Tattva

This prayer to Lord Ganesha is to be recited before starting any new task.

शुक्लाम्बर धरं विष्णुं  शशि वर्णम् चतुर्भुजम् |

प्रसन्न वदनं ध्यायेत्  सर्व विघ्नोपशान्तये ॥

shuklambaradharam vishnum shashivarnam chaturbhujam

prasanna vadanam dhyayet sarva vighnopa shantaye

Sanskrit to English Word Meaning:

Shuklambara- white cloth; dharam- worn; vishnum- all pervading ; Shashivarnam- bright complexion(like a full moon); Chaturbhujam- 4 shoulders; Prasanna Vadanam- Pleasant face; Dhyayet- I meditate; Sarva- all; Vighnopa- obstacles; Shantaye- pacify

Translation:

For the removal of all the obstacles in my effort, I meditate upon Bhagwan Ganesha, who wears a white garment, who is all pervading, who has a bright complexion (like a full moon), who has four shoulders, who has an ever-smiling face.

Brief Explanation

Lord Ganesha is considered the deity for removal of all obstacles in our life. Hence it is customary to pray to Him first before starting any new activity whether it be pooja, new business or a new journey. Thinking about the Lord who has a pleasant face (prasanna vadanam) will help us overcome all the obstacles that might arise in our task.

This sloka is to be recited while lighting lamp.

शुभं करोति कल्याणम्  आरोग्यं धन-सम्पदा |
शत्रुबुद्धिर्विनाशाय  दीपज्योतिर्नमोस्तुते ॥

subham karoti kalyanam  arogyam dhana sampada
shatru buddhir vinashaya   dipa jyotir namostute

Sanskrit to English Word Meaning:

Subham- auspiciousness; karoti – which brings; kalyanam- prosperity; arogyam- good health; dhanasampadah- abundance of wealth; shatrubuddhih- of the intellect’s enemy (ignorance); vinasaya- for the destruction; dipajyotir- that lamplight; namosthuthe- I salute thee.

Translation

I salute the One who is the lamplight that brings auspiciousness; prosperity, good health, abundance of wealth, and the destruction of the intellect’s enemy (ignorance).

Brief explanation

This prayer is chanted before lighting the lamplight. Light is considered a symbol of auspiciousness, prosperity, and abundance in many cultures. Light brings with it brightness, but how does it destroy the intellect’s enemy? The intellect’s enemy is ignorance, which is likened to darkness. Light removes the darkness and  makes it possible to see things clearly.

Prayer to recite while taking a bath

गङ्गे च यमुने चैव  गोदावरि सरस्वति |
नर्मदे सिन्धु कावेरि  जलेऽस्मिन् सन्निधिं कुरु ॥

gange ca yamune caiva  godavari saraswathi
narmade sindhu kaveri  jalesmin sannidhim kuru

Sanskrit to English Word Meaning:
Ganga, Yamana, Godavari, Saraswathi, Narmada, Sindhu, Kaveri-names of holy Indian rivers; Ca- of; Jalesmin- In this water; Sannidhim- presence; Kuru- Invoke

Translation:
In this water, I invoke the presence of holy waters from the rivers Ganga, Yamana, Godavari, Saraswathi, Narmada, Sindhu (Indus) and Kaveri.

Brief Explanation:
An important part of ritual purification in Hinduism is the bathing of the entire body. It is considered auspicious to perform this form of purification before any festival, before visiting a temple or performing a pooja. One not only purifies one’s body but also the mind during taking a bath. Such a purificatory bath is ultimate if it is done in the sacred waters of some great rivers of India like the river Ganga. Hence one chants this shloka invoking the presence of holy waters while taking a shower.

कराग्रे वसते लक्ष्मीः  करमूले सरस्वती |
करमध्ये तु गोविन्दः  प्रभाते करदर्शनम् ॥

Karagre vasate lakshmi  kara mule saraswathi

kara madhye tu govindah  prabate kara darshanam

Sanskrit to English Word Meaning

Karagre-on the tip of your fingers; vasate- dwells; Lakshmi- the Goddess of Prosperity; karamule- on the base of your hands; Saraswathi- the Goddess of Knowledge Saraswathi; karamadhye- in the middle of your hands; tu-whereas; Govindah-the Lord Govindah; prabhate-in the morning; karadarshanam-look at your palm.

Translation

On the tip of your fingers is Goddess Lakshmi; on the base of your fingers is Goddess Sarasvati; in the middle of your fingers is Lord Govinda. In this manner, look at your        palm

Brief Explanation

This is a morning prayer called “karadarshana”. One begins the day with this prayer. “Kara” means the palm of the hand and it stands for the five karmendriyas, or the organs of action. While looking at the palm, one invokes the Lord in the form of various deities, thus sanctifying all the actions that will be done during the day. By acknowledging the Lord as the giver of the capacity to perform actions and as the giver of the fruits of those actions, one sanctifies the actions. Thus, one prays in the morning to reinforce the attitude that all actions are performed as a service to the Lord.

The pa varga in Devanagari script(pa fa ba bha ma) has an interesting property. Each letter involves opening one’s mouth. An even more interesting link involves Lord Shiva; each letter of the pa varga is related to one of Shiva’s aspects. A shloka in his praise goes thus:

 paarvatii phaNi baalendu bhasma mandaakinii yutaa |
 apavarga pradaa muurtiH kathaM syaat.h tava shaMkara || Read the rest of this entry »

The shloka below is an extract from ‘Vishnu sahasranam’. Parvati, the divine consort of Lord Shiva asks him to tell an easy way for all the scholars to chant the 1000 names of Lord Vishnu.

Sri Rama Rama Ramethi  Rame Rame Manorame
Sahasranama Tathulyam Rama Nama Varaname

Description: Lord Shiva says that the name of Lord Rama is the sweetest of all the words and chanting this name would be equivalent to chanting the whole Vishnu Sahasranama as it is the base of all the names. Read the rest of this entry »

ॐ त्रयम्बकं यजमहे सुगन्धिं पुष्टिवर्धनम्। उर्वारूकमिव् बन्धनान् मृत्योर्मुक्षिय मामृतात्॥

Om trayambakaṁ yajamahe sugandhiṁ puṣṭivardhanam |urvārūkamiv bandhanān mṛtyormukṣiya māmṛtāt || Read the rest of this entry »

मनोजवं मारुततुल्यवेगम् जितेन्द्रियं बुद्धिमताम् वरिष्ठम्।

वातात्मजं वानरयूथमुख्यं श्रीरामदूतं शरणं प्रपद्ये॥

manojavaṁ mārutatulyavegam jitendriyaṁ buddhimatām variṣṭham |vātātmajaṁ vānarayūthamukhyaṁ śrīrāmadūtaṁ śaraṇaṁ prapadye ||

Read the rest of this entry »

  सर्व मंगल मांगल्ये शिवे सर्वार्थ साधिके।

sarva maṁgala māṁgalye śive sarvārtha sādhike |

शरण्ये त्र्यंबके देवी नारायणी नमोस्तुते॥

śaraṇye tryaṁbake devī nārāyaṇī namostute || Read the rest of this entry »