Meditation - Mantras and Chanting

There are endless mantras available to you. It could be any inspirational phrase, word, or prayer that aids your meditation. The point is to have the mind focused on the word or phrase and not wondering through all your thoughts and associations. Here are a few suggestions for mantras:

Om mani padme hum. The jewel/prize is in the lotus. This mantra constantly reminds you that the true thing to be desired can be found in meditation-the jewel or the prize.

Oneness. Repeating this word over and over brings one to many levels of realization-whether it is oneness with God, oneness of nature, oneness with surroundings, even oneness with everything.


Om. While this can also be a chant (which we will get to next), it is also a mantra. In the Hindu tradition, Om is the first sound, the sound of creation, and therefore holds a very sacred vibration. Pondering on the thought of creation and vibration is a very powerful mantra.


Not my will but Thy will. This mantra is humbling and focusing; very useful when meditating for insight on a situation that needs clarity.



Chants


Chanting can greatly aid your meditation as the vibration stimulates places within your body that enhance and awaken you spiritually. "Om," and "Om mani padme hum" are both chants and mantras. Chants can be repeated over and over or they can be brief aids to the meditation. Any mantra can be made into a chant, as well as certain prayers, or even hymns. The idea is not to take away from your meditation, but to enhance it through vibration.