Aarti · Vishnu

Om Jai Jagdish Hare: aarti lyrics with meaning

Probably the most sung aarti in the world: a prayer to Vishnu, the Lord of the universe, written in the 1870s. Here it is in Hindi, in English letters and with a plain meaning for every verse.

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Listen: Om Jai Jagdish Hare

A computer-voiced recitation over a soft aarti rhythm of claps, bell and manjira, checked line by line against the text. It is an aid to reading along, not a replacement for a priest or a family elder.

What this aarti is

“Om Jai Jagdish Hare” is addressed to Jagdish, the Lord of the world, that is Vishnu. It was written around 1870 by Pandit Shardha Ram Phillauri (1837–1881), a Punjabi scholar and writer, and spread so widely that today it closes pujas of every kind, whichever deity is worshipped, in temples and homes across India and abroad.

Its words are simple and personal: you are my mother and father, whose shelter should I seek; I do not know how to reach you; lift your hand, I lie at your door. It asks for one thing above all, more faith and the chance to serve good people.

When it is sung

  • At the end of almost any puja, often after the aarti of the main deity.
  • Thursdays and Ekadashi: days of Vishnu.
  • Satyanarayan katha and griha pravesh, and in many homes every evening.

How to do the aarti, step by step

You need no priest. Aarti is the closing part of any puja, and it can also be done on its own, morning or evening, in about five minutes.

  1. Wash your hands and face and stand or sit before a picture or murti of Vishnu.
  2. Prepare a plate (thali) with a ghee diya or a piece of camphor, a little roli and rice, a flower and tulsi leaves and a sweet.
  3. Light the diya or camphor. Someone rings a small bell, or everyone claps along while singing.
  4. Sing the aarti below and slowly wave the plate clockwise before the deity: four times at the feet, twice at the middle, once at the face, then seven times around the whole form.
  5. After the last verse, circle a little water around the plate and set it down.
  6. Everyone takes the aarti: hold both palms briefly over the flame and touch them to your eyes and head. Share the prasad.

Tunes and a few words differ from family to family. Sing it the way your home does; the feeling matters more than the exact wording.

Om Jai Jagdish Hare, with meaning

The first verse is the refrain: it is sung at the start and repeated after every verse.

Show

Refrain

ॐ जय जगदीश हरे, स्वामी जय जगदीश हरे।
भक्त जनों के संकट, क्षण में दूर करे॥

Om jai jagdish hare, swami jai jagdish hare,
bhakt janon ke sankat, kshan mein door kare.

अर्थ: जय हो जगत के स्वामी हरि, जय हो प्रभु! आप भक्तों के संकट पल भर में दूर कर देते हैं।

Meaning: Glory to you, Hari, Lord of the world! You remove the troubles of your devotees in a moment.

Verse 1

जो ध्यावे फल पावे, दुःख बिनसे मन का।
सुख सम्पत्ति घर आवे, कष्ट मिटे तन का॥

Jo dhyave phal pave, dukh binse man ka,
sukh sampatti ghar aave, kasht mite tan ka.

अर्थ: जो आपका ध्यान करता है, उसे फल मिलता है और मन का दुख मिट जाता है; घर में सुख-संपत्ति आती है और शरीर के कष्ट दूर होते हैं।

Meaning: Whoever meditates on you is rewarded; the sorrow of the mind fades, happiness and plenty come home, and the body's pains ease.

Verse 2

मात-पिता तुम मेरे, शरण गहूँ मैं किसकी।
तुम बिन और न दूजा, आस करूँ मैं जिसकी॥

Maat-pita tum mere, sharan gahoon main kiski,
tum bin aur na dooja, aas karoon main jiski.

अर्थ: आप ही मेरे माता-पिता हैं, मैं और किसकी शरण लूँ? आपके सिवा कोई दूसरा नहीं, जिससे मैं आशा रखूँ।

Meaning: You are my mother and father; whose shelter should I seek? There is no one but you in whom I could place my hope.

Verse 3

तुम पूरण परमात्मा, तुम अन्तर्यामी।
पारब्रह्म परमेश्वर, तुम सब के स्वामी॥

Tum pooran parmatma, tum antaryami,
parbrahm parmeshwar, tum sab ke swami.

अर्थ: आप पूर्ण परमात्मा हैं, सबके मन की जानने वाले हैं। आप परब्रह्म परमेश्वर हैं, सबके स्वामी हैं।

Meaning: You are the complete Supreme Self, who knows every heart from within. You are the highest God, the Lord of all.

Verse 4

तुम करुणा के सागर, तुम पालनकर्ता।
मैं मूरख खल कामी, कृपा करो भर्ता॥

Tum karuna ke sagar, tum palankarta,
main moorakh khal kaami, kripa karo bharta.

अर्थ: आप करुणा के सागर हैं, सबका पालन करने वाले हैं। मैं मूर्ख, दोषों और इच्छाओं से भरा हूँ; हे स्वामी, मुझ पर कृपा करें।

Meaning: You are an ocean of compassion, the one who sustains all. I am foolish, flawed and full of wants; be kind to me, my Lord.

Verse 5

तुम हो एक अगोचर, सबके प्राणपति।
किस विधि मिलूँ दयामय, तुमको मैं कुमति॥

Tum ho ek agochar, sabke pranpati,
kis vidhi miloon dayamay, tumko main kumati.

अर्थ: आप एक हैं, इंद्रियों से परे हैं, सबके प्राणों के स्वामी हैं। हे दयामय, मैं कम बुद्धि वाला आपसे किस तरह मिलूँ?

Meaning: You are the One, beyond the senses, the Lord of every life. Merciful one, how can someone of my poor understanding reach you?

Verse 6

दीनबन्धु दुखहर्ता, ठाकुर तुम मेरे।
अपने हाथ उठाओ, द्वार पड़ा तेरे॥

Deenbandhu dukhharta, thakur tum mere,
apne haath uthao, dwaar pada tere.

अर्थ: आप दीनों के बंधु, दुख हरने वाले, मेरे ठाकुर हैं। अपना हाथ उठाइए (मुझे सहारा दीजिए), मैं आपके द्वार पर पड़ा हूँ।

Meaning: Friend of the helpless, remover of sorrow, you are my Lord. Raise your hand to bless me; I lie at your door.

Verse 7

विषय-विकार मिटाओ, पाप हरो देवा।
श्रद्धा-भक्ति बढ़ाओ, सन्तन की सेवा॥

Vishay-vikaar mitao, paap haro deva,
shraddha-bhakti badhao, santan ki seva.

अर्थ: मेरे मन से विषयों की लालसा और विकार मिटाइए, मेरे पाप हर लीजिए, हे देव। मेरी श्रद्धा और भक्ति बढ़ाइए, और संतों की सेवा का भाव दीजिए।

Meaning: Wipe away my cravings and faults, take away my wrongs, O God. Make my faith and devotion grow, and give me the wish to serve good people.

Questions

Who wrote Om Jai Jagdish Hare?

Pandit Shardha Ram Phillauri, a scholar from Phillaur in Punjab, around 1870. He died in 1881, so the text has long been in the public domain.

Which god is this aarti for?

Jagdish, the Lord of the world: Vishnu. Because its words speak to the one Lord, families sing it after the puja of any deity.

Why do some versions end differently?

Many homes add a closing verse, “tan man dhan sab kuchh hai tera… tera tujhko arpan, kya laage mera” (all I have is yours; I offer you what is yours). Some printed texts end with a verse naming Shivanand Swami, borrowed from other aartis. We give the seven verses that the printed texts share.

Text and sources

The Hindi text is a public-domain aarti by Pandit Shardha Ram Phillauri (d. 1881). Every line was checked against Drik Panchang, Bhakti Bharat, Shubh Panchang and the Sanskrit Documents “Arati Sangrah”. We follow their shared reading; small variants include “main moorakh phalkaami” or “main sevak tum swami” in verse 4, “tum rakshak mere” in verse 6, and the extra lines “daas janon ke sankat” and “apne sharan lagao” that some sing as repeats. The transliteration and meanings are our own.

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