What does the mantra OM mean?

"A-U-MMMMMM"

It's often the first and last sound you hear in a yoga class. Perhaps you've heard it defined as "the sound of the universe" - but what does that really mean? "It's big. Om is nebulous, and it's vague. It can mean almost anything," says Yoganand Michael Carroll, dean of the Kripalu School of Yoga.I

OM has roots in Hinduism. Even though it's usually pronounced so it rhymes with "home," om is made up of three syllables: A, U, and M, or, phonetically, "aaah," "oooh," and "mmm."

Om is the universe. The past, the present, and the future. All that was, all that is, all that will be, is OM. Likewise, all else that may exist beyond the bounds of time, that too is OM. All knowledge, All sound.

A-U-M can represent a slew of of sacred threes, including: the heavens, earth, and the underworld; the Hindu gods Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva ( creator god, sustainer god, and destroyer god ) and the waking, dreaming, and dreamless states - "to represent all of consciousness."

Chanting “A-U-M" aligns your own vibration with the sacred vibration of the universe.