MAHA CALISA (Chalisa) SAMGRAHA

A Calisa is essentially a hymn of forty verses; it is a paean to the various incarnations of Visnu and to the deities with tutelary powers, some of whom are goddesses. An entire new feature in this anthology is the insertion of popular Aratis with which religious ceremonies generally end. An Arati is known to be a prayer sung individually or in groups of people present on a ceremonial occasion. These Calisas and Aratis are spiritual songs which are now an inseparable part of our folk culture. They have been the strength and stay of god's people in the Hindi-speaking world and are sung alike in moments of grief and joy.

In this compilation the text, first in Devanagari and then in Roman transliteration with diacritical marks, is followed by the Hindi and English translation in prose. Where the exact English equivalent of a Hindi word is not available the latter has been retained with an explanation within brackets following it or in a footnote.

**Contents and Sample Pages**