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Home › Mantras › Pandurangashtakam
Lakshmi Narayana Pandurangashtakam: dark Panduranga standing on a brick with his hands on his hips while Pundalik tends his aged parents by the Bhima
Panduranga waits on the brick, hands on his hips, while Pundalik finishes serving his parents
Mantra · Eight verses to Vitthala of Pandharpur, standing on Pundarika's brick

Pandurangashtakam

महायोगपीठे तटे भीमरथ्या वरं पुण्डरीकाय दातुं मुनीन्द्रैः । समागत्य तिष्ठन्तमानंदकंदं परब्रह्मलिङ्गं भजे पाण्डुरङ्गम् ॥

Also known as Panduranga Ashtakam

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 Pandurangashtakam is

The Pandurangashtakam, also written Pandurangashtakam, is a Sanskrit hymn to Vitthala of Pandharpur in Maharashtra, the standing form of Krishna known in Marathi devotion as Vithoba. Its closing colophon names Adi Shankaracharya as the author, an attribution tradition accepts and some historians question. Eight verses share one refrain, "parabrahmalingam bhaje pandurangam", and a ninth states the fruit of reciting it. The sequence reads like a slow look at the image in the shrine. Verse 1 fixes the place, the bank of the Bhimarathi, and the reason he came. Verse 2 sets his feet on the brick, and verse 3 explains his hands at his hips. Verses 4 to 6 move from the Kaustubha gem at his throat to the earrings, the lips and the crown. Verse 7 recalls the flute and the cowherd's dress. Verse 8 leaves the image behind and names him the unborn one, the fourth state and liberation itself, who restores the life of Rukmini.

Pundarika, the brick and the waiting god

Verse 1 says he came to the Bhimarathi with the great sages to grant a boon to Pundarika, and the hymn leaves the rest to what its hearers already know. The river is the Bhima, called the Chandrabhaga at Pandharpur. The tale survives in several tellings. In one Skanda Purana version, Pundarika is a devotee of Vishnu who serves his parents, and Gopala-Krishna arrives from Govardhana as a cowherd with his cows, wearing a peacock-feather headdress. Pundarika asks him to stay on the riverbank. That cowherd is close to the figure of verses 6 and 7. The telling with the brick comes from a Padma Purana variant and the Marathi poet Sridhara. Here Pundalik begins as a son who neglects his aged parents, until a meeting with the sage Kukkuta turns him to their care. Krishna, seeking Rukmini who has left him in anger, reaches the Dandivana forest, makes peace with her and calls at Pundalik's house. Pundalik will not break off attending his parents, so he throws out a brick for the visitor to stand on. According to tradition Krishna waits on it, arms akimbo, and when offered a boon Pundalik asks him to remain there with Rukmini. Scholars differ on whether Pundalik was a historical person, though a record of 1189 already notes a small Vithoba shrine at the site.

