GarbhShiksha

हिंदी में पढ़ें 

8 verses with meanings

Madhurashtakam in pregnancy: all eight verses

Madhurashtakam, the hymn that begins 'Adharam madhuram', is credited to the saint Vallabhacharya. In eight short verses it calls everything about Krishna sweet: his smile, his flute, his play, even the dust under his feet. Every line comes back to the same word, madhuram, so it sings like a lullaby. That is why many mothers choose it in pregnancy. You can sing it in any month, and there are no special rules.

Pick one simple tune and keep to it. Sing one or two verses in the evening, in a quiet room with a hand on your belly, or all eight together as one song. Someone close to you and older children can join in. Research has found that babies may start to respond to sound from about 19 weeks, that they can learn sounds they hear often late in pregnancy, and that newborns prefer their mother's voice to another woman's. So your baby may find the tune you sing now familiar after birth. Many parents keep singing it at bedtime after the baby arrives.

An honest note: babies may learn the sound of a song, not its meaning, and singing won't change a baby's health or development. It is a sweet ritual you can share. If you ever feel unwell or worried, call your doctor first. Read our disclaimer

How to practise these verses

For every verse below, unless it says otherwise.

Best time
Evening, in a quiet room, hand on belly
How to practise
Sing softly once or twice to a simple tune
Who can chant
Mother, father, older siblings
Best weeks
Weeks 18–28

Honest noteBabies respond to sound from about 19 weeks and learn sounds they hear often late in pregnancy. They learn the sound, not the meaning.

Lullaby for baby

Madhurashtakam – Verse 1

अधरं मधुरं वदनं मधुरं नयनं मधुरं हसितं मधुरम् ।हृदयं मधुरं गमनं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥

adharam madhuram vadanam madhuram nayanam madhuram hasitam madhuram, hridayam madhuram gamanam madhuram madhuradhipater akhilam madhuram

Madhurashtakam, verse 1

Meaning

His lips, face, eyes and smile are sweet. His heart and his walk are sweet. Everything about the Lord of sweetness is sweet.

Why we suggest this

A sing-song, lullaby-like hymn about baby Krishna's sweetness. Melody and repetition suit a listening baby.

What you can expect

Joy and lightness. Sing it as a lullaby, and keep singing it after birth.

Theme: Bonding with Baby

Lullaby continuity

Madhurashtakam – Verse 2

वचनं मधुरं चरितं मधुरं वसनं मधुरं वलितं मधुरम् ।चलितं मधुरं भ्रमितं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥

vachanam madhuram charitam madhuram vasanam madhuram valitam madhuram, chalitam madhuram bhramitam madhuram madhuradhipater akhilam madhuram

Madhurashtakam, verse 2

Meaning

His words, deeds, clothes and movements are sweet. Everything about him is sweet.

Why we suggest this

If you sang Madhurashtakam in pregnancy, keep singing it. Your baby may find the tune familiar.

What you can expect

A soothing lullaby routine.

Best time
At birth, on the naming day, at bedtime
How to practise
Sing softly at bedtime
Who can chant
Parents and grandparents
Best weeks
Birth onwards

Honest noteA blessing and bonding ritual. Babies may find sounds they heard often before birth familiar.

Theme: Welcoming Baby

Lullaby for baby

Madhurashtakam – Verse 3

वेणुर्मधुरो रेणुर्मधुरः पाणिर्मधुरः पादौ मधुरौ ।नृत्यं मधुरं सख्यं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥

venur madhuro renur madhurah panir madhurah padau madhurau, nrityam madhuram sakhyam madhuram madhuradhipater akhilam madhuram

Madhurashtakam, verse 3

Meaning

His flute is sweet, the dust of his feet is sweet, his hands and feet are sweet, his dance and his friendship are sweet.

Why we suggest this

Part of the Madhurashtakam lullaby. Babies can learn sounds they hear often late in pregnancy, so a tune you repeat may become familiar to your baby.

What you can expect

Think of your baby's tiny hands and feet as you sing it.

Theme: Bonding with Baby

Lullaby for baby

Madhurashtakam – Verse 4

गीतं मधुरं पीतं मधुरं भुक्तं मधुरं सुप्तं मधुरम् ।रूपं मधुरं तिलकं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥

gitam madhuram pitam madhuram bhuktam madhuram suptam madhuram, rupam madhuram tilakam madhuram madhuradhipater akhilam madhuram

Madhurashtakam, verse 4

Meaning

His singing, drinking, eating and sleeping are sweet. His form and his tilak are sweet.

Why we suggest this

Part of the Madhurashtakam lullaby. Babies can learn sounds they hear often late in pregnancy, so a tune you repeat may become familiar to your baby.

What you can expect

Even a sleeping baby is pure sweetness. A good bedtime verse.

