why do we chant mantras?

What are manthras and how many types of manthras are there. Mananena thraayathe iti mantra = by repeated chanting the one which protects you is known as manthra. When a manthra is chanted in rhythmic tone with ups and downs, they create a melodious effect in the body . This effect can be defined as the neurolinguistic effect. Remember the Neurolinguistic effect will be possible even if you do not know the meaning of the manthra. Hence knowing the meaning of every manthra is not compulsory. At the same time if you know the meaning it has got an additional effect which is known as Neurolinguistic (NLE)+ Psycholinguistic effect (PLE). Lot of Research studies have been carried out by many and important results derived by one of the famous professors Dr. T. Temple Tutler, of the Cleveland University, USA on these effects are remarkable. Remember the NLE and PLE effects are due to the production and spreading of curative chemicals in the brain. These curative chemicals give smoothening and curing effect in the body. Thus manthra chanting is no way a superstition . It can also be directly called as music therapy or manthra therapy in modern words. Listening to manthras directly lowers blood pressure, normalizes heart beating rate, brain wave pattern, adrenalin level, even cholesterol level. That is the reason why modern doctors advise the people under high tension to sit and listen to music or manthras for few minutes. This has become an accepted procedure just like the yoga and pranayaama practices. Even chanting the keerthans, melodious bhajans, songs, etc have the good effect almost similar to the NLE and PLE. How ever there should a melodious pattern for that . The music/ song/manthra should never be hard/ harsh/rough/ etc. The speed also should have a smoothening effect for example even Gayatri manthra chanting should be done at the range of 4 - 8 numbers per minute, Om Namo Narayanaaya at 38 -62 and Om Namassivaaya at 42 – 68 range per minute.

Chanting the manthras everyday is excellent and important at a particular time. In physics the time, space and observer are the three important factors. Exactly like that the time, space and the person connected with chanting/listening manthras are three important factors for deriving benefit of manthras. Hence sareera suddhi, ahaara suddhi, mana suddhi, vaak suddhi and karma suddhi are essential for deriving the full benefit of chanting the manthra. Also the place where you are sitting should give calming effect, comfortable feeling etc. The ideal timings are the prabhata sandhya and saayam sandhya. Morning and evening. Group chanting is excellent. Absolutely no mistake is expected in Vedic mantra chanting. When you are sick due to ill health or old age, one need not worry too much about his incapability of chanting the manthras. Manthras are chanted for solving our problems and for positive effects but manthra chanting/ not chanting should not become another problem for us. The ideal sound for manthra chanting can be maintained if possible at radius 7 meters. Veda manthras chanting is not easy soit is advised not to chant without the guidance from a guru.

There are four types of mantras. The Vedic mantras, the puranic mantras, the itihaasic mantras and karma mantras. Veda mantras have ten types of sruthees/swaras/tones known as udaattha, anudaattha, swaritha, repha, hraswa, pracheya, anunaasikaa, kampa, deergha kampa, plutha. Those who are interested in learning Vedas should learn all these swaras in younger age itself. If so it is easy otherwise it becomes difficult. Chanting Veda mantra means chanting with sruthi. Sruthi of Vedas is more important than the meaning. Hence even without knowing the meaning one can chant/listen to the Vedas for getting the Neurolinguistic effect. If the meaning is known and chanted as a prayer , then Neurolinguistic and Psycholinguistic effects are derived for mental/ physical and spiritual merits (like normalization of brain waves , heart beat, blood pressure, cholesterol level, and the level of adrenalin in the blood – due to the formation of curative hormones/chemicals in the brain . This can also be called as music therapy). Even the meaning of the manthra shall change if not properly chanted. Hence it is advised that generally one should not chant Veda mantra but can listen ( sruthi) for getting the positive effects. One need not be a Brahmin for learning Vedas. There are many scholars in Kerala, who are not Brahmins by birth but have attained even a higher level than Brahmins, who are chanting the Veda mantras. There are thousands of ladies in Karnataka who chant Veda mantras perfectly and also many who perform Yaagas by themselves. It takes years together for learning the Vedas and rigorous customs and rituals are to be followed during the learning period. These strict rules and codes are implemented to see that Vedic chanting method should not go to those who are not very serious. Generally the Veda mantras are chanted in each and every steps of the Yaagaas. But in poojas/ archanas and prayers few lines/sookthas of veda manthras are chanted. But all the mantras chanted in poojas and also in temple rituals are not Veda mantras. Majority of them are puraana mantras and karma mantras . Purusha sookatha, Sreesuktha, Bhaagya sooktha, Rudra, Chamaka, Navagraha sooktha, Gayatri manthra, Mruthyunjaya manthra, etc are few among thousands of the vedic mantras.

