ಶ್ರೀಯನಾಯುವ ಬಲವ ಜಯವ ಬೇಡಿರ್ದೊಡಂ |
ಗಾಯತ್ರಿಯನೆ ಪರಮಮಂತ್ರವೆಂದಾರ್ಯರ್ ||
ಧೀಯಂ ಪ್ರಚೋದಿಸೆಂದನುದಿನದಿ ಬೇಡಿದರು |
ಶ್ರೇಯಸ್ಸು ಧೀಮಹಿಮೆ - ಮಂಕುತಿಮ್ಮ || 546 ||
“shreeyanu aayuva balava jayava bEDirdoDam” = Even though prayers were done for the bestowal of prosperity, longevity, strength and victory… {bEDirdoDam = bEDiddaroo}
“gaayatriyane parama mantravendu aaryar” = … the Aryans considered Gayatri as the most sacred of all mantras.
“dheeyam pracOdisu endu anudinadi bEDidaru” = And, they prayed daily for the sake of getting enlightenment of the intellect. {dheeyam = mind/intellect – note: loose translation}
“shrEyassu dheemahime – manku timma” = the greatness of the enlightened intellect is that it means true prosperity.
Sri DVG nicely highlights the importance of the Gayatri Mantra in this Kagga.
People looking from outside may well conclude that the Hinduism preaches everyone to run away from life (samsaara). But, that surely is not the case. One actually would be surprised if one were to look at just one of the paragraphs of say, Rudra Chamaka. The Rudra Chamaka enlists a large number of wishes to be fulfilled, both materialistic and spiritual. The wish list is somewhat like this – Let God grant me food,… pleasant voice,… longevity,… well built body,… (such 36 wishes in the first anuvaaka, 38 in the next, 36 more in the next, and 38 more in the next, and 31 specific desires in the fifth, and so on with some 31 in the tenth anuvaaka)…
But, still all over India the one mantra adored by all sects of Hinduism is the Gayatri. Few simple English translations are given below…
"We meditate on the glory of that Being who has produced this universe; may He enlighten our minds." – Swami Vivekananda.
"We meditate on the effulgent glory of the divine Light; may he inspire our understanding." – S. Radhakrishnan.
So, it is made clear that even though our forefathers prayed for various wants, they stressed on the enlightenment of minds. That alone is true prosperity. If we were to have sufficient intellectual brightness we can achieve the rest by ourselves. It would be nice to note and highlight that, the prayer is universal - in that there is prayer for the grant of enlightenment for “all of us” and not just “for me alone”…
Let us all pray the Supreme Lord to inspire our dhee-shakti!
All the best,
|| Offered, at the feet of Sadguru ||
