Devi
Navarna mantra
ॐ ऐं ह्रीं क्लीं चामुण्डायै विच्चे
Oṁ Aiṁ Hrīṁ Klīṁ Cāmuṇḍāyai Vicce
Simple reading: Om aim hreem kleem chaa-mun-daa-yai vich-che
About this mantra
The nine-syllable mantra at the heart of Durga Saptashati recitation — the Mother invoked as wisdom, power, and transformation together.
Meaning
Om — Aim, Hreem, Kleem — salutations to Chamunda. Nine syllables hold the Mother's three faces at once: great wisdom, great energy, great transformation. Vicce has no single agreed translation — commentators offer 'I bow' or 'I take refuge' among others — and recitation leaves it as it is. The navarna does not petition for one thing — it invokes the whole force by which anything is overcome.
When to recite it
The Navratri mantra above all — counted through the nine nights and alongside Saptashati recitation; taken up in crisis, when the whole of one's strength is being asked.
Word by word
- ऐंaiṁ
- bīja of wisdom and speech (Mahasaraswati)
- ह्रींhrīṁ
- bīja of divine energy (Mahalakshmi)
- क्लींklīṁ
- bīja of transformation (Mahakali)
- चामुण्डायैcāmuṇḍāyai
- to Chamunda, the fierce Mother
- विच्चेvicce
- a sacred syllable of the mantra itself
Source: Durgā Saptaśatī (Devī Māhātmya) recitation tradition
Note: Given here in its commonly used form; wording can vary slightly between family and regional traditions.