Damodara Ashtakam
Damodara Ashtakam
दामोदर अष्टकं
नमामीश्वरं सच्चिदानन्दरूपं
लसत्कुण्डलं गोकुले भ्राजमानम् ।
यशोदाभियोलूखलाद्धावमानं
परामृष्टमत्यन्ततो द्रुत्य गोप्या ॥ 1 ॥
रुदन्तं मुहुर्नेत्रयुग्मं मृजन्तं
कराम्भोजयुग्मेन सातङ्कनेत्रम् ।
मुहुः श्वासकम्पत्रिरेखाङ्ककण्ठ-
स्थितग्रैव-दामोदरं भक्तिबद्धम् ॥ 2 ॥
इतीदृक् स्वलीलाभिरानन्दकुण्डे
स्वघोषं निमज्जन्तमाख्यापयन्तम् ।
तदीयेषिताज्ञेषु भक्तैर्जितत्वं
पुनः प्रेमतस्तं शतावृत्ति वन्दे ॥ 3 ॥
वरं देव मोक्षं न मोक्षावधिं वा
न चान्यं वृणेऽहं वरेषादपीह ।
इदं ते वपुर्नाथ गोपालबालं
सदा मे मनस्याविरास्तां किमन्यैः ॥ 4 ॥
इदं ते मुखाम्भोजमत्यन्तनीलैर्-
वृतं कुन्तलैः स्निग्ध-रक्तैश्च गोप्या ।
मुहुश्चुम्बितं बिम्बरक्तधरं मे
मनस्याविरास्तां अलं लक्षलाभैः ॥ 5 ॥
नमो देव दामोदरानन्त विष्णो
प्रसीद प्रभो दुःखजालाब्धिमग्नम् ।
कृपादृष्टिवृष्ट्यातिदीनं बतानु
गृहाणेश मां अज्ञमेध्यक्षिदृश्यः ॥ 6 ॥
कुबेरात्मजौ बद्धमूर्त्यैव यद्वत्
त्वया मोचितौ भक्तिभाजौ कृतौ च ।
तथा प्रेमभक्तिं स्वकं मे प्रयच्छ
न मोक्षे ग्रहो मेऽस्ति दामोदरेह ॥ 7 ॥
नमस्तेऽस्तु दाम्ने स्फुरद्दीप्तिधाम्ने
त्वदीयोदरायाथ विश्वस्य धाम्ने ।
नमो राधिकायै त्वदीयप्रियायै
नमोऽनन्तलीलाय देवाय तुभ्यम् ॥ 8 ॥
इति श्रीमद्पद्मपुराणे श्री दामोदराष्टाकं सम्पूर्णम् ॥
About This Stotram
Overview
The Damodara Ashtakam is an eight-verse Sanskrit hymn in the Vaishnava tradition that praises Lord Krishna in his childhood form as Damodara — a name derived from the episode in which his mother Yashoda tied him at the waist (dama: rope, udara: belly) as punishment for stealing butter. The hymn is especially associated with the month of Kartika in Vaishnava practice.
What are the benefits of chanting Damodara Ashtakam?
- Cultivates a mood of parental affection (vatsalya bhava) toward Krishna, a recognized form of devotional love in Vaishnavism.
- Recitation during Kartika masa is held to carry special spiritual merit within the Vaishnava calendar.
- The hymn supports purification of the mind through focus on Krishna's childhood pastimes.
- Chanting is associated with removal of accumulated sins.
- The text is used to deepen the practice of nama-smarana (remembrance of the divine name).
When is the best time to recite this?
The Damodara Ashtakam is traditionally recited every evening throughout the month of Kartika (Damodara Masa), which falls in October-November. It is also recited on Krishna Janmashtami and during morning or evening devotional sessions at any time of year.
What is the historical and traditional background?
The Damodara Ashtakam is conventionally attributed to Adi Shankaracharya, though this attribution is not universally established in scholarly sources. The hymn circulates widely in Vaishnava devotional collections, particularly within traditions that follow the liturgical calendar of the month of Kartika. It reflects the Bhakti tradition's emphasis on Krishna's childhood as an especially approachable and tender expression of the divine. The text has been transmitted through devotional sampradayas and printed stotram anthologies across India.
Available scripts
This text is available in 14 scripts: devanagari, tamil, telugu, kannada, malayalam, gujarati, bengali, iast, gurmukhi, oriya, assamese, sinhala, itrans, hk. Use the script selector above to switch between them.
Related Texts
- Gopala Ashtakam — another eight-verse hymn to Krishna in his cowherd form, sharing the same devotional mood.
- Vishnu Sahasranama — the thousand-name hymn to Vishnu, which includes many epithets shared with Krishna devotional texts.
- Chaurashtakam — a related ashtakam that praises Krishna as the "thief" of devotees' hearts, using similar childhood imagery.