How did Prachetas find Shiva and how did Shiva sing the Rudra song?
The description of Shri Rudra Geet comes in the 24th chapter of the fourth canto in Bhagwat Mahapurana. King Prachinbarhi gave birth to ten sons from Shatadruti’s womb. All of them were equally religious and became famous by the name of Pracheta.
When all these sages were ordered by their father to get married and have children, they all entered the ocean and performed penance for ten thousand years. In this way he worshiped the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the master of all penances.
When all the sons of Prachinbarhi left home for the purpose of doing penance, they met Lord Shiva, who with great kindness taught them about the ultimate truth. All the sons of Prachinbarhi meditated on his teachings, chanting and worshiping them with great care and concentration.
Due to their saintly nature, all the sons of Prachinbarhi heeded the words of their father and with the aim of fulfilling their father’s orders, they moved towards the west.
While walking, Prachetas saw a huge reservoir which looked as big as the ocean. Its water was so calm as if it had the mind of a great man and its aquatic creatures seemed very calm and happy being under the protection of such a big reservoir.
The Prachetas were fortunate to see the chief deity Shiva coming out of the water along with his councilors. His physical radiance was like that of heated gold, his throat was blue and he had three eyes through which he was showering his blessings on the devotees. There were many Gandharva singers with him, who were singing his praises. As soon as the preachers saw Lord Shiva, they immediately greeted him out of curiosity and fell at his feet.
After such an incident, the Prachetas bowed down to Lord Shiva and in praise of Shri Narayan/Shri Vishnu, Shivji sang this Geet / Stuti and told it to the Prachetas.
The praise sung by Shri Rudra / Shiv, which is popularly known as Rudra Geet in Bhagwat Mahapurana, starts from here:
श्रीरुद्र उवाच:
जितं त आत्मविद्वर्यस्वस्तये स्वस्तिरस्तु मे ।
भवताराधसा राद्धं सर्वस्मा आत्मने नमः ॥
Lord Shiva praised the Supreme Personality of Godhead thus: O Lord, you are blessed. Since you are the greatest of all Swarupsiddhas, you are always going to do good to them, hence please do good to me also. You are revered because of your universal teachings. You are God, hence I salute you in the form of the best human being.
नमः पङ्कजनाभाय भूतसूक्ष्मेन्द्रियात्मने ।
वासुदेवाय शान्ताय कूटस्थाय स्वरोचिषे ॥ ३४॥
O Lord, a lotus flower emerges from your navel, thus you are the origin of creation. You are the regulator of the senses and tanmatras. You are also the omnipresent Vasudev. You are extremely peaceful and being self-revealed, you are not disturbed by six types of disorders.
सङ्कर्षणाय सूक्ष्माय दुरन्तायान्तकाय च ।
नमो विश्वप्रबोधाय प्रद्युम्नायान्तरात्मने ॥ ३५॥
O Lord, You are Pradyumna, the origin of the subtle material elements, the master of all creation and destruction, the presiding deity called Sankarshana and the presiding deity of all intelligence. Therefore, I salute you respectfully.
नमो नमोऽनिरुद्धाय हृषीकेशेन्द्रियात्मने ।
नमः परमहंसाय पूर्णाय निभृतात्मने ॥ ३६ ॥
Oh Supreme Lord Aniruddha, You are the master of the senses and the mind. Therefore I salute you again and again. You are called eternal as well as Sankarshan, because you are capable of destroying the entire creation with the blazing fire emanating from your mouth.
स्वर्गापवर्गद्वाराय नित्यं शुचिषदे नमः ।
नमो हिरण्यवीर्याय चातुर्होत्राय तन्तवे ॥ ३७॥
O Lord Aniruddha, by your order the doors of heaven and salvation open. You constantly reside in the pure hearts of living beings, therefore I salute You. You are the master of golden semen and thus in the form of fire you help in Vedic yagyas like Chaturhotra etc. So I salute you.
