Padma Pura:na — Indra's hymn upon recovering Lakshmi: from Bali

Maha:lakshmya:shtakam

महालक्ष्म्यष्टकम्

Indra (as recorded in the Padma Pura:na)·Pura:nic·9 verses·Friday Lakshmi: Pu:ja:; Varalakshmi Vratam; Maha:lakshmi: Vrata; daily for prosperity and wisdom; before the start of any new venture

Indra's hymn after the churning of the milk ocean. The eight verses plus phaliasruthi are the most universally recited Lakshmi: ashtaka in Sana:thana Dharma — short enough for daily practice, doctrinally complete in praising Maha:lakshmi: as Maha:ma:ya:, Maha:lakshmi:, Maha:vidya:, and the supreme Yogini:.

The Maha:lakshmya:shtakam is the single most widely recited Lakshmi: stotra in the Sana:thana Dharma. Across Sma:rtha and Vaishnava traditions, in every Indian language, on every Friday morning, in every Varalakshmi Vratam, in every household before the start of a new venture — these eight verses (with a ninth phaliasruthi) are sung. The reason is at once practical and theological: the hymn is short enough to be committed to memory by every devotee, and doctrinally complete enough that nothing essential is left out.

The hymn is recorded in the Padma Pura:na, where it appears as the spontaneous outpouring of Indra at the moment of Lakshmi:'s recovery. In the cosmic story, when the asura-king Bali had bound the three worlds, Lakshmi: Herself had departed from the Devas. After the churning of the milk ocean (kshi:ra-sa:gara-mathana), when Maha:vishnu took the form of Mohini: to recover the amritha, Lakshmi: arose from the waters and chose Maha:vishnu as Her eternal Lord. Indra — who had lost Her and now beheld Her returning — burst into this hymn. It is the hymn of a recovered devotee. The Pura:na preserves it word for word.

Each of the eight verses opens with namaste'stu — "salutation be unto Thee" — and closes with maha:lakshmi namo'stu te. The repetition is not mechanical; it is the heart of the stotra. Indra cannot say enough; he can only say "I salute Thee" again and again, each time naming Her in a different role. As Maha:ma:ya: (the supreme Ma:ya: of the cosmos), as Maha:lakshmi:, as Maha:vidya: (the supreme knowledge), as the Yogini: seated on Brahma:'s body, as Maha:ghora: the destroyer of demons, as the One who is gross and subtle and most subtle — eight aspects, eight salutations. The ninth verse is the phaliasruthi, declaring the fruit: whoever recites this stotra with devotion, morning, noon, or night, attains all the eight Lakshmi:s.

In Sri:vaishnava practice the Maha:lakshmya:shtakam is the morning stotra of every devotee who cannot recite longer texts. Children learn it first. The aged keep it on their lips. A traveler away from home recites it Friday morning wherever he is. The stotra has crossed every regional and sectarian boundary inside the tradition because Indra's words — spoken at the moment Lakshmi: returned to the gods — are the words of every devotee at the moment She returns to him.

Sanskrit·Always shownIAST·Always shownతెలుగు · Telugu·Always shown

Verse 1

नमस्तेऽस्तु महामाये श्रीपीठे सुरपूजिते। शङ्खचक्रगदाहस्ते महालक्ष्मि नमोऽस्तु ते॥

తెలుగు · Telugu

ఓ మహామాయా! శ్రీపీఠమున ఆసీనురాలవై, దేవతలచే పూజింపబడుచు, శంఖ-చక్ర-గదలను ధరించిన ఓ మహాలక్ష్మీ! నీకు నమస్కారము.

English

Salutation be unto Thee, O great Ma:ya:, seated on the throne of Sri:, worshipped by the gods, bearing in Thy hands the conch, discus, and mace — O Maha:lakshmi:, salutation unto Thee.

Meaning

The opening invocation. She is named **Maha:ma:ya:** — not the deluding ma:ya: that binds the soul, but the supreme creative power that veils and reveals the Lord. She is seated on the **Sri:-pi:tha**, the lotus throne. The four hands bearing conch, discus, and mace establish Her as inseparable from Vishnu — She holds His weapons because She and He are one. Indra opens with the most universal salutation.

