Upanishads · Gaṇapati 12.1
॥
Devanāgarī
अनेन गणपतिमभिषिञ्चति । स वाग्मी भवति । चतुर्थ्यामनश्नन् जपति । स विद्यावान् भवति
Transliteration (IAST)
anena gaṇapatimabhiṣiñcati | sa vāgmī bhavati | caturthyāmanaśnan japati | sa vidyāvān bhavati
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
अनेन गणपतिम् अभिषिञ्चतिanena gaṇapatim abhiṣiñcatiwith this he bathes Gaṇapati
सः वाग्मी भवतिsaḥ vāgmī bhavatihe becomes eloquent
चतुर्थ्याम् अन्-अश्नन् जपतिcaturthyām an-aśnan japatirepeating, without eating, on the fourth day
सः विद्यावान् भवतिsaḥ vidyāvān bhavatihe becomes learned
Translation
With this he bathes Gaṇapati — he becomes eloquent. Repeating, without eating, on the fourth day — he becomes learned.
Version
5619c87ce8be · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Two promises, and both concern abilities: eloquence and learning. Note that what is asked for here is not wealth or health, as in the Rudrākṣa-jābāla, but what is needed for work: to speak and to know. Asking for an ability is more honest than asking for a fruit, and this is worth stating outright. One who asks for eloquence asks not for something ready-made but for an instrument; the labor will still be his own.
Caturthī, "the fourth day" of the lunar month, is Gaṇeśa's day; the fast on this day is kept even now. It is worth noting that both fasting and repetition are made conditions: anaśnan japati, "repeating, without eating." Something can be said about the benefit of fasting without any mysticism at all. A hungry person is more attentive than a full one — anyone who has tried to work right after a meal knows this; and the rule of fasting on a day of concentration is, first of all, a practical rule.
The Vaiṣṇava side keeps ekādaśī, the eleventh day, and gives the very same justification, without additions: "on this day there is more time and attention for service," and abstaining from grain is a means, not a merit. It is worth noting, however, the difference in what is asked for. Eloquence is an ability that can be put to bad use as well: swindlers, too, speak persuasively. Hence in Vaiṣṇava practice one usually asks not for the gift of speech but for something to say — and the Gītā names the highest gift not the art of words but buddhi-yoga, "the union of understanding," which the Lord gives Himself (10.10).