I used to chant this song every day for years. There is no real translation for the phrase, but it is generally accepted to mean ''I honor the divine within myself''.  In the Himalayan tradition, Shiva represents the one true reality, the supreme reality of the Inner Self, which survives even after everything ends. It represents the realization of the one true consciousness which dwells within all. In short, it represents the honoring of God as ourselves, and ourselves as God.

OM, of course, is the primordial sound. It is the sound of the Universe experiencing itself. It is vibrating within everything. When you sing or chant OM, you are simply participating in something that always is. OM has always been considered to be the ''sound of God'', the one and all.

OM: contains within it all beginnings, every end, and all things in between. AUM is another way to write it. There are three parts to it: The ‘Ah’ sound signifies creation, or beginnings. U, or the ‘oooh’ sound is the sustaining factor, while ‘mmmm’ is the dissolution or end. So these three parts are contained in each moment, because OM is always present. The fourth aspect of OM is silence.

NAMAH: is a deep honoring. It means to bow, yet it is a bow like no other – one that comes fully from the heart. It’s the awe you feel when you see great beauty like an ocean sunrise or a sparkling mountain lake. It is the gratitude within divine love, or the wonder and miracle of a perfect starlit night.

SHIVAYA: comes from the word Shiva, which literally means ‘auspicious’. Shivaya describes the intrinsic goodness that exists within all things, because it is the nature of the energy that pulses and penetrates, creates and absorbs, all that is. Truly, at the essence of every being and every part of creation, there is this auspiciousness. That is Shiva.

OM NAMAH SHIVAYA, then can be described in many ways, but here are some of my favorites:

• I honor the goodness in myself and in the universe.
• May I reveal and express the highest part of my heart.

• I bow to God – I bow to all of creation
• I bow to the goodness within myself
• I honor the goodness of my True Self

• At its essence, everything is good
• I respect myself