Saraswati Vandana, Ya Kundendu Tushara Hara Dhavala
या कुन्देन्दुतुषारहारधवला या शुभ्रवस्त्रावृता
या वीणावरदण्डमण्डितकरा या श्वेतपद्मासना ।
या ब्रह्माच्युतशङ्करप्रभृतिभिर्देवैः सदा वन्दिता
सा मां पातु सरस्वती भगवती निःशेषजाड्यापहा ॥
Yā kundendu-tuṣāra-hāra-dhavalā yā śubhra-vastrāvṛtā
Yā vīṇā-vara-daṇḍa-maṇḍita-karā yā śveta-padmāsanā
Yā brahmācyuta-śaṅkara-prabhṛtibhir devaiḥ sadā vanditā
Sā māṃ pātu sarasvatī bhagavatī niḥśeṣa-jāḍyāpahā
“She who is white as the jasmine, the moon and a garland of snow; she who is robed in pure white; she whose hand is adorned by the vina; she who is seated on a white lotus; she who is forever honoured by Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva and all the gods, may that goddess Saraswati protect me, she who removes every trace of dullness.”
Sarasvatī Vandanā, traditional
Word by word
A shloka a child understands is a shloka they keep. Here is what each word is actually doing.
At the start of study, at the opening of a school day, and on Vasant Panchami and Saraswati Puja. Many families chant it before exams.
- Sets a deliberate, focused tone before study
- Rich in imagery, so meaning is easy to teach visually
- Excellent training in long Sanskrit compound words
- Connects a child to the idea that learning is worth honouring
This one is longer and full of the enormous compound words Sanskrit is famous for, so it suits children who already have a few shorter shlokas behind them. Teach it in halves. The images do the work: everything about her is white, jasmine, moon, snow, her robe, her lotus, and the final line explains why, she is the one who clears away dullness of mind.
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
It describes the goddess of learning as brilliantly white, jasmine, the moon, snow, robed in white, holding the vina, seated on a white lotus, and honoured by all the gods. It closes by asking her to protect the one who chants and to remove all dullness of mind.
Learn these next
All 28 shlokas
Teach your child Saraswati Vandana, properly
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