I have learned from Gurumayi Chidvilasananda to appreciate and honor the gratitude that naturally arises in my heart as I remember the bounty of blessings and gifts I have received since receiving Shaktipat Initiation. Every day, as I recall the transforming power of Gurumayi’s grace; her invaluable teachings that encourage me to cultivate noble virtues and hold on to the conviction that God, Guru, and my own Self are the same light; her unconditional love; and her steady protection that guide my steps on the inner journey—I find myself saying with heartfelt joy, “Thank you, Gurumayi, thank you, thank you!” A heart filled with gratitude seeks ways to praise the Guru in thankfulness.… Read more
It is a tradition for Siddha Yogis to sing this prayer of gratitude, including at the conclusion of their recitation of Shri Guru Gita. This prayer was created by one of Baba Muktananda’s devotees, the renowned singer Hari Om Sharan, in the late 1960s. To compose it, he combined scriptural verses in Sanskrit with verses in Hindi that he wrote himself.
The prayer opens with the phrase tvameva mata—“you are the mother”—from a verse that originates in a Sanskrit hymn titled Pandava Gita. Queen Gandhari addresses these words to Lord Krishna in the sacred epic poem Mahabharata. As a disciple, the queen praises her Guru with devotion and reverence, recognizing the Guru as the supreme progenitor, the friend of all, the source of knowledge and also wealth. With true understanding, Gandhari sees the Guru as the Self of all and, thus, the source of every blessing in her life.
The next four verses, written by Hari Om Sharan in Hindi, entreat the Lord as the Guru, the one who removes inner suffering and illumines the mind. These verses laud the power of worship, devotional love, and chanting the divine name as means to experience the presence of the Lord.
Aware of an indebtedness to the Guru, the disciple reflects, “O Lord, you have given me everything. What shall I offer to you?” The question arises from deepfelt appreciation, and the answer that arises is: “With folded hands, I offer salutations.” By offering salutations, namaskara, the disciple venerates the Guru with devotion and expresses thankfulness. Throughout this prayer, gratitude is conveyed by the disciple’s recognition of the blessings that come from the Guru. At the core of these salutations pulsates the feeling, the bhava, of worship of the Guru.
After the prayer, a well-known Sanskrit verse from the Brhadaranyaka Upanishad is recited, beginning with the phrase om purnamadah. In the previous five verses the disciple has addressed the Guru as the embodied Master. This final verse evokes purna, the “perfection” and “fullness” of the highest Truth. This perfection, the supreme Self, exists in the Guru, in oneself, and in everything in creation.
The final verse serves as a reminder of the essential awareness the disciple is to hold when honoring the Guru, whether through worship, prayer, or the practices of sadhana—that is, the awareness of the disciple’s identity with the supreme Self, which bonds everything in oneness. It is with this awareness that the disciple finds inner peace.
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This prayer to Shri Guru evokes a sense of veneration and wonder rising from a deep place inside me. As I recite the verses aloud, I feel them reverberating and expanding within, dissipating my ordinary thoughts and dissolving my worries.
Sainte Anne de Bellevue, Canada
I have started a daily morning practice of singing
A Prayer to Shri Guru . I begin by writing down one reason why today is worth living. Then I sing the prayer. Afterwards, I read it aloud in English and then sit quietly for a few minutes. This entire ritual takes only about ten minutes, and it transports my mind to a place of elevated thinking and opens my heart before I begin the many activities of my workday. This prayer has always brought me peace, and I am grateful that the recording is now available on the Siddha Yoga path website.
New York, United States
Listening to or singing
A Prayer to Shri Guru, I feel purity of being, purity in my mind, purity in my heart, serenity in my body, confidence in my soul. These verses bring me very close to God and to the Guru. They allow me to experience intimacy with the innate Truth at the core of my being. A pure feeling of love surges within, cool and fresh as the rays of the moon. Simplicity of heart fills my being with contentment and gratitude.
Ramonville-Saint-Agne, France
Over the last couple of days, I have been singing along with these verses, and when I do, it feels like I’m touching a place inside me that is my own gratitude.
