ஸரஸ்வதீ ப்ரார்தந கநபாடஃ

May the Divine Goddess Saraswati, who inspires our intellects and grants us wisdom, lead us forward. May She, the embodiment of knowledge, protect and guide us toward the ultimate truth. May the Divine Goddess Saraswati, rich in power and sustenance, manifest before us with all Her auspicious energies, bestowing upon us the strength of knowledge and abundance. May Saraswati, the possessor of infinite wisdom and the source of all nourishment, inspire us with Her radiant power. May She, who is the river of divine consciousness, shower upon us the strength required to overcome all obstacles. May She, who is the source of all strength and the quintessence of wisdom, bestow upon us the fullness of intellectual vigor and prosperity, sustaining us with Her divine grace. May She, who is the protector and nurturer of our thoughts and aspirations, guard our intellect. May She bless us, support us, and grant us the clarity to perceive the truth, ultimately guiding our consciousness toward divine enlightenment.

Ghanapāṭha of the prayer to Sarasvatī. The base verse is “devī sarasvatī vājebhir vājinīvatī dhīnām avitry avatu” — “May the goddess Sarasvatī, rich in strength and swift with vigour, protector of our thoughts, guard them.” In the ghana recitation the words are woven in the fixed pattern 1-2, 2-1, 1-2-3, 3-2-1, 1-2-3, so that each pair and triple is spoken forwards, backwards and forwards again. The repetition is the discipline itself: it fixes the exact sequence and accent of the Veda beyond the reach of error, so the words are not restated here as new meaning but recited as they stand.

The ghana pattern continued, working through “vājebhir vājinīvatī” and then “dhīnām avitry avatu”, each group turned forwards and backwards and forwards again, and closing with the single word avatu spoken alone — “may she protect.” The sense is that of the base verse throughout; what changes is only the order in which the words are woven.