chanting

To those of you, who are relatively new to the world of energy, welcome. To those seasoned few I invite you into beginner’s mind.

Our own five senses—the “gateways to healing,” as they are referred to in Ayurveda—are very powerful tools for promoting health and wellbeing. They allow us to use everything around us as medicine.

This week, we’ll dive into the world of Sound. (We previously looked at Sight.)

As turbulence shook and rattled the cabin I chanted the Mahamrityunjaya mantra silently to myself to offer protection, to myself and to the entire plane. I had done the same thing in buses and car rides in India, when the terrain was so uncertain, when the cliffs were only inches away and I had no other way to comfort myself. We had chanted this mantra weekly during my time at the ashram and I had felt its power.

Mantra work has been some of the most powerful work I have done in my lifetime. The effect mantra has on the cells of the body and the DNA is so pronounced that I can literally feel the shifts in my being after I chant. The resonant tones of chanting change the physical body forever. It is inescapable and undeniable: Chanting simply transforms you!

My mother is Christian, but she is a Bhakti yogi, no doubt. Her entire spiritual practice is that of no-minded devotion. She is not about the letter of the law, but rather the heart behind her worship. I admire that about her, and though I do not believe in the same way she does, I can learn a lot from her devotion.

Sattva: Balance. Purity. Calmness. Neutrality. Equilibrium. Peace.

Imagine a raging fire consuming a forest of ancient trees, the charred branches left after the fact, the newly fertile soil, and then the regrowth of the shrubs, bushes and trees over time to again reveal a pristine woodland of animal life and nature. After the burn and regrow, there is a space and time of balance that is achieved and seems to be maintained over time, during which you can hang a hammock in the trees and fall peacefully asleep while crickets sing and water flows down the mountain.

The Four Immeasurables may seem like insurmountable idealism, but don’t be fooled by your own ego. There are four easy ways to cultivate and nurture compassion, loving-kindness, sympathetic joy and equanimity.

Aum (OM): A simple chant that can heal on the physical, spiritual and metaphysical planes…

Picture an enlightened yogi and you might envisage a peaceful face, calm and serene surroundings and the chanting of ‘Aum’ in the background. But why ‘Aum,’ pray tell? The reasons are many, and you are free to choose the ones that find a home in your beliefs.

The heart beats 103,680 times per day on average and over 2 billion times in an average lifetime. How strong the heart is determines much about an individual’s physical and emotional health; these two elements inevitably influence the mental and spiritual health of a person as well.

Everyone’s meditation practice is deeply personal depending on individual needs, and certainly it helps to have the advice of a qualified meditation teacher. But our most profound guru dwells within us.