The mantra, in six scripts

DevanagariSanskrit & Hindiमहायोगपीठे तटे भीमरथ्या वरं पुण्डरीकाय दातुं मुनीन्द्रैः । समागत्य तिष्ठन्तमानंदकंदं परब्रह्मलिङ्गं भजे पाण्डुरङ्गम् ॥
Tamilமஹாயோகபீடே தடே பீமரத்யா வரம் புண்டரீகாய தாதும் முநீந்த்ரைஃ । ஸமாகத்ய திஷ்டந்தமாநம்தகம்தம் பரப்ரஹ்மலிங்கம் பஜே பாண்டுரங்கம் ॥
Teluguమహాయోగపీఠే తటే భీమరథ్యా వరం పుణ్డరీకాయ దాతుం మునీన్ద్రైః । సమాగత్య తిష్ఠన్తమానందకందం పరబ్రహ్మలిఙ్గం భజే పాణ్డురఙ్గమ్ ॥
Kannadaಮಹಾಯೋಗಪೀಠೇ ತಟೇ ಭೀಮರಥ್ಯಾ ವರಂ ಪುಣ್ಡರೀಕಾಯ ದಾತುಂ ಮುನೀನ್ದ್ರೈಃ । ಸಮಾಗತ್ಯ ತಿಷ್ಠನ್ತಮಾನಂದಕಂದಂ ಪರಬ್ರಹ್ಮಲಿಙ್ಗಂ ಭಜೇ ಪಾಣ್ಡುರಙ್ಗಮ್ ॥
Malayalamമഹായോഗപീഠേ തടേ ഭീമരഥ്യാ വരം പുണ്ഡരീകായ ദാതും മുനീന്ദ്രൈഃ । സമാഗത്യ തിഷ്ഠന്തമാനംദകംദം പരബ്രഹ്മലിങ്ഗം ഭജേ പാണ്ഡുരങ്ഗമ് ॥
EnglishRoman transliterationmahāyogapīṭhe taṭe bhīmarathyā varaṃ puṇḍarīkāya dātuṃ munīndraiḥ | samāgatya tiṣṭhantamānaṃdakaṃdaṃ parabrahmaliṅgaṃ bhaje pāṇḍuraṅgam ||
“At the great seat of yoga on the bank of the Bhimarathi, he came with the great sages to grant a boon to Pundarika and stands there, the root of bliss. I worship Panduranga, the very emblem of the supreme Brahman.”
महायोगपीठे
mahāyogapīṭhe — at the great seat of yoga
तटे
taṭe — on the bank
भीमरथ्या
bhīmarathyā — of the Bhimarathi river
वरं
varaṃ — a boon
पुण्डरीकाय
puṇḍarīkāya — to Pundarika
दातुं
dātuṃ — to grant
मुनीन्द्रैः
munīndraiḥ — with the great sages
समागत्य
samāgatya — having come
तिष्ठन्तमानंदकंदं
tiṣṭhantamānaṃdakaṃdaṃ — standing, the root of bliss
परब्रह्मलिङ्गं
parabrahmaliṅgaṃ — emblem of the supreme Brahman
भजे
bhaje — I worship
पाण्डुरङ्गम्
pāṇḍuraṅgam — Panduranga

Pandurangashtakam lyrics in full

Eight verses with the phala shruti that follows them, usually numbered as verse 9. The printed closing line is given at the end.

All 10 verses, in Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and English, each with its meaning. Choose a script:

Download the Pandurangashtakam PDFAll 10 verses with their meanings, in Sanskrit. Free to print and keep.

Verse 1

महायोगपीठे तटे भीमरथ्या वरं पुण्डरीकाय दातुं मुनीन्द्रैः ।
समागत्य तिष्ठन्तमानंदकंदं परब्रह्मलिङ्गं भजे पाण्डुरङ्गम् ॥

At the great seat of yoga on the bank of the Bhimarathi, he came with the great sages to grant a boon to Pundarika and stands there, the root of bliss. I worship Panduranga, the very emblem of the supreme Brahman.

Verse 2

तटिद्वाससं नीलमेघावभासं रमामंदिरं सुंदरं चित्प्रकाशम् ।
वरं त्विष्टकायां समन्यस्तपादं परब्रह्मलिङ्गं भजे पाण्डुरङ्गम् ॥

Clothed in garments bright as lightning and shining like a dark rain cloud, he is the home of Lakshmi, beautiful, the light of consciousness. He stands, supreme, with his feet set firmly on a brick. I worship Panduranga, the very emblem of the supreme Brahman.

Verse 3

प्रमाणं भवाब्धेरिदं मामकानां नितम्बः कराभ्यां धृतो येन तस्मात् ।
विधातुर्वसत्यै धृतो नाभिकोशः परब्रह्मलिङ्गं भजे पाण्डुरङ्गम् ॥

'For those who are mine, this is the depth of the ocean of worldly life': for this reason he holds his hips with his hands. He bears the lotus of his navel as a dwelling for Brahma the Creator. I worship Panduranga, the very emblem of the supreme Brahman.

Verse 4

स्फुरत्कौस्तुभालङ्कृतं कण्ठदेशे श्रिया जुष्टकेयूरकं श्रीनिवासम् ।
शिवं शांतमीड्यं वरं लोकपालं परब्रह्मलिङ्गं भजे पाण्डुरङ्गम् ॥

His throat is adorned with the shining Kaustubha gem, his armlets are graced by Lakshmi, and he is the abode of Lakshmi. He is auspicious, peaceful, worthy of praise, excellent, the guardian of the worlds. I worship Panduranga, the very emblem of the supreme Brahman.

Verse 5

शरच्चंद्रबिंबाननं चारुहासं लसत्कुण्डलाक्रांतगण्डस्थलांतम् ।
जपारागबिंबाधरं कञ्जनेत्रं परब्रह्मलिङ्गं भजे पाण्डुरङ्गम् ॥

His face is the disc of the autumn moon, his smile lovely, and the sparkling earrings reach down over his cheeks. His lips are red as the hibiscus and the bimba fruit, and his eyes are lotuses. I worship Panduranga, the very emblem of the supreme Brahman.

