Upanishads · Rudrahṛdaya 24
॥
Devanāgarī
सर्वदेवात्मकं रुद्रं नमस्कुर्यात्पृथक्पृथक् । एभिर्मन्त्रपदैरेव नमस्यामीशपार्वती
Transliteration (IAST)
sarvadevātmakaṃ rudraṃ namaskuryātpṛthakpṛthak | ebhirmantrapadaireva namasyāmīśapārvatī
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
सर्व-देव-आत्मकं रुद्रंsarva-deva-ātmakaṃ rudraṃRudra, consisting of all gods
नमस्कुर्यात् पृथक् पृथक्namaskuryāt pṛthak pṛthaklet him honor with a bow, separately
एभिः मन्त्र-पदैः एवebhiḥ mantra-padaiḥ evawith these very words of the mantra
नमस्यामि ईश-पार्वतीnamasyāmi īśa-pārvatīI bow to Īśa and Pārvatī
Translation
"Let him honor Rudra, who consists of all gods, with a bow, each separately; with these very words of the mantra I bow to Īśa and Pārvatī."
Version
2bd78b8ddf55 · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The string is summed up, and a word worth attention stands in the summary: pṛthak pṛthak, "separately, individually." It is said: Rudra, consisting of all gods, must be honored with a bow separately — that is, bowing to each name individually, not all at once. This rule looks ritual, but is not merely that. It means that general honor covers no one: to say "I bow to all the gods" is not the same as naming each by name and bowing.
The Vaiṣṇava side holds to the same, both in service and in practice. Names are recited one after another and in multitude; and the famous lists of a thousand names — sahasranāma — exist both for Viṣṇu and for Śiva, and are read in full, not in abbreviation. The explanation for this is simple and human. To name by name is to address; and an address to "everyone in general" addresses no one. Anyone who has been thanked "and also everyone else" knows the difference.
It is worth noting the last half-verse: namasyāmi īśa-pārvatī, "I bow to Īśa and Pārvatī." Both names stand together, and one verb goes with them; that is, the whole is summed up by the very same couple by which the string proceeded.