ॐ नमो भगवते रुद्राय ॥
Frequently asked questions about Shiva Rudra Mantra
What does Om Namo Bhagavate Rudraya mean?
Salutations to Bhagavan Rudra. It is the opening salutation of the Namakam of the Sri Rudram, so chanting it is beginning that great hymn - which is why it is often used as a short stand-in for the full recitation.
How does Rudra differ from Shiva?
Rudra is the Vedic name and the fiercer aspect - the one who both wounds and heals, and whose arrows the Rudram asks to be turned aside. Shiva means the auspicious, and is the same deity approached from the gentler side.
When is it chanted?
On Mondays, at Pradosh, through Shravan and at Rudrabhishek, and by those who want a short Rudra japa when there is no time for the full Rudram. A mala of a hundred and eight is the usual count.
What is offered with it?
Water or milk on the linga, bel patra, white flowers, akshat and a ghee lamp. Tulsi, ketaki and haldi are the three kept away from Shiva - the Shiva puja samagri page explains the reasons.
Is any initiation needed?
No. It is a namah-form salutation mantra, open to all, and is one of the standard entries into Shiva upasana for someone starting out.
About the Shiva Rudra Mantra
The Shiva Rudra Mantra - "Om Namo Bhagavate Rudraya", a salutation to Lord Shiva in his Rudra form.
Meaning
A reverent salutation to the Lord (Bhagavan) Rudra - the fierce yet compassionate form of Shiva who dispels suffering and removes sorrow and fear.
Benefits
Chanted for protection, courage, removal of fear and afflictions, and the grace of Lord Shiva in his powerful Rudra aspect.
Word by Word Meaning
Om - the Pranava, opening the mantra. Namo - salutation, a bow. Bhagavate - to the Bhagavan, the Lord endowed with all six divine glories (majesty, righteousness, fame, prosperity, wisdom and dispassion). Rudraya - to Rudra, "the one who drives away the cause of weeping" (from rud, to weep, and dra, to dispel), or in the older Vedic sense "the roarer," the fierce storm-form of Shiva.
The mantra thus reads: "Om, salutation to Lord Rudra." It is the opening line of Sri Rudram itself - "Om namo bhagavate rudraya" - so chanting it is, in seed form, an invocation of the whole Rudram.
How to Chant
Chant 108 times on a rudraksha mala, in the morning or at Pradosham time (the hour and a half around sunset on the thirteenth tithi). Mondays, Shravan and Mahashivratri are especially favoured; abhisheka days, when the Shiva linga is bathed, are its natural home. Face east or north, keep the body and asana clean, and let the pace stay slow - Rudra mantras are traditionally chanted with gravity rather than speed.
Who Chants It, and When
This mantra is turned to in times of acute difficulty - fear, illness in the family, hostility, prolonged obstruction - because Rudra is the form of Shiva that burns obstacles away. It is also the daily mantra of many devotees who feel drawn to Shiva's protective strength rather than his ascetic stillness. Tradition regards it as open to all, with no initiation required for ordinary japa.
The name Rudra appears in the Rigveda itself, where he is the mighty archer whose arrows are disease and whose grace is the medicine that heals - "the greatest of physicians," one hymn calls him. That double nature explains the mantra's use: it is chanted both to turn difficulty aside and to ask that whatever must be endured become medicine rather than harm. Pairing the mantra with a Monday visit to a Shiva temple, or a simple offering of water on the linga, completes the practice in the traditional way.
The Shiva Rudra 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.
