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Guru (Dakshinamoorthy) Guru Ashtakam: a king leaving his throne, treasure and court behind to lay his head at the feet of his guru
A king leaves his throne, his treasure and his court to bow at his guru's feet
Mantra · Shankara's eight verses asking 'what then?' of all a life can gain

Guru Ashtakam

शरीरं सुरूपं तथा वा कलत्रं यशश्चारु चित्रं धनं मेरुतुल्यम् । मनश्चेन्न लग्नं गुरोरङ्घ्रिपद्मे ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥

Also known as Gurvashtakam

In Devanagari, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and English — with the meaning of every word, and the one syllable most people pronounce wrongly.

Guru Ashtakam HomaThe Guru Ashtakam Homa, performed for youBook →

What the Guru Ashtakam is

The Guru Ashtakam, also printed as the Gurvashtakam, is a set of eight Sanskrit verses on the spiritual teacher, traditionally attributed to Adi Shankaracharya. It never describes the Guru. Each verse sets out something a person might hold or achieve, then closes on one line: if the mind is not fixed at the Guru's lotus feet, tatah kim, 'what then?', asked four times. Verses 1 and 2 list a handsome body, a wife, wealth the size of Mount Meru, children, grandchildren, a house and kin. Verse 3 adds the Vedas with their six limbs and a poet's gift; verse 4, honour abroad and a name for good conduct at home; verses 5 and 6, kings serving at one's feet and fame spread by generosity. Verses 7 and 8 turn the argument round: even a mind drawn to nothing, not pleasure, yoga, horses, the forest or the body, is still asked the same question. A ninth verse names the reward. Every line has twelve syllables in the Bhujangaprayata metre.

Signed as the disciple of Govinda

Unlike Bhaja Govindam or the Kanakadhara Stotram, the Guru Ashtakam comes with no widely told account of the day it was composed. What the printed tradition gives instead is a signature. In the second volume of Shankara's hymns issued by the Vani Vilas Press at Srirangam in 1910, the text runs over pages 152 to 154 and ends with a colophon naming it the work of Shankara Bhagavat, the paramahamsa ascetic who was the disciple of Govinda Bhagavatpada. According to Advaita tradition, then, the Guru at whose feet the refrain kneels is Govinda, himself a disciple of Gaudapada, the teacher the young Shankara sought out on the banks of the Narmada. The verses themselves never name him, and their question is put to any seeker about any teacher. The text has also travelled in more than one shape. The 1910 edition and the version kept by the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham both begin at shariram surupam and close with the verse of benefits, which the 1910 edition numbers ninth. One modern recension places a further verse in front, beginning janmanekashataih and written in a different metre; it is not one of the eight. The reward verse is itself worth reading closely: it names four kinds of reciter, the renunciate, the king, the celibate student and the householder, so that no station of life is left outside the hymn.

