Meaning of AUM

 WHAT IS THE MEANING OF AUM?

For those who are not familiar with the meaning of the sacred Aum,
Include here some excerpts.

A.) Aum:
Often spelled Om.
The mystic syllable of Hinduism,
placed at the beginning of most sacred writings.
As a mantra, it is pronounced
aw (as in law), "oo" (as in zoo), mm.
Aum represents the Divine,
and is associated with Lord Ganesha,
for its initial sound "aa," vibrates within the muladhara,
the chakra at the base of the spine upon
which this God sits.
The second sound of this mantra,
"oo," vibrates within the throat and chest chakras,
the realm of Lord Murugan,
or
Kumara,
known by the Hawaiian people as the God Ku.
The third sound,
"mm," vibrates within the
cranial chakras, ajna and sahasrara,
where the Supreme God reigns.
The dot above,
called anusvara, represents
the Soundless Sound, Paranada.

Aum is explained in the Upanishads as standing for the

whole world and its parts,
including past, present and future.
It is from this primal
vibration that all manifestation issues forth.
Aum is the primary,
or
mula mantra,
and often precedes other mantras.
It may be safely used for chanting
and japa by anyone of any religion.
Its three letters represent the
three worlds and the powers of creation,
preservation and destruction.

B.) Literally, Pranava
 in Sanskrit means "humming."
The mantram Aum denotes God as the Primal Sound.
This sound can be heard as the sound of
one's own nerve system,
and meditators and mystics hear it daily,
like the sound made by an electrical transformer
or
a swarm of bees,
or
a thousand vinas playing in the distance.
It is a strong, inner experience,
one that yogis hold with great reverence.
The meditator is taught to inwardly
transform this sound into the inner light
which lights up ones' thoughts, and to bask in
this blissful consciousness of light.
Pranava is also known as the sound of the nadanadi sakti.
Hearing it one draws near to God Consciousness.
When we are living in the lower chakras,
or
when the world too strongly
dominates our mind, this sound may, for a time, not be heard.
But
it returns as awareness withdraws,
as the mind becomes perfectly
quiescent, silent, still.
Listen for this sound in your quietest moments
and you will learn to recognize it as a daily encounter
with the Divine that lives within all men,
within all creatures, within all existence.

C.) Poems from Yogaswami on Aum

The whole world has evolved from Om
The whole word is sustained by Om
The whole world will merge into Om

In Om resides my strength-Sivayave.

OM TAT SAT OM

Rise ere the sun each morning and wash feet,
face and hands.
Weaving fresh blossoms into garlands,
give worship unto God.
If we curb the mind from following the senses
and venerate the Lord's celestial feet,

Desire can certainly be conquered,
before the shock of death shall us assail.
"All is truth" -as that word the sage
has spoken gradually ripens in your heart,
You will come to have direct perception
and with cleared mind will mukti's bliss attain.
There is no doubt about this whatsoever.
 All things are the action of the Lord.
In the cave of your heart by day and night extol Him,
repeating - "Om Tat Sat".

Those hearts,
which ever dwell on Him in homage,
are the holy temple
 where the Lord abides.
Sitting, lying, walking-
we will not cease from praise and worship.
Virtue and vice are both imagination,
for we are that which neither comes nor goes.
Know this through Grace alone;
on intellect do not depend.
Coming to take birth and living in this world
 is itself a great illusion.
This great ascetics know-not others;
so to that impart not importance.
We can live for countless ages!
 Of nothing need you be afraid;
But, moving as you please,
be ever giving praise.
 

Om Tat Sat!