नम ऊर्ज इषे त्रय्याः पतये यज्ञरेतसे ।
तृप्तिदाय च जीवानां नमः सर्वरसात्मने ॥ ३८ ॥
O Lord, you are the nourisher of the ancestral world and all the gods. You are the main deity of the moon and the lord of the three Vedas. I pay my respectful obeisances to you, because you are the original source of satisfaction for all living beings.
सर्वसत्त्वात्मदेहाय विशेषाय स्थवीयसे ।
नमस्त्रैलोक्यपालाय सह ओजोबलाय च ॥ ३९ ॥
O Lord, You are the universal form in which the bodies of all living beings are contained. You are the protector of all the three worlds, hence you are the protector of mind, senses, body and soul. Therefore, I salute you with respect.
अर्थलिङ्गाय नभसे नमोऽन्तर्बहिरात्मने ।
नमः पुण्याय लोकाय अमुष्मै भूरिवर्चसे ॥ ४० ॥
Oh Lord, You are going to reveal the real meaning of everything by spreading Your divine speech (words). You are the omnipresent sky within and without and are the ultimate goal of all virtuous deeds performed in this world and beyond. Therefore, I salute you again and again.
प्रवृत्ताय निवृत्ताय पितृदेवाय कर्मणे ।
नमोऽधर्मविपाकाय मृत्यवे दुःखदाय च ॥ ४१ ॥
Oh Lord, you are the seer of the fruits of virtuous deeds. You are tendencies, retirements and their results (fruits) in the form of karma. You are the cause of the miseries of life arising from unrighteousness, hence you are death. I salute you respectfully.
नमस्त आशिषामीश मनवे कारणात्मने
नमो धर्माय बृहते कृष्णायाकुण्ठमेधसे ।
पुरुषाय पुराणाय साङ्ख्ययोगेश्वराय च ॥ ४२॥
Oh Lord, You are the best of all givers of blessings, the oldest of all and the supreme enjoyer of all enjoyers. You are the founder of all Sankhya Yoga philosophy. You are Lord Krishna because of all causes. You are the best among all religions, you are the supreme mind and your mind (intellect) is such that it never gets frustrated. Therefore I salute you again and again.
शक्तित्रयसमेताय मीढुषेऽहङ्कतात्मने ।
चेतआकूतिरूपाय नमो वाचो विभूतये ॥ ४३॥
Oh Lord, you are the controller of all three powers – the doer, the cause and the action. Therefore, you are the ultimate controller of body, mind and senses. You are also Rudra, the supreme controller of ego. You are the source of knowledge of the Vedic injunctions and the actions to be performed according to them.
दर्शनं नो दिदृक्षूणां देहि भागवतार्चितम् ।
रूपं प्रियतमं स्वानां सर्वेन्द्रियगुणाञ्जनम् ॥४४॥
O Lord, I desire to see You in the form in which Your most beloved devotees worship You. You have many other forms, but I want to see that form which is especially dear to the devotees. Please be kind to me and show me that form, because only the form which the devotees worship can fulfill the desires of the senses.
स्निग्धप्रावृड्ङ्घनश्यामं सर्वसौन्दर्यसङ्ग्रहम् ।
चार्वायतचतुर्बाहु सुजातरुचिराननम् ॥ ४५
॥ पद्मकोशपलाशाक्षं सुन्दरभ्रु सुनासिकम् ।
सुद्विजं सुकपोलास्यं समकर्णविभूषणम् ॥ ४६ ॥
The beauty of God is like the dark clouds during the rainy season. His body parts are as bright as rain water. In fact, He is the sum total of all beauty. God has four arms, a beautiful face and his eyes are like lotus flowers. His nose is elevated, his smile is charming, his forehead is beautiful and his ears are beautiful and adorned with jewellery.
