Sarada Devi Stotram
श्री शारदा देवी स्तोत्रम्
What is the Sarada Devi Stotram?
Prakritim Paramam The Sarada Devi Stotram, opening with the words Prakritim Paramam Abhayam Varadam, is an 11-verse Sanskrit hymn composed by Swami Abhedananda in praise of Sri Sarada Devi, the Holy Mother of the Ramakrishna Order. It is chanted as the fourth hymn of the evening arati at Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission centers around the world, and it is recited with special devotion on Sarada Jayanti, her birth anniversary.
Every evening at Belur Math and at Ramakrishna centers across the world, four hymns are sung as lamps are waved before the shrine. The last of these four is addressed not to Sri Ramakrishna but to Sri Sarada Devi, the woman who was his wife, his closest spiritual companion, and, after his passing in 1886, the quiet center around which the young monastic order gathered. This page carries the Sanskrit text of that hymn, Prakritim Paramam Abhayam Varadam, in both Devanagari and plain transliteration, along with a verse-by-verse reading of what it says.
Sarada Devi Stotram Lyrics
The verses below follow the standard text used in the evening arati of the Ramakrishna Order, checked against two independently published transcriptions. Devanagari is given alongside a transliteration with no diacritic marks, so the lines can be read aloud without special fonts.
prakritim paramam abhayam varadam nararupadharam janatapaharam
sharanagatasevakatoshakarim pranamami param jananim jagatam
प्रकृतिं परमामभयां वरदां नररूपधरां जनतापहराम्
शरणागतसेवकतोषकरीं प्रणमामि परां जननीं जगताम्
Meaning
This opening verse names Sarada Devi as the supreme Prakriti, the primal creative power, now walking the earth in human form to lift the sorrow of ordinary people. Anyone who comes to her in service, it says, finds contentment – and the verse ends with a bow to her as mother of the entire world.
gunahinasutan aparadhayutan kripayadya samuddhara mohagatan
taranim bhavasagaraparakarim pranamami param jananim jagatam
गुणहीनसुतानपराधयुतान् कृपयाद्य समुद्धर मोहगतान्
तरणीं भवसागरपारकरीं प्रणमामि परां जननीं जगताम्
Meaning
Here the devotee speaks plainly of being flawed and often mistaken, caught in confusion, and asks the Mother to lift her children out of that state through her compassion. She is called the boat that carries people across the ocean of worldly life.
vishayam kusumam parihritya sada charanamburuhamritashantisudham
piba bhringamano bhavarogaharam pranamami param jananim jagatam
विषयं कुसुमं परिहृत्य सदा चरणाम्बुरुहामृतशान्तिसुधाम्
पिब भृङ्गमनो भवरोगहरां प्रणमामि परां जननीं जगताम्
Meaning
The mind is addressed directly, like a bee drawn to flowers, and told to leave behind the passing pleasure of the senses. Instead it is urged to drink the nectar of peace found at the Mother's feet, described here as the one remedy for the restlessness that worldly attachment brings.
kripam kuru mahadevi suteshu pranateshu cha
charanashrayadanena kripamayi namo’stu te
कृपां कुरु महादेवि सुतेषु प्रणतेषु च
चरणाश्रयदानेन कृपामयि नमोऽस्तु ते
Meaning
A short, direct plea: may the great Goddess turn her grace toward the children bowed before her, and grant them shelter at her feet. It closes with a simple salutation to her as the compassionate one.
lajjapatavrite nityam sarade jnanadayike
papebhyo nah sada raksha kripamayi namo’stu te
लज्जापटावृते नित्यं सारदे ज्ञानदायिके
पापेभ्यो नः सदा रक्ष कृपामयि नमोऽस्तु ते
Meaning
Sarada Devi is pictured as one who stays behind a quiet veil of modesty even while she is the true source of spiritual knowledge for those who come to her. The verse asks for her continued protection from wrongdoing.
