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{{Short description|Sanskrit work meaning "ode" or "eulogy"}}
{{Hindu scriptures}}
'''''Stotra''''' (Sanskrit: [[wikt:स्तोत्र|स्तोत्र]]) is a [[Sanskrit]] word that means "ode, eulogy or a [[hymn]] of praise."<ref name=monierwilliamsstotra>Monier Williams, Monier Williams' Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Article on '''[http://www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de/scans/MWScan/2014/web/webtc/indexcaller.php?input=HK&output=SktRomanUnicode&citation=stotra Stotra]'''</ref>{{Sfn|Apte|1965|p=1005}} It is a literary genre of Indian religious texts designed to be melodically sung, in contrast to a ''[[shastra]]'' which is composed to be recited.<ref name=monierwilliamsstotra/> 'Stotra' derives from 'stu' meaning 'to praise' <ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-06-30 |title=Stotra |url=https://www.hindupedia.com/en/stotra |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia |language=en}}</ref>

























A stotra can be a prayer, a description, or a conversation, but always with a poetic structure. It may be a simple poem expressing praise and personal devotion to a deity for example, or poems with embedded spiritual and philosophical doctrines.<ref name="Nayar1992"/>

A common feature of most stotras other than Nama stotras is the repetition of a line at the end of every verse. For example, the last line of every verse in the Mahiṣāsura Mardinī Stotra ends in "Jaya Jaya Hē Mahiṣāsura-mardini Ramyakapardini śailasute."

Many stotra hymns praise aspects of the divine, such as [[Devi]], [[Shiva]], or [[Vishnu]]. Relating to word "''stuti''", coming from the same Sanskrit root ''stu-'' ("to praise"), and basically both mean "praise". Notable stotras are ''[[Shiva Tandava Stotram]]'' in praise of Shiva and [[Ram Raksha Stotra|''Rama Raksha Stotra'']], a prayer for protection to [[Lord Rama|Rama]].

Stotras are a type of popular devotional literature. Among the early texts with Stotras are by Kuresha,{{Clarify|reason=|date=August 2018}} which combine [[Ramanuja]]'s Vedantic ideas on qualified [[monism]] about [[Atman (Hinduism)|Atman]] and [[Brahman]] (ultimate, unchanging reality), with temple practices.<ref name="Nayar1992" /> Stotras are key in Hindu rituals and blessings.<ref>{{Cite web |last=www.wisdomlib.org |date=2024-09-20 |title=Stotra: Significance and symbolism |url=https://www.wisdomlib.org/concept/stotra |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=www.wisdomlib.org |language=en}}</ref>

==Etymology and definition==
''Stotra'' comes from the Sanskrit root ''stu-'' which means "to praise, eulogize or laud" combined with the ''ṣṭran suffix''.<ref name="Nayar1992">{{cite book| author=Nancy Ann Nayar| title=Poetry as Theology: The Śrīvaiṣṇava Stotra in the Age of Rāmānuja| year=1992| publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag|isbn=978-3447032551|pages=ix-xi}}</ref> Literally, the term refers to "poems of praise".<ref name=nayar1516>{{cite book| author=Nancy Ann Nayar| title=Poetry as Theology: The Śrīvaiṣṇava Stotra in the Age of Rāmānuja| year=1992| publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag|isbn=978-3447032551|pages=15–16}}</ref> The earliest trace of stotras are Vedic, particularly in the ''[[Samaveda]]''.<ref name=nayar1516/>

The genre of stotras spans from refined, personal works of poetic phrase such as ''kavya'' to impersonal lists of a deity's names (''nama-stotras'') that can function like mantras through repetition. Historically linked to Vedic hymns and other lyrical poetry, stotras appear in many South Asian traditions, including [[Buddhism]], [[Jainism]], [[Shaivism]], and [[Vaishnavism]], and are often included in larger works like the [[Mahabharata]], [[Ramayana]], and various [[Puranas]] and [[Hindu tantric literature|Tantras]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Stainton |first=Hamsa |title=Poetry as prayer in the Sanskrit hymns of Kashmir |date=2019 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-088982-1 |location=Oxford ; New York |pages=2-4}}</ref>

==Example==
[[File:God marriage AS.jpg|thumb|right|A seated Ardhanarishvara with both the vahanas]]
The following is a Peterson translation of a Stotra by the Tamil poet [[Appar]] for [[Ardhanarishvara]], the Hindu concept of a god who incorporates both the masculine and the feminine as inseparable halves.<ref name=goldberg94/>

