Gayatri
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Gayatri (gāyatrī Sanskrit: गायत्री) is the feminine form of gāyatra, a Sanskrit word for a song or a hymn. It can be:-
- The name of a Vedic poetic meter of 24 syllables (three lines of eight syllables each), see Vedic meter.
- Any hymn composed in this meter.
- In Hinduism, it is one mantra in particular, attributed to Vishwamitra, and a goddess as its personification, considered a representation of the Parabrahman.
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Mantra
The Gayatri Mantra is the most revered mantra in Hinduism. It consists of the prefix :Template:IAST ॐ भूर्भुवस्वः, a formula taken from the Yajurveda, and the verse 3.62.10 of the Rig Veda (which is an example of the Gayatri meter). Since all the other three Vedas contain much material rearranged from the Rig Veda, the Gayatri mantra is found in all the four Vedas. The deva invoked in this mantra is Savitar, and hence the mantra is also called Sāvitrī.
Widely acclaimed in India and by Hindus, the Gāyatrī Mantra's supreme status is further enhanced by Lord Krishna's proclamation in his spiritual discourse, the Bhagavad Gita, that among the mantras he is the Gāyatrī. The Gayitri Mantra is proclaimed in the Gita as a Universal Prayer, irrespective of a person's caste, creed or sex. It is a prayer meant to protect every individual and when uttered with immense devotion and concentration will protect the person. However proper pronunciation is a must and the person is expected to be a strict vegetarianTemplate:Fact.
Text
See Sanskrit for details of pronunciation.
- In Devanagari:
- ॐ भूर्भुवस्वः ।
- तत् सवितुर्वरेण्यं ।
- भर्गो देवस्य धीमहि ।
- धियो यो नः प्रचोदयात् ॥
- In IAST
- Template:IAST
- (a) Template:IAST
- (b) Template:IAST
- (c) Template:IAST
Translation
- (a,b) "May we attain that excellent glory of Savitr the God:"
- (c) "So may he stimulate our prayers."
Word-by-word explanation (words not in exact order):-
- om The sacred sound, see Om.
- bhū 'earth'
- bhuvas 'atmosphere'
- svar 'light, heaven, space'
- dhīmahi 'may we attain' (1st person plural middle optative of dhā- 'set, bring, fix' etc.)
- tát várenyam bhárgas 'that excellent glory' (accusatives of tad (pronoun), varenya- 'desirable, excellent' and bhargas- 'radiance, lustre, splendour, glory')
- savitúr devásya 'of Savitr the god' (genitives of savitr-, 'stimulator, rouser; name of a sun-deity' and deva- 'god' or 'demi-god')
- yáḥ pracodáyāt 'who may stimulate' (nominative singular of relative pronoun yad-; causative 3rd person of pra-cud- 'set in motion, drive on, urge, impel')
- dhíyaḥ naḥ 'our prayers' (accusative plural of dhi- 'thought, meditation, devotion, prayer' and naḥ enclitic personal pronoun)
Other translations, circumlocutions and interpretations:
- "Almighty Supreme Sun impel us with your divine brilliance so we may attain a noble understanding of reality."
- "O God, Thou art the giver of life, the remover of pain and sorrow, the bestower of happiness; O Creator of the Universe, may we receive Thy supreme, sin destroying light; may Thou guide our intellect in the right direction."
- "Unveil, O Thou who givest sustenance to the Universe, from whom all proceed, to whom all must return, that face of the True Sun now hidden by a vase of golden light, that we may see the truth and do our whole duty on our journey to thy sacred seat."
- "Oh matter-energy-mind (triple universe); Upon this worthy source of divine spiritual light, meditate: thus enlighten our intellect."
- Times MusicTemplate:Fact
- "Oh, Creator of the universe! We meditate upon thy supreme splendour. May thy radiant power illuminate our intellects, destroy our sins, and guide us in the right direction."
Goddess
Originally the personification of the mantra, the goddess Gayatri is considered the veda mata, the mother of all Vedas and the consort of the God Brahma and also the personification of the all-pervading Parabrahman, the ultimate unchanging reality that lies behind all phenomena.
Gayatri is typically portrayed as seated on a red lotus, signifying wealth. She appears in either of these forms:
- Having five heads with the ten eyes looking in the eight directions plus the earth and sky, and ten arms holding all the weapons of Vishnu, symbolizing all her reincarnations.
- Accompanied by a swan, holding a book in one hand and a cure in the other, as the goddess of Education.
The Gayatri Mantra is the opening theme for the TV show Battlestar Galactica.
Further reading
- Acharya, Pt. Shriram Sharma, Gayatri Sadhana: The Truth and Distortions, pdf file, 2000
- Acharya, Pt. Shriram Sharma, The Super Science of Gayatri, pdf file, 2000