Ratri Suktam
Every question on the site tagged Ratri Suktam, each answered from a timestamped source rather than a summary written from memory.
A Vedic hymn to the goddess of night, recited at bedtime to settle recurring negative dreams and during Nimbu Bali rites; its Tantrokta form is also embedded in the Durga Saptashati's first chapter (verses 73-87) as Brahma's praise to Yoganidra, and is recited independently by devotees of Mahakali.
37 notes from our sourcesNotes from our sources
Tantrokta Ratri Suktam: the shortest Saptashati hymn and what it gives
The first of the four hymns the speaker names is the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam: 15 shlokas, verses 73 to 87 of the first chapter (first charitra) of the Durga Saptashati, being Brahma ji's stuti of Bhagavati Yoganidra, who emerged from Vishnu's eyes for the killing of Madhu and Kaitabha. He says all shaktis are present in these 15 shlokas, so the Devi's fiercest grace comes from them; they take 5 to 10 minutes, never even 15. It is the smallest of the four, so during Navratri the children and old people of the house who can do nothing else should light dhoop and a lamp each day and recite it. He says Bhagavati then helps in lack of strength, lack of wealth, illness and money trouble, and her blow falls on whoever becomes your enemy.
Which of the four Saptashati hymns to adopt, by the devotee's ishta
The speaker says one of the four stutis should be taken into one's life, and matches them to the devotee: a devotee of Mahakali should do the Ratri Suktam; a devotee of Bhagavati Mahasaraswati the Jai Durga Stuti of the eleventh chapter; an exclusive upasaka of Mahalakshmi the Shakradi Stuti, the 27 shlokas of the fourth chapter; and one who is a devotee of any form of Bhagavati, wants the grace of all her forms and sees his Mother, his Durga, his Kali in every shakti — the fiercest kind of upasaka — should never leave the Tantrokta Devisuktam. He says these four have the power to change life, each has its own independent prayoga, and doing them now means that when, by the Devi's grace, a learned Guru who makes such things happen appears in life, they will be of great use.
Hymns spoken before the deity appeared — Brahma's Ratri Suktam before Mahamaya emerged from Vishnu's eyes — awaken the deity's complete consciousness
Hymns recited before a deity manifested — such as the Ratri Suktam, recited by Lord Brahma before Goddess Mahamaya/Yogamaya emerged from Vishnu's eyes — carry supreme potency because reciting them awakens the deity's complete consciousness and presence.
How should devotees of Mahakali practice the Ratri Suktam, and is sleeping beside one's spouse an impurity?
Devotees of Mahakali should recite the Ratri Suktam before sleep (1, 5, or 21 times) for profound grace; household practitioners sleeping beside their spouse incur no flaw, since the spouse is a manifestation of the Divine feminine (Vamangi).
Which parts of Durga Saptashati may be read independently of their anga?
The eleventh chapter of Durga Saptashati may certainly be recited daily; done independently rather than as part of the full paath, it needs no accompanying six angas. The same applies to Ratri Suktam, the stutis of the fourth and fifth chapters, the tantrokta Devi Suktam, and the stutis and phal-kathan of the eleventh and twelfth chapters, and Kavach, Argala and Keelak may each likewise be read on their own.
Which suktas please Bhagavati however angry she may be?
However angry Bhagavati may be, he says, there are two or three suktas by which she is certainly pleased: the first is the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam, the second the Devi Suktam, and the third the Shakradi Stuti. Learn to recite these in Sanskrit; it is easy, not very hard. And let a member of the household do the paath and coax the Maa. If singing a pachra is known, then on the Ashtami or the Navami, or in the evening at the time of sandhya, sing at least one pachra and coax the Maa, and ask forgiveness, saying Maa, an offence has been committed by us.
What is the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam used for?
The Vedokta Ratri Suktam is for those who know the utterance; others will not do it. The Tantrokta Ratri Suktam is especially for those who have insomnia-related problems, trouble sleeping at night; for boys whose swapna dosh problem is more than necessary; where you know abhicharik activity is going on and wrong kriyas happen in dreams at night, whether for a woman or a man; or where someone presses the throat during sleep.
