Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Aum

Hinduism and Tribal Religions

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Indian Religions ((EIR))

  • 315 Accesses

Introduction

Realization of inner sound leads to a development of spiritual path, and a reference to this is found in almost all traditions, religions, and philosophies worldwide [1]. This inner sound represents the Almighty that is unnamed and indescribable; however, interestingly this Supreme One has got different expressions in human languages across cultures. Some call it AUM (in Hinduism), Allah (in Islam), God, Father (in Christianity), Hu (in Sufism), Shabd (in Sikhism), Tao (in Taoism), and Word of the Almighty, Consciousness, Awareness, Self, Brahman, and the like. The list is endless; however, the philosophical works and scriptures name the following (Table 1):

Table 1 Linguistic expressions for the Almighty in different religions
Full size table

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Beck GL (1993) Sonic theology: Hinduism and sacred sound. University of South Carolina Press, Columbia

    Google Scholar 

  2. Bloomfield M (1889) On the etymology of the particle om̐. Proceedings of the american oriental society. J Am Orient Soc 14(1890):cl–clii

    Google Scholar 

  3. Bühler G (ed) (1892–1894) Āpastambīya-Dharma-Sūtra: Aphorisms on the sacred law of the Hindus by Āpastamba. Bombay Sanskrit series, vol 44. Bombay, p 50

    Google Scholar 

  4. Bryant E (2009) The yoga Sūtras of Patañjali. North Point Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  5. Brown NW (1968) The creative role of Vāc in the rig veda. In: Heesterman (ed) Pratidānam. American Oriental Society, Michigan, pp 393–397

    Google Scholar 

  6. Bull M, Back L (2003) Into sound. In: Bull M, Back L (eds) The auditory culture reader. Berg, Oxford/New York, pp 1–24

    Google Scholar 

  7. Cardona G (1997) Pāṇini, a survey of research. Mouton, The Hague

    Google Scholar 

  8. Cohen S (2008) Text and authority in the older Upaniṣads. Brill, Leiden/Boston

    Book  Google Scholar 

  9. Collins B (2014) The head beneath the altar: Hindu mythology and the critique of sacrifice. Michigan State University Press, East Lansing

    Google Scholar 

  10. Doniger O’ Flaherty W (ed) (1980) Karma and rebirth in classical Indian traditions. University of California Press, Berkeley

    Google Scholar 

  11. Doniger W (trans) (1981) The rig veda: an anthology. Penguin Books, London/New York

    Google Scholar 

  12. Flood G (1996) An introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge/New York

    Google Scholar 

  13. Gerety FMM (2017) Melody, mantra, and meaninglessness: towards a history of OM. In: Thompson G, Payne R (ed) Beyond meaning: essays honoring the life and work of Frits Staal. Contemporary issues in Buddhist studies series. University of Hawai’i Press, Honolulu

    Google Scholar 

  14. Houben JEM (2000) The ritual pragmatics of a Vedic hymn: the ‘riddle hymn’ and the Pravargya ritual. J Am Orient Soc 120:499–536

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Jamison S, Brereton J (trans) (2014) The rigveda: the earliest religious poetry of India, vol 3. Oxford University Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  16. Keith AB (ed, trans) (1909) The Aitareya Āraṇyaka. Clarendon Press, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  17. Killingley D (1986) Oṃ: the sacred syllable in the Veda. In: Lipner JJ (eds) A net cast wide: investigations into Indian thought in memory of David Friedman. Grevatt & Grevatt, Newcastle upon Tyne, pp 14–33

    Google Scholar 

  18. Macdonell AA (1897) The vedic mythology. K.J. Trübner, Strassburg

    Google Scholar 

  19. Malinar A (2007) The Bhagavadgītā: doctrines and contexts. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge/New York

    Book  Google Scholar 

  20. Michaels A (2004) Hinduism. (trans: Harshav B). Princeton University Press, Princeton

    Google Scholar 

  21. Olivelle P (trans) (1992) Saṃnyāsa Upaniṣads: Hindu scriptures on asceticism and renunciation. Oxford University Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  22. Ouseparampil SV (1977) The history and mystery of OM. J Dharma II(4):438–459

    Google Scholar 

  23. Padoux A (1990) Vāc: the concept of the word in selected Hindu Tantras (trans: Gontier J). State University of New York Press, Albany

    Google Scholar 

  24. Pollock S (2006) The language of the gods in the world of men: Sanskrit, culture, and power in premodern India. University of California Press, Berkeley

    Google Scholar 

  25. von Roth R, Whitney WD (eds) (1856) Atharvaveda Saṃhitā (School of the Śaunakas). F. Dümmler, Berlin

    Google Scholar 

  26. Smith BK (1989) Reflections on resemblance, ritual, and religion. Oxford University Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  27. Watkins C (1970) Language of the gods and language of men: remarks on some Indo-European meta-linguistic traditions. In: Puhvel J (ed) Myth and law among the Indo-Europeans. University of California Press, Berkeley, pp 1–17

    Google Scholar 

  28. Wilke A, Moebus O (2011) Sound and communication: an aesthetic cultural history of Sanskrit Hinduism. De Gruyter, Berlin

    Book  Google Scholar 

  29. Zaehner RC (1969) The Bhagavad-Gītā, with a commentary based on the original sources. Clarendon Press, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Humanities & Social Sciences – Languages & Literature, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University, Katra, Jammu and Kashmir, India

    Amitabh Vikram Dwivedi

Authors
  1. Amitabh Vikram Dwivedi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Amitabh Vikram Dwivedi .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept of Anthropology, The University of North Texas Dept of Anthropology, Denton, Texas, USA

    Pankaj Jain

  2. The Graduate Theological Union , Berkeley, California, USA

    Rita Sherma

  3. Jamia Millia Islamia, Centre for the Study of Comparative Reli Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India

    Madhu Khanna

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Dwivedi, A.V. (2018). Aum. In: Jain, P., Sherma, R., Khanna, M. (eds) Hinduism and Tribal Religions. Encyclopedia of Indian Religions. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_444-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_444-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-024-1036-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-024-1036-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Religion and PhilosophyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Humanities

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Chapter history

  1. Latest

    Aum
    Published:
    19 June 2021

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_444-2

  2. Original

    Aum
    Published:
    28 March 2018

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_444-1

Search

Navigation