श्रीयमुनाष्टकम्
Śrī Yamunāṣṭakam
Eight verses in praise of Śrī Yamunā
By Śrīmad Rūpa Gosvāmīpāda
श्रीयमुनायै नमः।
śrī-yamunāyai namaḥ |
Obeisance unto Śrī Yamunā.
भ्रातुरन्तकस्य पत्तनेऽभिपत्तिहारिणी
प्रेक्षयातिपापिनोऽपि पापसिन्धुतारिणी ।
नीरमाधुरीभिरप्यशेषचित्तबन्धिनी
मां पुनातु सर्वदारविन्दबन्धुनन्दिनी ॥१॥
bhrātur antakasya pattane’bhipatti-hāriṇī
prekṣayāti-pāpino’pi pāpa-sindhu-tāriṇī |
nīra-mādhurībhir apy aśeṣa-citta-bandhinī
māṁ punātu sarvadāravinda-bandhu-nandinī ||1||
She who is a preventer of falling
Into the city of her brother, Death,
She who is a deliverer of even great sinners
From the ocean of sin
With her sight,
She who is a captivator of the hearts of all
With even the sweetnesses of her water—
May the daughter of the lotus’s friend
Always purify me.
Commentary: Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa explains that the “lotus’s friend” (aravinda-bandhu) refers to Sūrya, the sun, whose daughter (nandinī) is known to be Śrī Yamunā (aravinda-bandhoḥ sūryasya nandinī kanyā śrī-yamunā). “Death” (antkasya) refers to Dharmarāja [i.e., Yamarāja], who is a fellow child of the sun, Sūryadeva, being Yamunā’s twin brother (antakasya dharma-rājasya bhrātur agrajasya). Śrī Yamunā’s being “a preventer of falling into the city of Death” (antakasya pattane’bhipatti-hāriṇī) is alluded to in the Yamunā-nāma-stotra by the phrase śaraṇāgata-saṁtrāṇa-nipuṇā, “She who is adept in delivering those who take shelter [in her]” (śaraṇāgata-saṁtrāṇa-nipuṇeti tan-nāma-stotre). Śrī Yamunā’s being “a deliverer of even great sinners from the ocean of sin,” is alluded to in the Yamunā-nāma-stotra by the phrase mahāpātaka-bheṣajā, “She who is the remedy for the most severe sins” (mahāpātaka-bheṣajeti tan-nāma-stotre). That she delivers “even great sinners with her sight” (prekṣayāti-pāpino’pi) implies that bathing in her and showing other greater forms of adoration to her than simply observing her are all the more powerful. Śrī Yamunā’s being “a captivator of the hearts of all” (aśeṣa-citta-bandhinī) indicates that she captivates not only the hearts of human beings but of devas and all other beings throughout the world as well, and that she does so even with the beauty of her waters (vāri-śobhābhir apy aśeṣāṇāṁ sarveṣāṁ deva-mānavādīnāṁ cittāni badhnāti vaśayatīti sā) implies that she does so all the more with her numerous other qualites.
हारिवारिधारयाभिमण्डितोरुखाण्डवा
पुण्डरीकमण्डलोद्यदण्डजालिताण्डवा ।
स्नानकामपामरोग्रपापसम्पदन्धिनी
मां पुनातु सर्वदारविन्दबन्धुनन्दिनी ॥२॥
hāri-vāri-dhārayābhimaṇḍitoru-khāṇḍavā
puṇḍarīka-maṇḍalodyad-aṇḍajāli-tāṇḍavā |
snāna-kāma-pāmarogra-pāpa-sampad-andhinī
māṁ punātu sarvadāravinda-bandhu-nandinī ||2||
She by whom the great Khāṇḍava
Was decorated with a stream of captivating water,
She in whom the dancing of flocks of birds
Arises amid clusters of white lotus flowers,
She who blinds
The droves of severe sins
Of wicked persons who desire to bathe [in her]—
May the daughter of the lotus’s friend
Always purify me.
Commentary: As described in Mahābhārata, Khāṇḍava was a forest on the west side of the Yamunā which was regularly watered by Indra [to prevent it from being devoured by Agni] but later burned down by Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna to establish the city of Indraprastha. Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa comments that the birds found dancing on the Yamunā include White wagtails among others (aṇḍa-jālīnāṁ khañjanādi-pakṣi-śreṇīnāṁ tāṇḍavāni). He further comments that “she who blinds the droves of severe sins of wicked persons who desire to bathe [in her]” (snāna-kāma-pāmarogra-pāpa-sampad-andhinī) implies that severe sins are destroyed just by desiring to bath in her (yat snānecchā-mātreṇa mahāpātakāni viśīryanta iti bhāvaḥ) even in the case of those who don’t actually do so (snāna-kāmānāṁ snātum icchatāṁ na tu kṛta-snānānāṁ), and thus the sins of those who actually bathe in her, honor her, and receive personal grace from Śrī Yamunā Devī are most certainly destroyed.
