Have you ever tried chanting the Om mantra? I certainly have, but never quite fully understood the full range of benefits it can provide. Om has made appearances around the world throughout history and today it is regarded as the most sacred symbol in Hinduism.
On the whole, it would appear a simple practice, where one would chant the word “om” repeatedly during a meditative state. It is thought that the vibration of the sound produced can impact a person’s physical, emotional, and mental state through the stimulation of the vagus nerve, which in turn calms the body.
By chanting Om, the mind can become aligned with a person’s breathing, which enables them to get into an elevated state of consciousness known as Samadhi. The objective is to bring the materially absorbed mind under control, which enables a person to have a one-pointed focus towards spiritual realization.
Om has been said to be the primordial sound of the universe. It was once common knowledge throughout Asia and is now pervading the western world since the counter culture of the 1960s. The true meaning of Om is deeply embedded in Hindu philosophy where they record that it was the sound from which the universe was created. This opposes other scriptures which tend to lean towards light having been something that existed first
Each visual aspect of the Om symbol represents or signifies a particular state of reality. The lower part of the curve symbolises our waking lives, where the mind identifies mostly with physicality, perceiving the world through the five senses.
The middle curve represents our dream state, between deep sleep and our waking life. It is where the mind gets to truly explore the world of the subconscious.
Other aspects such as the dot at the top of the symbol represents Maya. Hindu teachings describe Maya as the illusion that binds an individual’s soul to the material world.
