śrī gaṇeśa bhujaṅga stutiḥ

• athanow
• śrīgaṇeśabhujaṅgastutiḥthe Shri Ganesha Bhujanga Stuti

anvaya atha śrīgaṇeśabhujaṅgastutiḥ

bhujaṅga the snake — The hymn is named after its metre, Bhujangaprayata, 'the gliding of a snake', which every line of it keeps: four beats of one short syllable and two long ones.

note One of three hymns by the same author, each written in a different metre and each named after it.

• śriyaḥof wealth
• kāryasiddheḥof work carried through
• dhiyaḥof thought
• satsukhardheḥof the growth of true joy
• patimthe lord
• sajjanānāmof good people
• gatimthe road
• devatānāmof the gods
• niyantāramthe one who holds all things in check
• antaḥwithin
• svayamby himself
• bhāsamānamshining
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya śriyaḥ kāryasiddheḥ dhiyaḥ satsukhardheḥ sajjanānām patim devatānām gatim niyantāram antaḥ svayam bhāsamānam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

bhavānītanūjam the son of Bhavani — Bhavani is Parvati. The same half-line closes all twelve verses of praise.

gatim the road — Gati is both the way and the place it leads to. For the gods, Ganesha is the one they go by and the one they reach.

note Every verse ends with bhaje vighnarājaṃ bhavānītanūjam, so the whole hymn is one sentence said twelve times over.

• gaṇānāmof the ganas
• adhīśamthe over-lord
• guṇānāmof the three strands of nature
• sadāalways
• īśamthe master
• karīndrānanamwith the face of the lordliest elephant
• kṛttakandarpamānamwho cut down the pride of the god of desire
• caturbāhuyuktamhaving four arms
• cidānandasaktamat rest in the joy of pure awareness
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya gaṇānām adhīśam guṇānām sadā īśam karīndrānanam kṛttakandarpamānam caturbāhuyuktam cidānandasaktam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

guṇānām of the three strands of nature — Sattva, rajas and tamas, the three strands woven into everything made. He is master of them, so they do not hold him.

kandarpa the god of desire — Kandarpa is Kama. His pride is broken by the one whom desire cannot move.

• jagatprāṇavīryamwhose power is the breath of the world
• janatrāṇaśauryamwhose courage guards the people
• surābhīṣṭakāryamwho does what the gods long for
• sadāalways
• akṣobhyadhairyamwhose steadiness cannot be shaken
• guṇiślāghyacaryamwhose conduct men of worth praise
• gaṇādhīśavaryambest of the lords of ganas
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya jagatprāṇavīryam janatrāṇaśauryam surābhīṣṭakāryam sadā akṣobhyadhairyam guṇiślāghyacaryam gaṇādhīśavaryam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

• caladvakratuṇḍamwhose curving trunk sways
• caturbāhudaṇḍamwhose four arms are like staffs
• madasrāvigaṇḍamwhose cheeks run with must
• milaccandrakhaṇḍamagainst whom a piece of the moon rests
• kanaddantakāṇḍamwhose tusk shines
• munitrāṇaśauṇḍambold in guarding the sages
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya caladvakratuṇḍam caturbāhudaṇḍam madasrāvigaṇḍam milaccandrakhaṇḍam kanaddantakāṇḍam munitrāṇaśauṇḍam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

mada must — The dark fluid that runs down a bull elephant's temples when he is at his strongest. On Ganesha it stands for that same surplus of force.

note The verse rhymes on the same ending all the way through, tuṇḍaṃ, daṇḍaṃ, gaṇḍaṃ, khaṇḍaṃ, kāṇḍaṃ, śauṇḍaṃ.

• nirastāntarāyamwho throws every hindrance aside
• paridhvastamāyamwho has broken the hold of maya
• cidānandakāyamwhose body is awareness and joy
• sadāat all times
• matsahāyammy help
• ajasrānapāyamwho never ceases and never fails
• tuand
• ajamunborn
• caand
• aprameyampast all measuring
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya nirastāntarāyam paridhvastamāyam cidānandakāyam sadā matsahāyam ajasrānapāyam tu ajam ca aprameyam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

māyā maya — The power that makes the one look like the many. To break its hold is to see what is actually there.

note sadā matsahāyam is the one personal line in the hymn. Everywhere else the praise is public; here the poet speaks for himself.

• varamthe sign of giving
• caand
• abhayamthe sign that says do not fear
• pāśathe noose
• pustathe book
• akṣasūtramthe bead-string
• sṛṇimthe goad
• bījapūramthe citron
• karaiḥin his hands
• paṅkajamthe lotus
• caand
• dadhānamcarrying
• sarojāsanamseated on a lotus
• śaktiyuktamwith his Shakti beside him
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya varam ca abhayam pāśa pusta akṣasūtram sṛṇim bījapūram paṅkajam ca karaiḥ dadhānam sarojāsanam śaktiyuktam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

bījapūram the citron — A large citron, full of seed, held in one hand. The seeds are why it stands for plenty.

akṣasūtram the bead-string — The rosary counted through during recitation, which marks him as a teacher as well as a king.

note Eight things are named here, though the second verse gives him four arms. Hymns move between his forms; the eight-handed one is Maha Ganapati, who is also the form shown with Shakti.

• mahāmūṣakārūḍhamriding the great mouse
• ādhāraśaktyāby the power that holds the world up
• samārādhitāṅghrimwhose feet are worshipped
• mahāmātṛkābhiḥby the great Mothers
• samāvṛtyastanding all around
• saṃsevitamserved
• devatābhiḥby the goddesses
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya mahāmūṣakārūḍham ādhāraśaktyā mahāmātṛkābhiḥ samārādhitāṅghrim devatābhiḥ samāvṛtya saṃsevitam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

ādhāraśakti the power that holds the world up — The base on which everything else is set, named first in worship because nothing stands without it.

mātṛkā the Mothers — The Matrikas are both the mother goddesses and the letters of the alphabet, which are called mothers because speech is born of them.

