The gayatri mantra is one of the most popular Vedic hymns. It is a poetic meter (Rig-Veda, tenth mantra in the 62nd sutra of the third mandal). The meter consists of 24 syllables (letters), three lines of eight syllables each. Any hymn composed in this meter is called gayatri. The meter is also found in other Vedas though originally contained in Rig-Veda.(see Yajurveda-22/9, 30/2,36/3;Samveda 1462)
Since gayathri mantra is a hymn composed in a meter as given above and this meter is present in Rig, Sama and Yajurveda vedas, is the gayathri mantra different for these three vedas? Can the members please clarify this?
As far as I know, the gAyatri mantra is the same for all vEdas. But, I think it is chanted differently depending on the vEda. The sAmavEdIya chanting sounds more like the sAma gAnam while the rig and yajur vEdiya recitations use just the chandas.
The 'gAyatri mantra' is one of various mantras composed in the chandas or metre called 'gAyatri'.
Gayatri is a mantra. 'mananaat trAyatE iti mantraH' (it protects through meditation). In other word Gayatri should be contemplated silently thinking inwards. It loses its potency if chanted loud or sung with any raga Only time Gayatri is chanted loud is during the Ahuti in the yagna when it should be intonated in the Sama fashion and also as per the 'ghana pAThaM'.
cmlover wrote:Only time Gayatri is chanted loud is during the Ahuti in the yagna when it should be intonated in the Sama fashion and also as per the 'ghana pAThaM'.
Just check 'MantrapuShpaM' (RamkrriShNa MaTh publication) page 338.
This is a benedictory verse and not for regular japam !
The AhUti (invocation) sAma gaanam is given in page 345. It ought to be learned from a guru with the exact intonation.
I had heard some where-'gAyantam trAyathi ithi gAyathri'- gAyatri protects the one who sings it-of course by'singing' what is meant is saying it in the proper 'chandas'-am I right?
ghanam (recited in the pattern 12-21-123-321-123-23-32-.....)
When they add four the remove 1 and do this recitation in the set of 3. This is a easy way to repeat the words and this system is so powerful that i kept our Vedas and Upanishads alive thousands of years.
No problem singign gAyatri but you may get a negative effect. The name gAyatri certainly comes from the name of the Chandas. The common statement gAyantam trAyatE iti gAyatri is just made-up to indicate the protective effect and the dhatu 'gai shabdE' has no relevance here,
I remember sri anantarAma dikshitar saying in one of his upanyAsams that while chanting other mantras protects the person who chants, chanting gAyatri protects all the worlds.
na gAyatryAH parO mantraH na mAtu daivatam param
There is no mantra superior to gAyatri, neither is there a form of God superior to one's mother
This is probably why gAyatri is always personified as a mother.
Last edited by karthik76 on 21 Mar 2008, 11:10, edited 1 time in total.
The purpose of sandhya vandanam by brahmins is primarily to protect the world. The mantras are invoked to protect sUrya (savit^Ru) who is the life-giver of the universe. And gayatri is the primary mantra used to energize sUrya and she (as the female energy principle) occupies the centre stage. The invocation to gayatri 'AyAtu varadA dEvI...etc' goes to say gAyatrIM chandasAM mAtA...(to gAyatrI the mother of the vedas..)
Let us look at it carefully. The word chandas denoting vedas is derived as
chandayati + asun ( i.e., the asu pratyaya is added to the chand dhatu)
'chad AcchAdanE' is the dhatu meaning 'to cover/envelop/protect/...'
'asu' independent of being a pratyaya means breath/prANa/life/... In other words chandas in the context of gAyatrI is the protection of the life/prANic energy of the universe.
Of course meditation/investigation of that ultimate source of energy for planet earth viz., Sun is the ultimate eco-consciousness that is enjoined by the vedas as a daily ritual for the 'intelligentia' of the human society...
It does give the technique of what is very blithely called vEdic prANAyAmA these days (even in the scientific community). Can someone experienced please take a look at the explanation of the technique and comment?
I found that the NHLBI is supporting clinical trials on the use of controlled breathing (plain 'prANAyAma') to improve lung function in patients with asthma when I was browsing through the CRISP database recently. I wonder how a study like that will be double-blinded. It certainly can't be placebo controlled!
Shankar
There are thousand ways of performing prANAyAma each claiming theirs is the best and authentic. I have yet to see a controlled clinical Trial. Years ago I tried to persuade Maharshi University (IOWA) to conduct one but they wanted me to get the funding from NIH wwhich of course I couldn't. I agree it cannot be a double-blind. At any rate intuitively controlled breathing is better than ordinary breathing as it makes clinical sense. We have to measure the OT and other blood parameters to evaluate the physiological efficiency. Perhaps ICMR should take some interest. But you are right in askng which prANAyAma is the best!
Below is from the discourse of Swami Paramarthananda Saraswati.
The chandas for regular gayatri japa (in sandhyavandanam) is 'nichrut gayatri' which is one syllable short of 'gayatri' chandas. This is due to pronounciation of "varenyam" in the part "....tat savitur varenyam ......." (3 syllables va-re-nyam). For gayatri chandas, this has to be pronounced as 'vareniyam' (4 syllables va-re-ni-yam) which is done for yajnas/homas.
The shloka before chanting the gayatri mantra also confirms this
'......... Saavitria Rishi: Viswamitra:, nichruth Gayatri chanda: Savita Devata, Gayatri jape viniyogah :'
Agree with CML's point that the gayatri should not be chanted loudly (during sandhyavandanam). However, the process of meditating on the gayatri mantra is not applicable during sandhyavandanam and only silent chanting of the mantra is intended.
I am in the process of transcribing the talks of Swamiji, shall share with the forum when done.
Gayatri ought to be chanted as 'varENyaM' only during the japa since the chandas explicitly stated during the invocation is 'nic^Rit gAyatrI'. Only during the 'arghyapradaanam' (where the chandas is not stated) one should say varENiyaM. That is done in accordance with saama vEdam.
The chandas is vital and should be respected while reciting vedic mantras.
Gayathri refers to a meter. There are several devatha gayathris-i.e mantras for several devatas in the Gayathri meter. The most famous of those is the one on Savitha as "discovered" or meditated upon my Sage Vishvamitra. It is on either Gayathri as a Veda maatha or in praise of Savithr (sun god) and is the most famous. Hence Gayathri as a mantra generally refers to this mantra. But there are other Devata Gayathris as well. There is a good list in the MahaNaarayanopanishad (Ramakrishna Mutt has a good publication). Some of the famous Gayathris are:
Only time Gayatri is chanted loud is during the Ahuti in the yagna when it should be intonated in the Sama fashion and also as per the 'ghana pAThaM'.