Rudrashtadhyayi: Adhyaya 5 - Shatarudriya Sukta (Part 1, mantras 1-17)
अस्त्र - शतरुद्रियसूक्तम् (भाग १)
The fifth and principal adhyaya of the Rudrashtadhyayi, called Astra (weapon), also known as the Namakadhyaya or Shatarudriya Sukta - 66 mantras naming and praising Rudra in every form, role and place. This is the core text of Rudrabhisheka and is split here into parts for readability; this first part covers mantras 1-17, the opening salutations and the famous "mano mahantam" plea for Rudra not to harm any being.
Sanskrit
हरिः॒ ॐ नमस्ते॑ रु॒द्र मन्य॑वऽउ॒तो त॑ऽइष॑वे॒ नमः॑। बा॒हुभ्यां॑ उ॒त ते॒ नमः॑ ॥१॥
Transliteration
hariḥ oṃ namas te rudra manyava uto ta iṣave namaḥ | bāhubhyām uta te namaḥ ||1||
Translation
Salutation to you, O Rudra, to your wrath, and also salutation to your arrow; salutation to your two arms as well.
Deep Meaning
The Shatarudriya opens with what may be the single most recited line in this entire book - already familiar from the puja-vidhi section earlier, where it serves as dhyana and arghya mantra. Salutation is offered not around Rudra's fierce aspects but directly to them - his wrath, his weapon, his arms - as the starting point of approach, not something to avoid.
Sanskrit
या ते॑ रु॒द्र शि॒वा त॒नूरघो॑राऽपापकाशिनी। तया॑ नस्त॒न्वा॒ शन्त॑मया॒ गिरि॑शन्ताभि चाकशीहि ॥२॥
Transliteration
yā te rudra śivā tanūr aghorā apāpakāśinī | tayā nas tanvā śantamayā giriśantābhi cākaśīhi ||2||
Translation
That form of yours, O Rudra, which is auspicious, not terrible, not showing anything evil - with that most peaceful form, look upon us, O one who brings peace from the mountain.
Deep Meaning
Having saluted the fierce aspect directly, the second mantra immediately asks for the opposite - the gentle, auspicious form (shiva-tanu) - to be the one that actually looks upon the worshipper. Both aspects are acknowledged as real and both are addressed, rather than one being denied.
Sanskrit
यामिषुं॑ गिरिशन्त॒ हस्ते॑ बि॒भर्ष्यस्त॑वे। शि॒वां गि॑रित्र॒ तां कु॑रु॒ मा हिं॑सीः॒ पुरु॑षं॒ जग॑त् ॥३॥
Transliteration
yām iṣuṃ giriśanta haste bibharṣy astave | śivāṃ giritra tāṃ kuru mā hiṃsīḥ puruṣaṃ jagat ||3||
Translation
The arrow which you hold in your hand, O peace-bringer of the mountain, ready to be shot - make that one auspicious, O protector of the mountain; do not harm man or beast.
Deep Meaning
Rudra's weapon itself - not Rudra - is addressed and asked to become auspicious. The prayer distinguishes between the deity, who is approached directly, and his instrument of harm, which is the thing actually asked to change.
Sanskrit
शि॒वेन॒ वच॑सा त्वा॒ गिरि॑शाच्छा॒ वदा॑मसि। यथा॑ नः॒ सर्व॒मिज्जग॑दय॒क्ष्मं सु॒मना॒ऽअस॑त् ॥४॥
Transliteration
śivena vacasā tvā giriśāccha vadāmasi | yathā naḥ sarvam ij jagad ayakṣmaṃ sumanā asat ||4||
Translation
With auspicious speech we address you, O mountain-dweller, so that this entire world of ours may be free from disease and well-disposed toward us.
Deep Meaning
The first block of four mantras closes by naming its own method explicitly: auspicious speech (shivena vachasa) is the means by which the whole of creation is asked to become healthy and well-disposed. Words themselves are treated as having this much power.
Sanskrit
अ॒ध्य॑वोचदधिव॒क्ता प्र॑थ॒मो दैव्यो॑ भि॒षक्। अहीं॑श्च॒ सर्वा॒ञ्जम्भ॑यन्त्स॒र्वाश्च॒ यातु॑धा॒न्योऽध॑राचीः॒ परा॑ सुव ॥५॥
Transliteration
adhy avocad adhivaktā prathamo daivyo bhiṣak | ahīṃś ca sarvāñ jambhayan sarvāś ca yātudhānyo 'dharācīḥ parā suva ||5||
Translation
The first divine physician, the one who speaks on high, has declared: crushing all serpents, drive away all the female demons, downward, far off.
