Commonly Used Kundalini Mantras and Their Meanings

This series of posts is part of a book. See outline here.

Commonly Used Kundalini Mantras and Their Meanings

On the following pages I have included some of the highest and most commonly used mantras. I have included their common names and easy spellings as well as phonetic spellings to help you pronounce them. I have also included translations, comments about the use and power of the mantras, and scriptural references that I have found helpful to anchor the mantras in a gospel context. This short list includes most of the mantras you will find in the manual section of this book. You may learn more about these and other mantras through the Mantrapedia database at http://www.spiritvoyage.com/mantras. You can also listen and purchase music at that site. As you read the mantras below, you may notice that even reading them is powerful. But as mantras are experiential, I invite you to go a step further and allow the sounds to form in your mouth and vibrate through you.

ONG NAMO

Ong Namo, Guroo Dev Namo

I bow to/I call upon the Divine Teacher who is also within me.

This mantra is called Adi Mantra. It allows the chanter to relate instantly to the divine teacher within. This mantra is used to tune in before Kundalini yoga classes and before your personal meditation practice. The Adi Mantra centers the teacher and the students in their highest selves and allows the divine teacher to guide us and work through us. In the Shabd Guru, the words for “I bow to” and “I call upon” are the same, indicating there is no distinction between prayer and praise. Namo also relates to a person’s identity, thereby blending Infinite and finite into the Self.[1]

“And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be

one, even as we are one” (John 17:22).

AAD GURAY NAMEH

Aad Guray Nameh, Jugaad Guray Nameh, Sat Guray Nameh, Siri Guroo Dayv-ay Nameh

I bow to/call upon the primal (first, original) guru.

I bow to/call upon the truth that has existed throughout the ages.

I bow to/call upon True Wisdom.

I bow to/call upon the Great Divine Wisdom.

This mantra puts a circle of protective light around a person. It clears clouds of doubt and opens one to higher guidance.[2] Yogi Bhajan taught that this mantra should always be recited at least three times in a row.[3]

“I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up” (Doctrine and Covenants 84:88).

AAP SAHEE HOA

Aap Sahaee Hoa Sachaa Daa Sachaa Doaa, Har, Har, Har

You, Divine One, have become my refuge. True is Your support, Great Creative Infinite.

This mantra neutralizes negativity from around you, helps one walk into the unknown without fear, and gives protection and mental balance.[4] It also calls on the generating aspect of God (Har), which makes it a prosperity mantra as well.

“I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will

I trust” (Psalm 91:2).

ADI SHAKTI

Adi Shakti, Adi Shakti, Adi Shakti, Namo, Namo

Sarab Shakti, Sarab Shakti, Sarab Shakti, Namo, Namo

Prithum Bhagawati, Prithum Bhagawati, Prithum Bhagawati, Namo, Namo

Kundalini, Maata Shakti, Maata Shakti, Namo, Namo

Namo: I bow to, I call upon.

Adi Shakti: Primal (first, original) power.

Sarab Shakti: All power.

Prithum Bhagawati: Which creates through God.

Kundalini: Divine energy.

Maata Shakti: Divine female energy.

This mantra connects us with our Divine Mother and the feminine power in the universe. It will help you be free of insecurities that block action.[5]

“When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth: When he established the clouds above: when he strengthened the fountains of the deep: When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth: Then I was by him, as one brought up with him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him; rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth; and my delights were the sons of men. Now therefore hearken unto me, O ye children: for blessed are they that keep my ways” (Proverbs 8:27–32).[6]

ANG SANG WAHE GURU

Ung Sung Wah-Hay Guroo

The ecstasy of God is in me and vibrates in every cell of my being.

“This mantra expresses a universal truth. Repeating it creates a thought, which gradually guides the psyche to adjust itself. It re-connects every fragmented projection of the psyche, each separated part of the body, and synchronizes the finite sense of self to the Infinite Oneness. This act of rejoining the separated parts is the quintessential act of healing. Under attack, under war, under the pressures of fear, this meditation keeps us together, conscious, and ready to act. It brings the inner peacefulness that comes only from the touch and scope of spirit.”

