Ghalin Lotangan
Marathi Prayers of Surrender After Aarti
Ghalin Lotangan, the Marathi prayer sung after aarti: a stanza by Sant Namdev, Sanskrit surrender verses, the Hare Rama mantra and Ganesha's Morya call.
Verses
I will fall prostrate and worship Your feet; with my eyes I will behold Your form. With love I will embrace You, offering joyful worship; with devotion I will wave the arati, says Nama.
Verse 1
You alone are my mother, You alone are my father; You alone are my brother, You alone are my friend. You alone are my knowledge, You alone are my wealth; You alone are everything to me, O God of gods.
Verse 2
Whatever I do with my body, speech, mind, senses, intellect, or natural disposition, I offer all of that entirely to the Supreme Lord Narayana.
Verse 3
I worship Achyuta, Keshava, Rama, Narayana, Krishna, Damodara, and Vasudeva. I worship Shridhara, Madhava, the beloved of the gopis, and Ramachandra, the lord of Janaki.
Verse 4
I chant the holy names: Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare; Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare.
Verse 5
O Lord of auspicious form, O Father Ganapati, victory to You!
Verse 6
Worship Guidelines & Chanting Benefits (Phalashruti)
Daily or auspicious lunar days (Ekadashi, Purnima, Pradosham)
Brahma Muhurta (4:00 AM – 6:00 AM) or Evening Dusk (Sandhya)
Ghee lamp (Deepa), Incense (Dhoopa), Fresh flowers & Water offering
- Peace of mind, spiritual upliftment, and harmonious energy in the home
Background
Ghalin Lotangan ('I will prostrate and bow at Your feet') is the Marathi prayer sequence traditionally sung at the close of aarti in Maharashtrian homes and temples, and it appears in the evening aarti at Shirdi. Its opening section is attributed to the Varkari saint Namdev (c. 1270–1350), whose name closes it ('mhane Nama'). Widely recited Sanskrit verses follow: a stanza of surrender to God as mother, father and friend, a verse from the Bhagavata Purana offering all actions to Narayana, a stanza of names of Vishnu and Krishna, the Hare Rama Hare Krishna mantra, and the Ganesha call 'Mangalmurti Morya'. Households sing slightly different combinations, so this is a devotional sequence rather than a single canonical text.
Did You Know?
Namdev's stanza
The first stanza is a Marathi abhanga attributed to Namdev, a founding voice of the Varkari tradition (c. 1270–1350), recognised by his signature 'mhane Nama' ('says Nama'). It pictures a devotee falling prostrate, gazing on the Lord's form and waving the lamp with love.
Tvameva mata pita
Verse 2 declares God to be mother, father, friend, knowledge and wealth. It is often mistaken for a line of the Bhagavad Gita or the Vishnu Sahasranama; its source is debated, and it is frequently ascribed to the Pandava Gita.
Surrender of all actions
Verse 3 is the Bhagavata Purana verse 11.2.36, offering every act of body, speech, mind, senses, intellect and nature to Narayana. It captures the karma-yoga ideal of dedicating deeds to God without attachment.
Names of Vishnu and Krishna
Verse 4 is a stanza of the Achyutashtakam, traditionally ascribed to Adi Shankaracharya, naming Achyuta, Keshava, Rama, Narayana, Krishna, Damodara and Vasudeva, among others. 'Damodara' recalls Krishna bound by Yashoda's rope.
The Hare Krishna mahamantra
Verse 5 is the sixteen-word mantra from the Kali-Santarana Upanishad, popularised by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1534) and today by ISKCON. Tradition calls it the simplest means of liberation in the Kali age.
Mangalmurti Morya
The closing call invokes Ganesha as the auspicious form, with 'Morya' linked to the Ganapatya saint Morya Gosavi of Chinchwad and to Morgaon. It rings out at Ganesh Chaturthi and at the start of auspicious undertakings in Maharashtra.
Ganesh
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