• śrutīnāmof the Vedas
• śirobhiḥby the heads
• stutampraised
• sarvaśaktamfor whom nothing is beyond his power
• patimthe husband
• siddhibuddhyoḥof Siddhi and Buddhi
• gatimthe refuge
• bhūsurāṇāmof the brahmins
• surāṇāmof the gods
• variṣṭhamthe best
• gaṇānāmof the ganas
• adhīśamthe over-lord
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya śrutīnām śirobhiḥ stutam sarvaśaktam siddhibuddhyoḥ patim bhūsurāṇām gatim surāṇām variṣṭham gaṇānām adhīśam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

śrutīnāṃ śirobhiḥ by the heads of the Vedas — The head of a Veda is its last part, the Upanishad. So the line says it is the Upanishads that praise him.

bhūsurāṇām of the brahmins — Bhusura means god on earth, an old courteous word for a brahmin.

siddhibuddhyoḥ of Siddhi and Buddhi — His two wives: Siddhi is the thing achieved, Buddhi the wit that achieves it.

• gaṇādhīśasāmrājyasiṃhāsanasthamseated on the lion-throne of the empire of the lords of ganas
• samārādhyamworshipped
• abjāsanādyaiḥby the lotus-seated one and the rest
• samastaiḥby all of them
• phaṇābhṛtsamābaddhatuṇḍamwhose trunk is bound round by a hooded snake
• prasannamwith a clear and kind face
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya gaṇādhīśasāmrājyasiṃhāsanastham samastaiḥ abjāsanādyaiḥ samārādhyam phaṇābhṛtsamābaddhatuṇḍam prasannam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

abjāsana the lotus-seated one — Brahma, who sits on the lotus that grew from Vishnu.

prasannam with a clear and kind face — Prasanna is water with nothing stirred up in it, and so a face with no anger in it.

• lasannāgakeyūramañjīrahāramwhose armlets, anklets and necklace are shining snakes
• bhujaṅgādhirājasphuratkarṇapūramat whose ear the king of snakes glitters
• kanadbhūtirudrākṣaratnādibhūṣamwhose ornaments are bright ash, rudraksha beads and jewels
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya lasannāgakeyūramañjīrahāram bhujaṅgādhirājasphuratkarṇapūram kanadbhūtirudrākṣaratnādibhūṣam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

bhūti ash — The white ash a Shaiva wears on the body, and at the same time the word for wealth and well-being.

karṇapūra the ear ornament — What fills the ear, usually a flower tucked into it. Here it is a live snake.

• sphuradvyāghracarmottarīyopadhānamfor whom a bright tiger skin is upper robe and cushion
• turīyādvayātmānusandhānadhuryamforemost in holding the mind on the fourth state, the self with no second
• tapoyogivaryamthe best of those who keep to tapas and yoga
• kṛpodāracaryamwhose ways are open-handed with kindness
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya sphuradvyāghracarmottarīyopadhānam turīyādvayātmānusandhānadhuryam tapoyogivaryam kṛpodāracaryam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

turīya the fourth state — Waking, dream and deep sleep are three; the fourth is what stays awake through all of them.

anusandhāna holding the mind on — Anusandhana is keeping the thread of attention unbroken, the work of practice rather than a flash of insight.

• nijajyotiṣāwith his own light
• dyotayantamlighting up
• samastameverything
• diviin the sky
• jyotiṣāmof the lights
• maṇḍalamthe circle
• caand
• ātmanāwith himself
• caand
• bhajadbhaktasaubhāgyasiddhyarthabījamthe seed of the good fortune and success of those who worship him
• bhajeI worship
• vighnarājamthe king of obstacles
• bhavānītanūjamthe son of Bhavani

anvaya nijajyotiṣā samastam divi jyotiṣām maṇḍalam ca ātmanā ca dyotayantam bhajadbhaktasaubhāgyasiddhyarthabījam vighnarājam bhavānītanūjam bhaje

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

jyotiṣāṃ maṇḍalam the circle of lights — Sun, moon and stars together. The line says they shine with borrowed light and he with his own.

• sadāvāsakalyāṇapuryāmin Kalyanapuri, his settled home
• nivāsama dwelling
• guroḥof his teacher
• ājñayāby the word
• kurvatāwho was making
• bhūsureṇaby the brahmin
• mahāyogivelnāḍusiddhāntināby the great yogi Velnadu Siddhantin
• yatwhich
• kṛtamwas made
• stotramthe hymn
• iṣṭārthadamwhich gives what is asked of it
• tatthat
• paṭhadhvamrecite

anvaya sadāvāsakalyāṇapuryām guroḥ ājñayā nivāsam kurvatā mahāyogivelnāḍusiddhāntinā bhūsureṇa yat stotram kṛtam tat iṣṭārthadam paṭhadhvam

chandas Bhujaṅgaprayāta, 12 syllables in each of 4 pādas

note The closing verse names the author as the great yogi Velnadu Siddhantin, while the colophon below calls him Subrahmanya Yogi. paṭhadhvam is addressed to many people at once, which is unusual; most hymns end by speaking to one reciter.

• itihere ends
• śrīsubrahmaṇyayogikṛtamade by Shri Subrahmanya Yogi
• śrīgaṇeśabhujaṅgastutiḥthe Shri Ganesha Bhujanga Stuti

anvaya iti śrīsubrahmaṇyayogikṛta śrīgaṇeśabhujaṅgastutiḥ