Gayatri mantra rephrased in Sloka form (Anushtubh metre)

Today is the most auspicious Nirjala Ēkādaṡī in the month of Jyēṣṭha-ṡukla. On this day, Ṡrī Gōvinda motivated my inner mind to compose a simple shloka (verse). I came across a post on bvparishat about a non-Vedic Gāyatrī mantra. Such a verse is useful for all of us who want to meditate at home, but cannot be initiated by a Vedic school. Instead of the Vedic 24-syllabic mantra, it is a 32-syllabic, Puranic-style ṡlōka composed in the Anuṣṭup chhandas.

Smārta Gāyatrī

Ajit Krishnan maintains a collection of such verses, a copy of which is in the Archive.org as well. They are attributed to various Smṛti authors such as Parāṡara, Yājn̄avalkya, etc. Some of these are very popular and practised by neo-Vedantins today.

Ṛṣi Agastya’s version:

yō dēvaḥ savitā’smākaṃ dhiyō dharmādi-gōcarāḥ
prērayēt tasya yad bhargas tad varēṇyaṃ upāsmahē

Ṛṣi Parāṡara in Bṛhat-Parāṡara-Samhitā:

dēvasya savitur bhargō varaṇīyam ca dhīmahi
tad asmākaṃ dhiyō yas tu brahmatvē ca pracōdayāt

Ṛṣi Viṡvāmitra:

dēvasya savitus tasya dhiyō yō naḥ pracōdayāt
bhargō varēṇyaṃ tad brahma dhīmahīty artha ucyatē

Bahvṛc-sandhyā-mantrārtha-dīpikā:

yaḥ sūryaḥ prērayati nō buddhīr dīptasya tasya vai
khyātaṃ svarūpaṃ dhyāyēma sēvyaṃ pāpādi-bharjakam

Nirukta-bhāṣyam (yaḥ bhargaḥ → both nominative):

dēvasya savitur madhyē yō bhargō nō dhiyaḥ svayam
pracōdayāt tat varēṇyaṃ dhīmahīty anvaya-kramaḥ

Another longer verse from the same work, in Indra-vajrā metre (11x4 = 44 syllables):

yad brahma nityaṃ hṛdi sanniviṣṭam
māṃ prērayēt tiṣṭhati naḥ subuddhiḥ
bhargas tad ākhyaṃ bhajanīyam ētat
dhyāyāmi nityaṃ ravi-maṇḍalastham

From “Gayatri Tattva Darshika” (pg. 62) of Prof. Vishvamurti Shastri:

ōṃ hṛīṃ
yō dēvaḥ savitā’smākaṃ manaḥ-prāṇēndriya-kriyāḥ
pracōdayati tad garbhaṃ varēṇyam upāsmahē

He uses garbhaṃ instead of bhargaṃ (don’t know if it’s a typo).

My ṡlōkas

I am no scholar of Sanskrit. I am a self-taught beginner. However, inspired by such ṛṣi:s, gurus and Bhagavān, I dedicate this verse to my ācārya:

वर्चो ध्यायेम देवस्य सूर्यस्यान्तःस्थ उत्तमम्
तत् प्रार्थनीयमस्माकं बुद्धीर् यः प्रेरयेत् सदा

varcō dhyāyēma dēvasya sūryasyāntaḥstha uttamam
tat prārthanīyam asmākam buddhīr yaḥ prērayēt sadā

It has the same purport as the Vedic Gāyatrī:

Let us meditate upon the Lustre of the Divine amidst the Sun. That Excellent is desirable, He who may always impel our minds.

Word for word translation:

varcaḥ – upon the light (accusative); dhyāyēma – let us meditate; dēvasya – of the Divine; sūryasya – of the Sun; antaḥsthē – in the midst (locative); uttamam – best, excellent, highest; tat – that; prārthanīyam – to be desired for or prayed; yaḥ – he who; prērayēt – may impel; asmākam – our; buddhīḥ – minds; sadā – always.

