A Wisdom Archive on Gayatri Mantra

For the living, death is certain and for the dead, birth is certain. Since death is definite for all embodied beings, the Bhagavad Gita enjoins the seeker to aspire for that state of attainment, after which there is no return or rebirth.
 
Among the paths leading to the deathless state, Krishna discusses jnana -yoga, the path of contemplation, and karmayoga , the path of action. All actions, he says, finally culminate in knowledge.
 
For the common man, whose senses and desires are rooted in this world and who craves desired results, the shrutis - the Vedas and the Upanishads - prescribe various types of yajnas . Among the yajnas , the Maharudrabhisheka is accorded high status.
 

 
(See also: Mantra, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul )

Read more here: » Mantra: Mantra that Helps Conquer Death  

Gayatri-mantra - a sacred mantra repeated by brahmanas at the three junctures of the day. The gayatri mantra is personified as a goddess, the wife of Brahma and mother of the four Vedas (see diksa-mantra).

 
(See also: Gayatri-mantra, Bhakti, Bhakti Yoga, Bhakti Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul )

For more dictionary entries, see » Gayatri Mantra Dictionary

Mantra that Helps Conquer Death
For the living, death is certain and for the dead, birth is certain. Since death is definite for all embodied beings, the Bhagavad Gita enjoins the seeker to aspire for that state of attainment, after which there is no return or rebirth.
 

Read more here: » Mantra Yoga: Mantra that Helps Conquer Death

The Vedic concept of Saraswati was three-fold: First, she is like the sacred river which gave birth to the Aryan civilisation. Second, she was vak or speech personified, as expressed in the Rig Veda’s Vak Sukta . 'Speech’ basically refers to the sacred-word or the Vedas themselves.
 
The third and most important aspect is Saraswati’s identification with Gayatri, although the Gayatri mantra is worship of the Sun-god, Suryanarayana. The Sun-god symbolises three female deities: Gayatri, Savitri and Saraswati, to be invoked in the morning, noon and evening respectively.

 
(See also: Saraswati, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul )

Read more here: » Saraswati: Three Divine Aspects Of Mahasaraswati  

. Early morning, answer the calls of nature and sit for the Yogic practices. Practise Pranayama in a dry, welt-ventilated room. Pranayama requires deep concentration and attention. Do not keep anyone by your side.

Excerpt from the book Kundalini Yoga by Sri Swami Sivananda.

Read more here: » Pranayama: Instructions On Pranayama

Prayer is common to all religions. Love for God is universal, the mode or method of prayer could be different since everyone is free to pray to the divine power in their own way. Prayer should be acceptable to all, simple and easy to adopt in daily life. Generally, people follow the path of prayer practised in the family. The Gayatri Mantra and any other prayer should be recited with sincerity and for the love of God. Only then its true benefit can be derived.

 
(See also: Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul )

Read more here: » Gayatri Mantra: Gayatri - Mother Of All Mantras

The rites that pertain to the stages of life of man are called Samskaras. The Samskaras are purificatory rites which sanctify the life of the Hindu. They give a spiritual touch to the important events in the life of the individual from conception to cremation. They mark the important stages of a mans life. Just as the outline of a picture is lighted up slowly with the filling in of many colours, so also is Brahmanya with scriptural Samskaras. There are the Samskaras of childhood, of boyhood, of manhood and of old age and death.
 
Excerpt from All About Hinduism by Sri Swami Sivananda
 

Read more here: » Hindu Rituals: The Ten Scriptural Samskaras