Gita Dhyanam · गीता ध्यानम्

Nine verses recited before reading the Bhagavad Gita, beginning "Parthaya pratibodhitam", saluting the Gita, Vyasa and Krishna.

  1. ॐ पार्थाय प्रतिबोधितां भगवता नारायणेन स्वयं । व्यासेन ग्रथितां पुराणमुनिना मध्ये महाभारतम् । अद्वैतामृतवर्षिणीं भगवतीमष्टादशाध्यायिनीं । अम्ब त्वामनुसन्दधामि भगवद्गीते भवद्वेषिणीम् ॥

    oṁ pārthāya pratibodhitāṃ bhagavatā nārāyaṇena svayaṃ । vyāsena grathitāṃ purāṇamuninā madhye mahābhāratam । advaitāmṛtavarṣiṇīṃ bhagavatīmaṣṭādaśādhyāyinīṃ । amba tvāmanusandadhāmi bhagavadgīte bhavadveṣiṇīm ॥

    ॐ हे माता भगवद्गीते, जिसे स्वयं भगवान नारायण ने अर्जुन को उपदेश दिया और प्राचीन मुनि व्यास ने महाभारत के मध्य में गूँथा; अठारह अध्यायों वाली, अद्वैत के अमृत की वर्षा करने वाली, पुनर्जन्म का नाश करने वाली देवी: मैं आपका ध्यान करता हूँ।

    Om. O Mother Bhagavad Gita, taught to Arjuna by Narayana himself and woven by the ancient sage Vyasa into the middle of the Mahabharata; goddess of eighteen chapters, who rains down the nectar of non-duality and destroys rebirth: on you I meditate.

  2. नमोऽस्तु ते व्यास विशालबुद्धे फुल्लारविन्दायतपत्रनेत्र । येन त्वया भारततैलपूर्णः प्रज्वालितो ज्ञानमयः प्रदीपः ॥

    namo'stu te vyāsa viśālabuddhe phullāravindāyatapatranetra । yena tvayā bhāratatailapūrṇaḥ prajvālito jñānamayaḥ pradīpaḥ ॥

    हे विशाल बुद्धि वाले, खिले कमल की पंखुड़ियों जैसे नेत्रों वाले व्यास, आपको नमस्कार, जिन्होंने महाभारत रूपी तेल से भरा ज्ञान का दीपक जलाया।

    Salutations to you, Vyasa of vast intellect, with eyes like the petals of a full-blown lotus, by whom the lamp of knowledge, filled with the oil of the Mahabharata, was lit.

  3. प्रपन्नपारिजाताय तोत्रवेत्रैकपाणये । ज्ञानमुद्राय कृष्णाय गीतामृतदुहे नमः ॥

    prapannapārijātāya totravetraikapāṇaye । jñānamudrāya kṛṣṇāya gītāmṛtaduhe namaḥ ॥

    शरणागतों के लिए कल्पवृक्ष, एक हाथ में चाबुक लिए, ज्ञान-मुद्रा धारण करने वाले, गीता का अमृत दुहने वाले कृष्ण को नमस्कार।

    Salutations to Krishna, the wish-fulfilling tree for those who take refuge in him, holding the whip in one hand and showing the gesture of knowledge, who milked the nectar of the Gita.

  4. सर्वोपनिषदो गावो दोग्धा गोपालनन्दनः । पार्थो वत्सः सुधीर्भोक्ता दुग्धं गीतामृतं महत् ॥

    sarvopaniṣado gāvo dogdhā gopālanandanaḥ । pārtho vatsaḥ sudhīrbhoktā dugdhaṃ gītāmṛtaṃ mahat ॥

    सब उपनिषद गायें हैं, ग्वाले नंद के पुत्र दुहने वाले हैं, अर्जुन बछड़ा है, बुद्धिमान लोग पीने वाले हैं, और दूध गीता का महान अमृत है।

    All the Upanishads are the cows, the son of the cowherd Nanda is the milker, Arjuna is the calf, the wise are the drinkers, and the milk is the great nectar of the Gita.

  5. वसुदेवसुतं देवं कंसचाणूरमर्दनम् । देवकीपरमानन्दं कृष्णं वन्दे जगद्गुरुम् ॥

    vasudevasutaṃ devaṃ kaṃsacāṇūramardanam । devakīparamānandaṃ kṛṣṇaṃ vande jagadgurum ॥

    वसुदेव के पुत्र, कंस और चाणूर का मर्दन करने वाले, देवकी के परम आनंद, जगद्गुरु देव कृष्ण को मैं प्रणाम करता हूँ।

    I bow to Krishna, the guru of the world: the god, son of Vasudeva, slayer of Kamsa and Chanura, the supreme joy of Devaki.

  6. भीष्मद्रोणतटा जयद्रथजला गान्धारनीलोत्पला । शल्यग्राहवती कृपेण वहनी कर्णेन वेलाकुला । अश्वत्थामविकर्णघोरमकरा दुर्योधनावर्तिनी । सोत्तीर्णा खलु पाण्डवै रणनदी कैवर्तकः केशवः ॥

    bhīṣmadroṇataṭā jayadrathajalā gāndhāranīlotpalā । śalyagrāhavatī kṛpeṇa vahanī karṇena velākulā । aśvatthāmavikarṇaghoramakarā duryodhanāvartinī । sottīrṇā khalu pāṇḍavai raṇanadī kaivartakaḥ keśavaḥ ॥

    युद्ध रूपी वह नदी, जिसके किनारे भीष्म और द्रोण थे, जल जयद्रथ था, नील कमल गांधार नरेश थे, घड़ियाल शल्य थे, धारा कृप थे, लहरें कर्ण थे, भयानक मगर अश्वत्थामा और विकर्ण थे, और भँवर दुर्योधन था, उसे पांडवों ने केशव को नाविक बनाकर पार किया।

    The river of battle, whose banks were Bhishma and Drona, whose water was Jayadratha, whose blue lotus was the king of Gandhara, whose crocodile was Shalya, whose current was Kripa, whose waves were Karna, whose terrible sea-monsters were Ashvatthama and Vikarna, and whose whirlpool was Duryodhana, was crossed by the Pandavas with Keshava as their boatman.

