Do you ever repeat a phrase in your head, over and over, like you want to believe in it with all your heart, and you deposit all your energy into those words? Maybe it’s just a single word, phrase or a few lines.
It can feel almost like a prayer, sometimes -regardless of what higher entity you believe in because you are deeply concentrated and you are focusing on feeling those words with your entire body.
Some might call it manifesting, attracting good energy or simply voicing out to the universe what you want for you and your soul journey.
If you know the feeling, keep on reading.
Today I wanna share what mantras are, and the powerful impact that they have had on my spiritual journey.
Mantra is a Sanskrit term, with “man” meaning “mind” and “tra” meaning “release.”
As already shared in a previous blog post, achieving a high meditative state that is also comfortable and allows you to concentrate can be challenging if you are just getting started. A mantra could be a good option for you if you are struggling to quieten your mind, because if you’re repeating a mantra, in your head or out loud, that mantra occupies your awareness and helps prevent it from drifting off in other directions.
What are Mantras?
A mantra is a syllable, word, or phrase that is repeated. Mantras can be spoken, chanted, whispered, or repeated in the mind.
The most well-known Sanskrit mantra is
Om and Om Shanti Shanti Shanti Om.
If you’ve been to a yoga class, (and your teacher likes chanting), chances are good that you already encountered this mantra.
You might not know the meaning, but the translation is not even that important. These are sacred Sanskrit words that have an incredibly powerful vibration and charge. That’s why they are often used to open or close a sacred space (e.g. yoga, meditations, women’s circle).
Many religions, such as Hinduism and Buddhism, attribute spiritual powers to mantras. However, mantra usage is not restricted by religion or language. There are established mantras that are pretty common, but you can also create your personal mantra that can act as a guide for the way you want to live your life, sort of like a philosophy.
My Favorite Mantra: The Gayatri Mantra
I learned the Gayatri Mantra during my yoga teacher training in 2018 and without even knowing the meaning, it resonated so deeply with me. I could feel the power behind the words, even though I didn’t understand them.
The Gayatri Mantra is one of the oldest and most powerful Sanskrit mantras from the Vedas. I’m not very experienced in Sanskrit or the Vedas. But the beauty of the mantra is that its vibration contains such incredible power, that you can feel it just by listening to or chanting it.
Here is the Gayatri Mantra:
oṃ bhūr bhuvaḥ suvaḥ
tat savitur vareṇyaṃ
bhargo devasya dhīmahi
dhiyo yo naḥ pracodayāt
The Meaning of the Gayatri Mantra
There are many different interpretations and meanings of the Gayatri Mantra. I don’t wanna claim one as the ‘right’ one. I never studied Sanskrit or the Vedas, but here is one general meaning:
General meaning: We meditate on that most adored Supreme Lord, the creator, whose effulgence (divine light) illuminates all realms (physical, mental and spiritual). May this divine light illuminate our intellect.
Word meaning: Om: The primeval sound; Bhur: the physical body/physical realm; Bhuvah: the life force/the mental realm Suvah: the soul/spiritual realm; Tat: That (God); Savitur: the Sun, Creator (source of all life); Vareñyam: adore; Bhargo: effulgence (divine light); Devasya: supreme Lord; Dhīmahi: meditate; Dhiyo: the intellect; Yo: May this light; Nah: our; Prachodayāt: illumine/inspire.
Don’t get me wrong, the meaning is of course important, but you can highly benefit from the mantra by even just listening to it. Have your eyes close and just feel the vibration of each word in your body.
Chant the Gayatri Mantra
If you have never chanted or heard the Gayatri Mantra before, I would recommend you to check out some videos on Youtube. But be aware, you might notice that people chant it with different pronunciations.
Here’s one of my favorite versions of the Gayatri Mantra.
If you would love to explore chanting as one form of meditation and deepen your spiritual journey, take a look at Blissful Mornings where I’ll take you through a free 5-day journey.
We will combine three of my favorite spiritual practices to infuse our morning routine with joy and raise the vibration of our day. This 5-day journey is for you if you’re ready to lay a new foundation for your morning routine, integrating joy, spirituality and meditation.