The mantra, in six scripts

DevanagariSanskrit & Hindiशरीरं सुरूपं तथा वा कलत्रं यशश्चारु चित्रं धनं मेरुतुल्यम् । मनश्चेन्न लग्नं गुरोरङ्घ्रिपद्मे ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥
Tamilஶரீரம் ஸுரூபம் ததா வா கலத்ரம் யஶஶ்சாரு சித்ரம் தநம் மேருதுல்யம் । மநஶ்சேந்ந லக்நம் குரோரங்க்ரிபத்மே ததஃ கிம் ததஃ கிம் ததஃ கிம் ததஃ கிம் ॥
Teluguశరీరం సురూపం తథా వా కలత్రం యశశ్చారు చిత్రం ధనం మేరుతుల్యమ్ । మనశ్చేన్న లగ్నం గురోరఙ్ఘ్రిపద్మే తతః కిం తతః కిం తతః కిం తతః కిమ్ ॥
Kannadaಶರೀರಂ ಸುರೂಪಂ ತಥಾ ವಾ ಕಲತ್ರಂ ಯಶಶ್ಚಾರು ಚಿತ್ರಂ ಧನಂ ಮೇರುತುಲ್ಯಮ್ । ಮನಶ್ಚೇನ್ನ ಲಗ್ನಂ ಗುರೋರಙ್ಘ್ರಿಪದ್ಮೇ ತತಃ ಕಿಂ ತತಃ ಕಿಂ ತತಃ ಕಿಂ ತತಃ ಕಿಮ್ ॥
Malayalamശരീരം സുരൂപം തഥാ വാ കലത്രം യശശ്ചാരു ചിത്രം ധനം മേരുതുല്യമ് । മനശ്ചേന്ന ലഗ്നം ഗുരോരങ്ഘ്രിപദ്മേ തതഃ കിം തതഃ കിം തതഃ കിം തതഃ കിമ് ॥
EnglishRoman transliterationśarīraṃ surūpaṃ tathā vā kalatraṃ yaśaścāru citraṃ dhanaṃ merutulyam | manaścenna lagnaṃ guroraṅghripadme tataḥ kiṃ tataḥ kiṃ tataḥ kiṃ tataḥ kim ||
“One may have a handsome body, a beautiful wife, bright and varied fame, and wealth as vast as Mount Meru. But if the mind is not fixed on the lotus feet of the Guru, what of it, what of it, what of it, what of it?”
शरीरं
śarīraṃ — body
सुरूपं
surūpaṃ — handsome
तथा
tathā — likewise
वा
vā — or
कलत्रं
kalatraṃ — wife
यशश्चारु
yaśaścāru — fame, bright
चित्रं
citraṃ — varied
धनं
dhanaṃ — wealth
मेरुतुल्यम्
merutulyam — equal to Mount Meru
मनश्चेन्न
manaścenna — if the mind is not
लग्नं
lagnaṃ — fixed
गुरोरङ्घ्रिपद्मे
guroraṅghripadme — on the Guru's lotus feet
ततः
tataḥ — then
किं
kiṃ — what
ततः
tataḥ — then
किं
kiṃ — what
ततः
tataḥ — then
किं
kiṃ — what
ततः
tataḥ — then
किम्
kim — what

Guru Ashtakam lyrics in full

Eight verses, each closing on the refrain tatah kim, followed by the verse of benefits.

All 9 verses, in Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and English, each with its meaning. Choose a script:

Download the Guru Ashtakam PDFAll 9 verses with their meanings, in Sanskrit. Free to print and keep.

Verse 1

शरीरं सुरूपं तथा वा कलत्रं यशश्चारु चित्रं धनं मेरुतुल्यम् ।
मनश्चेन्न लग्नं गुरोरङ्घ्रिपद्मे ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥

One may have a handsome body, a beautiful wife, bright and varied fame, and wealth as vast as Mount Meru. But if the mind is not fixed on the lotus feet of the Guru, what of it, what of it, what of it, what of it?

Verse 2

कलत्रं धनं पुत्रपौत्रादि सर्वं गृहं बान्धवाः सर्वमेतद्धि जातम् ।
मनश्चेन्न लग्नं गुरोरङ्घ्रिपद्मे ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥

Wife, wealth, sons, grandsons and all the rest, a home and relatives - all of this may have come to one. But if the mind is not fixed on the lotus feet of the Guru, what of it, what of it, what of it, what of it?

Verse 3

षडङ्गादिवेदो मुखे शास्त्रविद्या कवित्वादि गद्यं सुपद्यं करोति ।
मनश्चेन्न लग्नं गुरोरङ्घ्रिपद्मे ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥

The Vedas with their six limbs and the learning of the shastras may be on one's lips, and one may have the gift of poetry and compose fine prose and verse. But if the mind is not fixed on the lotus feet of the Guru, what of it, what of it, what of it, what of it?

Verse 4

विदेशेषु मान्यः स्वदेशेषु धन्यः सदाचारवृत्तेषु मत्तो न चान्यः ।
मनश्चेन्न लग्नं गुरोरङ्घ्रिपद्मे ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥

One may be honoured in foreign lands and fortunate in one's own, and think that in good conduct no one surpasses oneself. But if the mind is not fixed on the lotus feet of the Guru, what of it, what of it, what of it, what of it?

