vedicsaraswatimedhayajurveda

මේධා සූක්තම්

Medha Suktam in Sinhala · සිංහල

🕉️ vedic·📿 11× repetitions·🕐 Early morning after bath, before study; Vasant Panchami; the start of academic study·📜 Taittiriya Aranyaka (Krishna Yajurveda), Mahanarayana Upanishad, Prapathaka 10, Anuvakas 41-44

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हिन्दी / देवनागरी తెలుగు தமிழ்ಕನ್ನಡ മലയാളം ગુજરાતી বাংলা ଓଡ଼ିଆ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ Englishසිංහල𑌗𑍍𑌰𑌨𑍍𑌥

Origin & Story

Taittiriya Aranyaka (Krishna Yajurveda), Mahanarayana Upanishad, Prapathaka 10, Anuvakas 41-44 · Vedic Rishis (Vedic tradition) · Vedic period (c. 1200-600 BCE)

The Medha Suktam appears in the Taittiriya Aranyaka of the Krishna Yajurveda, within the Mahanarayana Upanishad. In the Vedic gurukula tradition, knowledge was preserved through hearing and memory, so intellect (medha) and retentive power were prized above all. This suktam was recited by students and teachers as a prayer that the goddess Medha — identified with Saraswati — would dwell in them, granting sharp intelligence, eloquent speech, and the power to retain the sacred teachings heard from the guru. A shorter related set of Medha mantras also survives as a khila (appendix) hymn to the Rigveda.

✦ As told in scripture

By tradition, students who recite the Medha Suktam with faith before study find that what they hear is retained as if engraved — the very prayer 'shrutam me gopaya' (guard what I have heard) is said to bless the memory so that learning is never lost. It is a favourite of Vedic pandits, who hold that a child who chants it daily grows in intellect, speech and confidence.

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Complete Text with Meaning

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Verse 1

ඕං යශ්ඡන්දසාමෘෂභෝ විශ්වරූපඃ. ඡන්දෝභ්යෝ(අ)ධ්යමෘතාත්සම්බභූව. ස මේන්ද්රෝ මේධයා ස්පෘණෝතු. අමෘතස්ය දේවධාරණෝ භූයාසම්..

Om yaśchandasāmṛṣabho viśvarūpaḥ; chandobhyo'dhyamṛtātsambabhūva; sa mendro medhayā spṛṇotu; amṛtasya devadhāraṇo bhūyāsam.

Meaning:Om. He who is the foremost (the bull) among the Vedic metres, of universal form, who arose out of the immortal Omkara — may that Indra strengthen me with intellect; may I become a bearer of the immortal divine knowledge.

Verse 2

ශරීරං මේ විචර්ෂණම්. ජිහ්වා මේ මධුමත්තමා. කර්ණාභ්යාං භූරි විශ්රුවම්. බ්රහ්මණඃ කෝශෝ(අ)සි මේධයා පිහිතඃ. ශ්රුතං මේ ගෝපාය.. ඕං ශාන්තිඃ ශාන්තිඃ ශාන්තිඃ..

Śarīraṃ me vicarṣaṇam; jihvā me madhumattamā; karṇābhyāṃ bhūri viśruvam; brahmaṇaḥ kośo'si medhayā pihitaḥ; śrutaṃ me gopāya. Om śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ.

Meaning:May my body be vigorous; may my tongue be most sweet; may I hear abundantly with my ears. You are the sheath of Brahman, veiled by intellect — guard for me what I have learned. Om peace, peace, peace.

Verse 3

ඕං මේධාදේවී ජුෂමාණා න ආගාද්විශ්වාචී භද්රා සුමනස්යමානා. ත්වයා ජුෂ්ටා නුදමානා දුරුක්තාන්බෘහද්වදේම විදථේ සුවීරාඃ..

Om medhādevī juṣamāṇā na āgādviśvācī bhadrā sumanasyamānā; tvayā juṣṭā nudamānā duruktānbṛhadvadema vidathe suvīrāḥ.

Meaning:Om. May the goddess Medha (intellect), well-pleased, all-pervading, auspicious and gracious, come to us. Favoured by you and casting off harsh speech, may we, blessed with worthy offspring, speak loftily in the assembly.

Verse 4

ත්වයා ජුෂ්ට ඍෂිර්භවති දේවි ත්වයා බ්රහ්මා(අ)(අ)ගතශ්රීරුත ත්වයා. ත්වයා ජුෂ්ටශ්චිත්රං වින්දතේ වසු සා නෝ ජුෂස්ව ද්රවිණෝ න මේධේ..

Tvayā juṣṭa ṛṣirbhavati devi tvayā brahmā''gataśrīruta tvayā; tvayā juṣṭaśchitraṃ vindate vasu sā no juṣasva draviṇo na medhe.

Meaning:Favoured by you, O Goddess, a man becomes a seer; by you the knower of Brahman attains glory; by you he finds wondrous wealth. Therefore be gracious to us, O Medha, like a treasure that does not fail.

