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01Mahābhārata · Anuśāsanaparvan
The BORI critical edition places the episode at 13.135; many traditional editions number it chapter 149.
Source-aware · complete name-by-name edition
श्री विष्णुसहस्रनाम
Authentic Vishnu Sahasranama
Śrī Viṣṇusahasranāma
Meet all one thousand names in their received order, with Devanagari, consistent IAST, a concise name-level gloss, and the Mahābhārata setting in which Bhīṣma teaches Yudhiṣṭhira.
ॐ
On-site scope
All 1,000 names
Sanskrit · Devanagari + IAST
Mahābhārata hymn · one thousand names
Before opening the reader
What changes when one thousand names are heard as an answer?
Does a name read differently once you know Bhīṣma is answering Yudhiṣṭhira, not reciting a list?
If editions split compounds differently, is "exactly one thousand names" really fixed?
01 / Authenticity ledger
What “authentic” means here.
Source disclosed. Language named. Attribution qualified. Editorial choices made visible. It does not mean that one modern web page has erased every living recension or interpretive tradition.
Narrative frame
02Yudhiṣṭhira asks · Bhīṣma answers
Vaiśampāyana narrates the higher-level scene. Bhīṣma is the hymn’s speaker within the epic, not a documented historical author.
Traditional attribution
03Vyāsa as compiler-seer
Ritual preliminaries in some recensions name Vyāsa as ṛṣi. This is a sacred textual attribution, not a modern biographical authorship claim.
Reader standard
04Complete order + IAST
Every counted name remains intact. IAST follows the declared Devanagari reading, and the English layer is explicitly a concise name-level gloss.
02 / Name-by-name reader
The text, opened carefully.
Complete declared 1,000-name enumeration
All 1,000 names are present in the common enumeration documented by the declared 1927 Sastry edition and checked against the Sanskrit Wikisource stotra. Each card offers a concise editorial name-level gloss; it does not pretend that a web gloss replaces the interpretive depth of the commentary traditions.
Reader controls
Move between script, sound, and sense.
Search every layer, move through fifty-name ranges, or jump directly to any numbered name. Each range stays quick to scan on phones as well as larger screens.
Showing 50 of 50 entries
Study unit
Numbered name with close gloss
Name 1: viśvam
Name 1 permalinkNames 1–50
विश्वम्
viśvam
Close meaning
The universe.
Name 2: viṣṇuḥ
Name 2 permalinkNames 1–50
विष्णुः
viṣṇuḥ
Close meaning
The presence that enters and permeates the whole cosmos.
Name 3: vaṣaṭkāraḥ
Name 3 permalinkNames 1–50
वषट्कारः
vaṣaṭkāraḥ
Close meaning
The sacrificial acclamation through which an oblation is consecrated.
Name 4: bhūtabhavyabhavatprabhuḥ
Name 4 permalinkNames 1–50
भूतभव्यभवत्प्रभुः
bhūtabhavyabhavatprabhuḥ
Close meaning
The Lord of the past, present and future.
Name 5: bhūtakṛt
Name 5 permalinkNames 1–50
भूतकृत्
bhūtakṛt
Close meaning
The evolver of Beings.
Name 6: bhūtabhṛt
Name 6 permalinkNames 1–50
भूतभृत्
bhūtabhṛt
Close meaning
The sustainer of Beings.
Name 7: bhāvaḥ
Name 7 permalinkNames 1–50
भावः
bhāvaḥ
Close meaning
The absolute existence.
Name 8: bhūtātmā
Name 8 permalinkNames 1–50
भूतात्मा
bhūtātmā
Close meaning
The indwelling Self of every creature.
Name 9: bhūtabhāvanaḥ
Name 9 permalinkNames 1–50
भूतभावनः
bhūtabhāvanaḥ
Close meaning
The source that brings beings forth and fosters their life.
Name 10: pūtātmā
Name 10 permalinkNames 1–50
पूतात्मा
pūtātmā
Close meaning
Pure Self.
Name 11: paramātmā
Name 11 permalinkNames 1–50
परमात्मा
paramātmā
Close meaning
The Supreme Self.
Name 12: muktānāṃ paramā gatiḥ
Name 12 permalinkNames 1–50
मुक्तानां परमा गतिः
muktānāṃ paramā gatiḥ
Close meaning
The unsurpassed end attained by those released from rebirth.
Name 13: avyayaḥ
Name 13 permalinkNames 1–50
अव्ययः
avyayaḥ
Close meaning
Undiminished through every change and dissolution.
