Mantras in Yoga: What Are They & How Do They Work?
Mantras in yoga: What are they and how do they work? Wonder what are mantras in yoga? Imagine having a secret code, a powerful phrase that can transform your thoughts, elevate your mood, and unlock a sense of inner peace. Intriguing, right?
Well, that's exactly what yoga mantras can do! As someone who uses mantras on a daily basis and loves to share their power in her yoga classes, I can’t wait to dive deep and share it with you now. Read on to uncover the ancient practice that's not just for yogis but for anyone looking to harness the magic of words.
What are the mantras in yoga?
Mantra is a fifth yoga described in the Yoga Upanishads. The word mantra is generally translated as sound vibration. The literal meaning of the mantra is “The force that liberates the mind from bondage”.
In Sanskrit the word mantra is derived from several roots: mananaat - “ bondage of mind”, trayate - “feed” or “liberated”, iti - “trough” or “thus”, and mantraha - “the force of vibration”.
What it all means…
According to Yoga philosophy, the gross mind or mental nature has two attributes which hold it in ‘bondage’. The first is *mala* and the second is *vikshepa*.
*Mala* translates to "impurities," while *vikshepa* refers to "dissipation."
Essentially, our minds are often cluttered and scattered, making it difficult to focus and find inner peace. What are they cluttered with? With the tamasic and rajasic qualities of life which I talk more about below.
The tamasic and rajasic qualities of life
Tamasic qualities are those that promote lethargy, ignorance, and darkness. Think of moments when you feel unmotivated, lazy, or stuck in a rut. Yet, rajasic qualities are linked to passion, activity, and restlessness. They drive us to constantly chase after desires, ambitions, and sensory pleasures.
These both qualities limit our mental faculties, causing us to act, experience, and behave in specific patterns that can be hard to break. Recognizing and understanding these impurities is the first step towards using mantras effectively to cleanse and focus the mind.
The purpose of mantra is to free the mind from the pattern of amusement that it constantly seeks.
Mantra teaches us to free the mind from attraction to the tamasic and rajasic qualities of life ( all destructive behavior programs, patrons that do not bring us good, and negative ways of thinking).
How mantras work
Mantra is vibration. The ultimate mantra is anahada nada, an unstruck sound or the sound of the vibrating nucleus within an atom. Of course, this means nothing also because it is a soundless sound. This is where yogic physics comes in.
Wherever there is motion there is bound to be a vibration. This in turn creates a subtle sound. The atoms are constantly in motion and creating a set of vibrations.
How to become aware of these vibrations
Simple. Through a process of sensitizing the awareness and going deep into our psychic body. Please remember that the mind is one aspect of mantra yoga, the psychic body is another aspect, and sound vibration is the third aspect.
A mantra is composed of psychically potent sounds and syllables that are capable of influencing the human system. They can excite the emotions and give suggestions to the mind. They affect both the one who chants them and the one who hears them.
Besides being a sound pattern associated with some meaning, a Mantra is also energy composed of certain frequencies that have a pattern of their own and a vibrational field that creates different intonations.
These frequencies and the sympathetic overtones generated by them influence our sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves, which are spread in a fine network around our internal organs. The sympathetic response generates the neuromotor response and influences the two hemispheres of the cerebral cortex.
The effects of mantra
Mantra practices involve the left hemisphere and are therefore effective in increasing positive emotions. The intonation and melody remove negative emotions. In association with Yantra - a diagram or picture of the deity - the mantra also provides the right hemisphere with a concrete image of the object of emotional attachment.
In animals, both hemispheres work in symmetry, so the distinction between the two hemispheres does not exist. The distinctiveness of the left hemisphere is a development that emerged with the appearance of verbal communication in human beings.
Thus it is clear that mantras affect the emotional self. Spiritual sounds may be poems, chants, prayers, or hymns - all create emotional frequencies and open new dimensions in our consciousness.
Chanting is conducive to positive emotions; the meaning inherent in the sounds and words of chant excites the memory and the psychic centers and causes the entire nervous system to vibrate. Chanting mantras in the early morning hours sets the rhythmic pattern for the whole day.
According to Ramana Maharshi, repetition of mantra, with attention directed to the source of the sound, completely engages the mind. This is Tapas. The source is not the vocal organs alone, but also the idea of the sound in the mind, whose source is the self. The practice of mantra is more than a suggestion, a bit of advice, or an idea. It is a means of getting in touch with ourselves.
