Om Sahana Vavatu: Word-by-Word Meaning
ॐ सह नाववतु
Shanti mantra of the Taittiriya and Katha Upanishads
"Om saha nāv avatu", often written "Om sahana vavatu", is a peace mantra (śānti mantra). Teacher and student say it together before they study. It asks that the two be protected together and nourished together, that they work with energy together, that their study be bright, and that they never turn against each other. It ends with "Om shāntiḥ shāntiḥ shāntiḥ", "Om, peace, peace, peace". Many families and schools say it before a lesson.
Text and word-by-word meaning
Text and layers
Text and layers
These choices stay in this browser.
Verse
ॐ सह नाववतु ॥ सह नौ भुनक्तु ॥ सह वीर्यं करवावहै ॥तेजस्विनावधीतमस्तु मा विद्विषावहै ॥ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥
Om saha navavatu saha nau bhunaktu saha viryam karavavahaiTejasvinavadhitamastu ma vidvishavahaiOm shantih shantih shantih
IAST
oṃ saha nāvavatu || saha nau bhunaktu || saha vīryaṃ karavāvahai ||tejasvināvadhītamastu mā vidviṣāvahai ||oṃ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ ||
In simple wordsOm, may we two, the teacher and the student, be looked after together, be cared for together, and work hard together. May what we learn shine bright, and may we never quarrel with each other. Om, peace, peace, peace.
For grown-ups: our full explanation Word by word: saha, together; nau or nāv, "us two" (the teacher and the student); avatu, "may (he) protect"; bhunaktu, "may (he) nourish", or "may (he) enjoy", as Müller translates it; vīryam, strength or energy; karavāvahai, "may we two make" or "may we two work with"; tejasvi, bright, full of vigour; adhītam, what has been studied; astu, "may it be"; mā vidviṣāvahai, "may we two not hate each other". Śāntiḥ means peace. The mantra asks that teacher and student be protected together and nourished together, that they work with energy together, that what they study be bright and strong, and that no ill will come between them. The words do not name who is asked; translators and commentators supply it in different ways (see the classical reading and the about text).
हिंदी अर्थ शब्दार्थ: सह, साथ-साथ; नौ या नाव्, "हम दोनों" (गुरु और शिष्य); अवतु, "रक्षा करें"; भुनक्तु, "पालन-पोषण करें" (मूलर का अनुवाद "enjoy", यानी "आनंद लें"); वीर्यं, शक्ति या सामर्थ्य; करवावहै, "हम दोनों करें"; तेजस्वि, तेज से भरा; अधीतम्, जो पढ़ा गया है; अस्तु, "हो"; मा विद्विषावहै, "हम दोनों एक-दूसरे से द्वेष न करें"। शान्तिः का अर्थ है शांति। मंत्र प्रार्थना करता है कि गुरु और शिष्य की साथ-साथ रक्षा हो, साथ-साथ पोषण हो, वे साथ मिलकर शक्ति से काम करें, उनका पढ़ा हुआ तेजस्वी हो, और उनके बीच कोई द्वेष न आए। शब्द यह नहीं बताते कि प्रार्थना किससे है; अनुवादक और टीकाकार इसे अलग-अलग ढंग से जोड़ते हैं (नीचे पुराना अर्थ और ऊपर परिचय देखें)।
Word by word
Every word, with its dictionary page
Word by word
- ॐ oṃ · Om, the sacred syllable (indeclinable) Dictionary: om, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 235, col. 3 “a word of solemn affirmation and respectful assent”
- सह saha · together (indeclinable) Dictionary: 2. saha, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1193, col. 2 “together with, along with, with”
- नौ nau · us two (teacher and student) (pronoun, 1st person dual (short form)) Dictionary: 1. nau, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 571, col. 2 “encl. acc. dat. gen. du. of 1st pers. pron.”
