Vedas constitute a body of ancient wisdom of India, inherited for the welfare of all human beings.
Since ancient times, Vedas have been chanted in various ways. According to some authors, there are eight major ways of chanting Vedas. Out of eight types of chanting, as reported in the literature, only five methods are currently in vogue. They are:
- Vakya or samhita: Also referred to as mula (Base), this method refers to enunciation of the full sentence
- Pada: In this method, each word in a sentence is uttered
- Krama: Here, the words are combined in certain fixed patterns. For instance, in the pattern of (1-2), (2-3), (3-4), (4-5) etc
- Jatha: Here the pattern is as follows: (1-2, 2-1, 1-2), 2-3, 3-2, 2-3), (3-4, 4-3, 3-4) etc
- Ghana: Here the pattern is as follows: (1-2, 2-1, 1-2-3, 3-2-1, 1-2-3), (2-3, 3-2, 2-3-4, 4-3-2, 2-3-4) etc
This can be better illustrated from the way the following text is dissected. while chanting:
Namah Shambhave Cha Mayobhave Cha Namah Shankaraya Cha Mayaskaraya Cha Namah Shivaya Cha Shivataraaya Cha
(Meaning: I bow to Shiva, the creator of auspicious, delightful and beneficial events and deeds; I bow to the one who is exceedingly auspicious).
Namah Shambhave (1-2)
Shambhave Namah (2-1)
Namah Shambhave Cha (1-2-3)
Cha Shambhave Namah (3-2-1)
Namah Shambhave Cha (1-2-3)
Shambhave Cha (2-3)
Cha Shambhave (3-2)
Shambhave Cha Mayobhave (2-3-4)
Mayobhave Cha Shambhave (4-3-2)
Shambhave Cha Mayobhave (2-3-4)
Vowels as Chants
The three basic sounds used are the long vowel sounds of AAA, III, and UUU. Sufis call them as ‘universal harmonic constants’ and use them in all mystic paths that utilize the sounds Kabbalist’s chant specific vowel sounds have known for ages, to connect the chanter with the energies of the Divine. For healing, Sufis too have resorted to chanting.
Om chanting at different pitches (sthayis), in an experiment, created vibrant positive vibrations in the body of the listener with a feeling of cleansing and purification (Meenakshi 2002). According to Dr. David Simon, neurologist, chants are chemically metabolized into endogenous opiates, then work as internal painkillers as well as healing agents.
Mantra, the Energized Tones
Everything we come across in the universe is as pure as love, and sound is no exception to this law. Mantra in its purest form is a manifestation of nada.
Mantra is a sequence of sound units called morphemes with a characteristic pronunciation and intonation, which disciples normally learn from their teachers. Major constituent of a mantra is a combination of bijas (seed — syllables).
Use of voice to balance chakras has been an age-old concept for the Hindus. According to some historians, Bonpos of the Himalayas were the first to use the recitation of chants and mantras nearly 18,000 years back.
Mantras are also used to control the mind. When repeated mentally, the mind is transcended so as to reach the inner realms of one’s being or consciousness. It is through the use of certain inner symbols that one gets closer to the core of one’s existence — far from the madding crowd, indeed!
Hamsa Mantra: The Mantra of the Goose
A part of the ancient system of nada yoga involving elaborate concepts and practices of sound vibrations, this mantra consists of two sounds, produced while breathing. As inhalation and exhalation form, normally, an unconscious act, occurring say 21,600 times every day of our existence, the vibrations emanating from them assumes potency whenever breathing is done as a conscious act.
Yogi Goraknath, disciple of Yogi Matsyendranath, who had developed great insight into the spiritual life has this to say : “O, Aspirant! Carry out the japa of soham. This japa should never be carried out in mind; rather, it should be experienced or felt in the breath so that even when one is engaged in his or her daily chores, one remains conscious of some 21,600 breaths. As one’s subconscious gets fused with the breath 24X7, 21,600 rhythms are experienced with a speed of 15 to 19 rounds per minute (which is at least 900 breaths per hour). This is how anahata nada manifests on its own with an accompanying light in the spine. The sun-energy (connected to the right half of the brain) surya nadi, is awakened in this process. This results in the feeling of an indescribable vibrating sound, resonating from every pore of the body of the sadhaka: “om or soham.”
This is the version of Nada yoga, according to Yogi Goraknath.
