Gayatri Mantra
The Gayatri Mantra is a short prayer to the Sun. It says: we hold the beautiful light of the Sun in our minds. May that light brighten our thinking and guide our thoughts the right way. Think of the sun as a flashlight, shining on the whole world so we can see. The prayer asks for that same light inside our heads — so we can think clearly, learn well, and choose what is good.
Meaning
Om — the sound of everything, the hum the whole universe makes.
The earth under our feet. The sky above us. And the shining heaven beyond the sky.
The whole verse, with the deeper layer →Meaning
That light — the most beautiful light there is — the shining light of Savitr, the Sun, who wakes up the whole world every morning.
We meditate on that light. We hold it in our minds.
May it light up our thinking, and guide our thoughts the right way.
The whole verse, with the deeper layer →One short verse, in two movements. The first names a light: the most beautiful light there is, the light of Savitr, the Sun — and we take it into our minds. The second turns and asks: may he light up our thinking. Light first, then mind. Taking the light in and having our thinking brightened are two halves of one movement, not two separate wishes.
Read the full commentary →