Vinay Patrika: Ganga Stuti [17]

Raag Raamkali

Goddess Ganga

Jai-jai bhagirathnandini, muni-chay-chakor-chandini,

nar-naag-bibudh-bandini jai jahnu baalikaa |

bisnu-pad-sarojjaasi, ees-seespar bibhaasi,

tripathgaasi, punyaraasi, paap-chhaalikaa ||1||

bimal bipul bahsi baari, seetal trayataap-haari,

bhanvar bar bibhangtar tarang-maalikaa |

purjan poojophaar, sobhit sasi dhavaldhaar,

bhanjan bhav-bhaar, bhakti-kalpthaalikaa ||2||

nij tattbaasee bihang, jal-thar-char pasu patang,

keet, jatil taapas sab saris paalikaa |

tulsi tav teer teer sumirat raghubans-beer,

bichrat mati dehi moh-mahish-kaalikaa ||3||

Bhagirath Nandini Surging Onto Lord Shiva's Head

O daughter of Bhagirath! (name of a king who brought the Ganges down from heaven to earth by his austerities.)Glory, all glory to you. You are like the moonbeams for the chakors (a type of partridge traditionally supposed to live on moonbeams) of numerous sages. Humans, serpents and gods pray to you.

Sage Jahnu Drinking the Waters of Ganga

Daughter of Jahnu! (When Ganga came down to earth, her gushing waters disrupted the sadhana of sage Jahnu. He was furious and drank up its waters. Thence the Gods prayed to Jahnu for releasing Ganga so that she could purify the souls of Bhagirath's ancestors. Pleased with their entreaty, Jahnu released its waters from his ears.)

Lord Vishnu

Glory be to you! You have emerged from Lord Vishnus' lotus feet (According to the 'Vishnu Purana,' Ganga was created from the sweat of Lord Vishnu's feet); are resplendent on Lord Shiva's head and you flow as three gushing streams through the three paths of swarga (heaven),prithvi (earth) and patala (netherworld or hell.) You are like a treasury of punya or virtuous deeds (a devotee is said to be purified by bathing in the Ganges) and expiate sins ||1||

The River Ganges

You are carrying immensely pure water. That water is cool and gets rid of the threefold suffering of mankind (physical disease, mental turmoil, and spiritual ignorance). You are wearing a garland of beautiful eddies and frolicking waves. Your white stream which is like the moon, is being beautified with gifts which the town-dwellers have given as offerings to you. That gushing current is the destroyer of this world's burdensome cycle of birth and death and is like a trench for protecting the kalpavrikasha of bhakti or religious devotion ||2||

With equal care you look after the birds, aquatic beings, terrestrial beings, animals, winged beings, insects and ascetics having matted hair, who live on your banks. O Goddess Ganga, you assume the form of Kalika for killing the Mahishasur of delusion!

Goswami Tulsidas

Give such wisdom to me that is Tulsidas, so that he can roam on your shores while meditating upon Lord Raghunath. ||3||

Vinay Patrika: Devi Stuti [16]

Raag Raamkali

Devi,The Mother Goddess

Jai jai jagjanani devi sur-nar-muni-asur-sevi,

bhukti-mukti-daayini, bhai-haranni kaalika |

mangal-mud-siddhi-sadani, parvsharvreesh-vadani,

taap-timiir-tarunn-taranni-kirannmaalikaa ||1||

varam, charam kar kripaann,shool-shel-dhanushbaann,

dharanni dalani daanav-dal, rann-karaalikaa |

pootna-pishaach-pret-daakini-shaakini-samet,

bhoot-grah-betaal-khag-mrigaali-jaalikaa ||2||

jai mahesh-bhaaminee, anek-roop-naaminee,

samast-lok-svaminee, himshail-baalikaa |

raghupati-pad-param prem, tulsi yeh achal nem,

dehu havaai prasann paahi prannat-paalikaa ||3||

O Mother of the world! O Devi! (consort of Lord Shiva) Hail to you, hail to you. Deities, humans, sages and demons, are all at your service. You are the one who gives both bhoga (experiencing pleasure or pain as per our good or bad deeds in past lives) and moksha (salvation.) You are Kaalika for dispelling the fear of bhaktas. You are the repository of prosperity, happiness and siddhis (supernatural powers.) Your beautiful face is similar to the full moon of purnima. You are the sunbeams of the midday's youthful sun for destroying the painful darkness of the spiritual, material and divine worlds. ||1||

You have an armour on your body. Your are holding the shield-sword, trident, spear and bow plus arrow in your hands. You are the one who slays the demonic forces, and you adopt a dreadful form in battle. Along with your dakinis and shakinis (ferocious shaktis of goddess Durga), you are the net for entrapping Pootna (name of a demoness killed by Lord Krishna),demons, evil spirits,ghosts, and the bat of Baitala (a vampire spirit who hangs from a tree and inhabits and animates dead bodies) and deer of illusion. ||2||

