Gayatri Mantra And Its Importance For Human Beings

Gayatri Mantra Jaap is nowadays is a common practice among the people who follow Hindu religion and who practice the Hindu religious karmakand on daily basis. Even being used so extensively in the religious practices, little do people know about the importance, meaning and origin of this mantra.

Gayatri Mantram is the chief mantra in the Hindu mythological epics which is based on the ultimate wisdom and belief. The meaning of this mantra is "May the supreme God enlighten our minds to guide us towards the just path". The mantra is also a request to the "provider of light and life" - the sun (savitur).

Oh God! You are the provider of Life, Eliminator of pain and grief,

The giver of joy, Oh! Creator of the world,

May we obtain your supreme fault-demolishing radiance,

May you direct our minds towards the true path.

Gayatri, the Goddess with five faces is known for having an authority over our the five senses, and she shields these five inner self of those who recite the Gayatri Mantra on a daily basis. She is also known as Savitri for her role as the protector of these five senses and the humanity.

Root of the Gayatri Mantra

According to the Hindu belief system, the four Vedas are generally considered to be the foundation of all true knowledge. The word "Veda" itself means "Knowledge". It is given by Goddess Gayatri Devi to the mankind and is hence known as "Gayatri Mantra", "Guru Mantra" or the "Savitri Mantra". Gayatri Mantra is known to be as the most powerful and the oldest mantra amongst all the mantras and is therefore sometimes referred as "the mother of the Vedas"

It is mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita that Lord Krishna once declared to Arjuna that - "Among all the mantras, I am the Gayatri".

Reciting the Gayatri Mantram

The perfect moments for reciting the mantra are three times a day - at sunrise, noon, and at twilight. These times are also called as the three sandhyas - morning, mid-day and evening. The utmost advantage of chanting the mantra is said to be attained by reciting the mantra 108 times. Though, you may chant the mantra for 3, 9, or 18 times when you are short of the time.

Sages and munis have picked the words from the Gayatri Mantra and organized them in a way so that they not only express the meaning, but also make precise power of virtuous knowledge through their speech. Gayatri Mantra benefits

• Reciting it eradicates all barriers in our path to raised wisdom and spiritual development and progress. The lessons and powers included in the Mantra accomplish this intention. True knowledge starts materializing shortly after the Gayatri Mantra Jap is performed.

Significance of Gayatri Mantra

The Gayatri Mantra holds an exclusive position as it has both the power of mantra and of prayer. This mantra may be eloquent or incoherent, or a blend of them, as with AUM. It has an intrinsic power, called as "Mantra shakti", which has an optimistic effect but simply due to its chanting only. The Gayatri mantram has both an inherent power through its simple chanting only and also an influential power, which is obtained from the perception of its meaning and philosophical importance. Therefore, the repetitive and correct recitation of the Gayatri Mantra, with proper understanding of its meaning, is considered to be of the utmost good to the individual.