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Mantra · The gods' chapter 5 hymn naming the Goddess in every state of being

Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu

नमो देव्यै महादेव्यै शिवायै सततं नमः । नमः प्रकृत्यै भद्रायै नियताः प्रणताः स्म ताम् ॥

Also known as Aparajita Stuti

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

What the Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu is

Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu, also written Ya Devi Sarva Bhuteshu, is the name given to the hymn the gods sing in chapter 5 of the Devi Mahatmya, the Durga Saptashati of the Markandeya Purana; the narrative calls it the Aparajita Stuti, praise of the unconquered one, and printed editions also carry it as the Tantrokta Devi Suktam. It runs from verse 5.9 to 5.82. Five opening verses salute her with names set in pairs of opposites: fierce and eternal, moonlight and smoke-dark, most gentle and most fierce. Then come twenty-one stanzas, each opening 'ya devi sarvabhuteshu' and ending on the refrain 'namastasyai namastasyai namastasyai namo namah'. The first two call her Vishnumaya and consciousness; the other nineteen change a single word before '-rupena samsthita', 'abiding in the form of', moving from intellect, sleep and hunger through modesty, faith and memory to mother and, last, delusion. Two verses on the all-pervading Goddess and on pure consciousness follow, and two longer verses close the hymn by asking her to strike down misfortune.

Gods without their offices on the Himalaya

The Devi Mahatmya sets the hymn at the start of its third and longest episode. The demon brothers Shumbha and Nishumbha had taken from Indra the three worlds and his share of the sacrifices, and had seized the offices of the sun and the moon, of Kubera, Yama and Varuna, of the wind and of Agni. The displaced gods recalled a promise given to them at the end of chapter 4, after Mahishasura's fall: whenever they remembered her in distress, she would end their calamities at once. They went to the Himalaya, lord of mountains, and praised Vishnumaya there, and the hymn's last verse hands that promise back to her, saying she destroys every misfortune the moment she is remembered. While they were singing, the text says, Parvati came to bathe in the waters of the Ganga and asked whom they were praising. Before they could answer, an auspicious form came out of her own body and replied that the hymn was hers, offered by gods whom Shumbha had set at nought and Nishumbha had routed in battle. Because she issued from the sheath, kosha, of Parvati's body, she is sung in every world as Kaushiki; Parvati, left dark, became known as Kalika and made the Himalaya her home. Kaushiki is the heroine of the battles that fill the rest of the book.

The mantra, in six scripts

DevanagariSanskrit & Hindiनमो देव्यै महादेव्यै शिवायै सततं नमः । नमः प्रकृत्यै भद्रायै नियताः प्रणताः स्म ताम् ॥

Tamilநமோ தேவ்யை மஹாதேவ்யை ஶிவாயை ஸததம் நமஃ । நமஃ ப்ரக்ருத்யை பத்ராயை நியதாஃ ப்ரணதாஃ ஸ்ம தாம் ॥

Teluguనమో దేవ్యై మహాదేవ్యై శివాయై సతతం నమః । నమః ప్రకృత్యై భద్రాయై నియతాః ప్రణతాః స్మ తామ్ ॥

Kannadaನಮೋ ದೇವ್ಯೈ ಮಹಾದೇವ್ಯೈ ಶಿವಾಯೈ ಸತತಂ ನಮಃ । ನಮಃ ಪ್ರಕೃತ್ಯೈ ಭದ್ರಾಯೈ ನಿಯತಾಃ ಪ್ರಣತಾಃ ಸ್ಮ ತಾಮ್ ॥

Malayalamനമോ ദേവ്യൈ മഹാദേവ്യൈ ശിവായൈ സതതം നമഃ । നമഃ പ്രകൃത്യൈ ഭദ്രായൈ നിയതാഃ പ്രണതാഃ സ്മ താമ് ॥

EnglishRoman transliterationnamo devyai mahādevyai śivāyai satataṃ namaḥ | namaḥ prakṛtyai bhadrāyai niyatāḥ praṇatāḥ sma tām ||

“Salutation to the Goddess, to the Great Goddess; to the auspicious one, salutation always. Salutation to Prakriti, primal nature, to the gracious one; with minds controlled we bow to her.”

