krishnastotraashtakamkrishnashtakam

කෘෂ්ණාෂ්ටකම්

ಕೃಷ್ಣಾಷ್ಟಕಂ in Sinhala · සිංහල

🕉️ hindu·📿 1× repetitions·🕐 At dawn on rising (as the hymn itself enjoins); especially on Krishna Janmashtami, Wednesdays and Ekadashi·📜 A traditional hymn to Sri Krishna

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हिन्दी / देवनागरी తెలుగు தமிழ்ಕನ್ನಡ മലയാളം ગુજરાતી বাংলা ଓଡ଼ିଆ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ Englishසිංහල𑌗𑍍𑌰𑌨𑍍𑌥

Origin & Story

A traditional hymn to Sri Krishna · Traditional

The Krishnashtakam beginning 'Vasudeva-sutam devam' is among the most widely recited of all hymns to Lord Krishna. In eight simple, melodious verses it adores Krishna feature by feature — the dark-cloud hue of his body, his lotus eyes and full-moon face, the peacock feather on his crest, the yellow silk and forest-flower garland, the conch and discus in his hands — each verse bowing to him as 'jagadguru', the Guru of the entire world. Its closing verse promises that to recite it at dawn dissolves the sins of countless births. Traditional in origin and beloved across India, it is sung above all on Krishna Janmashtami.

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Complete Text with Meaning

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Verse 1

වසුදේවසුතං දේවං කංසචාණූරමර්දනම් . දේවකීපරමානන්දං කෘෂ්ණං වන්දේ ජගද්ගුරුම් .. 1..

vasudevasutaṃ devaṃ kaṃsacāṇūramardanam | devakīparamānandaṃ kṛṣṇaṃ vande jagadgurum || 1||

Meaning:ವಸುದೇವನ ಮಗ, ದಿವ್ಯಸ್ವರೂಪ, ಕಂಸ ಮತ್ತು (ಮಲ್ಲಯೋಧ) ಚಾಣೂರನನ್ನು ಮರ್ದಿಸಿದವ, ದೇವಕೀ ಮಾತೆಯ ಪರಮಾನಂದ — ಜಗದ್ಗುರುವಾದ ಶ್ರೀಕೃಷ್ಣನಿಗೆ ನಾನು ನಮಸ್ಕರಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ.

Verse 2

අතසීපුෂ්පසඞ්කාශම් හාරනූපුරශෝභිතම් . රත්නකඞ්කණකේයූරං කෘෂ්ණං වන්දේ ජගද්ගුරුම් .. 2..

atasīpuṣpasaṅkāśam hāranūpuraśobhitam | ratnakaṅkaṇakeyūraṃ kṛṣṇaṃ vande jagadgurum || 2||

Meaning:ನೀಲಿ ಅತಸೀ (ಅಗಸೆ) ಹೂವಿನಂತ ಕಾಂತಿ ಉಳ್ಳವ, ಹಾರಗಳು ಮತ್ತು ಕಾಲಂದುಗೆಗಳಿಂದ ಶೋಭಿಸುವವ, ರತ್ನಖಚಿತ ಕಂಕಣ ಮತ್ತು ಕೇಯೂರಗಳನ್ನು ಧರಿಸಿದವ — ಜಗದ್ಗುರುವಾದ ಶ್ರೀಕೃಷ್ಣನಿಗೆ ನಾನು ನಮಸ್ಕರಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ.

Verse 3

කුටිලාලකසංයුක්තං පූර්ණචන්ද්රනිභානනම් . විලසත්කුණ්ඩලධරං කෘෂ්ණං වන්දේ ජගද්ගුරුම් .. 3..

kuṭilālakasaṃyuktaṃ pūrṇacandranibhānanam | vilasatkuṇḍaladharaṃ kṛṣṇaṃ vande jagadgurum || 3||

Meaning:ಗುಂಗುರು ಕೂದಲು ಉಳ್ಳವ, ಪೂರ್ಣಚಂದ್ರನಂತ ಮುಖ ಉಳ್ಳವ, ಹೊಳೆಯುವ ಕುಂಡಲಗಳನ್ನು ಧರಿಸಿದವ — ಜಗದ್ಗುರುವಾದ ಶ್ರೀಕೃಷ್ಣನಿಗೆ ನಾನು ನಮಸ್ಕರಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ.

Verse 4

මන්දාරගන්ධසංයුක්තං චාරුහාසං චතුර්භුජම් . බර්හිපිච්ඡාවචූඩාඞ්ගං කෘෂ්ණං වන්දේ ජගද්ගුරුම් .. 4..

mandāragandhasaṃyuktaṃ cāruhāsaṃ caturbhujam | barhipicchāvacūḍāṅgaṃ kṛṣṇaṃ vande jagadgurum || 4||

Meaning:ಮಂದಾರ ಹೂವಿನ ಸುಗಂಧದಿಂದ ಕೂಡಿದವ, ಮನೋಹರ ಮುಗುಳ್ನಗೆ ಉಳ್ಳವ, ಚತುರ್ಭುಜ, ತಲೆಯ ಮೇಲೆ ನವಿಲುಗರಿಯಿಂದ ಶೋಭಿಸುವವ — ಜಗದ್ಗುರುವಾದ ಶ್ರೀಕೃಷ್ಣನಿಗೆ ನಾನು ನಮಸ್ಕರಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ.

