Opening salutations, 12 main verses and closing verse.
This prayer contemplates the radiant circle of the Sun. The familiar refrain asks that the light of Savitri purify the speaker. Although this page’s older address says “astakam”, the edition presented here contains twelve main verses, followed by a closing verse.
Prayer text
Sanskrit in Roman letters (IAST transliteration). Pronunciation guide
Opening salutations
namaḥ savitre jagadekacakṣuṣe jagatprasūtī sthitināśahetave |
trayīmayāya triguṇātmadhāriṇe virañci nārāyaṇa śaṅkarātman |
namo’stu sūryāya sahasraraśmaye sahasraśākhānvitasambhavātmane |
sahasrayogodbhavabhāvabhāgine sahasrasaṅkhyāyugadhāriṇe namaḥ ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ dīptikaraṃ viśālaṃ ratnaprabhaṃ tīvramanādirūpam |
dāridryaduḥkhakṣayakāraṇaṃ ca punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 1 ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ devagaṇaiḥ supūjitaṃ vipraiḥ stutaṃ bhāvanamuktikovidam |
taṃ devadevaṃ praṇamāmi sūryaṃ punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 2 ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ jñānaghanaṃ tvagamyaṃ trailokyapūjyaṃ triguṇātmarūpam |
samasta-tejomaya-divyarūpaṃ punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 3 ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ gūḍhamatiprabodhaṃ dharmasya vṛddhiṃ kurute janānām |
yatsarvapāpakṣayakāraṇaṃ ca punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 4 ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ vyādhivināśadakṣaṃ yadṛgyajuḥsāmasu sampragītam |
prakāśitaṃ yena ca bhūrbhuvaḥ svaḥ punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 5 ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ vedavido vadanti gāyanti yaccāraṇa-siddhasaṅghāḥ |
yadyogino yogajuṣāṃ ca saṅghāḥ punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 6 ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ sarvajanaiśca pūjitaṃ jyotiśca kuryādiha martyaloke |
yatkālakālādyamanādirūpaṃ punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 7 ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ viṣṇucāturmukhākhyaṃ yadakṣaraṃ pāpaharaṃ janānām |
yatkālakalpakṣayakāraṇaṃ ca punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 8 ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ viśvasṛjaṃ prasiddhamutpatti-rakṣā-pralaya-pragalbham |
yasmiñjagatsaṃharate’khilaṃ ca punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 9 ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ sarvagatasya viṣṇorātmā paraṃ dhāma viśuddhatattvam |
sūkṣmāntarairyogapathānugamyaṃ punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 10 ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ vedavido vadanti gāyanti yaccāraṇa-siddhasaṅghāḥ |
yanmaṇḍalaṃ vedavidaḥ smaranti punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 11 ||
yanmaṇḍalaṃ vedavidopagītaṃ yadyogināṃ yogapathānugamyam |
tatsarvavedyaṃ praṇamāmi sūryaṃ punātu māṃ tatsaviturvareṇyam || 12 ||
sūryamaṇḍalasustotraṃ yaḥ paṭhet satataṃ naraḥ |
sarvapāpaviśuddhātmā sūryaloke mahīyate || 13 ||
Understanding this prayer
The hymn connects sunlight with knowledge, the passage of time and the sustaining of the world. Its repeated appeal gives each verse a common ending. “Mandala” here refers to the solar orb; it does not mean a birth-chart diagram.
Words to recognise
- Mandala: a circle or orb.
- Savitri: the solar deity invoked as an impelling source.
- Punatu mam: “may [it] purify me”.
This is a summary of the prayer’s themes, rather than a word-for-word translation. Traditional blessings in a hymn express faith and hope; they do not guarantee health, wealth or protection from harm.
Reading help
Start with a few lines at a comfortable pace. A single bar (|) marks a pause and a double bar (||) marks the end of a verse. Where numbers appear, they refer to the hymn’s verses, not a required number of repetitions.
How to read the Roman letters
Long vowels ā, ī and ū are held longer than a, i and u. The letter c is like “ch” in “church”; ś and ṣ are two Sanskrit “sh” sounds. The dots in ṭ, ḍ and ṇ mark sounds made with the tongue curled back. ṛ is a vowel; ṃ marks a nasal sound and ḥ a light release of breath. A mark like ’ indicates an omitted a at a word boundary.
In simple spelling, aa, ii and uu usually stand for the long vowels, while sh stands for a “sh” sound. Written spelling is a starting point; listening to a knowledgeable reciter helps with sounds that English does not distinguish.
Do I need to perform a full ritual?
You may read the hymn and its explanation as devotional literature. This page does not prescribe fasting, costly offerings or a compulsory daily count. Formal practices, including mantra initiation and nyasa (ritual placement of mantras), vary by tradition and are best learned with a teacher.
Text reference: Surya Mandala Stotram at Sanskrit Documents. Readings and verse numbering can vary between editions. This page focuses on the hymn text; separate ritual preliminaries and closing source attributions are not reproduced.