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
Read in another script
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
Sangachhadhvam Samvadadhvam
The closing hymn of the Rigveda, on moving together and speaking together — Rigveda 10.191.2.
Bhadram Karnebhih
A prayer to hear what is good and see what is good, with steady limbs — Rigveda 1.89.8.
Dyauh Shantih — the great peace invocation
Peace called down through sky, air, earth, waters, plants and all beings — Shukla Yajurveda 36.17.