ramakrishnagatapranam tannamashravanapriyam
tadbhavaranjitakaram pranamami muhurmuhuh
रामकृष्णगतप्राणां तन्नामश्रवणप्रियाम्
तद्भावरञ्जिताकारां प्रणमामि मुहुर्मुहुः
Meaning
This verse describes how completely her life was joined to Ramakrishna's – hearing his name was her delight, and her own presence carried the color of his spiritual mood. It ends with repeated bows to her.
pavitram charitam yasyah pavitram jivanam tatha
pavitratasvarupinyai tasyai kurmo namo namah
पवित्रं चरितं यस्याः पवित्रं जीवनं तथा
पवित्रतास्वरूपिण्यै तस्यै कुर्मो नमो नमः
Meaning
A brief verse in praise of her purity – both her conduct and her life are called pure, and she herself is named as the very form that purity takes. The devotee bows to her again and again.
devim prasannam pranatartihantrim yogindrapujyam yugadharmapatrim
tam saradam bhaktivijnanadatrim dayasvarupam pranamami nityam
देवीं प्रसन्नां प्रणतार्तिहन्त्रीं योगीन्द्रपूज्यां युगधर्मपात्रीम्
तां सारदां भक्तिविज्ञानदात्रीं दयास्वरूपां प्रणमामि नित्यम्
Meaning
She is called the gracious Devi who removes the suffering of those who bow to her, worshipped by great yogis, and the one entrusted with the spiritual guidance suited to the present age. The verse names her as the giver of both devotion and knowledge, an embodiment of compassion, bowed to daily.
snehena badhnasi mano’smadiyam doshanasheshan sagunikaroshi
ahetuna no dayase sadoshan svanke grihitva yadidam vichitram
स्नेहेन बध्नासि मनोऽस्मदीयं दोषानशेषान् सगुणीकरोषि
अहेतुना नो दयसे सदोषान् स्वाङ्के गृहीत्वा यदिदं विचित्रम्
Meaning
This verse marvels at how her love quietly binds the devotee's mind and turns faults into strengths, without any reason for her to do so. Taking those still full of flaws onto her lap, it says, is itself the wonder.
prasida matarvinayena yache nityam bhava snehavati suteshu
premaikabindum chiradagdhachitte vishincha chittam kuru nah sushantam
प्रसीद मातर्विनयेन याचे नित्यं भव स्नेहवती सुतेषु
प्रेमैकबिन्दुं चिरदग्धचित्ते विषिञ्च चित्तं कुरु नः सुशान्तम्
Meaning
A closing prayer, asking the Mother to remain affectionate toward her children always, and to let even a single drop of her love fall on hearts long worn down by the world, bringing them peace.
jananim saradam devim ramakrishnam jagadgurum
padapadme tayoh shritva pranamami muhurmuhuh
जननीं सारदां देवीं रामकृष्णं जगद्गुरुम्
पादपद्मे तयोः श्रित्वा प्रणमामि मुहुर्मुहुः
Meaning
The final verse joins Mother Sarada with Sri Ramakrishna, teacher of the world, and takes refuge at the lotus feet of both together, closing the hymn with repeated bows.
Prakritim Paramam Meaning, Verse by Verse
The Sarada Devi Stotram moves in a simple pattern: the opening three verses each end with the same line, “I bow to the Supreme Mother of the worlds,” building a steady refrain around the idea of Sarada Devi as Prakriti – the original creative power – now present in human form. The middle verses turn more personal, describing her bond with Sri Ramakrishna, the purity of her life, and her reputation for taking the imperfect and the faulted into her care without needing a reason to. The final verse brings her and Ramakrishna together in one closing salutation.
Read in full, it is less a philosophical text than a set of short, direct appeals – for shelter, for protection, for a drop of affection on a tired mind – addressed to someone the composer knew personally rather than a distant deity. That personal quality is part of why it remains part of the nightly worship at Ramakrishna Math and Mission centers.
When and How to Chant This Stotram
- – Sit facing an image of Sarada Devi or Sri Ramakrishna, light a lamp or a stick of incense if that is your practice, and settle into a steady, upright seat.
- – Read through the transliteration slowly at least once before chanting, so the rhythm of each line is familiar before you try to recite from memory.
