Medha Suktham

Medha Suktham Krishna Yajurveda
1. ॐ यश्च्छन्दसामृषभो विश्वरूपाः। छन्दोभ्योऽद्यमृतात् संबभूव।समेन्द्रो मेधया स्पृणोतु। अमृतस्य देवधारणो भूयासं।शरीरं मे विचर्षणं। जिह्वा मे मधुमत्तमा।कर्णाभ्यां भूरिविश्रुवं। ब्रह्मणः कोशोऽसि मेधया पिहितः।श्रुतं मे गोपाय।ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः।(तैत्तरीय आरण्यकं ७--४)

2.मेधा देवी जुषमाणा न आगाद्विश्वाची भद्रा सुमनस्यमाना Iत्वया जुष्टा जुषमाणा दुरुक्तान्बृहद्वदेम विदथे सुवीराः II

महानारयणोपनिषत् ४१ १
त्वया जुष्ट ऋषिर्भवति देवि त्वया ब्रह्मागतश्रीरुत त्वया।त्वया जुष्टश्चित्रं विन्दते वसु सा नो जुषस्व द्रविणेन मेधे॥

(महानारायणोपनिषत् ४१ ------------२)

3. मेधा म इन्द्रो ददातु मेधां देवी सरस्वतीःमेधां मे अश्विनावुभावाधत्तां पुष्करस्रजौ॥१॥अप्सरासु च या मेधा गन्धर्वेषु च यन्मनःदेवी मेधा सरस्वती स मां मेधा सुरभिर्जुषताग्ँ स्वाहा॥२॥(महानारयणोपनिषद्॥ ४२॥)

4. आ मां मेधा सुरभिर्विश्वरूपा हिरण्यवर्णा जगती जगम्या।ऊर्जस्वती पयसा पिन्वमाना स मां मेधा सुप्रतीका जुषताम्॥१॥(महानारयणोपनिषद्॥ ४३॥)
Transliteration
1..om yaścchandasāmṛṣabho viśvarūpāḥ| chandobhyo'dyamṛtāt saṁbabhūva|samendro medayā spṛṇotu| amṛtasya devadhāraṇo bhūyāsaṁ|śarīraṁ me vicarṣaṇaṁ| jihvā me madhumattamā|karṇābhyāṁ bhūriviśruvaṁ| brahmaṇaḥ kośo'si medhayā pihitaḥ|śrutaṁ me gopāya| om śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ|taittarīya āraṇyakaṁ 7-42.

2.medhā devī juṣamāṇā na āgādviśvācī bhadrā sumanasyamānātvayā juṣṭā juṣamāṇā duruktānbṛhadvadema vidathe suvīrāḥmahānārayaṇopaniṣat 41 1
tvayā juṣṭa ṛṣirbhavati devi tvayā brahmāgataśrīruta tvayā|tvayā juṣṭaścitraṁ vindate vasu sā no juṣasva draviṇena medhe||
mahānārāyaṇopaniṣat 41------------23.

3. medhā ma indro dadātu medhāṁ devī sarasvatīḥmedhāṁ me aśvināvubhāvādhattāṁ puṣkarasrajau||1||apsarāsu ca yā medhā gandharveṣu ca yanmanaḥdevī medhā sarasvatī sa māṁ medhā surabhirjuṣatāg svāhā||2||mahānārayaṇopaniṣad|| 42||

4. ā māṁ medhā surabhirviśvarūpā hiraṇyavarṇā jagatī jagamyā|ūrjasvatī payasā pinvamānā sa māṁ medhā supratīkā juṣatām||1||mahānārayaṇopaniṣad|| 43||

These are the four mantras in praise of Devi Medha, the Goddess of Intellect

the first mantram.. yacchandaasaam… meaning and comments

"That Pranava ( Omkara) (1) which is verily called as Indra,(2) which is the most revered among metres (chandas),(3) which spreads the entire universe in the form of sound (Naada brahman), (4) which is foremost in importance above all other vedic metres, may enlighten me with the power of intellect to fully understand all the vedas and related scriptures. Oh Divinity in the form of pranava, please kindle my faculties for grasping the vedas which are immortal. May you be pleased to render my body capable of acquiring such splendid knowledge.May my tongue be the source of the sweetest of the sweet words from the scriptures . May my two ears be blessed with the opportunity and capability of hearing and understanding the sublime meaning of various scriptures. You are the source of the eternal Brahman. You have spread yourself all over the universe through the supreme intellect. Oh pranava, who is Brahman itself, may you protect me who has learned the scriptures from the mouth of my guru( preceptor) through my ears blessed by you. Om Peace, peace, peace


This is a prayer to the Pranava, the source of supreme intellect (though addressed in this mantra as Indra also, we have to consider this prayer as addressed only to the supreme Brahman. There are various metres used in rendering vedas but the pranavam is in the metre Gayatri and it is supreme. It is the supreme sound which becomes the cause for everything in the universe.

This mantra is a prayer by the student that he may be blessed with the physical and intellectual faculties to enable him to learn and understand the sublime Vedas and in general all great knowledge. For a student, healthy body, sweetness in words and speech, and unimpaired capacity to hear and grasp the meaning of what he hears are essential. The holy word Omkaram or pranavam is here described as the treasure-house from which the entire universe and its knowledge sprang up.The tradition that the knowledge should spring from the mouth of the Guru and should be grasped through the attentive hearing of the disciple is highlighted in this prayer.

This mantra is chanted as the first part of Medhaa Sooktham by the initiates, and it is considered to be a potent vedic prayer which should be chanted by all seekers and also by students who are in pursuit of any knowledge.