- अवतु avatu · may (he) protect (imperative, 3rd person singular) Dictionary: av, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 96, col. 1 “to guard, defend, protect, govern”
- सह saha · together (indeclinable) Dictionary: 2. saha, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1193, col. 2 “together with, along with, with”
- नौ nau · us two (pronoun, 1st person dual (short form)) Dictionary: 1. nau, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 571, col. 2 “encl. acc. dat. gen. du. of 1st pers. pron.”
- भुनक्तु bhunaktu · may (he) nourish, or enjoy (imperative, 3rd person singular) Dictionary: 3. bhuj, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 759, col. 2 “to enjoy, use, possess, (esp.) enjoy a meal, eat”
- सह saha · together (indeclinable) Dictionary: 2. saha, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1193, col. 2 “together with, along with, with”
- वीर्यम् vīryam · strength, energy (noun (neuter), accusative singular) Dictionary: vīrya, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1006, col. 3 “manliness, valour, strength, power, energy”
- करवावहै karavāvahai · may we two make, work with (imperative, 1st person dual, middle) Dictionary: 1. kṛ, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 301, col. 1 “to do, make, perform, accomplish, cause, effect”
- तेजस्वि tejasvi · bright, full of vigour (adjective (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: tejas-vin, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 454, col. 3 “brilliant, splendid, bright, powerful, energetic”
- नौ nau · of us two (pronoun, 1st person dual (short form)) Dictionary: 1. nau, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 571, col. 2 “encl. acc. dat. gen. du. of 1st pers. pron.”
- अधीतम् adhītam · what is studied (past participle (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: adhīta, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 22, col. 3 “attained; studied, read; well read, learned”
- अस्तु astu · may it be (imperative, 3rd person singular) Dictionary: 1. as, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 117, col. 2 “to be, live, exist, be present”
- मा mā · not (particle of prohibition) Dictionary: 1. mā, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 804, col. 1 “not, that not, lest, would that not”
- विद्विषावहै vidviṣāvahai · hate each other (with mā: may we not) (imperative, 1st person dual, middle) Dictionary: 1. vi-dviṣ, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 967, col. 1 “(Ā.) to hate each other mutually, dislike one another”
- ॐ oṃ · Om, the sacred syllable (indeclinable) Dictionary: om, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 235, col. 3 “a word of solemn affirmation and respectful assent”
- शान्तिः śāntiḥ · peace (noun (feminine), nominative singular) Dictionary: śānti, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1064, col. 3 “tranquillity, peace, quiet, peace or calmness of mind”
- शान्तिः śāntiḥ · peace (noun (feminine), nominative singular) Dictionary: śānti, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1064, col. 3 “tranquillity, peace, quiet, peace or calmness of mind”
- शान्तिः śāntiḥ · peace (noun (feminine), nominative singular) Dictionary: śānti, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1064, col. 3 “tranquillity, peace, quiet, peace or calmness of mind”
3 printings differ
Edition differences. Another printing or text reads this place differently.
- Omission The 1909 Poona printing reads: सह नाववतु । सह नौ भुनक्तु । सह वीर्यं करवावहै । तेजस्वि नावधीतमस्तु मा विद्विषावहै । ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः । Leaf n46: no 'ॐ' before 'सह नाववतु'; the chapter opens with 'हरिः ॐ' and the shanti 'शं नो मित्रः …' before it.
- Verse division The 1909 Poona printing reads: तेजस्वि नावधीतमस्तु Leaf n46: two words, as Shankara's commentary reads them (tejasvi nau adhītam astu).
- Punctuation The 1909 Poona printing reads: । (single dandas throughout) Leaf n46: single dandas where the 1906 printing has double; the 1909 printing also marks the Vedic accents.
Hariḥ, Om! May it (the Brahman) protect us both (teacher and pupil)! May it enjoy us both! May we acquire strength together! May our knowledge become bright! May we never quarrel! Peace! peace! peace1!
Footnotes (the translator’s own) - Not counted here as an Anuvâka. The other Anuvâkas are divided into a number of small sentences. ↩
Sanskrit text: The Twenty-eight Upanishads (Īsha and others) (अष्टाविंशत्युपनिषदः), the Sanskrit text, edited by Vasudev Laxman Shastri Phansikar, 1906. Meanings: written for Pujadeep and checked against the cited edition. Source and changes
Share
Send one picture or the text to one chat. The picture names its source and the address of this page.