शीकराभिमृष्टजन्तुदुर्विपाकमर्दिनी
नन्दनन्दनान्तरङ्गभक्तिपूरवर्धिनी ।
तीरसङ्गमाभिलाषिमङ्गलानुबन्धिनी
मां पुनातु सर्वदारविन्दबन्धुनन्दिनी ॥३॥
śīkarābhimṛṣṭa-jantu-durvipāka-mardinī
nanda-nandanāntaraṅga-bhakti-pūra-vardhinī |
tīra-saṅgamābhilāṣi-maṅgalānubandhinī
māṁ punātu sarvadāravinda-bandhu-nandinī ||3||
She who is a destroyer
Of the miserable reactions [of the karma]
Of living beings’ touched by her mist,
She who increases the stream
Of intimate bhakti to the Son of Nanda,
She who confers blessings
Upon one who desires
The touch of her bank—
May the daughter of the lotus’s friend
Always purify me.
Commentary: Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa comments that “the stream of intimate bhakti to the Son of Nanda” (nanda-nandanāntaraṅga-bhakti-pūra) refers to the flow of rāgātmikā-bhakti (nanda-nandanasyāntaraṅgaṁ bhakti-pūraṁ rāgātmikāṁ bhakti-dhārāṁ). He further comments that “one who desires the touch of her bank” (tīra-saṅgamābhilāṣi) refers to one who desires to reside there and does not refer even to one who fasts there (tīra-saṁgamaṁ taṭa-nivāsaṁ yo’bhilaṣati vāñchati na tu tat-tīre’py upavāsaḥ), the sense being that Śrī Yamunā purifies those who take shelter in her with the aim of engaging in bhakti to Śrī Kṛṣṇa and not those who simply perform a rite of worship of her for the sake of their own deliverance from sin.
द्वीपचक्रवालजुष्टसप्तसिन्धुभेदिनी
श्रीमुकुन्दनिर्मितोरुदिव्यकेलिवेदिनी ।
कान्तिकन्दलीभिरिन्द्रनीलवृन्दनिन्दिनी
मां पुनातु सर्वदारविन्दबन्धुनन्दिनी ॥४॥
dvīpa-cakravāla-juṣṭa-sapta-sindhu-bhedinī
śrī-mukunda-nirmitoru-divya-keli-vedinī |
kānti-kandalībhir indranīla-vṛnda-nindinī
māṁ punātu sarvadāravinda-bandhu-nandinī ||4||
She who flows into the seven oceans
Furnished with a multitude of continents,
She who observes the excellent divine plays
Performed by Śrī Mukunda [in her midst],
She who belittles arrays of blue sapphires
With her abundances of luster—
May the daughter of the lotus’s friend
Always purify me.
Commentary: Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa comments that Śrī Yamunā’s being “she who flows into the seven oceans furnished with a multitude [i.e., the seven] of continents” is alluded to in the Yamunā-nāma-stotra by the phrase sapta-sāgara-saṁgatā, “She who is joined with the seven oceans” (sapta-sāgara-saṁgateti tan-nāma-stotre). Her inconceivable greateness, however, is that by her flowing into the oceans, she is not dissolved into them like other rivers but rather proceeds [to flow] like a wheel [onwards without ceasing to exist there in the midst of the ocean (sindhūn bhindatīyaṁ cakravat parivartate na tv anya-nadīvat teṣu līyata ity avicintyo’syā mahimā). The Yamunā’s being “she who observes the excellent divine plays performed by Śrī Mukunda” implies that she also manifests these plays to those who take shelter of her (yad-āśritānāṁ tāḥ kelayaḥ prakāśanta ity arthaḥ).
Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa further comments that the Yamuṇā’s being “she who belittles arrays of blue sapphires with her abundances of luster” should be understood in accord with its evident meaning that the water of the Yamunā is dark in color like a blue sapphire (kāntīti prakaṭārtham). Even though in the Yamunā-nāma-stotra the Yamunā is also called “She who is dark with the petals of blue lotuses” (nīlotpala-dala-śyāmā) [which could be interpreted to mean that the darkness of the Yamunā is not because of her own nature but because of the blue lotus petals around her], it should not be argued that the water of the Yamunā is actually bright on the grounds that it only appears dark as a result of the riverbed beneath her being dark and really is seen to be bright when thrown in the sky (nīlotpala-dala-śyāmā iti tan-nāma-stotre yat tu jale rūpaṁ śuklam eva yamunā-jalaṁ tu bhūmi-nīlima-saṁkramān nīlam ucyate; vastutas tu śukla-rūpavad eva tan-mantavyaṁ nabhasi vikṣipte tatra śuklimopalambhād iti tārkikāḥ kalpayanti). The reasons such argumentation should not be entertained is that (1) argument is not applicable to an object that is inconceivable in nature, (2) the Yamunā is also described in the Yamunā-nāma-stotra as “She whose water is dark” (kāla-salilā), and (3) water from the Yamunā that appears bright when thrown into the sky can be said to appear as such because of the light from the firmament (tad etena nirastam; avicintye vastuni tarkānavatārāt, atas tan-nāma-stotre kālindī kāla-salilā iti smaryate, nabhasi vikṣipte tad-ambuni śuklimopalambhas tu nakṣatra-bhā-hetukaḥ śakyo vaktum).
