Asato Ma Sadgamaya, From Darkness to Light
ॐ असतो मा सद्गमय ।
तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय ।
मृत्योर्मा अमृतं गमय ॥
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥
Oṃ asato mā sad gamaya
Tamaso mā jyotir gamaya
Mṛtyor mā amṛtaṃ gamaya
Oṃ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ
“Lead me from the unreal to the real. Lead me from darkness to light. Lead me from death to immortality. Om, peace, peace, peace.”
Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 1.3.28
Word by word
A shloka a child understands is a shloka they keep. Here is what each word is actually doing.
At the start or close of study, at Diwali, and at any moment of confusion or fear. Widely used at school assemblies.
- Three parallel lines, so the structure teaches itself
- One of the most quoted verses in world literature
- Gives a child language for wanting to understand
- Perfectly suited to Diwali, the festival of light
Teach it as three requests that are really one. From what is not true to what is true; from not being able to see to being able to see; from what ends to what does not. Even a seven-year-old can tell you which of the three they most want on a given day, and that conversation is worth more than the memorisation.
Shloka Classes
Reading a shloka and chanting it correctly are different things. In our live online classes a mentor corrects your child’s pronunciation in the moment, teaches the meaning alongside the sound, and builds a repertoire verse by verse. Ages 4-14 · 45 min · Weekly.
Questions parents ask
Lead me from the unreal to the real, from darkness to light, from death to immortality. It is a prayer for truth, understanding and what endures.
Learn these next
All 28 shlokas
Teach your child Asato Ma Sadgamaya, properly
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