om gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi soha

When I have encountered Buddhist practitioners reciting this mantra, it has always been recited very fast and as with om ah hung, it is typically undertaken 108 times. This is the mantra that is reputed to have been uttered by the Buddha himself and is recorded in the Heart Sutra. It translates quite beautifully as: gone...gone...gone beyond...gone beyond the beyond...hail to the one who awakens.

om mani padme hum

This is another mantra to be recited quickly with a great deal of energy and enthusiasm. It is the most recited mantra in the world, a favourite in both Hindu and Tibetan traditions. In the Tibetan lineages, it is known as the mantra of Chenrezig, the Buddha of compassion. Its six syllables prevent unfortunate rebirths in the six lower realms or lokas which include the realms of the devas (gods), asuras (titans), humans, animals, hungry ghosts, and hell. The Tibetan Book of the Dead encourages one to recite this mantra often to prepare oneself for the transition into the state of consciousness known as the bardo of death enabling one to fully embrace the Dharmakaya, the fundamental clear light of emptiness.

om shanti shanti shanti-hee and/or amen amen amen

This is an exquisitely appropriate coupling of two famous mantra to conclude a session of chanting. Shanti is a Sanskrit word for peace and I have often heard Hindu masters and yoga teachers in India conclude their practice with a very conscious recitation of this mantra. It is interesting how the word amen resembles aum could it be that the two stem from the same origin?

omnis jaum intimo

This is an ancient Gnostic mantra to invoke our inner divinity or monad. Even reciting it once invokes powers of unimaginable profundity. Try it yourself. As with any of these mantras, there is no need to understand the etymology of the words, nor is there any need for mental speculation or any intellectual adjustment. Put aside the thinking mind for awhile, and turn on the feeling mind, your heart. Feel this with your heart and not with your head. Try to avoid excessive questioning such as...is this working? How am I doing? What does this mean etc.?

om namah shiva

This mantra has seen a resurgence over the last few decades, particularly within the new age movement. It is a Sanskrit mantra that translates as "blessed be Shiva (or our inner divinity)". As with any mantra, if pronounced with devotion and adoration, wider, more subtle ranges of consciousness reveal themselves.

aloah va daath

This Gnostic mantra is an extremely powerful mantra that works subtly on the causal plane, the plane of the soul, in order to align it with the mechanisms of the physical realm. It awakens the soul to action. I have found it most effective when it is shouted out into the ether as if it was a clarion call for action.

ta ya ta om be kan ze be kan ze ma ha be kan ze rad za sa mud ga te so ha

This is a very powerful Tibetan mantra used in what is known as the Medicine Buddha Empowerment. Try to commit this one to memory so you are not reading it, and when you recite it, visualize a radiant image of Buddha in your mind slightly above your body. Emanating from its third eye is a mindstream of clear white light that enters you through your crown chakra and descends filling all aspects of your being. The light is a profound healing force that is in turn not to be horded but to be distributed among all sentient beings, for the glory and emancipation of all.

sssss mmmmm aahhh ooooo (as in oops) oohhh (as in oat) aaayy (as in ace) eeeee (as in eat)

According to Gnostic tradition, these are the seven sacred vowels that are each tuned to its corresponding chakra. So for instance, sssss relates to the root chakra on up through to eeeee that relates to the crown chakra. As you sound out each one, imagine all the impurities associated with that chakra are cleared out. I could spend page after page discussing chakras, but suffice it to say they do very much exist within us and are vortices of psychic nerve energy used to distribute prana and our lifeforce throughout our physical body.

They are kind of like the glands for our ethereal bodies, our vital bodies as they are known. The idea is to open these chakras through meditation and energy work from the root chakra located at the base of spine, to raise our kundalini energy our creative life force up to our crown chakra, the gateway to the worlds and dimensions beyond.

om ah hung

This is another appropriate mantra to begin any session with. It is a Tibetan vajrayana mantra used to purify mind, speech, and body. As you recite it, visualize the syllable om at your third eye, ah at your throat and hung at your heart. It is recommended to recite it at least 108 times, which is a sacred number in Tibetan lore.

aum

This simple mantra is actually the progenitor for the more commonly recited om. It has its origin in the holy scriptures of India. The Prashna Upanishad
best captures its essence:

AUM has three sounds. Those who meditate on A come back to earth to lead a life full of faith and love. Those who meditate on the first two sounds, A and U, go to the lunar world, full of pleasure from which they come back cloyed to earth again. But those who meditate on A, U and M are led to the sun, where freed from sin, as a snake sheds its skin, they see the supreme Lord, who lives in all.

helion melion tetragrammaton

This Gnostic mantra is perhaps the strongest one I have encountered to dispel any heavy, dark, evil or uncooperative forces that could detract from a meditative practice. Saying it three times and envisioning a counter-clockwise rotation in the mind will wipe out anything sinister or nefarious that is currently standing in your way.

om bhur bhuvas suvar maha

According to Indian scholar Eknath Easwaran, these powerful words constitute the vyahritis, pronounced by every brahmin at the beginning of prayers. It refers to an intention to include earth, sky and heaven - essentially all the divisions of manifested reality. The Taittiriya Upanishad, a Hindu scripture, states:

chanting bhur, you become one with fire
chanting bhuvas, you become one with air
chanting suvar, you become one with the sun
chanting maha, you become one with the Lord

The mantras below, though they emerge from different cultural contexts, all trace their lineage back to that universal language, to the Word that begat the great mystery as St. John spoke of.

I have used these mantras for some years now in varying degrees of consistency and frequency and can personally attest to their efficacy and value. As with any meditative practice, it is a good idea to take a few deep conscious breaths before beginning and to clear the mind as best as one can, to focus properly on the task at hand:

helion melion tetragrammaton
om bhur bhuvas suvar maha
om ah hung
aum
sssss mmmmm aahhh ooooo (as in oops) oohhh (as in oat) aaayy (as in ace) eeeee (as in eat)
omnis jaum intimo
om namah shiva
aloah va daath
ta ya ta om be kan ze be kan ze ma ha be kan ze rad za sa mud ga te so ha
om gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi soha
om mani padme hum
om shanti shanti shanti-hee and/or amen amen amen

It is important, as with a number of meditative disciplines, to keep in mind that the benefit accrued from such a practice is to be shared with everyone, including non-human creatures. So you may wish to include a short petition as an endnote to your practice something like: may any merit attained through this practice be dedicated to the enlightenment of all sentient beings

Taken from: J Ocean Dennie

aloah va daath

This Gnostic mantra is an extremely powerful mantra that works subtly on the causal plane, the plane of the soul, in order to align it with the mechanisms of the physical realm. It awakens the soul to action. I have found it most effective when it is shouted out into the ether as if it was a clarion call for action.

ta ya ta om be kan ze be kan ze ma ha be kan ze rad za sa mud ga te so ha

This is a very powerful Tibetan mantra used in what is known as the Medicine Buddha Empowerment. Try to commit this one to memory so you are not reading it, and when you recite it, visualize a radiant image of Buddha in your mind slightly above your body. Emanating from its third eye is a mindstream of clear white light that enters you through your crown chakra and descends filling all aspects of your being. The light is a profound healing force that is in turn not to be horded but to be distributed among all sentient beings, for the glory and emancipation of all.