Dekhahu pratipal paas pukaari. Sevak ki sun lehu gohaari.
Dekhat ho maya vistaari. Harahu kasht upje dukhbhaari.
Jai jai jai bhaktan hitkaari. Jai jai jai he karunaadhaari.
Maatu Lakshmi karat singaara. Nit Baikunth karat bihaara.
Yogi bhogi paavat darshan. Kehi vidhi varnan karu tumhaari.
Patit bhakt gan ki sudhi leeje. Charan kamal par man dhari deeje.
Ksheersindhu me ho shayankaari. Lakshmi sevat nishdin bhaari.
Karat sada bhaktan rakhvaari. Tum sam aur dayaalu na koi.
Deen dayaalu karahu ab daaya. Raakhahu jan ki sada chhaaya.
Tumhari aas laagi ham swami. Aas pooji karu antaryaami.
Jo yah paath kare Chalisa. Hoy sukhi aru poorn jageesa.
Prem sahit jo dhyaan lagaave. Ta par kripa Vishnu barsaave.
Paath karaave Vishnu ka, nit prati jo nar koy.
Gyan bhakti ur oopje, sab sukh sampati hoy.
Frequently asked questions about Vishnu Chalisa
When is the Vishnu Chalisa recited?
On Thursdays and on both Ekadashis of the month, which are Vishnu's own days, and through the Kartik and Chaturmas periods. Households keeping the Ekadashi vrat read it before breaking the fast on Dwadashi.
What is offered to Vishnu?
Panchamrit, besan or boondi laddu and kheer, yellow flowers and yellow cloth - and always tulsi, without which no bhog is considered offered to him. The Vishnu puja vidhi gives the full order.
What does the opening doha say?
That Vishnu is all-pervading, lotus-eyed, the abode of joy, saluted by gods and sages - and it asks him to make every undertaking auspicious. The chalisa begins from his omnipresence rather than from a particular avatar.
Is this the same as the Vishnu Sahasranama?
No. The Sahasranama is a thousand Sanskrit names from the Mahabharata and takes far longer; this is a forty-verse Hindi hymn meant for daily household recitation. Many read the Chalisa on ordinary days and the Sahasranama on Ekadashi.
Can it be recited during the Satyanarayan puja?
Yes - Satyanarayan is a form of Vishnu, so the Chalisa fits naturally before the katha. The observance itself is set out on the Satyanarayan Vrat Katha page.
About the Vishnu Chalisa
The Vishnu Chalisa - the forty-verse hymn to Bhagwan Vishnu, the preserver, recited for protection, prosperity and inner peace.
A chalisa is a devotional hymn of forty (chalis) verses (chaupais), framed by opening and closing dohas (couplets). The Vishnu Chalisa above is given in both Hindi (Devanagari) and English (Hinglish, Roman script) so you can read it in whichever script you are most comfortable with - switch between the two using the buttons above. It is traditionally recited with devotion, often after a bath and before the deity, especially on the day associated with the deity.
A chalisa is forty verses. It is not the short lamp-song (that is an aarti) and not a longer Sanskrit stotram. Other forty-verse hymns are on the Chalisa index. For japa of a compact formula use a mantra. If you are keeping a fast, the story is under Vrat Katha.