Guru Gayatri Mantra (Brihaspati Gayatri)

The Guru Gayatri Mantra — the Gayatri-form prayer for meditation upon Guru Brihaspati (Jupiter), the preceptor of the gods, chanted for wisdom and Jupiter's grace.

Meaning

"We know the one whose banner bears the bull; we meditate upon the one who holds the kruni — may that Guru inspire and illumine us." The variant form meditates on Brihaspati as Angirasa, the divine-bodied son of sage Angiras, invoked as Jiva, the giver of life and wisdom.

Benefits

Chanted on Thursdays (especially 108 times during Guru dasha, Guru Chandal dosha or a weak Jupiter) to steady the intellect, deepen faith and judgement, and gain Jupiter's blessings of wisdom, teachers, marriage, children and fortune.

Word by Word Meaning

The first form runs: Vrishabha-dhvajaya vidmahe — "we know the one whose banner (dhvaja) bears the bull (vrishabha)"; kruni-hastaya dhimahi — "we meditate on the one who holds the kruni in his hand"; tanno Guruh prachodayat — "may that Guru impel us." The second, the Angirasa Gayatri, runs: Angirasaya vidmahe — "we know the son of Angiras," Brihaspati's lineage name; divya-dehaya dhimahi — "we meditate on the divine-bodied one"; tanno Jivah prachodayat — "may Jiva impel us" — Jiva, "the life-giver," being Jupiter's ancient name.

Like every Gayatri-pattern mantra it moves in three steps — knowing, meditating, being inspired — so a single repetition is itself a miniature meditation on Jupiter's wisdom.

How to Chant

Chant on Thursday mornings, facing north-east, 11, 21 or 108 times; softly or mentally rather than aloud, as with all Gayatri forms. Yellow flowers, turmeric and a Thursday fast are the traditional accompaniments. The Gayatri combines naturally with the Guru beej mantra — the Gayatri recited three times to invoke and settle the mind, the beej mantra carried on the mala for the count.

When Astrology Prescribes It

Astrologers give the Guru Gayatri alongside the beej mantra during Guru dasha, for a weak or combust Jupiter, and especially where the chart shows delay in marriage or children or a loss of direction and faith — Jupiter's domains. It suits those who prefer a meditative, prayer-like practice to seed-syllable japa. Teachers, counsellors and students of scripture keep it as a daily mantra in any case, since Brihaspati is their natural patron.

In the Vedic imagination Brihaspati is the purohita of the gods — the one who knows the right word at the right moment — and his Gayatri is therefore also chanted before important counsel: advising a child, mediating a family dispute, giving testimony, teaching a first class. A short practice before such moments — three repetitions with a steady breath — is a tradition many households keep without ever calling it sadhana. Thursday fasting, yellow charity and respect to elders complete Jupiter's gentle regimen.

The Guru Gayatri Mantra (Brihaspati Gayatri) above is given in both Devanagari (Sanskrit) and Roman transliteration so you can read it in whichever script you are comfortable with — switch between the two using the buttons above, share the link, or download a PDF.