Vaishnava Songs
Nandgram Dham
Nandgram Dham Vaishnava Songs · nandgramdham.org/songs

Prayers of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.10.29–38 — The sons of Kuvera pray to baby Kṛṣṇa after the twin arjuna trees fall

kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa mahā-yogiṁs tvam ādyaḥ puruṣaḥ paraḥ vyaktāvyaktam idaṁ viśvaṁ rūpaṁ te brāhmaṇā viduḥ
Word for word
kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa O Lord Kṛṣṇa, O Lord Kṛṣṇa; mahā-yogin O master of mysticism; tvam You, the exalted personality; ādyaḥ the root cause of everything; puruṣaḥ the Supreme Person; paraḥ beyond this material creation; vyakta-avyaktam this material cosmic manifestation, consisting of cause and effect, or gross and subtle forms; idam this; viśvam whole world; rūpam form; te Your; brāhmaṇāḥ learned brāhmaṇas; viduḥ know
Translation

O Lord Kṛṣṇa, Lord Kṛṣṇa, Your opulent mysticism is inconceivable. You are the supreme, original person, the cause of all causes, immediate and remote, and You are beyond this material creation. Learned brāhmaṇas know [on the basis of the Vedic statement sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma] that You are everything and that this cosmic manifestation, in its gross and subtle aspects, is Your form.

tvam ekaḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ dehāsv-ātmendriyeśvaraḥ tvam eva kālo bhagavān viṣṇur avyaya īśvaraḥtvaṁ mahān prakṛtiḥ sūkṣmā rajaḥ-sattva-tamomayī tvam eva puruṣo 'dhyakṣaḥ sarva-kṣetra-vikāra-vit
Word for word
tvam Your Lordship; ekaḥ one; sarva-bhūtānām of all living entities; deha of the body; asu of the life force; ātma of the soul; indriya of the senses; īśvaraḥ the Supersoul, the controller; tvam Your Lordship; eva indeed; kālaḥ the time factor; bhagavān the Supreme Personality of Godhead; viṣṇuḥ all-pervading; avyayaḥ imperishable; īśvaraḥ controller; tvam Your Lordship; mahān the greatest; prakṛtiḥ the cosmic manifestation; sūkṣmā subtle; rajaḥ-sattva-tamaḥ-mayī consisting of three modes of nature (passion, goodness and ignorance); tvam eva Your Lordship is indeed; puruṣaḥ the Supreme Person; adhyakṣaḥ the proprietor; sarva-kṣetra in all living entities; vikāra-vit knowing the restless mind
Translation

You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the controller of everything. The body, life, ego and senses of every living entity are Your own self. You are the Supreme Person, Viṣṇu, the imperishable controller. You are the time factor, the immediate cause, and You are material nature, consisting of the three modes passion, goodness and ignorance. You are the original cause of this material manifestation. You are the Supersoul, and therefore You know everything within the core of the heart of every living entity.

gṛhyamāṇais tvam agrāhyo vikāraiḥ prākṛtair guṇaiḥ ko nv ihārhati vijñātuṁ prāk siddhaṁ guṇa-saṁvṛtaḥ
Word for word
gṛhyamāṇaiḥ accepting the body made of material nature as existing at the present moment because of being visible; tvam You; agrāhyaḥ not confined in a body made of material nature; vikāraiḥ agitated by the mind; prākṛtaiḥ guṇaiḥ by the material modes of nature (sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa); kaḥ who is there; nu after that; iha in this material world; arhati who deserves; vijñātum to know; prāk siddham that which existed before the creation; guṇa-saṁvṛtaḥ because of being covered by the material qualities
Translation

O Lord, You exist before the creation. Therefore, who, trapped by a body of material qualities in this material world, can understand You?

tasmai tubhyaṁ bhagavate vāsudevāya vedhase ātma-dyota-guṇaiś channa- mahimne brahmaṇe namaḥ
Word for word
tasmai (because You are not to be understood from the material platform, we simply offer obeisances) unto Him; tubhyam unto You; bhagavate unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead; vāsudevāya unto Vāsudeva, the origin of Saṅkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna and Aniruddha; vedhase unto the origin of creation; ātma-dyota-guṇaiḥ channa-mahimne unto You whose glories are covered by Your personal energy; brahmaṇe unto the Supreme Brahman; namaḥ our respectful obeisances
Translation

O Lord, whose glories are covered by Your own energy, You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead. You are Saṅkarṣaṇa, the origin of creation, and You are Vāsudeva, the origin of the caturvyūha. Because You are everything and are therefore the Supreme Brahman, we simply offer our respectful obeisances unto You.

yasyāvatārā jñāyante śarīreṣv aśarīriṇaḥ tais tair atulyātiśayair vīryair dehiṣv asaṅgataiḥsa bhavān sarva-lokasya bhavāya vibhavāya ca avatīrṇo 'ṁśa-bhāgena sāmprataṁ patir āśiṣām
Word for word
yasya of whom; avatārāḥ the different incarnations, like Matsya, Kūrma and Varāha; jñāyante are speculated; śarīreṣu in different bodies, differently visible; aśarīriṇaḥ they are not ordinary material bodies, but are all transcendental; taiḥ taiḥ by such bodily activities; atulya incomparable; ati-śayaiḥ unlimited; vīryaiḥ by strength and power; dehiṣu by those who actually have material bodies; asaṅgataiḥ which activities, enacted in different incarnations, are impossible to be performed; saḥ the same Supreme; bhavān Your Lordship; sarva-lokasya of everyone; bhavāya for the elevation; vibhavāya for the liberation; ca and; avatīrṇaḥ have now appeared; aṁśa-bhāgena in full potency, with different parts and parcels; sāmpratam at the present moment; patiḥ āśiṣām You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the master of all auspiciousness
Translation

