ॐ
Om
Om is the most sacred sound in Hindu tradition. Prayers, chants and lessons begin and end with it. It is short enough for anyone to say, and deep enough to think about for a lifetime.
Listen and chant along
Close your eyes and let the sound carry you.
Recording by Carlos Carty, CC BY 4.0 (source). The tanpura is played live, tuned to the chanter's voice.
ॐOṁ (said A-U-M)
Word by word
- A
- waking: the world we see and touch
- U
- dreaming: the world inside the mind
- M
- deep sleep: quiet with no dreams
- the silence after
- the fourth: the peaceful Self underneath all three
What it means
The Mandukya Upanishad says Om is everything: the past, the present and the future, and whatever is beyond time too. It hears three sounds in Om, A, U and M, and links them to waking, dreaming and deep sleep. The quiet after the sound stands for the fourth: the true Self, peaceful and whole, which is there through all the others.
From The Mandukya Upanishad, a short Upanishad all about Om. Read it in the library
How to say it
Sit tall and breathe in. As you breathe out, say Om slowly: let “Aa” open your mouth, “Oo” round your lips, and “Mm” hum with your lips closed. Then rest in the silence for one breath before the next Om. You can also say it silently, in your mind.
Count as you go
Say Om once, then tap. A mala has 108 beads.