What is Mrtyunjaya Mantra?
Mrtyunjaya Mantra is a verse from Rigveda (7th mandala/ book 59th chapter). It is also present in Yajurveda (3-60). It holds a high place among the mantras in Sanskrit used for meditation.
Maha Mrtyunjaya Mantra
Aum Tryambakam Yajamahe
Sugandhim Pushti-vardhanam |
Urva-rukamiva Bandhanan
Mrtyor-muksheeya Maamritat ||
ಓಂ ತ್ರಯಂಬಕಂ ಯಜಾಮಹೇ
ಸುಗಂಧಿಂ ಪುಷ್ಟಿವರ್ಧನಂ |
ಉರ್ವಾರುಕಮಿವ ಬನ್ಧನಾನ್
ಮೃತ್ಯೋರ್ಮುಕ್ಷೀಯ ಮಾಮೃತಾತ್ ||
Meaning:
We worship, meditate and adore you, the Auspicious Lord
You are fragrance of life; You nourish us, restore our health and cause us to thrive.
As, in
due time, the stem of the cucumber weakens and gets severed from bondage to the
creeper
May we be liberated from death for the sake of immortality.
Effect of listening and chanting this mantra:
According to Yajurveda, chanting Mrtyunjaya Mantra with faith, devotion, concentration and sincerity helps to reduce risks and ill effects of evils like calamities, accidents and diseases. This mantra is to ward off all evils and any form of suffering. It is claimed that regular chanting of this mantra is quite beneficial for improving mental, emotional, and physical health. It bestows better health, peace, prosperity, satisfaction, long life and immortality. When it comes to life, Mrtyunjaya Mantra is also called as the Mrta-Sanjeevini Mantra.
When to listen or chant this mantra:
Mrtyunjaya Mantra is great panacea for all evils and can be chanted at any time of the day. But early morning before sun rise (Brahma muhurta) is the ideal time.
How to listen or chant this mantra?
You may listen or chant one round of Mrtyunjaya Mantra per day. One round is 108 repetitions which might take about 18 minutes. Some people use a chain of beads (mala) with 108 beads to count number of repetitions. But if you choose to play recorded mantra with 108 repetitions, you need not bother to count. Initially the beginners can just listen to the recorded mantra. Later, practice chanting along with the recorded mantra. It is important to listen or chant the mantra with feeling and awareness, rather than just rote repetition.
If you are more serious about the practice, you might choose to do more than one round per day. Chanting the mantra for a period of 41 days has been considered as auspicious since ancient times. The mind is tuned to have a sense of completion, which comes with practice for longer than 40 days. Significant level of power of the mantra is said to come from 1250 rounds, and such an extended practice is called as apurascharna. And the extended practice of the mantra can have a tremendous effect in warding off evils and stabilizing the mind in preparation for advancing in meditation.
To complete 1250 rounds at the rate of 1 round per day, it takes 18 minutes per day for 42 months. And at the rate of 3 rounds per day it takes 54 minutes per day for 14 months.
Maintain rhythm: In choosing the level of practice it is important to have consistency on all days, and not to skip any days. It is best to choose the level that suits you best, rather than changing the number from day to day. Human mind finds comfort in knowing and doing a fixed number of rounds for fixed time duration each day repeating at the same time every day as habit.
Mrtyunjaya Mantra is in Anusthub chandas. It is divided into four padas (feet) of eight syllables each. Chandas is meter, which is technically very specific for each mantra. Any change in the meter will cause a distortion in the chandas and the mantra vibration will be impaired.
