ॐ त्र्यम्बकं यजामहे सुगन्धिं पुष्टिवर्धनम् ।
उर्वारुकमिव बन्धनान्मृत्योर्मुक्षीय मामृतात् ॥
Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra
The Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra - the great death-conquering mantra to Lord Shiva (Tryambaka) from the Rigveda, chanted for health and longevity.
om tryambakam yajamahe sugandhim pushtivardhanam ।
urvarukamiva bandhananmrityormukshiya mamritat ॥
Frequently asked questions about Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra
What does the Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra say?
We worship the three-eyed one, fragrant, who increases nourishment; as a ripe cucumber is freed from its stalk, so free me from death - but not from immortality. The cucumber image is the heart of it: release that comes when the fruit is ready, not a stalk torn off.
Where is it from?
Rigveda 7.59.12, attributed to the sage Vasishtha, and it recurs in the Yajurveda. So it is a Vedic mantra rather than a Puranic one, which is why its recitation is treated with such care.
When is it chanted?
On Mondays, through Shravan, at Maha Shivaratri, and daily by those keeping a count. It is the mantra families turn to during illness, surgery or danger, often as a sankalpa of a fixed number over a fixed number of days.
How many repetitions?
A mala of a hundred and eight daily is the standard practice. For a serious purpose the tradition prescribes counts of eleven thousand, or a lakh and a quarter completed with a havan - usually undertaken with a priest or a group rather than alone.
Does it replace medical treatment?
No, and no responsible teacher has ever said so. It is chanted alongside treatment, for strength and for the family's steadiness. Take the medicine and chant the mantra; the tradition never set them against each other. This page is the japa formula; the forty-verse hymn is the Shiv Chalisa, and you can count repetitions with the japa mala counter.
About the Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra
The Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra - the great death-conquering mantra to Lord Shiva (Tryambaka) from the Rigveda, chanted for health and longevity.
Meaning
A prayer to the three-eyed Lord Shiva who nourishes all beings: "May he free us from the bondage of death, like a ripe cucumber from its stem, but not from immortality."
Benefits
Chanted for healing, protection, longevity and freedom from fear of death; one of the most powerful mantras for overcoming illness, accidents and untimely misfortune.
Word by Word Meaning
Tryambakam - the three-eyed one, Lord Shiva, whose third eye is the eye of wisdom. Yajamahe - we worship, we adore. Sugandhim - the fragrant one, whose presence spreads like fragrance through all beings. Pushti-vardhanam - the increaser of nourishment, health and wellbeing. Urvarukam iva bandhanan - as a ripe cucumber (urvaruka) is released from its stem, effortlessly and at the right moment. Mrityor mukshiya - may I be freed from death. Ma amritat - but not from immortality.
The prayer asks that death lose its grip the way a ripened gourd slips naturally from the vine - without struggle - while the immortal Self remains untouched. The mantra is from the Rigveda (7.59.12), revealed to the sage Vasishtha, and is also called the Tryambakam mantra or Rudra mantra.
How to Chant
Chant it in the early morning, or on Mondays, during Pradosh, in the month of Shravan and on Mahashivratri - all times sacred to Shiva. A full mala of 108 repetitions on a rudraksha mala is the standard daily practice; many devotees keep a vessel of water beside them during japa and sip or sprinkle it afterwards, treating it as blessed by the mantra.
For grave illness or danger, tradition prescribes a purashcharana - a vowed total of 125,000 repetitions completed over a fixed period, usually arranged through experienced priests. For daily protection and health, steady practice matters more than volume.
Who Chants It, and When
The Maha Mrityunjaya is chanted for oneself and, very commonly, on behalf of another - a family member who is ill, facing surgery, recovering from an accident or passing through a difficult period. Many chant it on their birthday each year for long life, and elders chant it as a daily shield. It is considered gentle and universally chantable: no initiation is required for ordinary japa.
The cucumber image deserves its fame: the fruit ripens in hiding, under its leaves, and when ready leaves the vine without any pull - no tearing, no resistance. The mantra asks that life ripen the same way, and that death, when it comes, be a release rather than a rupture. That is why the tradition calls this a mantra of fearlessness as much as of healing.
The Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra above is given in both Devanagari (Sanskrit) and Roman transliteration so you can read it in whichever script you are comfortable with - switch between the two using the buttons above, share the link, or download a PDF.
A mantra is a compact formula for japa, not a long hymn. Forty-verse hymns live under Chalisa; lamp-songs under Aarti; longer stotras under Stotram. Browse every formula on the Mantra index. Count repetitions with the online japa mala counter.
