What is the Ganesh Gayatri Mantra?

A three-line prayer to Lord Ganesha in the Vedic gayatri metre, from the Ganapati Upanishad: Om Ekadantaya Vidmahe, Vakratundaya Dhimahi, Tanno Dantih Prachodayat.

Is it Vidmahe or Viddhamahe?

Vidmahe (विद्महे), “we know, we devote our thought to.” Viddhamahe is a common misspelling.

Are there other Ganesha Gayatri mantras?

Yes. Loving Ganesha gives two more: Om Tatpurushaya Vidmahe from the Narayana Upanishad, and Om Tat Karataya Vidmahe from the Maitrayani Samhita.

When is the Ganesh Gayatri chanted?

During pujas and yajnas, and as japa, repeated with the breath gently regulated, often 108 times on a mala.

Ganesh Gayatri Mantra: Om Ekadantaya Vidmahe, with Meaning

Q: What are the words of the Ganesh Gayatri Mantra?

ॐ एकदन्ताय विद्महे, वक्रतुण्डाय धीमहि, तन्नो दन्तिः प्रचोदयात् (Om Ekadantaya Vidmahe, Vakratundaya Dhimahi, Tanno Dantih Prachodayat).

Introduction

The Ganesh Gayatri Mantra, Om Ekadantaya Vidmahe (ॐ एकदन्ताय विद्महे), is Lord Ganesha’s gayatri: a prayer set in the three-line Vedic metre that is used to invoke a Deity and focus the mind on him. It comes from the Ganapati Upanishad, and it is intoned in pujas and yajnas and recited as japa.

It calls Ganesha by two of his names, Ekadanta, the one-tusked, and Vakratunda, the one with the curved trunk, and asks him to guide our minds.

The Mantra

ॐ एकदन्ताय विद्महे
वक्रतुण्डाय धीमहि
तन्नो दन्तिः प्रचोदयात् ॥

Om Ekadantaya Vidmahe
Vakratundaya Dhimahi
Tanno Dantih Prachodayat

In English, as the book Loving Ganesha gives it: “We devote our thought to the one-tusked Lord. We meditate upon Him who has a curved trunk. May the tusked One guide us on the right path.”

Word-by-Word Meaning

Sanskrit	Transliteration	Meaning
ॐ	Om (Aum)	the primal sound
एकदन्ताय	ekadantaya	to the one (eka) with a single tusk (danta)
विद्महे	vidmahe	we know; we devote our thought to
वक्रतुण्डाय	vakratundaya	to the one with the curved (vakra) trunk (tunda)
धीमहि	dhimahi	we meditate upon
तत्	tat	that
नः	nah	us
दन्तिः	dantih	the tusked one
प्रचोदयात्	prachodayat	may he inspire, guide

Tat and nah join as tanno. Every gayatri follows this shape: the first line names the Deity we come to know, the second the form we meditate on, and the third asks him to illumine or guide us.

Vidmahe, not Viddhamahe

The word is विद्महे, vidmahe, from vid, to know. The spelling viddhamahe, often seen on the internet, is a mistake.

Two Names in One Verse

Ekadanta, “the one-tusked,” recalls the story of how Ganesha lost a tusk, told in Lord Ganesha’s Broken Tusk, and the form Ekadanta Ganapati. Vakratunda, “the one with the curved trunk,” is the name that opens the Vakratunda Mahakaya shloka.

Three Ganesha Gayatris

The chapter Mantra Recitation of Loving Ganesha gives three Ganesha gayatris, each from a different scripture. The third line is the same in all three.

From the Ganapati Upanishad

Om Ekadantaya Vidmahe, Vakratundaya Dhimahi, Tanno Dantih Prachodayat

“We devote our thought to the one-tusked Lord. We meditate upon Him who has a curved trunk. May the tusked One guide us on the right path.”

From the Narayana Upanishad

ॐ तत्पुरुषाय विद्महे वक्रतुण्डाय धीमहि तन्नो दन्तिः प्रचोदयात्

Om Tatpurushaya Vidmahe, Vakratundaya Dhimahi, Tanno Dantih Prachodayat

“We devote our thought to that supreme person. We meditate upon Him who has a curved trunk. May the tusked One guide us on the right path.”

From the Maitrayani Samhita

ॐ तत्कराटाय विद्महे हस्तिमुखाय धीमहि तन्नो दन्तिः प्रचोदयात्

Om Tat Karataya Vidmahe, Hastimukhaya Dhimahi, Tanno Dantih Prachodayat

“We devote our thoughts to the mysterious Lord. We meditate on His elephant face. May the tusked One guide us on the right path.”

How to Chant It

The gayatris are intoned during pujas and yajnas, and may be recited as japa, repeated again and again while gently regulating the breath. For japa, Loving Ganesha advises washing before sitting, a few slow breaths before beginning, one full mala of 108 repetitions, and the same time each day.

Conclusion

The Ganesh Gayatri asks one thing of the one-tusked Lord with the curved trunk: to guide our minds on the right path. For Ganesha’s root mantra, see Om Gan Ganapataye Namah, and for more, 15 Special Ganesha Mantras.