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Chanting During Classes at Flow
The Meaning of OM
Om is a mantra or vibration that is traditionally chanted at the beginning and end of yoga sessions. It is said to be the sound of the universe. Somehow the ancient yogis knew what scientists today are telling us - that the entire universe is moving. Nothing is ever solid or still. Everything that exisits pulsates, creating a rhythmic vibration that the ancient yogis acknowleged with the sound of om. Chanting om allows us to recognize our experience as a reflection of how the whole universe moves - the setting sun, the rising moon, the ebb and flow of the tides, the beating our our hearts.
Om is the oldest mantra known in India. Indian sages and Vedic scholars were familiar with OM, and used the mantra in the context of ancient rituals and ceremonies. OM was considered so sacred, it was only passed from teacher to student in strictest confidence. Initiates on the spiritual path understood its sublime meaning,and for countless generations, chanted OM before reciting hyms. The practice is very old, dating back to the third millennium BCE and perhaps earlier. Eventually, OM was written down, traced in sand or water during ancient rituals.
The meaning of OM--as well as its constituent parts, A-U-M has been interpreted in many ways since ancient times. The Upanishads referred to it directly as the up sound, calling out or exalting sound, a sound of assent (or, "yes"), or a term,TARA, meaning to cross or traverse--a reference to the liberating function of OM, which safely transports the yogi across the ocean of existence to the "other shore". In reciting OM, according to one scripture, the yogi can transcend the mind itself, and come to their true identity. Other yoga scriptures say that OM, simple causes the life force, or prana, to rush through the body, like a current of energy. Try it out and notice the vibratory quality it awakens in your body!
Pantanjali, author of the famed yoga Sutras, wrote that in order to realize the mystery of the divine, OM should be recited and contemplated. When we chant OM today, we are continuing ancient and honored tradition. If you are new to the sound, and your teacher chants it during class, you may listen to it a few times before chanting aloud. Once you start, you'll be hooked--as it anchors the start and finish of our yoga practice, and connects us to a sacred and time-honored ritual as well as the vibratory quality of the entire life force in our world--no matter what your religious or spiritual beliefs!
(excerpted from Cindy Lee, Yoga Journal and George Feurestein, The Sacred Syllable of OM - The Vedas are sacred scriptures of India; the Upanishads are the philosophical portion of these texts.)
Chanting in Yoga
One of the delights of yoga practice is chanting. "The joy of chanting unfurls the inner world!" says Gurumayi Chidvilasananda, the spiritual leader of the Siddha yoga tradition. Krishna Das, the well know chant master and recording artist whose music is heard in yoga studios everywhere, says that chanting dusts off the mirror of the heart, and clears away a lot of stuff that gets in our way, spiritually & emotionally speaking (eg fear, shame, anger, greed, obsessive thoughts, etc etc!). There is no question that chanting and singing stills the mind, dissolves worries, frees the voice and opens up the heart.
In the yoga tradition, and in India, chanting incorporates sacred mantras and sounds like OM, and often names of sacred gods and goddesses from Hindu mythology. People wonder if you have to be Hindu to appreciate these sounds and names or derive benefit from them, and the answer, simply, is no! It's repetition of these sounds, as much as their meaning, that has the effects described above. Bhakti yogis, or those who follow a devotional path, sing all day long and they are happy indeed! So a little bhakti practice, included in yoga classes, has this rub-off effect. It's subtle at first, and you may not notice, but eventually your heart will sing! Kirtan, which we will offer at Flow, is a joyful and fun gathering to share, sing and jam together.!
Chanting is gaining a foothold in the US. At Flow, we believe these practices enrich the inner life, as much as the physical part of yoga. We invite you to explore, participate and enjoy them as part of our yoga community!
Written by Jill Abelson |