प्रीतिप्रहसितापाङ्गमलकै रूपशोभितम् ।
लसत्पङ्कजकिञ्जल्कदुकूलं मृष्टकुण्डलम् ॥४७॥
स्फुरत्किरीटवलयहारनूपुरमेखलम् ।
शङ्खचक्रगदापद्ममालामण्युत्तमर्द्धिमत् ॥४८॥
The Lord looks incomparably beautiful because of His free and kind humor and slanting glance at the devotees. His hair is black and curly. His clothes flying in the wind look like saffron-red flowing through lotus flowers. Her shimmering earrings, shining crown, bangles, garland, anklets, girdle and other body ornaments along with the conch, chakra, mace and lotus flower enhance the natural beauty of the Kaustubhamani lying on her chest.
सिंहस्कन्धत्विषो बिभ्रत्सौभगग्रीवकौस्तुभम् ।
श्रियानपायिन्या क्षिप्तनिकषाश्मोरसोल्लसत् ॥ ४९ ॥
The shoulders of God are like those of a lion. There are garlands, necklaces and curly hair on them, which always shimmers. Along with these, there is the beauty of Kaustubhamani and there are lines of Shrivatsa on the dark chest of the Lord, which are symbols of Lakshmi. The shine of these golden lines is more beautiful than the golden lines made on the gold criterion. In fact, such beauty is going to beat the gold standard.
पूररेचकसंविग्नवलिवल्गुदलोदरम् ।
प्रतिसङ्क्रामयद्विश्वं नाभ्यावर्तगभीरया ॥५०॥
God’s abdomen looks beautiful because of Trivali. Due to being round, their abdomen appears like the leaf of a banyan tree and when they inhale and exhale, the movement of these lobes appears very beautiful. The coil inside God’s navel is so deep as if the entire universe had originated from it and wants to merge into it again.
श्याम श्रोण्यधिरोचिष्णुदुकूलस्वर्णमेखलम् ।
समचार्वङ्घ्रिजङ्घोरुनिम्नजानुसुदर्शनम् ॥ ५१॥
The lower part of the Lord’s waist is black in color and is covered with yellow amber. It has a golden, brocaded girdle. His uniform lotus feet, calves, thighs and knees are incomparably beautiful. Undoubtedly, the entire body of the Lord appears to be extremely well-shaped.
पदा शरत्पद्मपलाशरोचिषा
नखद्युभिर्नोऽन्तरघं विधुन्वता ।
प्रदर्शय स्वीयमपास्तसाध्वसं
पदं गुरो मार्गगुरुस्तमोजुषाम् ॥ ५२ ॥
O Lord, your two lotus feet are as beautiful as the two petals of a lotus flower growing in autumn. In fact, the nails of your lotus feet emit so much light that it instantly dispels all the darkness in the heart of a conditioned soul. O Lord, please show me that form of Yours which destroys the darkness in the heart of a devotee. My Lord, you are the supreme Guru of all, therefore, through a Guru like you, all the conditioned souls covered with the darkness of ignorance can attain light.
एतद्रूपमनुध्येयमात्मशुद्धिमभीप्सताम् ।
यद्भक्तियोगोऽभयदः स्वधर्ममनुतिष्ठताम् ॥ ५३॥
O Lord, those who wish to purify their lives should meditate on Your lotus feet in the above manner. Those who are determined to complete their work as per their varna and who want to be free from fear should follow this method of Bhaktiyoga.
भवान्भक्तिमता लभ्यो दुर्लभः सर्वदेहिनाम् ।
स्वाराज्यस्याप्यभिमत एकान्तेनात्मविद्गतिः ॥ ५४॥
Oh Lord, Indra, the king of heaven, also desires to achieve the ultimate goal of life – devotion. Similarly, those who consider themselves separate from you (Aham Brahmasmi), your only goal is also you. But it is very difficult for them to attain you whereas a devotee can attain you easily.
तं दुराराध्यमाराध्य सतामपि दुरापया ।
एकान्तभक्त्या को वाञ्छेत्पादमूलं विना बहिः ॥ ५५ ॥
O Lord, it is difficult even for liberated people to perform pure devotion, but they become happy only by devotion to You. Therefore, which person desirous of attaining success in life would adopt other methods of self-realization?
