Yoga for Speech-Language Development

88 Yoga for Speech-Language Development

Sanskrit

chant

Syllabic

structure

Meaning

Hari om CVCV VC “Hari” means “the remover,” and

“om” is the universal sound.

Soham CVCVC “Soham” means “I am He/That.”

Om shanti VC CVCCV “Om” is the universal sound,

and “shanti” means “peace.”

C = consonant; V = vowel

Multisensory modalities

During learning activities, the engagement of multiple senses
enhances the processing, storage, and retrieval of information.
According to the principle of dual coding (Clark and Paivio
1991), information entering the nervous system through multiple
processing channels helps bypass the restricted processing
capacities of each individual channel. More information can be
processed when disseminated between several senses. In addition,
multisensory processing reduces the cognitive load, or the amount
of effort used in working memory, because information from
different modalities is more readily held in short-term memory
and can be used to build long-term representations (Bagui 1998).
Learning and recalling the motor plans and programs for
various yogic chants can be enhanced by appealing to multiple
sensory processing channels, including the auditory, visual, tactile,
and/or kinesthetic modalities. In order to combine modalities,
children could pair their production of syllables or words by
simultaneously drawing, tapping on, or moving parts of their
body, or banging a gong, Tibetan “singing” bowl, or drum. For
example, children could verbalize the two syllables in “shanti”
while tapping their legs two times. Similarly, children could
pair the verbalization of “sa ta na ma” with finger movements.
During  the production of the syllable  “sa,” the children touch
their index finger to their thumb. For “ta,” they touch their middle