Open Journal

February 11th, 2025

“The quieter you become , the more you can hear” – Ram Dass

I’ve been waking up at 5 a.m. every day for years now to meditate. It’s part of my routine. Recently, I decided to try Samatha meditation, where you repeat a mantra out loud the entire time.

For a while, I didn’t think much about it. But here’s the thing: in my native language, the mantra sounds like “toilet.”

Imagine this: every morning at 5 a.m., someone is chanting “toilet” hundreds of times in your house. Not exactly peaceful.

My family thought it was hilarious.They made endless jokes, and I smiled, undeterred, as I kept going.

Then, today, it clicked.

I finally understood the true purpose of the mantra. Of any mantra , in fact ! It’s not just some random sound. It’s a reminder.

A reminder to stay focused on the values I want to embody. It’s there to help me stay on track and to bring me back on my path every time I stray.

Our minds are constantly distracted by thoughts, by people, by life. But that’s the challenge : to remember.

To stay on your path, no matter what.

The mantra is there to help you , to bring you back on your path, to remind you of what matters every time you get lost in distraction.

You just keep reminding yourself and begin again.