यत्र निर्विष्टमरणं कृतान्तो नाभिमन्यते ।
विश्वं विध्वंसयन्वीर्यशौर्यविस्फूर्जितभ्रुवा ॥ ५६ ॥
The formidable Kaal which can instantly destroy the entire universe with just the expansion of his eyebrows, the same formidable Kaal cannot come close to the devotee who has taken shelter at your lotus feet.
क्षणार्धेनापि तुलये न स्वर्गं नापुनर्भवम् ।
भगवत्सङ्गिसङ्गस्य मर्त्यानां किमुताशिषः ॥५७॥
Even if by chance one gets the company of a devotee for a moment, he has no attraction whatsoever for the fruits of action and knowledge. Then what is there in store for him in the boons of those gods, who are subject to the laws of life and death?
अथानघाङ्ग्रेस्तव कीर्तितीर्थयो-
रन्तर्बहिःस्नानविधूतपाप्मनाम् ।
भूतेष्वनुक्रोशसुसत्त्वशीलिनां
स्यात्सङ्गमोऽनुग्रह एष नस्तव ॥ ५८ ॥
O Lord, Your lotus feet are the cause of all welfare and destroy the taint of all sins. Therefore, I request you to bless me with the company of your devotees, because by worshiping your lotus feet they have become completely purified and are extremely kind to the conditioned souls. In my understanding, your real blessing would be that you allow me to associate with such devotees.
न यस्य चित्तं बहिरर्थविभ्रमं
तमोगुहायां च विशुद्धमाविशत् ।
यद्भक्तियोगानुगृहीतमञ्जसा
मुनिर्विष्टे ननु तत्र ते गतिम् ॥ ५९ ॥
A devotee whose heart has been completely purified by Bhakti Yoga and who is blessed by Bhakti Devi, never gets deluded by Maya like a dark well. Thus, being free from all material impurities, such a devotee can understand Your name, fame, form, work etc. with great pleasure.
यत्रेदं व्यज्यते विश्वं विश्वस्मिन्नवभाति यत् ।
तत्त्वं ब्रह्म परं ज्योतिराकाशमिव विस्तृतम् ॥ ६०॥
Oh Lord, the formless Brahman is spread everywhere like the sunlight or the sky. And you are the Nirguna Brahman who is spread throughout the entire universe and in whom the entire universe is visible.
यो माययेदं पुरुरूपयासृजद्
बिभर्ति भूयः क्षपयत्यविक्रियः ।
यद्भेदबुद्धिः सदिवात्मदुःस्थया
त्वमात्मतन्त्रं भगवन्प्रतीमहि ॥ ६१ ॥
Oh Lord, your powers are many and they are manifested in various forms. You have created this visible world with such powers and although You maintain it as if it were eternal, yet in the end You destroy it. Although you are never disturbed by such changes, the living beings remain disturbed by them, hence they consider this visible world to be different or separate from you. Oh God, you are always free and I am seeing it firsthand.
क्रियाकलापैरिदमेव योगिनः
श्रद्धान्विताः साधु यजन्ति सिद्धये ।
भूतेन्द्रियान्तःकरणोपलक्षितं
वेदे च तन्त्रे च त एव कोविदाः ॥ ६२ ॥
O Lord, Your universal form, senses, mind, intellect, ego (which is physical) and Your part form, the Supreme Lord, are made up of all these five elements. Apart from the devotees, other yogis – such as Karma Yogis and Jnana Yogis – worship you in their respective positions through their respective activities. In the Vedas and the scriptures which are the conclusions of the Vedas, it has been said that you alone are worshipable. This is the opinion of all the Vedas.
त्वमेक आद्यः पुरुषः सुप्तशक्ति-
स्तया रजः सत्त्वतमो विभिद्यते ।
महानहं खं मरुदग्निवार्धराः
सुरर्षयो भूतगणा इदं यतः ॥ ६३ ॥
O Lord, You are the only Supreme Being who is the cause of all causes. Before the creation of this material world, your physical energy remains dormant, but when your energy becomes active, your three gunas – Sattva, Raja and Tamo gunas – come into action. As a result, the total material power i.e. ego, sky, air, fire, water, earth and various gods and sages appear. This is how the physical world comes into existence.
