Upanishads · Tripurātāpinī 77
॥
Devanāgarī
ओं नमो भगवते भस्माङ्गरागायोग्रतेजसे हनहन दहदह पचपच मथमथ विध्वंसयविध्वंसय हलभञ्जन शूलमूले व्यञ्जनसिद्धिं कुरुकुरु 3.31
Transliteration (IAST)
oṃ namo bhagavate bhasmāṅgarāgāyogratejase hanahana dahadaha pacapaca mathamatha vidhvaṃsayavidhvaṃsaya halabhañjana śūlamūle vyañjanasiddhiṃ kurukuru 3.31
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
ओं नमः भगवते भस्म-अङ्ग-रागायoṃ namaḥ bhagavate bhasma-aṅga-rāgāyaom, bow to the Lord, whose anointing is ash
उग्र-तेजसेugra-tejasefiercely radiant
हन हन दह दहhana hana daha dahastrike, strike, burn, burn
मथ मथ विध्वंसयmatha matha vidhvaṃsayachurn, churn, destroy
शूल-मूले व्यञ्जन-सिद्धिं कुरुśūla-mūle vyañjana-siddhiṃ kuruat the root of the trident, grant the manifestation of perfection
Translation
«Om, bow to the Lord, whose anointing is ash, fiercely radiant: strike, strike, burn, burn, cook, cook, churn, churn, destroy, destroy, destroyer of obstacles, at the root of the trident — grant, grant the manifestation of perfection…»
Version
c1b9184368a2 · published Aug 7, 2026, 5:19:24 AM UTC
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The ugra-mantra, «the fierce mantra», is cited, and it consists entirely of imperative verbs, set in pairs: strike, burn, cook, churn, destroy. It is addressed to Śiva in his fearsome aspect: bhasma-aṅga-rāga, «whose anointing is ash», and ugra-tejas, «fiercely radiant». The ash with which he is anointed is the ash of funeral pyres; this is the Śiva who dwells at the cremation ground.
Two things must be said here, and both directly. First: there is nothing wrong in fierceness as such. Anger at evil is the property of a decent person, and the Lord in our scriptures grows angry — Nṛsiṃha tears apart Hiraṇyakaśipu, and this is no blemish upon Him, but an act of protection.
Second: the imperative here is addressed, through the deity, not at misfortune but at people. The next line will name the targets directly — an alien mantra, an alien envoy, an alien army. That is, «strike» and «burn» are said of an adversary, and this mantra is martial, not purificatory.
One's attitude to such mantras is determined by the same thing as everything else in this section. Asking for protection is permitted, and the Nārāyaṇa-kavaca (Bhāgavatam 6.8) is exactly about this; but there one asks to be shielded, whereas here one is bidden to burn another. Armor and a weapon are made of the same iron, and the difference between them is not in the substance, but in which way the point is turned.