Om
Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu
May
Peace & Happiness Prevail
This is a PEACE MANTRA :Om lokah samastah sukhino bhavantu. Although this mantra does not appear in any of the existent Veda sakhas [Vedic branches], it is an expression of the universal spirit that we find therein. Let's take a look at what context it appears in and what meaning it carries. The sloka as a whole reads as follows:
May there be well being to the people;
May the kings rule the earth along the right path;
May the cattle and the Brahmins have well being forever;
May all the beings in all the worlds become happy;
Peace, peace and peace be everywhere!
The basic gist is "for peace and harmony to prevail, the kings--i.e. the politicians and leaders--should have a healthy approach towards their subjects and govern according to principles of dharma."
Harmony between humans and the rest of creation is also stressed in this prayer. Actually cow can be taken as representative of the entire animal kingdom. The Sanskrit word for cattle is "go," which is a most profound Vedic symbol and has many subtle spiritual meanings. Two such secondary meanings are "earth" and "mother," and as such the sloka could also be a prayer for the welfare of Mother Earth.
The most important aspect of the mantra is that the sage does not pray only for his clan or nation but for the whole world or, more precisely, all the world. Instead of asking for something for our self, pray to universe/ higher power, for the whole of creation.
Praying to your higher power for the welfare of all sentient beings--all humans, all animals, all plants—our mind becomes more expansive. Through such prayer we slowly can go beyond our limited egocentric concepts of self to identify with the entire creation, recognizing its true nature to be none other than our own...... as we too are part of the WORLD/ UNIVERSE, we also are benefited from the blessings of the prayer.
Om Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu
Sources:
yoga class taken at Spirit of Yoga
written by: Dragonfly
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