Verse 6

किरीटोज्ज्वलत्सर्वदिक्प्रांतभागं सुरैरर्चितं दिव्यरत्नैरनर्घैः ।
त्रिभङ्गाकृतिं बर्हमाल्यावतंसं परब्रह्मलिङ्गं भजे पाण्डुरङ्गम् ॥

His shining crown lights up every quarter of the sky, and the gods worship him with priceless divine gems. His form bends in three places, and he wears a garland and ornament of peacock feathers. I worship Panduranga, the very emblem of the supreme Brahman.

Verse 7

विभुं वेणुनादं चरंतं दुरंतं स्वयं लीलया गोपवेषं दधानम् ।
गवां वृन्दकानन्ददं चारुहासं परब्रह्मलिङ्गं भजे पाण्डुरङ्गम् ॥

The all-pervading one, who plays the flute and roams about, whose limit is hard to reach, took on the dress of a cowherd by his own play. He gives joy to the herds of cattle, and his smile is lovely. I worship Panduranga, the very emblem of the supreme Brahman.

Verse 8

अजं रुक्मिणीप्राणसञ्जीवनं तं परं धाम कैवल्यमेकं तुरीयम् ।
प्रसन्नं प्रपन्नार्तिहं देवदेवं परब्रह्मलिङ्गं भजे पाण्डुरङ्गम् ॥

He is the unborn one, who restores the very life of Rukmini; the supreme abode, liberation itself, the one, the fourth state beyond waking, dream and sleep. He is gracious, the remover of the pain of those who take refuge in him, the god of gods. I worship Panduranga, the very emblem of the supreme Brahman.

Phala Shruti 1

स्तवं पाण्डुरंगस्य वै पुण्यदं ये पठन्त्येकचित्तेन भक्त्या च नित्यम् ।
भवांभोनिधिं ते वितीर्त्वान्तकाले हरेरालयं शाश्वतं प्राप्नुवन्ति ॥

The verse says that those who recite this merit-giving hymn to Panduranga every day, with one-pointed mind and devotion, cross the ocean of worldly life and at the end of their lives reach the eternal abode of Hari.

Closing

॥ इति श्रीमत्परमहंसपरिव्राजकाचार्यस्य श्रीगोविन्दभगवत्पूज्यपादशिष्यस्य श्रीमच्छङ्करभगवतः कृतौ पाण्डुरङ्गाष्टकं सम्पूर्णम् ॥

Thus ends the Panduranga Ashtakam, a work of the revered Shankara Bhagavan, the teacher of the highest order of renunciates and disciple of the revered Govinda Bhagavatpada.

The syllable people get wrong

The word tviṣṭakāyāṃ in verse 2 is two words joined, tu + iṣṭakāyām, "on a brick", and the initial tv is one quick cluster: say tvish-ta-KAA-yaam, with a retroflex ṣṭ made with the tongue curled back.

When the Pandurangashtakam is chanted

Weekday. Thursday

Festival. Ashadhi and Kartiki Ekadashi at Pandharpur

Questions

The closing line calls it a work of Shankara, the disciple of Govinda Bhagavatpada, and tradition accepts this. Historians have questioned the attribution. If it holds, the hymn would show Vitthala worship in the 8th century, well before the earliest dated record of the Pandharpur shrine in 1189. The verses themselves name no author, so the hymn is best described as attributed to him.
Linga here means a sign or emblem, so the refrain calls Panduranga the very emblem of the supreme Brahman. The word still draws notice at Pandharpur, because the tall conical crown of the image is interpreted as a Shiva linga, and the poet-saint Dnyaneshwar speaks of Vitthala carrying Shiva on his head. The hymn itself does not mention that reading.
Verse 3 gives the gesture a voice. He holds his hips, it says, to show those who are his the measure of the ocean of worldly life: this is how deep it is. The same verse then turns to his navel, kept as the lotus dwelling of Brahma the Creator, so one verse accounts for two details of the standing figure.
Verse 2 compares him to a dark rain cloud, and the Pandharpur image is black stone, yet Panduranga means the white god. One scholarly view holds the name first belonged to a white form of Shiva worshipped at Pandharpur and passed to Vitthala. Another reads it as a Sanskrit shaping of Pandaraga, an old name of the town. Neither is settled.
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