- A Commentary by Gurucharan Singh, KRI Director of Training

[7]

“Ye must bow down before him, and worship him with all your might, mind, and strength,

and your whole soul” (2 Nephi 25:29).

ARDAS BHAEE

Ardas Bhaee, Amardaas Guroo

Amar Daas Guroo, Ardaas Bhayee

Amar Daas Guroo, Ardaas Bhayee

Ardas Bhaee, Amardaas Guroo

Raam Daas Guroo, Raam Daas Guroo

Raam Daas Guroo, Sachee Sahee

Guru Amar Das: The energy of grace and hope when there is no hope.

Guru Ram Das: The energy of humility, healing, miracles, and blessings.

Sachee Sahee: This is the prayer to answer all prayers. The miracle is complete.

This mantra is known as a mantra for miracles. It will help release a difficult situation. It is a prayer that ensures all prayers will be answered. If you sing it, your mind, body, and soul will combine, and without having to say what you want, every need will be provided and life will be adjusted.[8]

“For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles; and I will show unto the world that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever” (2 Nephi 27:33).

EK ONG KAAR SAT NAM SIRI WAHE GURU

Eck Ong Kaar Sat Naam Siri Wah-Hay Guroo

Eck Ong Kaar: The Creator and the Creation are One.

Sat Nam: Truth is my identity, this is my true identity.

Siri Wahe Guru: The ecstasy of the experience of this wisdom is beyond all words and brings indescribable bliss.

This mantra has eight parts, which correspond to the body’s eight major chakras. This mantra is “very powerful for awakening the Kundalini energy and suspending the mind in bliss.” It creates “a responsive interrelationship between you and the universal creative energy.”[9]

“Ye are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).

GOBINDAY MUKUNDAY

Gobinday Mukunday Udaaray Apaaray Hariang Kariang Nirnamay Akamay

Sustainer, Liberator, Enlightener, Infinite, Destroyer, Creator, Nameless,[10] Desireless[11]

This mantra calls on eight different names or aspects of God. This mantra can eliminate blocks and errors of the past. According to Yogi Bhajan, “Besides helping cleanse the subconscious mind, it balances the hemispheres of the brain, bringing compassion and patience to the one who meditates on it.”[12]

“Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee” (Psalm 55:22).

GOD AND ME, ME AND GOD ARE ONE

Though it is not good grammar, it is a good mantra. This affirmation was given by Yogi Bhajan. It's purpose is to remember that God is within every one of us. The ultimate empowerment is finding the Divine within.[13]  

“And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as

we are one” (Galatians 3:28).

GURU GURU WAHE GURU

Guru Guru Wahe Guru, Guru Ram Das Guru

Guru: Teacher or guide that brings one from the darkness to the light

Wahe: Exclamation of ecstasy and joy for that which one has gained through experience of God

Ram Das: God’s humble servant

This mantra is known for its healing qualities and for conferring humility on the one who chants it. It will rescue you in the midst of danger and trial. Chanting this mantra projects the mind to the infinite, the source of all knowledge and ecstasy. This mantra was given to Yogi Bhajan by Guru Ram Das in his astral body.[14] Guru Ram Das was the fourth Sikh guru. He was known for healing, miracles, and service. He is called the patron saint of Kundalini Yoga because he was Yogi Bhajan’s astral teacher.[15] When chanting “Guru Ram Das,” some people praise this guru, but the highest level of truth I have discovered about this mantra is that it tunes us into the energy represented in the name. That energy is of the ultimate humble servant of God, Jesus Christ, who did the will of his Father in all things..

“Behold, I am Jesus Christ the Son of God. I created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are. I was with the Father from the beginning. I am in the Father, and the Father in me; and in me hath the Father glorified his name.” (3 Nephi 9:15).

HAR

Har (Pronounced with a rolled R. Sounds like Hud.)

Creative Infinity.

Har is the name for the generating aspect of God.[16] This mantra is often used for prosperity meditations. It is a mantra for life on earth and earthly needs.

“Save now, I beseech thee, O Lord: O Lord, I beseech thee, send now

prosperity” (Psalm 118:25).

HUMEE HUM BRAHM HUM

Hummee Humm Bruhm Humm

We are we, we are God.

