Mantra Meditation
Basics – Theory
Steven J. Gold
spiritualessens@gmail.com
This article is meant to supplement
other articles on meditation by going a little deeper into the theory behind
the use of mantras.
Some meditation researchers,
most notably Herbert Benson of Harvard, have come to the conclusion that there
is not much significance to the language or form of mantras used during
meditation, that any soothing sound (such as “one, one, one”) intoned
internally will elicit an equally effective “relaxation response.” The yoga
meditation tradition in which I was trained, and I believe most
spiritually-based meditation traditions would have no difficulty acknowledging
the validity to Benson’s research and findings as to the benefits of meditation
practice regardless of the phrase utilized. However, they would also maintain
that there are additional benefits if mantras originating from sacred languages
are utilized and prescribed by teachers trained in specific meditation
traditions. Benson is a scientific researcher, and desires to restrict his
focus to what scientific standards and procedures can measure and verify. And
his work has made a significant contribution in legitimizing and promoting the
benefits of meditation practice. My spiritual teacher, Swami Rama, was also
dedicated to scientifically verifying the benefits of meditation. But he
eventually came to the conclusion that there were certain spiritual practices
and phenomenal realities that could not be scientifically verified due to the
limitations of current scientific measurement technologies.
When venturing into a discussion
of “sacred language”, it would appear that a leap of faith beyond what science
can verify may be required. I do not apologize for that, but I can attempt to
explain it in support of its validity. I am a proponent of the concept that
there exists a mode of perception and functioning that lies between the
rationality generally associated with the functions of the logical, scientific,
reasoning mind, and the irrationality generally associated with emotional
responses that over-rule the mind in certain circumstances. This other mode of
operation is what I call the “non-rational” or “intuition”. I have also heard
it called the “arational”. It is a mode of perception and operating faculty
that can be developed through meditation. There is no way to scientifically
verify or confirm its existence, and thus it can be said that it requires an
act of faith to believe in it. I would prefer to say that it requires the
cultivation of an inner sense of experience and knowledge that it in fact does
exist. It is what mystics and spiritually advanced beings throughout times and
cultures have attempted to identify in their literature and artistic
expressions. One either accepts the validity of this assertion or one doesn’t.
What follows is a spiritual/mystical description about sacred language and the
origin and operation of mantras. Some of the below is excerpted and revised
from my book, IVRI: The Essence of Hebrew
Spirituality.
Biblical Hebrew and Sanskrit are sacred languages because
they are spiritual languages. Why are they spiritual/sacred, and how is that
designation distinguished from other languages or usages that do not have those
qualities, from the mundane and the profane?
Sometimes the distinction between the sacred and the
mundane is dependent on context. A glass of wine imbibed during an ordinary
dinner does not carry the same significance as a cup of wine used in a
religious ritual, even though it may be the same wine. Sometimes tradition,
ritual, or legend may ascribe spiritual connotations to things or places.
Throughout the world, there are temples, shrines, mountains, valleys, rivers
that have become imbued with spiritual significance. It can be maintained that
since everything and all activity is a part of Divinity, everything is sacred,
which is true to an extent. But there remain degrees of specialness which
render some activities in some contexts more special, and thus “sacred”, based
upon the factors described above. Going for a leisurely swim is not of the same
quality as a ritual immersion. Concerning the profane, perhaps it is basically
nothing more than the abuse of the sacred.
The origins of sacred languages such as Biblical Hebrew
and Sanskrit are lost in the mists of time and myth. A general mystical
conception is that language can be traced back to sound, and all sound has its roots
in Primordial Divine Sound. Divine Sound emanates out of Primordial Divine
Fire, which is also the source of Divine Light. All manifest existence, known
to the external and internal senses, is a result of an interchange between
Divine Light and Divine Sound, which possesses limitless possible permutations.
The Primordial Divine Fire has also been referred to as a Cosmic Magnet or
Cosmic Electricity. I like the characterizations of a Cosmic Generator, a
Cosmic Dynamo.
In any event, out of the Nothingness that is paradoxically
the unmanifest potentiality of Everythingness, this Fire, this Dynamo,
generates sound as well as light. Our spiritual ancestors internally “heard”
the “roar” of the Divine Fire, the “hum” of the Cosmic Dynamo, the first emanation
of Divine Sound. It is what Moses encountered in the burning bush. It is why
the first utterance of the ancient Rishis in the Vedas is “agni”, which means
fire. As it worked its way through the layers of the inner realms, it
eventually emerged from the lips of ancient sages as chants, as strings of
mantras. That is why both the Torah and the Vedas are chanted, because they
first emerged as sounds which morphed into chants; first, wordless chants, and
then chants with words, with language. Eventually, the oral language was
reduced to the writing found in ancient Hebrew and Vedic scriptures. These
languages are sacred because of their close connection to the unmanifest realm
of Silence, of the paradoxical Soundless Sound, which is their Source. Other
languages are derivatives and thus further removed, and therefore not
qualitatively sacred in the way that these two languages are sacred. Properly
understood and employed in meditative practices, as discovered and developed by
the ancient sages of the Hebrew and Vedic spiritual traditions, utilization of mantras,
which are phrases from the scriptures in which these languages were written,
can assist one in awakening, nurturing and expressing their innate
spirituality. Through this process, people can approach wholeness, and each
individual can become more cognizant of their true and deep individual purpose
and meaning, enabling them to become more conscious and joyous participants in
the wonder of life. This was the revelation and mission of Abraham, confirmed and
forwarded at Mt. Sinai, and of the Rishis of the Himalayas.
Silently internally intoning mantras as part of a
meditative practice incorporates several aspects that are beneficial to
spiritual development and expression. Mantras operate from the outside in and
from the inside out. Invoking a mantra on the surface level serves as an anchor
to assist in plumbing the inner depths from which the mantra originated. One
should not hold on to the external form of the mantra as it meanders its way
within, but should rather allow it to change form as it progresses. At such a
point, one becomes aware that the mantra will take on a life of its own, and
that you are not repeating it, but rather you are listening to it as it
generates itself without your assistance. Allow it to change and morph and keep
on listening. The surface level invoking of a mantra also resonates with its
source deep within, and initiates a process whereby it is energized at its
source and seeks access to the surface.
At some point, the inside out and the outside in paths connect, creating an
unbroken two-way avenue for its expression both within and without. This avenue
can be broadened and strengthened through repeated practice until it remains
unbroken through all of life’s activities. This results in “meditation in
action”, in which all of life’s activities are enlivened and enriched by one’s
meditative presence.
Invoking mantras also facilitates subtle structuring of
inner energies beneficial to spiritual development and expression. All mantras
have their origins in the Silence from which they emerged, and eventually lead
us back to that spiritual ground of Silence. However, specific mantras vary in
the effects they produce along the way back to their common source. They are
aids assisting to address subtle inner purification and empowerment. Experiment
with them, beseech the assistance of Divine Guidance, and find out for
yourself!
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