JAYA—glory to, victory to. [bad word] spiritual teacher. OMKARA—the sacred syllable Om. [bad word] the [bad word] Guru, who removes ignorance and leads the seeker toward liberation. BRAHMA—the Creator, the first god of the Hindu trinity. VISNU—the Preserver, the second god of the Hindu trinity. SADA SIVA—eternal Shiva. Shiva is the Destroyer/Deliverer, the third god of the Hindu trinity. HARA— the Remover , the Destroyer. MAHADEVA—the Great Lord.

In Hinduism, Om is the sacred syllable, a symbol for the Infinite. It is considered to be the original sound that produced all manifestation. The Katha Upanishad describes Om as “the goal which all the Vedas declare….This syllable is the Highest. Whosoever knows this syllable obtains all that he desires. This is the best support; this is the highest support.”

This bhajan honors the Hindu trinity, or trimurti, of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva represent the divine functions of Creator, Preserver and Destroyer respectively. They are the three manifestations of the One Supreme Being, Brahman.

In one text, Brahma describes himself as “the creator of the worlds, the self-existent, the great-grandfather.” He is depicted with four heads facing in all four directions, symbolizing that he has created the entire universe.

Vishnu is the preserver and guardian of the dharma. In Hinduism, dharma is law, principle, and one’s duty or reason for being.

 Shiva, the third member of the Hindu trimurti, is the destroyer or dissolver, the one who transmutes and transforms. He liberates the soul by destroying ignorance, hatred, worldliness, disease, demons, evil and evildoers.