Purana mantras are those mantras which are present in eighteen mahapuranaas or upapuraanaas. They can generally be chanted by anyone including ladies independent of caste and religion ( even though opinion varies) with sareera sudhi, aahara sudhi, manasuddhi, vaak suddhi and karma suddhi. In these mantras. Generally there are no rigid sruthies and rules for chanting the puraana mantras. One can opt for their own ragas. The rules for learning the purana mantras are not rigid, but one should have clear voice/sound and devotion and sincerity . Purana mantras can be chanted for poojas or as evening and morning prayers. Sometimes even as a time pass ( instead of wasting time by thinking useless matters and creating tension and pain) one can chant these mantras. Lalitha sahasra naama, devi maahathmya, siva sahasranaama, ganesa sthothras etc are few among many purana mantras. If you want to chant purana mantras just go ahead . Do not ask to many people or so called Pandits.

Remember that Manthra (mananena thraayathe iti manthra) Chanting is for getting good feeling. By not chanting nothing is going to happen. Not chanting a manthra due to ill health/ old age/travel/asuddhi/out of station/ etc should not become a problem for worry .


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Does chanting has the same effect as listening?

O sorry Pradeep, I didn't read you post carefully. Only had a quick browse. Didn't see this "Listening to manthras directly lowers blood pressure, normalizes heart beating rate, brain wave pattern, adrenalin level, even cholesterol level."

Any way I thought this (what I quoted from you above) would be a positive effect, which I personally experience, but wanted to confirm. But from what I understand any melodious music can have similar effects, but perhaps not as deep. Correct me if I am wrong. Any other similarities in effects between chanting and listening?

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So there is something more subtle that looks at the flower, than the matter (body- here it is eye). We call it as mind. Mind is nothing but thoughts. The mind (manas) has various thoughts."

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How does one define a thought, exactly. The electrical impulse can be shown to stimulate a thought, but it is not the impulse that is the source of the thought. The impulse is simply a stream of ions (electrically charged atoms); so to say that the impulse is causing the thought is to say that atoms have a mind of their own, which is not true. Some will argue, thoughts stem from the evolution, that the reason we "think" is because it is necessary for our survival. But we are still "thinking" when we sleep, which is why dream. And dreams obviously serve no evolutionary function. So there must be a more consistent explanation for the origin of the "thoughts."

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This intellect grows out of experience and the one that is aware of the changes of this intellect, is still more subtler and is called is called awareness or "Chit". But this awareness is conditional which means , it is expressed based on the "body" vehicle it assumes.

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Can you explain why the intellect grows at different rates, for different individuals. This is one of the great unresolved debates in science, how much a person is a product of what he has inherited from his parents and great-grandparents (genes), and how much he is a product of his environment (what you term as experience). Even scientists admit, though, that they cannot explain how a gene will transmit an "ability" from one to another. Example, take one who sits at the piano since the age of 4 and is said to have extroardinary ability (can write and play music without formal training). If we look at a gene to try to understand this explanation, we are faced with the same dilemna as before. The gene, at the most basic level, depends on the nature of the combinations of lifeless atoms (molecules) combining. But it cannot be denied that parents can pass on certain abilities to children, even if the source of the transmission cannot be uniquely pinpointed. Is it lack of understanding as to the gene, or is there some more.

