So’Ham Breathing Meditation 

/in /by

So-Hum Breathing Meditation

So = Higher consciousness
Hum = Individual Self

This divine mantra is constantly occurring through the breath of every living being. Each time we breathe in, the sound “so” goes in, as does the sound “hum” each time we exhale. So-hum means “I am that,” beyond limitation of mind and body: “I am one with the Absolute

  1. Sitting in Padmasana or other comfortable seated posture, establish yourself firmly in Full Yogic Breath.
  2. As you breathe in, listen to the sound being made at the back of the throat. This sound has openness to it and is preceded by an inspiration. It sounds like the syllable “SO”. Listen to, and concentrate on, the “SO” in your breath as you inhale.
  3. Hold the breath in a short retention.
  4. As you breathe out, listen again to the sound at the back of the throat. This sound has a nasal quality to it, like humming, so that it sounds like the syllable “HUM”. Listen to, and concentrate on, the “HUM” in your breath as you exhale.
  5. Start again at Step 2) and continue as described for 5-10 minutes or more.

Instrictions from the Ayurveda Institute as taught by Dr. Lad

A silent meditation practice is simply an aspect of this intention to remember our true nature. We come together, to “just sit”. We listen to the silence. We listen to our thoughts, We listen to our feelings and emotions. When we “just sit” we just BE the witnessing awareness. And this continues as we get off our mats or chairs and DO what needs to be done to live the dailiness of our lives. The BEing and DOing, the inhalation and exhalation and the gaps in between, Having this understanding empowers us to choose the lens we perceive and experience our lives with. “Just sitting”, silent meditation, reveals the layers that veil the clarity and luminosity of our true nature and the gap between these layers. Glimpses of the background, the ground of awareness, reminds us to rest in our true nature that is the witness to all experience.