माथुरेण मण्डलेन चारुणाभिमण्डिता
प्रेमनद्धवैष्णवाध्ववर्धनाय पण्डिता ।
ऊर्मिदोर्विलासपद्मनाभपादवन्दिनी
मां पुनातु सर्वदारविन्दबन्धुनन्दिनी ॥५॥
māthureṇa maṇḍalena cāruṇābhimaṇḍitā
prema-naddha-vaiṣṇavādhva-vardhanāya paṇḍitā |
ūrmi-dor-vilāsa-padmanābha-pāda-vandinī
māṁ punātu sarvadāravinda-bandhu-nandinī ||5||
She who is decorated
By the beauty of the district of Mathurā,
She who is adept
In nourishing the Vaiṣṇava path
Embedded with prema,
She who worships
The feet of he of lotus navel
With the graceful movements
Of her arms in the form of waves—
May the daughter of the lotus’s friend
Always purify me.
Commentary: Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa comments that “the beauty of the district of Mathurā” (māthureṇa maṇḍalena cāruṇā) refers the splendor of its various mountains, towns, and forests (anyāni giri-nagara-vanāni sva-śobhayā) and implies that Śrī Yamunā becomes exceedingly beautiful in their midst (labdhātiśobhety arthaḥ). He further comments that “the Vaiṣṇava path embedded with prema” (prema-naddha-vaiṣṇavādhva) refers to the sampradāya of rāgānugā-bhakti (rāgānuga-bhakti-sampradāyasya), and that Śrī Yamunā nourishes, that is, manifests this, meaning, that by bathing in Śrī Yamunā, such bhakti flourishes (yat snānena sā bhaktiḥ svayam abhyudayatīty arthaḥ). Śrī Yamunā’s worshiping Śrī Kṛṣṇa with her arms in the form of waves is described in Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (10.21.15):
nadyas tadā tad upadhārya mukunda-gītam
āvarta-lakṣita-manobhava-bhagna-vegāḥ |
āliṅgana-sthagitam ūrmi-bhujair murārer
gṛhṇanti pāda-yugalaṁ kamalopahārāḥ ||
“Then, upon hearing Mukunda’s [flute-] song, the rivers, their flow broken by their love, as observed by [their water’s] whirling [about in circles], and bearing offerings of lotus flowers, grasp with the arms of their waves Murāri’s pair of feet, [which become] covered by their embrace.”
रम्यतीररम्भमाणगोकदम्बभूषिता
दिव्यगन्धभाक्कदम्बपुष्पराजिरूषिता ।
नन्दसूनुभक्तसङ्घसङ्गमाभिनन्दिनी
मां पुनातु सर्वदारविन्दबन्धुनन्दिनी ॥६॥
ramya-tīra-rambhamāṇa-go-kadamba-bhūṣitā
divya-gandha-bhāk-kadamba-puṣpa-rāji-rūṣitā |
nanda-sūnu-bhakta-saṅgha-saṅgamābhinandinī
māṁ punātu sarvadāravinda-bandhu-nandinī ||6||
She who is ornamented
With herds of lowing cows
Along her pleasant banks,
She who is adorned
With streaks of kadamba flowers
Possessed of extraordinary fragrance,
She who is delighted
By the association of groups of bhaktas
Of the Son of Nanda—
May the daughter of the lotus’s friend
Always purify me.
फुल्लपक्षमल्लिकाक्षहंसलक्षकूजिता
भक्तिविद्धदेवसिद्धकिन्नरालिपूजिता ।
तीरगन्धवाहगन्धजन्मबन्धरन्धिनी
मां पुनातु सर्वदारविन्दबन्धुनन्दिनी ॥७॥
phulla-pakṣa-mallikākṣa-haṁsa-lakṣa-kūjitā
bhakti-viddha-deva-siddha-kinnarāli-pūjitā |
tīra-gandhavāha-gandha-janma-bandha-randhinī
māṁ punātu sarvadāravinda-bandhu-nandinī ||7||
She who is filled with the warblings
Of lakhs of jasmine-eyed geese
With expanded pinions,
She who is worshiped
By devas, siddhas, and kinnaras
Imbued with bhakti,
She who destroys
The bondange of birth
With [even] the slight touch
Of the breeze from her banks—
May the daughter of the lotus’s friend
Always purify me.
