Like hatha yoga, mantra yoga is an adjunct to the principal forms of yoga.

A mantra is a brief prayer that is given over and over again to develop the momentum of a particular virtue within the soul. The word mantra is taken from the Sanskrit, meaning “sacred counsel” or “formula.”

The repetition of the names of God—and of sacred mantras containing the names of God—is used by Hindus and Buddhists throughout India as a means of reunion with God.

For the name of God is God, because the name is a chalice, a formula that carries his vibration. So God and his name are one. He gives you his name, you recite the name, then he gives you all of himself.

Today in the West, many people have a difficult time meditating because their minds are so yin. They eat too much sugar and drink too many liquids like coffee and soft drinks, most of which have caffeine in them. These yin foods—and especially alcohol and recreational drugs—make it difficult to concentrate. This weakness has become ingrained in our bodies.

To compensate for this weakness, we give mantras during our meditation. The mantras help us focus on words and on word pictures and visualizations. As we meditate and give these mantras, we are becoming one with the object of our concentration. The mantra keeps the mind in line. This was the grand solution of Saint Germain for all of his disciples in the West.

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The above article is excerpted from Kabbalah: Key to Your Inner Power by Elizabeth Clare Prophet.