Sudarshana Ashtakam

Swami Vedānta Deshikan composed this hymn of eight verses to Sudarshana, with a concluding verse of phala shruti, in the meter of Dhrita Chandas — a meter that itself hints, in Swami Deshikan's own words, at the Vedic origin of Sudarshana.

Tradition holds that it was composed to help the residents of Thiruputkuzhi through the grip of an epidemic fever, or, in another telling, at Thiruvahindrapuram before a great debate with a rival tradition — a debate that later blossomed into the Sri Sookthi of Paramatha Bhangam, an incisive analysis of the shortcomings of other doctrines and a celebration of the supremacy of Bhagavath Rāmānuja Siddhantam.

Swami Deshikan is said to have prevailed in that debate before Lord Devanathan, thereby establishing the primacy of Sriman Nārāyaṇa and Vishishtadvaitam.

shrīmān veṅkaṭanāthāryaḥ kavitārkikakesarī;

vedāntācāryavaryo me sannidhattāṁ sadā hṛdi.

Verse 1

pratibhaṭashreṇibhīshaṇa varaguṇastomabhūshaṇa

janibhayasthānatāraṇa jagadavasthānakāraṇa;

nikhiladushkarmakarshana nigamasaddharmadarshana

jaya jaya shrīsudarshana jaya jaya shrīsudarshana.

Oh Sri Sudarshana! The enemies of Your Lord's devotees flee in fear of Your might. Every auspicious quality finds its home in You. Those who worship You cross the shoreless ocean of samsara and are freed from the cycle of birth and death. The entire universe is upheld by Your power. You sever every sin of those who take refuge in You, and bless Your devotees with knowledge of the righteous conduct laid down by the Vedas. Victory, victory to Sri Sudarshana of these auspicious qualities!

Verse 2

shubhajagadrūpamaṇḍana suragaṇatrāsakhaṇḍana

shatamakhabrahmavandita shatapathabrahmanandita;

prathitavidvatsapakshita bhajadahirbudhnyalakshita

jaya jaya shrīsudarshana jaya jaya shrīsudarshana.

Oh Sri Sudarshana! You are resplendent as a precious ornament on the hand of Sriman Nārāyaṇa, whose body is the universe itself. Through Your grace the Devas are freed from the fear caused by the Asuras. Indra and Brahmā worship You always, and the Shatapatha Brāhmaṇa of the Shukla Yajur Veda extols Your glory. The scholars of this world seek Your help to overcome their rivals. The Ahirbudhnya Samhita declares that Ahirbudhnya, Lord Shiva, worships You and sought the boon of beholding Your beautiful form with his own eyes.

Victory, victory to Sri Sudarshana of these illustrious qualities!

Verse 3

sphuṭataḍijjālapiñjara pṛthutarajvālapañjara

parigatapratnavigraha paṭutaraprajñadurgraha;

praharaṇagrāmamaṇḍita parijanatrāṇapaṇḍita

jaya jaya shrīsudarshana jaya jaya shrīsudarshana.

Oh Lord Sudarshana! You shine like a radiant network of lightning, and the bright tongues of flame that surround You form Your very cage. The forms of Vasudeva, Sankarshana, and the other Vyuha deities take their places around Your geometric Yantra. Even scholars of the sharpest intellect find it hard to fully grasp Your glory. It is a beautiful sight to behold the sixteen weapons resting in Your hands, ever ready to serve, for You are devoted to coming to the rescue of those who seek Your protection.

Victory, victory to Sri Sudarshana of such auspicious qualities!

Verse 4

nijapadapritasadguṇa nirupadhisphītashaḍguṇa

nigamanirvyūḍhavaibhava nijaparavyūhavaibhava;

harihayadveshidāraṇa harapuraploshakāraṇa

jaya jaya shrīsudarshana jaya jaya shrīsudarshana.

Oh Lord Sudarshana! The righteous hold firm devotion to Your holy feet. The six auspicious qualities — knowledge, power, strength, wealth, valor, and radiance — find their natural home in You. The Vedas, in their many sections, have firmly established Your glory. Like Your Lord, You possess both the Para form and the Vyuha forms, each with its own splendor. You cut down the fear caused to Indra by his enemies, and it was You who caused the burning of Tripura, standing at the very tip of Shiva's arrow in that campaign.

