Mantras, Stotras, Chalisas and Aartis: Texts in Devanagari with Meaning

A mantra is a short sacred formula, a stotra is a hymn of praise, a chalisa is a devotional poem of forty verses, an aarti is the song sung while a lamp is waved before the deity, and a sukta is a hymn from the Vedas. This section gathers texts from all five groups, each on its own page, so that you can read the original, see how it sounds, and understand what it says before you chant it.

Every page gives the text in Devanagari, a simple transliteration, a verse-by-verse meaning, when and how the text is traditionally recited, what the tradition says it is for, a note on pronunciation, and answers to common questions. Where a festival page exists, we link it, so that you can find the right date and timing for your own city on the festivals section instead of relying on a number printed here.

For how to perform the puja for each festival, with the samagri list, the steps and the vrat katha, see puja vidhi and vrat katha.

How the texts on these pages are sourced

Sacred texts are easy to get slightly wrong, and a single changed syllable can change a word. For that reason we do not type these texts from memory and we do not copy them from devotional websites of unknown accuracy. Each Devanagari text on these pages is taken, unchanged, from a public-domain transcription on Wikisource, and the source is named on every page. The transliteration is produced from that same text by a script, and the meanings are written in our own words.

We publish a text only when we can check it against a source in this way. A few very popular texts, among them the Hanuman Chalisa, several aartis and the beej mantras of the nine planets, are not here yet for that reason, and we would rather add them later than print them unchecked. Where a source carries a small oddity, such as a stray mark in a word, the page says so plainly.

Nothing here is a promise of any result. These are devotional and contemplative texts, read and recited as part of a spiritual practice, and what a tradition says about a text is reported as tradition. For health, money or legal matters, please speak to a qualified professional. If you would like to see how the planets stand for you, the free calculators and the planetary transits page are the place to begin, and a consultation is open to you if you prefer to talk it through.

Mantras

• Gayatri Mantra: The Gayatri mantra is a verse from the Rigveda (3.62.10) addressed to Savitr, the sun as inspirer.
• Mahamrityunjaya Mantra: The Mahamrityunjaya mantra, also called the Tryambaka mantra, is Rigveda 7.59.12.
• Om Namah Shivaya: Om Namah Shivaya means ‘Om, salutation to Shiva’.
• Ganesh Mantra: The Ganesh mantras here are four short Sanskrit pieces for Ganesha: the seed mantra Om Gam Ganapataye Namah, the Ganesh Gayatri, a verse describing his form for meditation, and a salutation with eight names.
• Navagraha Mantras: The Navagraha Stotra is a set of nine Sanskrit verses, one for each of the nine planets of Indian tradition from the Sun to Ketu.
• Surya Mantra: This Surya mantra is Rigveda 1.50.4, a two-line verse from a hymn to Surya, the Sun.
• Saraswati Vandana: Saraswati Vandana is a set of three traditional prayers to Saraswati, goddess of learning: a short prayer before study, the verse Ya Kundendu, and the verse Shuklam.
• Sahana Vavatu Mantra: Sahana Vavatu is the peace invocation that opens the Brahmanandavalli of the Taittiriya Upanishad.

Chalisas

• Durga Chalisa: The Durga Chalisa is a Hindi devotional poem of forty verses in praise of the goddess Durga, also called Bhavani and Jagadamba.

Aartis

• Shiv Aarti (Om Jai Gangadhar Har): This is a Sanskrit-based aarti to Shiva that begins Om jai Gangadhar Har, with the refrain Om Har Har Har Mahadev after every stanza.

Shiva stotras

• Shiva Tandava Stotram: The Shiva Tandava Stotram is a hymn of fifteen verses and two closing verses in praise of Shiva as the cosmic dancer.
• Rudrashtakam: The Rudrashtakam is an eight-stanza hymn to Shiva, followed by a verse stating its benefit.
• Lingashtakam: The Lingashtakam is an eight-verse hymn to the Shiva linga, each verse ending with the refrain ’tat pranamami sadashiva lingam’ (I bow to that linga of Sadashiva).
• Shiva Panchakshara Stotram: The Shiva Panchakshara Stotram is a hymn of five verses, one for each syllable of Namah Shivaya: na, ma, shi, va, ya.
• Kashi Panchakam: The Kashi Panchakam is a five-verse hymn attributed to Adi Shankaracharya in which Kashi (Varanasi) is read as the inner Self.
• Narmada Ashtakam: The Narmada Ashtakam is a hymn of eight verses and a benefit verse in praise of the river Narmada as a goddess.

Devi and Lakshmi stotras

• Kanakadhara Stotram: The Kanakadhara Stotram is a Sanskrit hymn of 22 verses in praise of Lakshmi, traditionally attributed to Adi Shankaracharya.
• Annapurna Ashtakam: The Annapurna Ashtakam is a Sanskrit hymn to Annapurna, the goddess of food, as the queen of Kashi.
• Meenakshi Pancharatnam: The Meenakshi Pancharatnam is a Sanskrit hymn of five verses, the five gems, praising the goddess Meenakshi of Madurai.
• Devi Aparadha Kshamapana Stotram: The Devi Aparadha Kshamapana Stotram is a 12-verse Sanskrit prayer asking the Divine Mother to forgive the faults of one’s worship.
• Bhavani Ashtakam: The Bhavani Ashtakam is an eight-verse Sanskrit prayer to the Goddess Bhavani, attributed to Adi Shankaracharya.

Vishnu, Surya, Hanuman and Ganesha stotras

• Aditya Hridayam: The Aditya Hridayam, meaning the heart of the Sun, is a 31-verse hymn from the Yuddha Kanda of the Valmiki Ramayana.
• Surya Ashtakam: The Surya Ashtakam is a Sanskrit prayer of eight verses to the Sun, followed by a verse stating its benefit.
• Achyutashtakam: The Achyutashtakam is an eight-verse hymn to Vishnu as Krishna and Rama, with a ninth verse stating its benefit.
• Krishnashtakam: The Krishnashtakam is an eight-verse Sanskrit hymn that sees Krishna as the lord of the world and the refuge of the devotee.
• Hanumat Pancharatnam: The Hanumat Pancharatnam is a short Sanskrit hymn of five verses, the five gems, in praise of Hanuman, with a sixth verse stating its benefit.
• Ganapati Atharvashirsha: The Ganapati Atharvashirsha, also called the Ganapati Upanishad, is a short Sanskrit upanishad linked with the Atharvaveda.

Vedic hymns (suktas)

• Shri Suktam: Shri Suktam is a Sanskrit hymn to Shri, the goddess Lakshmi, in which Agni Jatavedas is asked to bring her.
• Purusha Suktam: The Purusha Suktam is Rigveda hymn 10.90, sixteen verses about a cosmic Purusha of a thousand heads, from whose sacrifice the world, the Vedas and living beings arise.
• Nasadiya Suktam: The Nasadiya Suktam is Rigveda 10.129, a seven-verse hymn of philosophical wonder about how the world began.
• Devi Suktam: Devi Suktam is Rigveda 10.125, an eight-verse hymn spoken by the goddess herself as Vak, speech or the divine word.
• Agni Suktam: The Agni Suktam is Rigveda 1.1, the first hymn of the Rigveda, in nine verses.

Frequently asked questions