A Shift from the Ordinary
I’ve noticed that lately my posts have taken on a more political nature in their content. I know that for many politics is something they’d rather not think about, and for good reason. I find myself growing increasingly apathetic about politics, because it really becomes apparent that when one discusses politics it is the “same shit, different day.” While I have and still am fascinated by political philosophy, I’m going to try and supress the urge to write about actual politics for awhile, out of a concern for my own sanity.
With that being said, I decided to write about something that has been on my mind a lot over the last week. Its something that I’ve consistently found to enter my life at certain points, and often when I need it the most.
A few years ago, during my intense period of self-exploration while in college (which is most likely the best thing I’ve yet to find to have come out of my time at RPI, aside from the wonderful friends I made on my journey), I seriously started studying Indian philosophy; Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and so on. It was this period as well where I discovered my intense love for the Sanskrit language, and while my numerous attempts at learning it have been met with little success thus far, I never fail to be amazed by the beauty and the elegance of the language. It is one of my dreams that eventually I can become fluent in the language, and learn to appreciate the poetic nature of it to the fullest extent.
What I wanted to discuss tonight, however, was the Gayatri Mantra in particular. The Gayatri mantra holds a very important place in Hinduism and has its origins in the Vedas. What’s fascinating about the Gayatri mantra is that, for the most part, it is extremely agnostic about religion. Yet, the illuminating beauty of the verse is enough to inspire a sense of tranquility and calmness when you listen or recite it.
The Gayatri mantra, in Sanksrit, is as follows:
ॐ भूर्भुवः स्वः ।
तत् सवितुर्वरेण्यं ।
भर्गो देवस्य धीमहि ।
धियो यो नः प्रचोदयात् ॥
And in IAST format, it is read as:
oṃ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ
tat savitur vareṇyaṃ
bhargo devasya dhīmahi
dhiyo yo naḥ pracodayāt
I’m going to give a rough translation based on the translations of the verse I’ve read about. To start off, oṃ or ॐ always proceeds the rest of the mantra. Aum is a highly sacred symbol within the Hindu religion. I won’t go indepth as to its meaning, but will say this: The symbol of Aum represents the unity and singularity of the creative Consciousness of the universe, that is, Brahman. It implies the creation, maintenance, and eventual destruction of the universe.
The next part of the mantra, “bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ” represents the physical, mental, and spiritual worlds respectively. You may also say that it is the physical, the astral, and the celestial worlds. We are then lead into “tat savitur vareṇyaṃ”. Tat refers to “That”, with an emphasis on the capitalization of the word. It is the Essence, the very highest (varenyam) that luminates the universe (savitur).
This illuminating Essence, which removes obstacles, pain and sorrow (bhargo), is Divine (devasya) and the bestower of happiness and wisdom, and we meditate (dhimahi) upon It. May Our (nah) intellect (Dhiyo), be inspired (prachodayat) by the Creator.
The literal translation, and I have taken the one made by Swami Vivekananda (1), is as follows:
“We meditate on the glory of that Being who has produced this universe; may He enlighten our minds.”
Other variations of this translation exist, though the essence of its meaning is preserved. The beauty of Sanskrit is the extraordinary poetic nature of it, and thus translating something like the Gayatri Mantra into English results in several slight variations.
I hope that you, as I have, can appreciate the beauty of this mantra. As I stated, this mantra is extremely agnostic in its statement, which I think contributes even more to its phenomenal power. I’ve included an embedded video of the Gayatri Mantra being sung by Deva Premal, which still remains as one of my favorite renditions of the mantra in song.
Enjoy!
Om Shanti Shanti Shanti
Footnotes:
(1) – Vivekananda, Swami (1915). The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda. Advaita Ashram. pp. 211.
