What is a mantra and how might it help you? Traditionally, a mantra is something given to you by your guru. It is used in meditation and throughout the day to focus your mind. How many of us have a guru these days? How many of us would trust someone to be our guru these days? But that’s another conversation…
You can create your own mantra. A mantra is simply a short phrase and/ or image that can quickly and easily be brought to mind. Something simple that you can repeat to remind you of your focus, perhaps quiet your mind, create the right mental conditions, or maybe initiate the cascade of thoughts that will bring you to the place of your choosing. A mantra is specific and unique to you at this particular time in your life.
Have you skateboarded, surfed, skied, or skated? Your eyes direct your body and the board. Where you look, that's where the board will go. Though our instinct is to look for danger, so we can try to avoid it… looking at danger can often mean falling exactly into the spot we were trying to avoid. The mantra is like our gaze, keeping us looking and moving to the place we want to land.
Generally, a mantra is best kept private. You may have an urge to share your mantra with friends and family. Sharing a mantra could theoretically create a system of external accountability. Or help you connect with someone. Or assist another person with their journey. But, be careful sharing your mantra. It is intimate and special to you, and sharing it with not the right people can undermine the power of your mantra for you.
That said, I will share some of my past mantras with you to give you an idea of what they can be like. Because I'm choosing to trust you. Some of them are simple phrases. Some are phrases accompanied with a mental image. Here they are listed in no particular order.
"I love you." (Both the I and the you here are myself)
“I love” Accompanied by taking a deep breath.
"Stop." Accompanied with an image of hand raised in stop.
"Rules of the game." Accompanied by a moving image of someone hopscotching between obstacles
"Just keep driving. Every road leads to somewhere." Accompanied by an image of me behind the wheel.
"First things first. Order of operations."
"I am diving into the sky, and I trust it to hold me up."
"I have but small hands with which to make small offerings." Accompanied with an image of a pair of hands held together in offering.
You can see how different my mantras have been at various times in my life according to the focus I felt I needed at the time.
Generally, for me, my mantras have come from within my mind without prompting during times of need. But that is probably as a result of me growing up with this particular framework to begin with. If you need an exercise to start you on your path of thinking of your own mantra, consider this proverb:
Right thoughts, right words, right actions, right life.
I don't know what the "right" is. That is different for each person. And also different at different times of your life. You need to decide on the right for you at this moment in time. When you do, perhaps a mantra can help you along. Warmest wishes on your journey.