bhaja-govindamshankaracharyamurarisamsara

Punarapi Jananam Punarapi Maranam

Punarapi Jananam Punarapi Maranam in English · English

🕉️ hindu·📿 11× repetitions·🕐 During quiet contemplation, evening prayer, or satsang·📜 Bhaja Govindam (Moha Mudgara), verse on rebirth and surrender

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हिन्दी / देवनागरी తెలుగు தமிழ்ಕನ್ನಡ മലയാളം ગુજરાતી বাংলা ଓଡ଼ିଆ ਪੰਜਾਬੀEnglishසිංහල 𑌗𑍍𑌰𑌨𑍍𑌥

✦ Meaning

One of the most quoted and moving verses of Adi Shankaracharya's Bhaja Govindam, this shloka captures the weariness of the soul caught in endless rebirth — born, dying, and confined again in the womb, over and over. Recognizing that this ocean of samsara is too vast to cross by one's own effort, the devotee surrenders completely, crying out to Murari (Krishna) for rescue through his boundless grace.

Origin & Story

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

This verse belongs to Adi Shankaracharya's Bhaja Govindam, the great hymn composed in Varanasi to awaken the soul from worldly delusion. After describing the fleeting nature of life, the body, and relationships, the hymn turns to the inescapable cycle of rebirth. Here Shankaracharya, in the voice of the longing soul, cries out to Murari for rescue, teaching that liberation comes not by one's own striving but by the Lord's boundless grace.

✦ As told in scripture

Tradition holds that sincere recitation of this prayer of surrender, with tears of devotion, draws the immediate compassion of the Lord. Devotees through the ages have found that 'pahi murare' — 'save me, O Murari' — uttered with true longing, dissolves the fear of death and the burden of countless past lives.

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The Mantra

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Punarapi jananam punarapi maranam punarapi jananijathare shayanam Iha samsare bahudustare kripayapare pahi murare

Meaning:Birth again, death again, again to lie in a mother's womb — this cycle of worldly existence (samsara) is so very hard to cross. O Murari, save me by your boundless grace!

Word-by-Word Meaning

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Punarapi🔊Again and again, once more

Jananam🔊Birth

Maranam🔊Death

Janani-jathare🔊In a mother's womb

Shayanam🔊Lying, resting, sleeping

Iha🔊Here, in this

Samsare🔊In the cycle of worldly existence (birth and death)

Bahu-dustare🔊Very hard to cross over

Kripaya🔊By (your) grace, mercy

Apare🔊Boundless, limitless

Pahi🔊Protect (me), save (me)

Murare🔊O Murari! (Krishna, the slayer of the demon Mura)

Benefits of Chanting Punarapi Jananam Punarapi Maranam

✦

Awakens deep vairagya (detachment) toward the cycle of birth and death

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Teaches total surrender (sharanagati) to the Lord as the only refuge

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A heartfelt prayer for liberation (moksha) from samsara

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Soothes the fear of death by placing trust in Murari's boundless grace

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Among the most beloved and easily memorized verses of Bhaja Govindam

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Deepens devotion and the longing for the Lord's protection

How to Chant Punarapi Jananam Punarapi Maranam

Repetitions11times

Best TimeDuring quiet contemplation, evening prayer, or satsang

Recite this verse slowly, feeling the weight of repeated births and deaths in the words 'punarapi... punarapi.' Let the final plea 'pahi murare' (save me, O Murari) rise from the heart as a genuine prayer of surrender. It may be repeated as a standalone prayer for refuge, or chanted within the full Bhaja Govindam.

Frequently Asked Questions

This page shows the complete Punarapi Jananam Punarapi Maranam 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 'Birth again, death again' — describing the soul's endless wandering through samsara, being born, dying, and re-entering a mother's womb repeatedly. The verse ends with a plea to Murari (Krishna) to save the devotee by his boundless grace.

Murari is a name of Lord Krishna/Vishnu meaning 'the enemy (ari) of the demon Mura.' Here the devotee calls upon Murari as the compassionate Lord who alone can rescue one from the difficult ocean of birth and death.

It expresses, in just two lines, the entire predicament of the soul in samsara and the only solution — surrender to God's grace. Its rhythm and emotional power have made it one of the best-loved verses of Bhaja Govindam, often quoted on its own.

It is from Bhaja Govindam (also called Moha Mudgara), composed by Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century CE. It appears among the later verses of the hymn as a culminating prayer of surrender.