सृष्टं स्वशक्त्येदमनुप्रविष्ट-
श्चतुर्विधं पुरमात्मांशकेन ।
अथो विदुस्तं पुरुषं सन्तमन्तर्
भुङ्क्ते हृषीकैर्मधु सारघं यः ॥६४॥
O Lord, after you have created the universe through your powers, you enter the universe in four forms. You know the living beings because of their presence in their hearts and also know how they are enjoying their senses. The so-called happiness of this material world is exactly the same as the taste of honey by a bee after collecting it in a honey hive.
स एष लोकानतिचण्डवेगो
विकर्षसि त्वं खलु कालयानः ।
भूतानि भूतैरनुमेयतत्त्वो
घनावलीर्वायुरिवाविषह्यः ॥ ६५ ॥
O Lord, Your supreme power cannot be experienced directly, but it can be inferred by observing the activities of the world that when the time comes, everything gets destroyed. The speed of time is very fast and everything is being destroyed by something else – like one animal is swallowed by another animal. Time scatters everything in the same way as the wind scatters the clouds in the sky.
प्रमत्तमुच्चैरिति कृत्यचिन्तया
प्रवृद्धलोभं विषयेषु लालसम् ।
त्वमप्रमत्तः सहसाभिपद्यसे
क्षुल्लेलिहानोऽहिरिवाखुमन्तकः ॥६६॥
O Lord, all the living beings in this world keep planning something or the other and are busy trying to do this or that. All this happens because of uncontrolled greed. The desire for material happiness always remains in the soul, but you are always alert and when the time comes, you pounce on it in the same way as a snake pounces on a rat and swallows it easily.
कस्त्वत्पदाब्जं विजहाति पण्डितो
यस्तेऽवमानव्ययमानकेतनः ।
विशङ्कयास्मद्गुरुरर्चति स्म यद्
विनोपपत्तिं मनवश्चतुर्दश ॥ ६७ ॥
Oh Lord, any learned man knows that without your worship the whole life is meaningless. Knowing this, why would he give up worshiping your lotus feet? Even our Guru and father Brahma worshiped you without any discrimination and the fourteen Manus followed him.
अथ त्वमसि नो ब्रह्मन्परमात्मन्विपश्चिताम् ।
विश्वं रुद्रभयध्वस्तमकुतश्चिद्भया गतिः ॥ ६८॥
O Lord, all those who are truly learned people know You as the Supreme Being and the Supreme Soul. Although the entire universe fears Lord Rudra because he is the ultimate destroyer of everything, you are a fearless refuge for learned devotees.
इदं जपत भद्रं वो विशुद्धा नृपनन्दनाः ।
स्वधर्ममनुतिष्ठन्तो भगवत्यर्पिताशयाः ॥६९॥
Sons of kings, you people keep doing your assigned duties like kings with a pure heart. Chant this hymn with your mind fixed on the lotus feet of the Lord. This will be beneficial for you because God will be very pleased with you.
Conclusion
We have presented this Rudra Geet in its original form from the 4th canto of Shrimad Bhagwat Mahapuran which is written by Shri Ved Vyasji.
You can enjoy this song with devotion and for this, we have made a PDF version of this song which you can download and sing it every day.
Download Rudra Geet With Lyrics (PDF)
At the end of this article, we have also included a link to the video from which you can listen to the description of the Rudra Geet in the voice of Shri Indresh Upadhyayji (Vyas for Youth).
We have also written detailed articles on 7 Geet which are Gopi Geet, Bhramar Geet, Venu Geet, Yugal Geet, Ayil Geet and Bhikshuk Geet mentioned in Bhagwat, which is definitely worth reading only on vrindavanrasamrit.in
Also Check divine love of Radha Krishna images, a visual representation of spirituality and devotion, that complements the profound Geet you explore with us.
