Words are vibrations and we’re all a bunch of atoms floating around in bags of skin. I’m no expert but apparently, it’s science. I do know words can have a huge impact on how we feel.
Here, I’m referring more to sound in general than I am to everyday language. The effect of the latter is all very much dependent on our, often faulty, interpretation of what is said, or what we say to ourselves. Sound can also greatly affect our way of being, even when we have no intellectual understanding of what the sounds ‘mean’.
We experience it daily. More tangibly through music or more subtly from the constant humming of an air-conditioning unit or the other electronics we’re surrounded with. I guess that is why being out in nature feels rejuvenating, we take a break from constantly having our ‘skin bag’ poked by external stimuli.
To see what I mean try listening (preferably with headphones and eyes closed) to a profound piece of classical music or an old Irish ballad and see what it evokes in you.
The point is that sound affects us more than we know.
Enter The Mantra…
When I started practicing yoga some years ago, chanting was definitely something new. It felt strange but I went along with it. Understanding the English translation made it a little more acceptable to a mind fearful it was being indoctrinated into some new religion.
It’s quite laughable looking back now. It’s taken a while to experience the real power a certain arrangement of sounds can have on you, internally. In hindsight, it’s all very simple and not at all ‘woo woo’. Sound creates a reverberation and that reverberation affects the skin-bag that we are, or more accurately live in. Just close your eyes, block your ears, and started ‘hummmmmmmming’ or ‘buzzzzzzzingggg’ loudly to see what I mean.
As I said it’s very subtle, but the more sensitive we are to these vibrations (a whole other story) the more obvious the experience from chanting.
‘Aum’ or (‘om’) is the universal sound and most common mantra which, as discussed here, is not religious, but has been used in various forms in Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam. This sound, when uttered, sends vibrations from the belly to the head. For some unknown reason, this is good for your energy system. Up usually seems like a good way to go right?
There are a myriad of mantras with varying degrees of complexity and effects. It just so happens that most if not all of them come from Sanskrit – one of, if not, the oldest language in the world. This is apparently due to languages’ emphasis on phonetics.
They say that mantras are designed for specific purposes and that they are like keys to the energetic system within us all. All I know is, they are much more potent and powerful than I originally imagined. It’s just that it can take some time, practice, and possibly some other variables, to experience what I mean.