The Second mantram…
twayaa jushta….Meaning and comments

This is the second manthra praising the divine mother who is the personification of knowledge

May the all embracing goddess of intellect who is always showering benefits on us, who is always pleased with us and who is delighted by us her children, be with us. Oh Goddess of muse and supreme intellect, may we the silly humans who spend our days recklessly in worthless talk till you visit us and kindle our intellect, as a result of your affection and compassion to us which is manifested by your visit to our mind, become enlightened and also capable of expressing and sharing the Supreme Truth along with our heroic sons and disciples.

{This is a prayer every guru makes to the goddess of intellect to kindle his intellect so that he is weaned away from meaningless harangue and is visited with Supreme Wisdom... He wants to share the wisdom with his disciples and sons. The most important aspect we have to notice is that the learned guru is well aware that his wisdom is flowing from the sweet grace of the Goddess of Knowledge and that he will be worthy of only empty speech if the Goddess is not in his company.The vedas (this mantra will be found in rgveda and atharvaveda also) have recognized the goddess, a woman, as the embodiment of all knowledge, even though we worship Krishna , Dakshinaamoorthi and Sankara as the preceptors of the world. The personification of Mother Gayatri as a woman is another tribute to their lofty thoughts. The woman embodies the knowledge and the man disseminates the knowledge through the blessing of that great mother. The idea that prakruti the woman and purusha (male) the doer compliment each other to turn the wheel of universe is delightfully acknowledged by our ancestors. No male chauvinism.For the preceptor his own son and his disciple are on equal footing. He prays for the acquisition of knowledge so that he can impart the same to his own sons and his disciples. The gurus eagerness to attain brilliant disciples is also a glorious feature of our ancient traditions. Vide taittareeyopanishad...आमायन्तु ब्रह्मचारिणः स्वाहाः...āmāyantu brahmacāriṇaḥ svāhāḥ .... etc.,Finally one can notice with awe the complete lack of arrogance on the part of the Guru... he simply attributes all that is great to the bounty of the Goddess of Muse.This manthra along with one more mantra following it is worshipfully chanted like the Holy Gayatri by the devotees of Knowledge}

Oh Mother, one who has the fortune of having a glimpse by your sacred eyes becomes a seer, he becomes the knower of Brahma, blessed by you he comes into possession of bounteous riches,,, Therefore, Mother Intellect, please be kind on us.


This mantra again is a reinforcement of the staunch belief of the Vedic man that knowledge flows from the godhead and wealth and fame flows from such knowledge. The loftiest intellectual of the period must have discovered such mantras but he is humble enough and bereft of any arrogance... he acknowledges the source of what he has very sincerely.. a full and true disclosure.This is a prayer found in Mahanarayanopanisat, Taittariiyaaranyakam and partilally in a slightly modified form in Rgveda khila. This is also chanted as part of Medhaasooktham, prayer to the Universal Mother for kindling our intellect.

the third mantra Medhaam ma indro dadaathu.
Meaning and comments

"May the leader of Gods Indra bestow on me the greatest Intellect. May the Goddess Saraswathi grant us intellect. May the divine twin master physicians Ashwins wearing beautiful garlands, enhance our intellect.I hail the sacred divinities.May the intellect that is present in the dancers of heaven the Apsaraas, visit me. May the intellect that is present as discretion and stability of mind in the divine singers called gandharvaas, visit me.May the Goddess Saraswathi who is fragrant and pure, be with me in the form of the sacred scriptures,

The fourth mantra aa maa medhaa …..

Meaning and comments
May that goddess of muses Saraswathi visit me with Her most pleasant demeanour and bless me with success,. That Goddess of intelligence pervades the entire universe like fragrance. She is the one who is possessing the letters(scripts) resplendent in golden colours, Her vision covers the entire realm of knowledge.,She is the dispenser of all that a man can desire...dharma, artha, kama and moksha and she is waited upon always by the seekers. She is the origin of all positive energy. She nourishes me with all elixirs like milk. and makes my life eminently pleasant for me with wealth and prosperity. "


All that is great in our lives ultimately comes to us through Divine favour alone . The greatest faculty that contributes to our wholesome existence is our intellect which is kindled in us by the mother of Muses Devi Saraswathi, who is also addressed as Devi Medhaa or intellect personified. The faculty of fine arts are manifested in the Apsaras and gandharvas and in the divine manifestation of intelligence in golden scripts (through which we communicate). That beloved mother's blessings are sought throught these vedic mantras

We are praising the mother only with the faculty of intellect that is bestowed upon us by Her through her most benign will. Without her motherly nourishment neither our individual intellect nor the collective intellect of the universe can function.

Let us pray the most benign mother so that She will be with all of us for ever


The following prayers are also chanted at the conclusion..

मयि मेधां मयि प्रजां मय्यग्निः तेजो ददातु। मयि मेधां मयि प्रजां मयीन्द्र इन्द्रियम् ददातु। मयि मेधां मयि प्रजां मयि सूर्यो भ्राजो ददातु।
mayi medhāṁ mayi prajāṁ mayyagniḥ tejo dadātu|mayi medhāṁ mayi prajāṁ mayīndra indriyam dadātu|mayi medhāṁ mayi prajāṁ mayi sūryo bhrājo dadātu|
महादेव्यै च विद्महे ब्रह्मपत्नैः च धीमहि तन्नो वाणी प्रचोदयात्॥हंसहंसाय विद्महे परमहंसाय धीमहि तन्नो हंस प्रचोदयात्॥mahādevyai ca vidmahe brahmapatnaiḥ ca dhīmahitanno vāṇī pracodayāt||haṁsahaṁsāya vidmahe paramahaṁsāya dhīmahitanno haṁsa pracodayāt||