Is the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam useful for dev dosh?
Besides that, he says, there is also the dev dosh that attaches — and in dev dosh this paath is one that gives a very particular fruit. He illustrates it with a message someone sent him about a box bought for Bhagavati's clothes.
What is prescribed for fear in the night hours belonging to the nishachar shaktis?
Especially the two and a half hours from 12 at night to about 2 or 2:30 in the morning, which is stated in every way to belong to the nishachar shaktis. If wherever you live fear pervades you in this time, or there is trouble, then you should take the wet dhoop that comes, or the wet stickless agarbatti, and keep it abhimantrit with this very Tantrokta Ratri Suktam, and light it at the time of sleeping at night.
What the Devi Atharvashirsham is and who may recite it
He says its fragrance should stay spread through the room and you will get much benefit from it, and will be able to sleep at ease — and that more japa on it is better. Of the Atharvashirsham he says it is simply prana: those who are adhikari, those who have the right to do all the paaths, should do it properly. Ordinarily, if you do not know the full paath vidhi, you should study it in Hindi, because one should know what is given in the Atharvashirsham.
Where in the Saptashati does the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam occur?
When we go further into the same first adhyaya, where the akhyan of Madhu and Kaitabha has begun, the stuti of Bhagavati Yoganidra is made there by Bhagavan Brahma ji — and that is famous independently in the form of the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam. He has already told in which places we can use it.
What anushthan is prescribed when the kula shakti is displeased?
Whoever's kula shakti is displeased, whose kula shakti is not giving support, who has for any reason knowingly or unknowingly insulted them or left them unworshipped, should do an anushthan of the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam — of at least a paksha, or from Ashtami to Chaturdashi. Its main anushthan is in the night hours, but there should be a paath in the morning too and a paath at night, at least 21 or 27 paaths, with samarpan.
How a havan with kishmish and honey removes an aparadh against the kula shakti
If you know the vidhi of havan — an ordinary sukshma havan, a simple havan — you should offer ahuti with these mantras by means of kishmish, kishmish and madhu. By this they will be pleased, will be strengthened, and will then do good. He compares it with the Rudrashtakam used for Shiva: if some dev dosh has attached or an aparadh has been committed knowingly or unknowingly, we get release through it; in the same way the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam removes our aparadh and our dosh, if we do it in the right way.
Can the Ratri Suktam be recited for a mother's health?
Asked whether she may do the paath of the Ratri Suktam for her mother's health to become well, the speaker answers: yes, you can absolutely do it.
Chamunda rules those very rakshasas and you are her servant; the whole Ratri Suktam is dedicated to Jagadamba, and Bhagavati is Ratri-swaroopa.
Which rakshasas, he asks. The one who rules over those rakshasas is Bhagavati Chamunda, and you are her servant. Bhagavati is Ratri-swaroopa. The whole Ratri Suktam is dedicated to Jagadamba — and here you are running away, saying no, we shall not do it at night. It is precisely at night that it will be done.
With which mantras is the havan done in a Ratri Sukta anushthan?
In the Ratri Sukta, the havan will be done with the remaining mantras, leaving aside the astra mantra that is in it.
Which Suktas of the Saptashati may be used for a Havan on their own?
Independently, you cannot. But if you still wish to: first the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam, with ghee alone or banana on a paan leaf, because Ahuti may be given only with the invocation mantras. Then the fourth chapter, especially for Lakshmi; then the Tantrokta Devi Suktam; then the eleventh chapter in full.
What should a sadhak troubled in sleep do at his bed?
First you have to keep your bed clean, the speaker says — the first thing is that your bed should remain pure and there should be no impurity. Second, bring fitkari, wrap it in a black cloth and certainly keep it at your bedhead. Before sleeping at night, rinse the mouth at least sixteen times, become completely pure, and sleep; and after that, as far as possible, recite the Ratri Suktam, and then sleep. If there is still trouble, then in a small silver bowl place two cloves upon a piece of camphor and burn them near your bedhead in the name of your ishta aradhya. Do this much; if it stops, well and good, and if it does not stop, then the further matter becomes a matter of the house.
