Sankata Mochana Hanuman Ashtakam
॥ श्री संकटमोचन हनुमान अष्टकम् ॥
What is the Sankata Mochana Hanuman Ashtakam?
Sankata Mochana Hanuman Ashtakam is an eight-verse Awadhi hymn composed by Goswami Tulsidas that recounts eight episodes from the Ramayana in which Hanuman rescued Rama, Sita, Lakshmana or the celestial gods from grave danger. Each verse ends with the refrain ’Sankat Mochan naam tiharo’ (’your name is the reliever of troubles’), and it is chanted, often right after the Hanuman Chalisa, to seek Hanuman’s protection from obstacles, fear and hardship.
The Sankata Mochana Hanuman Ashtakam is an eight-verse Awadhi hymn by Goswami Tulsidas, the poet-saint who also gave us the Ramcharitmanas and the Hanuman Chalisa. Each verse retells one specific rescue from the Ramayana – the sun swallowed in infancy, Sugriva freed from a curse, Sita found on the far shore, Lakshmana revived by the Sanjeevani herb – and closes on the same refrain: who in this world does not know that your name is Sankat Mochan, the reliever of troubles? Devotees turn to it when a problem feels too specific or too personal for a general prayer.
Sankata Mochana Hanuman Ashtakam Lyrics
Roman transliteration on top, Devanagari below. Tap Meaning under any verse, or use A / A+ / A++ to resize.
bala samaya ravi bhakshi liyo tab
teenahun loka bhayo andhiyaro
tahi son trasa bhayo jaga ko
yaha sankata kahu son jata na taro
devana ani kari binati tab
chhandi diyo ravi kasta nivaro
ko nahin janata hai jaga men kapi
sankatamochana nama tiharo
बाल समय रवि भक्षी लियो तब,
तीनहुं लोक भयो अंधियारों ।
ताहि सों त्रास भयो जग को,
यह संकट काहु सों जात न टारो ।
देवन आनि करी बिनती तब,
छाड़ी दियो रवि कष्ट निवारो ।
को नहीं जानत है जग में कपि,
संकटमोचन नाम तिहारो ॥ १ ॥
Meaning
As an infant, Hanuman leapt for the rising sun mistaking it for a fruit and swallowed it whole, plunging all three worlds into darkness. Terror spread through the heavens until the gods pleaded with him, and he released the sun and lifted the calamity at once. Even in childhood his power to undo a crisis no one else could touch was already on display.
bali ki trasa kapisa basai giri
jata mahaprabhu pantha niharo
chaunki maha muni sapa diyo tab
chahiya kauna bichara bicharo
kai dvija rupa livaya mahaprabhu
so tuma dasa ke soka nivaro
ko nahin janata hai jaga men kapi
sankatamochana nama tiharo
बालि की त्रास कपीस बसैं गिरि,
जात महाप्रभु पंथ निहारो ।
चौंकि महामुनि साप दियो तब,
चाहिए कौन बिचार बिचारो ।
कै द्विज रूप लिवाय महाप्रभु,
सो तुम दास के सोक निवारो ।
को नहीं जानत है जग में कपि,
संकटमोचन नाम तिहारो ॥ २ ॥
Meaning
Sugriva lived in hiding on a mountain, banished by his brother Bali and further shaken by a sage’s curse, watching the road for any sign of help. Hanuman came to him disguised as a Brahmin, brought Rama into his life, and lifted the sorrow that had kept him a fugitive. It is the meeting that sets the whole Ramayana search into motion.