“This mantra literally means we are the spirit of God….It fixes the identity to it’s true reality.”[17]

“I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High” (Psalm 82:6).

I AM, I AM

The first I AM is you, and the second I AM is the divine––blending finite and Infinite, reminding the meditator of his or her own Infinite nature.[18]

“Hearken and listen to the voice of him who is from all eternity to all eternity, the Great I Am, even Jesus Christ—” (Doctrine and Covenants 39:1)

MUL MANTRA

Ek Ong Kaar, Sat Naam, Kartaa Purkh, Neer bo Neer vair, Akaal Moorat, Ajoonee, Saibhang Guru Prasaad, Jap! Aad Such, Jugaad Such, Heh Bhee Such, Naanak Hosee Bhee Such

Ek Ong Kar: God is One, I am One with all beings.

Sat Naam: I am truth, truth is my identity.

Kartaa Purkh: God is the Doer.

Nirbhao Nirvair: Fearless and all-loving is He.

Akaal Moorat: God transcends time, is without death or change.

Ajoonee: God is without beginning.

Saibhang: God is self-illuminating.

Guru Prasaad: God is the compassionate guru.

Jap: Meditate!

Aad Such, Jugaad Such: True in the beginning, True through all the ages.

Hai Bhee Such: True here and now.

Nanak Hosee Bhee Such: Nanak (composer of the mantra/poem) says God will forever be true.

“Behold, I am the Lord God Almighty, and Endless is my name; for I am without beginning of days or end of years” (Moses 1:3).

Mul Mantra is known as the Ballad of Enlightenment. The mantra is a compass that points toward God. The entire mantra describes the God-in-human conciousness. Guru Nanak says that we only sin when we forget our Infinity—when we forget in our essence, in our being and our vibration, the reality of God and guru in our soul. This mantra creates a comfortable and happy way to meditate that is perfectly balanced and keeps us in the flow of life and in contact with the perception of the soul at each moment. Mul Mantra is a complete technology in itself. Chanting Mul Mantra over time can alleviate depression and can take a person to a state of alignment with divine truth.[19]

RA MA DA SA

Raa Maa Daa Saa Saa Say So Hung

Ra: Sun

Ma: Moon

Da: Earth

Sa: Infinity

Sa Say: Totality of Infinity

So Hung: I am Thou

Ra Ma Da Sa will attune the self to the universe. It is a powerful healing mantra.These sounds directly stimulate the kundalini for healing.[20] This mantra is one of the most precious, sought-after gems. To read the full commentary about this mantra, please see page xxx.

“This is the light of Christ. As also he is in the sun, and the light of the sun, and the power thereof by which it was made. As also he is in the moon, and is the light of the moon, and the power thereof by which it was made; as also the light of the stars, and the power thereof by which they were made; and the earth also, and the power thereof, even the earth upon which you stand. And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings; which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space—the light which is in all things, which giveth life to all things, which is the law by which all things are governed, even the power of God” (Doctrine and Covenants 88:7–13, emphasis added).

SA RE SA SA (ANTAR NAAD MANTRA)

Saa Ray Saa Saa, Saa Ray Saa Saa, Saa Ray Saa Saa, Saa Rung

Har Ray Har Har, Har Ray Har Har, Har Ray Har Har, Har Rung

Sa is the Infinite, God. It is the element of ether that is the origin or beginning and is through all things. Har is the the creative power of God manifested through the tangible and personal. Woven together, these sounds blend the finite and Infinite and project together with the sound of “Ung,” or Totality. [21]

This mantra is called the Antar Naad, meaning the first mantra or base of all mantras. It enhances communication and gives your words power. Adversity melts before this mantra.[22] Learn more about this mantra in the commentary on page xxx.

“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:13).

SAT NAM (BIJ MANTRA)

Sut Naam

I am truth, truth is my identity.

Sat Nam is probably the most widely used mantra in the practice of Kundalini Yoga. Sat means truth. Naam means identity, acknowledging your own divine identity. Sat Naam is a bij (seed) mantra. The seed contains all the knowledge of the fully grown tree. Chanting this mantra allows the seed to grow, awakening the soul and giving you your destiny. This mantra also balances the five elements (tattvas).[23]

“Now, we will compare the word unto a seed. Now, if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart, behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye do not cast it out by your unbelief, that ye will resist the Spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves—It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me” (Alma 32:28).

