Gāyatrī Family · Deity Variant
ॐ एकदन्ताय विद्महे वक्रतुण्डाय धीमहि। तन्नो दन्तिः प्रचोदयात्॥
oṃ ekadantāya vidmahe vakratuṇḍāya dhīmahi, tan no dantiḥ pracodayāt
Deity: Gaṇeśa
Model: Gāyatrī meter
Type: Later deity-specific composition
Canonical Definition
The Gaṇeśa Gāyatrī is a devotional verse addressed to Gaṇeśa, composed on the metrical and structural model of the original Vedic Gāyatrī mantra (Ṛg Veda 3.62.10), but not itself part of the Ṛg Veda. It follows the widespread later pattern of composing deity-specific “Gāyatrī” mantras using the vidmahe…dhīmahi…pracodayāt structure of the original, substituting a different deity’s epithets.
Etymology: ekadanta — “single-tusked,” a common epithet of Gaṇeśa. vakratuṇḍa — “curved-trunk,” another standard Gaṇeśa epithet, referring to his elephant trunk.
What the verse says, and how it compares to the original
How to read this Compare this directly against the Gāyatrī mantra’s own page — the grammatical skeleton (an object described by two epithets, a meditation verb, then a request to be inspired) is identical; only the deity and epithets have changed. Recognizing this shared template makes every Gāyatrī-family variant easy to parse at once.
In plain translation: “We meditate upon the single-tusked one; we contemplate the curved-trunked one; may that tusked deity inspire us.” Like the original Gāyatrī, the verse's core is a request for inspiration/guidance (pracodayāt), directed here specifically to Gaṇeśa, the remover of obstacles.
How it is used
This verse is commonly recited before beginning new undertakings, study, or worship, consistent with Gaṇeśa’s traditional role as the deity invoked first, to ensure a smooth and obstacle-free beginning.
Word by Word
How to read this This table is worth reading side-by-side with the original Gāyatrī’s word-by-word table — nearly every grammatical slot (dative epithet, dhīmahi, tat, naḥ, pracodayāt) is filled by an exact structural parallel, with only the specific deity-name and epithets changed.
| एकदन्ताय | ekadantāya | dative singular | “To/of the single-tusked one” — parallels savituḥ in the original Gāyatrī. |
| विद्महे | vidmahe | verb, 1st pl. | “We know/understand” — functions similarly to the original’s opening meditative stance. |
| वक्रतुण्डाय | vakratuṇḍāya | dative singular | “To/of the curved-trunked one” — the object of dhīmahi. |
| धीमहि | dhīmahi | verb, 1st pl. optative | “We meditate upon” — identical verb form to the original Gāyatrī. |
| तत् | tat | demonstrative pronoun | “That” — refers back to the deity. |
| नः | naḥ | genitive/dative plural | “Our.” |
| दन्तिः | dantiḥ | nominative, epithet | “The tusked one” — subject of the final verb. |
| प्रचोदयात् | pracodayāt | verb, 3rd sg. optative causative | “May he inspire” — identical to the original Gāyatrī’s closing verb. |
Textual history
Deity-specific Gāyatrī compositions like this one belong to a much later devotional layer than the Ṛg Vedic original, appearing in Purāṇic and later liturgical sources rather than the Vedic Saṃhitās themselves.
Textual note Do not present this verse as being of equal antiquity to the Ṛg Vedic Gāyatrī — it is a structurally derivative later composition honoring that verse’s form, not an independently ancient Vedic mantra in its own right.
Interpretation
The proliferation of Gāyatrī-form mantras to different deities reflects the flexibility and enduring prestige of the original meter and structure — composing a new devotional verse “in Gāyatrī form” is itself a way of honoring the original mantra’s authority.
How to read this Read the existence of many deity-specific Gāyatrīs as evidence of the original mantra’s broad cultural and liturgical influence, not as evidence that all of these compositions share the original’s Vedic status or date.