Mantras in Everyday Life
Sometimes in my work as a psychotherapist, clients will say to me, “I need a mantra!” They are using this ancient concept informally. What they are asking for is a statement tailored to them that will help with getting and keeping perspective. This can be as simple as a thought to cut through avoidance of a task, like writing an important email. One of the barriers to writing, is perfectionism: wanting or expecting the final product to be perfect. Because it is daunting for many people to write formally, adding the expectation that the end result will be perfect only further interferes with getting started. A mantra for cutting through this interference could be something like, “It doesn’t have to be perfect; it just has to get the job done.” Similarly in this example with writing, because writing is often time-consuming, it might seem reasonable that a large amount of time needs to be set aside before getting started. Paradoxically, setting this expectation about time can itself be a barrier to starting formal writing, since time tends to be in short supply and since large blocks of time for a difficult or dreaded task can provoke avoidance. A mantra to help overcome this obstacle could be, “I only need to write for 15 minutes today.” There is even a book premised on this idea. It’s called, Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day: A Guide to Starting, Revising, and Finishing Your Doctoral Thesis, by Joan Bolker, Ed.D.
The idea of a mantra originated in Hinduism thousands of years ago, and the first mantra is still used in meditation practice to this day. It is the sound of “Om,” which is can be translated as “ultimate reality.” “Om” can be said out loud or silently in one’s mind as part of focusing the mind. In contemporary Hindu practice, mantras can also be combinations of words. In some traditions, a guru or teacher gives the student a unique mantra to use in their meditation practice. Mantras are also widely used within Tibetan Buddhism, often chanted out loud. In his best-selling book, Awakening the Buddha Within: Tibetan Wisdom for the Western World, Lama Surya Das has this to say about the origin of the word “mantra” and mantra practice:
The word mantra is literally translated as “something to lean the mind (manas) upon.” And that’s what a mantra can do. Mantra practice can be relied upon as a quick, effective, and powerful way of focusing, stabilizing, and freeing the mind. Mantra practice can help inculcate constructive states of mind; reinforcing mind-training, it enhances our basic intelligence, wakefulness, concentration and present awareness. (p. 184).
He goes on to encourage the reader to practice chanting a mantra, like the Sanskrit, “Om Mani Pedme’ Hung,” using sound and breath to deepen the meditation experience.
A Course in Miracles shares the same emphasis on transcending suffering through training the mind that is central to Hinduism and Buddhism, but goes about this goal in a different manner. Instead of emphasizing extended periods of meditation or chanting, the Course emphasizes mindful awareness grounded both in its metaphysical framework and in a year-long program of daily practice. The Workbook of A Course in Miracles contains 365 mind training lessons, and the interested student does one lesson a day for a year—or for however long it takes them to complete the Workbook. The context for the lessons is given in the Text and is also found in the explanation of each lesson. Further context is given in the Manual for Teachers, which together with the Text and Workbook rounds out A Course in Miracles. Two supplemental pamphlets complement the three books of the Course, called Psychotherapy and Song of Prayer, each providing further understanding. The Workbook lessons of A Course in Miracles lay a foundation for mindfulness, which is a lifelong practice.
Whatever tradition we follow or whichever spiritual path we are on, even if we accept the premise—taught in Hindu and Buddhist traditions, as well as in A Course in Miracles—that the world is an illusion, we will still find ourselves feeling angry, afraid, guilty or ashamed, sad, or any number of other negative emotions. In that moment, we can use a mantra to help us to regain perspective. The Course places great emphasis on our choices, teaching that how we choose to think about things literally creates our experiences, including what we think and feel, of course, but also what we perceive. A mantra can help remind us of our power to choose. It can also bring us “into the neighborhood” of choice. It can help us to remember what we value most or even simply cue us to the idea that there is another way of approaching whatever is happening in the moment that has replaced our peace. Using a mantra this way can thus help to shift our experience and our state of mind away from the not-peaceful towards the peaceful.
Many of the Course Workbook lessons can serve as mantras in everyday life for letting go of anger, moving through fear, and removing the blocks to awareness of our natural state as one of peace. I have mentioned two of these lessons in previous blog posts. For example, the title of my fifth post is Workbook Lesson 31, “I am not a victim of the world I see” (click here to go to post). This can help with regaining perspective in any situation in which we feel victimized, whether by a person or a situation. In another post, I shared that Lesson 5, “I am never upset for the reason I think,” has been one that I have reminded myself of again and again over the years since completing the Workbook (click here to go to post). My great teacher, Dr. Kenneth Wapnick, said that Lesson 5 together with Lesson 34, “I could see peace instead of this,” are effectively the teachings of A Course in Miracles in two sentences. He often said that diligently practicing just these two lessons could remove all the barriers to the awareness of Love’s presence in our minds. (Peace and Love and Joy together comprise the state that is our Oneness with one another and with God). Later lessons, too, can be helpful as mantras in everyday life. For example, Lesson 48 reminds us, “There is nothing to fear;” Lesson 68 teaches, “Love holds no grievances;” Lesson 93 helps us to remember, “Light and joy and peace abide in me.”
