śrī narmadāṣṭakam

(Salutations to devi Narmada) your river-body illumined with sacred drops of water, flows with mischievous playfulness, bending with waves, your sacred water has the divine power to transform those who are prone to hatred, the hatred born of sins, you put an end to the fear of the messenger of death by giving your protective armour (of refuge), O devi Narmada, I bow down to your lotus feet, please give me your refuge.

(Salutations to devi Narmada) you confer your divine touch to the lowly fish merged in your holy waters, you take away the weight of the sins in this age of Kali; and you are the foremost among all tirthas (Pilgrimage), you confer happiness to the many fish, tortoises, crocodiles, geese and chakra birds dwelling in your water, O devi Narmada, I bow down to your lotus feet, please give me your refuge.

(Salutations to devi Narmada) your river-body is deep and overflowing, the waters of which remove the sins of the Earth,... and it flows with great force making a loud reverberating sound, splitting asunder mountains of distresses, the distresses which bring our downfall, In the heat of this world, you provide the Place of rest and assure great fearlessness; you who gave the place of refuge at your banks to the son of rishi Mrikandu (rishi Markandeya was the son of rishi Mrikandu), O devi Narmada, I bow down to your lotus feet, please give me your refuge.

(Salutations to devi Narmada) O devi, after I have seen your divine water, my attachment to the worldly life has indeed vanished,... Your water, which is revered by the son of rishi Mrikandu, rishi Shaunaka, and the enemies of the asuras (i.e. devas), Your water which is a protective shield against the sorrows of the ocean of worldly Existence, caused by repeated births in this ocean of samsara (worldly existence), O devi Narmada, I bow down to your lotus feet, please give me your refuge.

(Salutations to devi Narmada) you are worshipped by lakhs of invisible celestial beings like Kinnaras (celestial musicians), amaras (devas), and also asuras and others, your river-body with auspicious waters, as well as your river-banks which are calm and composed, are filled with the sweet sounds of lakhs of cooing birds, you confer happiness to great sages like Vashistha, Sista, Pippala, Kardama and others, O devi Narmada, I bow down to your lotus feet, please give me your refuge.

(Salutations to devi Narmada) by rishis Sanatkumara, Nachiketa, Kashyapa and others who are like the six-feeted (bee) (since they seek the honey of divine communion),... Is held (your lotus feet) in their heart; and also by bee-like sages Narada and others (is held your lotus feet in their heart), you confer happiness to Ravi (Sun), Indu (Moon), Ranti deva and Devaraja (Indra) by making their works successful, O devi Narmada, I bow down to your lotus feet, please give me your refuge.

(Salutations to devi Narmada) you cleanse lakhs of invisible and visible sins with your river-body, the banks of which are beautifully decorated with lakhs of Sarasas(cranes or swans), In that holy place (i.e. in your river banks), you give both bhukti (worldly prosperity) as well as Mukti (liberation) to the series of living beings including animals (who take your shelter), The presence of Brahma, Vishnu and Shankara in your holy dhama (i.e. river body) provides a protective shield (of blessings to the devotees), O devi Narmada, I bow down to your lotus feet, please give me your refuge.

(Salutations to devi Narmada) O, I only hear the sound of immortality, flowing down as your river-body, originating from the matted hairs of Shankara, and filling Your river banks, On your river banks, everyone Kirata (mountain-tribe), Suta (charioteer), Vaddava (brahmin), Pandita (learned and wise) or Shattha (deceitful) gets purified by your flowing waters, By vigourously removing Papa (sins) and Tapa (heat of the miseries of life) of all animals (including man), you confer that happiness (born of purification), O Devi Narmada, I bow down to your lotus feet, please give me refuge.

(Salutations to devi Narmada) This Narmadashtakam, those who recite thrice a day... They do not ever undergo misfortune, It becomes easy to obtain the great privilege of going to the abode of Mahesha, which is very difficult for an embodied being to attain, And those persons do not have to see the fearful world again (by taking birth).