Mrudapi Cha Chandanam
Mrudapi Cha Chandanam
Mrudapi Cha Chandanam
mRRidapi cha chandanam
mRRidapi cha chandanamasmin deshe grAmo grAmaH siddhavanam |
yatra cha bAlA devIsvarUpA bAlAH sarve shrIrAmAH ||
harimandiramidamakhilasharIraM
dhanashaktI janasevAyai
yatra cha krIDAyai vanarAjaH
dhenurmAtA paramashivA
nityaM prAtaH shivaguNagAnaM
dIpanutiH khalu shatruparA || 1 ||
bhAgyavidhAyi nijArjitakarma
yatra shramaH shriyamarjayati
tyAgadhanAnAM taponidhInAM
gAthAM gAyati kavivANI
ga~NgAjalamiva nityanirmalaM
j~nAnaM shaMsati yativANI || 2 ||
yatra hi naiva svadehavimohaH
yuddharatAnAM vIrANAM
yatra hi kRRiShakaH kAryarataH san
pashyati jIvanasAphalyaM
jIvanalakShyaM na hi dhanapadavI
yatra cha parashivapadasevA || 3 ||
rachana: shrI janArdana hegDe
About This Stotram
Overview
Mrudapi Cha Chandanam is a short three-verse Sanskrit devotional hymn whose opening line translates as "even the earth is sandalwood." The verses present a perspective in which ordinary elements of the natural world — earth, forests, villages, children, the body, and cattle — are identified with sacred and divine realities. The text belongs to the broader Hindu devotional tradition of recognizing the divine in all of creation, though its specific origin and authorship are unknown.
What are the benefits of chanting Mrudapi Cha Chandanam?
- Cultivates the contemplative practice of seeing divinity in everyday life
- Supports a devotional attitude toward the natural environment
- Encourages spiritual awareness as part of daily living
- Connects personal practice to the broader recognition of cosmic sacredness
When is the best time to recite this?
Morning and evening devotional practice are appropriate contexts for this hymn. It can be incorporated into daily prayer as a contemplative opening or closing verse.
What is the historical and traditional background?
The specific origin of Mrudapi Cha Chandanam is not traceable to a known ancient scripture, Purana, or classical commentarial tradition. The text is not attributed to a named rishi, acharya, or poet. Its themes — the identification of Siddhavanam (a forest of attainment), the body as Hari's temple, and Dhenu Mata (the cow mother) with Paramashiva — are consistent with devotional concepts found across multiple Vaishnava and Shaiva traditions. The composition likely reflects the broader folk or regional devotional literature associated with seeing sacredness in the environment, a perspective found in texts like the Bhagavata Purana and in the poetry of the Bhakti movement.
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
- Vishnu Sahasranama — a Vaishnava text sharing the perspective of Hari's presence pervading all existence
- Shiva Panchakshara Stotram — a Shaiva hymn connecting natural elements to the divine, reflecting a similar sensibility