Verse 5

මේධාං ම ඉන්ද්රෝ දදාතු මේධාං දේවී සරස්වතී. මේධාං මේ අශ්විනාවුභාවාධත්තාං පුෂ්කරස්රජා..

Medhāṃ ma indro dadātu medhāṃ devī sarasvatī; medhāṃ me aśvināvubhāvādhattāṃ puṣkarasrajā.

Meaning:May Indra grant me intellect; may Goddess Saraswati grant me intellect; may both the lotus-garlanded Ashvini Kumaras bestow intellect upon me.

Verse 6

අප්සරාසු ච යා මේධා ගන්ධර්වේෂු ච යන්මනඃ. දෛවීං මේධා සරස්වතී සා මාං මේධා සුරභිර්ජුෂතාං ස්වාහා..

Apsarāsu ca yā medhā gandharveṣu ca yanmanaḥ; daivīṃ medhā sarasvatī sā māṃ medhā surabhirjuṣatāṃ svāhā.

Meaning:The intellect that is in the Apsaras, and the mind that is in the Gandharvas, and the divine intellect that is Saraswati — may that fragrant Medha take delight in me. Svaha.

Verse 7

ආ මාං මේධා සුරභිර්විශ්වරූපා හිරණ්යවර්ණා ජගතී ජගම්යා. ඌර්ජස්වතී පයසා පින්වමානා සා මාං මේධා සුප්රතීකා ජුෂතාම්..

Ā māṃ medhā surabhirviśvarūpā hiraṇyavarṇā jagatī jagamyā; ūrjasvatī payasā pinvamānā sā māṃ medhā supratīkā juṣatām.

Meaning:May Medha, fragrant, of universal form, golden-hued, moving through the worlds, full of vigour and swelling with nourishing waters — may that fair-faced Medha be pleased to dwell in me.

Verse 8

මයි මේධාං මයි ප්රජාං මය්යග්නිස්තේජෝ දධාතු. මයි මේධාං මයි ප්රජාං මයීන්ද්ර ඉන්ද්රියං දධාතු. මයි මේධාං මයි ප්රජාං මයි සූර්යෝ භ්රාජෝ දධාතු..

Mayi medhāṃ mayi prajāṃ mayyagnistejo dadhātu; mayi medhāṃ mayi prajāṃ mayīndra indriyaṃ dadhātu; mayi medhāṃ mayi prajāṃ mayi sūryo bhrājo dadhātu.

Meaning:In me may Agni place intellect, progeny and lustre; in me may Indra place intellect, progeny and vital power; in me may Surya place intellect, progeny and radiance.

Verse 9

ඕං මහාදේව්යෛ ච විද්මහේ බ්රහ්මපත්නී ච ධීමහි. තන්නෝ වාණී ප්රචෝදයාත්.. ඕං හංස හංසාය විද්මහේ පරමහංසාය ධීමහි. තන්නෝ හංසඃ ප්රචෝදයාත්.. ඕං ශාන්තිඃ ශාන්තිඃ ශාන්තිඃ..

Om mahādevyai ca vidmahe brahmapatnī ca dhīmahi; tanno vāṇī pracodayāt. Om haṃsa haṃsāya vidmahe paramahaṃsāya dhīmahi; tanno haṃsaḥ pracodayāt. Om śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ.

Meaning:Om. May we know the Great Goddess, may we meditate upon the Consort of Brahman; may that Goddess of Speech impel us. May we know the Swan (Hamsa), may we meditate upon the Supreme Swan; may that Hamsa impel us. Om peace, peace, peace.

Word-by-Word Meaning

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යශ්ඡන්දසාමෘෂභඃ🔊yaśchandasāmṛṣabhaḥHe who is the bull (foremost, lord) among the Vedic metres (chandas)

විශ්වරූපඃ🔊viśvarūpaḥOf universal form, all-formed

ඡන්දෝභ්යෝ(අ)ධ්යමෘතාත්සම්බභූව🔊chandobhyo'dhyamṛtāt sambabhūvaWho arose from the immortal Vedas (Omkara, the deathless)

ස මා ඉන්ද්රඃ මේධයා ස්පෘණෝතු🔊sa mā indraḥ medhayā spṛṇotuMay that Indra strengthen / endow me with intellect (medha)

අමෘතස්ය දේවධාරණඃ භූයාසම්🔊amṛtasya devadhāraṇaḥ bhūyāsamMay I become a bearer (retainer) of the immortal divine knowledge

ශරීරං මේ විචර්ෂණම්🔊śarīraṃ me vicarṣaṇamMay my body be active, capable and strong

ජිහ්වා මේ මධුමත්තමා🔊jihvā me madhumattamāMay my tongue be most sweet (speak the sweetest words)

කර්ණාභ්යාං භූරි විශ්රුවම්🔊karṇābhyāṃ bhūri viśruvamMay I hear abundantly (much sacred knowledge) with my ears

බ්රහ්මණඃ කෝශෝ(අ)සි මේධයා පිහිතඃ🔊brahmaṇaḥ kośo'si medhayā pihitaḥYou (O intellect) are the sheath/treasury of Brahman, covered over by Medha

