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Ganapati Atharvashirsha · opening, section 1 · Chinmaya booklet, printed p. 2
The traditional text
त्वमेव प्रत्यक्षं तत्त्वमसि।
त्वमेव केवलं कर्तासि। त्वमेव केवलं धर्तासि।
त्वमेव केवलं हर्तासि।
त्वमेव सर्वं खल्विदं ब्रह्मासि।
त्वं साक्षादात्मासि नित्यम्॥
Roman reading aid
oṃ namaste gaṇapataye |
tvam eva pratyakṣaṃ tattvam asi |
tvam eva kevalaṃ kartāsi | tvam eva kevalaṃ dhartāsi |
tvam eva kevalaṃ hartāsi |
tvam eva sarvaṃ khalv idaṃ brahmāsi |
tvaṃ sākṣād ātmāsi nityam ||
Meaning in everyday language
Om. Reverence to you, Ganapati. You are the reality directly present; you alone are the maker, sustainer and withdrawer. You are indeed all this as Brahman. You are directly the eternal Self.
Understand the teaching
The Ganapati Atharvashirsha is also called the Ganapati Upanishad. Its opening joins personal reverence for Ganesha with the language of Brahman and Atman. The worshipped form is addressed as the reality of the whole. This is a theological declaration within a Ganapati-centred Upanishadic text; reading it carefully shows how devotion and philosophical contemplation can meet.
The repeated tvam eva, you alone, creates a rhythm of concentrated recognition. Maker, sustainer and withdrawer describe the arising, holding and resolution of the world in sacred language. A beginner can pause over one phrase at a time and ask what changes when worship includes reflection on the whole of existence. The passage is prose, although it is often recited rhythmically.
Words and phrases
- नमस्ते गणपतये (namaste gaṇapataye)
- reverence to you, Ganapati
- प्रत्यक्षं तत्त्वम् (pratyakṣaṃ tattvam)
- the directly present reality
- कर्ता धर्ता हर्ता (kartā dhartā hartā)
- maker, sustainer, withdrawer
- सर्वं खल्विदं ब्रह्म (sarvaṃ khalv idaṃ brahma)
- all this indeed is Brahman
- साक्षादात्मा (sākṣād ātmā)
- the Self directly
Pause and think
Why is this opening more than a request for an obstacle to disappear?
See an explained answer
It identifies Ganapati with the reality of the whole and the eternal Self. The devotee is invited to contemplate who is being worshipped, as well as to offer reverence.