Verse 5

උත්ඵුල්ලපද්මපත්රාක්ෂං නීලජීමූතසන්නිභම් . යාදවානාං ශිරෝරත්නං කෘෂ්ණං වන්දේ ජගද්ගුරුම් .. 5..

utphullapadmapatrākṣaṃ nīlajīmūtasannibham | yādavānāṃ śiroratnaṃ kṛṣṇaṃ vande jagadgurum || 5||

Meaning:ಅರಳಿದ ಕಮಲದ ದಳಗಳಂತ ಕಣ್ಣುಗಳು ಉಳ್ಳವ, ನೀಲಿ ಮಳೆಮೋಡದಂತ ವರ್ಣ ಉಳ್ಳವ, ಯಾದವರ ಶಿರೋರತ್ನ — ಜಗದ್ಗುರುವಾದ ಶ್ರೀಕೃಷ್ಣನಿಗೆ ನಾನು ನಮಸ್ಕರಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ.

Verse 6

රුක්මිණීකේළිසංයුක්තං පීතාම්බරසුශෝභිතම් . අවාප්තතුලසීගන්ධං කෘෂ්ණං වන්දේ ජගද්ගුරුම් .. 6..

rukmiṇīkeḷisaṃyuktaṃ pītāmbarasuśobhitam | avāptatulasīgandhaṃ kṛṣṇaṃ vande jagadgurum || 6||

Meaning:ರುಕ್ಮಿಣಿಯೊಂದಿಗೆ ಕ್ರೀಡೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ತೊಡಗಿದವ, ಪೀತಾಂಬರದಿಂದ ಸುಂದರವಾಗಿ ಶೋಭಿಸುವವ, ತುಳಸಿಯ ಸುಗಂಧ ಉಳ್ಳವ — ಜಗದ್ಗುರುವಾದ ಶ್ರೀಕೃಷ್ಣನಿಗೆ ನಾನು ನಮಸ್ಕರಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ.

Verse 7

ගෝපිකානාං කුචද්වන්ද්ව කුඞ්කුමාඞ්කිතවක්ෂසම් . ශ්රී නිකේතං මහේෂ්වාසං කෘෂ්ණං වන්දේ ජගද්ගුරුම් .. 7..

gopikānāṃ kucadvandva kuṅkumāṅkitavakṣasam | śrī niketaṃ maheṣvāsaṃ kṛṣṇaṃ vande jagadgurum || 7||

Meaning:ಗೋಪಿಯರ ಆಲಿಂಗನದಿಂದ ಕುಂಕುಮ ಚಿಹ್ನೆಗಳಿಂದ ಕೂಡಿದ ಎದೆ ಉಳ್ಳವ, ಶ್ರೀ (ಲಕ್ಷ್ಮಿ)ಯ ನೆಲೆ, ಮಹಾ ಧನುರ್ಧರ — ಜಗದ್ಗುರುವಾದ ಶ್ರೀಕೃಷ್ಣನಿಗೆ ನಾನು ನಮಸ್ಕರಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ.

Verse 8

ශ්රීවත්සාඞ්කං මහෝරස්කං වනමාලාවිරාජිතම් . ශඞ්ඛචක්රධරං දේවං කෘෂ්ණං වන්දේ ජගද්ගුරුම් .. 8..

śrīvatsāṅkaṃ mahoraskaṃ vanamālāvirājitam | śaṅkhacakradharaṃ devaṃ kṛṣṇaṃ vande jagadgurum || 8||

Meaning:ವಿಶಾಲ ಎದೆಯ ಮೇಲೆ ಶ್ರೀವತ್ಸ ಚಿಹ್ನೆ ಉಳ್ಳವ, ವನಮಾಲೆಯಿಂದ ಪ್ರಕಾಶಿಸುವವ, ಶಂಖ ಚಕ್ರಗಳನ್ನು ಧರಿಸಿದ ದಿವ್ಯಸ್ವರೂಪ — ಜಗದ್ಗುರುವಾದ ಶ್ರೀಕೃಷ್ಣನಿಗೆ ನಾನು ನಮಸ್ಕರಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ.