ශ්රුතං මේ ගෝපාය🔊śrutaṃ me gopāyaProtect (preserve) for me what I have heard and learned

මේධාදේවී ජුෂමාණා න ආගාත්🔊medhādevī juṣamāṇā na āgātMay the goddess Medha, well-pleased, come to us

විශ්වාචී භද්රා සුමනස්යමානා🔊viśvācī bhadrā sumanasyamānāAll-pervading, auspicious, and graciously well-disposed

ත්වයා ජුෂ්ට ඍෂිර්භවති🔊tvayā juṣṭa ṛṣirbhavatiFavoured by you (O Medha), one becomes a seer (rishi)

ත්වයා බ්රහ්මා ආගතශ්රීඃ🔊tvayā brahmā āgataśrīḥBy you the knower of Brahman attains glory (Shri)

මේධාං ම ඉන්ද්රෝ දදාතු🔊medhāṃ ma indro dadātuMay Indra grant me intellect (medha)

මේධාං දේවී සරස්වතී🔊medhāṃ devī sarasvatīMay Goddess Saraswati grant (me) intellect

අශ්විනාවුභාවාධත්තාං පුෂ්කරස්රජා🔊aśvināvubhāvādhattāṃ puṣkarasrajāMay both the Ashvini Kumaras, garlanded with lotuses, bestow (it)

අප්සරාසු ච යා මේධා🔊apsarāsu ca yā medhāThe intellect/wisdom that is present in the Apsaras (celestial nymphs)

ගන්ධර්වේෂු ච යන්මනඃ🔊gandharveṣu ca yanmanaḥAnd the mind (mental power) that is in the Gandharvas (celestial musicians)

මයි මේධාං මයි ප්රජාං🔊mayi medhāṃ mayi prajāṃIn me intellect, in me progeny (continuity)

අග්නිස්තේජෝ දධාතු🔊agnistejo dadhātuMay Agni place (in me) brilliance and lustre

සූර්යෝ භ්රාජෝ දධාතු🔊sūryo bhrājo dadhātuMay Surya (the sun) place (in me) radiance

මහාදේව්යෛ ච විද්මහේ🔊mahādevyai ca vidmaheMay we know the Great Goddess (the Medha Gayatri begins)

තන්නෝ වාණී ප්රචෝදයාත්🔊tanno vāṇī pracodayātMay that Vani (Goddess of speech, Saraswati) inspire and impel us

Benefits of Chanting Medha Suktam

✦

Sharpens intellect (medha), memory and the power of grasping and retaining knowledge

✦

Classic prayer of students before study, examinations and the start of any learning

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Bestows eloquence and sweet, effective speech ('jihva me madhumattama')

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Invokes the combined grace of Saraswati, Indra, Agni, Surya and the Ashvins for wisdom

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Helps preserve sacred learning — 'shrutam me gopaya' guards what has been heard

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Calms and steadies the mind, removing harsh and confused thought

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Concludes with the Medha-Saraswati Gayatri, a potent mantra for the goddess of knowledge

How to Chant Medha Suktam

Repetitions11times

Best TimeEarly morning after bath, before study; Vasant Panchami; the start of academic study

Bathe and sit facing east before an image of Goddess Saraswati or simply with a calm mind. Light a lamp and recite the suktam slowly and clearly, dwelling on the meaning of each prayer for intellect. It is especially recited by students before examinations, at the start of Vedic study, and on Vasant Panchami. Conclude with the Medha (Saraswati) Gayatri and the threefold Shanti. Daily recitation, or 11 times, is traditional for sharpening the mind.

Frequently Asked Questions

This page shows the complete Medha Suktam written in the Sinhala script — the same Sanskrit/Hindi verses, transliterated character-by-character so you can read and chant comfortably. Tap any line (or the ▶ button) to hear it recited aloud.

Yes — only the script changes; the words and their meaning are the original. The verse-by-verse meaning, benefits and how-to-chant guidance on this page apply exactly the same.

It is a Vedic hymn from the Taittiriya Aranyaka of the Krishna Yajurveda (Mahanarayana Upanishad) that prays for Medha — sharp intellect, memory and discriminative wisdom. Medha is personified as a goddess identified with Saraswati, and the hymn calls on several deities to bestow intelligence on the seeker.

Medha means intellect, retentive power, mental brilliance and the faculty of grasping and holding knowledge. It is more than ordinary intelligence — it is the keen, discriminating wisdom that lets one understand and remember the deepest truths, which is why it is personified as a goddess.

It is especially suited to students, scholars and all seekers of knowledge. It is chanted before study and examinations, at the start of Vedic learning, on Vasant Panchami (Saraswati's day), and in the early morning. Reciting it daily or eleven times is traditional for cultivating a sharp memory.

Medha, the goddess of intellect invoked in this hymn, is identified with Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge, speech and learning. The suktam directly prays 'Medhaṃ Devī Sarasvatī' (may Goddess Saraswati grant intellect) and closes with the Medha-Saraswati Gayatri, making it one of the foremost Vedic prayers to Saraswati.