by Gurani Anjali
Om is regarded as infinite in the Brihadaranyaka Upanisad. Infinite is that, that is without a second. Infinite is this visible universe. All proceeds and merges into it. Akasa mighty space contains all. Through this one knows what has to be known, [so] the seers of the Vedas have spoken.
Om, the sacred word, is the symbol of the ultimate reality. This ultimate reality lies within and without. It is to be realized through one-pointed meditative attentiveness within our inner most selves. Such meditations will bring one to an unbroken flow of realization.
The Bhagavad Gita describes the syllable Om as the embodiment of the supreme consciousness:
“I am the savor of the waters, O Son of Kunti, the radiance of the sun and moon; I am the syllable Om in all the Vedas, the sound in ether, the manliness in men.”
— Bhagavad Gita Chapter VIII.8
“I am the father of the universe, the mother, the sustainer. I am the knowable, the purifier, and the syllable Om of the Vedas. ”
— Bhagavad Gita Chapter IX.17
“Of words, I am the monosyllable Om, Of the great rsis, I am Bhrigu, Of sacrifices , I am the sacrifice. Among things immovable, I am the Himalayas.”
— Bhagavad Gita Chapter X.25
“Those who close the door of the senses, centering with the mind on the heart, draws the prana into the head, uttering Om, meditates on Me, attains the supreme goal.”
— Bhagavad Gita Chapter VIII.12.13
“Om Tat Sat is the declaration of the three-fold designation of the absolute. Therefore, the acts of austerity, gifts, and sacrifice are always enjoined by the utterance Om.”
— Bhagavad Gita Chapter XVII.23.24
In the Taittiriya Upanisad a prayer is offered to Om and also its use:
“May he (Om), who is the bull of the Vedic Hymns, assuming all forms, who has sprung up from the hymns of the Vedas, may Indra bestow me with wisdom, may I be the possessor of immortality, may my body be strong, may my tongue be sweet, may I hear with my ears abundantly.”
— Taittiriya Upanisad I.IV.1 and I.VIII.1
In the Chandogya Upanisad we find that Om is the origin of all speech:
“As all leaves are held together by a midrib, so is all speech held together. Om is all this, yes, Om is all this.”
— Chandogya Upanisad II.XXIII.2.3
To understand the above, steps are to be taken for meditation on Om. For this, purification of the mind is necessary. Negative impressions are to be removed through austerities, hearing and learning about the inner most self from one who knows the self, constantly recalling to the mind what was heard, reflecting with respect and earnestness. The absolute is the ultimate reality, lies beyond thought. Therefore, it becomes necessary to transcend thought. For this reason, symbols are employed. Symbols lead us to the understanding of a higher knowledge. A seeker riddled with the afflictions of life is in need of symbols that steady the mind with purposeful meaning.
Language structure and emphasis are word-symbols which bear the conditions of sacred thought, and when uttered in a respectful way, they create within the seeker an urgent, fervent arousal to seek the [higher] self. All mantras, all prayers and Om are word-symbols.
Religious monuments, churches, temples, Mosques, synagogues, places of pilgrimage, the cross, the crescent, the fire, are symbolic forms, images; [all] presenting visualization of the unmanifest, the absolute. Hence there are three kinds of symbols: form or image, word, and geometrical. These are aids for centering and penetrating into the ultimate reality. Appear before them with respect, honor and reverence. These are the hallmarks of a true seeker after truth.
Om is the universal symbol; it represents all the aspects of the absolute consciousness. It is all inclusive; it is the essence of everything, according to the Vedic seers. Om Tat Sat (Thou art That).
These presentations evoke ardent feelings in the body and mind. Om shanti.