Here is a mapping from the Gāyatrī to the above:

tat → tat
savitur → sūryasya (masc.)
varēṇyam → prārthanīyam uttamam (accusative case)
dēvasya → dēvasya (masc. or neut. both work)
dhīmahi → dhyāyēma (√dhyai potential-mood first person pl.)
dhiyaḥ → buddhīḥ (nominative plural)
yō (yaḥ) → yaḥ
naḥ → asmākam
pracōdayāt → prērayēt (√prēr class 2. ātmanēpada, prērayati causative class 10 parasmaipada)

“Sadā” emphasises “always”. The words “sūryasya antaḥsthē” denotes the one “in the midst of the Sun”, Ṡrīman Nārāyaṇa.

Varcas means vigour but it especially denotes the illuminating power of the sun, its brilliance, lustre or light.
Varēṇya has the primary sense of “being desirable”, and secondly the sense of “most excellent”. These are hence transformed as “prārthanīyam” (prārthyam, bhajanīyam, ṡaraṇīyam, sēvanīyam, varaṇīyam, vananīyam, vēnyam, spṛhyam, spṛhaṇīyam, kāmyam, īpsitam) and “uttamam” respectively. Additionally, “prārthanīyam” means “worshipable”.
Phrase naḥ dhiyaḥ (“our minds”) is in the plural. Hence “buddhīḥ” instead of “buddhiḥ”. Amarakōṡa 1.5.316 lists buddhi and mati as a synonyms for dhī (all feminine). (buddhir-manīṣā dhiṣaṇā dhīḥ prajñā ṡēmuṣī matiḥ atha dhīvargaḥ).
Similarly “dhīmahi” is related to dhyāna. Dhyāyēma √dhyai or cintayēma √cint both mean “may we think or reflect upon”.
It is in the locative (“sūryasya antaḥsthē”) following the example of “savitur madhyē” in Nirukta-bhāṣyam (see above). After sandhi with the following word, “antaḥsthē” becomes “antaḥstha”. It can also be “sūryasya antaḥstham uttamam” following the example of “antaḥstham yasya viṡvam” in the Ṡrī Viṣṇu Sahasranāma.

The dictionary lists both words, “bhargas” (neuter) and “bharga” (masculine). Most commentators take it to be in the neuter gender (sa-kārānta). Similarly “varcas” (neuter) is the most common usage[1]. “Varcasa” (neuter) is more frequent than “varcas”. However, “varca” (masc.) is rarely used, only as a personal name but not as a common noun.

The same verse retaining many words of the Vedic Gayatri:

bhargō dēvasya dhyāyema savitur madhya uttamam
tad varaṇīyam asmākaṃ buddhīr yaḥ prērayēt sadā

(madhyē becomes madhya after sandhi.)

Gāyatrī as Viṣṇu-vācaka

The above one is abstract; it doesn’t reflect the various shades of meaning. Consider this translation by Swami Dayananda Saraswati of Arya Samaj:

“Oh God! Thou art the Giver of Life, Remover of pain and sorrow, The Bestower of happiness. Oh! Creator of the Universe, May we receive thy supreme sin-destroying light, May Thou guide our intellect in the right direction.”

Many of these ideas are not explicit in the direct versification above.

Consider another beautiful explanation in the Nirukta Bhashyam:

द्युस्थानात् द्योतनाद्वाऽपि भानुर्देव उदाहृतः।
जगत्प्रसव-हेतुत्वात् स एव सविता भवेत्॥

The god Bhānu is mentioned because he illuminates from the realm of dyus (sky). Because he procreates the world, he is called Savitṛ.

तत्सम्बन्धी च यो भर्गः पापानां भञ्जकत्वतः।
अस्माकं कार्यविषये बुद्धीः प्रेरयतीह यः॥
तद्ब्रह्म प्रार्थनीयं स्याद्वरणीयं उपास्महे।

In relation to that, he is called Bharga because he destroys sins. He is the one who inspires our intellect to take action. That Brahman is desirable, is to be prayed for, and may we worship It.

