I have been chanting Om for years now,first as a child because the parents said so, then as an adult because the priest said so! By the time I was old enough to know better I chanted Aum because it had become more of an unconscious practice.But wait no one ever answered my question why? Why do I need to Chant AUM.
Chant AUM it will bring you closer to God. Oh but then who is God or where is he/she? And that would start a whole another discussion and the original query would be lost.
Chant AUM and you will get what you want.Oh but wait who will give me what I want?God!Oh but wait who is he/she?And the original query would again be lost.
Why do you need to know all this? Just chant like everyone else does. It's just one of the many words in a the Mantra after all! Really, is it? Most of us know about the origin, meaning and benefits of AUM chanting. But that is it.We" know" a lot but have we experienced it? And let me tell you it's a beautiful experience!Like I was recently reminded by someone very close to me, the one who knows is an intellectual but the one who experiences it is a mystic. And I couldn't agree more. We have more of intellectual conversations happening around.Rarely will you come across people who have experienced it and those who have are not inclined to talk about it. After all who wants to face sceptics all the time. It just brings your energy down!Today I know better and have been chanting mindfully for few years now.And this is my account of it.
Why do you need to know all this? Just chant like everyone else does. It's just one of the many words in a the Mantra after all! Really, is it? Most of us know about the origin, meaning and benefits of AUM chanting. But that is it.We" know" a lot but have we experienced it? And let me tell you it's a beautiful experience!Like I was recently reminded by someone very close to me, the one who knows is an intellectual but the one who experiences it is a mystic. And I couldn't agree more. We have more of intellectual conversations happening around.Rarely will you come across people who have experienced it and those who have are not inclined to talk about it. After all who wants to face sceptics all the time. It just brings your energy down!Today I know better and have been chanting mindfully for few years now.And this is my account of it.
I read a lot. Spoke to my parents who are spiritually minded. Discussed at length with my Uncle who is also my Guru. Gathered a whole lot of knowledge.And I was ready to start chanting mindfully.
1st day I sat down in Lotus pose/sukhasana, closed my eyes and took a deep breath and started chanting AUUUUOOOOOOMMMMMMMM while breathing out. I managed to sit still and do this practise for 10-15 minutes. I repeated this over a period of days. But this did not bring me closer to God! I realised I was unknowingly doing a mental checklist of things I had done that / previous day and also of work to be done.More of a to do list. Then I thought maybe this is the route taken to God realisation, after all "work is God"! I continued like this for some time till I said to myself I am missing something and one day it just popped into my dream that what I was missing was the whole idea of quieting the mind rather than listening to it.
So then, next day onwards I started concentrating on the vibrations that were produced while chanting. We are all made of energy. Vibrating energy.The whole universe is nothing but energy vibrating at different frequencies. You, me, all species of life forms, living non living, everything is energy. All of our internal organs vibrate to certain frequencies. And falling sick means our frequency needs to be reset. Even Medical Science today recognises the importance of musical( which again is vibrational energy) healing.
After a few days of practice I really got a hang of it. Just concentrate on the sound the chanting produces.My whole body vibrates with it.Right from the abdominal muscles to my skull.While "AU" produces vibrations in th abdominal region giving a gentle massage to internal organs, the"OO" sound vibrates in our chest and throat.By the time I reach"MMMMM" which produces vibrations in the head, my whole body is one light weight mass! Let me caution you here the phrase"few days could also mean months at certain places:-)"
In the beginning it was little unnerving.The sudden burst of energy, body heating up.You are not able to hear anything else. But slowly I got used to it. Absolute silence within. You might be in the midst of a war but no outside sound reaches inside. All I could hear was the humming sound. And at the end of the chanting I feel the vibrations every where in my body. I think now I know how the mystics could elevate themselves!