Verse 5

क्षमामण्डले भूपभूपालवृन्दैः सदा सेवितं यस्य पादारविन्दम् ।
मनश्चेन्न लग्नं गुरोरङ्घ्रिपद्मे ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥

One's lotus feet may be served at all times by hosts of kings and rulers across the earth. But if the mind is not fixed on the lotus feet of the Guru, what of it, what of it, what of it, what of it?

Verse 6

यशो मे गतं दिक्षु दानप्रतापाज्जगद्वस्तु सर्वं करे यत्प्रसादात् ।
मनश्चेन्न लग्नं गुरोरङ्घ्रिपद्मे ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥

One may say: my fame has spread in every direction through my generosity and prowess, and every thing in the world is in my hand by its favour. But if the mind is not fixed on the lotus feet of the Guru, what of it, what of it, what of it, what of it?

Verse 7

न भोगे न योगे न वा वाजिराजौ न कान्तामुखे नैव वित्तेषु चित्तम् ।
मनश्चेन्न लग्नं गुरोरङ्घ्रिपद्मे ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥

The mind may cling neither to pleasure nor to yoga, nor to fine horses, nor to a beloved's face, nor to riches. But if the mind is not fixed on the lotus feet of the Guru, what of it, what of it, what of it, what of it?

Verse 8

अरण्ये न वा स्वस्य गेहे न कार्ये न देहे मनो वर्तते मे त्वनर्घ्ये ।
मनश्चेन्न लग्नं गुरोरङ्घ्रिपद्मे ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥

My mind may dwell neither in the forest nor in my own home, neither in work to be done nor in the body, nor in anything precious. But if the mind is not fixed on the lotus feet of the Guru, what of it, what of it, what of it, what of it?

Phala Shruti 1

गुरोरष्टकं यः पठेत्पुण्यदेही यतिर्भूपतिर्ब्रह्मचारी च गेही ।
लभेद्वाञ्छितार्थं पदं ब्रह्मसंज्ञं गुरोरुक्तवाक्ये मनो यस्य लग्नम् ॥

Whoever, blessed with merit, recites this octad on the Guru - whether a renunciate, a king, a celibate student or a householder - and whose mind is fixed on the words spoken by the Guru: the verse says such a person attains the desired goal, the state called Brahman.

The syllable people get wrong

In guroraṅghripadme, 'on the Guru's lotus feet', the word aṅghri (foot) has a nasal made at the back of the mouth followed by an aspirated gh, so it sounds like 'ung-ghri' with a puff of breath after the g. It is often flattened to 'angri' or 'anjri', which loses the aspiration and turns the foot into a different sound altogether.

When the Guru Ashtakam is chanted

Festival. Guru Purnima

Questions

Tatah means 'then' or 'from that', and kim means 'what'. Together they ask 'what then?' or 'what follows from it?'. The phrase is said four times at the end of every verse, after the condition 'manashchenna lagnam guror anghripadme', 'if the mind is not fixed on the Guru's lotus feet'. The repetition is the argument: beauty, wealth, learning or fame are granted for the sake of the question, and each one is answered with the same silence.
No. The Gurvashtakam sung at the morning mangala arati in Gaudiya Vaishnava communities opens with samsara-davanala, 'the forest fire of worldly life', and was written by the seventeenth-century Vaishnava teacher Vishvanatha Chakravarti. It praises the Guru as a cloud that puts out that fire. The hymn on this page opens with shariram surupam, is attributed to Adi Shankaracharya, and works by questioning worldly gains rather than describing the Guru. Both have eight verses.
The ninth verse, 'guror ashtakam yah pathet', is the phala shruti. It speaks of anyone who recites the octad, whether a renunciate (yati), a king (bhupati), a celibate student (brahmachari) or a householder (gehi). The verse says that such a person, if the mind is fixed on the words the Guru has spoken, attains the desired goal, the state called Brahman. Its condition shifts slightly from the refrain: the Guru's feet become the Guru's spoken teaching.
In the first six verses the speaker possesses something: a family, scholarship, royal homage, fame. Verses 7 and 8 describe the opposite case, a mind that rests neither on pleasure nor on yoga, fine horses, a beloved's face, riches, the forest, home, work or the body. One could take that as the goal itself. The refrain still follows, so the hymn's point is that renunciation, like possession, is incomplete if the mind is not anchored at the Guru's feet.
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