नमो: namo — salutation
देव्यै: devyai — to the Goddess
महादेव्यै: mahādevyai — to the Great Goddess
शिवायै: śivāyai — to the auspicious one
सततं: satataṃ — always
नमः: namaḥ — salutation
नमः: namaḥ — salutation
प्रकृत्यै: prakṛtyai — to primal nature
भद्रायै: bhadrāyai — to the gracious one
नियताः: niyatāḥ — self-controlled
प्रणताः: praṇatāḥ — bowed down
स्म: sma — (we) have
ताम्: tām — to her

Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu lyrics in full

The gods' hymn of chapter 5, verses 9 to 82, with the twenty-one 'ya devi' stanzas as recited in the Durga Saptashati.

All 30 verses, in Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and English, each with its meaning. Choose a script:

Download the Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu PDFAll 30 verses with their meanings, in Sanskrit. Free to print and keep.

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Verse 1

नमो देव्यै महादेव्यै शिवायै सततं नमः ।
नमः प्रकृत्यै भद्रायै नियताः प्रणताः स्म ताम् ॥

Salutation to the Goddess, to the Great Goddess; to the auspicious one, salutation always. Salutation to Prakriti, primal nature, to the gracious one; with minds controlled we bow to her.

Verse 2

रौद्रायै नमो नित्यायै गौर्यै धात्र्यै नमो नमः ।
ज्योत्स्नायै चेन्दुरूपिण्यै सुखायै सततं नमः ॥

Salutation to the fierce one, to the eternal one; to Gauri, the radiant, and to the sustainer, salutation again and again. To her who is moonlight, who has the form of the moon, who is happiness itself, salutation always.

Verse 3

कल्याण्यै प्रणतां वृद्ध्यै सिद्ध्यै कुर्मो नमो नमः ।
नैर्ऋत्यै भूभृतां लक्ष्म्यै शर्वाण्यै ते नमो नमः ॥

We bow again and again to the auspicious one, who is growth and fulfilment for those who bow to her. Salutation again and again to you, who are Nairriti (the power of decline), the fortune of kings, and Sharvani, consort of Shiva.

Verse 4

दुर्गायै दुर्गपारायै सारायै सर्वकारिण्यै ।
ख्यात्यै तथैव कृष्णायै धूम्रायै सततं नमः ॥

To Durga, who carries us across what is hard to cross, who is the essence and the cause of all; to her who is fame, and likewise to the dark one and the smoke-coloured one, salutation always.

Verse 5

अतिसौम्यातिरौद्रायै नतास्तस्यै नमो नमः ।
नमो जगत्प्रतिष्ठायै देव्यै कृत्यै नमो नमः ॥

We bow to her who is at once most gentle and most fierce; salutation to her again and again. Salutation to the Goddess who is the foundation of the world, to her who is action itself, salutation again and again.

Verse 6

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु विष्णुमायेति शब्दिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who in all beings is named Vishnumaya, the creative and veiling power of Vishnu: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 7

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु चेतनेत्यभिधीयते ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who in all beings is called consciousness: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 8

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु बुद्धिरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of intelligence: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 9

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु निद्रारूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of sleep: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 10

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु क्षुधारूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of hunger: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 11

या देवी सर्वभूतेषुच्छायारूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of shadow (reflection): salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 12

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु शक्तिरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of power: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 13

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु तृष्णारूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of thirst and craving: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 14

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु क्षान्तिरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of forbearance: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 15

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु जातिरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of birth and kind (the class each being belongs to): salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 16

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु लज्जारूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of modesty: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 17

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु शान्तिरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of peace: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 18

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु श्रद्धारूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of faith: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 19

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु कान्तिरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of radiance and beauty: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 20

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु लक्ष्मीरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of fortune and prosperity (Lakshmi): salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 21