There are a great many statements found throughout A Course in Miracles that can also be used as mantras in everyday life. One oft-quoted line of the Course highlights the power of choice mentioned above: “…seek not to change the world, but choose to change your mind about the world” (T-21.in.1:7). Within the context of the metaphysics of A Course in Miracles, this reminds us that the world we perceive and experience ourselves as living in is not the cause of our difficulties but rather an effect of the belief that we separated from God. This belief is referred to as “sin” throughout the Course; sin is nothing more than a mistaken belief about ourselves and reality. When we find ourselves wanting to change things in the world, it can be helpful to pause and remember that the world is an effect of our choice to see separation. We exercise our greatest power by turning our attention to the cause of the problem, which is in the mind. As we change our minds about our interpretation of what we experience, we can return to a state of peace. We may still choose to act in the world, but we can do so from a more peaceful frame of mind, rather than from a reactive one. This means that peace is attainable even through non-action. The Course teaches:
⁷When peace comes at last to those who wrestle with temptation and fight against the giving in to sin; when the light comes at last into the mind given to contemplation; or when the goal is finally achieved by anyone, it always comes with just one happy realization; “I need do nothing.” (T-18.VII.5:7)
The statement, “I need do nothing,” can itself be used as a mantra. And again, we may still elect to ‘do something,’ but we will then be making a considered choice.
The mind training program of A Course in Miracles leads to an awareness of our reality as “a Oneness joined as One” (T-25.I.7:1). This teaching about reality is very much like the teaching of the Vedanta branch of Hinduism about Brahman or ultimate reality (i.e., what “Om” refers to). It is also similar to the oneness that is the end of the Buddhist enlightenment journey. Where the Oneness taught in A Course in Miracles differs from traditional Buddhism is that it is beyond consciousness. Regardless of which teaching appeals the most, what is shared between the Course and some Hindu and Buddhist traditions is the importance of remembering our union with everyone. This union is beyond the body. Even though our eyes present us with a world of bodies, we can use a mantra to help us remember that in reality we are One with whomever we see in our day-to-day lives. These sentences from A Course in Miracles contain ideas that can be used for this purpose:
Your question should not be, “How can I see my brother without the body?” ²Ask only, “Do I really wish to see him sinless?” ³And as you ask, forget not that his sinlessness is your escape from fear. ⁴Salvation is the Holy Spirit’s goal. ⁵The means is vision. ⁶For what the seeing look upon is sinless. ⁷No one who loves can judge, and what he sees is free of condemnation. (T-20.VII.9:1-7).
A mantra to use in everyday life could be, “I wish to see you/him/her/them as sinless.” Other mantras could be, “To love is not to judge,” “To judge you/him/her/them is to condemn you/him/her/them,” and “To condemn you/him/her/them is to condemn myself.” Also implied above is the idea, “To see the sinlessness of others is my escape from fear.” A very succinct reminder of union is found in Song of Prayer, “We go together you and I” (S-1.IV.1:8). For me this resonates with Metta meditation (also known as loving kindness) taught in the Theravada school of Buddhism. Practiced with oneself and with others in mind, this meditation cultivates a positive, loving attitude towards oneself and others through an active intention or wish for one’s own and others’ wellbeing.
Mantras can come from anywhere. In Alcoholics Anonymous, there is a saying, “Let go and let God,” which reminds the person to step back from trying to control a situation and allow their Higher Power to guide them. Mantras can even be “made up.” For a while, whenever something upset me, especially something unfair or unjust, I worked with the ideas, “I don’t have to like this, I don’t have to agree with this, and I don’t have to let this take away my peace.” This helped free me from having to ponder the situation and get tangled up in details of what was “so wrong” about it all. Instead, through reminding myself that I can simultaneously not like or agree with something and still have peace, I was able to feel more peaceful. This personal mantra was inspired by the wisdom and mindfulness training of A Course in Miracles, but it is also an example of cultivating an attitude of equanimity, which is a centuries-old Buddhist teaching. Like anything important worth learning, training the mind to be aware takes practice. We may forget to remember, and then remember again. Mantras used in everyday life can help.
In A Course in Miracles, “the Holy Spirit” is the Voice for God and reminds us both of our complete innocence and our Oneness with God and with everyone. In Hinduism, there are many Guides that can be relied on in the journey of awakening to Oneness with God, including Brahma, Vishnu, and Tara. In Buddhism, there is no reference to God, but the loving and compassionate wisdom of the Buddha is a central source of inspiration and guidance. Also, the idea of universal intelligence or consciousness can be non-personal sources of guidance, which includes intuition.
A Course in Miracles is published by The Foundation for Inner Peace. All the books comprising the Course, along with the supplemental pamphlets, are now found online:
https://acim.org/acim/en
All quotations of A Course in Miracles in this blog post are drawn from this version of the Course.
Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day: A Guide to Starting, Revising, and Finishing Your Doctoral Thesis, (1998) by Joan Bolker, Ed.D. New York: Henry Holt and Company, LLC.
Awakening the Buddha Within: Tibetan Wisdom for the Western World, (1997) by Lama Surya Das. New York: Broadway Books.