O Shive! (consort of Lord Shiva) Hail to you! You have several forms and names. You are the svamini (mistress) of the entire world and the daughter of Himachal. O the protectress of refugees! I, Tulsidas want perfect love and dedicated devotion for Shri Raghunathji's feet. Therefore being pleased, grant this wish of mine and guard me. ||3||

Vinay Patrika: Shiv Stuti [12]

Raag Dhanaashree

Lord Shiva as Mahadeva

Shankaram,shanpradam,sajjanaanandadam,shaail-kanya-varam,paramramyam|

kaam-mad-mochanam,taamras-lochanam,vaamdevambhaje bhaavgamaym ||1|

kanbu-kundendu-karpoor-gauram shivam,sundaram,sacchidaanandkandam|

siddh-sankaadi-yogeendra-vrindaarkaa,vishnu-vidhi-vandhya charannaaravindam ||2||

brahmakulvallabham,sulabhmatidurlabham,vikatvesham,vibhun,vedpaaram|

naaumikarunnaakaram,garalgangadharam,nirmalam,nirgunnam,nirvikaaram ||3||

loknaatham,shok-shool-nirmoolinam,shoolinam moh-tam-bhoori-bhaanum |

kaalkaalam,kalaateetamajaram,haram,kathin-kalikaal-kaanan-krishaanum ||4||

tagyamagyaan-paathodhi-ghatsanbhavam,sarvagam,sarvasaubhaagyamoolam |

prachur-bhav-bhajnam,prannat-jan-ranjanam,daastulsisharanh saanukoolam ||5||

I pray to the auspicious Mahadeva (title of Lord Shiva) who is conducive to our well-being, bestows delight on saints, is the husband of Goddess Parvati, the daughter of Himachal, and is extremely charming. The one who crushed the arrogance of Kamdev, is lotus-eyed, and is attainable by bhakti or religious devotion ||1||

The one whose body is smooth, tender, cool, fair and fragrant like the conch shell, jasmine, moon and camphor; who is an embodiment of salvation,and the root cause of beautiful divine bliss. The one whose feet are worshipped by siddhas, Sanak, Sanandan,Sanatan, Sanat Kumar, yogis, gods, Vishnu and Brahma. ||2||

I respectfully salute the pure, nirguna (beyond the gunas of sattva, rajas & tamas) and nirvikara (changeless) Lord Shiva to whom the community of brahmins is most dear; the one who is easily attainable for saints and difficult to attain by evil-doers; the one whose form is very fearsome; the one who is all-pervasive and surpasses the Vedas; the one who is the treasury of compassion and the one who carries poison (in his throat) and the Ganges (on his head.) ||3||

The Supreme Master of the lokas (cosmological regions), the one who eradicates sorrow and distress; the trident-bearer and the sun who annihilates the great darkness of delusion. He is the kaal (Shiva in his character as the universal destroyer and also as a personification of time) of whom even death (kaal) is afraid of, who is endowed with all the kalas or arts, is changeless, is the destroyer of the world caught in a cycle of birth and death and the fire which burns the forest of the Kali Yuga (age of spiritual darkness.) ||4||

Goswami Tulsidas

For draining out the elemental ocean of ignorance, this Tulsidas has taken the refuge of Lord Shiva who is forever favourable. Shiva is the form of Rishi Agastya, is omniscient, the root cause of all kinds of good fortune, the destroyer of the infinite world of life plus death and the one who bestows happiness on those who seek His protection.

Vinay Patrika: Shiv Stuti [8]

Raag Raamkali

Dev badhe, daata badhe, sankar badhe bhore |

kiye door dukh sabnike, jinh-jinh kar jore ||1||

seva, sumiran, poojibau, paat aakhat thore |

diye jagat jahan lagi sabai, sukh, gaj, rath, ghore ||2||

gaanv basat baamdev, main kabhoon na nihore |

adhibhautik baadha bhaii, te kinkar tore ||3||

begi boli bali barjiye, kartooti kathore |

tulsi dali, roondhyo chahain satth saakhi sihore ||4||

The Five-faced Lord Shiva

O Shankar! You are a great god, very generous and so gullible. Without any discrimination you annihilate the sorrows of those who fold their hands before you ||1||

One can make do with just a few belpatras (leaf of the wood-apple tree, as offered to Shiva) and grains of rice while serving, meditating and worshipping you; but in exchange you give elephants, chariots, horses and all the luxuries available in this material world ||2||

O Vamdev! (Vamadeva appears on the right hand side of the five-faced Shiva. It is the preserving face/aspect of Lord Shiva,considered the peaceful, graceful and poetic one). I live in Kashi, your village (Banaras where Shiva forever dwells) and have never asked you for anything. Now in the form of worldly anxieties your retinue of evil attendants have begun troubling me. ||3||

Therefore I beg of you to quickly summon those doing these harsh deeds and rebuke them. Because these malicious people want to crush the tulsi (sacred basil plant) of Tulsidas and plant trees of fraudulence (deception).