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Nonetheless, there is the subtlest unconditional awareness which is the fundamental of all the above body, mind, intellect and awareness. This is called as Consciousness. So the body, mind, intellect and awareness when operate we call it as life. When awareness drops, we say it is dead, no life. Awareness"Shiva" then becomes "Shava".


To know all the aspects of body, mind, lntellect, awareness we have to tranncend from the gross body to subtle mind to subtlier intellect and to the subtlest awareness and finally to Consciousness. The irony is that all these are only Consciousness, but because of our ignorance we do not know this.

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Does one need to have intellect to have life? There are many who lie in what is termed a "coma." Basically a deep sleep that can last 20 years even. But they are still alive; one can see this from the recorded pulses of the EKG machine. Is it not better to say, consciousness gives life and intellect is the fulfillment of life. Awareness; that is a complex question. If one meditates, he may be aware of his past lives. But when he opens his eyes, he is only aware of the reality that the five senses present to him. So what is the true awareness? And from what I just wrote, is it okay to say that consciousness is not simply what we percieve with our senses, but everything we have experienced in all of our past lives. Because along the lines of what you said, the senses merely percieve, it is the intellect that forms the thought.

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Awareness is that conditioned Consciousness perceiving a conditioned consciousness in the form of flower. But when I say "I" am looking at a flower , then it is Ego.

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So perhaps it is awareness that is serving the evolutionary function. As you say, awareness is "conditioned Consciousness." We are conditioned to be aware of our surroundings.

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"Many modern Neurologits (like Dennett for example) miss the whole understanding because they think Consciousness is generated or located in the brain. It is awareness that is generated by the neuronal firing. The difference of life and death is only the difference of Awareness and Cosnciousness. Consicousness is not localised , it is everything, the living and dead. it is unchanging. It is the awareness that changes based on the interaction fo biomolecules."

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I agree with you that consciousness is neither generated nor located in the brain. The brain works in conjunction with the other five senses. Awareness is simply the senses telling the brain to generate an appropriate reponse. This cannot explain how one is able to see into his past lives, for example. The brain is confined to what one has experienced in the past life. Consciousness is not bounded by any time limitation.

Nature of thought is magnetic. The electrical stimulation generates this magnetic field , thought. All the thoughts are in magnetic form, like information stored in magnetic discs. Like a disc player converts the signals into sound or light, so is the brain. But there is more to it in brain. Brain receives and processes current stimulus also. It matches the information received to already stored information, which we call as memory.

But all these are coordinated by awareness and finally consciousness.

Each individual (intellect) is a product of many factors. Previous birth vasanas, both parental's genetics, mother's thoughts and life style during pregnancy and then the environment.

The parents genes contribute mainly to the physical structure of the body. The life stlye (diet, exercise and habits) alter the body constitution of the body. The thoughts (mental status) of the mother moulds the mind of the child. Whatever the mother appreciates or dislikes about the father will be imprinted in the mind of the child. This is how most of the characters of the father are expressed in the child.

Then comes environment. The child looks at the world through the perception of the mind given by the mother. Then the child can keep it or change based on the environment. This is why it is best to keep the child under mother's care till age of five. Otherwise the child will take the perception from the day care center.

Intelligence is the very structure of the world. Intelligence is the ability to recognize that pattern. Wisdom or gnana is the holistic view of that pattern.

So one develops intelligence and finally wisdom or gnana when one transcend the Ego and get the holistic view.

Based on the factors each individual evolve in these stages based on the thoughts he entertain. Man has always freedom to think, the thoughts and based on that he or she will evolve.

Even in coma there is awareness. Death is loss of Awareness. But there is no death for consciousness. It has no birth and death. Awareness keeps changing based on the body. Consciousness is one and the same for bacteria to man , but awareness changes in these. So does for human beings. All have same consciousness, but the awareness changes. This is the sequence of evolution.....

Mind (thoughts)...Intellect....awareness....Consciousne ss

A man who is concerned only of his thoughts, his views cannot have a higher intellect. At the same time one who has higher intellect also can go back to be only emotional. A person who keeps his intellect to see the wholeness, then becomes aware of his Awareness. Finally he or she becomes aware of Consciousness, the source for this cosmos.

