Om, Its Meaning and Importance

 ॐ / Om (AUM) this is the sound of the divine, that reverberates within the human body, and in the same way, across all creation.

OM is everything that exists. Om is the sound which is everything that manifests. We know that the most obvious signal of life within the body (any living being) is the breath.

The Sanskrit name for this is Prana Vayu (Prana means life).

Some say these are the sounds of Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwara.
There is something which is created, and the creator is within the created (In simple language, the source of creation is within every single thing that is created). This life force exhibit itself, as the aspects of creation, maintenance and destruction within the human body.

The sounds attached with these are aa, uu and mmm. These three sounds aa, uu and mmm referred to as the basic sounds or the Universal sounds. These sounds are manifest inside the human body, just below the navel, at the chest and then above the throat. It starts from just beneath the navel and ends at the tip of the noes. These three sounds when uttered together, form the sound OM.

OM in Shrimad Bhagavad Gita

Lord Krishna says this many times in Bhagavad Gita.Such as,
In 7th chapter (Vijnana Yoga) he says, ||...Aham pranavah sarva vedeshu...||, that means I am Prana among all knowledge.
In the 9th chapter (Raja-Vidya-Raja-Guhya Yoga) he says, ||...Aham Vedyam pavitram Ommkarah...||, that means I am the pure sound of OM that is to be realized.
In the 10th chapter (Vibhuti-Vistara Yoga) he says, ||...Giramasmyekamaksharam...||, that means I'm the single undestroyable sound, which is Omkara.

OM in Different Culture

Many cultures have tried to express Om in their own nomenclature. Om is chanted as Amen in Christianity and Ameen in Islam.

Benefits of Chanting OM

Om calms the mind, It brings a lot of peace. It helps to control the anger by building up the tolerance level. Chanting Om also helps to bring in positive vibrations in our body. The vibration that occurs when chanting OM is very good for the spine. The sound produced while chanting Om is also said to be beneficial for the thyroid gland. By Chanting Om helps to stay youthful for longer. It detoxifies the body, clears out all the harmful toxins and keeps it fresh and clean.
Chanting Om also beneficial for depression, it helps us to have a stress-free mind and it relaxes us in and out.