Generically mantra refers to sacred words or syllables used
repeatedly in religious and ceremonial rituals. The term "mantra"
is derived from Sanskrit man, "mind," and tra, "to deliver."
http://www.themystica.com/mystica/articles/m/mantra.html
Lama Anagarika Govinda defined a mantra as a 'tool for thinking,' a
'thing which creates a mental picture.'" (Foundations of Tibetan
Mysticism, 1969) Govinda continued. "The mantra...is knowledge, the
truth beyond right and wrong, real being beyond thinking and
reflecting. What the mantra expresses in sound exists and comes to
pass."
Mantras can be used in three ways: verbal, semiverbal, and silent.
Verbal repetition of mantras so anyone can hear them is the lowest
form of their usage while silent repetition is the highest. While
others, such as the Krishna sect, feel that verbal chanting is more
powerful. The semiverbal form is when the vocal chords vibrate but
no sound is uttered.
Some stress methods in the use of mantras. The correct
pronunciation and intonement of mantras is extremely important.
This creates strong vibrations that effect every vibration of every
universal thing including the deities and lower spirits.
Also, the mantra is thought to be a manifestation of shabda, or
sacred sound that can be controlled either to create or destroy.
Such a concept also is discovered in the ancient Grecian theory of
music, "in which the keynote of a particular organism, body, or
substance can be used to cause it to disintegrate."
The Turning Wheel of Om Mani Padme Hum
