Stotra

Stotra (Sanskrit: स्तोत्र) is a Sanskrit word that means "ode, eulogy or a hymn of praise."^[1]^[2] It is a literary genre of Indian religious texts designed to be melodically sung, in contrast to a shastra which is composed to be recited.^[1]

A stotra can be a prayer, a description, or a conversation, but always with a poetic structure. It may be a simple poem expressing praise and personal devotion to a deity for example, or poems with embedded spiritual and philosophical doctrines.^[3]

A common feature of most stotras other than Nama stotras is the repetition of a line at the end of every verse. For example, the last line of every verse in the Mahiṣāsura Mardinī Stotra ends in "Jaya Jaya Hē Mahiṣāsura-mardini Ramyakapardini śailasute."

Many stotra hymns praise aspects of the divine, such as Devi, Shiva, or Vishnu. Relating to word "stuti", coming from the same Sanskrit root *stu- ("to praise"), and basically both mean "praise". Notable stotras are Shiva Tandava Stotram in praise of Shiva and Rama Raksha Stotra, a prayer for protection to Rama.

Stotras are a type of popular devotional literature. Among the early texts with Stotras are by Kuresha,^{[clarification needed]} which combine Ramanuja's Vedantic ideas on qualified monism about Atman and Brahman (ultimate, unchanging reality), with temple practices.^[3]

^ ^a ^b Monier Williams, Monier Williams' Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Article on Stotra
^ Apte 1965, p. 1005.
^ ^a ^b Cite error: The named reference Nayar1992 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[monierwilliamsstotra-1] Monier Williams, Monier Williams' Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Article on Stotra

[FOOTNOTEApte19651005-2] Apte 1965, p. 1005.

[Nayar1992-3] Cite error: The named reference Nayar1992 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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