The Mahanirv ̄ a ̄Óna Tantra gives instructions for use of the mantra Om
Saccidekam Brahma: Ó “O, the One-Being-Consciousness Brahman”
[MNT 3:12–49]. A sense of how the b ̄ıja-sounds embody both meaning
and ontological power is conveyed in the text’s unfolding of Om(Aum)
to reveal that Asignifies the protector of the world, U its dissolver, and M
its creator [MNT 3:32]. Eliade notes that a whole system of metaphysics
may be concentrated in a mantra, citing the Mah ̄ay ̄ana Buddhist text
AÓsÓtasaha ́ ̄ srika-prajña-p ̄ ̄aramita ̄, progressively reduced to the mantra‘pra,’
by which practitioners are supposed to grasp the meaning of prajñ ̄a-
paramit ̄ ̄a metaphysics.^54
There are three main forms of mantrarecitation: vacanic ̄ or aloud,
upanÓsuor silently with the lips moving, and m ̄anasikaor mental. While
Vedic hymns are chanted aloud, Tantra considers silent mantra-recitation
superior.^55 The repetition of mantrais called japa. Mantra-japahas the
power, according to BhartÓrhari’s Vakyapad ̄ ̄ıya,^56 to remove ignorance, re-
veal truth, and lead to realization of liberation. Mantrasmay also be used
in preparation for activities of daily life, making the practitioner recep-
tive for an awaiting experience.
For instance, a mantracomposed of the sounds VamÓÓ , Aim,Ó and Aim-Ó
Vam Ó is recommended in preparation for listening to music. The b ̄ıja AimÓ
represents the goddess Sarasvat ̄ı,deity of language, music, and learning.^57
According to Kakar, Aim Ó is associated with the state of wonder, while
VamÓ is a sound used as an opening syllable when the practitioner is aim-
ing for a state of expanded awareness.^58 Such a mantrais considered pu-
rificatory:
... this clears the practitioner’s inner ear, and prepares his mind to enjoy
the music... used in this way, the mantraacts as a ritual which raises the
emotional level of the user to a point where the actual signals are received
with the utmost clarity and acted on in the most appropriate way.^59
In the Yoga-s ̄utras, where spiritual progress depends on the stilling of the
vÓrttisor turbulent activities of the mind, mantrais recommended for still-
ing the mind by meditation on God. Classical Yoga’s second limb, ni-
yama, includes sv ̄adhyaya ̄ , study, and one kind of study is repetition of
Om, the designator of Î ́svara [YBh 2:32].
The mind of the yogin who constantly repeats the praÓnava(Om) and
habituates the mind to the constant manifestation of the idea it carries
(i.e., Î ́svara), becomes one-pointed.
YBh 1:28152 religious therapeutics