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु वृत्तिरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of livelihood and activity: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 22

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु स्मृतिरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of memory: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 23

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु दयारूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of compassion: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 24

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु तुष्टिरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of contentment: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 25

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु मातृरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of the mother: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 26

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु भ्रान्तिरूपेण संस्थिता ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To the Goddess who dwells in all beings in the form of delusion (error): salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 27

इन्द्रियाणामधिष्ठात्री भूतानां चाखिलेषु या ।
भूतेषु सततं तस्यै व्याप्तिदेव्यै नमो नमः ॥

She presides over the senses of all beings and is ever present in all the elements and creatures; to her, the all-pervading Goddess, salutation again and again.

Verse 28

चितिरूपेण या कृत्स्नमेतद् व्याप्य स्थिता जगत् ।
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥

To her who, as pure consciousness, pervades this entire world and abides in it: salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation to her, salutation again and again.

Verse 29

स्तुता सुरैः पूर्वमभीष्टसंश्रयात्तथा सुरेन्द्रेण दिनेषु सेविता ।
करोतु सा नः शुभहेतुरीश्वरी शुभानि भद्राण्यभिहन्तु चापदः ॥

Praised of old by the gods for the fulfilment of their wishes, and worshipped day after day by Indra, lord of the gods: may that sovereign Goddess, the source of all good, bring us what is good and auspicious and destroy our misfortunes.

Verse 30

या साम्प्रतं चोद्धतदैत्यतापितैरस्माभिरीशा च सुरैर्नमस्यते ।
या च स्मृता तत्क्षणमेव हन्ति नः सर्वापदो भक्तिविनम्रमूर्तिभिः ॥

She, the sovereign one, is now being saluted by us gods, tormented by the arrogant demons; and the verse says that when remembered by us, bowed in devotion, she destroys all our misfortunes that very instant.

The syllable people get wrong

In the refrain, namastasyai is often sung as 'namas-tas-yay' or clipped to 'namastase'; tasyai is the feminine 'to her', and its final ai is a single diphthong, as in 'aisle'. Say na-mas-tas-yai, carrying the s of namas straight into tasyai without a break.

When the Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu is chanted

Weekday. Friday

Festival. Sharad Navaratri

Questions

Its claim is that nothing found in a living being stands outside her. Beside intellect, faith and compassion, the stanzas name nidra, sleep, kshudha, hunger, and trishna, thirst or craving, and the series ends on bhranti, error or delusion. Commentators read that closing place as deliberate: the power that is consciousness in the second stanza is also what leads beings to mistake the world. Sleep looks back to chapter 1, where she is Yoganidra, the slumber that holds Vishnu.

No, the two only share a name. The Rigvedic hymn, 10.125, is eight Vedic verses in which the goddess Vak speaks of herself in the first person. This one is Puranic: the gods speak about a Goddess they keep calling 'she who', in classical couplets, with only the last two verses in a longer metre. Saptashati editions set the two side by side, labelling the Vedic one Rigvedokta and this one Tantrokta, though the Tantrokta hymn is simply chapter 5 lifted out of its story.

The Durga Saptashati as recited has twenty-one, the form printed here. Some printings of the Markandeya Purana itself carry three more: dhriti, steadfastness, after Lakshmi; niti, right conduct, after compassion; and pushti, nourishment, after contentment. The Saptashati also numbers each refrain stanza as three verses, which is why a hymn of thirty printed stanzas reaches verse 82 of the chapter.

Aparajita means 'the unconquered'. The verse that introduces the hymn has the gods, beaten and stripped of their offices, turn to the one power that has never lost a battle, and the hymn takes its name from that title. The setting makes the contrast sharp: Indra and the guardians of the directions come as the defeated, and the praise they offer is addressed to the Goddess who, the text says, cannot be overcome.

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Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu

What the Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu is

Gods without their offices on the Himalaya

The mantra, in six scripts

Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu lyrics in full

The syllable people get wrong

When the Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu is chanted

Questions

Have your chart read before you decide

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