "the rays are the brood" (the bee-grubs: the rays are larvae of light in the cells of the air!).
The image sets the tone of the whole adhyāya: the universe is a honey-farm: the sun is the sweetness gathered by all that is; the Vedas (in the verses to come) are the bees that carry in the nectar; the sun's radiances are the combs of ripened honey. Behind the apiary idyll lies a stern thought: light is nourishing, the sun is not only a lamp but food (the gods, 3.6 will say, "are satisfied by contemplating"!): the world is built as an amassing and a tasting of sweetness — and the science of honey will teach where to find it.