Gayatri Mantra: The Mother of the Veda

Gayatri is the personification of the Gayatra Sanskrit mantra. Gaa translates to mean “to sing or recite” and Yatra means “protection.” Therefore “Gayatri” is a mantra for divine protection and guidance.

Gayatri and the mantra that she personifies are considered the mother of all Vedas. She is also the ultimate unchanging reality that lies behind all phenomena. She is Supreme Consciousness in the goddess form.

Gayatri is the feminine form of the Trimurti and therefore represents all aspects of Creation. She is then also Shakti in all her forms. The Gayatri Mantra, also known as the “Guru Mantra” or the “Savitri Mantra” is found in the Vedas. The Vedas are widely considered to be the source of all true knowledge; the word “Veda” itself means “Knowledge.” This mantra is one of the oldest mantras and generally thought of as being amongst the highest and most powerful mantras of all. When we chant Gayatri we are asking the Divine Light of Universal Grace to bestow us with the Veda.

Chanting of Gayatri Mantra removes all obstacles in our path to increase intellect, wisdom and spiritual growth

Om bhur bhuvah svaha
Tat saviturn varenyam
Bhargo devasya dheemahi

OM. Let us contemplate the wondrous glory of Divine Light, which illuminates our bodies, hearts, and minds.

Anusara Invocation

Om Namah Shivaya Gurave
Saccidenanda Murtaye
Nischprapanchaya Shantaya
Niralambaya Tejase

I bow to the goodness within myself,
known as Shiva, who is the true teacher.
This essence inside takes
the form of truth, consciousness, and bliss
always present and full of peace,
this essence inside is completely free,
and sparkles with divine luster.

Om

Almost all yoga classes at YBB will begin and end with the chanting of OM. Om or Aum is of paramount importance in Hinduism. This symbol is a sacred syllable representing Brahman, the impersonal Absolute of Hinduism — omnipotent, omnipresent, and the source of all manifest existence. Brahman, in itself, is incomprehensible; so a symbol becomes mandatory to help us realize the Unknowable. Om, therefore, represents both the unmanifest (nirguna) and manifest (saguna) aspects of God. That is why it is called pranava, to mean that it pervades life and runs through our prana or breath.

During meditation, when we chant Om, we create within ourselves a vibration that attunes sympathy with the cosmic vibration and we start thinking universally. The momentary silence between each chant becomes palpable. Mind moves between the opposites of sound and silence until, at last, it ceases the sound. In the silence, the single thought—Om—is quenched; there is no thought. This is the state of trance, where the mind and the intellect are transcended as the individual self merges with the Infinite Self in the pious moment of realization. It is a moment when the petty worldly affairs are lost in the desire for the universal. Such is the immeasurable power of Om.