Narmada Chalisa

Victory, victory, victory to Narmada Bhavani; the whole world knows your greatness.

O Mother, you spring forth from Amarkantak, and you are the giver of every accomplishment and of the nine treasures.

You appeared as Narmada Bhavani in the form of a maiden, a mine of all virtues.

You descended on the seventh day, on a Sunday with the sun in Capricorn, under the Ashwini star in the month of Magh.

The crocodile graces you as your mount, and you are seated upon a lotus flower.

Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva meditate on you, and only then do they obtain the fruit their hearts desire.

Merely beholding you cuts away sins, and millions of devotees bathe in your waters every day.

The person who meditates on you daily reaches the realm of Rudra (Shiva).

Even the crocodiles find happiness within you, and at their final hour they attain the supreme state.

A crown forever adorns your head, and anklets always shine upon your feet.

O Mother, you flow with a murmuring, rippling sound, and you carry away sin and suffering.

From the east toward the west you flow, O Mother, while peacocks dance along your course.

The sage Shaunaka sings of your qualities, and Suta and others sing of your fame.

Even Shiva and Ganesha sing your praises, and all the hosts of gods meditate upon you.

Countless places of pilgrimage line the banks of the Narmada, and all of them are known as removers of sorrow.

You fulfil the wishes of the heart, O Mother, and you always take away every grief.

At Kankhal the glory belongs to the Ganga, and at Kurukshetra the glory belongs to the Saraswati.

But the Narmada, even through villages and forests, the Mother always abides in auspiciousness everywhere.

By bathing in you even once, men and women carry their whole lineage across to liberation.

You are the daughter of Mekal mountain, you are Reva, and the gods sing your praises every day.

Jata-Shankari is one of your names, for you have ferried millions of people across the ocean of existence.

You are Narmada, self-born and ever-joyful, and as Reva you are the one who releases people from sin.

Your glory cannot be told in full; O Mother, your greatness is beyond anyone's power to describe.

The power of your waters is immense, O Mother, and they are both beautiful and a giver of happiness.

Your winding course moves like a serpent, and your glory is utterly boundless.

It is said that even bones cast into you grow weighty, and at their touch your blessed water can turn stones sacred.

A person who bathes in the Yamuna receives the merit of it after seven days.

The Saraswati grants its merit in three days, and the Ganga grants it immediately after a bath.

But simply by beholding the Reva (Narmada), a person receives the full reward at once, to the heart's content.

Your glory is immense, and men and women alike sing of it.

The person who bathes in you every day is honoured in the realm of Rudra (Shiva).

Healing herbs flourish along your banks, and the enchanting scenery forever adorns them.

A fragrant breeze blows along your shores, and it takes away the pain of the human body.

The glory of each of your bathing ghats is great, so great that even poets cannot sing of all of it.

I do not know the proper way to worship you, and I have no other refuge but you.

Be pleased with me, O Mother; you alone are the bestower of liberation.

The person who reads this hymn daily finds that their honour keeps on growing.

Whoever sings it a hundred times gains learning, wealth and prosperity.

For anyone who reads it countless times, the wishes of the heart are fulfilled.

Narmada dwells inside everyone's heart; here, there and everywhere, there is Narmada.