Gayatri Mantra
Gayatri, the most prominent of all chantings, is defined as the one that wipes out ignorance, and thereby the sufferings (Gayantram trayate iti gayatri, meaning ‘Gayatri is the chanting that protects’). It is one of the two great mantras of the Vedas, Gayatri (the other being Mrityunjaya Mantra) and is popular because of the vibration that it creates, which is believed to help one from being afflicted by sorrow. It is chanted in three tones (swaras): low or anudatta, medium or udatta and high or svarita. Chanting in all these dimensions is believed to create health vibrations in and around the chanters, essential for healing. When the chanting is done on sustained high notes, it is referred to as dirgha svarita.
Reciting and meditating on the Gayatri mantra, one seeks to enlighten the whole range of consciousness. It is also chanted once each at a time, concentrating on the chakras, or the psychic centers, beginning at the base of the spinal column (muladhara), below the navel with the abdomen (swadhisthana), on level with the navel (manipura), in the heart (anahata) inside the throat (vishuddha), between the eye-brows (ajna) and inside the head (sahasrara).
Mantras: The Healing Syllables
The Holy Bible talks of the origin of the Universe from the word. ‘In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God’ says the Bible. Mantras are the healing syllables inherited from the past. Repetition of the syllables for 108 times is considered auspicious in Hindu and Buddhist meditation, since the number 108 has certain symbolism attached to it. The numeral 1 is believed to represent the Absolute, 0, the Cosmos and 8, the Infinity. In Buddhism, mantras are associated with mandalas — images of the cosmos prayer wheel and beads.
The following table indicates a few selected mantras and their significance / meaning.
| Mantra | Origin | Meaning |
| Tat Tvam Asi | Hinduism | Thou art that |
| So Ham | Hinduism | That I am |
| Hare Rama | Hinduism | Hail to Rama |
| Hare Krishna | Hinduism | Hail to Krishna |
| Om Namah Shivaya | Hinduism | OM Reverence to Shiva |
| Shanthi Shanthi Shanthi | Hinduism | Peace, Peace, Peace |
| Hrim Hreeemmm | Hinduism | Healing association with throat area |
| Hrum Hroommm | Hinduism | Healing association with livers and spleen. |
| Hraim Hraheemmm | Hinduism | Healing association with kidneys; diuretic |
| Hraum Hrowmmm | Hinduism | Healing association with organs of elimination |
| Hra Hrrahh | Hinduism | Healing associated with chest and heart regions |
| Allah, Allah | Islam | God, God |
| La Illaha IIla ‘Illah | Islam | There’s no God but one God |
| Ya-Salam | Islam | God the source of peace |
| An-Nur | Islam | God, the light |
| Insha Allah | Islam | If God wills |
| Kyre Eleison, Christe Elieson, Kyre Eleison | Christianity | Lord have Mercy, Christ have Mercy, Lord have Mercy |
| Laudamus te | Christianity | We Praise Thee |
| Alleluia! | Christianity | Praise the lord |
| Ave Maria | Christianity | Hail Maria! |
| En Emoi Christus | Christianity | Christ in me |
| Maranatha | Christianity | Come lord |
| Om Mani Padme Hum | Buddhism | Hail the Jewel in the lotus |
| Namo Buddhya | Buddhism | I go to the Buddha for refuge |
| Namo Dharmya | Buddhism | I go to the Dharma for refuge |
| Namo Sangya | Buddhism | I go to the Sangha for refuge |
| Namo Amitabha | Buddhism | I go to the Buddha for light |
| Om Tare Tuttare Ture Swaha | Buddhism | Hail to Tara |
| OM Ah Hum | Buddhism | The Trinity of Power: Creation, reservation and Dissolution Blessed be, All Ye Buddhas! |
| Bhagwan Sarva Tathagata | Buddhism | Gone, gone, gone to other shore |
| Gate, Gate, Para Gate, Parms | Buddhism | Safely passed to the other shore |
| Gate Bodhi Svaha | Buddhism | Enlightened One |
| Adonai | Jewish | Lord |
| Shalom | Jewish | Peace |
| Eli, Eli, Elu | Jewish | My God, My God, My God |
| Barukh Ata Adonai | Jewish | Blessed is the lord |
| Qadosh, Qadosh, Qadosh Adoanai | Jewish | Holy, Holy, Holy, lord of hosts |
| Ehyeh Ehyeh Ehyeh | Jewish | I am that Iam |
This article was published in My Doctor, July 2009, Pages 44 to 48
Edited by Geeta Shreedar, July 28, 2021