Commentary: Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa comments that “expanded pinions” (phulla-pakṣāḥ) implies that the warbling, jasmine-eyed geese along the Yamunā are highly delighted (prahṛṣṭā), and adds that mention of this type of bird is an indicator of the presence of other birds as well, such as royal geese (rājahaṁsādīnām upalakṣaṇam etat). Devas, siddhas, and kinnaras being “imbued with bhakti” (bhakti-viddha) means their minds are intent upon service to Hari (hari-sevā-nirata-manasāṁ). Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa interprets gandha in this verse mean “even a slight touch or connection” (gandhena leśenāpi spṛṣṭena sambandhena vā) rather than to mean fragrance, as the word elsewhere often connotes.
चिद्विलासवारिपूरभूर्भुवःस्वरापिनी
कीर्तितापि दुर्मदोरुपापमर्मतापिनी ।
बल्लवेन्द्रनन्दनाङ्गरागभङ्गगन्धिनी
मां पुनातु सर्वदारविन्दबन्धुनन्दिनी ॥८॥
cid-vilāsa-vāri-pūra-bhūr-bhuvaḥ-svar-āpinī
kīrtitāpi durmadoru-pāpa-marma-tāpinī |
ballavendra-nandanāṅgarāga-bhaṅga-gandhinī
māṁ punātu sarvadāravinda-bandhu-nandinī ||8||
She who pervades Bhū, Bhuva, and Sva
With the stream of her water,
[Which is] A manifestation of consciousness;
She who burns away the core
Of the severe sins of the arrogant
Even by being mentioned;
She who is fragrant
With the fallen unguents
Of the Son of the Ballava’s king—
May the daughter of the lotus’s friend
Always purify me.
Commentary: Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa comments that Śrī Yamunā pervades Bhū, Bhuva, and Sva lokas just as she also flows into the seven oceans (sapta-sindhuvad-bhūr-ādi-lokān api bhittvā gacchatīty arthaḥ) and that “the stream of [her] water” (vāri-pūra) being “a manifestation of consciousness” (cid-vilāsa) means it is constituted of knowledge of Brahman (cid-vilāso brahma-vidyātmako yo vāri-pūras), as the Yamunā-nāma-stotra has described Śrī Yamunā as Brahma-vidyā, “She who is constituted of knowledge of Brahman,” and Brāhmī, “She who is constituted of Brahman,” or “She who is a potency of Brahman” (tan-nāma-stotre brahma-vidyā brāhmī iti nāma-dvayam). Śrī Yamunā’s capabililty to burn away sins and their cause [i.e., ignorance (avidyā)] is also alluded to in the Yamunā-nāma-stotra, where she is called Tāpinī, “She who burns,” and Yāmī, one meaning of which is, “She who regulates” (tāpinī yamunā yāmī iti tan-nāma-stotre). That Śrī Yamunā burns away sin “even by being mentioned” (kīrtitāpi) implies that she does so all the more when beheld, bathed in, and so forth.
तुष्टबुद्धिरष्टकेन निर्मलोर्मिचेष्टितां
त्वामनेन भानुपुत्रि सर्वदेववेष्टिताम् ।
यः स्तवीति वर्धयस्व सर्वपापमोचने
भक्तिपूरमस्य देवि पुण्डरीकलोचने ॥९॥
tuṣṭa-buddhir aṣṭakena nirmalormi-ceṣṭitāṁ
tvām anena bhānu-putri sarva-deva-veṣṭitām |
yaḥ stavīti vardhayasva sarva-pāpa-mocane
bhakti-pūram asya devi puṇḍarīka-locane ||9||
O daughter of Sūrya!
O liberator from all sins!
O shining one!
May you nourish
The stream of bhakti
To he of lotus eyes
Of one of satisfied mind
Who with this poem of eight verses
Praises you who are stirred by pure waves
And surrounded by all the devas.
Commentary: Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa comments that the fruit of reciting this poem is Kṛṣṇa-prema (aṣṭaka-pāṭhasya kṛṣṇa-premāṇaṁ phalaṁ). He further comments that “he of lotus eyes” (puṇḍarīka-locane) refers to Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Son of Nanda, and that Śrī Yamunā being a “liberator from all sins” (sarva-pāpa-mocane) implies that she removes sins including ignorance (avidyā) [i.e., the root of them all] (sarvam avidyā-paryantaṁ pāpaṁ mocayaty upanayatīti tasmin).
Meter
Tūṇaka
Source
Stava-mālā editions by Śrī Purī Dāsa Mahāśaya, Śrī Rāma Nārāyaṇa Vidyāratna, and Nirṇaya Sāgara Press.