Summarising all the above points, a verse in Anushtup shloka:

ṡrīhariṃ vēdhasaṃ spṛhyaṃ sūryasthaṃ bhāsakaṃ param
dhyāyēma viṣṇuṃ rāmaṃ dayāluṃ prērayituṃ matīḥ

May we meditate upon (dhyāyēma) Hari the sin-destroying[2] husband of Ṡrī (Dēvī Lakṣṃī) ṡrī-harim, the Creator of universe vēdhasam, the most desirable spṛhyam, the indweller of the Sun sūrya-stham making it illuminate bhāsakaṃ, the excellent Supreme param, the all-pervading omnipresent Viṣṇu viṣṇum, the bestower of pleasure Rāma rāmam, the most compassionate dayāluṃ in order to impel prērayitum (our) minds matīḥ.

Other attempts

No poet can compose a verse right away. It needs some thought and tinkering. Before I settled on the previous one, many such shlokas were composed but were not satisfactory.

ya āditya-gatō bhāsaḥ dhyāyēma daivatasya vai
prārthyaṃ paramam asmākam buddhīs tat prērayēt sadā

Equivalent meaning:

Let us meditate upon (dhyāyēma) the light (bhāsaḥ) of the Divine (daivatasya) who (yaḥ) is situated in the Sun (āditya-gataḥ). That (tat) most excellent (paramam) and desirable one (prārthyam), may it impel (prērayēt) our (asmākam) minds (buddhīḥ) always (sadā).

The first half of the verse is inspired by Bhagavad Gita 15.12. It is changed to masculine form to match the original Gayatri where, yaḥ, a masculine word is used (yad → yaḥ, tējas → bhāsas). Dēva and Daivata are equivalent, as per Amarakōṡa.

The “vai” is for emphasis and “sadā” means always.

What I didn’t like about this is that the deity addressed is masculine, instead of neuter (savitṛ → savitur, dēva → dēvasya, yaḥ → yō).

A few more:

bhargō dēvasya dhyāyema sūryāntaryāmiṇaṃ param
tad varaṇīyam asmākaṃ buddhīr yaḥ prērayēt sadā

dēvasya bhāsō dhyāyēma sūryasyāntaḥ parātparaṃ
tat prārthanīyam asmākaṃ buddhīr yaḥ prērayēt sadā

dhyāyēma varcō dēvasya sūryasyāntaḥ parātparam
tat prārthanīyam asmākam buddhīr yaḥ prērayēt sadā

sūryadēvasya bhāsō hi dhyāyēma paramaṃ prabhuṃ
yaḥ prārthanīyam asmākaṃ buddhīs tat prērayēt sadā

sūryasya bhāsō dēvasya dhyāyēma paramaṃ prabhuṃ
tat prārthanīyam asmākaṃ buddhīr yaḥ prērayēt sadā

First line H2 alternatives:

paramaṃ prabhuṃ -> paramaṃ harim
paramaṃ prabhuṃ -> paramaṃ sthitam
paramaṃ prabhuṃ -> yaḥ prabhuṃ hariṃ

sūryasya bhāsō dēvasya dhyāyēma hi parātparaṃ
tat prārthanīyam asmākaṃ buddhīr yaḥ prērayēt sadā

Related to second one:

ya āditya-gataḥ bhāsaḥ dhyāyēma daivatasya vai
prērayēt tu tad asmākaṃ dhyāyēma ṡrīpatiṃ harim

ya āditya-gataḥ bhāsaḥ dhyāyēma daivatasya vai
varaṇīyaṃ tad asmākaṃ buddhīr ēva pracōdayāt

Another set:

dēvasya savitur madhyē bhargō’smākaṃ matīṡca yaḥ
prērayēt tad varaṇīyaṃ dhyāyēma puruṣōttamam

The fourth pāda has several variations:

ध्यायेम श्रीपतिं हरिम्
ध्यायेम पुरुषोत्तमम्
नारायणमुपास्महे
वासुदेवमुपास्महे

These are inspired by the Nirukta-bhāṣyam above:

dēvasya savitur madhyē yō bhargō nō dhiyō hariḥ
pracōdayāt tad varēṇyaṃ dhīmahi puruṣōttamam

A few more of Viṣṇu-vācaka:

ṡrīhariṃ sadayaṃ spṛhyaṃ sūryasthaṃ bhāsakaṃ param
matīḥ prērayituṃ viṣṇuṃ san̄jaṃ rāmam upāsmahē

The above is missing “merciful”ness. san̄jaḥ is explicitly mentioned as a name of Caturmukha-Brahmā and Ṡiva but not of Viṣṇu, because it could mean “creator” or “created” too. Secondly, sadaya as adjective is used before compound words (not standalone) or as an adverb sadayam means mercifully.

