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Mantra · Shankara's flood-time hymn to the river, each verse bowing at her feet

Narmada Ashtakam

सबिन्दुसिन्धुसुस्खलत्तरङ्गभङ्गरञ्जितं द्विषत्सु पापजातजातकारिवारिसंयुतम् । कृतान्तदूतकालभूतभीतिहारिवर्मदे त्वदीयपादपङ्कजं नमामि देवि नर्मदे ॥

Also known as Sabindu Sindhu Suskhalat

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

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What the Narmada Ashtakam is

The Narmada Ashtakam, also printed as Narmadashtakam, is an eight-verse Sanskrit hymn to the river Narmada as a goddess, attributed by tradition to Adi Shankaracharya. Every verse closes on one refrain, tvadiya-pada-pankajam namami devi narmade, 'O Goddess Narmada, I bow to your lotus feet', and a ninth verse states the reward of reciting it. The metre is Panchachamara, sixteen syllables a line with short and long beats alternating, the same rocking pattern as the Shiva Tandava Stotra. The sequence opens on the water itself, its spray and breaking waves, then fills the banks with life: fish, tortoises, crocodiles, chakravaka birds, and sages such as Vasishtha, Pippalada, Kardama, Narada and Nachiketa. Twice it names Markandeya, the sage the river sheltered when the world dissolved. The eighth verse calls her born from Shiva's matted locks and says her sound reaches hunter, scholar and rogue alike.

A flood stopped at Omkareshwar

The Madhaviya Shankara Vijaya, the traditional verse biography of Shankara, says the young ascetic left Kaladi in Kerala and travelled north until he reached the Narmada at Omkareshwar, where Govinda Bhagavatpada lived in a cave on the riverbank. While the teacher sat absorbed in samadhi, the river rose in flood and threatened the cave. Shankara set his kamandalu, the ascetic's water pot, in the path of the water, and the flood is said to have drawn into the pot and subsided. Temple tradition at Omkareshwar holds that the Narmada Ashtakam was sung at that moment, as a plea to the river to spare the teacher. Other retellings attach the Nirvana Shatkam to the same meeting instead, as Shankara's answer when Govindapada asked who he was. The cave, now called Govindeshwar Gufa, is still kept below the Omkareshwar temple on the road to Koti Tirtha ghat. The hymn's own imagery reaches much further back. Its third verse alludes to an episode in the Reva Khanda of the Skanda Purana, in which Markandeya, swimming exhausted through the ocean of cosmic dissolution, meets the Narmada in the form of a woman. She brings him a boat with Shankara, that is Shiva, seated in it, so that neither the sage nor the river perishes when all else does.

The mantra, in six scripts

DevanagariSanskrit & Hindiसबिन्दुसिन्धुसुस्खलत्तरङ्गभङ्गरञ्जितं द्विषत्सु पापजातजातकारिवारिसंयुतम् । कृतान्तदूतकालभूतभीतिहारिवर्मदे त्वदीयपादपङ्कजं नमामि देवि नर्मदे ॥

Tamilஸபிந்துஸிந்துஸுஸ்கலத்தரங்கபங்கரஞ்ஜிதம் த்விஷத்ஸு பாபஜாதஜாதகாரிவாரிஸம்யுதம் । க்ருதாந்ததூதகாலபூதபீதிஹாரிவர்மதே த்வதீயபாதபங்கஜம் நமாமி தேவி நர்மதே ॥

Teluguసబిన్దుసిన్ధుసుస్ఖలత్తరఙ్గభఙ్గరఞ్జితం ద్విషత్సు పాపజాతజాతకారివారిసంయుతమ్ । కృతాన్తదూతకాలభూతభీతిహారివర్మదే త్వదీయపాదపఙ్కజం నమామి దేవి నర్మదే ॥

Kannadaಸಬಿನ್ದುಸಿನ್ಧುಸುಸ್ಖಲತ್ತರಙ್ಗಭಙ್ಗರಞ್ಜಿತಂ ದ್ವಿಷತ್ಸು ಪಾಪಜಾತಜಾತಕಾರಿವಾರಿಸಂಯುತಮ್ । ಕೃತಾನ್ತದೂತಕಾಲಭೂತಭೀತಿಹಾರಿವರ್ಮದೇ ತ್ವದೀಯಪಾದಪಙ್ಕಜಂ ನಮಾಮಿ ದೇವಿ ನರ್ಮದೇ ॥

