“Mantra” is a term that makes frequent appearances in various areas of our society today. Mantras for healing, personal mantras, daily mantras, mantra in a yoga class, mantra as a brand, and so on. But where do mantras originate and what was their purpose?

 

In this workshop, you will learn some examples of ancient mantras that still survive today and are used by spiritual traditions around the world. For example, one of the most popular mantras in the Tibetan and Mongolian Buddhist tradition is the mantra Om Ma Ni Pad Me Hum, which often appears on yoga mats, prayer flags in coffee shops, or laptop stickers. But what does this mantra really mean? How is it used in meditation and chanting practices? What are the benefits of this mantra for healing and mental health?

 

This experiential mantra chanting workshop will explore these questions by having a go at chanting some of these mantras as they have been chanted for centuries across the Himalayas and Inner Asia. Dr Ujeed, who will be leading the session, spent years collecting and learning different melodies for meditative mantra recitation from Buddhist teachers from various ancient Buddhist traditions from Tibet, the Himalayas, and Mongolia and will be sharing them during the workshop.