I feel grateful for being safe when I see so much of the world in turmoil. I feel grateful for wanting to connect to strangers with simple gestures of kindness. I feel grateful for having a good mind, which likes to think about ways to solve problems or to be helpful to someone.
I am most grateful that I can turn my mind within and focus on Gurumayi in my heart, and on the feeling of being in her presence. My heart then responds with a feeling almost like a teardrop had just landed, and I feel warmth and joy spreading within me. I am grateful for Gurumayi who guides me to experience my own gratitude.
Florida, United States
Listening to and singing
A Prayer for Shri Guru, I felt protection from negative thoughts and emotions. Afterwards, the words of the prayer kept repeating in my mind and this continued when I sat in meditation. I am grateful for the way this prayer supports me in being positive.
Surat, India
As I began listening to this beautiful prayer, I saw myself in front of Bhagavan Nityananda in his Temple in Gurudev Siddha Peeth. I bowed my head and offered this prayer to Bade Baba. As I sang the verse that begins with
dura karo duhkha darda saba, suddenly my eyes started watering. I felt so grateful for the Guru’s grace, love, care, and protection that is always with me, throughout the ups and downs of life.
Surat, India
After I sing this prayer, I enjoy lingering in the stillness that arises. I feel protected by each and every word.
Chennai, India
This prayer invites me to welcome God. As I was singing and listening to Gurumayi’s voice, I stayed anchored inside myself. It is from this inner space of joy and contentment that I am able to enjoy my life and be aware of God’s presence within and around me.
Rodez, France
In my childhood, I used to sing this prayer with my family as part of our daily evening prayers before dinner.
My father would explain the meaning of this prayer of gratitude, and later, before falling asleep, I would silently thank God for everything I had been given.
Later on in life, I reconnected with this prayer, and a whole new avenue of love opened. Immense gratitude flooded my being.
Today, singing this hymn along with Gurumayi on the website brought tears of devotion to my beloved Guru.
Nairobi, Kenya
This hymn takes me back to the serene atmosphere of Gurudev Siddha Peeth, the place I love most in the world, where in the past I’ve sung it after the morning recitation of
Shri Guru Gita.
Even now, as I sing it with the recording on the website, I can still feel the morning mist, the cool air, and the sound of birds chirping around us in the courtyard.
Pune, India
What a beautiful prayer to pay homage to Shri Guru!
I have been hearing this prayer since I was a child; my grandmother used to sing it aloud during her evening
puja, and she made me memorize it so I could sing it along with her.
Today, after a long time, I am listening once again to this prayer. While reading the meaning of the verses, tears of gratitude are moistening my eyes, and I am revisiting my connection with my Self.
New Delhi, India
Each morning I sing this hymn before I meditate. As I do so, I invite the Guru’s grace that lives in my heart to be awake and fully active. As I sing the last verse’s phrases that begin with
Om purnamadah, I contemplate that everything is perfect, everything is Shiva, and there is no thing, no place that is not Shiva.
As the hymn states, everywhere the Lord’s name is chanted, there he appears. And as I meditate on the Self, bringing my mind toward its true nature, the joy of the Lord’s presence dances within. In that moment, everything
is perfect—I am the Self, I am Shiva, I am Consciousness and bliss.
New Jersey, United States
This morning I sang this prayer over and over, bowing with reverence and gratitude to the Guru, whose grace keeps me on a continuous path of ecstasy. I repeated with enthusiasm “Thank you,” knowing that everything is a blessing bestowed by the Guru, and feeling that immense gratitude reverberating in each of my cells.
Mersin, Turkey
This prayer is very dear to my heart. Its exquisite words and images give expression to my deepest feelings of gratitude and love for Shri Guru. Verse 4 is especially moving for me: “Wherever devotees chant your name and streams of love flow, there you descend from Satya Loka to listen.” As we sing this verse, I feel the Guru’s loving presence responding to our song.
When we conclude reciting
Shri Guru Gita with this prayer, my heart melts with love, and I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life in loving service to Shri Guru.
Massachusetts, United States