Verse 9

කෘෂ්ණාෂ්ටකමිදං පුණ්යං ප්රාතරුත්ථාය යඃ පඨේත් . කෝටිජන්මකෘතං පාපං ස්මරණේන විනශ්යති ..

kṛṣṇāṣṭakamidaṃ puṇyaṃ prātarutthāya yaḥ paṭhet | koṭijanmakṛtaṃ pāpaṃ smaraṇena vinaśyati ||

Meaning:ಯಾರು ಪ್ರಾತಃಕಾಲ ಎದ್ದು ಈ ಪವಿತ್ರ ಕೃಷ್ಣಾಷ್ಟಕವನ್ನು ಪಠಿಸುತ್ತಾರೋ, ಈ ಸ್ಮರಣೆ ಮಾತ್ರದಿಂದ ಕೋಟಿ ಜನ್ಮಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಮಾಡಿದ ಪಾಪಗಳು ನಾಶವಾಗುತ್ತವೆ.

Word-by-Word Meaning

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වසුදේවසුතං🔊Vasudeva-sutaṃthe son of Vasudeva

කංසචාණූරමර්දනම්🔊Kaṃsa-chāṇūra-mardanamdestroyer of Kamsa and the wrestler Chanura

දේවකීපරමානන්දං🔊Devakī-paramānandaṃthe supreme joy of mother Devaki

කෘෂ්ණං වන්දේ ජගද්ගුරුම්🔊Kṛṣṇaṃ vande jagad-gurumI bow to Krishna, the Guru of the world — the refrain of every verse

අතසීපුෂ්පසඞ්කාශම්🔊Atasī-puṣpa-saṅkāśamof a hue like the blue atasi (flax) flower

පූර්ණචන්ද්රනිභානනම්🔊Pūrṇa-chandra-nibhānanamwith a face radiant like the full moon

බර්හිපිච්ඡාවචූඩාඞ්ගං🔊Barhi-pichchhāva-chūḍāṅgaṃhis crest adorned with a peacock feather

නීලජීමූතසන්නිභම්🔊Nīla-jīmūta-sannibhamresembling a dark rain-laden cloud

යාදවානාං ශිරෝරත්නං🔊Yādavānāṃ śiroratnaṃthe crest-jewel of the Yadava clan

ශඞ්ඛචක්රධරං🔊Śaṅkha-chakra-dharaṃthe bearer of the conch (shankha) and the discus (chakra)

ශ්රීවත්සාඞ්කං🔊Śrīvatsāṅkaṃmarked with the Shrivatsa, the auspicious curl on Vishnu's chest

ප්රාතරුත්ථාය🔊Prātar-utthāyarising at dawn (the time prescribed for its recitation)

Benefits of Chanting ಕೃಷ್ಣಾಷ್ಟಕಂ

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A beloved eight-verse hymn to Sri Krishna, beginning 'Vasudeva-sutam devam', recited the world over

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Each verse adores a different aspect of Krishna's beauty and glory and ends with the refrain 'Krishnam vande jagadgurum' — 'I bow to Krishna, the Guru of the world'

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Its closing verse promises that reciting it at dawn destroys the sins of ten million births (koti janma)

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Especially recited on Krishna Janmashtami, on Wednesdays and Ekadashi, and as a simple daily morning prayer

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One of the first Sanskrit stotras taught to children for its simple, melodious metre

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Bestows devotion, purity, protection and the grace of Lord Krishna

How to Chant ಕೃಷ್ಣಾಷ್ಟಕಂ

Repetitions1times

Best TimeAt dawn on rising (as the hymn itself enjoins); especially on Krishna Janmashtami, Wednesdays and Ekadashi

As the closing verse directs, recite it on rising at dawn, after a bath, before an image of Sri Krishna. Chant all eight verses with the refrain 'Krishnam vande jagadgurum', then the closing phala-shruti. Its short, even metre makes it easy to memorise and to sing daily, and it is a favourite for Janmashtami worship.

Frequently Asked Questions

This page shows the complete ಕೃಷ್ಣಾಷ್ಟಕಂ written in the Sinhala 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.

The Krishnashtakam is a hymn of eight verses (ashtakam) in praise of Lord Krishna, most famous in the version beginning 'Vasudeva-sutam devam'. Each verse lovingly describes a feature of Krishna's form and ends with the refrain 'Krishnam vande jagadgurum' — 'I bow to Krishna, the Guru of the world'.

It means 'the divine son of Vasudeva'. The opening verse salutes Krishna as the son of Vasudeva and the supreme joy of Devaki, who destroyed the tyrant Kamsa and the wrestler Chanura — and bows to him as the Guru of the whole world (jagadguru).

Its final verse promises that whoever recites this holy hymn on rising at dawn has the sins of ten million births destroyed by that remembrance. It is cherished for bringing devotion, purity and the protective grace of Lord Krishna.

The hymn itself prescribes recitation at dawn (pratar-utthaya, 'on rising in the morning'). It is especially recited on Krishna Janmashtami, on Wednesdays and Ekadashi, and is well-suited as a short daily morning prayer.