A Sanskrit term shloka (श्लोक; also spelt sloka) specifically denotes a metered and often rhymed poetic verse or phrase. Shloka is the chief metre used in the Epics.¹It also connotes and has come to mean a proverb and a form of prayer throughout Indian religions having arisen in the Vedas. Shloka has become equated with Hindu prayer and is often comparable to a proverb and hymn of praise to be sung or chanted in liturgy. Shloka are generally composed in a specified meter, typically part of stotras. The most common form in classical (post-Vedic) poetry is the anustubh, a verse of four padas (feet), each of eight syllables. Anustubhs are the primary verse form of the Sanskrit epics, Mahabharata and Ramayana. Use of anustubhs became prevalent to the point of "shloka" often being used as a synonym of "anustubh". The traditional view is that this form of verse occurred to Valmiki, the author of the Ramayana, on seeing a hunter shoot down one of two birds in love.

See also

• Aksharaslokam
• Prayer in Hinduism
• Vedic meter
• Mantra

Notes

References

This article's citation style may be unclear. The references used may be clearer with a different or consistent style of citation, footnoting, or external linking.

• Meaning of sloka
• Dictionary of Buddhism
• A Dictionary of Hinduism, Stutley (Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers) 2002 ISBN 81 215 1074 0

External links

• A huge collection of Slokas in Audio format

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