The benefits of a mantra, and how to create your own mantra
I have a view of what a mantra is, but I thought I’d do a bit of research about the origins and history of the mantra.
According to Wikipedia, a mantra is:
“a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words in Sanskrit believed by practitioners to have psychological and spiritual powers.Mantra meditation helps to induce an altered state of consciousness. A mantra may or may not have a syntactic structure or literal meaning.”
Broken down into parts, mantra means:
- man – mind
- tra – transportation / vehicle
A mantra is a “vehicle of the mind”
Mantras date back to at least 3,000 years, and were first composed by Hindus in India. The concepte is now common across Buddhism, Taoism, Sikhism, Jainism, Christianity and elsewhere.
Mantras can come in verse and in musical chants. The syllable “om” is also considered a mantra.
The benefits of a mantra
Mantra is now often used to refer to a word or phrase that is repeated and expresses a particularly strong belief. People often develop their own ‘personal mantra’ as a reminder about something they want to reinforce to themselves, to give themselves inner strength, or to remind them of their purpose.
A mantra is designed to be said or thought over and again, to replace other thoughts that don’t add value. The idea is also that by repeating your mantra you manifest your own personal contentment.
Creating your own personal mantra
You don’t need to be religious to benefit from creating your own mantra. Your mantra should be personal, and strongly resonate with you. It is an affirmative statement that could provide motivation and encouragement.
To create your own personal mantra, you need to decide what your focus will be. Is it about financial security, finding love, feeling confident, achieving something, or finding a new career? Is it about accepting yourself the way that you are? Is it about needing a boost to get you through a difficult situation?
When you’ve decided on your focus, think of some statements that will turn around your thinking. Your mantra could be your favourite quote or saying, line from a movie, or song lyric that inspires you. It could be something that you’ve made up yourself, or something that you’ve found in a book or a website.
There are no right or wrong mantras. Whatever it is that gives you feelings of peace of mind, or feelings of positivity and affirmation.
A personal mantra is for no-one but YOU.
Examples of personal mantras
Here are some mantras that might resonate with you. I can’t claim them as my own, but with that being said I don’t know their original sources. They are phrases that I have heard over time, that I like.
“I am enough”
“This too shall pass”
“I choose to win”
“I am here for a reason”
“I am loved and I am worthy”
“I CAN do this”
“I am successful and will achieve everything I set out to”
“If I want this it’s up to me to go and get it”
“Be a good person and good things will follow”
“Life is too short to wait”
“Being myself will get me where I need to be”
“I am worth it”
“I have everything I need to live an abundant life”
“I will live my best life”
“I accept myself for who I am, with all my flaws”
“I am open and ready to receive love”
“I am happy in my own body, just the way it is”
“Failure is not an option”
“I’ve got this!”
“I am strong and I will win”
“Progress not perfection”
“Every day I am a better version of myself”
Once you have your mantra, you should set aside some time each day to reflect on it, and say it to yourself, so that your mantra comes to life.
You might want to get creative and use a tool like Canva to help you create your mantra so that you can display it in your work space, or wherever you feel comfortable seeing it. You could stick it onto the cover of your notebook, carry it in your bag, or save it as an image on your phone.
I’ve written about Canva here.
You might have more than one mantra at once. For example, you might have one about achieving success, and you might have another about being happy with who you are. It’s OK to have as many mantras as you like. The only thing you do need to be aware of is that when you are repeating your mantra, make sure you only focus on one at a time. You need to dedicate focused energy on your mantra, rather than diffusing your energy across multiple goals at a time.
My own personal mantra
When I started my online business from home in affiliate marketing, it was all new to me, and if I didn’t watch myself, it was easy to feel overwhelmed. There was a lot to learn, and a lot of work to do. Sometimes it felt like I wasn’t getting anywhere. And I had to remind myself:
“Every step I take is a step closer to where I need to be”
It didn’t take me long to realise that my path to my own financial and professional freedom wasn’t going to happen overnight. It was important for me to recognise that every day I was getting a step closer. Small actions can add up to big actions over time. It was important for me to celebrate my small successes, to give me a reason to keep going.
Have you created your own personal mantra? If you’d like so share your mantra, please leave a comment below. What has worked for you? Leave me a question or a comment and I’m always happy to help.
I love this! I think we have so much power in our mind that we don’t use for our own benefits. Having a mantra can definitely help us tap into that power and achieve what we want. Thank you for the advice!
Hello Daybe, I think we can certainly harness the power of our minds to our advantage. Our minds our powerful and we have a few tips and tricks we can change the way we feel, and change our outlook. Thanks for sharing your thoughts here Daybe and I wish you all the very best.
Cheers
Melissa
Another great post. I think we all have the power within us to achieve greatness, and this post shows us how to make the most of it. Thanks for this!
Hi Kevin, I agree, we all have that power, it’s about whether we use it or not. A mantra is just one way of keeping us on track with our goal and giving us the positive reinforcement we might need. Thanks so much for stopping by Kevin, and I wish you all the very best.
Cheers
Melissa
Melissa,
That is a very good point you made about small steps!!.. Trust me I know about it those big steps, I was trading forex for over a year and half. It was a roller coaster, jeeze some days were diamonds and others were no good, I persevered because I thought to myself that it was the quickest way to make a buck!…Then I happen on WA this year and the very first thing I noticed is that success does not happen over night, what a letdown it was!!…lol….but I have been in here for over a month now and I am enjoying it very much!!..I like writing about different things and I can do that with my site. Yes I understand the value of taking it a step at a time. Thanks
Hi Gus, oh I see you are a Wealthy Affiliate member too. Hello! I know, what a let down that we can’t make money overnight ; ) I’m glad you’re enjoying it too. Maybe I’ll see you on the platform some time. I wish you all the very best, and I thank you for stopping by.
Cheers
Melissa