{{Blockquote|
<poem>
An earring of bright new gold one ear,
a coiled conch shell sways on the other,
On one side he chants the [[Vedas|Vedic]] melodies,
on the other, he gently smiles,
Matted hair adorned with sweet [[Cassia fistula|konrai]] blossoms on one half of his head,
and a woman's curls on the other, he comes.
The one the nature of his form, the other of hers,
And both are the very essence of his beauty.
</poem>
|Appar, Ardhanarishvara Stotra|<ref name=goldberg94>{{cite book|author=Ellen Goldberg|title=Lord Who Is Half Woman, The: Ardhanarisvara in Indian and Feminist Perspective| year=2012| publisher=State University of New York Press| isbn=978-0791488850| pages=91–96}}</ref>}}

== Nama-stotra ==
The ''nama-stotra'' is based on chanting a litany of names for a deity.  The [[Sahasranama]], a type of ''nama-stotra,'' is a litany of a thousand names for a particular deity. [[Sahasranama]] means "1000 names"; Sahasra means 1000 and nama means names.  For example, [[Vishnu Sahasranama]] means 1000 names of Vishnu.<ref>[https://www.hindupedia.com/en/Vishnu_Sahasranamam Vishnu Sahasranamam] on Hindupedia, the Online Hindu Encyclopedia</ref> Other ''nama-stotra''s may include 100 or 108 epithets of the deity. According to Hinduism, the names of God are valuable tools for devotion.

==Notable stotras==
===Stotras for Siva===
*''[[Shiva Tandava Stotram|Śiva Tāṇḍava Stotra]]''
*''[[Shiv Mahimna Stotra|Śiva Mahimna Stotra]]''
*''[[Panchakshara Stotra|Panchākṣara Stotra]]''
*Nataraja Stotra
*[[Asitakrutam Shivastotram|Asitakṛtam Śivastotram]]
*[[Dakshinamurthy Stotram|''Dakshinamūrti Stotra'']]

===Stotras for Devi===
*''[[Mahishasura Mardini Stotra|Mahiṣāsura Mardinī Stotra]]''
*[[Ashtalakshmi Stotram|''Aṣṭalakshmī Stotra'']]
*''Agasti Lakshmi Stotra''
*''[[Annapurna Stotra|Annapūrṇa Stotra]]''
*''Radha Sahasranama Stotra''<ref>Rita Thyagarajan, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrNyYldbm3I Sri Radha Sahasranama]</ref><ref>Yaśodā Kumāra Dāsa, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqJBVCHGfHY Sri Radha Sahasranama Stotram]</ref>
* Lalita Sahasranama Stotra
* Bala Tripurasundari Sahasranama Stotra<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nidhi |first=Stotra |date=2022-04-16 |title=Sri Bala Tripurasundari Sahasranama Stotram 1 - śrī bālā tripurasundarī sahasranāma stōtram 1 |url=https://stotranidhi.com/en/sri-bala-sahasranama-stotram-in-english/ |access-date=2025-11-12 |website=Stotra Nidhi |language=en-IN}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_2rAk3gBCA |title=Sri Bala Sahasranamam |date=2023-04-04 |last=Srividya Tantram |access-date=2025-11-12 |via=YouTube}}</ref>
* Bhavani Sahasranama Stotra<ref>Durga Lal Sharma Raj Purohit Kishtavad, [https://archive.org/details/bhavani-sahasranama-stavaraj-durga-lal-sharma-raj-purohit-kishtavad Bhavani Sahasranama Stavaraj]</ref><ref>''[https://archive.org/details/rnwc_shri-bhavani-sahasra-nam-stotram-chaukhamba-stotra-granth-mala-9-sanskrit-chaukh/page/n23/mode/2up Shri Bhavani Sahasra Nam Stotram],''Chaukhamba Sanskrit Pratisthan, Delhi</ref><ref>Swami Nirdosha, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JFS5aGcTm8 Bhavani Sahasranama Stotram]</ref>
* Dakaradi Sridurga Sahasranama Stotra
* Durga Sahasranama Stotra<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iquBJsZyBLI Durga Sahasranama Stotram] chanting in Sanskrit</ref>
* Gayathri Sahasranama Stotra<ref>Bengaluru Sister, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1L5lw6LE6o Sri Gayathri Sahasranama]</ref>
* Kali Sahasranama Stotra<ref>{{Cite web |title=Astro Mantra® Official {{!}} The Astro Products Store |url=https://www.astromantra.com/kali-sahastranaam/ |access-date=2025-11-12 |website=Astro Mantra |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LauyKyOjeos |title=Kali Sahasranamam Stotram |date=2023-08-03 |last=Rajalakshmee Sanjay - Topic |access-date=2025-11-12 |via=YouTube}}</ref>
* Kalika Sahasranama Stotra<ref>[https://stotranidhi.com/en/sri-kalika-sahasranama-stotram-in-english/ Stotranidhi.com]</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/details/Kalika_Sahasranama_Stotra_From_Kalika_Kulasarvasva Kalika Sahasranama Stotra (From Kalika Kulasarvasva)]</ref>
* Lalitarahasya Sahasranama Stotra
* Lakshmi Sahasranama Stotra<ref>L[https://www.hindupedia.com/en/Lakshmi_Sahasranama_Stotram akshmi Sahasranama Stotram], translated by P.R.Ramachander</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRIQAitIcCo Lakshmi Sahasranama Stotram] with lyrics</ref>
* Minakshi Sahasranama Stotra
* Parvati Sahasranama Stotra<ref>[https://sanskritdocuments.org/doc_devii/pArvatIsahasranAmastotram.html Shri Parvati Sahasranama Stotram] in Sanskrit</ref><ref>Koushik K, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6y_nx7EuhdQ Parvati Sahasranama] from Kurma Purana</ref>
* Saraswati Sahasranama Stotra<ref>[https://vignanam.org/english/sarasvati-sahasra-nama-stotram.html Sarasvati Sahasra Nama Stotram]</ref><ref>[https://www.kamakoti.org/kamakoti/details/skandapurana50.html Essence of Skanda Purana] by Kamakoti Peetham</ref><ref>Prema Rangarajen, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s33xvWjF36E Saraswati Sahasranama Stotram]</ref>
* Sita Sahasranama Stotra<ref>Prem Prakesh Dubey, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8v65FdRIms&t=8s Sri Sita Sahasranama Stotram]</ref><ref>Anika Aggarwal, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LivdRqBdNXM Sri Sita Sahasranama Stotram] with lyrics</ref>
* Sodasi Rajarajeswari Sahasranama Stotra<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4JhIHzNqCo&t=5s Shri Rajarajeswari Sahasranama Stotram] chanting</ref>
* Syamala Sahasranama Stotra<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhM2ZF9USJI Shri Syamala Sahasranama] Chants by Dr.R.Thiagarajan</ref>

