Nov 4
People have been asking me why we do Om Namah Shivaya chanting… and why we do it 108 times.
Namah, read backwards is manah, the mind which is directed outwards and confused, dull, etc… you turn the mind inwards, it becomes Namah, and when you go inwards, what do you find? Shiva! The embodiment of Bliss, peace and tranquility… So we chant the Om Namah Shivaya to turn ourselves inwards to the Bliss and tranquility of the Being…
Other than this there are 3 more reasons:
1. Like we take a bath everyday (hopefully:)), and that cleans our physical body, we need to take a “mantrasnaan”, a bath with mantras, this rejuvenates and cleanses our subtle body.
2. There are 12 zodiac signs and 9 planets. As the 9 planets move through the 12 signs, their positions affect us either negatively or positively. Chanting the Om Namah Shivaya 108 times (12 x 9 = 108 duh!), nullifies any negative effects and enhances positive effects of the planets on us! You will suddenly find yourself becoming very lucky and notice that things that were troubling you will simply vanish 
3. Chanting Om Namah Shivaya is sooooooo nice!!!
Make this a part of your Sadhana everyday… it doesn’t take more than about 10 minutes or so… and you will really feel very nice
Happy Chanting!
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
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Tags: chanting
Will do it from today Bau
Bau my granny always says that these Om Namah shivay chanting and Rudrabhishek has such effect that they can turn even the position of the Grah into space and it will arrange in such manner that you will have a +(ve) effect on you
Sincerely OM NAMAH SHIVAY & JAI GURUDEV
Parth
Jai Gurudev Bau..
I knowww, chanting OM NAMAH SHIVAYA, in Guruji style is just sooooooooo nice
Thanks, Now will be regular
Beautiful explaination.
Is there some special way/procedure to chant it?
Jai Guru Dev.
Yes “OM Namah Shivay” is a very powerful mantra.
Chanting it alongwith Guruji’s Om Namah Shivay CD is complete bliss..
Love & JGD
Aditya
before or after breathing/yoga? what is the best?
we can chant at any time in whole day. if suppose we chant 40 times and we got some work to do ,then we can continue after also. jdg………….
Jai Guru Dev Bawa Bhaiya
Till today I was chanting Om Namah Shivaya (only 3 times) at the end of the sadhana early morning (warm up exercises, padmasadhana, 3 stage pranayam, bhastrika pranayam, then mudra pranayam… Sudarshhan Kriya and then after breath is normal… meditation). Only after meditation I chant Om Namah Shivaya (thrice only).
I will start doing it 108 times. My question to you is Bhaiya, which is the best time ?
a) Before I start Pranayam
b) Before I meditate i.e after Sudarshan Kriya
Please guide me
Thank you for this precious Blog
here are 54 letters in Sanskrit alphabets and Each has masculine and feminine, i.e. shiva and shakti 54 * 2 = 108
Time: Some say there are 108 feelings, with 36 related to the past, 36 related to the present, and 36 related to the future.
Astrology: There are 12 constellations, and 9 arc segments called namshas or chandrakalas. 9 times 12 equals 108. Chandra is moon, and kalas are the divisions within a whole
The diameter of the sun is 108 times the diameter of the Earth.
108 represents (1+0+8) = 9, where 9 represents 9 tattvas
Nine Tattvas (Principles):
————————–
1. Jiva – soul or living being (Consciousness)
2. Ajiva – non-living substances
3. Asrava – cause of the influx of karma
4. Bandh – bondage of karma
5. Punya – virtue
6. Paap – sin
7. Samvara – arrest of the influx of karma
8. Nirjara – exhaustion of the accumulated karma
9. Moksha – total liberation from karma
Again 9 tattvas and 12 months ,multiplication leads to (12 * 9 ) = 108.
Followers use 108 beads in their malas. They implement the following formula:
6 x 3 x 2 x3 = 108
6 senses [sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, thought]
3 aspects of time [past, present, future]
2 condition of heart [pure or impure]
3 possibilties of sentiment [like, dislike, indifference]
Mathematically speaking number 9 stands between 0-8 (i.e. 0 to 8 , total numbers are 9).