Deep Meaning
Rudra is named here as a physician (bhishak) - a role that recurs through this adhyaya alongside his fiercer titles. The crushing of serpents and demons is read as the removal of hidden harms, physical and otherwise.
Sanskrit
अ॒सौ यस्ता॒म्रो अ॑रु॒ण उ॒त ब॑भ्रुः॒ सुम॑ङ्गलः। ये चैनं॒ रुद्रा॒ऽअभि॑तो दि॒क्षु श्रि॒ताः स॑हस्र॒शोऽवैषाꣳ॒ हेडऽ॑ईमहे ॥६॥
Transliteration
asau yas tāmro aruṇa uta babhruḥ sumaṅgalaḥ | ye cainaṃ rudrā abhito dikṣu śritāḥ sahasraśo 'vaiṣāṃ heḍa īmahe ||6||
Translation
That one who is copper-red, ruddy, also tawny-brown, most auspicious - and those Rudras who, taking refuge all about him in the directions, are a thousandfold - we seek to turn away their wrath.
Deep Meaning
This exact verse already appeared in Adhyaya 3, mantra 15 - this edition reuses it here as printed, consistent with how this book repeats certain verses across adhyayas rather than treating each one as appearing only once. Here it introduces the "thousand Rudras" image that runs through the rest of this chapter.
Sanskrit
अ॒सौ योऽव॑सर्पति॒ नील॑ग्रीवो वि॒लोहितः॑। उ॒तैनं॒ गोपाऽअ॑दृश्र॒न्नदृश्र॑न्नुदहा॒र्यः स दृ॒ष्टो मृ॑डयाति नः ॥७॥
Transliteration
asau yo 'vasarpati nīlagrīvo vilohitaḥ | utainaṃ gopā adṛśrann adṛśrann udahāryaḥ sa dṛṣṭo mṛḍayāti naḥ ||7||
Translation
That one who glides down, blue-throated and red all over - cowherds have seen him, and water-carrying women have seen him too; may he, having been seen, bring us happiness.
Deep Meaning
The blue throat (nilagriva) is one of the most recognisable images of Shiv in later tradition, tracing directly back to this Vedic verse. The detail that ordinary people - cowherds, women fetching water - have seen him is significant: this is not a hidden god but one who appears in everyday life.
Sanskrit
नमोऽस्तु॒ नील॑ग्रीवाय स॒हस्रा॒क्षाय॑ मी॒ढुषे॑। अथो॒ये अ॑स्य॒ सत्वा॑नोऽहं॒ तेभ्यो॑ऽक॒रं नमः॑ ॥८॥
Transliteration
namo 'stu nīlagrīvāya sahasrākṣāya mīḍhuṣe | atho ye asya satvāno 'haṃ tebhyo 'karaṃ namaḥ ||8||
Translation
Salutation be to the blue-throated, thousand-eyed, bounteous one. And to those who are his attendants, I have offered salutation as well.
Deep Meaning
The salutation widens here to explicitly include Rudra's attendants (satvanah) - a reminder that approaching this deity is never approaching him in isolation, but him together with his entire retinue.
Sanskrit
प्र मुं॑च॒ धन्व॑नस्त्वमु॒भयो॒रार्त्न्यो॒र्ज्याम्॥ याश्च॑ ते॒ हस्त॑ऽइ॒षवः॒ परा॒ ता भ॑गवो वप ॥९॥
Transliteration
pra muñca dhanvanas tvam ubhayor ārtnyor jyām | yāś ca te hasta iṣavaḥ parā tā bhagavo vapa ||9||
Translation
Release the bowstring from both ends of your bow. And whatever arrows are in your hand, O bountiful one, cast those far away.
Deep Meaning
A direct request for the literal disarming of Rudra's bow - unstringing it at both ends and casting the arrows away - continuing the sukta's recurring pattern of approaching the fierce form precisely in order to ask it to stand down.
Sanskrit
विज्यं॒ धनुः॑ कप॒र्दिनो॒ विश॑ल्यो॒ बाण॑वाँऽउ॒त। अने॑शन्न॒स्य या इष॑वऽआ॒भुर॑स्य॒ निष॑ङ्गधिः ॥१०॥
Transliteration
vijyaṃ dhanuḥ kapardino viśalyo bāṇavāṃ uta | aneśann asya yā iṣava ābhur asya niṣaṅgadhiḥ ||10||
Translation
Unstrung be the bow of the matted-haired one, pointless be his shafts, and powerless too; rendered harmless be whatever arrows he carries, and his quiver as well.