This is why Gayathri mantra, the highest of all mantras invokes that "Intellect" to know the Self. Intellect is what pulls the Mind towards Awareness.

One should not confuse of the limited awareness from the higher Awareness. This means to be Aware of awareness. Every one is aware of the senses, the world around us etc. But to be aware of Awareness is the highest evolution.


When one is Aware of Awareness then one has higher powers (Siddhi). But it is not good to entertain these powers because they actually bring back the Ego. If the powers help others then they can be used. Because the Ego tries every second to get back its lost control over everything.

Summary: Mind is thought. Thoughts are magnetic field. The senses actually relay the magnetic field to the Brain in the form of electric impulses. The Brain is a wonderful tool to decode the message. It is intellect that discriminate the magnetic fields as this or that.......

The intellect are few types.

Simple intellect is the discrimination of senses like light, colors, smell, taste, touch etc etc. This most of us have.

Smriti: memory. In this mode, a decision is arrived on the bases of past experience.

Then we have Viveka Buddhi.

Viveka means the power to decide between pairs of opposites such as correct and incorrect, cause and effect, real and imagined, etc.

A person with vieveka Buddhis will have more control over himself because he will be aware of his thoughts and action and the consequences.

This Viveka Buddhi or intellect should be strengthened and which with help of a Guru leads to be Aware of Awareness.

This is where meditation helps. We will start to be aware of our body (senses), thoughts (mind), buddhi (intellect) and finally the awareness itself.

The aware of Awareness is witnessing (Consciousness).

So you can see how gradually an Individual can evolve step by step.

But to do this we need a structure a method. This is where Temples gurukulas teach us. Instead we go there to make more Politics and misunderstanding and boost our Ego, then we are struck there.

Unless one transcend Ego, one cannot perceive the Truth.

(SRS - Thanks for your wonderful question and leading this thread to seek what is real.

Because this is a thread on Chants I would like to quote sahanavavathu sahanau Bhunakthu ...chanting that is done in before this learning class.

This chanting is so beautiful that it says, let us share and nourish ourselves and let us not argue (pidi-vada) on what we say is correct, but discuss and see the Truth.

This is the greatness of Vedic culture to discuss and find the truth and not by seeing that the other person is always wrong. This chanting invokes the maturity to understand everything holistically.

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Originally Posted by avii

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Originally Posted by Rohit

As a matter of courtesy, I would like to take this opportunity to wish all our FH friends:

A Very Happy and Enchanting Diwali

AND

A Very Happy and Prosperous New Year - V.S. 2063

:D :thumbsup:

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rohit , what did you mean by new year 2063 ????

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Avii,

This year, according to the Western calendar, is the year 2006 CE. Similarly, according to the Vikrama Samvat Calendar, this year is the year 2063 VS, the same date Rohit had given above. The Vikram Samvat calendar is about 57 years ahead of the Western Calendar. :D

So when the western calendar shifted from 1999 over to 2000, the Vikrama Samvat already did so about 57 years prior to the Western calendar in about 1943 CE. :thumbsup:

Dear Good sense
Most music that soothe the mind would cause lowering of blood pressure. But chanting mantras not only does the musical effect but do much more. They are positive statements and the sound has effect on our thoughts. Sanskrit in often known as the mantra-language and Tamil the Bhakthi-language. Bhakthi words when sung as songs have an effect on the emotional mind. The Mantras in Sanskrit has effect on the intellecutal mind. Both emotional effects and intellectual effects are needed in the spiritual sadhana. Hence chanting is good for positive feelings.

thanks skanthan :D

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Originally Posted by avii

thanks skanthan :D

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You are welcome. :)

Pradeep wrote:

"Bhakthi words when sung as songs have an effect on the emotional mind. The Mantras in Sanskrit has effect on the intellecutal mind. Both emotional effects and intellectual effects are needed in the spiritual sadhana. "

Very interesting indeed. This can get very personal. :cry3: