Om Jai Shiv Omkara: Shiv Aarti Lyrics & Meaning

Stand before any Shivling at the close of a puja — in a great temple, a wayside shrine, or a home mandir with a single diya — and the song that rises is almost always the same: 'Om Jai Shiv Omkara.' It is the most widely sung aarti of Lord Shiva across northern and central India, learnt by heart in childhood and carried for a lifetime. This guide gives you the complete, correct lyrics in Devanagari, a simple transliteration, and a plain English meaning of every verse — along with when to sing it, how to sing it, and why this short song holds such a place in the hearts of Shiv bhakts.

An aarti is not a hymn to read silently. It is sung aloud, with a lamp (aarti) circled before the deity, while devotees clap, ring the bell and join their voices. 'Om Jai Shiv Omkara' is beloved precisely because it is easy: the tune is gentle, the words repeat, and anyone can join in by the second line. The lyrics below are the long-established, publicly recited version. Minor differences in wording exist between regions and printed gutkas — sing the version your family and temple follow.

What 'Om Jai Shiv Omkara' means

The title itself is the whole prayer in miniature. 'Om' is the primordial sound, the seed of all creation. 'Jai' means victory, glory, hail. 'Shiv' is the Auspicious One, Mahadev. 'Omkara' means 'the one who is the form of Om' — Shiva understood as the very source and substance of that first sound. So the opening line hails Shiva as Omkara, the origin of the universe. From there the aarti moves through his family, his forms, his ornaments and his boundless compassion, ending with the reward promised to whoever sings it with a loving heart.

ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा, स्वामी जय शिव ओंकारा। ब्रह्मा, विष्णु, सदाशिव, अर्द्धांगी धारा॥ ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा॥— Opening refrain

Transliteration: Om Jai Shiv Omkara, Swami Jai Shiv Omkara / Brahma, Vishnu, Sadashiva, ardhangi dhara. Meaning: Glory to you, Shiva, who are the form of Om; my Lord, glory to you. You hold within yourself Brahma, Vishnu and Sadashiva, and you bear the Goddess as the half of your own body (Ardhanarishwara). This is the refrain — the tek — sung after every verse, so learning these three lines alone lets you join any gathering.

The full aarti — Devanagari lyrics

Here is the complete aarti, verse by verse, in Devanagari. Sing each verse, then return to the refrain 'ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा' before moving to the next.

• 🔱एकानन चतुरानन पंचानन राजे। हंसासन गरुड़ासन वृषवाहन साजे॥ ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा॥
• 🔱दो भुज चार चतुर्भुज दसभुज अति सोहे। त्रिगुण रूप निरखते त्रिभुवन जन मोहे॥ ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा॥
• 🔱अक्षमाला वनमाला मुण्डमाला धारी। त्रिपुरारी कंसारी कर माला धारी॥ ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा॥
• 🔱श्वेताम्बर पीताम्बर बाघम्बर अंगे। सनकादिक गरुड़ादिक भूतादिक संगे॥ ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा॥
• 🔱कर के मध्य कमण्डलु चक्र त्रिशूलधारी। सुखकारी दुखहारी जगपालनकारी॥ ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा॥
• 🔱ब्रह्मा विष्णु सदाशिव जानत अविवेका। प्रणवाक्षर के मध्ये ये तीनों एका॥ ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा॥
• 🔱काशी में विश्वनाथ विराजत नन्दी ब्रह्मचारी। नित उठ दर्शन पावत महिमा अति भारी॥ ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा॥
• 🔱त्रिगुणस्वामी जी की आरती जो कोई नर गावे। कहत शिवानन्द स्वामी मनवांछित फल पावे॥ ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा॥

Verse-by-verse transliteration and meaning

Understanding the words turns singing into worship. Here is each verse in Roman letters with its plain meaning.

• 🔱Ekaanan chaturaanan panchaanan raaje / Hansaasan garudaasan vrishavaahan saaje — You shine with one face, four faces and five faces; you appear seated on the swan (as Brahma), on Garuda (as Vishnu) and mounted on the bull Nandi (as Shiva). You are all the gods in one.
• 🔱Do bhuj chaar chaturbhuj dasbhuj ati sohe / Trigun roop nirakhate tribhuvan jan mohe — You look glorious with two arms, four arms and ten arms. Seeing your form of the three gunas (sattva, rajas, tamas), the people of all three worlds are enchanted.
• 🔱Akshamaala vanmaala mundmaala dhaari / Tripuraari Kansaari kar maala dhaari — You wear the rudraksha rosary, the garland of forest flowers and the garland of skulls. Slayer of the demon Tripura and destroyer of evil, you hold the mala in your hand.
• 🔱Shwetaambar peetaambar baaghambar ange / Sanakaadik garudaadik bhootaadik sange — On your body are white robes, yellow robes and the tiger-skin. Sages like Sanaka, beings like Garuda, and your ganas and bhutas are all in your company.
• 🔱Kar ke madhya kamandalu chakra trishuldhaari / Sukhkaari dukhhaari jagpaalankaari — In your hands you hold the water-pot, the discus and the trident. You are the giver of joy, the remover of sorrow, the protector of the world.
• 🔱Brahma Vishnu Sadashiv jaanat aviveka / Pranavaakshar ke madhye ye teenon eka — Only the unwise think Brahma, Vishnu and Sadashiva are separate; within the sacred syllable Om (Pranav), these three are one.
• 🔱Kaashi mein Vishwanath viraajat Nandi Brahmachaari / Nit uth darshan paavat mahima ati bhaari — In Kashi you are seated as Vishwanath, with Nandi the celibate before you; those who rise each day for your darshan receive immense grace, for your glory is boundless.
• 🔱Trigunswami ji ki aarti jo koi nar gaave / Kahat Shivanand swami manvaanchhit phal paave — Whoever sings this aarti of the Lord of the three gunas — says the devotee Shivanand — attains the fruit their heart desires.