Eight represents completeness or totality because it includes the 4 cardinal directions and the 4 ordinal directions
Zero, by contrast, represents nothingness or emptiness. It is geometrically represented by a plain sheet with no marks on it. Thus 8 is everything and 0 is nothing. 9 is the threshold number between 8 and 0. The number 1 which follows 0 represents the beginning , the root of all geometrical patterns, while 8 is the number represents fulfillment or end.
So number 108 represents beginning- nothingness- fulfillment. i.e. nothingness between the beginning and the end. Or we can say 1 stands for beginning and 8 stands for infinity and eternity.
wow..
nice one man where did you get this one!
Wah Bau.. twelve goes to nine, all signs are mine!!! Bolo OM Namah Shivaya.. I will certainly become my mom’s boy (Apani mummy ka beta).. Thanks Bau.. From now, it’s part of my Sadhana..
Too Gud Bau !! Thanx a lot for this wonderful knowledge !!
Gud one ..!
Jai Gurudev Bau
No doubt ‘Om Namah Shivaya’ works wonders.
Bau a related question though, is it necessary to ‘chant’ it as we have done it with you on one evening of one of the advance courses (and even in my DSN course) or reciting it without speaking out is also fine.
Jai Gurudev
‘J’
Haaa Bawa, wat u say is so very true. I was actually going through some very imp decision time. and before i did any thing, i first saw ur website and chanted OM NAMAH SHIVAYA …
andddddddddd no problem any more… right decision is taken.
so, from now on i keep chanting OM NAMAH SHIVAYA …
thank u and loads of love BAWAA… and to my lovely DINESH !!!!!!!!
u r the friends along this journey of life.
u r the energizing love through this journey of life.
u r the subtle life partners through this journey of life.
i love the warmth i feeel because of u,
i love ur presence when i think of u,
and I LOVE UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU !!!!!
BE THERE ALWAYSSSSSS, YAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!
yaaaaaaaaaaaa
Been few months since I wanted to incorporate Om Namah Shivaya chanting in my saadhna but it so happened that it’s been quite irregular but after reading this beautiful post, I won’t miss out a day
thanks bau..
love and jgd
Dear Bau
As always your website answers my question this time too. I always wanted to know the significance of choosing Om Namah Shivaya to a Om Namo Narayanaya. Now i know what Om Namah Shivaya means.
Beautiful and inspiring explanation!
thanks bau..U rock!
Woooooo!!!
That one post made me exclaim out loud!!
12*9=108 .. DUH!!
Why dint i see it before .. since a kid i have been doing holy chants 108 times!!
and .. “Like we take a bath everyday (hopefully:))”
Hehe .. lol .. am reading this at 10:30 PM … sans a bath for the day ..
will do it from tomorrow…
Kanasu, dont do it tomorrow… do it today!
its very good too 
will ask Guruji about it’s significance some time and post it here 
Ajay, you need to chant it aloud, not in your mind… its the vibrations of the sound that are very beneficial
Amarja, you can chant Om Namo Narayana as well
Nanddeep, there is no special way or procedure to chant it, do some alternate nostril breathing and then chant, not too fast… 108 times should take you about 10-15 minutes, of course you can do the really slow one with Guruji on the Om Namah Shivaya chanting CD, thats really lovely… Guruji used to make us chant this on Adv courses in the Bangalore Ashram sometimes, very early in the morning…
Dilkhush, i do it after Kriya, the last thing in my Sadhana routine… and sometimes by itself, after a bit of pranayama…
and Ashish thanks for the extra explanations
Dinesh adds that Na Mah Shi Va Ya are 5 syllables, and they affect the 5 elements. Shiva is the Lord of the Planets, so chanting this and doing the Rudrabhishek (as pointed out by parth’s granny) can set up really lovely vibrations and feelings all around you…
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
ps ty all the others for leaving your comments… dinesh and i really love reading what you guys have to say
JGD Bau,
can we chant during menses.
thanks
by all means
Jai guru dev bau n Dinesh Dada, Thanks for the brilliant yet simple explanations for something that always seemed so esoteric – both the chant and the count. Another thing that hit me Bau was your “do it today not tomorrow” comment. I had only 10 minutes left in the day when I read the post but I thot why not now. So am posting this right after doing the chant
. I do the chant occasionally but from now on would probably integrate it into my sadhana routine.
Thanks again Bau and Dinesh da.
Thank you bau………
From last two months I am doing Om namah shivay chanting everyday may be i missed it
couple of times.
