Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga Mantra
Meaning, pronunciation and long-form chant of the Grishneshwar verse
The final verse of the stotra salutes Grishneshwar at Ellora. Of all the epithets in the hymn, it chooses one for the last word on Shiva: mahodāratara — of exceedingly generous nature.
Jyotirlinga mantra — the Grishneshwar verse of the Dvādaśa Jyotirliṅga Stotram · 2h 13m chant
Verse 12 of 12 — part of the Dwadasha Jyotirlinga Stotram — all 12 verses.
Listen
This is Spiritual Awakening's own long-form recording — the official way to listen. There is no separate audio hosted on this page.
Best suited for: Closing a practice, a day, or the full stotra · Dwelling on generosity rather than power · Completion and letting go
Sacred text
Devanagari
इलापुरे रम्यविशालकेऽस्मिन् समुल्लसन्तं च जगद्वरेण्यम्। वन्दे महोदारतरस्वभावं घृष्णेश्वराख्यं शरणं प्रपद्ये॥
IAST transliteration
Ilāpure Ramyaviśālake'smin Samullasantaṃ Ca Jagadvareṇyam | Vande Mahodāratarasvabhāvaṃ Ghṛṣṇeśvarākhyaṃ Śaraṇaṃ Prapadye ||
Simple pronunciation
I-laa-pu-re Ram-ya-vi-shaa-la-kes-min Sa-mul-la-san-tam Cha Ja-gad-va-ren-yam; Van-de Ma-ho-daa-ra-ta-ra-sva-bhaa-vam Ghrish-nesh-va-raakh-yam Sha-ra-nam Pra-pad-ye
Meaning
In this lovely and spacious Ilapura shines the one most worthy in all the world; I bow to him of the most generous nature and take refuge in the one called Ghrishneshwar.
- Literal meaning
- In this delightful and broad Ilapura, shining forth and most excellent in the world — I salute him whose nature is exceedingly generous; to the one named Ghrishneshvara I go for refuge.
- Devotional interpretation
- The hymn has travelled the length of the land and now ends not with power or terror but with generosity. That is the note the whole stotra closes on: whatever else Shiva is, he gives more than is asked.
Word-by-word meaning
| Word | IAST | Literal meaning | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| इलापुरे | ilāpure | in Ilapura | The old name for the area around Ellora (Verul). |
| रम्यविशालके | ramya-viśālake | lovely and spacious | Both beautiful and broad — the open country around the caves. |
| अस्मिन् | asmin | in this | A rare 'this' — the verse points, as if standing there. |
| समुल्लसन्तं | samullasantaṃ | shining forth, radiant with joy | Ullāsa is delight; he shines with it. |
| जगद्वरेण्यम् | jagad-vareṇyam | most excellent in the world | Vareṇya — worthy to be chosen, as in the Gayatri. |
| वन्दे | vande | I salute | Warm, reverent greeting. |
| महोदारतरस्वभावं | mahā-udāratara-svabhāvaṃ | of exceedingly generous nature | A double intensifier — 'greatly more generous'. The hymn's closing quality. |
| घृष्णेश्वराख्यं | ghṛṣṇeśvara-ākhyaṃ | named Ghrishneshvara | The shrine's name at Ellora. |
| शरणं प्रपद्ये | śaraṇaṃ prapadye | I go for refuge | The surrender formula that also opened the hymn at Somnath. |
इलापुरेilāpure
- Literal meaning
- in Ilapura
- Explanation
- The old name for the area around Ellora (Verul).
रम्यविशालकेramya-viśālake
- Literal meaning
- lovely and spacious
- Explanation
- Both beautiful and broad — the open country around the caves.
अस्मिन्asmin
- Literal meaning
- in this
- Explanation
- A rare 'this' — the verse points, as if standing there.
समुल्लसन्तंsamullasantaṃ
- Literal meaning
- shining forth, radiant with joy
- Explanation
- Ullāsa is delight; he shines with it.
जगद्वरेण्यम्jagad-vareṇyam
- Literal meaning
- most excellent in the world
- Explanation
- Vareṇya — worthy to be chosen, as in the Gayatri.
वन्देvande
- Literal meaning
- I salute
- Explanation
- Warm, reverent greeting.
महोदारतरस्वभावंmahā-udāratara-svabhāvaṃ
- Literal meaning
- of exceedingly generous nature
- Explanation
- A double intensifier — 'greatly more generous'. The hymn's closing quality.
घृष्णेश्वराख्यंghṛṣṇeśvara-ākhyaṃ
- Literal meaning
- named Ghrishneshvara
- Explanation
- The shrine's name at Ellora.
शरणं प्रपद्येśaraṇaṃ prapadye
- Literal meaning
- I go for refuge
- Explanation
- The surrender formula that also opened the hymn at Somnath.