ṡrīhariṃ sukhadaṃ spṛhyaṃ sūryasthaṃ bhāsakaṃ paraṃ
yaḥ prērayēt buddhīs taṃ sraṣṭāraṃ viṣṇum upāsmahē

The above is missing mercifulness too, but otherwise looks great. Sukhadaḥ is explicitly a name of Viṣṇu alone.

A related prayer to Sūrya Nārāyaṇa, quoted by Prof. K.S.Narayanacharya:

arka-mandala-madhyastham sūrya-kōti-sama-prabham
brahmādi sēvya pādābjam naumi brahma ramā sakham

Other Gayatri Mantras

All the above material deals with Gāyatrī mantra addressed to god Savitṛ. The Taittirīya Āraṇyaka (Mahānārāyaṇa Upaniṣad) list 12 more Gāyatrī mantras of different deities, though some of them are not exactly in the Gāyatrī metre of 24 syllables. The commentators Sāyaṇa accepts only six of them and Bhaṭṭabhāskara only five[3]. There are a couple of Gāyatrīs for Lord Kṛṣṇa:

dāmōdarāya vidmahē rukmiṇī-vallabhāya dhīmahi . tan nō kṛṣṇaḥ pracōdayāt # 26 syllables
dēvakī-nandanāya vidmahē vāsudēvāya dhīmahi . tan nō kṛṣṇaḥ pracōdayāt # 26 syllables

but these are not really in the Gayatri metre per se (c.f. nicṛd-gāyatrī). However, the general rule is that each pāda of 8x3 is like:

· · · · L G L · # commonly
· · · · G L G · # rarely
· · · · L L L · # only in first line

which is same as the second-half of Anuṣṭubh metre. A normalized Gayatri could be:

dēvakījāya vidmahē # GLGG LGLG
rukmiṇīṡāya dhīmahi # GLGG LGLG
tan nō kṛṣṇaḥ pracōdayāt # GGGG LGLG

May we know the son of Dēvakī[4]. For that may we meditate upon the husband (īṡa) of Rukmiṇī. May Kṛṣṇa impel us towards it. The last line could also be:

vāsudēvaḥ pracōdayāt # GLGG LGLG
vāsudēvaḥ prērayēn naḥ # GLGG GLGG

or any such combination thereof.

jānīmahi rukmiṇīṡaṃ # GGLL GLGG
dhyāyēma dēvakī-sutaṃ # GGLG LGLG
prēyarēn nō vāsudēvaḥ # GLGG GLGG

vidmahē dēvakī-sutaṃ # GLGG LGLG
dhīmahi rukmiṇī-patiṃ # GLLG LGLG
pracōdayād vāsudēvaḥ # LGLG GLGG

There is another triad of names in the Mahabharata-Nārāyaṇīya. After explaining the etymology of the familiar Nārāyaṇa-Vāsudēva-Viṣnu gāyatris, Lord Kṛṣṇa derives three other names: Dāmōdara, Pṛṡnigarbha and Kēṡava. Hence:

dāmōdarāya vidmahē / दा॒मो॒द॒राय॑ वि॒द्महे॑
pṛṡnigarbhāya dhīmahi / पृश्निग॒र्भाय॑ धीमहि
tan naḥ kēṡavaḥ pracōdayāt / तन्नः केशवः प्रचो॒दया᳚त्

The last pāda is hypermetric.

Tools

“varcas” occurs in the Mahābhārata as a neuter noun, CE 14.27.20 “yaṡō varcō bhagaṡ caiva vijayaḥ siddhitējasī” ↩
Hari, from √hṛ - ‘to take away or remove evil or sin’, as in “harir harati pāpāni …” ↩
See here: Rudra, Gaṇēṡa, Garuḍa, Nārāyaṇa, Durgā. Sāyaṇa adds Brahmā. ↩
Dēvakī-ja, one who is born of Dēvakī. Similar to Kārttikeya’s epithet Gaurīja, the son of Gaurī. ↩