The Remover of Obstacles
Chanting the Ganesha Mula Mantra

by Ian Boccio, RYT

January has arrived again and we find ourselves at the beginning of a new year full of possibilities. However, there will always be obstacles in our paths, difficulties to be overcome, and we could all use a little help now and again, right? Fortunately, if you have good intentions and a willingness to spend some time shifting your consciousness, the universe will provide you with that help.

Aid arrives in the form of Ganesha, the pot-bellied, elephant-headed deity from India who is known to Hindu and yoga philosophy as "The Remover of Obstacles." Instantly recognizable for his many, quirky attributes (he is sometimes depicted riding on a mouse), Ganesha is one of the most popular forms of God worshipped in India today because he cares so much about the trivial details of our everyday lives and he sincerely wants us to succeed in our endeavors. Ganesha is invoked at the beginning of any important task or event, so it is particularly appropriate at this time of the year to seek his wisdom. Of course, he has no interest in people who are selfish or greedy; he is not likely to help you get a million dollars so you can buy that new boat you've been eyeing, but he may help you get a million dollars to fund a charity that serves underprivileged people in need, so examine your motives carefully before you call on Ganesha!

The first question you may be asking yourself is: 'Do I need to be a Hindu or a yogi in order to work with Ganesha?' The answer is no. You don't have to believe in Ganesha; he believes in you and that is enough! All that is required of you is that you keep an open mind and be serious. Although he comes to us from India in a particular, iconic form that is worshipped as a divine being, Ganesha can also be thought of as cosmic energy vibrating at a certain frequency. If you can attune your personal energy to that frequency, then Ganesha's energy becomes available to you. The surest way to accomplish this is by repeating the Ganesha Mantra.

A mantra is a short phrase in Sanskrit, the ancient, sacred language of India, that is designed to attune your personal energy to the same frequency as some aspect of the greater universal energy. Sanskrit is a perfected language that has been intentionally designed and modified to be a vehicle for that universal energy by many generations of brahmans (priests), rishis (seers), and yogis over thousands of years. The words in Sanskrit function objectively; you don't have to believe in the power of this language or even understand the meaning of the words in order for them to be effective. You do have to pronounce the words correctly, of course, and you do need to have the patience and determination to sit and repeat the words over and over again until your personal energy begins to shift.

The Ganesha Mantra, also known as the Ganesha Moola (root) Mantra or the Ganesha Beeja (seed) Mantra, is as follows: Om Gam Ganapataye Namah, which is pronounced Ohm Gum Guh-nuh-puh-tie-yay Nuh-muh with the final "h" being an exhalation of the breath without any vowel sound. The words Om and Gam, and the last syllable of Ganapataye (the "ye" part), are long syllables and when speaking the mantra they should be held for twice the length of the other, short syllables. Om is the primal sound of creation, the energy from which the universe was created. In the Judeo-Christian tradition, God said "Let there be light!" and the universe was created; in the Hindu tradition, God said "Om" and the universe was created. So Om is the necessary beginning of any mantra; it is the background energy that provides a context for any intention that the rest of the mantra will project. Gam is the Beeja or seed sound of Ganesha, which shapes the primal energy of Om with the intention of overcoming obstacles and achieving goals. Ganapataye Namah means "Praise be to Ganapati" or "I bow to Ganapati." Ganapati is another name for Ganesha and it is important to understand that when you do this mantra practice you are not commanding him to do your bidding, you are making a humble request for help, so praising and bowing to the energy of Ganesha is a way of reminding yourself of what your relationship is.

Once you have the pronunciation worked out, sit comfortably in a cross-legged position on the floor, or sit on a chair if that is more feasible, with your back and neck as straight as you can be without straining. Try to sit in a place that is peaceful, quiet and conducive to concentration and plan on being there for at least ten or fifteen minutes. Close your eyes and begin chanting the mantra out loud. Don't sing the mantra with any melody, just chant the words in a rhythmic monotone at a pitch and speed that feel comfortable to you. Melody and other musical concepts become more important if you have the opportunity to chant mantras with a group, but while you are alone at this early stage the musical aspects may be distracting. Continue repeating the mantra for as long as you can stay focused on it (which might not be very long when you first get started!), or choose a specific number of times that you will repeat the mantra in that sitting and chant it that many times. Traditionally, a mantra will be repeated 108 times, or some multiple of 108, in one sitting, and you can use a Mala (a necklace of beads, like a rosary, that is held in one hand and typically has 108 beads on it) to keep track of the number of repetitions. Choose a time of the day when you will chant the Ganesha Mantra and make a serious effort to do it every day at that same time.

If you are faithful to this practice and have plenty of patience, over time you will begin to see subtle, but nonetheless significant, shifts happening in your life. You have to do your part of course! You can't just sit on the couch watching TV all the time and expect Ganesha to do everything for you after all, but you may find that once-insurmountable difficulties will become easier to handle and that help may come to you from others in unexpected ways. Over time these things will start to seem less and less like coincidences and you will begin to understand why the ancient yogis of India thought to personify this playful energy in the way that they did.