What do recurring dreams of ritual impurity mean, and how are negative dreams cleared generally?
Frequently dreaming of ritual impurity (Ashauch) calls for the Ashwattha Stotra or one's deity's Sahasranama — more generally, drinking Naivedya water, reciting Ratri Suktam at bedtime, and burning camphor in the bedroom helps eliminate recurring negative dreams.
What are the rules for sustaining a Nimbu Bali (lemon sacrifice) practice?
A daily Nimbu Bali after Ratri Suktam requires continuous commitment once started; if that's unsustainable, limit it to specific days like Navami, Chaturdashi, Navratri, or Tuesdays and Saturdays — daily cloves-and-camphor fumigation has no such restriction.
Once the practice is established a Kavach is added, and after it the Beejakshar, the Argala or the Ratri Sukta
When the practice has formed and you are completing it in very little time, add a Kavach with it. When the Kavach is done, go on to the Beejakshar; or to the whole extended prescription of the first mantra of the Argala; or, if you want a Stotra rather than a mantra, to the Tantrokta Ratri Sukta. But hold to one base.
Each of the fifteen shlokas of the Ratri Sukta has its own presiding Shakti among the Mahavidyas
A video on the channel sets out the whole prescription of all the Ratri Sukta's shlokas — fifteen in particular — according to each of the Mahavidyas, because Bhagavati Tara and Bhagavati Kali all have their special place in it. Each shloka has its own separate presiding Shakti. Perform their Anushthan at night, after nine.
What should be done in a Shani Mahadasha with Rahu Antardasha?
Take the refuge of the Tantrokta Ratri Sukta with your eyes closed; take the refuge of Bhagavati Kali. Begin the sadhana and worship of Mahakali from this Navratri.
What does a dream of a green snake chasing you mean?
A listener describes a strange green snake in a dream running three times in anger to bite him, from which he escaped and then flew in the air, and after which, being frightened, he worshipped the gram Bhagavati. The speaker says that a green snake running to bite means dev dosha — that some mistake connected with some devi devta has occurred, on account of which this is being seen again and again. If so, you should examine it once; and if you are not able to find out what mistake or what dosha it was, then you should recite the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam for at least twenty-one days.
Should the Durga Saptashati be recited in Sanskrit when one's pronunciation is faulty?
The speaker says he always tells people: if you have devotion to Bhagavati but cannot pronounce Sanskrit, have not practised, and have not learned the Saptashati, recite it in Hindi with bhava foremost, and Jagdamba will be pleased. This man recited 108 paths in Sanskrit with, by his own admission, many errors, consoled by a guru's story that unclear pronunciation causes no special harm; the speaker grants that up to a point, but with the uccharan wrong every time over 108 paths it is the single biggest blunder, and meaning turned into anartha became one cause of the ruin. Rather than the full Saptashati, he says, recite only the stutis — Ratri Suktam, Devi Suktam, the fourth-chapter stuti, Shakradi Stuti — and Ma will be pleased.
What should be done when Kali stops appearing in dreams?
Told by Anju Kumari ji that Maa Kali used to appear in dreams but is not appearing now, he answers that she will begin to appear again: do japa of the first mantra of the Argala according to your capacity, every day in the night time, and along with it begin reciting the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam.
May the Devi Suktam and Ratri Suktam japa be done with a gau-shringi?
Asked whether the japa of the Devi Suktam and Ratri Suktam can be done with a gau-shringi, and whether it can be done on the arghya of the Shivling, he says it can be done with silver and the like, but do it with a shankha. And do it not on the Shivling's arghya but on Bhagavati. Let the Shivling proceed according to the Shivling.
What should be recited before sleeping if bad dreams keep coming?
If there is very great difficulty and wrong dreams are coming, he says, then recite the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam and go to sleep. Learn the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam by heart and recite it at least five times before sleeping.
What should an uninitiated person recite instead of the full Saptashati?
