By DR BHUSHAN KUMAR UPADHYAYA
A
Mantra isasacred syllable, sound or a phrase
with mystical and spiritual significance. Every religion of the world has traditions of Mantra chanting to
derive physical, mental and
spiritual benefits. In Indian
tradition a very elaborate system known as Mantra Yoga
has emerged over centuries.
There are four types of
Mantra chanting. The first is
Vaikhari. This methodology
involves verbal utterance of
the Mantra. So it is audible.
The second is Upanshu. In this
type of Mantra practice only
tongue has movement and the
chanting is not audible outside. The third is Manasika. It is
an advanced stage of Mantra
practice. The Mantra is recited
mentally. There is no movement of the tongue also. The
fourth is Ajapa. It is a mysterious stage of Mantra practice
where there is an automatic
chanting of the Mantra. It is
spontaneous and round the
clock without any effort.
Chanting of a Mantra produces sound waves. Since
every Mantra has a rhythm, so
soothing and musical sound is
produced. Sound is an energy.
So it has an impact upon the
body and mind of the practitioners. The recitation of a
Mantra produces lots of humming effects.
Humming generates vibration in the nasal passages. Nasal passages or sinuses contain nitric oxide. Nitric
oxide is a hormone which
relaxes the muscles. The relaxation of muscles has a very
positive impact on the psychophysical mechanism of the
human body. Hence after
Mantra chanting one feels elevated and blissful. In addition
to the relaxed muscles due to
the release of nitric oxide in
the sinuses, musical sound
relaxes our brain also.
In the Indian tradition major
Mantras are in Sanskrit language. One of the dominant
features of Sanskrit language
is the abundance of nasal
sounds likenand m. Hence
Sanskrit Mantras produce the
maximum degree of humming
in the nasal passages resulting
in the release of nitric oxide,
the vasodilator. Thus, chanting
of Sanskrit Mantras produces
great vasal relaxation.
Mantra chanting hasagreat
neuro linguistic impact also.
According to neurolinguistic
programming, the brain registers the different sensations
sent by our sensory organs.
These sensory communications are linguistic or non verbal. These registered communications in our neurons shape
our behaviour.
The sensations
of the outer world are filtered
by the brain as per its conditioning. This is the reason that
the same happening is interpreted differently and registered differently in the brain by
different individuals. NLP
trains individuals to practise
positive attitudes so that neurons register the sensations in
the same way and the required
positivity is generated in the
behaviour. So NLP is a methodology as well as a tool to make
our brain think in a positive
manner. When we examine
Mantras in the light of NLP, we
find that the meaning of a
Mantra is very positive. So it
registers positive information
in the neural passes of the
brain. Secondly, almost all the
Mantras are the benediction to
the divine. Hence,asense of
respect, surrender, service,
purity, hopefulness etc are profusely woven in the texture of a
Mantra. So Mantra chanting
produces the positive impact in
the brain. Thus,chanting of a
Mantra has neurolinguistic
and hormonal benefits to the
practitioner.
(The writer is Former DG
Police & CG, Homeguards,
Maharashtra)