angada ke sanga lena gaye siya
khoja kapisa yaha baina ucharo
jivata na bachihau hama so ju
bina sudhi laye ihan pagu dharo
heri thake tata sindhu sabai taba
laya siya-sudhi prana ubaro
ko nahin janata hai jaga men kapi
sankatamochana nama tiharo
अंगद के संग लेन गए सिय,
खोज कपीस यह बैन उचारो ।
जीवत ना बचिहौ हम सो जु,
बिना सुधि लाए इहां पगु धारो ।
हेरि थके तट सिंधु सबै तब,
लाय सिया-सुधि प्राण उबारो ।
को नहीं जानत है जग में कपि,
संकटमोचन नाम तिहारो ॥ ३ ॥
Meaning
Sent with Angada to find Sita, Hanuman heard Sugriva’s grim warning that the search party should not return without her. When the exhausted vanaras had given up at the ocean’s edge, it was Hanuman who crossed, located Sita in Lanka, and carried back the news that saved their lives as much as hers.
ravana trasa dai siya ko saba
raksasi son kahi soka nivaro
tahi samaya hanumana mahaprabhu
jaya maha rajanichara maro
chahata siya asoka son agi su
dai prabhu mudrika soka nivaro
ko nahin janata hai jaga men kapi
sankatamochana nama tiharo
रावन त्रास दई सिय को सब,
राक्षसि सों कहि सोक निवारो ।
ताहि समय हनुमान महाप्रभु,
जाय महा रजनीचर मारो ।
चाहत सीय असोक सों आगि सु,
दई प्रभुमुद्रिका सोक निवारो ।
को नहीं जानत है जग में कपि,
संकटमोचन नाम तिहारो ॥ ४ ॥
Meaning
In the Ashoka grove Ravana threatened Sita and the demonesses tormented her until she was ready to end her own life by fire. Hanuman fought through the rakshasas guarding her, delivered Rama’s signet ring as proof of his message, and gave her back the hope that rescue was already underway.
bana lagyo ura lachimana ke taba
prana taje suta ravana maro
lai griha baidya susena sameta
tabai giri drona su bira uparo
ani sajivana hatha die taba
lachimana ke tuma prana ubaro
ko nahin janata hai jaga men kapi
sankatamochana nama tiharo
बान लाग्यो उर लछिमन के तब,
प्राण तजे सुत रावन मारो ।
लै गृह बैद्य सुषेण समेत,
तबै गिरि द्रोण सु बीर उपारो ।
आनि सजीवन हाथ दई तब,
लछिमन के तुम प्राण उबारो ।
को नहीं जानत है जग में कपि,
संकटमोचन नाम तिहारो ॥ ५ ॥
Meaning
When Meghnad’s arrow struck Lakshmana and left him near death, Hanuman did not wait for a single herb to be identified. He carried the physician Sushena’s entire house across the sky and, when the Sanjeevani could not be found on Mount Dronagiri, lifted the whole mountain to bring it back in time.
ravana judha ajana kiyo taba
naga ki phansa sabai sira daro
shriraghunatha sameta sabai dala
moha bhayo yaha sankata bharo
ani khagesa tabai hanumana ju
bandhana kati sutrasa nivaro
ko nahin janata hai jaga men kapi
sankatamochana nama tiharo
रावन जुद्ध अजान कियो तब,
नाग की फांस सबै सिर डारो ।
श्रीरघुनाथ समेत सबै दल,
मोह भयो यह संकट भारो ।
आनि खगेस तबै हनुमान जु,
बंधन काटि सुत्रास निवारो ।
को नहीं जानत है जग में कपि,
संकटमोचन नाम तिहारो ॥ ६ ॥
Meaning
Ravana bound Rama, Lakshmana and the vanara army with the Naga Pasha, a weapon of serpents that left the whole army helpless with fear. Hanuman summoned Garuda, the eagle whose presence alone drives away snakes, and the bonds fell away as quickly as they had been cast.