Malayalamസബിന്ദുസിന്ധുസുസ്ഖലത്തരങ്ഗഭങ്ഗരഞ്ജിതം ദ്വിഷത്സു പാപജാതജാതകാരിവാരിസംയുതമ് । കൃതാന്തദൂതകാലഭൂതഭീതിഹാരിവര്മദേ ത്വദീയപാദപങ്കജം നമാമി ദേവി നര്മദേ ॥

EnglishRoman transliterationsabindusindhususkhalattaraṅgabhaṅgarañjitaṃ dviṣatsu pāpajātajātakārivārisaṃyutam | kṛtāntadūtakālabhūtabhītihārivarmade tvadīyapādapaṅkajaṃ namāmi devi narmade ||

“O Goddess Narmada, your waters are adorned with rippling waves full of spray, and they wipe away the mass of sins, even of those who bear hatred. You give armour against the fear of death, of Yama's messengers and of time; I bow to your lotus feet.”

सबिन्दुसिन्धुसुस्खलत्तरङ्गभङ्गरञ्जितं: sabindusindhususkhalattaraṅgabhaṅgarañjitaṃ — graced by spray-filled, rippling, breaking waves
द्विषत्सु: dviṣatsu — even among those who hate
पापजातजातकारिवारिसंयुतम्: pāpajātajātakārivārisaṃyutam — with water that ends the mass of sins
कृतान्तदूतकालभूतभीतिहारिवर्मदे: kṛtāntadūtakālabhūtabhītihārivarmade — giver of armour against fear of death's envoys and time
त्वदीयपादपङ्कजं: tvadīyapādapaṅkajaṃ — your lotus feet
नमामि: namāmi — I bow to
देवि: devi — O Goddess
नर्मदे: narmade — O Narmada

Narmada Ashtakam lyrics in full

Eight verses, each ending on the refrain to the Narmada's lotus feet, followed by a verse that states the fruit of reciting the hymn.

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

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

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Verse 1

सबिन्दुसिन्धुसुस्खलत्तरङ्गभङ्गरञ्जितं द्विषत्सु पापजातजातकारिवारिसंयुतम् ।
कृतान्तदूतकालभूतभीतिहारिवर्मदे त्वदीयपादपङ्कजं नमामि देवि नर्मदे ॥

O Goddess Narmada, your waters are adorned with rippling waves full of spray, and they wipe away the mass of sins, even of those who bear hatred. You give armour against the fear of death, of Yama's messengers and of time; I bow to your lotus feet.

Verse 2

त्वदम्बुलीनदीनमीनदिव्यसम्प्रदायकं कलौ मलौघभारहारिसर्वतीर्थनायकम् ।
सुमच्छकच्छनक्रचक्रवाकचक्रशर्मदे त्वदीयपादपङ्कजं नमामि देवि नर्मदे ॥

O Goddess Narmada, you grant a divine state even to the humble fish that live in your waters, and in the Kali age you lift the heavy load of impurity as the leader of all holy places. You give joy to the fish, tortoises, crocodiles and chakravaka birds; I bow to your lotus feet.

Verse 3

महागभीरनीरपूरपापधूतभूतलं ध्वनत्समस्तपातकारिदारितापदाचलम् ।
जगल्लये महाभये मृकण्डुसूनुहर्म्यदे त्वदीयपादपङ्कजं नमामि देवि नर्मदे ॥

O Goddess Narmada, your deep, abundant waters wash the sins from the earth, and your roaring current shatters every sin and every mountain of misfortune. In the great terror of the world's dissolution you gave shelter to the son of Mrikandu (Markandeya); I bow to your lotus feet.

Verse 4

गतं तदैव मे भयं त्वदम्बु वीक्षितं यदा मृकण्डुसूनुशौनकासुरारिसेवितं सदा ।
पुनर्भवाब्धिजन्मजं भवाब्धिदुःखवर्मदे त्वदीयपादपङ्कजं नमामि देवि नर्मदे ॥

O Goddess Narmada, my fear left me the very moment I saw your waters, which Markandeya, Shaunaka and the gods always worship. You are armour against rebirth and against the sorrows of the ocean of worldly life; I bow to your lotus feet.

Verse 5

अलक्ष्यलक्षकिन्नरामरासुरादिपूजितं सुलक्षनीरतीरधीरपक्षिलक्षकूजितम् ।
वसिष्ठशिष्टपिप्पलादिकर्दमादिशर्मदे त्वदीयपादपङ्कजं नमामि देवि नर्मदे ॥

O Goddess Narmada, you are worshipped by countless unseen Kinnaras, gods and asuras, and on your clear banks hundreds of thousands of birds sing without fear. You bring blessing to Vasishtha, Pippalada, Kardama and other noble sages; I bow to your lotus feet.

