Prayer with 108 Names of Shri Uchchishtagananatha
A hymn of 108 names praising Ucchishta Ganapati, the Tantric form of Ganesha, by the ascetic Ramanandendra Sarasvati Svamigal.
Verses
This is the hymn of 108 names of Ucchista Ganapati (Ganesha), which worships Him as the wish-fulfilling tree (Kalpavriksha) for devotees, the beloved son of Mother Parvati, the creator and destroyer of the universe, the Lord of the six chakras, and the Supreme Deity of Tantra and Mantra.
Devout recitation of this hymn removes all obstacles and leads to liberation.
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
This hymn is a namavali, a litany of 108 names, each addressed to Ucchishta Ganapati. The word ucchishta means what is left over, and in Tantric worship it names a particular form of Ganesha. The Tantras and the yogic traditions are the world of this hymn. Its names speak of mantras, yantras and the subtle centres of the body, but they also praise Ganesha as the lord who protects devotees in danger and grants what they sincerely seek. The Sanskrit Documents edition closes with a colophon naming the author as the ascetic Sri Ramanandendra Sarasvati Svamigal, with the place and year Shantashrama, Thanjavur, 1959. That is the only attribution the text gives, and it is the one repeated here. Each of the 108 names ends in the same refrain, namo namah, so the hymn is chanted as a steady rhythm of salutations. Because it belongs to a specialised Tantric path, it is traditionally taken up under the guidance of a teacher.
Did You Know?
One refrain, 108 names
Every name opens with Om and closes with namo namah Om, and the Sanskrit Documents text numbers them from 1 to 108. The final name, number 108, is Ucchishta-gananatha, Mahesha, the Lord of the Ganas and the Great Lord.
Stories in the names
Name 29 recalls the tusk broken to write the Bharata, the Mahabharata, and name 32 says Bana, Ravana and Chandisha worshipped him. Name 40 says he played with the peak of Mount Kailasa as a ball, and name 82 mentions Matanga's daughter as his consort.
Healer and protector
Name 19 calls him the one who calms diseases such as leprosy, name 20 the one who stills the speech of hostile debaters, and name 21 the destroyer of harmful rites aimed at devotees. Name 22 promises liberation from a single recitation of his mantra with meditation.
Mantras and yantra
Names 84 to 92 speak of the six-cornered yantra seat, a mantra of ninety-four letters, and seed syllables such as hum, gam, klam and glam, and name 91 mentions a mantra of thirty-two letters. This is the Tantric heart of the hymn.
A journey up the body
Names 95 to 107 rise through the subtle body, from the root centre (muladhara) and the four-petalled lotus, through the sushumna channel and the space between the brows, up to the thousand-petalled sahasrara. The final names go beyond sound and point (nada and bindu), where the mind is stilled.
Ganesh
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