bandhu sameta jabai ahiravana
lai raghunatha patala sidharo
debinhin puji bhali vidhi son bali
deu sabai mili mantra vicharo
jaye sahae bhayo taba hi
ahiravana sainya sameta samharo
ko nahin janata hai jaga men kapi
sankatamochana nama tiharo
बंधु समेत जबै अहिरावन,
लै रघुनाथ पताल सिधारो ।
देबिहिं पूजि भली बिधि सों बलि,
देउ सबै मिलि मंत्र बिचारो ।
जाय सहाय भयो तब ही,
अहिरावन सैन्य समेत संहारो ।
को नहीं जानत है जग में कपि,
संकटमोचन नाम तिहारो ॥ ७ ॥
Meaning
Ahiravana carried Rama and Lakshmana into the netherworld to offer them to a goddess in a dark ritual. Hanuman followed him into Patala, broke through the guarded defences, and destroyed Ahiravana along with his army before the sacrifice could take place.
kaja kiye badavo devana ke tuma
bira mahaprabhu dekhi bicharo
kauna so sankata mora gariba ko
jo tumase nahin jata hai taro
begi haro hanumana mahaprabhu
jo kachu sankata hoe hamaro
ko nahin janata hai jaga men kapi
sankatamochana nama tiharo
काज किए बड़ देवन के तुम,
बीर महाप्रभु देखि बिचारो ।
कौन सो संकट मोर गरीब को,
जो तुमसों नहिं जात है टारो ।
बेगि हरो हनुमान महाप्रभु,
जो कछु संकट होय हमारो ।
को नहीं जानत है जग में कपि,
संकटमोचन नाम तिहारो ॥ ८ ॥
Meaning
The final verse turns from narrating Hanuman’s past feats to a direct, personal plea: after so many great rescues for gods and kings, what trouble of one ordinary devotee could possibly be beyond him? It asks him to act with the same speed here as in every story just told.
lala deha lali lase, aru dhari lala langura
vajra deha danava dalana, jaya jaya jaya kapi sura
लाल देह लाली लसे, अरू धरि लाल लंगूर ।
बज्र देह दानव दलन, जय जय जय कपि सूर ॥
Meaning
The closing couplet is a plain image of Hanuman himself: a red, radiant body, a long red tail, and strength as unbreakable as a thunderbolt. It ends not with a request but with three shouts of victory to the brave monkey-lord.
Meaning and Significance
Sankata Mochana Hanuman Ashtakam is an eight-verse Awadhi hymn composed by Goswami Tulsidas that recounts eight episodes from the Ramayana in which Hanuman rescued Rama, Sita, Lakshmana or the celestial gods from grave danger. Each verse ends with the refrain ’Sankat Mochan naam tiharo’ (’your name is the reliever of troubles’), and it is chanted, often right after the Hanuman Chalisa, to seek Hanuman’s protection from obstacles, fear and hardship.
Where a longer hymn like the Hanuman Chalisa praises the whole span of Hanuman’s life and virtues, this Ashtakam is narrower and more urgent. Every verse follows the same pattern: a crisis is named in plain language, Hanuman’s action is described, and the refrain asks who in the world does not already know that his name means the end of trouble.
Why devotees turn to it
The eight episodes cover almost every kind of danger a person can face: sudden darkness, exile, separation, threats to the body, near-fatal injury, imprisonment and a hidden enemy. Devotees of Lord Hanuman recite it precisely because it does not stay abstract. It names specific rescues and then asks, by the same logic, for a specific one of their own.
How to Chant the Sankata Mochana Hanuman Ashtakam
- Sit facing east or north – Choose a clean, quiet spot and settle facing the east or north before you begin.
- Set up an image of Hanuman – Keep a picture or murti of Hanuman, ideally alongside Rama, in front of you.
- Light a lamp and incense – A ghee or sesame-oil lamp and incense are enough; red flowers, sindoor or a sweet like laddoo are optional additions.
- Recite with full attention – Chant the eight verses and the closing doha with focus rather than haste, most commonly right after the Hanuman Chalisa.
- Close with a simple request – End by naming the specific trouble you are facing and asking for Hanuman’s help, rather than closing in silence.
What Are the Benefits of Chanting?
The Ashtakam is chanted for the same reason its verses were written: to ask Hanuman to step into a difficulty exactly where it is happening.
