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greater Yoga tradition. Today many people are aware of and using mantra but are 

not necessarily informed about the science that underlies its power. Can you tell 

us about the source of this power and what its philosophical basis is?

Dr. Frawley:

 Well, you begin with the source of that power through Om. The 

philosophical orientation of Yoga philosophy is that everything comes from the 

Divine Word, which is primal sound. It is the vibration that underlies space, the 

vibration behind the Cosmic Mind, and the very language of the Cosmic Mind. 

It becomes the structural energy through which the human mind can function 

and develop language—not only language for understanding the outer world, but 

language for understanding the inner world of consciousness. That language for 

understanding the inner world is the language of mantra. So the whole philos-

ophy of Yoga is essentially Mantra Yoga coming out of Om, expanding, creating 

all the laws and energies of the universe, which we can experience within our 

own minds and hearts. 

Rev. O’Brian:

 My introduction to mantra was given to me by my Guru, Roy 

Eugene Davis, at my initiation into Kriya Yoga. He passed on the mantra given to 

him by Paramahansa Yogananda and that mantra connected me to the energetic 

vibration of this tradition. As I began to practice, I noticed its power to help me 

focus and quiet my mind. I also noticed that the mantra would come back on 

its own when I wasn’t meditating. It acted like a thermostat in my mental field 

to help me “cool down” if I got too involved in activity. This illustrates the great 

power that is released into our consciousness through mantra. 

Dr. Frawley:

 

The mantra is like a doorway to changing how our minds work. Our 

minds are structured by sound at a largely habitual or unconscious level. In Yoga, 

through mantra, we take the conscious orientation—the sound and meaning—

and energize our minds in the highest ways, turning our thought patterns into 

a form of worship, prayer, meditation, transformation, and linking to divine 

energy. Through mantra, we learn to understand the full language of life and of 

nature and enter into that Divine Reality in which we might say that everything 

we encounter is a mantra or a message from God. 

Rev. O’Brian:

 Can you talk about how mantra relates to the Eight Limbs of Yoga 

outlined by Patanjali?

Dr. Frawley: 

First of all, Mantra Yoga is the most common practice of all paths of 

Yoga. Mantra essentially pervades all the Eight Limbs of Yoga because each limb 

is a way of energizing and orienting the mind. 
Mantra is the basis of pratyahara, in which we turn our energies within and offer 

our thoughts inwardly as a form of spiritual aspiration and inquiry. Mantra is