I made it a daily ritual to chant for half an hour in the morning and evening. Slowly breath in and breath out become became"inhale and exhale". I became more aware and conscious of my every thought and word. I have a 10 years old daughter who is also full of questions and I try my best to answer them. I hope she learns from me. This is the best way that I know of to not only de stress but also rejuvenate ourselves. The positive energy it creates is amazing. I hope the younger generation is smart enough to realize this and get into the practice without arguing about the religious leanings. The benefits are tremendous and more so with this generation which is always on the go, never having time for themselves.
Weird it may sound but ever since then whenever i am confused or worried about something I always dream, if not the whole answer then atleast a pointer to the solution, during sleep. I have a habit of looking at the watch whenever i wake up from dream. These dreams always come to me between 3a.m. to 5a.m. Initially everyone would laugh it of.Family friends even I did not take it seriously. But as the accuracy of my dreams increased, now they all discuss with me whenever they are at a crossroad!
Awesome blog posted.
ReplyDeleteAppreciate for sharing such a great blog.
ReplyDeleteOM Chanting
Everything is vibration , an energy that always rounds us every time, every second.
ReplyDeleteAn infinite energy, we can reach to it only by realizing the vibration , an internal sound, this sound is always there, but popped up when we our mind is still and quite .
when we feel or listen to this vibration, mind always go in silence in just few seconds.
and then we can feel the energy building withing us, a small energy we are and as the mind become more and more conscious of these vibrations our brain also works so faster and so smoothly ,
slowly slowly we can realize that we are surrounding with the great energy and we are mixed with that, after that, we can not bring this experience in word, it is just beyond .
Thanks
Kuldeep Sharma
I have learned a lot of post. Keep updating.
ReplyDeleteMS Office Customer Service Number
Such a nice post.
ReplyDeleteDo you chant aloud or silently in mind without moving your lips?
ReplyDeleteIf Om is pronounced as ओम
ReplyDeletethen how is Aum pronounced?
Is Aum pronounced as औम?
There are three sorts of repetitions
ReplyDeleteof these Mantrams. One is called the verbal, another
semi-verbal, and the third mental. The verbal or
audible is the lowest, and the inaudible is the highest of all. The repetition which is so loud that anybody
can hear it is the verbal.
The next one is where only
the organs begin to vibrate, but no sound is heard;
another man sitting near cannot hear what is being
said. That in which there is no sound, only mental
repetition of the Mantram, at the same time thinking
of its meaning, is called the mental muttering, and
is the highest.
Taken from Swami Vivekananda's book RAJA YOGA
ReplyDeleteThe Yogi alone has the Sutumnd open. When this
Sufumnd current opens, and thought begins to rise
through it, we get beyond the senses, our minds
become supersensuous, superconscious, we get beyond
even the intellect, and where reasoning cannot reach.
To open that Suhtmnd is the prime object of the Yogi.
According to him, along this Suumnd are ranged these
centres of distribution, or, in more figurative language,
these lotuses, as they are called. The lowest one is at
the lowest end of the spinal cord, and is called Mdld-
dhdra, the next one is called Svddhisthdna, the next
ManipAra, the next Andhata, the next ViSuddha, the
next Ajna, and the last, which is in the brain, is the
SahaSrdra, or "the thousand petalled." Of these we
have to take cognition just now of only two centres,
the lowest, the M&lddhdra, and the highest, the Sahat-
rdra. The lowest one is where all energy becomes
stored up, and that energy has to be taken up from
there and brought to the last one, the brain. The
Yogis claim that of all the energies that the human
body comprises the highest is what they call "Ojas"
Now this Ojas is stored up in the brain, and the more the Ojas is in a man s head, the more powerful he is,
the more intellectual, the more spiritually strong will
that man be. This is the action of Ojas. One man
may speak beautiful language and beautiful thoughts,
but they do not impress people; another man speaks
neither beautiful language nor beautiful thoughts, yet
his words charm. That is the power of Ojas coming
out. Every movement coming from him will be
powerful.
Now in all mankind there is more or less of this Ojas
stored up. And all the forces that are working in the
body, in their highest form, become Ojas. You must
remember that it is only a question of transformation.