  7. पाराशर्यवचः सरोजममलं गीतार्थगन्धोत्कटं । नानाख्यानककेसरं हरिकथासम्बोधनाबोधितम् । लोके सज्जनषट्पदैरहरहः पेपीयमानं मुदा भूयाद्भारतपङ्कजं कलिमलप्रध्वंसि नः श्रेयसे ॥

    pārāśaryavacaḥ sarojamamalaṃ gītārthagandhotkaṭaṃ । nānākhyānakakesaraṃ harikathāsambodhanābodhitam । loke sajjanaṣaṭpadairaharahaḥ pepīyamānaṃ mudā bhūyādbhāratapaṅkajaṃ kalimalapradhvaṃsi naḥ śreyase ॥

    पराशर-पुत्र (व्यास) के वचनों से उत्पन्न, गीता के अर्थ की सुगंध से भरा, अनेक कथाओं रूपी केसर वाला, हरि की कथाओं से खिला, संसार में सज्जन रूपी भौंरों द्वारा प्रतिदिन आनंद से पिया जाने वाला महाभारत रूपी निर्मल कमल कलियुग के मल को नष्ट करे और हमारा कल्याण करे।

    May the spotless lotus of the Mahabharata, born of the words of Parashara's son, fragrant with the meaning of the Gita, its filaments the many stories, opened by the tales of Hari, and drunk with joy day after day by the good like bees in the world, destroy the stain of the Kali age and bring us good.

  8. मूकं करोति वाचालं पङ्गुं लङ्घयते गिरिम् । यत्कृपा तमहं वन्दे परमानन्दमाधवम् ॥

    mūkaṃ karoti vācālaṃ paṅguṃ laṅghayate girim । yatkṛpā tamahaṃ vande paramānandamādhavam ॥

    मैं परमानंद माधव को प्रणाम करता हूँ, जिनकी कृपा से गूँगा बोलने लगता है और लँगड़ा पर्वत लाँघ जाता है।

    I bow to Madhava, the supreme bliss, whose grace makes the mute speak and the lame cross mountains.

  9. यं ब्रह्मा वरुणेन्द्ररुद्रमरुतः स्तुन्वन्ति दिव्यैः स्तवैः । वेदैः साङ्गपदक्रमोपनिषदैर्गायन्ति यं सामगाः । ध्यानावस्थिततद्गतेन मनसा पश्यन्ति यं योगिनो यस्यान्तं न विदुः सुरासुरगणा देवाय तस्मै नमः ॥

    yaṃ brahmā varuṇendrarudramarutaḥ stunvanti divyaiḥ stavaiḥ । vedaiḥ sāṅgapadakramopaniṣadairgāyanti yaṃ sāmagāḥ । dhyānāvasthitatadgatena manasā paśyanti yaṃ yogino yasyāntaṃ na viduḥ surāsuragaṇā devāya tasmai namaḥ ॥

    उन देव को नमस्कार, जिनकी ब्रह्मा, वरुण, इंद्र, रुद्र और मरुद्गण दिव्य स्तुतियों से प्रशंसा करते हैं, सामगान करने वाले अंगों, पद-क्रम और उपनिषदों सहित वेदों से जिनका गान करते हैं, योगी ध्यान में स्थित तन्मय मन से जिन्हें देखते हैं, और जिनका अंत देवता और असुर कोई नहीं जानते।

    Salutations to that god whom Brahma, Varuna, Indra, Rudra and the Maruts praise with divine hymns, of whom the singers of the Sama sing in the Vedas with their limbs, word-orders and Upanishads, whom yogis see with minds absorbed in meditation, and whose end neither gods nor demons know.

About this text

The Gita Dhyanam ("meditation on the Gita") is a set of nine verses traditionally recited before reading the Bhagavad Gita. It invokes the Gita as a mother who rains the nectar of non-duality, given by Narayana himself to Arjuna and set by the sage Vyasa in the middle of the Mahabharata; it salutes Vyasa, who lit the lamp of knowledge filled with the oil of the Mahabharata; and it salutes Krishna, who milked the nectar of the Gita from the Upanishads as cows, with Arjuna as the calf. One verse pictures the war as a terrible river that the Pandavas crossed with Krishna as their boatman. Its last verse, "Yam Brahma Varunendra", is also widely recited on its own.

How it is recited

It is recited before reading the Bhagavad Gita, and on Gita Jayanti. Customs vary.

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Editions compared
  • Gita Dhyanam, shlokam.org (2026), collated 2026-10-13, sha256 4e895b92d4da
  • Gita Dhyanam, shlokam.org (2026), collated 2026-10-13, sha256 062dd2ae386e
  • Gita Dhyanam, sanskritdocuments.org (2026), collated 2026-10-13, sha256 d748b2833f55
  • Gita Dhyanam, radhakrishnatemple.net (2026), collated 2026-10-13, sha256 89dfc5ccb62d
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