You might have heard or seen people chanting the sacred mantra OM during a yoga practice. You should know the entire universe is comprised of vibrational energy. Whether it is the trees, plants, light, your body, or even the cosmos; everything contains energy. When you decide to chant this sacred mantra you create specific vibrations that help you tune in to the deeper self.
Do you know that OM is known as the sound of universal creation? Below we move ahead and share with you the numerous benefits of chanting this mantra, first, let us understand what this mantra means.
What Is OM?
The importance and true potential of the word OM is a bit hard to understand and explain. You should enroll in the best yoga schools in India to understand the actual depth and meaning of this mantra.
However, you might think – How should I start with the practice of chanting OM? Read further to find the answer.
You can start by chanting OM repeatedly and the benefits shall follow. We are not talking about becoming invisible or invincible but the experience of oneness with the universe. Through regular chanting, you enter into a deeper meditative state and unlock your hidden potential.
Only after you have experienced this hidden power can you fully comprehend the actual and untapped power of this simple mantra.
How Can I Chant OM?
When you chant this sacred mantra, you produce a sound that is the base of all communication between humans. The word OM is comprised of three Sanskrit letters namely aa-au-ma or A-U-M.
While chanting this sacred mantra, the sound of A comes from the back of your throat, U from the upper palate, and M from your lips. Moreover, the three sounds also represent the three different states of consciousness.
- A – the wakeful state
- U – the dream state
- M – the state of deep sleep
In other words, chanting OM activates all three states of consciousness. You can find out more by enrolling in the best yoga certification in India and understand this sacred mantra in detail.
Before enrolling in a yoga class you should know how to correctly pronounce this sacred mantra. Read below to know how you can pronounce OM without any hassle.
The Right Way To Pronounce OM
Firstly, you have to consider the mantra as a three-part chant. Start with the Ah sound then move slowly towards the Oh sound. End the chanting with an mmm humming sound on a slow and peaceful note.
However, that is not all, there are five reasons why you should make chanting OM a part of the yoga practice.
6 Reasons To Chant OM In Yoga Practice
Given below are six reasons why chanting the sacred mantra of OM can deepen the yoga practice.
1. Connects You To True Essence
Simply chanting OM helps you enter a deeper state of your existence. You might be able to pull off challenging yoga poses, but the OM mantra helps you form a solid connection with the self and the cosmos on a whole.
2. Brings You Into Your Body
When you are chanting the sacred OM mantra, the vibrations coming from this sound reverberate through your chest, skull, and throat. It helps you form a solid connection with the energy body and come in tune with your physicality. Enrolling in the best yoga certification in India helps you understand the importance of making this a part of daily yoga practice.
3. The Beginning & End Of Practice
Your daily life includes a lot of chaos and stress. Combining yoga and meditation gives you a chance to step away from the noise and still your mind. However, it can become harder for you to just switch from constant noise to stillness.
It is here that chanting OM gives your mind and body a chance to relax and live in the moment. Moreover, it also gives you the chance to start and end the yoga practice on a positive note.
4. Calms Down Your Mind
Putting aside all illusions and attachments is not as easy as it seems. Chanting has a soothing and calming effect on your mind especially the central nervous system. The OM mantra is beneficial if your mind keeps switching from one task to another without focusing on either. You should join the best yoga schools in India to experience the real peace and depth of your being with yoga.
5. Connects You With Others
The chanting of the powerful OM mantra amidst a class of other yogis creates a sense of community and togetherness. You can actually bring and combine your spiritual energy with others in the class. This helps you overcome the illusion that all of us are separate beings.
6. Deep Sleep
Two major factors that impact your mental and physical well-being are stress and tension. Moreover, if you are working late and waking up late it only adds to the problem. Including OM chanting with daily yoga practice helps you enjoy a deep night sleep.
However, chanting OM for hours is simply not a hype created by yoga practitioners. There are some pretty impressive scientific reasons why chanting this sacred mantra is good for you.
3 Scientific Benefits Of Chanting OM
Given below are three major benefits of chanting OM.
1. OM And Parasympathetic Nervous System
Your autonomous nervous system has two major components, the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system is the one mostly affected by tension, fatigue, anxiety, and depression. It is also what activates the fight or flight response system to help you survive a threatening situation.
On the other hand, the parasympathetic nervous system is the exact opposite of the sympathetic nervous system. It helps your body relax, help with digestion and heal from injury. The daily chanting of OM helps your parasympathetic nervous system take over and help you relax.
2. OM And Amygdala De-Activation
The extended Amygdala and its sub-regions located beneath the basal ganglia regulate your brain’s reaction towards stress-inducing fight or flight response system. This is also the region that communicates with the hypothalamus. Hypothalamus is responsible for controlling multiple hormones-producing glands like the pituitary gland. These glands also control your reaction towards stressful situations.
By learning the sacred OM chanting during best yoga certification in India you learn to control your reaction towards stressful situations.
3. OM And Nasal Nitric Oxide (NO)
Nitric Oxide, or NO is a free radical gaseous molecule that plays an important part in healing your body. It plays an important role in multiple biological functions, regulation of blood flow, immunity, neurotransmission, and platelet function. The Nitric Oxide also helps in releasing stress neurotransmitters and DNA damage repair.
Unfortunately, NO is a highly reactive and short lived molecule which makes it difficult to measure its effectiveness. You should include daily OM chanting in daily life to control the NO activity.
Conclusion
The OM mantra is the best way for you to feel close to the universe. Want to get closer to the cosmos? Enroll in the best yoga schools in India to know the relevance of this powerful mantra or join the spiritual healing retreat where you can practice the different types of meditation on daily basis. Meditation is the perfect way to open your third eye with the help of OM mantra. Third eye point (area between your eyebrows) activates the sushumna nadi inside your body.
Also Read: What is Ashtanga Yoga