- Removes obstacles: Regular recitation is associated with clearing stuck situations, legal disputes and problems that feel like they are coming from every direction at once.
- Steadies courage: The hymn is used as a source of nerve against fear, anxiety and the kind of dread that has no clear cause.
- Calms the mind: Many devotees describe the repetition itself as settling, a way to work through stress during a genuinely hard stretch.
- Eases Shani and Mangal effects: It is commonly recited during Shani Sade Sati or when Mangal Dosha is a concern, alongside any astrological remedies already in place.
- Offers a sense of protection: Devotees recite it before travel or risky undertakings as a request for safety along the way.
- Supports focus before a task: Reciting it before an exam, interview or major decision is a common practice, less for luck than for steadying the mind first.
Who Composed the Sankata Mochana Hanuman Ashtakam?
The Sankata Mochana Hanuman Ashtakam was composed by Goswami Tulsidas, the sixteenth-century poet-saint of Awadh who is also credited with the Ramcharitmanas and the Hanuman Chalisa. Tradition places it within the same devotional output that reshaped Rama worship in North India, written in the same rhythmic Awadhi that made his verses easy to memorise and sing in a household setting rather than only in a temple.
Unlike the Chalisa’s broad sweep of praise, this Ashtakam is built entirely from narrative: eight specific rescues drawn from the Ramayana, each closing on the same line naming Hanuman as Sankat Mochan, the reliever of troubles. That refrain is likely the source of the epithet’s popularity as a personal name for Hanuman across North Indian devotion.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Sankata Mochana Hanuman Ashtakam?
Sankata Mochana Hanuman Ashtakam is an eight-verse Awadhi hymn composed by Goswami Tulsidas that recounts eight episodes from the Ramayana in which Hanuman rescued Rama, Sita, Lakshmana or the celestial gods from grave danger. Each verse ends with the refrain ’Sankat Mochan naam tiharo’ (’your name is the reliever of troubles’), and it is chanted, often right after the Hanuman Chalisa, to seek Hanuman’s protection from obstacles, fear and hardship.
What does Sankat Mochan mean?
Sankat means trouble or crisis, and Mochan means one who releases or removes. Together the name describes Hanuman as the one who lifts a devotee out of whatever difficulty they are in, which is exactly what each verse of this Ashtakam illustrates with a specific story.
How is this different from the Hanuman Chalisa?
The Hanuman Chalisa is forty verses of general praise covering Hanuman’s qualities, strength and devotion. This Ashtakam is only eight verses, and each one narrates a single rescue from the Ramayana rather than describing Hanuman in general terms, which makes it feel more targeted when you are facing a specific problem.
Can anyone recite it?
Yes. There is no initiation or restriction by age, gender or background. Anyone can recite it with sincerity, either alone or as part of a household’s regular Hanuman worship.
How many times should it be chanted?
There is no fixed rule. Most devotees recite it once, three times, or eleven times in a sitting, and sincerity matters more than the exact count.
Should it be recited after the Hanuman Chalisa?
That is the common practice, and many devotees treat the two as a pair, but the Ashtakam also stands on its own and can be recited by itself.
Is it useful during Shani Sade Sati?
Yes, this is one of its most common uses. Hanuman is widely regarded as a protector against the harsher effects of Saturn, and this hymn is recited specifically during Sade Sati or Mangal Dosha periods for relief.
What language is it written in?
It is composed in Awadhi, a dialect of Hindi from the same tradition and era as Tulsidas’s Ramcharitmanas, which is why its rhythm and vocabulary closely match the Hanuman Chalisa.
What is the meaning of the closing refrain?
’Ko nahin janat hai jag mein kapi, Sankat Mochan naam tiharo’ means ’who in this world does not know, O Monkey Lord, that your name is the destroyer of troubles’ – it closes every verse as a rhetorical reminder of what the story just proved.
॥ इति श्री गोस्वामी तुलसीदास कृतं श्री संकटमोचन हनुमान अष्टकं सम्पूर्णम् ॥