Aum is a complete Asthanga Yoga in itself. Asthanga Yoga is the basis of all yoga and was introduced by Yoga Sutras of Patanjali based on the Vedic teachings. Its eight limbs are Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharna, Dhayana and Samadhi.
Chanting of AUM with “UM” part chanted through the nose during expiration and slowly, with eyes closed, in a relaxing posture with mind preferentially concentrating on the sound fulfills all the criteria of Asthanga Yoga and should be advocated as a stand-alone Yoga exercise.
For doing Yoga one needs to follow the dos and don’ts of yogic life (Yama and Niyama). These incorporate the principles of moderation and variety and satvik balance in life. A person is also asked to avoid smoking.
Yogic Asanas are based on the body-mind awareness and stretching of any of the seven chakras, the crown area, the third eye area, the throat (thyroid) area, the heart area, the celiac umbilical area, the gonad area and the sacral area. These seven chakras in allopathic parlance are represented by one endocrine gland each and have autonomic plexuses located in that area. We bestow aashirwad on the Crown chakra; smack our forehead on the Third Eye chakra when we do something wrong, swear by the Throat chakra and love from the Heart chakra. Celiac chakra controls doubt, Gonadal chakra attachments and the Sacral chakra the emotions of fear.
When we chant aum it is a combination of “AU” a vowel sound and “UM” the nasal vibratory consonant sound. The chanting of vowels has been shown to produce interleukin-2, a pain killer and chanting of the sounds based on the last words of each line of Sanskrit varnamala (M, N, Ong, Un, Unn etc) produces delta activities in the brain suggesting tranquility of the mind. Whenever we have pain we automatically produce a vowel sound and each time we are disturbed, we weep and end by producing a nasal UM sound. These sounds are also vibratory in nature and vibrate all the chakras simultaneously with maximum effect on the chakra where the awareness is.
When we cry, the respiratory rate increases and when we relax, the same decreases. The reverse is also true. To relax therefore one needs to reduce the rate of respiration willfully. This can be done by prolonging either the inspiration or the expiration. Normally the respiratory rate is 15 per minute, or one respiration in four seconds (two seconds each for inspiration and expiration). The respiratory rate can be slowed by either prolonging the inspiratory or expiratory period or by adding gap in between inspiration and expiration. This process of slower and deeper respiration is called Pranayama.
If we chant the UM part of AUM during expiration and prolong it till the expiration is over, it has the same effect as Pranayama and is called the AUM Pranayama. It has the added advantage of being a vibratory sound, of stimulating the endocrine glands and the parasympathetic nervous plexuses with the result of reducing the heart rate and the respiratory rate.
While chanting AUM when the eyes are closed, the inward journey starts, called Pratayahara. Chanting starts with the intention of chanting (dharana). It is then made repetitive (dhayana) and continued for a few minutes, and ends with one’s absorption in the sound and then into “nothing” or shunya called samadhi.
Chanting of AUM therefore is complete Asthanga Yoga by itself with Yama and Niyama representing the do’s and don’t of lifestyle, posture with stretch over the chakra as the asana, nasal expiratory prolonged chanting of “UM” as the Pranayama, closing of the eyes as the Pratayahara, and being aware (living in the present moment awareness) till one is lost in the repetitive chanting as Dharana, Dhayana and Samadhi.
The chanting of AUM vibrates the endocrine glands, has pain-relieving action, increases tranquility of the mind, balances the endocrine glands, shifts the awareness from sympathetic to the parasympathetic mode, reduces heart rate and respiratory rate and shifts one to an internal healing mode. Twenty minutes of AUM chanting, morning and evening, has the same effect as that of seven hours of deep sleep.
All letters of the alphabet are hidden in the word ‘Om’ (AUM). The sound A is produced from the deeper part of the throat; the word U from the middle part of the mouth, and the word M from the lips, labials and the teeth, the front part of the mouth. The word ‘AUM’, therefore, represents the production of complete speech.
The Mandukya Upanishad describes ‘Om’, and other Upanishads also dwell upon it. According to Kathopanishad, ‘Om’ is a great word, which all the Vedas talk about.
All of us have learnt about vowels and consonants. The consonant is a sound which cannot be spoken without the aid of a vowel. The letters ‘A’ and ‘U’ in Sanskrit are the parents of all other vowels. The alphabet ‘M’ is a consonant, which when spoken produces powerful vibrations as it involves the movement of the lip, the mandible and the teeth.
During inhalation and exhalation (process of respiration), one produces the sound ‘so’ (inhaling) and ‘ham’ (exhaling), the word ‘soham’, therefore, is repeated with every breath. From the word, ‘soham’, if the consonants (s and h) are deleted, the word ‘oam’ remains, which is also the form of ‘Om’. In Sanskrit, ‘A’ is the first letter of alphabet and ‘M’ the last. Thus, ‘A’ and ‘M’ represent everything from ‘a to z’ i.e., from beginning to the end.
If one listens to the sounds of nature like the sound produced by the flowing Ganges, the sound from the Himalayas, the sounds heard in the bustle of the city and its markets, sound produced when the fly wheel of an engine is set in motion, or of landslides, rain, and fire or thunder, you will find that these are nothing but manifestations of ‘Om’ in nature. The creating force ‘Om’ is the symbol of that creating source which many religions call as ‘God’. It is a monosyllable of sacred value and is the essence of the tradition of the Vedas. It can be considered like a boat, which can carry you to a journey towards internal happiness.
Summary
Whenever one suffers a physical pain, the body produces a vowel sound – ‘ah’, ‘ee’, ‘oui’, ‘ma’, ‘ii’, ‘oo’ etc. The chanting of vowels produces physical health. When one is disturbed, he or she becomes relaxed after crying. Weeping sounds are ‘um, un, ong, unn’ spoken from the nose during expiration. Each one is the last sound of each line of the Sanskrit alphabet. Chanting of weeping sounds has been known to produce delta activity in the brain EEG waves, which is consistent with the tranquility of mind. Weeping sound, therefore, produces mental relaxation. If one chants both a ‘vowel’ and an ‘M’ in the weeping sound, one will achieve physical as well as mental relaxation and this is what spiritual relaxation is. All healing sounds have a ‘vowel’ and the weeping sound ‘M’ in common. ‘Ahmeen’, ‘ameeen’, ‘hoong’, ‘im’, ‘um’, aoung etc. are all mantra sounds in different religions and have the same spiritual significance as the sound of ‘AUM’.
The word ‘Om’ by its mere vibrations can destroy disease-causing germs. The only thing required is to sit quietly at a place detached from the outside world and chant ‘Om’ for just three to five minutes, two to three times in a day. This practice can help drive away all the worldly thoughts from the mind and help in achieving a state of mental relaxation. This practice, therefore, can be a good relaxation technique in today’s stressful lifestyle.
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