Why is this meditation a core practice?
Om Nama Sivaya is the ultimate meditation because it combines all of the elements in Nature, and the masculine and feminine principles. The sum total of the Universe is condensed into these few powerful sounds.

Dattatreya Siva Baba says that through the One Minute Meditation, you can attract both prosperity and enlightenment. It will help you to be in the right place at the right time, doing the right thing. It will help you to harmonize with all the elemental energies.

Due to the enduring power of this mantra, there are literally thousands of ways to chant it. Dattatreya Siva Baba specifically recommends this version for our busy schedules and so we may quickly benefit from this mantra's extraordinary power.

How often should I do the meditation?
Ideally, you want to practice the One Minute Meditation twice a day, at least one to five times per session (taking one to five minutes). Dattatreya Siva Baba recommends one session in the morning to help establish your thoughts and energies for the day, and one session in the evening to cleanse and release negative thoughts and energies you picked up during the day.

The meditation is also great to do throughout the day to keep your mind focused on higher thoughts and energies. You can even do it while performing other tasks. Having a watch that beeps each hour to remind you to do the meditation is one approach. Be creative with how you remind yourself throughout the day.

You'll want to do the minimum amount listed here each day for the best results. You can do more repetitions if you'd like; just remember that it's consistency, combined with faith, that will bring you results.

How should I do the meditation?
There are two ways to do the meditation, depending on your schedule. The first method is an even, steady-paced chant of Om Nama Sivaya done 108 times each day, ideally using the Siva-Shakti mala beads. The second method is a chant of the mantra done while cycling through specific chakras, or energy centers, for a certain number of seconds each, totaling one minute per cycle.

Both methods can be done with your eyes open or closed. They can be done silently, out loud for greater focus, or both.

To quickly and easily get started using the one-minute meditation follow the explanation below. For easier understanding, this explanation breaks the chant into two units - OM and Nama Sivaya. When you actually do the chant, combine both units into a single one-minute cycle (35 seconds for OM, 25 seconds for Nama Sivaya).

One-Minute Meditation -- Chanting the First Unit: OM
OM is comprised of three sounds: Ah, Oo, and Ma. Each of these sounds corresponds with a particular chakra, or energy vortex within the energy field surrounding your body. These chakras are located in areas that correspond with points along your spine.

• Ah represents the waking state of consciousness and helps to take care of this world. The Ah sound has to be chanted at the root chakra (at the base of the spine).
• Oo represents the dream plane and the other world. Oo gives you divine awareness. The Oo sound has to be chanted at the heart chakra (at the center of the chest).
• Ma creates sleep and material things. The Ma sound has to be chanted minimally at the throat chakra (at the indentation at the bottom center of the neck).
• OM represented the combined totality of these three sounds. The OM sounds has to be changed at the third eye chakra (between the two eyes and eyebrows).

Practice chanting in the following way:

• Meditate on Ah for 10 seconds at the root chakra. Keep repeating this sound mentally. This sound will attract all worldly things to you;
• Meditate on Oo at the heart chakra for 10 seconds. This sound will give you Divine Intelligence and influence your dreaming;
• Meditate on Ma at the throat chakra for 5 seconds. This sound will create awareness of maya (illusion). It will create earthly consciousness and provide rest to the system. We only sleep 1/3 our lives, so that is why Ma is for a shorter duration, so you do not become too sleepy;
• Go the 3rd eye and chant Om for 10 seconds.

One-Minute Meditation -- Chanting the Second Unit: Nama Sivaya
Nama Sivaya has two subunits. Nama represents the lower, or more worldly realities, and the karmic and egocentric life. It also represents the elements earth and water. During this part of the meditation, focus on what you wish to manifest. Hold the image in your mind and heart with pure desire.

Sivaya represents higher life and gives the awareness of the Divine existence, which is the right of every human soul. It also represents the elements of fire, air and ether/space. During this part of the meditation, invoke Dattatreya Siva Baba's energy and blessings. Ask him to intercede in your life to manifest your desires.

Practice Nama Sivaya in the following way:

• Na - root chakra, earth energy - 5 seconds;
• Ma - navel chakra, water energy - 5 seconds;
• Si (pronounced like the English word "she") - heart chakra, fire energy - 5 seconds;
• Va - throat chakra and nostrils, wind/air energy - 5 seconds;
• Ya - 2 eyes, 2 sides/lobes of the brain, third eye, space energy - 5 seconds.

Repeat the cycle, starting with OM and then Nama Sivaya. Om Nama Sivaya!

Is there a way to hear Dattatreya Siva Baba leading this meditation?
Dattatreya Siva Baba has created a CD with a brief teaching and then a guided meditation of the One Minute Meditation for those who wish to follow along with him during this meditation.