Types of Mantras
A mantra may be used for religious worship, for japa, for healing, to help spiritual evolution, for purification, for making offerings, and so forth. Two main types of mantra are recognized traditionally: The Universal Mantra and The Individual Mantra.
The universal mantras are well known and have been adopted by different traditions for use in their meditative and contemplative practices.
Universal/common mantras
Here’s a universal yoga mantras list:
Mahamrityunjaya manta: Om Trayambakam Yajamaje Sugandim Pushti Vardhanam Urvarrukamiva Bandhanaat Mrityor Muksheeya Ma Amritaat.
This mantra is said to rejuvenate and bestow health, wealth, a long life, peace, prosperity, and contentment. The Mantra is a centuries-old technique of connecting one to pure consciousness and bliss.
Gayatri Mantra: Om Bhur Bhuvah Svah Tat Savitur Vareneeyam Bhargo Devasya Dheemahi Dhee Yo Yonah Prachodayat.
Gayatry Mantra, also known as the “Guru Mantra” or the “Savitri Mantra”. It is one of the oldest mantras and is generally thought of as being amongst the highest and most powerful mantras of all.
3. Om Namah Shivaya
This is a most potent and popular mantra, which is at the heart of the Vedas and Tantra and widely used in the Himalayan tradition. “Na - Ma Shi- Va-Ya” are called panchaksharas or five syllables, they correspond to the five main centers in the human system and are a way of activating them.
The panchaksharas also represent the five elements in nature: earth, water, fire, air, and space. If you get mastery over them, they could dissolve everything that is made up of five elements in your consciousness.
4. Om Namo Bhavate Vasudevaya
This mantra is known as the liberation mantra. Consistent use of this mantra will eventually, even if over many incarnations, free us from the cycles of rebirth. In this way, it mitigates Karma so we are free to make true choices in our lives.
5. Om Namo Narayana
Narayana is the Power that lets you flow like water in Life. Whatever obstacles that come your way, can be overcome by being fluid and transformative. Narayana gives you the power to keep moving on without being stuck in the complexities of Life.
6. Om/AUM
The vibration produced by chanting Om in the physical universe corresponds to the original vibration that first arose at the time of creation. The sound Om sustains life. Om(AUM) also represents the waking, dream, and deep sleep states and the silence which surrounds Om represents the “Bliss” state.
7. Soham (So Hum): the “I Am All That Is”
This mantra connects your consciousness with Divine consciousness. When used for meditation, Sohum acts as a natural mantra to control one’s breathing pattern, to help achieve deep breathing, and to gain concentration.
These all come within the category of universal or common mantras which can be repeated by anyone and everyone who aspires for inner understanding of the mental, subtle, and psychic personality.
Individual or personal mantras
These mantras are utilized for specific purposes according to need. These mantras can be either monosyllabic, known as bija mantras, or composed of a combination of sounds. Anyone can adopt the universal mantras and practice them without direct guidance.
Yet, the individual mantras we generally give to students are according to their personality type and the kind of change or stimulation they need. This can be anything from willpower stimulation, a boost of potential, letting go of anger and aggression, to anything you need in that moment.
Some saints - inspired by divine love and unshakable faith - used the chants as mantras or tools in their own spiritual practices. Their followers afterward started using those mantras, calling them mahamantras, or great mantras. An example of such yoga mantra lyrics is this chant that was used by Shri Chaitanya and is now spreading rapidly through his devotees around the world:
HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA RAMA
HARE HARE
HARE KRSNA HARE KRSNA KRSNA KRSNA
HARE HARE.
Final thoughts on yoga mantras
That’s a wrap on your introduction to mantras in yoga. But the truth is, in today's digital age, we can find countless mantras on YouTube and across the internet. But how do you know which mantra will work for you? How can you make it truly effective?
And why do some people see results almost instantly, while others, it takes more time? Read my part 2 on mantras to find your answers. Coming out soon!
Finally, if you’d like to join me for a yoga class and experience combining mantras with your practice, you’re welcome to stop by my studio in Los Cabos, Mexico. Find all the info on classes here.
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Kundalini Tantra Yoga: Why It’s Not What You Think
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