Omm

I love the sound, meaning and symbol of OM!  The more I learn about it, the more amazed I am at what it can do and what it means! I have found it is the perfect way to Yolk my class together as we yolk our minds to body, breath and spirit.  It has the resonance and vibration of God.  Syl of Bodhi Yoga pointed out that if you think of the names GOD, JEHOVAH, BUDDAH, and ALLAH, there is the sound of O in Om in each of the names.
From Ocoy.org I found some additional guidance in how to incorporate it into your practice.

Breath and sound are the two major spiritual powers possessed by us, and here is how they are combined for Om Yoga meditation.

1. Sit upright, comfortable and relaxed, with your hands on your knees or thighs or resting, one on the other, in your lap.

2. Turn your eyes slightly downward. Then close your eyes gently,. This removes visual distractions and reduces your brain-wave activity by about seventy-five percent, thus helping to calm the mind.

3. Breathe naturally. Your mouth should be closed so that all breathing is done through the nose. This, too aids in quieting the mind. Though your mouth is closed, the jaw muscles should be relaxed so the upper and lower teeth are not clenched or touching one another, but parted.

Be aware of your breath naturally (automatically) flowing in and out as you breathe through your nose. Your breathing should always be easeful and natural, not deliberate or artificial.

4. Now in a very quiet and gentle manner begin mentally intoning (“singing” on a single note) Om once throughout each inhalation and once throughout each exhalation. Fit the intonations to the breath–not the breath to the intonations. If the breath is short, then the intonation should be short. If the breath is long, then the intonation should be long.

Make sure the O and the M get approximately “equal time”–Oooommmm, not Oommmmmm or Oooooomm. Don’t torture yourself about this–approximately equal is good enough, and in time your intonations will automatically occur in this right manner. Also, your intonation of Om should begin when your inhalation/exhalation begins and end when it ends. In this way your intonations should be virtually continuous, not with long breaks between them. That is: OommOommOommOomm, or Oomm-Oomm-Oomm-Oomm, rather than Oomm…Oomm…Oomm…Oomm. Here, too, approximately continuous is sufficient.

5. For the rest of your meditation time keep on intoning Om in this manner–in time with the breath–listening to your inner intonations of Om. Let your awareness become fully absorbed in the mentally intoned sound of Om. No need to pull or push the mind–it will naturally come to rest in the sound. Just let the mind relax and sink or melt into it.

6. In time your inner, mental intonations of Om may change to an even more mellow or soft, subtle form, even to an inner whispering that is almost silent, but Om is always fully present and effective, and you will still be intoning Om in your intention. Your intonations may even become silent, like a soundless “mouthing” of Om, yet you will still be intoning Om in your intention. You may find that your intonations of Om move back and forth from more objective to more subtle and back to more objective. Just intone in the manner that is natural at the moment.

7. In the same way you will find that your breath will also become more subtle and refined, and slow down. Sometimes your breath can become so light that it almost seems as though you are not breathing at all, just thinking the breath.

8. In Om Yoga we do not deliberately concentrate on any particular point of the body such as the third eye, as we want the subtle energies of Om to be free to manifest themselves as is best at the moment. However, as you meditate, you may become aware of one or more areas of your brain or body at different times. This is all right when they come and go spontaneously, but keep centered in your intonations of Om.

9. Thoughts, impressions, memories, inner sensations, and suchlike may also arise during meditation. Be calmly aware of all these things in a detached and objective manner, but keep your attention centered in your intonations of Om in time with your breath. Do not let your attention become centered on or caught up in any inner or outer phenomena. Be calmly aware of all these things in a detached and objective manner–they are part of the transforming work of Om, and are perfectly all right–but keep your attention centered in your intonations of Om in time with your breath. Even though something feels very right or good when it occurs, it should not be forced or hung on to. The sum and substance of it all is this: It is not the experience we are after, but the effect. Also, since we are all different–unique, actually–no one can say exactly what a person’s experiences in meditation are going to be like.

10. If you find yourself getting restless, distracted, “fuzzy,” anxious or tense in any degree, just take a deep breath and let it out fully, feeling that you are releasing and breathing out all tensions, and continue as before in a relaxed and easeful manner, without strain.

11. Remember: Om Yoga meditation basically consists of three things: a) sitting with the downturned eyes closed; b) being aware of our breath as it moves in and out, and c) mentally intoning Om in time with the breath and listening to those mental intonations–all in a relaxed and easeful manner, without strain.

12. At the end of your meditation get up and go about your usual daily routine while continuing to intone Om in time with your breath. If sometimes you cannot intone in time with your breath, then intone Om over and over like the tolling of a bell until you can resume intoning with the breath.

From the blog "Inner Engineering", there are an amazing amount of valuable benefits to Chanting Om!

Om meditation is known to have transcendental qualities. It can bring peace and balance to the meditator’s system, and is known to relieve people from numerous physical and mental ailments when practiced regularly.

• Chanting of OM Mantra purifies the environment around the chanter and produces positive vibrations.

• It takes you alpha, a meditational state which gives you deep relaxation.

• Your concentration and focus increases

• Chanting removes negative mental impressions from your mind

• It gives you better immunity and health

• Improves your voice, gives strength to vocal cord and thyroid gland

• Has a cardiovascular benefit and normalizes blood pressure

• Helps with emotional regulation

• Increases energy and removes fatigue

  
  
  So Have Fun Ommmming!