Name 14: puruṣaḥ
Name 14 permalinkNames 1–50
पुरुषः
puruṣaḥ
Close meaning
The conscious presence abiding within the body's citadel.
Name 15: sākṣī
Name 15 permalinkNames 1–50
साक्षी
sākṣī
Close meaning
The witness.
Name 16: kṣetrajñaḥ
Name 16 permalinkNames 1–50
क्षेत्रज्ञः
kṣetrajñaḥ
Close meaning
The discerner of the embodied field and all its activity.
Name 17: akṣaraḥ
Name 17 permalinkNames 1–50
अक्षरः
akṣaraḥ
Close meaning
The undecaying.
Name 18: yogaḥ
Name 18 permalinkNames 1–50
योगः
yogaḥ
Close meaning
The union.
Name 19: yogavidāṃ netā
Name 19 permalinkNames 1–50
योगविदां नेता
yogavidāṃ netā
Close meaning
The foremost guide among those who know contemplative union.
Name 20: pradhānapuruṣeśvaraḥ
Name 20 permalinkNames 1–50
प्रधानपुरुषेश्वरः
pradhānapuruṣeśvaraḥ
Close meaning
The Lord of Pradhana and Purusha.
Name 21: nārasiṃhavapuḥ
Name 21 permalinkNames 1–50
नारसिंहवपुः
nārasiṃhavapuḥ
Close meaning
Manifest in the human-lion form.
Name 22: śrīmān
Name 22 permalinkNames 1–50
श्रीमान्
śrīmān
Close meaning
The bearer of Śrī, whose presence rests upon his breast.
Name 23: keśavaḥ
Name 23 permalinkNames 1–50
केशवः
keśavaḥ
Close meaning
The radiant-haired Lord, also remembered as Keśī's vanquisher.
Name 24: puruṣottamaḥ
Name 24 permalinkNames 1–50
पुरुषोत्तमः
puruṣottamaḥ
Close meaning
The Supreme Person, highest among all conscious beings.
Name 25: sarvaḥ
Name 25 permalinkNames 1–50
सर्वः
sarvaḥ
Close meaning
The all.
Name 26: śarvaḥ
Name 26 permalinkNames 1–50
शर्वः
śarvaḥ
Close meaning
The destroyer.
Name 27: śivaḥ
Name 27 permalinkNames 1–50
शिवः
śivaḥ
Close meaning
Wholly auspicious and untouched by impurity.
Name 28: sthāṇuḥ
Name 28 permalinkNames 1–50
स्थाणुः
sthāṇuḥ
Close meaning
The steadfast ground that does not shift with cosmic change.
Name 29: bhūtādiḥ
Name 29 permalinkNames 1–50
भूतादिः
bhūtādiḥ
Close meaning
The first source from which living beings arise.
Name 30: nidhiravyayaḥ
Name 30 permalinkNames 1–50
निधिरव्ययः
nidhiravyayaḥ
Close meaning
The inexhaustible treasury into which creation is gathered.
Name 31: sambhavaḥ
Name 31 permalinkNames 1–50
सम्भवः
sambhavaḥ
Close meaning
He who assumes birth freely, never under karmic compulsion.
Name 32: bhāvanaḥ
Name 32 permalinkNames 1–50
भावनः
bhāvanaḥ
Close meaning
The one who brings deeds to fruition in their proper measure.
Name 33: bhartā
Name 33 permalinkNames 1–50
भर्ता
bhartā
Close meaning
He who bears and maintains the created order.
Name 34: prabhavaḥ
Name 34 permalinkNames 1–50
प्रभवः
prabhavaḥ
Close meaning
The wellspring of every arising.
Name 35: prabhuḥ
Name 35 permalinkNames 1–50
प्रभुः
prabhuḥ
Close meaning
The sovereign whose mastery extends over all.
Name 36: īśvaraḥ
Name 36 permalinkNames 1–50
ईश्वरः
īśvaraḥ
Close meaning
The ruler whose capacity is unrestricted.
Name 37: svayambhūḥ
Name 37 permalinkNames 1–50
स्वयम्भूः
svayambhūḥ
Close meaning
Self-manifest, owing existence to no prior cause.
Name 38: śambhuḥ
Name 38 permalinkNames 1–50
शम्भुः
śambhuḥ
Close meaning
The source from whom well-being and joy arise.
Name 39: ādityaḥ
Name 39 permalinkNames 1–50
आदित्यः
ādityaḥ
Close meaning
The divine presence contemplated within the sun.