Verse 2

नमस्ते गरुडारूढे कोलासुरभयङ्करि। सर्वपापहरे देवि महालक्ष्मि नमोऽस्तु ते॥

తెలుగు · Telugu

ఓ గరుత్మంతునిపై వేంచేసిన, కోలాసురునికి భయము కలిగించు, సర్వ పాపములను హరించు దేవీ! ఓ మహాలక్ష్మీ! నీకు నమస్కారము.

English

Salutation to Thee, O Mother seated upon Garuda, terror of the demon Kola, destroyer of every sin — O Maha:lakshmi:, salutation unto Thee.

Meaning

Lakshmi: is named as Garuda:ru:dha: — She who rides Garuda, the Vedic eagle. In Vaishnava iconography Garuda is the Lord's vehicle; that the Mother is also seen upon Garuda attests to Her oneness with Him. The reference to **Ko:la:sura** is to a demon vanquished by Her grace (the Pura:nic narrative is preserved in regional traditions); the broader point is that She is **sarva-pa:pa-hara:** — destroyer of every sin. To salute Her is to be cleansed.

Verse 3

सर्वज्ञे सर्ववरदे सर्वदुष्टभयङ्करि। सर्वदुःखहरे देवि महालक्ष्मि नमोऽस्तु ते॥

తెలుగు · Telugu

ఓ సర్వజ్ఞురాలా, సర్వవరములనిచ్చు, సకల దుష్టులకు భయము కలిగించు, సర్వ దుఃఖములను హరించు దేవీ! ఓ మహాలక్ష్మీ! నీకు నమస్కారము.

English

O all-knowing One, granter of every boon, terror of all the wicked, remover of every sorrow — O Maha:lakshmi:, salutation unto Thee.

Meaning

Four absolute attributes named in a single sloka: sarva-jna: (omniscient), sarva-varadha: (granter of every boon), sarva-dhushta-bhayankari: (terror of all wickedness), sarva-dhuhkha-hara: (remover of every sorrow). The repetition of **sarva** four times is not poetic excess but theological precision — Her power is not partial. There is no knowledge She does not possess, no boon She cannot grant, no evil She does not subdue, no sorrow She does not lift.

Verse 4

सिद्धिबुद्धिप्रदे देवि भुक्तिमुक्तिप्रदायिनि। मन्त्रमूर्ते सदा देवि महालक्ष्मि नमोऽस्तु ते॥

తెలుగు · Telugu

సిద్ధి-బుద్ధులను ప్రసాదించు, భుక్తి-ముక్తులను ఇచ్చు, నిత్యమంత్రమూర్తియైన దేవీ! ఓ మహాలక్ష్మీ! నీకు నమస్కారము.

English

Granter of accomplishment and intelligence, bestower of worldly enjoyment and final liberation, eternal embodiment of the sacred mantra — O Goddess, O Maha:lakshmi:, salutation unto Thee.

Meaning

The verse names Her as **bhukti-mukti-prada:yini:** — She who grants both enjoyment and liberation. This is a doctrinally weighty phrase: She does not force the devotee to choose between worldly fulfillment and final release. She grants both, each in its proper measure. As **mantra-mu:rthi** She is the very form of every sacred syllable; the mantra is not a tool that reaches Her but Her own body.

Verse 5

आद्यन्तरहिते देवि आद्यशक्तिमहेश्वरि। योगजे योगसम्भूते महालक्ष्मि नमोऽस्तु ते॥

తెలుగు · Telugu

ఓ ఆది-అంత రహితవై, ఆద్యశక్తి-మహేశ్వరివై, యోగమున జనించు, యోగమున ప్రాప్యమైన దేవీ! ఓ మహాలక్ష్మీ! నీకు నమస్కారము.

English

O Goddess without beginning or end, O supreme Lord-Power who is the primordial Sakthi, born of yoga and known through yoga — O Maha:lakshmi:, salutation unto Thee.

Meaning

Now the metaphysical hymn opens. She is **a:dyantha-rahitha:** — without beginning, without end. She is **a:dya-sakthi** — the primordial power from which all sakthis derive. She is both yoga-ja: (born of yoga, as Lakshmi: rose from the churning waters of yogic effort) and yoga-sambhu:tha: (the One met in yogic absorption). Indra now speaks not of Her external glory but of Her metaphysical depth — She is the ground of being itself.

