Gayatri Yantra The Gayatri Yantra, like all yantras, is a visual representation of deity. It is to be meditated upon while repeating the Gayatri Mantra. The Gayatri Mantra is a prayer for enlightenment addressed to the deity in the Sun. Savitri, the deity in the sun, is that one who awakens and gives life to the whole world. The sun in that function is a symbol for the Light of Consciousness, that within us that awakens us and lights up our inner and outer worlds. Savitri is masculine but his mantra is feminine. Thus you have the blending of seeming opposites, of spirit and matter, Consciousness and the content of consciousness, and this is represented in the yantra by the interlocked upward- (masculine) and downward- (feminine) facing triangles. The sun as a symbol of Consciousness equals bindu, that dimensionless point in the center of the yantra that is the union of the spiritual and material. It is helpful to meditate on this point within the heart, that is, within the core of your being, visualizing it as bright as the sun but not blinding. It is the Light of the Atman (Self) that shines through that point within, illuminating the Dhi, or the faculty of spiritual insight. When the Dhi (aka Buddhi) is awakened, one can perceive spiritual Truth directly. Meditation on the Gayatri with a pure and sincere heart will in time awaken your spiritual consciousness. Savita In Vedic religion, Savitr (stem), Savitā (nominative singular) is a solar deity (see Deva) and one of the Adityas. His name is in Vedic Sanskrit meanings "impeller, rouser, vivifier". Savitr is described in the Vedas as having golden arms, hands, hair, etc. He is sometimes identified with, and at other times distinguished from, the chief Sun deity Surya. A number of beautiful Vedic hymns are invoked in his praise. He is the god of the Sun at Sunrise and Sunset, and was most often invoked in the latter role in Vedic hymns. The famous gāyatrī mantra of Rigveda 3.62.10, being dedicated to Savitr, is hence called Sāvitrī. It is considered to be among the holiest mantras of Hinduism. |
