A “mantra” is a sacred utterance, a sound, a syllable, word or group of words believed by the ancient rishis (wise ones) to have psychological and spiritual powers. The mantras that we will chant are in Sanskrit – the sacred language of ancient India. The mantras were created by the rishis as paths to awareness, using the power of particular sounds to create specific energy responses. In Sanskrit, ‘man’ means mind and ‘tra’ means ‘to free from’, so ‘mantra’ is literally a tool to free the mind.
The use of mantra, word, prayer, or affirmation is recommended by virtually all religions and meditative traditions around the world. And modern neuroscience is also beginning to discover the relationship between mental functioning and the way words are used.
In ‘The Secret Life of the Brain’, by Richard Restak, the author points out that merely “thinking about the words of a mantra” engages the limbic area of the brain – responsible for thought, learning, perception, and emotion.
Yogis have intentionally stimulated this part of the brain for centuries, through the practices of mantra, meditation, and contemplation. Many practices recommend focusing the attention on this frontal part of the brain as well, the “ajna” or third eye chakra; the space between the eyebrows.
Traditionally, mantras are chanted in cycles of 108 repetitions. Why the number 108? According to the Vedic scriptures, our physical and subtle bodies contain 108 major nadis, or energy channels. When we chant a mantra 108 times, that sound vibration can fill all of the energy lines in our bodies and balance them. The more we chant one particular sound vibration, the more we tune ourselves to that vibration.
As we move deeper into the power of these ancient sound formulas, I also invite you to spend some time each day bathing in the silence that so naturally follows the chanting. These moments of silence lead us towards the most precious gift of inner peace.
"A mantra is something to let sink deep in your being, just as roots go deep into the earth. The deeper the roots go into the earth, the higher the tree will go into the sky." – Osho
Gayatri Mantra
The Gayatri Mantra is one of the most known and beneficial of the ancient Sanskrit mantras. Gayatri is a mantra of physical, emotional, and mental healing, purifying the subtle karmas, protection from the onslaught of obstacles, and of spiritual awakening or self-realization.
Om bhur bhuvas suvaha
Tat savitur vareynyam
Bhargo divasya dhimahi
Diyoyonah prachodayaat
On the absolute reality and its planes,
On that finest spiritual light,
We meditate, as remover of obstacles
That it may inspire and enlighten us.
Shanti Mantra
The Shanti Mantra is an ancient mantra often used as a prayer recited before studying sacred Hindu scriptures. It is a prayer for peace, and comes from the “Krishna Yajur Veda Taittiriya Upanishad.”
Om sahana vavatu
Saha nau bhunaktu
Saha viiryam karavaa vahai
Tejasvi nau vadhiitam astu
Maa vidvissaa vahai
Om shanti shanti shanti
Let us together be protected
Let us together be nourished by heavenly blessings
May we work together with great energy for the benefit of all
May our study by luminous, filled with joy and purpose
Never let us be poisoned by the seeds of hatred
Let there be peace in me;
peace in my environment;
and peace in the forces that act on me.