Drawing the picture
See the words
Om Sahana Vavatu
ॐ सह नाववतु ॥ सह नौ भुनक्तु ॥ सह वीर्यं करवावहै ॥
तेजस्विनावधीतमस्तु मा विद्विषावहै ॥
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥
Om saha navavatu saha nau bhunaktu saha viryam karavavahai
Tejasvinavadhitamastu ma vidvishavahai
Om shantih shantih shantih
Word by word: saha, together; nau or nāv, "us two" (the teacher and the student); avatu, "may (he) protect"; bhunaktu, "may (he) nourish", or "may (he) enjoy", as Müller translates it; vīryam, strength or energy; karavāvahai, "may we two make" or "may we two work with"; tejasvi, bright, full of vigour; adhītam, what has been studied; astu, "may it be"; mā vidviṣāvahai, "may we two not hate each other". Śāntiḥ means peace. The mantra asks that teacher and student be protected together and nourished together, that they work with energy together, that what they study be bright and strong, and that no ill will come between them. The words do not name who is asked; translators and commentators supply it in different ways (see the classical reading and the about text).
(Meaning written for Pujadeep and checked against the cited edition.)
Text: Tukaram Javaji, Nirnaya-sagar Press, Bombay, 1906 (public domain).
https://pujadeep.com/prayers/om-sahana-vavatu/ Nothing is sent from this site. Your own app sends it, to the chat you choose.
About the Om Sahana Vavatu
The mantra belongs to the Taittiriya school of the Black Yajurveda. In the printings shown here it opens the second and third chapters of the Taittiriya Upanishad, and the 1906 Bombay printing also puts it at the head of the Katha Upanishad. In Max Müller's translation it opens the second chapter of the Taittiriya and closes the Katha.
The words do not name who is asked to protect. Müller supplies "it (the Brahman)" in the Taittiriya and "He" in the Katha. Shankara's commentary explains each word for the teacher and the student; see the classical reading below. The text is read from the 1906 Bombay printing of 28 Upanishads and checked against the 1909 Poona Taittiriya with Shankara's commentary. The English translation is Müller's (1884).
How to say it
Said with the word breaks: "saha nāv avatu, saha nau bhunaktu, saha vīryaṃ karavāvahai, tejasvi nāv adhītam astu, mā vidviṣāvahai". "Sahana vavatu" is the way the first words sound when run together; "nāv" is "us two". The 1906 printing writes "तेजस्विनावधीतमस्तु" as one word; the 1909 printing separates "तेजस्वि नावधीतमस्तु". "Vīryaṃ" is spoken "vīryam". The Yajurveda recitation also uses pitch accents, which the 1909 printing marks and this page does not show.
More daily prayers: on waking, before study, before meals and at lamp-lighting
Related
Questions families ask
Who wrote the Om Sahana Vavatu?
Shanti mantra of the Taittiriya and Katha Upanishads.
Which text does this page follow?
Sanskrit text: The Twenty-eight Upanishads (Īsha and others) (अष्टाविंशत्युपनिषदः), the Sanskrit text, edited by Vasudev Laxman Shastri Phansikar, 1906. Meanings: written for Pujadeep and checked against the cited edition. See the source
Source and licence
- Text
- The Twenty-eight Upanishads (Īsha and others) (अष्टाविंशत्युपनिषदः), the Sanskrit text, edited by Vasudev Laxman Shastri Phansikar (Vasudev Laxman Shastri Phansikar, Tukaram Javaji, Nirnaya-sagar Press, Bombay, 1906). Public domain. The Sanskrit on these pages was read from this printing’s page images.
- Our explanation
- Explanation written for this site from the sources listed here, and checked against the cited edition. It is not a translation and not the only way to read the text. Free to quote with credit.
- Checked
- Checked against the cited edition, October 16, 2026.
- Updated
- October 27, 2026