From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Illustration by
Raja Ravi Verma. In illustrations, the goddess often sits on a
lotus flower and appears with five heads and five pairs of hands, representing the incarnations of the goddess as
Parvati,
Saraswati etc. She is especially identified with Saraswatī.
Gayatri (Sanskrit: गायत्री, gāyatrī) is the feminine form of gāyatra, a Sanskrit word for a song or a hymn. Originally the personification of the Gayatri mantra, revered by both Buddhists (not at least in the Theravada Buddhism tradition) and Hindus worldwide, the goddess Gāyatrī is considered the veda mata, the mother of all Vedas and also the personification of the all-pervading Parabrahman, the ultimate unchanging reality that lies behind all phenomena. Gayatri Veda Mata is seen by many Hindus to be not just a Goddess, but a portrayal of Brahman himself, in the feminine form. Essentially, the Goddess is seen to combine all the phenomenal attributes of Brahman, including Past, Present and Future as well as the three realms of existence.[citation needed] Goddess Gāyatrī is also worshipped as the Hindu Trimurti combined as one. In Hinduism, there is only one creation who can withstand the brilliance of Aditya and that is Gāyatrī. Some also consider her to be the mother of all Gods and the culmination of Lakshmi, Parvati and Sarasvati.[citation needed]
Gāyatrī is typically portrayed as seated on a red lotus, signifying wealth. She appears in either of these forms:
[edit] See also
[edit] Illustration and Ref
GayathriManthra Ref
[edit] Further reading
- Sacinandana Swami: The Gayatri Book., Vasati Verlag, 2005, ISBN 978-3-937238-05-0
- Acharya, Pt. Shriram Sharma, The Super Science of Gayatri, pdf file, 2000
- "Gayatri Sahasranam", Swami Satyananda Saraswati, Devi Mandir (ISBN 1-877795-57-7)
- Sadguru Sant Keshavadas (1978,2006). Gayatri: The Highest Meditation. Dehli: Motilal Bandarsidass Publishers PVT. LTD.. pp. 148 pages. ISBN 81-208-0697-2. [1]
