Shankara M. chants the kirtan Om Namah Shivaya during a saturday evening satsang at Yoga Vidya in Bad Meinberg.

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Om Namah Shivaya is a greeting we often use in yoga. “Om” is Om, the all-encompassing. “Namah” means “greeting to” and ‘Shivaya’ means “to Shiva.”

Om Namah Shivaya therefore means reverence to Shiva. But what does Shiva mean? Shiva has many different meanings. “Shiva” literally means “the loving one, the kind one.” But it also means “the higher self” and “the divine everywhere.” We can say “Om Namah Shivaya” and use it in meditation.

This is like invoking the kind, the loving, the higher self within us. Or we can use it as an invocation of the loving, the kind everywhere. And we can use it as a greeting by saying inwardly when we are dealing with another person: “Om Namah Shivaya. I greet the good, the love, the higher self in you.”