Sri Vadiraja Tirtha woke up one morning at Brahmi Muhurta and composed this song. Five hundred years later, you still cannot have a Madhva wedding without it. It is in Kannada, not Sanskrit. It tells the story of how Mahalakshmi rose out of the churning ocean of milk, and how Vishnu took her hand. The sumangalis gather around the bride and groom and lift the refrain: 'Shōbhāne, shōbhāne, shubha-shōbhāne.' For as long as the song lasts, the couple are not themselves. They are Lakshmi and Narayana, and the song is the blessing. The form is the shōbhane, a Kannada folk genre of auspicious wedding-song with a returning chorus. Unmarried girls sing it for a good husband. Newlyweds sing it for a long marriage. Mothers sing it for daughters who are about to leave the house. It is a raksha. A protection.
Chant the full Lakshmi Shobhane in ChantWise
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Chant all 119 verses → The opening verses are below.
Refrain (Pallavi)
1
lakṣmīnārāyaṇara caraṇakkè śaraṇèṃbè
pakṣivāhannagèraguvè
pakṣivāhannagèraguvè anudina
rakṣisali namma vadhūvarara
Lakshmi Shobhane
2
pālasāgaravannu līlèyali kaḍèyalu
bālè mahālakṣumi udisidal̤u
bālè mahālakṣumi udisidal̤ā devi
pālisali namma vadhūvarara
3
bòmmana pral̤ayadali tannarasiyòḍagūḍi
summanèyāgi malagippa
namma nārāyaṇagu ī rammègaḍigaḍigu
janmavèṃbudu avatāra
4
kaṃbukaṃṭhada sutta kaṭṭida maṃgal̤asūtra
aṃbujavèraḍu karayugadi
aṃbujavèraḍu karayugadi dharisi
pītāṃbaravanuṭṭu mèrèdal̤è
5
òṃdu karadiṃda abhayavanīval̤è
mattòṃdu kaiyiṃda varagal̤a
kuṃdillaladānaṃdasaṃdoha uṇisuva
iṃdirè namma salahali
Lakshmi Shobhane
119
muttaidèyarèllarū muttināruti ètti
hattāvatārada hayavadanaga
hattāvatārada hayavadana devaga
hòsa muttinārutiya bèl̤agirè ॥ śobhānè
That's the opening and the closing. The full Lakshmi Shobhane continues for 113 more verses in between.
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Chant all 119 verses → Frequently asked about Lakshmi Shobhane
- Who composed Lakshmi Shobhane?
- Lakshmi Shobhane is traditionally attributed to Sri Vadiraja Tirtha (Vadirajaru), 16th-century Madhva saint of Sode Mutt (Sri Vadiraja Tirtha's Lakshmi Shobhana Pada).
- How many verses are in Lakshmi Shobhane?
- Lakshmi Shobhane has 119 verses, set in the Shobhane - Kannada Folk/lullaby metre.
- Which deity is Lakshmi Shobhane addressed to?
- Lakshmi Shobhane is a prayer to Mahalakshmi.
- In which languages can I read Lakshmi Shobhane?
- ChantWise offers Lakshmi Shobhane in English, Sanskrit, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Gujarati. This page is the English version, written in IAST script.