Verse 6

स्थूलसूक्ष्ममहारौद्रे महाशक्तिमहोदरे। महापापहरे देवि महालक्ष्मि नमोऽस्तु ते॥

తెలుగు · Telugu

ఓ స్థూల-సూక్ష్మ-మహారౌద్ర రూపిణీ, మహాశక్తివై, మహోదరివై, మహాపాపములను సైతము హరించు దేవీ! ఓ మహాలక్ష్మీ! నీకు నమస్కారము.

English

Thou who art the gross, the subtle, and the most fearsome; Thou of immense power and immense womb; remover of even the greatest sin — O Goddess, O Maha:lakshmi:, salutation unto Thee.

Meaning

She is at once **sthu:la** (the gross visible world), **su:kshma** (the subtle invisible principles), and **maha:-raudhra:** (the awesome destructive aspect that ends the cosmos at pralaya). All three are Her. **Mahodhara:** — She of the immense womb — names Her as the One in whose belly the universe is gestated. The verse establishes that no aspect of reality — pleasant or terrible, manifest or unmanifest — falls outside Her body.

Verse 7

पद्मासनस्थिते देवि परब्रह्मस्वरूपिणि। परमेशि जगन्मातर्महालक्ष्मि नमोऽस्तु ते॥

తెలుగు · Telugu

ఓ పద్మాసనమున ఆసీనురాలవై, పరబ్రహ్మస్వరూపిణివై, పరమేశ్వరివై, జగన్మాతవైన ఓ మహాలక్ష్మీ! నీకు నమస్కారము.

English

Seated upon the lotus throne, of the very form of the Supreme Brahman, O supreme Sovereign, O Mother of the worlds — O Maha:lakshmi:, salutation unto Thee.

Meaning

After naming Her as everything that is, Indra now names Her as the One who **is** the Supreme. **Para-brahma-svaru:pini:** — She of the very form of the Supreme Brahman. In Sri:vaishnava theology this is read as the doctrine that Lakshmi:, while remaining eternally the consort, is non-different (abhinna) from Brahman; She is the **Sri:** in Sri:man Na:ra:yana, the inseparable feminine in the Para-Brahman. The verse closes with the title that Bhagavad Ra:ma:nuja would later make central — **Jagan-ma:tha:**, Mother of the worlds.

Verse 8

श्वेताम्बरधरे देवि नानालङ्कारभूषिते। जगत्स्थिते जगन्मातर्महालक्ष्मि नमोऽस्तु ते॥

తెలుగు · Telugu

ఓ శ్వేతాంబరధారిణివై, నానా అలంకారములచే భూషితవై, జగత్తునందుండి, జగన్మాతవైన దేవీ! ఓ మహాలక్ష్మీ! నీకు నమస్కారము.

English

Clothed in white garments, adorned with manifold ornaments, sustainer of the world, Mother of all the worlds — O Goddess, O Maha:lakshmi:, salutation unto Thee.

Meaning

The hymn returns from metaphysical heights to the iconographic image — white-clad, jewel-bedecked, the Mother enthroned. The closure mirrors the opening: where verse 1 set Her on the Sri:-pi:tha bearing weapons, verse 8 sets Her on the world itself, bearing ornaments. Indra's eight namaska:ras are complete. The verse twice names Her as **Jagan-ma:tha:** — the title repeats, like the seal on a royal grant.

Verse 9 (Phaliasruthi)

महालक्ष्म्यष्टकं स्तोत्रं यः पठेद् भक्तिमान्नरः। सर्वसिद्धिमवाप्नोति राज्यं प्राप्नोति सर्वदा॥

తెలుగు · Telugu

ఏ భక్తుడు భక్తితో ఈ మహాలక్ష్మ్యష్టక స్తోత్రమును పఠించునో, అతడు సర్వ సిద్ధులను పొందును మరియు సర్వదా రాజ్యమును (సంపదను) పొందును.

English

The devotee who recites this Maha:lakshmi: Ashtakam stotra with devotion attains every accomplishment and obtains, in every age, sovereignty itself.

Meaning

The phaliasruthi — the verse declaring the fruit. Two conditions are named: that the reciter be a **nara** (a true human, conscious of his birth) and that he recite **bhakti-ma:n** (with devotion). The fruit promised is total: sarva-siddhi (every accomplishment) and ra:jya (kingship — read by commentators as both worldly sovereignty and the inner sovereignty of the liberated soul). The Padma Pura:na frames this as Indra's promise: what he received by reciting these eight verses, every later devotee may receive too.

← All Stotras

Next in Pura:nic & Tantra Stotras →

Kanakadha:ra: Stotram