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Om (or ''Auṃ'' (:ə̃ũ), Sanskrit: ॐ) is a sacred sound and a spiritual icon in Indian religions.〔James Lochtefeld (2002), ''Om'', The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 2: N-Z, Rosen Publishing. ISBN 978-0823931804, page 482〕 It is also a mantra in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.〔Jan Gonda (1963), The Indian Mantra, Oriens, Vol. 16, pages 244-297〕〔Julius Lipner (2010), Hindus: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices, Routledge, ISBN 978-0415456760, pages 66-67〕 Om is part of the iconography found in ancient and medieval era manuscripts, temples, monasteries and spiritual retreats in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism.〔T A Gopinatha Rao (1993), Elements of Hindu Iconography, Volume 2, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120808775, page 248〕〔Sehdev Kumar (2001), A Thousand Petalled Lotus: Jain Temples of Rajasthan, ISBN 978-8170173489, page 5〕 The symbol has a spiritual meaning in all Indian dharmas, but the meaning and connotations of ''Om'' vary between the diverse schools within and across the various traditions. In Hinduism, Om is one of the most important spiritual symbols (''pratima'').〔Annette Wilke and Oliver Moebus (2011), Sound and Communication: An Aesthetic Cultural History of Sanskrit Hinduism, De Gruyter, ISBN 978-3110181593, page 435〕〔Krishna Sivaraman (2008), Hindu Spirituality Vedas Through Vedanta, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120812543, page 433〕 It refers to Atman (soul, self within) and Brahman (ultimate reality, entirety of the universe, truth, divine, supreme spirit, cosmic principles, knowledge).〔David Leeming (2005), The Oxford Companion to World Mythology, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195156690, page 54〕〔Hajime Nakamura, A History of Early Vedānta Philosophy, Part 2, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120819634, page 318〕〔Annette Wilke and Oliver Moebus (2011), Sound and Communication: An Aesthetic Cultural History of Sanskrit Hinduism, De Gruyter, ISBN 978-3110181593, pages 435-456〕 The syllable is often found at the beginning and the end of chapters in the Vedas, the Upanishads, and other Hindu texts.〔 It is a sacred spiritual incantation made before and during the recitation of spiritual texts, during puja and private prayers, in ceremonies of rites of passages (sanskara) such as weddings, and sometimes during meditative and spiritual activities such as Yoga.〔David White (2011), Yoga in Practice, Princeton University Press, ISBN 978-0691140865, pages 104-111〕〔Alexander Studholme (2012), The Origins of Om Manipadme Hum: A Study of the Karandavyuha Sutra, State University of New York Press, ISBN 978-0791453902, pages 1-4〕 The syllable is also referred to as omkara (ओंकार, '), aumkara (औंकार, '), and pranava (प्रणव, ').〔(OM ) Sanskrit English Dictionary, University of Koeln, Germany〕 ==Etymology== The etymological origins of ''Om'' are unclear. Some scholars consider ''Om'' to have been variously held as the "cosmic sound" or "mystical syllable" in ancient India, or simply as "affirmation to something divine", or as symbolism for abstract spiritual concepts in the Upanishads.〔 It is found in most ancient layer of the Vedic texts such as the Rig Veda, dated to be from the 2nd millennium BCE.〔〔 The hymn 1.1.1 of Rig Veda Samhita, for example, opens as〔 The syllable means "affirmation" in the Aranyaka layer of texts in the Vedas. Aitareya Aranyaka, for example, in verse 23.6, explains ''Om'' as an acknowledgment, melodic confirmation, something that gives momentum and energy to a hymn,〔 Elsewhere in the Aranyaka and the Brahmana layers of Vedic texts, the syllable is so widespread and linked to knowledge, that it stands for the "whole of Veda".〔 The etymological foundations of ''Om'' are repeatedly discussed in the oldest layers of the Vedic texts, as well the early Upanishads.〔Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120814684, page 207〕〔John Grimes (1995), Ganapati: The Song of Self, State University of New York Press, ISBN 978-0791424391, pages 78-80 and 201 footnote 34〕 Aitareya Brahmana, in section 5.32, for example suggests that the three phonetic components of ''Om'' (pronounced ''AUM'') correspond to the three stages of cosmic creation, and when it is read or said, it celebrates the creative powers of the universe.〔〔(Aitareya Brahmana 5.32 ), Rig Veda, pages 139-140 (Sanskrit)〕 The Brahmana layer of Vedic texts equate ''Om'' with ''Bhur-bhuvah-Svah'', the latter symbolizing "the whole Veda". They offer various shades of meaning to ''Om'', such as it being "the universe beyond the sun", or that which is "mysterious and inexhaustible", or "the infinite language, the infinite knowledge", or "essence of breath, life, everything that exists", or that "with which one is liberated".〔 The Sama Veda, the poetical Veda, orthographically maps ''Om'' to the audible, the musical truths in its numerous variations (''Oum'', ''Aum'', ''Ovā Ovā Ovā Um'', etc.) and then attempts to extract musical meters from it.〔 The syllable ''Om'' evolves to mean many abstract ideas in the earliest Upanishads. Max Müller and other scholars state that these philosophical texts recommend ''Om'' as a "tool for meditation", explain various meanings that the syllable may be in the mind of one meditating, ranging from "artificial and senseless" to "highest concepts such as the cause of the Universe, essence of life, Brahman, Atman, and Self-knowledge".〔Max Muller, (Chandogya Upanishad ), Oxford University Press, pages 1-21〕〔Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120814684, pages 67-85, 227, 284, 308, 318, 361-366, 468, 600-601, 667, 772〕 The syllable is also referred to as ''praṇava''.〔James Lochtefeld (2002), ''Pranava'', The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 2: N-Z, Rosen Publishing. ISBN 978-0823931804, page 522〕〔Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120814684, pages 74-75, 347, 364, 667〕 Other used terms are ' (literally, letter of the alphabet, imperishable, immutable) or ' (one letter of the alphabet), and ' (literally, beginning, female divine energy).〔Diana Eck (2013), India: A Sacred Geography, Random House, ISBN 978-0385531924, page 245〕〔R Mehta (2007), The Call of the Upanishads, Motilal Barnarsidass, ISBN 978-8120807495, page 67〕〔(Omkara ), Sanskrit-English Dictionary, University of Koeln, Germany〕 Om or Aum is also written ओ३म् (''o̿m'' (:õːːm)), where ३ is ''pluta'' ("three times as long"), indicating a length of three morae (that is, the time it takes to say three syllables) — an overlong nasalised close-mid back rounded vowel, though there are other enunciations adhered to in various traditions. The word Om may share roots with the Tamil word "Ām" (Tam:ஆம், meaing: yes) meaning yes (Ām>Aum>Om). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Om」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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