Finding Balance in a Yoga Mantra
You are what you chant
“Find your breath and focus on it” my yoga instructor told me on a regular Sunday session in Dolores Park. It’s half past 11 am, the park is mostly filled with dogs and young families as my small group of 15 women do a type of yoga called Kundalini. We’re in the center of the notoriously slanted park and the light breeze makes the warm sun less abrasive as we do our repetitive breathing exercises. Initially, it’s hard to focus with the toddlers and puppies running around but we’re all here for the same reason, to end the week on a serene note and restore some balance in our lives.
“I want you to think to yourself, I am blissful, I am bountiful, I am beautiful,” the instructor continues as we begin to wind down. The Kundalini practice is one of many but focuses on building physical vitality and increasing consciousness. Repeating this mantra while taking deep breaths helps to cultivate positive energy and remember the simplicity of those words. We end the session with a peaceful song that praises the earth and gives thanks for our surroundings followed by a chant. “Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya, to the divine indweller in all, oneness.”
Practicing yoga has become a ritual for many whether it’s for physical, mental wellbeing or both. Some even do it first thing in the morning to center themselves before a busy day. It’s the little bit of time you set aside to meditate and regroup your thoughts or try to stretch your body and give it the break it needs from daily wear. A meditative chant or mantra are encouraged as part of the practice to help center the thought. A mantra can be a syllable, word or collection of words representing a spiritual reality while a chant is a repetition of the mantra. They work well with yoga to help realize personal ambitions and restructure thought to what’s important.
A mantra can be chanted, whispered, sung, thought or even written depending on the type of realization is necessary. They’re primarily in Sanskrit, Gurmukhi or another form of ancient Indian language associated with a specified type of yoga. Remembering the many different mantras can be tough but finding one that resonates is what matters. Writing down a mantra can act like an affirmation, it impacts the subconscious. Chanting and saying it out loud or singing allows awareness to wake the inner vehicles. Whispering lets you see the minor changes in your awareness. Breathing a mantra lets the currents vibrate within you enhancing life force. Thinking a mantra brings the energy within and absorbs it, keeping it within and circulating.
A mantra can be chanted, whispered, sung, thought or even written depending on the type of realization is necessary. They’re primarily in Sanskrit, Gurmukhi or another form of ancient Indian language associated with a specified type of yoga. Remembering the many different mantras can be tough but finding one that resonates is what matters. Writing down a mantra can act like an affirmation, it impacts the subconscious. Chanting and saying it out loud or singing allows awareness to wake the inner vehicles. Whispering lets you see the minor changes in your awareness. Breathing a mantra lets the currents vibrate within you enhancing life force. Thinking a mantra brings the energy within and absorbs it, keeping it within and circulating.
The overall message of yoga is finding inner peace as well as bliss with your surroundings and understanding that the universe is full of energy. Where you practice isn’t what’s important but rather that you practice and take the time to thank your body. Yoga isn’t judgmental and can be done in a park with a small group of acquaintances, a dorm room by yourself or a professional studio with other yogis. With a mat you can go virtually anywhere at any time and take those few moments to disconnect from the daily grind. It helps build stability and strengthen the core, balancing the inner with the outer. Balance can be hard to master but with the help of some proper gear, a tricky pose can be more accessible. Nike’s studio wrap shoes have a silicon traction pattern that helps with grip on a mat or a regular floor and its elastic stretch helps hug the foot seamlessly. Their lightweight material gives a barefoot feeling that lets you focus more on inner stability and having a proper session of meditation. Feeling more in tune with the ground and the atmosphere, a peaceful mantra can change your whole outlook on the day.