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Classical pranayama

Udgeeth

Om on the exhale. Also called Om chanting, Udgeet, Udgitha.

Say it ood-GEET उद्गीथ

  • Classical pranayama
  • Seated
  • No breath holds
  • 5 min to start
Rhythm in seconds

In 4 · Om 8

5 min · 25 rounds · 5:00 · about 5 breaths a minute

Take care: Keep the sound soft. If your throat strains, stop the sound and breathe normally.

Breathe in slowly, then chant a long, soft Om for the whole exhale. The sound stretches the breath out and gives your attention something to rest on.

Written by Viram from the sources below. Updated . How we write our guides.

How to practise Udgeeth

  1. Sit upright with your jaw loose and your hands resting in your lap.
  2. Breathe in through your nose for 4.
  3. Breathe out for 8 while chanting “Om”: begin with an open “O,” and let it close into a soft “mmm” as the breath runs out.
  4. Keep the voice soft, at a comfortable pitch. It only needs to be loud enough for you to hear.
  5. Let the sound end on its own. There’s no need to push out the last of the air.
  6. When you finish, sit quietly for a few breaths.

Each round, step by step

StepSecondsWhat to do
Inhale4In through the nose, slow and full.
Om8A long, soft “Om”: an open “O” that closes into a hum.

Take care

Keep the sound soft. If your throat strains, stop the sound and breathe normally.

  • Keep the sound soft. If your throat or voice feels strained, stop making the sound and breathe normally.
  • Om is sacred in several traditions. If you’d rather not chant it, hum “mmm” instead.
  • Skip it with a blocked nose or a sore throat.
  • Stop and breathe normally if you feel dizzy or short of breath.
  • Breathe gently. If you feel dizzy or uncomfortable, stop and return to your normal breath.

Traditionally

Udgeeth comes from udgitha, the sung part of the Sama Veda. The Chandogya Upanishad opens by naming the syllable Om as the udgitha and asking the reader to meditate on it, and it links the udgitha with the breath. Chanting Om on a long exhale as a named breathing practice is modern, and popular in India.

What the research says

Research on Om chanting is small and mostly from India. Short studies report heart-rate patterns linked with rest during and after chanting. A related study found that reciting a longer mantra slowed breathing to about six breaths a minute; it tested a different practice, so it doesn’t establish benefits of this Om exercise. Om chanting hasn’t been compared with plain slow breathing, so much of the effect may come from breathing slowly. It is not a treatment.

Sources

  1. Anonymous (Sama Veda tradition) (c. 8th–6th century BCE). Chandogya Upanishad. Translated by F. Max Müller, 1879 (Sacred Books of the East, vol. 1).
  2. Bernardi L et al. (2001). Effect of rosary prayer and yoga mantras on autonomic cardiovascular rhythms: comparative study. BMJ 323(7327):1446–1449.
  3. Inbaraj G et al. (2022). Immediate effects of OM chanting on heart rate variability measures compared between experienced and inexperienced yoga practitioners. International Journal of Yoga 15(1):52–58.
  4. Laborde S et al. (2022). Effects of voluntary slow breathing on heart rate and heart rate variability: a systematic review and a meta-analysis. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews 138:104711.

A wellness practice, not medical advice. Read practising safely before you begin.

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