Deep Meaning
The disarming petition of mantra 9 is completed and confirmed here - bow, shafts and quiver are all, in turn, declared powerless. Kapardin (matted-haired) is one of Rudra's most ancient epithets, directly connecting this Vedic image to Shiv's iconic jata (matted locks).
Sanskrit
मानो॑ म॒हान्त॑मु॒त मानोऽअ॑र्भ॒कं मानऽउ॑क्ष॒न्तमु॒त मानऽउ॑क्षि॒तम्। मानो॑ वधीः पि॒तरं॒ मोत मा॒तरं॒ मानः॑ प्रि॒यास्त॒न्वो रु॑द्र रीरिषः ॥१५॥
Transliteration
mā no mahāntam uta mā no arbhakaṃ mā na ukṣantam uta mā na ukṣitam | mā no vadhīḥ pitaraṃ mota mātaraṃ mā naḥ priyās tanvo rudra rīriṣaḥ ||15||
Translation
Do not harm our great one, nor our small one; do not harm the one growing, nor the one grown. Do not slay our father, nor our mother; do not injure, O Rudra, the bodies dear to us.
Deep Meaning
One of the most tender and most quoted verses in the whole Rudrashtadhyayi. After nine mantras of asking Rudra's weapons to stand down, the sukta now names, one by one, exactly who must be protected - every age, every generation, every relation - leaving nothing to assumption. (Note: this book's own numbering jumps from mantra 10 to mantra 15 at this point in the printed text - transcribed exactly as numbered in the source, per the project's source-fidelity standard, rather than renumbered to appear continuous.)
Sanskrit
मानस्तो॒के तन॑ये॒ मान॑ऽआयु॒षि मानो॒ गोषु॒ मानोऽअश्वे॑षु रीरिषः। मानो॑ वी॒रान्रु॑द्र भामिनो॒ वधी॒र्हवि॑ष्मन्तः स॒दमित्त्वा॑ हवामहे ॥१६॥
Transliteration
mā nas toke tanaye mā na āyuṣi mā no goṣu mā no aśveṣu rīriṣaḥ | mā no vīrān rudra bhāmino vadhīr haviṣmantaḥ sadam it tvā havāmahe ||16||
Translation
Do not harm our children and grandchildren, our lifespan, our cattle, or our horses. Do not slay our heroes, O wrathful Rudra; bearing oblations, we call upon you always.
Deep Meaning
The protective litany continues, now covering descendants, lifespan, and the two forms of wealth most central to Vedic life - cattle and horses - before closing with a declaration that this call to Rudra is not occasional but constant ("sadam it", always).
Sanskrit
नमो॑ हिर॑ण्यबाहवे सेना॒न्ये॑ दि॒शां च॒ पत॑ये॒ नमो॒ नमो॑ वृ॒क्षेभ्यो॒ हरि॑केशेभ्यः प॒शूनां॒ पत॑ये॒ नमो॒ नमः॑ सस्प॒ञ्जराय॒ त्वि॒षी॑मते पथी॒नां पत॑ये॒ नमो॒ नमो॒ हरि॑केशायोपवी॒तिने॑ पु॒ष्टाना॒म्पत॑ये॒ नमो॒ नमो॑ ब॒भ्लु॒शाय॑ ॥१७॥
Transliteration
namo hiraṇyabāhave senānye diśāṃ ca pataye namo namo vṛkṣebhyo harikeśebhyaḥ paśūnāṃ pataye namo namaḥ saspañjarāya tviṣīmate pathīnāṃ pataye namo namo harikeśāyopavītine puṣṭānām pataye namo namo babhluśāya ||17||
Translation
Salutation to the golden-armed commander, lord of the directions; salutation to the one among the trees, green-haired, lord of animals; salutation to the radiant one of the thicket, lord of pathways; salutation to the green-haired, sacred-thread-wearing lord of the well-nourished; salutation to Babhlusha.
Deep Meaning
This mantra opens the long namaskara (salutation) sequence that gives the Shatarudriya its name - each line names Rudra in a different role (commander, lord of directions, lord of animals, lord of pathways) and in different forms, beginning the comprehensive naming that continues through the rest of this adhyaya in Part 2.