Sharada Bhujanga Prayata Ashtakam
Sharada Bhujanga Prayata Ashtakam
Sharada Bhujanga Prayata Ashtakam
shAradA bhuja~Nga prayAta aShTakaM
suvakShojakumbhAM sudhApUrNakumbhAM
prasAdAvalambAM prapuNyAvalambAm |
sadAsyendubimbAM sadAnoShThabimbAM
bhaje shAradAmbAmajasraM madambAm || 1 ||
kaTAkShe dayArdrAM kare j~nAnamudrAM
kalAbhirvinidrAM kalApaiH subhadrAm |
purastrIM vinidrAM purastu~NgabhadrAM
bhaje shAradAmbAmajasraM madambAm || 2 ||
lalAmA~NkaphAlAM lasadgAnalolAM
svabhaktaikapAlAM yashaHshrIkapolAm |
kare tvakShamAlAM kanatpatralolAM
bhaje shAradAmbAmajasraM madambAm || 3 ||
susImantaveNIM dRRishA nirjitaiNIM
ramatkIravANIM namadvajrapANIm |
sudhAmantharAsyAM mudA chintyaveNIM
bhaje shAradAmbAmajasraM madambAm || 4 ||
sushAntAM sudehAM dRRigante kachAntAM
lasatsallatA~NgImanantAmachintyAm |
smarettApasaiH sargapUrvasthitAM tAM
bhaje shAradAmbAmajasraM madambAm || 5 ||
kuraNge turaNge mRRigendre khagendre
marAle madebhe mahokShe.adhirUDhAm |
mahatyAM navamyAM sadA sAmarUpAM
bhaje shAradAmbAmajasraM madambAm || 6 ||
jvalatkAntivahniM jaganmohanA~NgIM
bhaje mAnasAmbhoja subhrAntabhRRi~NgIm |
nijastotrasaNgItanRRityaprabhANgIM
bhaje shAradAmbAmajasraM madambAm || 7 ||
bhavAmbhojanetrAjasampUjyamAnAM
lasanmandahAsaprabhAvaktrachihnAm |
chalachchanchalAchArutATaNkakarNAM
bhaje shAradAmbAmajasraM madambAm || 8 ||
|| iti shrImachChaNkarAchAryavirachitA shrI shAradA bhujaNga prayAtAShTakam ||
About This Stotram
Overview
The Sharada Bhujanga Prayata Ashtakam is an eight-verse Sanskrit hymn dedicated to Goddess Sharada, a regional name for Saraswati as the deity of knowledge, music, and learning. It is composed in the Bhujanga Prayata meter — a flowing serpentine meter in Sanskrit prosody — and belongs to the devotional stotram tradition honoring Saraswati within the Shakta tradition.
What are the benefits of chanting Sharada Bhujanga Prayata Ashtakam?
- Enhancement of knowledge, learning, and intellectual acuity
- Improvement in eloquence and clarity of expression
- Removal of ignorance and mental obstacles to study
- Cultivation of devotion to the Goddess of wisdom and arts
When is the best time to recite this?
This ashtakam is particularly appropriate on Vasant Panchami (Saraswati Puja), during Navaratri on the days dedicated to Saraswati, and at the start of a period of formal study. Morning recitation is standard for stotrams in this tradition.
What is the historical and traditional background?
The authorship of the Sharada Bhujanga Prayata Ashtakam is not known, though use of the Bhujanga Prayata meter places it within a tradition of learned Sanskrit composition employed by scholars and poet-devotees across the medieval period. Sharada worship has deep roots in the Kashmir Shaiva tradition, where the deity is identified with the power of divine speech (Vak), and also in the Maihar region of Madhya Pradesh. The eight-verse ashtakam format is a common and compact mode for Sanskrit devotional composition.
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
- Sharda Chalisa — a Hindi Chalisa dedicated to the same goddess, particularly associated with the Maihar temple in Madhya Pradesh
- Saraswati Ashtakam — another eight-verse hymn to Saraswati, sharing the same deity and devotional purpose