Brahmārpañam
Brahma Havir
Brahmāgnau Brahmañāhutaṃ |
Brahmaiva
Tena Gantavyam
Brahmakarmā Samādhinah ||
Aham
Vaishvānaro Bhutvā
Prāñinām Ḍehamāshritaha |
Prāñāpāna
Samāyuktah
Pachāmyannam Chaturvidham ||
ब्रह्मार्पणं ब्रह्म हविः ब्रह्माग्नौ ब्रह्मणा हुतम् ।
ब्रह्मैव तेन गन्तव्यं ब्रह्मकर्मसमाधिना ॥
ब्रह्मैव तेन गन्तव्यं ब्रह्मकर्मसमाधिना ॥
अहम् वैश्वानरो भूत्वा प्राणीनाम् देहमाश्रितः |
प्राणापान समायुक्तः पचाम्यन्नम् चतुर्विदम् ||
Brahmārpañam
Brahma Havir
BrahmāgnauBrahmañāhutaṃ,
Brahmaiva
Tena Gantavyam
BrahmakarmāSamādhinah.
The act of
offering is God. The oblation is God. By God it is offered into the Fire of
God.
God is That which is to be attained by him who
performs action pertaining to God.
Word
For Word Translation
brahmā:
supreme spirit; arpañam: oblation, havih:
butter, agnau: in the fire of consummation.
brahmana: by the spirit
soul. aahutam: offered.
brahma: spiritual
kingdom: eva: certainly. tena: by
him. gantavyam: to be reached.
brahma:
spiritual. karma: in activities. samadhina: by
complete absorption.
AhamVaishvānaroBhutvā
PrāñināmḌehamāshritaha,
PrāñāpānaSamāyuktah
PachāmyannamChaturvidham.
Becoming
the life-fire in the bodies of living beings, mingling with the subtle breaths
I digest the four kinds of food.
Word
For Word Translation
aham:
I. vaisvanarah: My plenary portion as the digesting fire. bhutva:
becoming.
praninam: of all living entities.
deham: in the bodies. asritah: situated.
prana: the outgoing air. apana: the down-going
air. samayuktah: keeping in balance.
pachami:
I digest. annam. foodstuff.
catuh-vidham. the four kinds.
The two
verses are from the Bhagavad Gita, Chapter IV, Verse 24 and
Bhagavad Gita, Chapter XV, Verse 14.
Sri Sathhya Sai Baba's explanation of this prayer
We should partake food with a sathwic (pure,
serene) mind. Our ancestors recommended the offering of food to God before
partaking. Food so partaken becomes prasad (consecrated
offering). Prayer cleanses the food of the three impurities caused by the
absence of cleanliness of the vessel, cleanliness of the food stuff, and
cleanliness in the process of cooking. It is necessary to get rid of these
three impurities to purify the food, for pure food goes into the making of a
pure mind. It is not possible to ensure the purity of the cooking process
because we do not know what thoughts rage in the mind of the man who prepares
the food. Similarly, we cannot ensure the cleanliness of the food ingredients
because we do not know whether it was acquired in a righteous way by the person
who sold it to us. Hence, it is essential on our part to offer food to God in
the form of prayer so that these three impurities do not afflict our mind.