The same force which is working outside, as electricity
or magnetism, will become changed into inner force;
the same forces that are working as muscular energy
will be changed into Ojas. The Yogis say that that
part of the human energy which is expressed as sex
energy, in sexual functions, sexual thought, and so on,
when checked and controlled, easily becomes changed
into Ojas, and as this lowest centre is the one which
guides all these functions, therefore the Yogi pays par
ticular attention to that centre. He tries to take up
all this sexual energy and convert it into Ojas. It is
only the chaste man or woman who can make the Ojas
rise and become stored in the brain, and that is why
chastity has always been considered the highest virtue,
because man feels that if he is unchaste, spirituality
goes away, he loses mental vigour, and strong moral
stamina. That is why in all of the religious orders in the world that have produced spiritual giants you will
always find this intense chastity insisted upon. That
is why the monks came into existence, giving up mar
riage. There must be perfect chastity,
in thought,
word and deed. Without it the practice of R&ja Yoga
is dangerous, and may lead to insanity.
If people
practise Rdja Yoga and at the same time lead an impure
life, how can they expect to become Yogis?
There were lots of spelling mistakes in my above post.Therefore I'am rewriting it with correct spellings.
DeleteTaken from Swami Vivekanda's book on RAJA YOGA
The Yogi alone has the Susumna open. When this
Susumna current opens, and thought begins to rise
through it, we get beyond the senses, our minds
become supersensuous, superconscious, we get beyond
even the intellect, and where reasoning cannot reach.
To open that Susumna is the prime object of the Yogi.
According to him, along this Susumna are ranged these
centres of distribution, or, in more figurative language,
these lotuses, as they are called. The lowest one is at
the lowest end of the spinal cord, and is called Muladhara
, the next one is called Svadhisthana, the next
Manipura, the next Anahata next Visuddha, the
next Ajna, and the last, which is in the brain, is the
Sahasrara, or the thousand petalled.Of these we
have to take cognition just now of only two centres,
the lowest, the Muladhara, and the highest, the Sahasrara. The lowest one is where all energy becomes
stored up, and that energy has to be taken up from
there and brought to the last one, the brain. The
Yogis claim that of all the energies that the human
body comprises the highest is what they call Ojas.
Now this Ojas is stored up in the brain, and the more the Ojas is in a man's head, the more powerful he is,
the more intellectual, the more spiritually strong will
that man be. This is the action of Ojas. One man
may speak beautiful language and beautiful thoughts,
but they do not impress people; another man speaks
neither beautiful language nor beautiful thoughts, yet
his words charm. That is the power of Ojas coming
out. Every movement coming from him will be
powerful.
Now in all mankind there is more or less of this Ojas
stored up. And all the forces that are working in the
body, in their highest form, become Ojas. You must
remember that it is only a question of transformation.
The same force which is working outside, as electricity
or magnetism, will become changed into inner force;
the same forces that are working as muscular energy
will be changed into Ojas. The Yogis say that that
part of the human energy which is expressed as sex
energy, in sexual functions, sexual thought, and so on,
when checked and controlled, easily becomes changed
into Ojas, and as this lowest centre is the one which
guides all these functions, therefore the Yogi pays par
ticular attention to that centre. He tries to take up
all this sexual energy and convert it into Ojas. It is
only the chaste man or woman who can make the Ojas
rise and become stored in the brain, and that is why
chastity has always been considered the highest virtue,
because man feels that if he is unchaste, spirituality
goes away, he loses mental vigour, and strong moral
stamina. That is why in all of the religious orders in the world that have produced spiritual giants you will
always find this intense chastity insisted upon. That
is why the monks came into existence, giving up mar
riage. There must be perfect chastity,
in thought,
word and deed. Without it the practice of Raja Yoga
is dangerous, and may lead to insanity.
If people
practise Raja Yoga and at the same time lead an impure
life, how can they expect to become Yogis?
Which is the correct pronounciation?
ReplyDeleteओम,औम,आम,आ ऊ म?
Which is the correct pronounciation among these?