Verse 6

सनत्कुमारनाचिकेतकश्यपात्रिषट्पदैः धृतं स्वकीयमानसेषु नारदादिषट्पदैः ।
रवीन्दुरन्तिदेवदेवराजकर्मशर्मदे त्वदीयपादपङ्कजं नमामि देवि नर्मदे ॥

O Goddess Narmada, Sanatkumara, Nachiketa, Kashyapa, Atri, Narada and others hold your feet in their hearts as bees hold to a lotus. You make the deeds of the Sun, the Moon, Rantideva and Indra, king of the gods, bear fruit; I bow to your lotus feet.

Verse 7

अलक्षलक्षलक्षपापलक्षसारसायुधं ततस्तु जीवजन्तुतन्तुभुक्तिमुक्तिदायकम् ।
विरिञ्चिविष्णुशंकरस्वकीयधामवर्मदे त्वदीयपादपङ्कजं नमामि देवि नर्मदे ॥

O Goddess Narmada, you are the weapon that destroys countless sins, seen and unseen, and you grant worldly enjoyment and liberation to every living creature. You protect the very abodes of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva; I bow to your lotus feet.

Verse 8

अहो धृतं स्वनं श्रुतं महेशकेशजातटे किरातसूतबाडबेषु पण्डिते शठे नटे ।
दुरन्तपापतापहारि सर्वजन्तुशर्मदे त्वदीयपादपङ्कजं नमामि देवि नर्मदे ॥

O Goddess Narmada, born from the matted locks of Shiva, your sound is heard on your banks by hunters, charioteers, the lowly, the learned, the wicked and the actor alike. You remove sin and suffering that are hard to end and bring good to all beings; I bow to your lotus feet.

Phala Shruti 1

इदं तु नर्मदाष्टकं त्रिकालमेव ये सदा पठन्ति ते निरन्तरं न यान्ति दुर्गतिं कदा ।
सुलभ्यदेहदुर्लभं महेशधामगौरवं पुनर्भवा नरा न वै विलोकयन्ति रौरवम् ॥

The verse says that those who always recite this Narmada Ashtakam at the three times of the day never fall into misfortune. It says they gain the glory of Shiva's abode, so rare for an embodied being, are not born again, and never see the hell called Raurava.

The syllable people get wrong

मृकण्डु (mṛkaṇḍu), the name of Markandeya's father in verses 3 and 4, is often flattened to 'mur-kan-du' with a dental 'nd'. The first syllable carries the vowel ṛ, said 'mri' in the north or 'mru' in the south, and ṇḍ is retroflex, with the tongue curled back to the roof of the mouth: 'mri-KUN-du'.

When the Narmada Ashtakam is chanted

Weekday. Friday

Festival. Narmada Jayanti (Magha Shukla Saptami)

Questions

Tradition credits Adi Shankaracharya, and the closing line of most printed editions names its author as Shankara Bhagavatpada, the disciple of Govinda Bhagavatpada. Temple tradition at Omkareshwar places its composition on the bank of the Narmada, where Shankara met that teacher. As with many hymns carrying Shankara's name, the attribution comes from tradition, not from an early manuscript record, but no other author has been proposed for it.

The ninth verse, beginning idam tu narmadashtakam, is the phala shruti. It steps outside the refrain and speaks about the hymn itself. The verse says that those who keep reciting this Narmada Ashtakam do not fall into misfortune, that they reach the glory of Shiva's abode, which it calls hard to gain even in a human body, and that they are not born again and never see Raurava, one of the hells named in the Puranas.

The phrase mahesha-kesha-ja-tate calls her the river born from Shiva's locks, a title more often given to the Ganga. The Reva Khanda of the Skanda Purana tells her origin differently: the Narmada arose from Shiva's perspiration while he performed penance on Mount Riksha, which is why she is called Shiva's daughter. Another account says she and the river Son came from two teardrops of Brahma. The hymn simply binds her to Shiva, as her other titles do.

The line reflects an old Puranic saying that liberation comes from bathing in the Ganga, from drinking the water of the Yamuna, and from merely seeing the Narmada. Seeing the river, darshan, is the act the Narmada is especially known for. The same reverence lies behind the Narmada Parikrama, in which pilgrims walk the length of the river along one bank and return along the other, the only river venerated by a full circuit of this kind.

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