Ganesha
Ganesha Gayatri
ॐ एकदन्ताय विद्महे वक्रतुण्डाय धीमहि । तन्नो दन्ती प्रचोदयात् ॥
Oṁ ekadantāya vidmahe vakratuṇḍāya dhīmahi, tanno dantī pracodayāt
Simple reading: Om e-ka-dan-taa-ya vid-ma-he, vak-ra-tun-daa-ya dhee-ma-hi, tan-no dan-tee pra-cho-da-yaat
About this mantra
The Gayatri of Ganesha — the ancient Gayatri metre turned toward the single-tusked lord, asking him to kindle the intellect.
Meaning
We know the single-tusked one; we meditate on the curved-trunked one; may that Danti kindle our minds. Like every Gayatri it moves in three steps — knowing, meditating, being impelled — a whole method of practice folded into one metre. And Ekadanta carries its own teaching: in the best-known telling, the broken tusk is the pen that wrote the Mahabharata — wholeness sacrificed for wisdom.
When to recite it
For sustained practice rather than a quick bow — morning sadhana, study seasons, and Chaturthi vrats; traditionally counted in the early hours while the mind is still unclaimed.
Word by word
- एकदन्ताय विद्महेekadantāya vidmahe
- we know the single-tusked one
- वक्रतुण्डाय धीमहिvakratuṇḍāya dhīmahi
- we meditate on the curved-trunked one
- तन्नो दन्ती प्रचोदयात्tanno dantī pracodayāt
- may that Danti inspire us
Source: Gaṇapati Atharvaśīrṣa
Note: The Mahānārāyaṇa Upaniṣad (Taittirīya Āraṇyaka 10) gives an older form: 'tatpuruṣāya vidmahe vakratuṇḍāya dhīmahi, tanno dantiḥ pracodayāt'. The Gaṇapati Atharvaśīrṣa form with 'ekadantāya' and 'dantī' is used here.