10+ Mantras to Use During your Meditation Practice

Whether you’re new to meditation or have mastered this ancient art, you know that mantras are a significant element in this practice. Those chants and short prayers you hear your yoga instructor say at the end of your flow have a purpose. Some people call them intentions, and others go with mantras. Whatever you choose, here’s how to find the ones that speak to your soul.

What’s a Mantra?

First, let’s look at the word mantra itself. “Man” means mind, and “tra” means vehicle or vessel. In other words, a mantra is a way to use sound or vibration to enter a deep meditative state.

For meditation, a mantra helps you keep your focus and calmness. Mantras are particularly helpful for beginners because they can use these mantras to stay in their practice when their mind starts to wander. More experienced meditators can use mantras to reach a new level of transcendental meditation.

5 Beginner Mantras for Your Meditation Practice

If you’re not familiar with the concept of mantras, start with words that are familiar to you. For those who try group meditation, or have a yoga practice, feel the power of the mantras used by instructors. However, if you’re trying to start a meditation practice, having your set of beginner mantras can help you build the habit.

1. Be the change you wish to see in the world. – Gandhi
2. Every day in every way, I’m getting better and better. – Laura Silva
3. I change my thoughts. I change my world. – Norman Vincent Peale
4. Love is the only miracle there is. – Osho
5. I am that I am. – Hebrew saying

Choose one of these mantras at the beginning of your meditation practice. Whenever your mind starts to wander, repeat these words to yourself to help you stay focused.

5 Common Mantras to Channel

Once you feel more comfortable with these mantras, you can try to experiment with traditional chants and common mantras used for centuries. Don’t worry about getting the pronunciation of these correctly at first. With time and practice, you’ll tap into the vibrations and sounds of these chants to power your meditation.

1. Om: pronounced “aum,” meaning “it is” or “to become.”
2. So Ham: pronounced “so hum,” meaning “I am that.”
3. Ho’oponopono: pronounced “ho-oh-pono-pono,” meaning “I love you; I’m sorry; please forgive me; thank you.”
4. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti: pronounced as written, meaning “peace.”
5. Sat, Chit, Ananda: pronounced as written, meaning “existence, consciousness, bliss.”

Formulating Your Personal Mantra

While tapping into different mantras with set intentions is helpful; sometimes, you need to develop personal mantras. Use this simple formula to come up with the right mantras to power you through your meditation practice, no matter what’s aching your soul right now.

Take a piece of paper and follow these steps to write your mantras:

• Start with a word that signifies your goal: peace, joy, love, harmony, balance, or faith.
• Phrase your mantra with perception in mind: instead of saying, “I’m not worried,” say, “I’m peaceful.”

Let’s use this formula to try a new mantra. For example, using this technique, my current mantra in my meditation practice is, “I’m centered.” Now, go ahead and try to formulate your mantra and share it with us using #GR8Mantras.