Kamasika Ashtakam Meaning — Line by Line
कामासिकाष्टकम्
Every verse and every word explained in English & Hindi
Meaning — Line by Line
Every verse of Kamasika Ashtakam with its English meaning. Tap any word to hear it, or ▶ to recite the verse.
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- Verse 1. śrutīnāmuttaraṃ bhāgaṃ vegavatyāścha dakṣiṇam |
- Verse 2. tapanendvagninayanaḥ tāpānapachinotu naḥ |
- Verse 3. ākaṇṭhamādipuruṣaṃ kaṇṭhīravamupari kuṇṭhitārātim |
- Verse 4. bandhumakhilasya jantorbandhuraparyaṅkabandharamaṇīyam |
- Verse 5. svasthāneṣu marudgaṇān niyamayan svādhīnasarvendriyaḥ
- Verse 6. vikasvaranakhasvarukṣatahiraṇyavakṣaḥsthalī
- Verse 7. saṭāpaṭalabhīṣaṇe sarabhasāṭṭahāsodbhaṭe
- Verse 8. tvayi rakṣati rakṣakaiḥ kimanyaistvayi chārakṣati rakṣakaiḥ kimanyaiḥ |
śrutīnāmuttaraṃ bhāgaṃ vegavatyāścha dakṣiṇam |
श्रुतीनामुत्तरं भागं वेगवत्याश्च दक्षिणम् । कामादधिवसन् जीयात्कश्चिदद्भुतकेसरी ॥ १ ॥
śrutīnāmuttaraṃ bhāgaṃ vegavatyāścha dakṣiṇam | kāmādadhivasan jīyātkaśchidadbhutakesarī || 1 ||
MeaningMay that wondrous Lion-Lord (Narasimha) be ever glorious, who out of loving desire dwells to the north of the Vedas' crown (the Upanishads) and to the south of the river Vegavati (at Kanchipuram).
tapanendvagninayanaḥ tāpānapachinotu naḥ |
तपनेन्द्वग्निनयनः तापानपचिनोतु नः । तापनीयरहस्यानां सारः कामासिकाहरिः ॥ २ ॥
tapanendvagninayanaḥ tāpānapachinotu naḥ | tāpanīyarahasyānāṃ sāraḥ kāmāsikāhariḥ || 2 ||
MeaningMay Kamasika Hari — whose three eyes are the sun, moon and fire, and who is the very essence of the secrets of the Nrisimha-tapaniya Upanishad — take away all our afflictions.
ākaṇṭhamādipuruṣaṃ kaṇṭhīravamupari kuṇṭhitārātim |
आकण्ठमादिपुरुषं कण्ठीरवमुपरि कुण्ठितारातिम् । वेगोपकण्ठसङ्गाद्विमुक्तवैकुण्ठबहुमतिमुपासे ॥ ३ ॥
ākaṇṭhamādipuruṣaṃ kaṇṭhīravamupari kuṇṭhitārātim | vegopakaṇṭhasaṅgādvimuktavaikuṇṭhabahumatimupāse || 3 ||
MeaningI worship that Primal Person who is man up to the neck and a lion above, who blunts the power of his foes, and who, drawn to the bank of the Vegavati, has set aside even his fondness for Vaikuntha to abide here.
bandhumakhilasya jantorbandhuraparyaṅkabandharamaṇīyam |
बन्धुमखिलस्य जन्तोर्बन्धुरपर्यङ्कबन्धरमणीयम् । विषमविलोचनमीडे वेगवतीपुलिनकेलिनरसिंहम् ॥ ४ ॥
bandhumakhilasya jantorbandhuraparyaṅkabandharamaṇīyam | viṣamavilochanamīḍe vegavatīpulinakelinarasiṃham || 4 ||
MeaningI extol that fierce-eyed Narasimha who sports on the sandy shore of the Vegavati — the true kinsman of every creature, beautiful as he sits bound in the graceful yogic posture upon his couch.
