shiveti mantramuchcharan kada sukhi bhavamyaham ||
imam hi nityameva muktamuttamottama stavam pathansmarana
bruvannaro vishuddhametisantatam |
hare gurau subhaktimashu yati nananyatha gatim
vimohanam hi dehinam sushankarasya chintanam ||
With holy water flowing down his hair…
The divine rattle of the damaru
Lord Shiva performs his fierce Tandava!
The Ganges moving through his hair,
Reaching the deepest of his locks,
And the crescent moon shines like a jewel, I’m in awe!
The preserver of life, the consort of Parvati,
Whose mind is where the Universe exists,
Whose all-seeing glance ends all hardship,
Whose garment is the whole cosmos, I find joy in that Shiva!
The serpent’s gem shimmers on him,
Its red glow on the faces of the Goddesses of direction,
He wears a cloak of elephant skin,
I am in awe of that God of mystical beings!
Indra and the other Gods in line…
Flower dust from their heads decorate Shiva’s footrest
A snake garlands the matted locks of his hair
Crowned with the crescent moon, may he bless us with prosperity!
The fire on his brow consumed Kama deva, the God of Desire,
The most divine celestial leaders revere him deeply,
His forehead gleams with the cooling rays of the moon,
May abundance flow to us from the tangled locks!
prakalpanaikashilpini...
His forehead burns with the sound ‘dhagad-dhagad’ Sa
His dancing feet create art on the Earth, and hence on Parvati’s body,
He is the only such artist, I’m in awe of that three-eyed Shiva!
The throb of his dance restrains the unrestrainable clouds,
And wraps the darkness of a full moon night around his neck,
O Shiva! The holder of the Ganga, the wearer of elephant hide
O Carrier of the crescent moon, the whole Universe, please bless us with prosperity!
The glow of blooming blue lotuses shines
On his neck as dark as the Universe itself
The ender of Kama deva, Tripurasura, worldly delusions and sacrifice,
The ender of Gajasura and Andhaka, the controller of Yama, I worship that Lord Shiva!
The source of well-being and art, scented in sweet Kadamba flowers
attracting swarms of bees flying around him,
The ender of Kama deva, Tripurasura, worldly delusions and sacrifice,
The ender of Gajasura and Andhaka, the controller of Yama, I worship that Lord Shiva!
His eyebrows show his mastery over worlds, the serpents around his neck spew fiery breath,
His frightful third eye throbs and emits fire,
The mridangam endlessly sounds the ‘dhimid-dhimid-dhimi’ rhythm,
And Shiva dances his intense Tandava to its beat!
When will I sense the sameness in a soft bed and hard ground? In a garland of pearls and snakes?
In a gem and a lump of clay? In a friend and an enemy?
In the beauty of a plain eye and a lotus-like eye? In the soul of a layman and a king?
When will I be truly worthy of worshipping Shiva?
When will I live in a cave in the woods by the River Ganga,
forever free of sinfulness, my hands clasped to my forehead in devotion,
Free from desires, worshipping Shiva with a sacred mark on my brow,
When will I attain the pure joy of uttering the mantras of Shiva?
Those who read it and reflect on this profound hymn
with a pure mind and without interruptions
with deep devotion to Shiva, the Guru, they will be closer to him,
All delusions will end through deep meditation on Lord Shiva.
Why it works
Awakens kundalini energy and deepens meditation practice by aligning individual consciousness (Atman) with Shiva's cosmic vibration and eternal dance rhythm.
Dissolves fear and ego-based limitations by exposing the illusory nature of separate selfhood through Shiva's universal dance metaphor.
Cultivates fearlessness (Abhaya) and inner resilience by meditating on Shiva as the destroyer of all obstacles, ignorance, and demonic patterns.
Purifies mind and nervous system through rhythmic Sanskrit phonetics and the embedded damaru vibration patterns within the chant's metrical structure.
Removes karmic blockages and negative samskaras by invoking Shiva's power to dissolve what no longer serves spiritual evolution and liberation.
