SRI GURUBHYO NAMAH SRI PARAMA GURUBHYO NAMAH
SRI PARAMESHTHI GURUBHYO NAMAH

The time for annual examinations is fast approaching. Parents complain their children are not able to concentrate. Students say, that their memory is poor though they understand the subject.

I thought it appropriate to give them a wonderful Stotra from Sri Rudrayamala Tantra, which improves concentration, memory and also intelligence. I find about half a dozen videos on Youtube chanting this Prajna vivardhna Kartikeya stotra but none of them mentioned the purpose of chanting it, except one in Telugu.

The students may try to chant this stotra and if they cannot chant properly, let them listen to it repeatedly while taking break from their studies or s and when they find few minutes. It will surely help them to concentrate, help them in easily understanding the subject and improves the memory. More than memory, what is important is calling back whenever it is needed.
This is all about Mundane needs.

Let us see its spiritual side.

This stotra bestow us with Prajyna, the nearest word is Intelligence though not apt.
In the trisuparNa mantra in the mahAnArAyaNa upanishAd, the following lines occur:

Brahma medhayaa

Brahman is attained through MEDHA (intelligence)

Madhu Medhayaa

Bliss is attained through MEDHA, intelligence

BrahmamEva Madhu mEdhayaa

Brahman, which is verily bliss is attained through MEDHA intelligence

It should however be noted that the intelligence or medhA which is referred to here is not only the mundane intelligence which we refer to in our daily lives . This medhA refers to the development of the buddhi such that the truth can be clearly seen. Bhagavan ShrI RamaNa maharShI gives an analogy to illustrate how the pure and clear buddhi perceives Brahman . Brahman is hidden from the view of the unclear buddhi like dense clouds hiding the sun . This also we find in Ashtavakra Gita. The clear buddhi which has been obtained by intense sAdhana, sees Brahman like a person seeing the sun through a thin mist .

Thus the jIvanmukta, is different from a person without a clear buddhi. Hence, development of MEDHA & PRAJnYA (buddhi) is given prime importance in our tradition.

There are Mantras and Suktas in Vedas which needs practice to chant, where as Stotras from Puranas / Tantras may be chanted by any one without much practice.

Skanda, Kartikeya, Subrahmanya as he is called is the embodiment of Gyana. He is also known as Gyana Skanda, Swaminatha, who is said to have initiated PRANAVA to his father SIVA. That is the mythology behind the temple Swamimal near Kumbakonam, Tamilnadu.

This Stotra is said to have given by Skanda himself

At the end of the stotra, he says that any one chanting his 28 names, even if he is unable to speak will become accomplished in speech, like Brihaspati . The person who considers this as mahA Mantra and chants them will attain mahA praGYA (great intelligence).

Any way we don’t find the appropriate word in English which means MEDHA & PRAJNYA and hence they should be understood as MEDHA & PRAJNYA.

I give below the Stotra in English as well in Sanskrit. There are two videos, one with this introduction and the other one is only stotra. I also attach PDF file for down loading the stotra.

अस्य श्री प्रज्ञया विवर्धन स्तोत्र मन्त्रस्य
सनत्कुमार ऋषिः
कार्तिकेयो देवता
अनुष्टप छन्दः
मम सकल विद्यां मेधां प्रज्ञां तथा धारणा शक्ति सिध्यर्थे जपे विनियोगः

श्रीगणेशाय नमः ।
स्कन्द उवाच ।
योगीश्वरो महासेनः कार्तिकेयोऽग्निनन्दनः ।
स्कन्दः कुमारः सेनानीः स्वामी शङ्करसम्भवः ॥ १॥

गाङ्गेयस्ताम्रचूडश्च ब्रह्मचारी शिखिध्वजः ।
तारकारिरुमापुत्रः क्रौञ्चारिश्च षडाननः ॥ २॥

शब्दब्रह्मसमुद्रश्च सिद्धः सारस्वतो गुहः ।
सनत्कुमारो भगवान् भोगमोक्षफलप्रदः ॥ ३॥

शरजन्मा गणाधीशपूर्वजो मुक्तिमार्गकृत् ।
सर्वागमप्रणेता च वाञ्छितार्थप्रदर्शनः ॥ ४॥

अष्टाविंशतिनामानि मदीयानीतियः पठेत् ।
प्रत्यूषं श्रद्धया युक्तो मूको वाचस्पतिर्भवेत् ॥ ५॥

महामन्त्रमयानीति मम नामानुकीर्तनम् ।
महाप्रज्ञामवाप्नोति नात्र कार्या विचारणा ॥ ६॥

॥ इति श्रीरुद्रयामले प्रज्ञाविवर्धनाख्यं
श्रीमत्कार्तिकेयस्तोत्रं सम्पूर्णम् ॥

praGYA vivardhana kArtikeya stotraM
asya Sri prajnya vivardhana stoTra mantrasya
sanatkumara RushiH
kartikEyO dEvata
anuShTap chandaH
mama sakala vidyaam mEdhaam Prajnyam tatha dharaNa Shakti sidhyarthe japE viniyOgaH
śrīgaṇeśāya namaḥ ।
skanda uvāca ।
yogīśvaro mahāsenaḥ kārtikeyo’gninandanaḥ ।
skandaḥ kumāraḥ senānīḥ svāmī śaṅkarasambhavaḥ ॥ 1॥

gāṅgeyastāmracūḍaśca brahmacārī śikhidhvajaḥ ।
tārakārirumāputraḥ krauñcāriśca ṣaḍānanaḥ ॥ 2॥

śabdabrahmasamudraśca siddhaḥ sārasvato guhaḥ ।
sanatkumāro bhagavān bhogamokṣaphalapradaḥ ॥ 3॥

śarajanmā gaṇādhīśapūrvajo muktimārgakṛt ।
sarvāgamapraṇetā ca vāñchitārthapradarśanaḥ ॥ 4॥

aṣṭāviṃśatināmāni madīyānītiyaḥ paṭhet ।
pratyūṣaṃ śraddhayā yukto mūko vācaspatirbhavet ॥ 5॥

mahāmantramayānīti mama nāmānukīrtanam ।
mahāprajñāmavāpnoti nātra kāryā vicāraṇā ॥ 6॥

॥ iti śrīrudrayāmale prajñāvivardhanākhyaṃ
śrīmatkārtikeyastotraṃ sampūrṇam ॥

Prajna Vivardhana Stotra Sans & Eng