Summing up the seven points, the speaker says that if you are adikshit and cannot pronounce Sanskrit, recite the Ratri Suktam, the Devi Suktam, the Indradi stuti of chapter 4, and the 35 stuti shlokas of chapter 11 — from these Bhagavati's full grace and blessing will be obtained. Do them in Sanskrit, do them chanted. But done without adhikar, he says, the full path is our loss and yours, and your loss is Sanatan's loss; so get initiated by a qualified person this Navratri, learn the vidhi and then recite.
What is the remedy when bodily trouble in sadhana keeps recurring?
It is for this that the Kavach exists, the speaker says: do the kavach so that the body may be protected. If this difficulty is occurring again and again, recite the Ratri Suktam before sleeping — recite the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam, and protection will come from it. Do not eat heavy food. Do not eat hot food; very hot food should not be eaten.
The days a woman must miss cost nothing, and the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam is added at the night hour
You are a woman, he says, and two, three or four days in between will be missed — for that there is no difficulty at all; becoming pure and clean again, after bath and dhyan, you will do its paath again. Do the paath in the night hours only, after nine o'clock. And if possible, along with it do the paath of the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam as well. Continue this much and by the completing of one paksha a difference will begin to appear to you.
By which mantras should Bhagavati be invoked into a murti at home?
For any murti of Bhagavati, he says: see, whenever the devatas have made the invocation of Bhagavati in the Saptashati, by those mantras — you too are to make the invocation by those same mantras. As they recited the Tantrokta Devi Suktam, as her stuti was done in the eleventh adhyaya, as her stuti was done in the fourth adhyaya; by the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam Brahma ji himself made her invocation.
Can the Ratri Suktam and Jayanti Mangala Kali be done together?
Do not do them together — do one, the speaker tells Pratibha. Otherwise so many devis will arrive that you will not manage them, and their share of devotion will fall short. There are prachand shaktis in each of the two. So do only one; it is always better to do the japa of one mantra at one time.
Is a havan required in the Tantrokta Ratri Sukta?
No problem at all if you cannot do it, the speaker says. If you do it, that is very good; if you do not, there is no problem.
What minimum does a guru give along with the Ashtakshari?
If not the whole of it, then at the least the guru will certainly give three things: Durga ji's kavach — not the Saptashati Chandi kavach, but the Durga kavach that goes with the Ashtakshari — and Bhairav ji's mantra. And he will give one adhyaya of the Saptashati, whichever it may be, depending on the kula parampara: if it is Kali ji's, he will say the Ratri Suktam; if the matter or the emphasis is connected with Lakshmi, he will say the fourth adhyaya; if it is after Bhagavati's grace and siddhi, he will say the Tantrokta Devi Suktam. But to say simply do this mantra just like that is a little improper. He marks this as his own view, and says the decision is the listeners' own.
Preparatory sequence before a full Saptashati havan begins
The speaker says that on havan day — say the path was done till Ashtami and the havan is on Navami — one first performs the full shaap vimochan vidhan, does only a path (no ahuti) of Kavach, Argala and Kilak, and completes the opening havans of Guru, Ganpati, the dikpals and so on. In a full-Saptashati havan there is no separate obligation to offer the Kavach; the first mantra of the Argala may be offered as a navahuti, and the Kilak's first mantra must be offered, and only that one. Then the Ratri Suktam and Atharvashirsha are recited, the Saptashati nyasa done, the Navarna japped and one mala of it offered in havan, nyasa done again, and the first chapter begins. He adds that this is best learned practically beside a specific acharya.
Which portions of the Saptashati may be recited without a guru?
Among the stutis you may also do the Ratri Suktam; you may do the stuti of the fourth adhyaya; you may do the one given independently in the fifth adhyaya in the form of the Tantrokta Ratri Suktam; and you may do the stuti in the eleventh adhyaya. For the rest, the complete vidhi vidhan and the full path — its vidhi too he has given on the channel in the Mahavidya krama, for which you need no guru. When you go to recite in Sanskrit for some special purpose, or are thinking of a samput path, then you need a guru, so as to do it with understanding.
No notes match "".