I am doing it because Guruji said that do regularly and I never try to find out what
exactly it means.But today just now I finished my chanting and opened the website to
see what bawa wrote today and i got the meaning of it.
I am really gr8ful to our Guruji how he is taking care of everybody.
jai gurudev bau and dinesh bhaiya
:) its fantastic .. thank you 
:)
ive started it today
we are doing group sadhana here at national univ of spore ; now we ll chant om namah shivaya together as well:):) 108 times
love you soo much !!
tanu
Hahahahaaa.. I remember this question from one of the Q&A sessions with you and laugh out loud thinking about your reply to that!! Awesome and enlightening post:)
Jai gurudev!
Jai Guru Dev
Thank you so much for your guidance
Jai Guru Dev Bawa ! I used to chant regularly after kriya but stopped as I do sadhana late at night and it was getting too late. I will start again from today
i thought that this post will be from Dinesh da but saw your name….:) you really get good pictures Bau…. i chant it everyday and can feel the difference. so one question…..although it has reduces my short temperedness tremendously i still loose it sometimes and can speak some gibberish in return…is it still ok?
thank u loaaaaaadssss bau n dinesh bhaiya! i chanted it yesterday and could greatly feel the pleasant aftereffects not only yesterday but also today when everything went so smooth..but the thing is i think i may have done it more than 108 times as i lost count in the middle..is that k? thank a trillion again!!! JaiGuruDev!:)
thanks a lot Bau…!!!
I had bought japmala since long time and was postponing chanting for thousands of excuses…
thanks a ton..!!!
But your post just dissolved all those excuses now..!!
will chant it regularly from today itself…!!!
Love u..!!!
Jai Gurudev..!!
i know you know that you r fantastic
now dis is wat il call true beauty!!!
a beautiful way 2 xplain….”om namah shivaya!!!”
Before Nag panchami and before Maha shivratri chanting of “Om NAmah shivaya ” for 1,25 ,000 times is very very helpfull.
thanku so much bawa,i usually chant OM NAMAH SHIVAYA 108 times wd ‘mala’ but i know its meaning 2day,a really thx 2 u,n i chant OM SHIVAYA NAMAH as i read in ‘Shiv Purana’ that girls shld read it like this so i m ,its f9 na…….
love u really both
plz suggest me which language or computer course which has present trend or future scope also,shld i do in my these 2 months holidays,m persuing MCA,i know only abt vb.net n java. plz plz suggest me
no idea at all … do your research and then choose
Hey BAWA……
thnks so much for succha lovely explaination of the om namah shivay chanting….
hats off to u …U REALLY ROCK….
all the facts that you told us about Krishna, Ganesha Story in YES+ held in srcc delhi…were also astonishing…..
Getting so much of knowledge transfer from u…..this is what is called as guru kripa with gr8 teachers who are always there to guide us …but NOT WITH THE “TORCH LIGHT” hahahah …remm one of ur students from mumbai…made u do dat
Sir,
Awesome, I Loved this article and your comments. Thank you . 108 is an awesome number with amazing meaning and depth. Jai Guru Dev.
i was so confuse meaning of om namah shivayah and nw im very clear about it
I would like to simply say here
OM NAMAH SHIVAYE
May GOD cleanse my all sins,and purify my soul , and i rest in peace for ever
I have a question. Is it required, “Om guru namah shivaya dram dattatreya shiva baba namaha” or “Om Namah Shivaya” is enough 108 times?
Whatever you chant, when done with honour, sacredness and innocence will work better than doing it mechanically and as a duty
When a person greets you saying, “Om nahma shivaya” … what would be the wisest response?
A warm smile!
jgd bau! what if we do it without a count ( more than 108 times ) i started it a week ago and it seems almost addictive! i dont really count the number of times i do it ! but 20 mins or more pass easily its as if iam meditating… is it better to have a count? if yes can i do it in multiple of 108 times..or should it be precised to 108 times a day ?
Actually i was used to chant om namah shivaya regulary…the miracle is that i got my soul mate with his help… i just cant believe some times but shiva is with me always… i may not touch him.. but i can feel him every seconds of my life…
Om nama shivaya..
The spiritual
practice of centering yourself in the oneness of the Infinite enables you to understand that no act in this
world is lost or wasted. Centering yourself in the oneness of the Infinite prevents you from becoming
confused in sorrow. – Lord Krishna