The Gayatri Mantra

The most revered mantra in Hinduism is the Gayatri mantra. Said to be composed and written long ago by a sage by the name of Vishwamitra, the mantra is personified by the goddess Gayatri, or Savitri also known as Veda Mata (mother of the Vedas, the Vedas are the holy scriptures of the Hindu religion). This mantra is taken from the Rig Veda (the Vedas are four in number the Rig, Yajur, Atharva, and Sama, in chronological order) and is considered to be the essence of the Vedas. It is a sacred prayer to illuminate the universe and describes the unity of the multiform universe. The mantra is indicative of meditation, praise and prayer at the same time. The reigning deity of the Gayatri mantra is the Sun and the scriptures enjoin the Hindus to recite it morning noon and night to cancel out evil and bad tendencies.

While praising the Supreme Being, the chanter of the mantra meditates and prays for the rise of real intelligence within to understand creation and transcend the worldly preoccupations and attain union with the Brahman (otherwise known as nirvana or Moksha).


The Gayatri mantra is as follows:

Aum Bhurbuvaswaha
Tat Savitur Varenyam
Bhargo Devasya Dheemahi
Dheeyoyonah Prachodayat

The meaning of each word in the mantra:

The first 3 lines or the first nine words describe the nature of the supreme being

Aum: The sacred symbol which is said to describe the heavens in totality

Bhurbuvaswaha: This is the compound of the following three words
• Bhuh: The earth or the physical plane of existence;
• Bhuva: The atmosphere or the ethereal or the astral plane of existence;
• Swaha: Heaven or the celestial or the causal plane of existence;

Tat: It means “that”. The supreme being is simply referred to as “that” for it evades all attempts at explanation;

Savitur: The divine powers of the sun; equated to Savitri, one of the forms of the mother goddess;

Varenyam: The best

Bhargo: Radiance, Effulgence, Illumination;

Devasya: Divine Radiance or Grace (of the supreme being)

The rest of the verse (the last line) constitutes the prayer:

Dheemahi: We contemplate or meditate upon

Dheeyoyonah: This is the compound of the following three words
• Dheeyo: The intellect
• Yo: Who
• Nah: Our

Prachodayat: Requesting, Urging Praying.

English verse form:
Aum;
We meditate on heaven, sky and earth
On the supreme spirit
Whose divine radiance and grace
Like the sun are most excellent
Constantly urging and praying
To guide and impel our intellect


The first line starts with Aum which is the sacred syllable or word as a benedictory prelude and sanction. Scientists world over have associated this age old Hindu belief that this is the sound of the universes with the background radiation that is picked up by radio telescopes. They have speculated that this might be the remnant of the big bang. Bhurbuvaswaha refers to the three planes of existence- the physical, astral and celestial.

The second and third lines describe the Brahman supreme spirit and it various attributes and qualities. It invokes the supreme spirit as an embodiment of knowledge and light. The fourth line implores the Brahma- the supreme spirit to guide, impel and enlighten us as humans.