At
the beginning of any pooja, or ritual
the following mantra from the Rigveda
is chanted:
ganaanaam tvaa ganapatim havaamahe
kavim kaveenaam upamashravastamam
jyeshtharajam brahmanaam brahmanaspata
aa nah
shrinvannootibhih seeda saadanam
(Rigveda 2-23-1)
This prayer is addressed to 'Brahmanaspati"
ie. the lord of spiritual wisdom
and leader of the heavenly hosts,
the wise among the wisest, the most
famous of all and the king of supreme
prayers to listen to us with all
His graces and be present in the
place of sacrifice.
ni shu seeda ganapate ganeshu
tvaamaahurvipratamam kaveenaam
na rite tvatkriyate kim chanaare
mahaamarkam maghavan chitramarcha
(Rigveda 10,112.9)
This great wondrous prayer from
the Rigveda addressed to Indra calls
Him lord of hosts and extols him
as the greatest sage among sages
as nothing is done without Him even
in far off places and requests Him
to be seated with us.
In the very first mantra of Rigveda, prayer
is offered to Agni
who is at once the priest , the
God of the sacrifice and the ritvik
and who offers oblation and the
greatest giver of treasure. In the
vedas, the Supreme Deity
is called by different names such
as Indra, Varuna or Agni
but each one is supposed to possess
all the supreme qualities of godhead.
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agnimeele purohitam yajnasya devamritvijam
hotaaram ratnadhaatamam
(Rigveda 1-1-1)
The very first mantra of Yajurveda addresses the cows and their
calves. " You may please go
for grazing. By that provide us
with food and the rasa and thereby
let us get engaged in the sacred
duty of propitiating the Almighty.
May you get good grass, etc by the
grace of Lord Savita" says
the mantra.
ishetvorje tvaa vayavasthopayavastha
devo vassavitaa praarpayatu shreshthatamaaya
karmane
(Taittiriya Samhita
1-1,1.1)
