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Anxiety
Swarnakshi Sharma October 25th, 2023 · 7min read

The Power Of Mantra Healing For Anxiety (With 7 Positive Mantras For Anxiety)

Mantras are a sound, word, or phrase that you repeat during your prayers or while meditating, and in the end, they all help us in one way or another. For example, they help slow our thoughts down, increase our mental capacity, and bring peace of mind.

But what is this power? The power behind such healing?

The oldest mantras can be found in the ancient Indian religious texts Vedas. When combined with conscious breathwork and rhythm, these positive and calming mantras can help in more ways than we can count.

With a rich history of ancient culture across the world, mantra healing harnesses unexplainable and intimate connection to sound. Mantra meditation, specifically, has been practiced for centuries to enhance self-awareness and mindfulness, support spiritual growth, reduce stress, and boost calm.

Did you know that according to holistic healers around the world, mantras are purposefully composed to deliver specific effects on our minds and body? Well, I guess that explains the instant calm we experience when practicing mantra meditation.

If we talk about cultures, chanting and repeating positive mantras can even mean offering our respects and salutation to our divine power or the deity you believe in. For many centuries now, chanting mantras have become a devotional practice along with mental and emotional healing.

How Does Mantra helps with Anxiety?

In some studies, it was found that chanting mantras, particularly the mantra “Om” was helpful in:

  • Reducing anxiety, stress
  • Lowering symptoms of depression
  • Boosting mood, and
  • Enhancing feelings of togetherness

Chanting or more specifically the vibrations created by chanting mantras boost nitric oxide that helps in regulating our nervous system, immunity, and cardio health. This can also help with increasing blood flow and reducing muscle tension.

When used correctly, chanting mantras for anxiety can also help reduce anxiety symptoms such as fast heart rate, high blood pressure, and respiratory rate.

Did you know that many studies have found that practicing meditation or similar techniques can reduce anxiety, depression, stress, and fear? However, keep in mind that mantra for anxiety and similar techniques are only effective complementary practice and must not be substituted for professional treatment.

If you’re struggling with severe symptoms of anxiety, it is recommended you speak to a professional for a diagnosis and treatment plan that’s right for you.

What Are Mantras? The Four Ways To Chant Mantra For Anxiety

Many people like using the word, “mantra” interchangeably with “affirmations”. While the effect of both on our minds and bodies remain the same, there’s still a difference we need not forget.

Affirmations are a self-help tool that doesn’t have any religious or cultural influence. These affirmations are just positive phrases you can say to yourself to motivate, calm, or encourage yourself. You can even make your own affirmations, depending on your symptoms, and what you need.

Mantras, on the other hand, are specific Sanskrit chants that are heavily influenced by culture and religion. According to the Spiritual leader and author, Om Swami, there are four ways to chant mantras to help with anxiety.

  1. Spoken chants or vāchika
  2. Whispered chants or upāmśu
  3. Mental chants or mānasika
  4. Unspoken chants or ajapa

Below listed are some of the positive mantras for anxiety that you can chant while in distress or while meditating.

7 Positive Mantras for Anxiety

1. Om

One of the most commonly used mantras is Om. This ancient chant can help your mind find peace and also help with improving your mood. During my meditation, I prefer chanting Om for at least 10 minutes. The vibrations that this mantra produces calm and helps lower my stress.

The mantra or chant, Om, is considered as one of the primordial sounds and allows our mind to shut out all the stress and deepen our breathing. The vibrations made by this mantra affect our stomach, our chest, and our skull. So, chanting this mantra for anxiety will physically help center you, bring you back to the present, and make you alert.

2. Maha Mrityunjaya

Again, one of the most powerful mantras, you can chant the Maha Mrityunjaya mantra whenever you feel restless or overwhelmed. When you chant this mantra for anxiety, you do so intending to manifest calm and strength to deal with your dilemma. This mantra has a heavy religious significance and is associated with one of the three primordial Gods, Shiva.

3. So Hum

This mantra or chant is the most effective when you’re looking to calm your anxiety and release mental tension. Repeating So Hum can help relax you just the way chanting Om does. According to experts, chanting this mantra for anxiety at least 21 times can help you feel centered, alert, and mindful.

4. Shanti Paath

When we’re anxious, it’s hard to find peace and relaxation but chanting the Shanti Paath can help. Chanting this calming mantra for anxiety will help you get your mind and body in touch with your surroundings by acknowledging the serenity of the universe. This universal calming mantra brings you inner peace and lets you be in the present moment.

5. Om Mani Padme Hum

This popular Buddist mantra can be effective in enhancing feelings of compassion, releasing strong emotions, and bringing inner peace. Spiritual leaders suggest that chanting the mantra Om Mani Padme Hum, at least 11 times can be most effective in relaxing you.

This calming mantra is also called the “Compassionate Buddha Mantra”. It can help calm the mind, bring mental clarity, gain knowledge, and maintain mental balance.

6. Asatoma Sadgamaya

One of my favorite and positive mantras for anxiety is Asotoma Sadgamaya. This mantra speaks to surrendering your pain and letting go of strong emotions. By chanting this positive mantra, you open yourself up to let go of your past suffering and embrace peace and serenity.

This positive mantra is taken from Brihadaranyaka Upanishads and is mostly spoken as a prayer during spiritual or religious gatherings

7. Gayatri Mantra

This is probably the only mantra that I’ve been using since I was a child. When I would sit for an important test or would go for an interview, I would chant this mantra to help with anxiety. Chanting Gayatri Mantra can bring inner peace and a sense of euphony. This mantra is very pleasing to the ear and also carries a heavily religious and spiritual significance.

Dedicated to the rising sun, chanting this positive and calming mantra can help manifest peace, success, positive vibes, and release negative emotions.

Word Of Caution

Mantras, unlike affirmations, carry religious and spiritual significance so it’s good to be culturally competent. If you want to learn the particular significance of the mantras, you can take classes or consult spiritual leaders and healers.

It’s always good to practice mantra meditation respectfully, keeping in mind the culture from which the mantras are derived.

It is best to avoid using the mantras for your benefit while ignoring their origins or caring about the significance of the culture and the people to whom the mantras are more devotional.

Chanting mantras for anxiety is a good self-help tool and can effectively reduce symptoms of anxiety, social anxiety, fear, and even depression. Keep in mind that mantras and affirmation are different things and are not to be used interchangeably.

I hope this takeaway helps you understand how to practice mantras to help with anxiety. For more, you can write to us at info@calmsage.com or DM us on social media. You can also share your thoughts and views on using mantras for anxiety in the comments below.

Take care!

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