Name 40: puṣkarākṣaḥ
Name 40 permalinkNames 1–50
पुष्कराक्षः
puṣkarākṣaḥ
Close meaning
He whose gaze has the beauty and purity of a lotus.
Name 41: mahāsvanaḥ
Name 41 permalinkNames 1–50
महास्वनः
mahāsvanaḥ
Close meaning
The great resonance from which Vedic revelation proceeds.
Name 42: anādinidhanaḥ
Name 42 permalinkNames 1–50
अनादिनिधनः
anādinidhanaḥ
Close meaning
Unbounded by either an origin or an ending.
Name 43: dhātā
Name 43 permalinkNames 1–50
धाता
dhātā
Close meaning
The foundation that carries all the worlds.
Name 44: vidhātā
Name 44 permalinkNames 1–50
विधाता
vidhātā
Close meaning
The ordainer who assigns each deed its consequence.
Name 45: dhāturuttamaḥ
Name 45 permalinkNames 1–50
धातुरुत्तमः
dhāturuttamaḥ
Close meaning
The highest principle, transcending every created constituent.
Name 46: aprameyaḥ
Name 46 permalinkNames 1–50
अप्रमेयः
aprameyaḥ
Close meaning
Not established or delimited by any instrument of knowledge.
Name 47: hṛṣīkeśaḥ
Name 47 permalinkNames 1–50
हृषीकेशः
hṛṣīkeśaḥ
Close meaning
The governing intelligence behind the senses.
Name 48: padmanābhaḥ
Name 48 permalinkNames 1–50
पद्मनाभः
padmanābhaḥ
Close meaning
He from whose navel the lotus of cosmic creation emerges.
Name 49: amaraprabhuḥ
Name 49 permalinkNames 1–50
अमरप्रभुः
amaraprabhuḥ
Close meaning
The sovereign of the deathless deities.
Name 50: viśvakarmā
Name 50 permalinkNames 1–50
विश्वकर्मा
viśvakarmā
Close meaning
The maker who gives the universe its manifold forms.
vishnu sahasranama · editorial study edition
03 / Attribution & biography
People, voices, and tradition.
A sacred text can have a poet, a speaker inside its story, a traditional compiler, and later commentators. These roles are named separately so reverence never requires blurred history.
Narrative voice01
Speaker inside the Mahābhārata
Bhīṣma
Bhīṣma is the elder Kuru statesman and teacher of dharma who speaks from his bed of arrows. Kṛṣṇa himself redirects Yudhiṣṭhira's questions on dharma to Bhīṣma, saying the dying patriarch is best placed to answer; asked who is the highest divinity and what recitation leads to the highest good, Bhīṣma answers with Viṣṇu's thousand names, with Kṛṣṇa and Vyāsa present as the scene's witnesses. This identifies the dramatic speaker, not a historically recoverable composer.
Traditional attribution02
Traditional epic compiler and seer
Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana Vyāsa
Hindu tradition remembers Vyāsa as the compiler of the Mahābhārata and organizer of Vedic learning. Some liturgical preliminaries identify him as the ṛṣi of the thousand names. Vyāsa is therefore presented here as a traditional compiler-seer, not as a modern author with independently verifiable dates.
Traditional attribution03
Commentary traditionally attributed
Śaṅkara
early 8th century
Śaṅkara was the formative philosopher and commentator of Advaita Vedānta. A celebrated Viṣṇusahasranāma commentary circulates under his name, but recent textual scholarship argues that its terminology and citations may point to a later author. The commentary attribution is therefore traditional rather than certain.
04 / What the tradition promises
Recitation's own phala-śruti, read for what it offers.
I'm presenting this as the phala-śruti's own traditional promise — the fruits of recitation as the closing verses describe them — not as a scientific or guaranteed claim. What recitation brings is between the reciter and their own experience.
- 01
Freedom from misfortune, in this life and beyond, for anyone who hears or recites it daily.
- 02
Fulfilment matched to what is sought — dharma for those seeking it, prosperity for those seeking wealth, progeny for those wanting children.
- 03
Fame, steady prosperity, and a settled, unshakeable share of good fortune.
- 04
Freedom from fear, renewed vitality, freedom from disease, and a brighter, stronger bearing.
- 05
Release promised to the afflicted, the bound, the frightened and the crisis-struck.
- 06
A quicker crossing through difficulty, and inner happiness, patience and a lasting good name.