Translations are prepared with editorial review against the Sanskrit text, transliteration and English master meaning. Sanskrit words may carry layers of meaning that no single translation can fully express.
How to chant
Preparation
- If you have chanted the other verses, pause before this one; it is the last.
- Sit as though finishing something rather than starting it.
Pronunciation notes
- Mahodāratarasvabhāvaṃ carries a double intensifier — 'greatly more generous'. Let it be the fullest word in the verse.
- Ghṛṣṇeśvarākhyaṃ — 'ghrish-nesh-va-raakh-yam'; the initial 'gh' is breathy, not hard.
How many times
Most often chanted once, as the seal on the complete recitation. Repeated alone, three times is plenty — it is a closing verse by temperament.
To close
Do not add anything after it. The hymn ends here on purpose, and the silence is the last line.
How to use the recording
Chanting along
Join in for the final surrender — the same 'śaraṇaṃ prapadye' that opened the hymn at Somnath.
Meditation
Hold the one quality the hymn chose to end on: a nature that gives more than is asked.
Prayer or pūjā
The verse to close worship with, especially after reciting the full twelve.
Sleep listening
A good last track of the night; it is built to end things.
Morning practice
Less obvious in the morning, but useful when you want to begin already at rest.
Background atmosphere
Suits the end of an evening more than the middle of a day.
Background & sourcesClassification, origin, historical context, symbolism, intentions & occasions
What kind of sacred text is this?
This is chanted as a mantra, and it helps to know exactly what it is: textually it is verse 12 of the Dvādaśa Jyotirliṅga Stotram, a twelve-verse hymn in which each verse salutes one Jyotirlinga. Its protective, settling feeling comes from that devotion rather than from a limb-by-limb protective hymn. Chanted alone it stands complete as a salutation to Grishneshwar; read in sequence with the other eleven it becomes a pilgrimage in sound. You can read the whole hymn on the Dwadasha Jyotirlinga Stotram — all 12 verses page.
Origin and textual source
- Tradition / work
- Dvādaśa Jyotirliṅga Stotram
- Section
- Verse 12 of 12 — the Grishneshwar verse
- Attribution
- Traditionally attributed to Ādi Śaṅkarācārya
- Variants
- Spellings and word-splits vary slightly between printed editions of the stotra.
Historical and devotional context
Grishneshwar stands near the Ellora caves in Maharashtra, close to some of the most remarkable rock-cut architecture in the world. It is counted last among the twelve Jyotirlingas, so this verse closes the stotra.
Pilgrims often visit Grishneshwar together with Ellora, and the verse is chanted as the seal of the full recitation. Devotees who recite all twelve treat it as the moment of completion — the circuit closed and handed back.
Symbolism and inner meaning
- Ending on generosity rather than power: the last word the hymn chooses about Shiva.
- 'This Ilapura' — the sudden nearness of a verse that points rather than describes.
- The same 'I go for refuge' that opened at Somnath returns here: the pilgrimage ends where it began, in surrender.
Traditionally associated intentions
Traditional purpose
- Salutation to Shiva as worshipped at Grishneshwar
- Devotional remembrance of the twelve Jyotirlingas
- Recitation as part of the complete stotra
Devotional intentions
- Devotion
- Surrender
- Reverence for the sacred shrines
- Inner steadiness
This recording is for
- Long-form devotional chanting
- Meditation
- Calm listening before sleep
- A quiet devotional atmosphere at home
A note on wellbeing: Ending on generosity rather than on a request leaves many people lighter than they began. It is devotional practice, not treatment.
When is it traditionally chanted?
Monday (Somvār) and Pradosha
Days traditionally kept for Shiva worship. The verse may be chanted on any day with devotion — these are customs, not conditions.
Maha Shivaratri
Many devotees recite the complete twelve-verse stotra through the night of Shivaratri.
A visit combined with the Ellora caves
Grishneshwar stands beside some of the world's great rock-cut architecture, and is counted last of the twelve — so it often closes a Jyotirlinga circuit.
Related mantras
2h 34mKarpur Gauram Karunavataram — Shiva Stuti
कर्पूरगौरं करुणावतारं संसारसारम् भुजगेन्द्रहारम् । सदावसन्तं हृदयारविन्दे भवं भवानी सहितं नमामि ॥
2h 31mSomnath Jyotirlinga Mantra
सौराष्ट्रदेशे विशदेऽतिरम्ये ज्योतिर्मयं चन्द्रकलावतंसम्। भक्तिप्रदानाय कृपावतीर्णं तं सोमनाथं शरणं प्रपद्ये॥
2h 31mTrimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga Mantra
सह्याद्रिशीर्षे विमले वसन्तं गोदावरीतीरपवित्रदेशे । यद्दर्शनात्पातकमाशू नाशं प्रयाति तं त्र्यम्बकमीशमीडे ॥