Kalabhairava Ashtakam — verse 8
The last of the eight: Bhairava as the officer who settles the accounts of everyone living in Kashi.
Kalabhairava Ashtakam verse 8edition
Sanskrit · संस्कृत
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Meaning
Leader of the hosts of bhūtas, giver of far-reaching renown; the all-pervading, who settles the merit and demerit of the people who dwell in Kashi; versed in the path of right conduct, ancient, lord of the world — I worship Kala Bhairava, lord of the city of Kashi.
This rendering is by a DharmSetu editor, not a quotation from a published translation. Compare with the public-domain translation.
A Hindi meaning has not been written for this mantra yet. Hindi is authored by a named editor rather than machine-translated, so it arrives more slowly.
How to recite
- Repetitions
- 1 · 3
- Time
- brahma muhurta, sandhya
Pronunciation key — sounds commonly got wrong
- ट ठ ड ढ ण · ṭ ṭh ḍ ḍh ṇ
- Retroflex — the tongue curls back and touches the roof of the mouth. Distinct from the dental त थ द ध न, where the tongue touches the teeth.
- श ष स · ś ṣ s
- Three different sounds: ś as in “shy”, ṣ retroflex and further back, s plain. Collapsing them changes words.
- ः · ḥ (visarga)
- A soft outward breath echoing the preceding vowel — not a hard “ha”.
- ं · ṃ (anusvara)
- Nasalises the vowel; the closing sound follows the consonant that comes next.
- Long vs short vowels — a / ā, i / ī, u / ū
- Vowel length is meaningful in Sanskrit. Hold the macron vowels roughly twice as long.
- Aspirated consonants — kh, gh, ch, th, dh, ph, bh
- A distinct puff of breath. ph is an aspirated p, never an English “f”.
Word by word
- भूतसङ्घनायकम्bhūtasaṅghanāyakam
- leader of the hosts of bhutas(acc. sg.)
- विशालकीर्तिदायकम्viśālakīrtidāyakam
- giver of far-reaching renown(acc. sg.)
- काशिवासिलोकkāśivāsiloka
- the people who dwell in Kashi
- पुण्यपापशोधकम्puṇyapāpaśodhakam
- who settles merit and demerit(acc. sg.)
- विभुम्vibhum
- all-pervading(acc. sg.)MW1899-CDSL p.978
- नीतिमार्गकोविदम्nītimārgakovidam
- versed in the path of right conduct(acc. sg.)
- पुरातनम्purātanam
- ancient(acc. sg.)MW1899-CDSL p.635
Context
Shadanga — the six limbs
The traditional analytic frame for a mantra. Blank limbs are simply not recorded for this text.
- devata
- Kala Bhairava
Recited at / traditionally recited for
Classified as Stotra — Devotional hymn literature — praise poetry rather than a Vedic formula. Basis for this classification.
Related mantras
Mahamrityunjaya Mantra
The Tryambaka verse of the Rigveda, addressed to Rudra — a prayer for release, likening it to a ripe fruit loosening from its stem.
Asato Ma Sad Gamaya
Three movements — from the unreal to the real, from darkness to light, from death to what does not die. Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 1.3.28.
Sangachhadhvam Samvadadhvam
The closing hymn of the Rigveda, on moving together and speaking together — Rigveda 10.191.2.