Gurur Brahma
गुरुर्ब्रह्मा गुरुर्विष्णुःगुरुर्देवो महेश्वरः ।गुरुः साक्षात् परब्रह्मतस्मै श्रीगुरवे नमः ॥
gurur brahmā gurur viṣṇuḥ gurur devo maheśvaraḥ | guruḥ sākṣāt parabrahma tasmai śrīgurave namaḥ ||
🔊 gu-rur brah-maa gu-rur vish-nuh · gu-rur day-vo ma-hay-shva-rah · gu-ruh saak-shaat pa-ra-brah-ma · tas-mai shree gu-ra-vay na-mah
📖 What it means
The teacher is the creator, the preserver and the transformer; the teacher is the ultimate itself. To that teacher, I bow.
🔍 Word by word
| गुरु guru | heavy, weighty — one whose word carries weight |
|---|---|
| साक्षात् sākṣāt | directly, in person, before the eyes |
| परब्रह्म parabrahma | the highest reality |
| तस्मै tasmai | to that one |
| नमः namaḥ | a bow, a salutation |
🕰️ When it is used
On Guru Purnima, and at the start of a course of study.
💡 Worth knowing
गुरु literally means 'heavy'. The popular gloss of gu as darkness and ru as its remover is later and poetic rather than etymological — a good example of a meaning worth knowing and worth not overstating.
🔬 Does it do anything?
A straight answer, with the evidence and its limits — including the claims that are popular and untrue.
More mantras
Om
The syllable taken as the sound of the whole — beginning, middle and end together.
Open →The Gayatri Mantra
We contemplate the glorious light of the sun, the giver of life. May it set our thinking in motion.
Open →Asato Ma Sad Gamaya
From the unreal lead me to the real; from darkness lead me to light; from death lead me to deathlessness.
Open →