Gayatri

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For Gayatri metre, see Vedic metre.
For other uses, see Gayatri (disambiguation).
Gayatri
Mother of the Vedas
Sadashiva (according to Shaivism)[3][4]

Gayatri (

Vedic texts.[5] She is also known as Savitri, and holds the title of Vedamata ('mother of the Vedas'). Gayatri is the manifestation of Saraswati and is often associated with Savitṛ, a solar deity in the Vedas, and her consort in the Puranas is the creator god Brahma.[6][7][8]
Gayatri is also an epithet for the various goddesses and she is also identified as "Supreme pure consciousness".[9]

Origin

Gayatri was the name initially applied to a metre of the

Rig Veda consisting of 24 syllables.[10] In particular, it refers to the Gayatri Mantra and the Goddess Gāyatrī as that mantra personified. The Gayatri mantra composed in this triplet form is the most famous. Most of the scholars identify Gayatri as the feminine form of Gayatra, another name of the Vedic Solar god which is also one of the synonyms of Savitri and Savitṛ.[11]

According to the

Abhira girl who helped Brahma in a Yajna performed in Pushkara.[12][13][14]

Iconography

A modern depiction of goddess Gayatri

Early bronze images of Gayatri appear in the

Nandi. Modern depictions illustrates swan
as her mount. Old iconography of Shaivite Manonmani Gayatri was misunderstood as the same of Brahmanic Gayatri later and paintings of Gayatri appears from 18th century CE in which she is often portrayed with third eye, crescent moon and five heads with five different colors same like Sadasiva.

The well known form of Gayatri (Parvati) with the Saivite influence appears having five heads (Mukta, Vidruma, Hema, Neela, Dhavala) with the ten eyes looking in eight directions plus the earth and sky, and ten arms holding various types of weapons attributed to Shiva, Vishnu, and Brahma. Another recent depiction is accompanied by a white swan holding a book to portray knowledge in one hand and a cure in the other, as the goddess of learning.[17] She is also depicted four-armed, seated on a swan, holding weapons symbolising the Trimurti: The Vedas of Brahma, the discus of Vishnu, the trident of Shiva, and Varada mudra.

She also has an fearsome three-faced depiction; two faces look like that of goddess

lotus
holding lotus, noose, trident, Scimitar and vard mudra in right whereas conch, discus, bow-arrow, goad and abhaya mudra in left.

Associations

In

Viswamitra (Sanskrit: सान्ख्यायनस गोत्रा, sānkhyāyanasa gotrā), composed of 24 letters (Sanskrit: चतुर्विंशत्यक्षरा, caturviṃśatyakṣarā), three-footed (Sanskrit: त्रिपदा, tripadā), six-bellied (Sanskrit: षट्कुक्षिः, ṣaṭkukṣiḥ), five-headed (Sanskrit: पञ्चशीर्षः, pañcaśīrṣaḥ) and the one used in Upanayana of dvijas (Sanskrit: उपनयने विनियोगः, upanayane viniyogaḥ).[18]

As mentioned in Taittiriya Sandhya Bhashyam, the three feet of Gayatri is supposed to represent the first 3 vedas (Ṛk, Yajus, Sāma). The six bellies are supposed to represent 4 cardinal directions, along with the two more directions, Ūrdhva (

jyotiṣa.[19]

By citing from Gayatri Tantra, the text Mantramahārṇava gives the significance of Gayatri's 24 letters and its representation that are given below.[20]

24 Letters of Gayatri mantra

Gayatri mantra has 24 letters. That is why it called as gāyatrī caturviṃśatyakṣarā (Sanskrit: गायत्री चतुर्विंशत्यक्षरा). They are 1.tat, 2.sa, 3.vi, 4.tur, 5.va, 6.re, 7.ṇi, 8.yaṃ, 9.bhar, 10,go, 11.de, 12.va, 13.sya, 14.dhī, 15.ma, 16.hi, 17.dhi, 18.yo, 19.yo, 20.naḥ, 21.pra, 22.cho 23.da and 24.yāt.

When counting the letters, the word vareṇyam is treated as vareṇiyam. But, while chanting, it ought to be chanted as vareṇyam only.

24
Rishis
of Gayatri

The 24 Letters of Gayatri mantra represents 24 Vedic Rishis. They are: 1.

kaśyapa
.

24
Meters
of Gayatri

The 24 Letters of Gayatri mantra represent 24 Vedic Meters (i.e.

triṣṭubh
, 7.jagati, 8.atijagati, 9.śakvari, 10.atiśakvari, 11.dhṛti, 12.atidhṛti, 13.virāṭ, 14.prastārapaṃkti, 15.kṛti, 16.prakṛti, 17.akṛti, 18.vikṛti, 19.saṃskṛti, 20.akṣarapaṃkti, 21.bhūḥ, 22.bhuvaḥ, 23.swaḥ, 24.jyotiṣmati.