svasthāneṣu marudgaṇān niyamayan svādhīnasarvendriyaḥ
स्वस्थानेषु मरुद्गणान् नियमयन् स्वाधीनसर्वेन्द्रियः पर्यङ्कस्थिरधारणाप्रकटितप्रत्यङ्मुखावस्थितिः । प्रायेण प्रणिपेदुषः प्रभुरसौ योगं निजं शिक्षयन् कामानातनुतादशेष जगतां कामासिका केसरी ॥ ५ ॥
svasthāneṣu marudgaṇān niyamayan svādhīnasarvendriyaḥ paryaṅkasthiradhāraṇāprakaṭitapratyaṅmukhāvasthitiḥ | prāyeṇa praṇipeduṣaḥ prabhurasau yogaṃ nijaṃ śikṣayan kāmānātanutādaśeṣa jagatāṃ kāmāsikā kesarī || 5 ||
MeaningControlling the vital airs in their seats, master of all his senses, fixed in steady meditation upon his couch and turned inward — this Lord, as though teaching his own yoga to those who bow before him, the Lion of Kamasika, fulfils the desires of all the worlds.
vikasvaranakhasvarukṣatahiraṇyavakṣaḥsthalī
विकस्वरनखस्वरुक्षतहिरण्यवक्षःस्थली निरर्गलविनिर्गलद्रुधिरसिन्धुसन्ध्यायिताः । अवन्तु मदनासिका मनुजपञ्चवक्त्रस्य मां अहम्प्रथमिका मिथः प्रकटिताहवा बाहवः ॥ ६ ॥
vikasvaranakhasvarukṣatahiraṇyavakṣaḥsthalī nirargalavinirgaladrudhirasindhusandhyāyitāḥ | avantu madanāsikā manujapañchavaktrasya māṃ ahamprathamikā mithaḥ prakaṭitāhavā bāhavaḥ || 6 ||
MeaningMay the arms of the Man-Lion protect me — those arms that, rivalling one another as if each cried 'I first!', revealed open battle, while his blossoming claws tore open Hiranyakashipu's golden chest so that the unchecked torrent of gushing blood glowed red like the twilight sky.
saṭāpaṭalabhīṣaṇe sarabhasāṭṭahāsodbhaṭe
सटापटलभीषणे सरभसाट्टहासोद्भटे स्फुरत्क्रुधिपरिस्फुटभ्रुकुटिकेऽपि वक्त्रे कृते । कृपाकपटकेसरिन् दनुजडिम्भदत्तस्तना सरोजसदृशा दृशा व्यतिविषज्य ते व्यज्यते ॥ ७ ॥
saṭāpaṭalabhīṣaṇe sarabhasāṭṭahāsodbhaṭe sphuratkrudhiparisphuṭabhrukuṭike'pi vaktre kṛte | kṛpākapaṭakesarin danujaḍimbhadattastanā sarojasadṛśā dṛśā vyativiṣajya te vyajyate || 7 ||
MeaningO Lion whose fierceness is but a mask of grace! Even when your face is made terrible with its mane-like bristling, your roaring laughter and the quivering knit of your wrathful brows, your love shines through — tender as a mother offering her breast to the demon's child, beheld in your lotus-soft eyes.
tvayi rakṣati rakṣakaiḥ kimanyaistvayi chārakṣati rakṣakaiḥ kimanyaiḥ |
त्वयि रक्षति रक्षकैः किमन्यैस्त्वयि चारक्षति रक्षकैः किमन्यैः । इति निश्चितधीः श्रयामि नित्यं नृहरे वेगवतीतटाश्रयं त्वाम् ॥ ८ ॥
tvayi rakṣati rakṣakaiḥ kimanyaistvayi chārakṣati rakṣakaiḥ kimanyaiḥ | iti niśchitadhīḥ śrayāmi nityaṃ nṛhare vegavatītaṭāśrayaṃ tvām || 8 ||
MeaningWhen you protect, what need of any other guardian? And when you do not protect, what use is any other guardian? Resolved in this conviction, O Narahari, I take eternal refuge in you who abide on the bank of the Vegavati.
Word-by-Word Breakdown
Origin & History
Source: Composed by Sri Vedanta Desika (Stotra literature, Kanchipuram)
Author: Sri Vedanta Desika (Venkatanatha)
Period: c. 13th–14th century CE
At Kanchipuram, near the Ashtabhuja temple on the bank of the river Vegavati, Lord Narasimha is enshrined in the serene Yoga-Narasimha form known as Kamasika. Sri Vedanta Desika, who spent much of his life at Kanchi, composed this eight-verse hymn in praise of this very deity. Rather than dwelling only on the terrifying man-lion who tore apart Hiranyakashipu, Desika reveals the Lord's inner calm and boundless compassion — a yogi seated in meditation, fierce only as a 'disguise' for his grace toward devotees.
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