Om Saha Navavatu, the Teacher and Student Prayer
ॐ सह नाववतु । सह नौ भुनक्तु ।
सह वीर्यं करवावहै ।
तेजस्वि नावधीतमस्तु मा विद्विषावहै ॥
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥
Oṃ saha nāvavatu, saha nau bhunaktu
Saha vīryaṃ karavāvahai
Tejasvi nāvadhītam astu mā vidviṣāvahai
Oṃ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ
“May we be protected together. May we be nourished together. May we work together with great energy. May our study be brilliant and effective. May we never fall into dispute. Om, peace, peace, peace.”
Taittirīya Upaniṣad, Kṛṣṇa Yajurveda
Word by word
A shloka a child understands is a shloka they keep. Here is what each word is actually doing.
At the beginning of a class, chanted together by teacher and students. Also before studying with a friend or sibling.
- Frames learning as something done together, not competitively
- Traditional opening for any class or study session
- Beautiful, balanced structure that is easy to feel
- The last line teaches a rare and valuable thing
The final line is why this verse matters so much for children: “may we never fall into dispute.” In a school culture built on ranking, a prayer where the teacher and the student ask to be protected, fed and made brilliant together, and never to end up resenting one another, is quietly radical.
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
May we be protected together, nourished together, and work together with energy; may our study be brilliant, and may we never fall into dispute. It is chanted by teacher and student as one.
Learn these next
All 28 shlokas
Teach your child Om Saha Navavatu, properly
A free, no-obligation trial class with a real mentor. Correct pronunciation, the meaning behind every word, and a practice that lasts.