24 Vedic
Devatas
of Gayatri

The 24 Letters of Gayatri mantra represent 24 Vedic Devatas. They are: 1.

aśvins

The

viṣṇu.[21]

The Yoga yājñavalkya mentions 24 Devatas for each of the 24 letters of

aśvins and 24.brahma.[22]

24 Śaktis of Gayatri

The 24 Letters of Gayatri mantra represent 24

Śaktis. They are: 1.vāmadevī, 2.priyā, 3.satyā, 4.viśwabhadrā,[note 2] 5.vilāsinī,[note 3] 6.prabhāvatī, 7.jayā, 8.śantā, 9.kāntā, 10.durgā, 11.saraswatī, 12.vidrumā, 13.viśālesā,[note 4] 14.vyāpinī, 15.vimalā, 16.tamopahārini, 17.sūkṣmā, 18.viśwayoni 19.jayā,[note 5] 20.vaśā, 21.padmālayā, 22.parāśobhā,[note 6]
23.bhadrā, and 24. tripadā.

24 Tattvas of Gayatri

Main article: Tattva (Shaivism) § Twenty-four impure tattvas
See also: Prana § Vāyus

The 24 Letters of Gayatri mantra represent 24 Tattvas.[23] They are

  1. Five
    Bhūtas
    , namely, pṛthivi (Earth), apas (Water), agni (Fire), vāyu (Air) and ākāśa (Sky).
  2. Five Tanmātras, namely, gandha (smell), rasa (taste), rūpa (form), sparśa (touch) and śabda (sound).
  3. Five Karmendriyas (i.e. motor organs), namely, upasthā (sexual organ), pāyu (anus), pāda (leg), pāni (hand) and vāk (mouth).
  4. Five Jñānendriyas (i.e. sense organs), namely, ghrāna (nose), jihvā (tongue), caksus (eye), tvak (skin) and śrotra (ear).
  5. Four Vāyus (air), namely, Prāṇa, Apāna, Vyāna and Samāna

However, in classical definition of 24 tattvas, the last four are the antahkaranas (i.e. sense organs), namely, manas (mind), buddhi (intellect), citta (state of mind) and ahaṅkāra (ego).

The Mudras of Gayatri

Main article: mudra
See also:
Sandhyāvandanam

The Gayatri mantra represents some mahāmudras (great hand gestures). They are 1. sumukha,[note 7] 2. sampuṭa, 3. vitata, 4. visṛta, 5. dvimukha, 6. trimukha, 7. catuḥ, 8. pañcamukha, 9. ṣaṇmukha, 10. adhomukha, 11. vyāpakāñjali, 12. śakaṭa, 13. yamapāśa, 14. grathita, 15. sanmukhonmukha, 16. vilamba,[note 8] 17. muṣtika, 18. matsya, 19. kūrmah 20. varāhaka, 21. simhākrānta, 22. mahākrānta, 23. mudgara, 24. pallava, 25. triśūla, 26. yoni, 27. surabhi, 28. akṣamāla, 29. linga, 30. ambuja.[clarification needed]

Since, the first 24 are used before Gayatri Japa, they are traditionally referred as Pūrva Mudras.

Legends

In some Puranas, Gayatri is said to be the other names of

Sarasvati, the wife of Brahma.[24] According to the Matsya Purana, Brahma's left half emerged as a female, who is celebrated under the names of Sarasvati, Savitri, and Gayatri.[25] In Kurma Purana, Gautama rishi was blessed by Goddess Gayatri and able to eliminate the obstacles he faced in his life. The Skanda Purana writes that Gayatri is married to Brahma, making her a form of Saraswati.[26]

A few Puranic scriptures say that Gayatri is distinct from Sarawati and is married to Brahma. According to the

Abhira girl who helps Brahma in the performance of yajna in Pushkara.[27][14][13]

According to some texts, Brahma's first wife is Savitri, and Gayatri is the second. The story goes that Savitri became angry knowing the wedding of Gayatri with Brahma, and cursed all the gods and goddesses engaged in the event.[28][10]

However, the Padma Purana narrates the same story with some modifications. After Savitri was appeased by Brahma, Vishnu, and Lakshmi, She accepts Gayatri, an Abhira as her sister happily.[29][13]

Gayatri further developed into a fierce goddess who could even slay a demon. According to

Vetravati, on a Navami day.[30][31]

