Recently in my public yoga classes we have been working on chanting Aum, therefore I wanted to put together a few notes to aid your own personal practice of the technique.
Aum is a Cosmic vibration which exists in all matter and when chanted it brings a deep sense of peace. The vibration of Aum can remove energetic blockages and also stimulate intuition and the ability to form new creative ideas.
Aum should be chanted on an empty stomach after a few rounds of deep breathing. In particular the Yogic breath is a great prerequisite to Aum however if you are unfamiliar with the Yogic breath a few rounds of deep breathing in and out through the nose should be fine.
In order to begin Aum take a deep breath in through the nose and allow yourself to chant the Aum on the exhalation. As you chant Aum draw your attention up through the spine starting at the tail bone until the end of the Aum, where your attention should then rest on the third eye.
The Aum can be broken into three parts….
Part 1 – The first part of the Aum is the ‘Oooohhh’ sound which vibrates deep in the belly and works with opening the lower chakras.
Part 2 – The second part of Aum is the ‘Aahh’ sound which vibrates in the heart centre.
Part 3 – After part 2 and before part 3 there is a very subtle sound of ‘Ung’ which vibrates in the throat centre. This sound can be familiarised with the sound of ‘ing’ and is almost hidden within the full Aum sound.
Part 4 – The third part of Aum is the humming ‘Mmmmhh’ sound which vibrates the higher chakras and it is wise to keep you attention towards the third eye at this point of the sound.
Parts 1 to 4 can then be stringed together to make one smooth sound of Aum. To begin with chant the technique loudly to tap into the conscious mind then allow the chant to become quieter and quieter until you are whispering the sound to tap into the unconscious mind.
After chanting 5 – 10 rounds of Aum remain in silence with the attention at the third eye. Enjoy the deep calmness that the Aum brings. Finally after your meditation it is important to lower your attention down the body into the hips and the legs and then bring yourself into Shavasana (Corpse pose) to fully ground and relax the body.
If you have not practiced the Aum technique with myself or another fully qualified yoga teacher it is advisable to seek the guidance of a teacher before you practice this technique alone. For further questions and information about Aum you can contact me on jaina@yogawithjaina.com