The connection to 'Om Jai Jagdish Hare'

Many people notice that 'Om Jai Shiv Omkara' sounds almost identical in tune and rhythm to the famous 'Om Jai Jagdish Hare', the general aarti sung for Vishnu and for many deities. This is not a coincidence — both share the same metre and melody, and were popularised in the same era. When a home or temple sings a whole cycle of aartis, they often flow one into the other seamlessly. If you already know the tune of 'Om Jai Jagdish Hare', you already know how to sing 'Om Jai Shiv Omkara.'

When to sing the Shiv aarti

Aarti marks the close of worship — the moment you offer light to the deity after prayer. 'Om Jai Shiv Omkara' is sung on many occasions:

• 🔱At the end of daily Shiv puja, morning or evening, in the home mandir.
• 🔱On Mondays (Somwar), the day dedicated to Lord Shiva.
• 🔱Through the month of Sawan (Shravan), Shiva's holiest month, and on Sawan Somwar especially.
• 🔱On Maha Shivratri and Sawan Shivratri, often sung through the night's prayers.
• 🔱After a Rudrabhishek or jalabhishek, when Ganga water, milk and bel patra have been offered to the Shivling.
• 🔱At the close of a Shiv temple's evening aarti, when the whole gathering sings together.

How to sing and perform the aarti

The heart of aarti is love, not perfection — but a few simple steps make it complete and reverent:

• 🔱Light the aarti lamp — a diya with ghee or oil, or a camphor (kapoor) flame on the aarti thali.
• 🔱Stand before the Shivling or Shiva's image; ring the bell as you begin.
• 🔱Sing the opening refrain, then move gently through the verses, returning to 'ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा' after each.
• 🔱Circle the lamp clockwise before the deity in slow, steady rounds as you sing.
• 🔱Let everyone present join — clapping and singing together is part of the joy of aarti.
• 🔱At the end, offer the flame's warmth to yourself and others by cupping the hands over it and touching the eyes, and take the aarti's blessing.

The significance of the Shiv aarti

Why does a two-minute song matter so much? Because aarti gathers everything a devotee feels and offers it in a single act of light. The lamp represents the offering of ourselves — our ego, our darkness — into the flame of the divine. As the words name Shiva's forms, his family, his weapons and his mercy, the singer's mind is drawn, line by line, away from the world and toward Mahadev. Sung in a group, it turns strangers into one voice. Sung alone at a home diya, it fills an ordinary evening with the presence of the Lord. The closing verse makes a gentle promise: whoever sings it with a sincere heart receives 'manvaanchhit phal' — the fruit the heart truly desires.

The aarti flame is small, but it carries the whole heart. When the light circles Mahadev, the darkness in us circles away with it.

A few notes on singing it correctly

• 🔱Keep the tune gentle and even — this is a devotional song, not a performance. Speed is not the point.
• 🔱Pronounce the Devanagari as written; if unsure, follow the transliteration above and listen to an elder or temple recording.
• 🔱Wording varies slightly across regions and printed prayer books — sing the version your family and temple follow.
• 🔱The refrain 'ॐ जय शिव ओंकारा' is the anchor; even if you forget a verse, return to it and the singing carries on.
• 🔱There is no fixed count and no ritual requirement — the only thing asked is bhaav, a loving heart.

Aarti on the Kanwar Yatra and at our shivir

During Sawan, when saffron-clad kanwariyas walk to bring Ganga jal to Shiva, this aarti is heard everywhere — at temples, at roadside shrines and at the sewa shivirs along the route. At our Shiv Kavar Samiti shivir on NH-8, Mahipalpur, the small shrine draws many bhakts for a quiet moment of darshan and a shared aarti before they lift the kanwar again. If your yatra passes this way, you are warmly welcome to pause, sing 'Om Jai Shiv Omkara' with us, rest and take some bhojan. But the aarti belongs to everyone, everywhere — sing it wherever you are this Sawan, and Bhole Nath is near. Har Har Mahadev.