===Stotras for Vishnu & avatara===
*''[[Hayagriva Stotra|Hayagrīva Stotra]]''
*''[[Hari Stotra]]''
*[[Vishnu Sahasranama|Vishnu Sahasranama Stotra]]
*Narasimha Kavacham Stotra
*''[[Ram Raksha Stotra|Rāma Raksha Stotra]]''
* Venkatesa Sahasranama Stotra
* Santanagopala Sahasranama Stotra
* Rakaradi Srirama Sahasranama Stotra
* Makaradi Srirama Sahasranama Stotra
* Lakshminarasimha Sahasranama Stotra
* Kakaradi Krishna Sahasranama Stotra

===Stotras for other Gods & Goddesses===
*''[[Maruti Stotra|Māruti Stotra]]''
* Anjaneya Sahasranama Stotra<ref>Tangirala Lakshmi Murty, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gdwaq4evPX0 Sri Hanuman, Anjaneya Sahasranamam]</ref>
* Surya Sahasranama Stotra<ref>Rajalakshmee Sanjay, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGmKswbZci8 Surya Sahasranama]</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gG6RJjx8AU Surya Sahassthranaam] by Rattan Mohan Sharma</ref>
* Sanaischara Sahasranama<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2ruilUQvnU Shri Sanaischara Sahasranama], Chants by Dr.R.Thiagarajan</ref>

===General / Philosophical Stotras===
*[[Dvadasha stotra|''Dvādaśa Stotra'']] by [[Madhvacharya]]
*Mohamudgara Stotra (Bhaja Govindam) by [[Shankaracharya|Sankaracharya]]

==Jainism==
*''[[Bhaktamara Stotra]]''
*''[[Uvasagharam Stotra]]''

==See also==
*''[[Khadgamala]]''
*[[List of suktas and stutis]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

===Bibliography===
*{{Citation | last=Apte | first=Vaman Shivram | year=1965 | title=The Practical Sanskrit Dictionary  | place=Delhi  | publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publishers  | edition=Fourth revised and enlarged | isbn=81-208-0567-4}}

== External links ==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110514200843/http://stotra.teluguthesis.org/ Read Stotras in multiple languages] (archived 14 May 2011)
*[http://www.dvaita.org/stotra/alphaList.html Alphabetical List of the Stotras]
*[https://stotra.in/ Read Samskrit Stotra with their English Translation and English Transcription]

{{Worship in Hinduism}}
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[[Category:Hindu devotional texts]]
[[Category:Hindu texts]]
[[Category:Chants]]
[[Category:Stotras]]