- 07
For anyone distressed, dejected, frightened or unwell who simply calls on Nārāyaṇa's name — the phala-śruti promises complete release from that suffering.
05 / How devotees traditionally recite it
A simple, traditional way to sit with the thousand names.
I'm describing this as widely followed traditional practice, not a rule this reader needs to follow before the thousand names above mean anything on their own.
- 01
Brahma muhūrta — roughly the last ninety minutes before sunrise — is the traditionally preferred window; the early evening or just before bed are the common alternatives when mornings aren't possible.
- 02
A short physical reset comes first: a bath if possible or at least washing the hands and feet, clean clothes, and a few rounds of slow, settling breath before opening the eyes to read.
- 03
Sitting upright — on a chair or the floor, facing east — is preferred over reciting lying down; many households light a small lamp to mark the space as set apart for the reading.
- 04
A little water, fruit or a yellow sweet is traditionally offered before the mūrti or image beforehand, then shared with the household once the recitation and a further quiet moment of meditation are done.
- 05
Listening with attention counts as much as reciting it yourself — for a text of a thousand names, tradition treats hearing it read aloud with devotion as an equally valid practice, not a lesser one.
06 / Editorial method
Designed for honest study.
- 01
The sequence follows the common 1,000-name division documented by the 1927 Sastry edition and checked against the declared Sanskrit Wikisource stotra. Multiword expressions can count as one name, repeated epithets remain part of the received sequence, and name boundaries can differ when compounds and sandhi are resolved in other editions.
- 02
The Devanagari layer is adapted from Sanskrit Wikisource under CC BY-SA 4.0. Presentation punctuation and zero-width characters were cleaned, names were segmented according to the declared enumeration, and IAST was prepared from that normalized layer.
- 03
At name 396 this reader selects the Wikisource base reading विरजः (virajaḥ); that witness also prints विरतः (virataḥ) as a variant.
- 04
The English is a newly edited, concise orientation informed by R. Ananthakrishna Sastry’s public-domain 1927 translation of the commentary traditionally attributed to Śaṅkara. It is name-level, not a claim of exhaustive word-by-word or doctrinal commentary.
- 05
Short glosses cannot collapse the distinct readings of Advaita, Viśiṣṭādvaita, Dvaita, and other commentary traditions into one final answer.
- 06
The Mahābhārata setting and its chapter-numbering variants are stated openly: the BORI critical edition places the episode at Anuśāsanaparvan 13.135, while many traditional editions identify it as chapter 149.
07 / Source shelf
Read beyond this edition.
Primary texts, manuscript records, and scholarly studies are linked directly. External texts remain with their custodians and under their stated terms.
- 01Mahābhārata, Book 13 critical-edition textGRETIL · based on the BORI critical editionPrimary Sanskrit context for the Anuśāsanaparvan episode and critical-edition numbering. (opens in a new tab)
- 02ViṣṇusahasranāmastotramSanskrit Wikisource · CC BY-SA 4.0Base verse reading, checked on 30 July 2026. This site cleans presentation punctuation and zero-width characters, applies the declared name segmentation, and prepares IAST from the normalized Devanagari. (opens in a new tab)
- 03Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 InternationalCreative CommonsLicense governing the Wikisource-derived Devanagari and corresponding IAST layer; attribution, change indication, and ShareAlike apply. (opens in a new tab)
- 04The Vishnu Sahasranama with the Bhāṣya of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya · 2nd editionInternet Archive · R. Ananthakrishna Sastry, 1927A public-domain English translation of the commentary traditionally attributed to Śaṅkara, used as a lexical and commentarial witness while preparing the concise modern name-glosses. (opens in a new tab)
- 05Viṣṇu SahasranāmaSanskrit DocumentsA traditional chapter-149 reading used as a comparison source and linked under its custodian’s terms. (opens in a new tab)
- 06Authorship of the ViṣṇusahasranāmabhāṣyaInternational Journal of Hindu Studies · Ivan AndrijanićRecent research explaining why the commentary’s Śaṅkara attribution should be qualified. (opens in a new tab)
- 07Phalaśruti — Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram: Sanskrit, Transliteration and English TranslationThe Divine Life Society · Swami KrishnanandaSource for the traditional phala-śruti (fruits-of-recitation) verses summarised below — presented as the text's own devotional promise, not an independent claim. (opens in a new tab)
- 08Vishnu Sahastranaam Path Chanting RulesMantraVidyaSource corroborating the traditional recitation practice — timing, preparation and posture — summarised in the practical-guidance section below. (opens in a new tab)