Hayagriva Stotra
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Hayagriva Stotra | |
|---|---|
 Statue of Hayagriva, Jagannath Temple, Bangalore | |
| Information | |
| Religion | Hinduism |
| Author | Vedanta Desika |
| Language | Sanskrit |
| Verses | 33 |
The Hayagriva Stotra (Sanskrit: हयग्रीवस्तोत्रम्, romanized: Hayagrīvastotraṃ) is a Sanskrit hymn written by the Hindu philosopher Vedanta Desika.[1] Comprising thirty-three verses,[2] the hymn extols Hayagriva, an incarnation of the deity Vishnu.[3] Adherents of the Vadakalai school of the Sri Vaishnava tradition hold this hymn to be the poetic idealisation of the esotericism of the Hayagriva Mantra.[4]
| Part of a series on |
| Vaishnavism |
|---|
 |
The Hayagriva Stotra is regarded to be the first devotional composition of Vedanta Desika. According to the Sri Vaishnava narrative, the philosopher once propitiated Garuda, the mount of Vishnu, upon the hillock of Oshada located in Tiruvanthipuram, Cuddalore. Pleased, Garuda appeared to offer the philosopher a murti of Hayagriva, and taught him the Hayagriva Mantra:[5][6]
jñānānandamayaṃ devaṃ nirmalasphaṭikākṛtiṃ
ādhāraṃ sarvavidyānāṃ hayagrīvaṃ upāsmahē
I worship Hayagriva, who is the personification of knowledge and bliss, who is pure as a crystal, and who is the source of all knowledge.
Having chanted the mantra, Vedanta Desika received a vision of Hayagriva, who is believed to have blessed him with profound knowledge and expertise in poetry.[7]