om meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

om

noun

UK /ɒm/ · US /oʊm/

Etymology Learned borrowing from Sanskrit ओम् (om) (symbol ॐ (oṃ)). The former (om) is used in both Buddhist and Hindu settings, while the latter (aum) is usually used only in Jain and Hindu settings.

Buddhism, Lifestyle, Religion Hinduism A sacred, mystical syllable used in prayer and meditation.

In fact it sounded exactly like the voice of Livia, her vanished sister, and, like her, it was intoning the Aum just as she used once to do at the beginning of her yoga sessions.1982, Lawrence Durrell, Constance (Avignon Quintet), Faber & Faber, published 2004, page 800:
Om is pronounced "a-a-o-o-u-u-m-m" and is repeated slowly for as long as possible.2001 October 20, Hazel Curry, The Guardian:

Derived terms: om mani padme hum, Om Namah Shivaya

om

verb

To chant the sacred syllable om.

Allen Ginsberg omming like a death rattle, his voice ravaged by the days of Hindu chants and gas.1996, Nora Sayre, Sixties Going on Seventies, page 14:
I had to go into church to clear it by chanting the sacred mantra 'Om'. I was omming, loudly and intensely so that the vibration of that sacred mantra would fill every corner.2015, Hilary H. Carter, Number Woman:

Related terms: om nom nom, tiddly-om-pom-pom