bhaja-govindamshankaracharyaself-inquirydetachment

Ka Te Kanta Kaste Putrah

Ka Te Kanta Kaste Putrah in English · English

🕉️ hindu·📿 11× repetitions·🕐 Quiet hours of self-reflection, especially morning or before sleep·📜 Bhaja Govindam (Moha Mudgara), verse on self-inquiry

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हिन्दी / देवनागरी తెలుగు தமிழ்ಕನ್ನಡ മലയാളം ગુજરાતી বাংলা ଓଡ଼ିଆ ਪੰਜਾਬੀEnglishසිංහල 𑌗𑍍𑌰𑌨𑍍𑌥

✦ Meaning

This famous verse from Adi Shankaracharya's Bhaja Govindam confronts the seeker with the great questions of self-inquiry. By asking 'Who is your wife? Who is your son? Who are you? Whence have you come?' it loosens the grip of false identification with family and the body. It calls this strange world of samsara into question and urges the listener — addressed warmly as 'brother' — to contemplate the truth of the Self here and now.

Origin & Story

Bhaja Govindam (Moha Mudgara), verse on self-inquiry · Adi Shankaracharya · 8th century CE (circa 788-820)

This verse forms part of Adi Shankaracharya's Bhaja Govindam, sung in Varanasi to rouse the soul from worldly delusion. Having shown how fleeting wealth, body, and relationships are, Shankaracharya here turns the seeker's attention inward with the timeless questions of Vedanta — Who are you? Whose are you? Whence have you come? — inviting contemplation of the Self that underlies the strange spectacle of samsara.

✦ As told in scripture

These very questions — 'Who am I? Whence have I come?' — became the seed of self-inquiry that countless seekers, including modern sages, have used to realize the Self. It is said that to sincerely sit with this verse is to begin the inward journey that ends all sorrow.

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The Mantra

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Ka te kanta kaste putrah samsaroyamativa vichitrah Kasya tvam kah kuta ayatah tattvam chintaya tadiha bhratah

Meaning:Who is your wife? Who is your son? Utterly strange and wondrous is this samsara. Whose are you? Who are you? From where have you come? O brother, reflect upon that truth here and now.

Word-by-Word Meaning

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Ka🔊Who (is)

Te🔊Your

Kanta🔊Wife, beloved

Kaste putrah🔊Who is your son?

Samsarah ayam🔊This worldly existence

Ativa vichitrah🔊Exceedingly strange and wondrous

Kasya tvam🔊Whose are you?

Kah🔊Who (are you)?

Kuta ayatah🔊From where have you come?

Tattvam🔊The truth, the essential reality

Chintaya🔊Reflect upon, contemplate

Tad-iha🔊That, here (in this very life)

Bhratah🔊O brother!

Benefits of Chanting Ka Te Kanta Kaste Putrah

✦

Provokes deep self-inquiry — 'Who am I? Whence have I come?'

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Loosens attachment to family relationships seen as permanent

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Reveals the strange, dreamlike nature of worldly existence (samsara)

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Turns the mind toward contemplation of the eternal Self (Atman)

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A gentle yet piercing teaching, addressed to the seeker as 'brother'

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Carries the philosophical depth of Adi Shankaracharya's Advaita

How to Chant Ka Te Kanta Kaste Putrah

Repetitions11times

Best TimeQuiet hours of self-reflection, especially morning or before sleep

Recite this verse as a meditation, pausing on each question — 'Who is your wife? Who is your son? Who are you?' — and letting it dissolve fixed notions of identity. Do not seek quick answers; allow the questions themselves to turn the mind inward. The closing words 'tattvam chintaya' (contemplate the truth) are an invitation to sit in silent self-inquiry.

Frequently Asked Questions

This page shows the complete Ka Te Kanta Kaste Putrah written in the English script — the same Sanskrit/Hindi verses, transliterated character-by-character so you can read and chant comfortably. Tap any line (or the ▶ button) to hear it recited aloud.

Yes — only the script changes; the words and their meaning are the original. The verse-by-verse meaning, benefits and how-to-chant guidance on this page apply exactly the same.

It means 'Who is your wife? Who is your son?' Adi Shankaracharya uses these questions to show that our relationships are not our true identity, and to provoke inquiry into who we really are and where we have come from.

It is a call to self-inquiry (atma-vichara). By questioning our attachments and asking 'Who am I? Whence have I come?', the verse points beyond the body and family to the eternal Self, urging us to contemplate this truth in our present life.

Shankaracharya addresses the seeker affectionately as 'brother' to show that this teaching is given out of compassion, not judgment. It is the loving counsel of a guru wishing to awaken a fellow being to the truth.

It is from Bhaja Govindam (Moha Mudgara), composed by Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century CE. It is among the hymn's most quoted verses on self-inquiry and detachment.