Shaivism

Adi Parashakti.[37]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Gayatri, Gāyatrī, Gāyatri: 28 definitions". 29 June 2012.
  2. ^ Ludo Rocher (1988). "The Purāṇas (A History of Indian Literature". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies. 51 (2): 355.
  3. ^ "गायत्री". Wilson Sanskrit-English Dictionary.
  4. ISBN 978-0-14-341421-6
    .
  5. ISBN 9780791413319. Archived
    from the original on 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  6. ^ Constance Jones, James D. Ryan (2005), Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Infobase Publishing, p.167, entry "Gayatri Mantra"
  7. ^ Roshen Dalal (2010), The Religions of India: A Concise Guide to Nine Major Faiths, Penguin Books India, p.328, entry "Savitr, god"
  8. ^ "WIL Cologne Scan".
  9. ISBN 9788120806979
    .
  10. ^
    ISBN 9788187967729. Archived
    from the original on 2016-05-14. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  11. ^ Ramachandra Rao, Saligrama Krishna (1998). R̥gveda-darśana: Gāyatri mantra. Kalpatharu Research Academy. p. 77. Archived from the original on 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  12. ^ Nambiar, K. Damodaran (1979). Nārada Purāṇa, a Critical Study. All-India Kashiraj Trust.
  13. ^
    ISBN 978-81-7081-190-9
    .
  14. ^ a b Wadia, Sophia (1969). The Aryan Path. Theosophy Company (India), Limited.
  15. ^ a b c Omacanda Hāṇḍā (1992). Śiva in art: a study of Śaiva iconography and miniatures. Indus Publication House.
  16. ^
    ISBN 9788170170372
    .
  17. ^ "Gayatri Mantra". Vedic Rishi. Vedicrishi Astro. Archived from the original on 25 February 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  18. Swami Vimalananda (2 ed.). Sri Ramakrishna Math. 1968. pp. 209–214. Archived
    (PDF) from the original on 2016-05-27. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  19. ^ Taittirīya Sandhyā Bhāṣyam, p.83, Sri Krishna Pandita, Vavilla Press (Chennai), 1916.
  20. ^ Mantramahārṇava Devikanda (Hindi), Ramkumar Rai, Prachya Prakasan (Varanasi), 2000.
  21. ^ N. A. Deshpande (1998). Padma Purana, Srishti Khanda. Vol. 2. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 1989.
  22. ^ Gāyatryanuṣṭhānatattvaprakāśikā (Telugu), M. G. Subbaraya Sastri, Sriniketana Mudraksharasala (Chennai), 1904.
  23. ^ "Tattvas – 24 Elements « TRUTH – True Understanding of the Hinduism". Archived from the original on 2020-04-08. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  24. ISBN 9788170103219. Archived
    from the original on 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  25. ISBN 9789004158146. Archived
    from the original on 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  26. ^ Kennedy, Vans (1831). Researches Into the Nature and Affinity of Ancient and Hindu Mythology by Vans Kennedy. Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown and Green. pp. 317–324.
  27. ^ Nambiar, K. Damodaran (1979). Nārada Purāṇa, a Critical Study. All-India Kashiraj Trust, 1979. p. 145.
  28. ISBN 9780143067665. Archived
    from the original on 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  29. ISBN 9781438406954. Archived
    from the original on 2020-08-20. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  30. ISBN 9788128822261
    .
  31. ISBN 9788176462969. Archived
    from the original on 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  32. ISBN 9780909038908. Archived
    from the original on 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  33. ^ CHETTY, D. GOPAUL (1923). NEW LIGHT UPON INDIAN PHILOSOPHY OR SWEDENBORG AND SAIVA SIDDHANTA. p. 52.
  34. ^ Uma Devi, Mudigonda (1990). Palkuriki Somanatha: His Contribution to Sanskrit Literature. Rasagangotri. pp. 123–183. Archived from the original on 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  35. ^ Sankaracharya (2000). Śrī Dakshināmūrti stotram: stava rajaṁ, astakam, samsmaranam and upanishat (stepping stone to Vedant). Sānkhyāyana Vidyā Parishat. pp. 6–7.
  36. ISBN 9788121511643. Archived
    from the original on 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  37. ISBN 9780895817778. Archived
    from the original on 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2019-08-20.

Notes

  1. ^ Taittirīya Araṇyaka Pariśiṣṭa 10.25
  2. ^ some texts refer to it as viśwā.
  3. ^ some texts refer to it as bhadravilāsinī.
  4. ^ some texts refer to it as two; viśālā and īsā.
  5. ^ some texts refer to it as jayāvahā.
  6. ^ some texts refer to it as padmaśobhā.
  7. ^ some texts refer to it as sanmukha
  8. ^ some texts refer to it as pralamba
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gayatri.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gayatri&oldid=1224807482"