- – Chant verses 1 to 3 aloud together, letting the repeated closing line settle the mind before moving on.
- – Continue through verses 4 to 10 at an unhurried pace, pausing briefly after each one to sit with its meaning rather than rushing ahead.
- – Close with verse 11, joining the salutation to both Sarada Devi and Sri Ramakrishna.
- – Sit quietly for a minute or two after the final verse before returning to the rest of the evening.
Why This Stotram Is Chanted
The Sarada Devi Stotram is recited less as a request for specific outcomes and more as a nightly act of devotion within a living monastic tradition. A few reasons devotees return to it:
- : It is part of the evening arati sung nightly at Ramakrishna Math and Mission centers, so chanting it connects a household practice to a wider, ongoing tradition.
- : The repeated refrain in the first three verses makes it approachable for group or beginner chanting, even before every word's meaning is learned.
- : Its central image – a mother who takes on the faulted and the imperfect without needing a reason – is often used as a short, personal meditation on unconditional care.
- : Because it was composed by a direct monastic disciple of Sarada Devi, it carries a firsthand quality rather than a later, distant retelling.
- : It pairs naturally with reading about her life, since several verses (6, 8, 11) speak directly about her relationship with Ramakrishna and her role after his passing.
- : On Sarada Jayanti specifically, many centers include this stotram as part of the day's dedicated worship to the Holy Mother.
Who Was Sri Sarada Devi?
Sri Sarada Devi was born in 1853 in the village of Jayrambati in West Bengal. She was married at a young age to Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, the priest and mystic of the Dakshineswar Kali temple near Kolkata, in what both of them treated as a spiritual rather than conventional union; she spent long periods at Dakshineswar in his company and, at other times, continued to live and work in Jayrambati.
After Ramakrishna’s death in 1886, she became a guiding presence for the small group of monastic disciples who would go on to form the Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission, offering counsel and blessings to a growing circle of followers from both Bengal and beyond. She is remembered by the order as the Holy Mother, in part for the way she treated disciples of every background, caste, and faith with the same acceptance – a quality several verses of this stotram describe directly.
She died in Kolkata in 1920. Her birthday is observed by the Ramakrishna Order as Sarada Jayanti, and the Sarada Devi Stotram is among the hymns most closely associated with her memory.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who composed the Sarada Devi Stotram?
It was composed by Swami Abhedananda, a direct monastic disciple of Sri Ramakrishna. It is sung as the fourth hymn of the evening arati observed at Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission centers.
What does Prakritim Paramam mean?
Prakritim Paramam means "the supreme Prakriti," or the highest form of the primal creative power. The opening line addresses Sarada Devi as that power present in human form.
Is this the same hymn as Khandana Bhava Bandhana?
No. Khandana Bhava Bandhana is a separate aratrikam addressed to Sri Ramakrishna. The Sarada Devi Stotram is a distinct hymn, addressed to Sri Sarada Devi, and the two are sung as different parts of the same evening arati sequence.
How many verses does the Sarada Devi Stotram have?
It has 11 verses, the first three of which share a common closing refrain.
When is the Sarada Devi Stotram recited?
It is chanted nightly as part of the evening arati at Ramakrishna Math and Mission centers, and it is given particular emphasis on Sarada Jayanti, her birth anniversary.
What language is the stotram written in?
It is written in Sanskrit. This page gives the Devanagari text alongside a transliteration without diacritic marks.
Can a beginner chant this stotram?
Yes. The meter is straightforward and the repeated refrain in the opening verses makes it easier to pick up than longer stotras, especially when read from the transliteration first.
When is Sarada Jayanti in 2026?
Sarada Jayanti follows the Ashtami tithi of the Krishna Paksha in the Bengali month of Pausha, which is a lunisolar date that shifts each year and generally falls in December. Check a current Panchang for the exact date.
Verses reproduced here follow the standard text used in the Ramakrishna Order’s evening arati, cross-checked against multiple published transliterations. Meanings on this page are original prose, not a copied translation.