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Panchakshara

पञ्चाक्षर pancaksara

The five-syllable Shaiva mantra Namah Shivaya ('homage to Shiva'), often recited with Om; rooted in the Shri Rudram of the Yajurveda.

Where this term appears

  • What is Shaivism? Lineages

    Om Namah Shivaya , "Om, homage to Shiva," the five syllables the tradition calls the Panchakshara , the five-lettered mantra, drawn from that verse of the Satarudriya and given a devotional life of its own.

  • The Great Mantras Treatise

    The five syllables of Shiva The supreme Shaiva mantra is the Panchakshara , "the five syllables": Namah Shivaya , "homage to Shiva," most often recited with the pranava before it as Om Namah Shivaya .

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