Appearing in bodies like those of an ordinary fish, tortoise and hog, You exhibit activities impossible for such creatures to perform — extraordinary, incomparable, transcendental activities of unlimited power and strength. These bodies of Yours, therefore, are not made of material elements, but are incarnations of Your Supreme Personality. You are the same Supreme Personality of Godhead, who have now appeared, with full potency, for the benefit of all living entities within this material world.

namaḥ parama-kalyāṇa namaḥ parama-maṅgala vāsudevāya śāntāya yadūnāṁ pataye namaḥ
Word for word
namaḥ we therefore offer our respectful obeisances; parama-kalyāṇa You are the supreme auspiciousness; namaḥ our respectful obeisances unto You; parama-maṅgala whatever You do is good; vāsudevāya unto the original Personality of Godhead, Vāsudeva; śāntāya unto the most peaceful; yadūnām of the Yadu dynasty; pataye unto the controller; namaḥ our respectful obeisances unto You
Translation

O supremely auspicious, we offer our respectful obeisances unto You, who are the supreme good. O most famous descendant and controller of the Yadu dynasty, O son of Vasudeva, O most peaceful, let us offer our obeisances unto Your lotus feet.

anujānīhi nau bhūmaṁs tavānucara-kiṅkarau darśanaṁ nau bhagavata ṛṣer āsīd anugrahāt
Word for word
anujānīhi may we have permission; nau we; bhūman O greatest universal form; tava anucara-kiṅkarau because of being servants of Your most confidential devotee Nārada Muni; darśanam to see personally; nau of us; bhagavataḥ of You, the Supreme Personality of Godhead; ṛṣeḥ of the great saint Nārada; āsīt there was (in the form of a curse); anugrahāt from the mercy
Translation

O supreme form, we are always servants of Your servants, especially of Nārada Muni. Now give us permission to leave for our home. It is by the grace and mercy of Nārada Muni that we have been able to see You face to face.

vāṇī guṇānukathane śravaṇau kathāyāṁ hastau ca karmasu manas tava pādayor naḥ smṛtyāṁ śiras tava nivāsa-jagat-praṇāme dṛṣṭiḥ satāṁ darśane 'stu bhavat-tanūnām
Word for word
vāṇī words, the power of speech; guṇa-anukathane always engaged in talking about Your pastimes; śravaṇau the ear, or aural reception; kathāyām in talks about You and Your pastimes; hastau hands and legs and other senses; ca also; karmasu engaging them in executing Your mission; manaḥ the mind; tava Your; pādayoḥ of Your lotus feet; naḥ our; smṛtyām in remembrance always engaged in meditation; śiraḥ the head; tava Your; nivāsa-jagat-praṇāme because You are all-pervading, You are everything, and our heads should bow down, not looking for enjoyment; dṛṣṭiḥ the power of sight; satām of the Vaiṣṇavas; darśane in seeing; astu let all of them be engaged in this way; bhavat-tanūnām who are nondifferent from You
Translation

Henceforward, may all our words describe Your pastimes, may our ears engage in aural reception of Your glories, may our hands, legs and other senses engage in actions pleasing to You, and may our minds always think of Your lotus feet. May our heads offer our obeisances to everything within this world, because all things are also Your different forms, and may our eyes see the forms of Vaiṣṇavas, who are nondifferent from You.

About Prayers of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva

Kuvera's sons were turned into twin arjuna trees by Nārada's curse after he found them drunk and naked in the water. A hundred years of the demigods later, baby Kṛṣṇa, tied to a wooden mortar by Mother Yaśodā, crawls between the trees and pulls them down, and the brothers stand before Him freed. In the last verse they ask that their words, ears, hands, minds and heads be used only for Him, and their eyes only for seeing His devotees.

Verses
8

Frequently asked

Who wrote Prayers of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva?

Prayers of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva was composed by Krsna Dvaipayana Vyasa. It appears in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam Prayers.

What is the meaning of Prayers of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva?

O Lord Kṛṣṇa, Lord Kṛṣṇa, Your opulent mysticism is inconceivable. You are the supreme, original person, the cause of all causes, immediate and remote, and You are beyond this material creation. Learned brāhmaṇas know [on the basis of the Vedic statement sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma] that You are everything and that this cosmic manifestation, in its gross and subtle aspects, is Your form.

How many verses does Prayers of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva have?

Prayers of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva has 8 verses.

Can I download Prayers of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva as a PPT or PDF?

Yes. A ready-to-display slide deck for Prayers of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva — verse and translation on each slide — is available to download in both PowerPoint (.pptx) and PDF formats from this page, for use in kirtan or temple programs.