Gayatri Mantra

Om Bhurbhuva: Swa: Thath savithurvarenyam. Bhargo Devasya Dheemahi. Dhiyo Yona: Prachodayath.

Gayatri Mantra is an excellent Vedic mantra. This mantra has twenty four letters. It is said that the number of living and immovable creatures in the world is nineteen. When you add the five demons to them, you get twenty-four. That is why the Gayatri Mantra has twenty four letters. Chapter 34 of the Mahabharata Karnaparvam describes the Gayatri Mantra as a string tied to the top of Lord Sriparameswaran's chariot during the burning of Tripura.

Even if this great mantra is chanted only once a day, all the sins committed during the day will be forgiven. If you chant ten times, all the great sins committed in one day will be forgiven. The sins committed in a month by chanting the Gayatri mantra a hundred times and the sins committed in a year by chanting a thousand times will be forgiven. If you chant one lakh times, the sins committed in that life will be erased and if you chant ten lakh times, the sins committed in the previous life will be erased. If you chant ten crore times, you will attain enlightenment and salvation.

How to chant Gayatri Mantra

The Gayatri mantra should be chanted with the right hand extended and the tip of the fingers folded like a snake's head, with the seal raised, the face bent and the body sitting motionless. The number "ten" is obtained by counting the lines from the midline of the ring finger downwards and upwards through the midline of the little finger in a clockwise direction, pointing along the upper line of the ring finger, middle finger and index finger to the tip of the thumb. This is how the number of japats should be calculated. This is called the "Karamala" system. But the karamala method alone is not required to calculate the number of japas. Lotus garland or glass garland can be used for this. If the lotus garland is used for chanting, its bells must be made of white lotus seeds.

(Devi Bhagavatam Navamaskandham.)