Goddess Radha

śrī rādhā kavacam

(Sri Radha Kavacham in English (IAST))

Also known as shri radha kavacham · shree radha kavacham · radha kavacham

An armour of Rādhā from the Jñānāmṛtasāra of the Nārada Pañcarātra, asked for by Pārvatī and given by Śiva. Her request has an urgency the form does not require — if there is compassion in you, lord, save me from sorrow and from fear; you alone are the refuge, holder of the trident and the Pināka — and his answer names what the armour does before giving it: it makes every protection, takes away every killing, gives devotion to Hari directly, accomplishes both enjoyment and release, draws the three worlds, and brings about nearness to Hari. That last is the one that matters in this tradition, where proximity rather than liberation is the thing wanted. Its closing verse restricts transmission sharply: it is to be given to a Vaiṣṇava who is pure and possessed of dispassion, and otherwise the giver comes to ruin.

|| śrī rādhā kavacam ||
pārvatyuvāca|
kailāsa vāsin bhagavan bhaktānugrahakāraka |
rādhikā kavacaṃ puṇyaṃ kathayasva mama prabho || 1 ||
yadyasti karuṇā nātha trāhi māṃ duḥkhato bhayāt |
tvameva śaraṇaṃ nātha śūlapāṇe pinākadhṛt || 2 ||
śiva uvāca|
śṛṇuṣva girije tubhyaṃ kavacaṃ pūrvasūcitam |
sarvarakṣākaraṃ puṇyaṃ sarvahatyāharaṃ param || 3 ||
haribhaktipradaṃ sākṣādbhuktimuktiprasādhanam |
trailokyākarṣaṇaṃ devi harisānnidhyakārakam || 4 ||
sarvatra jayadaṃ devi sarvaśatrubhayāvaham |
sarveṣāṃ caiva bhūtānāṃ manovṛttiharaṃ param || 5 ||
caturdhā muktijanakaṃ sadānandakaraṃ param |
rājasūyāśvamedhānāṃ yajñānāṃ phaladāyakam || 6 ||
idaṃ kavacamajñātvā rādhāmantraṃ ca yo japet |
sa nāpnoti phalaṃ tasya vighnāstasya pade pade || 7 ||
|| viniyogaḥ ||
ṛṣirasya mahādevo'nuṣṭup chandaśca kīrtitam |
rādhā'sya devatā proktā rāṃ bījaṃ kīlakaṃ smṛtam || 8 ||
dharmārthakāmamokṣeṣu viniyogaḥ prakīrtitaḥ |
|| kavacam ||
śrīrādhā me śiraḥ pātu lalāṭaṃ rādhikā tathā || 9 ||
śrīmatī netrayugalaṃ karṇau gopendranandinī |
haripriyā nāsikāṃ ca bhrūyugaṃ śaśiśobhanā || 10 ||
oṣṭhaṃ pātu kṛpādevī adharaṃ gopikā tathā |
vṛṣabhānusutā dantāṃścibukaṃ gopanandinī || 11 ||
candrāvalī pātu gaṇḍaṃ jihvāṃ kṛṣṇapriyā tathā |
kaṇṭhaṃ pātu hariprāṇā hṛdayaṃ vijayā tathā || 12 ||
bāhū dvau candravadanā udaraṃ subalasvasā |
koṭiyogānvitā pātu pādau saubhadrikā tathā || 13 ||
nakhāṃścandramukhī pātu gulphau gopālavallabhā |
nakhān vidhumukhī devī gopī pādatalaṃ tathā || 14 ||
śubhapradā pātu pṛṣṭhaṃ kukṣau śrīkāntavallabhā |
jānudeśaṃ jayā pātu hariṇī pātu sarvataḥ || 15 ||
vākyaṃ vāṇī sadā pātu dhanāgāraṃ dhaneśvarī |
pūrvāṃ diśaṃ kṛṣṇaratā kṛṣṇaprāṇā ca paścimām || 16 ||
uttarāṃ haritā pātu dakṣiṇāṃ vṛṣabhānujā |
candrāvalī naiśameva divā kṣveḍitamekhalā || 17 ||
saubhāgyadā madhyadine sāyāhne kāmarūpiṇī |
raudrī prātaḥ pātu māṃ hi gopinī rajanīkṣaye || 18 ||
hetudā saṅgave pātu ketumālā divārdhake |
śeṣā'parāhṇasamave śamitā sarvasandhiṣu || 19 ||
yoginī bhogasamaye ratau ratipradā sadā |
kāmeśī kautuke nityaṃ yoge ratnāvalī mama || 20 ||
sarvadā sarvakāryeṣu rādhikā kṛṣṇamānasā |
ityetatkathitaṃ devi kavacaṃ paramādbhutam || 21 ||
|| phalaśruti ||
sarvarakṣākaraṃ nāma mahārakṣākaraṃ param |
prātarmadhyāhnasamaye sāyāhne prapaṭhedyadi || 22 ||
sarvārthasiddhistasya syādyanmanasi vartate |
rājadvāre sabhāyāṃ ca saṅgrāme śatrusaṅkaṭe || 23 ||
prāṇārthanāśasamaye yaḥ paṭhetprayato naraḥ |
tasya siddhirbhaveddevi na bhayaṃ vidyate kvacit || 24 ||
ārādhitā rādhikā ca tena satyaṃ na saṃśayaḥ |
gaṅgāsnānāddharernāmagrahaṇādyatphalaṃ labhet || 25 ||
tatphalaṃ tasya bhavati yaḥ paṭhetprayataḥ śuciḥ |
haridrārocanācandramaṇḍitaṃ haricandanam || 26 ||
kṛtvā likhitvā bhūrje ca dhārayenmastake bhuje |
kaṇṭhe vā devadeveśi sa harirnātra saṃśayaḥ || 27 ||
kavacasya prasādena brahmā sṛṣṭiṃ sthitiṃ hariḥ |
saṃhāraṃ cā'haṃ niyataṃ karomi kurute tathā || 28 ||
vaiṣṇavāya viśuddhāya virāgaguṇaśāline |
dadyātkavacamavyagramanyathā nāśamāpnuyāt || 29 ||
|| iti śrīnāradapañcarātre jñānāmṛtasāre rādhā kavacam sampūrṇam ||

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