Theme: Bonding with Baby

Lullaby for baby

Madhurashtakam – Verse 5

करणं मधुरं तरणं मधुरं हरणं मधुरं रमणं मधुरम् ।वमितं मधुरं शमितं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥

karanam madhuram taranam madhuram haranam madhuram ramanam madhuram, vamitam madhuram shamitam madhuram madhuradhipater akhilam madhuram

Madhurashtakam, verse 5

Meaning

His deeds, his rescuing, his playful stealing and his loving play are all sweet. Everything about him is sweet.

Why we suggest this

Part of the Madhurashtakam lullaby. Babies can learn sounds they hear often late in pregnancy, so a tune you repeat may become familiar to your baby.

What you can expect

A playful verse for happy moods.

Theme: Bonding with Baby

Lullaby for baby

Madhurashtakam – Verse 6

गुञ्जा मधुरा माला मधुरा यमुना मधुरा वीची मधुरा ।सलिलं मधुरं कमलं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥

gunja madhura mala madhura yamuna madhura vichi madhura, salilam madhuram kamalam madhuram madhuradhipater akhilam madhuram

Madhurashtakam, verse 6

Meaning

His berry necklace and garland are sweet. The Yamuna, its waves, its water and its lotuses are sweet.

Why we suggest this

Part of the Madhurashtakam lullaby. Babies can learn sounds they hear often late in pregnancy, so a tune you repeat may become familiar to your baby.

What you can expect

A calming water image, nice for bath time.

Theme: Bonding with Baby

Lullaby for baby

Madhurashtakam – Verse 7

गोपी मधुरा लीला मधुरा युक्तं मधुरं मुक्तं मधुरम् ।दृष्टं मधुरं शिष्टं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥

gopi madhura lila madhura yuktam madhuram muktam madhuram, drishtam madhuram shishtam madhuram madhuradhipater akhilam madhuram

Madhurashtakam, verse 7

Meaning

The gopis are sweet, his play is sweet, his glance and his manners are sweet.

Why we suggest this

Part of the Madhurashtakam lullaby. Babies can learn sounds they hear often late in pregnancy, so a tune you repeat may become familiar to your baby.

What you can expect

Joy and lightness.

Theme: Bonding with Baby

Lullaby for baby

Madhurashtakam – Verse 8

गोपा मधुरा गावो मधुरा यष्टिर्मधुरा सृष्टिर्मधुरा ।दलितं मधुरं फलितं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥

gopa madhura gavo madhura yashtir madhura srishtir madhura, dalitam madhuram phalitam madhuram madhuradhipater akhilam madhuram

Madhurashtakam, verse 8

Meaning

The cowherd boys, the cows, his stick and all creation are sweet. What he breaks and what he makes bloom are sweet.

Why we suggest this

Part of the Madhurashtakam lullaby. Babies can learn sounds they hear often late in pregnancy, so a tune you repeat may become familiar to your baby.

What you can expect

Completes the 8-verse song; sing all eight as one lullaby.

Theme: Bonding with Baby

Sources

We mention only what each study actually found. Most studies are small, and none of them replaces your doctor's advice. Read the disclaimer

  • When babies in the womb start to respond to sound

    What it found
    Babies in the womb were first seen to respond to a sound played on the mother's belly at about 19 weeks, and by 27 weeks almost all of them responded to low-pitched sounds.
    What it doesn't show
    It tested simple beeps (pure tones), not voices, music or chanting, so it does not show that a baby understands words or gains anything from hearing shlokas, stories or music.

    Hepper & Shahidullah (1994). Development of fetal hearing. Archives of Disease in Childhood - Fetal and Neonatal Edition 71(2):F81-F87.

    Read the summary on PubMedRead the full study (free)

  • Learning sounds heard often before birth

    What it found
    Babies who heard a made-up word many times in the last three months of pregnancy showed stronger brain responses to its sounds after birth, so babies can learn and remember sounds they hear often late in pregnancy.
    What it doesn't show
    It shows memory for sounds, not understanding of meaning, and does not show any effect on intelligence, language skills or later development; the authors also caution that noise may harm the developing hearing system.

    Partanen et al. (2013). Learning-induced neural plasticity of speech processing before birth. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 110(37):15145-15150.

    Read the summary on PubMedRead the full study (free)

  • Newborns prefer their mother's voice

    What it found
    In a small study, newborns only a few days old changed how they sucked so they could hear their own mother's voice more often than another woman's, showing they prefer their mother's voice from the first days of life.
    What it doesn't show
    It did not test anything done during pregnancy, so it does not prove the preference was learned in the womb, and it does not show that talking, reading or chanting in pregnancy makes a baby healthier, smarter or more closely bonded.

    DeCasper & Fifer (1980). Of human bonding: newborns prefer their mothers' voices. Science 208(4448):1174-1176.

    Read the summary on PubMed