As a greeting, Sat Nam means “I see the Truth in you; I see your truest self.” Saying this phrase to another person not only acknowledges their true self but calls that self forward to respond.[24]

“And that all their salutations may be in the name of the Lord” (Doctrine and Covenants 109:19).

SA TA NA MA

Saa Taa Naa Maa

Birth, life/growth, death/change, rebirth.

This mantra expresses the five primal sounds of the Universe (“Sss,” “Mmm,” “Ttt,” “Nnn,” and “Aaa”). This mantra is the internal energy or Naad form of the mantra Sat Naam and is used to raise intuition, balance the brain, and create a destiny where there was none. This mantra describes the cycle of life and creation.[25] It is difficult to ignore that this mantra also bears record of Christ’s miraculous life: His birth, the miracle that was His life, His sacrifice, and resurrection.

“I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last” (Revelation 22:13).

WAHE GURU

Wah-Hay Guroo

I am in ecstasy when I experience the indescribable wisdom of God.

Wahe Guru is the Mantra of Ecstasy. It is the mantra that most effectively stimulates the Third Eye/pituitary gland. This mantra expresses complete and ecstatic awe for the greatness of God. Wah is an expression of wow and should be said quickly. Hay is the longer syllable and means “I have gained.” When saying this mantra, focus on the joy and ecstasy you have received by experiencing the nature of the divine. Guru means “the One who brings us from darkness to light.”[26] A person can interpret this thing or person who is a bringer of light in any way they choose, based on their own personal and religious comfort, but for those who know Christ as the light of the world, it’s an obvious expression of praising Him and His Father who sent him.

“Then will I go up unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy: yea, upon the harp will I praise thee, O God my God” (Psalms 43:4).

[1] Yogi Bhajan, The Aquarian Teacher: KRI International Teacher Training Manual, Level 1 (Santa Cruz, NM: Kundalini Research Institute, 2007), 86.

[2] Ibid., 82.

[3] Mantrapedia, s.v. “Aad Guray Nameh,” accessed July 18, 2014, www.spiritvoyage.com/mantras.

[4] Bhajan, The Aquarian Teacher, 82.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Some scholars believe the verses in Proverbs 8 that refer to “wisdom” are actually referring to the Divine Mother (see Kevin L. Barney, “How to Worship Our Mother in Heaven (Without Getting Excommunicated),” Dialogue: A Journal of Modern Thought, Vol. 41, No. 4, 121–146).

[7] Mantrapedia, s.v. “Ang Sang Wahe Guru,” accessed July 18, 2014, www.spiritvoyage.com/mantras.

[8] Bhajan, The Aquarian Teacher, 82.

[9] Ibid., 84.

[10] See Revelation 2:17.

[11] It is difficult to translate the word Akamay. The use of the word desireless here means “without attachment to worldly things.”

[12] Bhajan, The Aquarian Teacher, 84.

[13] Mantrapedia, s.v. “God and Me, Me and God Are One,” accessed July 18, 2014, www.spiritvoyage.com/mantras.

[14] Bhajan, The Aquarian Teacher, 84.

[15] Guru Dharam S. Khalsa and Darryl O’Keeffe, The Kundalini Yoga Experience:Bringing Body, Mind, and Spirit Together (New York, NY: Fireside, 2002), 136.

[16] Bhajan, The Aquarian Teacher, 84.

[17] Ibid., 85.

[18] Mantrapedia, s.v. “I Am, I Am,” accessed July 18, 2014, www.spiritvoyage.com/mantras.

[19] Bhajan, The Aquarian Teacher, 81.

[20] Ibid., 86

[21] Ibid.

[22] Ibid.

[23] Ibid.

[24] Yogi Bhajan, “Gurdwara,” lecture, May 3, 1992, Hamburg, Germany, www.Libraryofteachings.com, accessed August 7, 2014.

[25] Bhajan, The Aquarian Teacher, 87.

[26] Dharma Singh Khalsa and Cameron Stouth, Meditation as Medicine: Activate the Power of Your Natural Healing Force (New York: Fireside, 2001), 122–123.