Gaṇapati Atharvaśīrṣa Upaniṣad

Saluting whom all the sages proceed unobstructed to that state — I am that all-pervading Brahman, knowable through the Gaṇeśa Upaniṣad.

The opening auspicious invocation (śāntipāṭha).

O gods, may we hear with our ears what is auspicious; may we see with our eyes what is auspicious, O worshipful ones; with firm limbs and bodies may we live out the life allotted by the gods. May Indra of ancient fame grant us well-being; may Pūṣan, knower of all, grant us well-being; may Tārkṣya of unimpeded felly grant us well-being; may Bṛhaspati grant us well-being.

Om, peace, peace, peace.

The body of the Gaṇapati Atharvaśīrṣa Upaniṣad — the meditation on Gaṇapati as the Supreme Brahman and the Gaṇapati Gāyatrī.

Hariḥ, Om. Obeisance to you, Gaṇapati. You alone are the immediate, perceivable reality — you alone are the truth (tattva). You alone are the sole doer; you alone are the sole sustainer; you alone are the sole destroyer. You alone are all this — indeed you are Brahman; you are directly the eternal Self.

I speak what is real; I speak the truth. Protect me, you; protect the speaker; protect the listener.

Protect the giver; protect the nourisher; protect the teacher and the student; protect me from the west, from the east, from the north, from the south, from above, from below — from all sides protect me, protect me completely.

You are of the nature of speech; you are of the nature of consciousness; you are of the nature of bliss; you are of the nature of Brahman; you are the secondless reality of existence-consciousness-bliss; you are the directly-perceived Brahman; you are of the nature of knowledge and wisdom.

All this world arises from you; all this world rests in you; all this world dissolves into you; all this world returns into you. You are the earth, the waters, fire, wind and space; you are the four forms of speech.

You are beyond the three guṇas; beyond the three states of consciousness; beyond the three bodies; beyond the three times. You abide eternally in the mūlādhāra; you are of the nature of the three powers. The yogis meditate on you always. You are Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Rudra, Indra, Agni, Vāyu, Sūrya, Candra — you are Brahman: bhuḥ, bhuvaḥ, svaḥ, Om.

Uttering 'ga' first, then the letters, and then the anusvāra, beautified by the crescent moon, enriched by the sacred syllable Om — this is your form as the mantra. 'Ga' is the first form; 'a' is the middle form; the anusvāra is the final form; the bindu is the concluding form; the nāda is the union; the saṁhitā is the conjunction. This is the Gaṇeśa-vidyā. The seer is Gaṇaka; the metre is Nicṛd-Gāyatrī; the deity is Śrī Mahāgaṇapati. Om, gaṁ, obeisance to Gaṇapati.

To the single-tusked one we know, to the curved-trunked one we meditate; may that tusked one impel us.

The one-tusked, four-armed one, holding the noose and the goad, bearing in his hands the broken tusk and the boon-granting gesture, mouse-bannered, red, pot-bellied, with winnowing-fan ears, clad in red, his limbs anointed with red sandal, worshipped with red flowers; the god compassionate to devotees, the cause of the world, the immutable one, who appeared at the beginning of creation, beyond prakṛti and puruṣa — he who meditates on him thus daily is a yogi, foremost among yogis.

Obeisance to the lord of the hosts, obeisance to the lord of the gaṇas, obeisance to the lord of the pramathas; obeisance to you, the pot-bellied one, the single-tusked, destroyer of obstacles, son of Śiva, the auspicious boon-bestowing form.

The phalaśruti — the fruits of reciting the Atharvaśīrṣa, closing with the śāntipāṭha.

He who studies this Atharvaśīrṣa becomes fit for union with Brahman. He is not afflicted by any obstacle; he flourishes in happiness everywhere; he is freed from the five great sins. Reciting it in the evening destroys the sins of the day; reciting it in the morning destroys the sins of the night; reciting it both morning and evening, even a sinner becomes sinless. He attains dharma, artha, kāma and mokṣa. This Atharvaśīrṣa should not be given to a non-disciple; he who gives it out of delusion becomes sinful. Whatever desire one recites it a thousand times for, that desire he accomplishes.

With this one consecrates Gaṇapati; he becomes eloquent. Reciting it on the fourth (lunar) day while fasting, he becomes learned. Thus declares the word of the Atharvaṇa — knowing the conduct prescribed from Brahmā, one never fears.

He who worships with dūrvā sprouts becomes like Kubera. He who worships with fried grains becomes renowned and wise. He who worships with a thousand modakas obtains his desired fruit. He who worships with ghee-soaked firewood gains everything, gains everything.

Having had eight brahmins properly taught (this), he becomes radiant as the sun. Reciting it at a great river or near an image at the time of a solar eclipse, the mantra becomes accomplished; he is freed from great obstacles, great faults, great sins and great lapses; he becomes all-knowing, all-knowing. He who knows thus — this is the Upaniṣad.

O gods, may we hear with our ears what is auspicious; may we see with our eyes what is auspicious, O worshipful ones; with firm limbs and bodies may we live out the life allotted by the gods. May Indra of ancient fame grant us well-being; may Pūṣan, knower of all, grant us well-being; may Tārkṣya of unimpeded felly grant us well-being; may Bṛhaspati grant us well-being.

Om, peace, peace, peace.