Every Day is New
Last year was the year of the Gayatri Mantra for me. This mantra is an ancient Vedic prayer for the enlightenment of all beings. I made a commitment to repeat it 108 times everyday. Although, having missed some days here and there, all days of 2014 were accounted for, by making up for the missed days on other days.
Being a rather long mantra, 108 repetitions typically took me 20 minutes, longer if I sung it in the beautiful Deva Premal and Miten version. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiavgqEz1Zo Said to be one of the most powerful of mantras and purifying to the person chanting it, I certainly felt the effects of this mantra. My meditations were deeper sooner with a lasting calm.
2015 I am dedicating to HAPPINESS.
As such this is my mantra for the year:
Om Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu
May all beings everywhere be happy and free, and may the thoughts, words, and actions of my own life contribute in some way to that happiness and to that freedom for all.
This mantra is a reminder to create mutually beneficial relationships with all beings and things.
KARMA means ‘action’. This mantra reminds us to think, speak and do all things with compassion and with the intent to benefit not only self, but others and the planet as well. This requires us to be accountable for our behaviours.
Yoga gives us the guidelines for ‘right’ action – the Yamas and Niyamas.
Yamas – Non-violence, truth, non-stealing, moderation and appropriateness.
Niyamas – Cleanliness, contentedness, motivation, self-study and connectedness.
These things are love in action – compassion – and teach us to operate from love not hate.
So this year, may all that I do be to that effect.
Namaste