Victory, victory to Sri Sudarshana of such glorious qualities!

Verse 5

danujavistārakartana janitamishrāvikartana

danujavidyānikartana bhajadavidyānivartana;

amaradṛshṭasvavikrama samarajushṭabhramikrama

jaya jaya shrīsudarshana jaya jaya shrīsudarshana.

Oh Lord Sudarshana! You arrest the spread of the evil-minded Asuras and destroy them to their very roots. You are like the resplendent sun that dispels the dark night of samsara besetting Your devotees. You overcome every act of deception practiced by the Asuras and remove every trace of false knowledge from the minds of those who take refuge in You. The Devas rejoice in witnessing Your heroic deeds as You revolve and turn in myriad ways in Your battles against the enemies of Your devotees.

May You, of such auspicious qualities, prosper further! Victory, victory to Sri Sudarshana!

Verse 6

pratimukhālīḍhabandhura pṛthumahāhetidantura

vikaṭamāyābahishkṛta vividhamālāparishkṛta;

sthiramahāyantratantrita dhṛtadayātantrayantrita

jaya jaya shrīsudarshana jaya jaya shrīsudarshana.

Oh Lord Sudarshana! You grant us Your darshan in Your dynamic gait, one foot placed forward and the other swiftly following, a stance beautiful to behold. You are surrounded by Your magnificent and fearsome weapons and adorned with garlands that enhance Your natural splendor. You are the conqueror of the powerful illusions wrought by the Asuras and remain untouched by their maya. Bound firmly in the warp of Your great compassion, You bless Your devotees as they worship You through Your Yantra and Mantra.

Victory, victory to Sri Sudarshana of such auspicious qualities!

Verse 7

mahitasampatsadakshara vihitasampatshaḍakshara

shaḍarakacakrapratishṭhita sakalatattvapratishṭhita;

vividhasaṅkalpakalpaka vibudhasaṅkalpakalpaka

jaya jaya shrīsudarshana jaya jaya shrīsudarshana.

Oh Lord Sudarshana of many exalted qualities! The true wealth of the righteous is the knowledge of You, and You bless those who take refuge at Your holy feet with the imperishable wealth of moksha. Those who recite Your six-syllabled mantra gain incomparable riches. Your devotees invoke You in the Yantra of six points formed by two intersecting triangles and worship You at its center. You pervade all of Your Lord's creation and have the power to accomplish every undertaking — a tree of true resolve, granting every boon Your devotees seek.

Victory, victory to Sri Sudarshana!

Verse 8

bhuvananetratrayīmaya savanatejastrayīmaya

niravadhisvāduchinmaya nikhilashaktejaganmaya;

amitavishvakriyāmaya shamitavishvagbhayāmaya

jaya jaya shrīsudarshana jaya jaya shrīsudarshana.

Oh Lord Sudarshana, the eye of the universe! You are of the form of the three Vedas and of the three sacrificial fires — Garhapatya, Ahavaniya, and Dakshinagni. You are of the form of boundless, delightful, pure consciousness. You possess every power and are of the very form of all creation. Through Your immeasurable universal activity, You still the fears of the world from every direction. Victory, victory to Sri Sudarshana of these auspicious qualities!

Verse 9 — Phala Shruti

dvicatushkamidaṁ prabhūtasāraṁ paṭhatāṁ veṅkaṭanāyakapraṇītam;

vishame'pi manorathaḥ pradhāvan na vihanyeta rathāṅgadhuryaguptaḥ.

This hymn of eight verses, rich with meaning and composed by Veṅkaṭanātha, Swami Vedānta Deshikan, guarantees that for those who recite it, every wish, however difficult, will run its course unhindered, guarded by the Lord of the discus.

kavitārkikasiṁhāya kalyāṇaguṇashāline;

shrīmate veṅkaṭeshāya vedāntagurave namaḥ.