Mantra is one of the most ancient and widely practised tools in the world of meditation, but how does it work? What makes it so powerful? 

In this second episode of our three-part series on Sanskrit and mantra, we explore the philosophy behind mantra, the nature of vibration, and how sound can influence not only the mind, but our entire internal experience. 

Topics covered:

✨ What does the word mantra actually mean?

✨ Mantra as a tool and vehicle for the mind

✨ Spanda and the vibrational nature of consciousness

✨ The three levels of mantra recitation

Mantra offers us a way to consciously work with the movements of the mind rather than simply being carried by them. Through sound, repetition and increasingly subtle levels of awareness, mantra can become a powerful doorway into greater presence, stillness and inner freedom.

In the next and final episode of this series, we’ll explore the practical side of mantra and the different ways we can work with it to cultivate more harmonious internal states.

🙏 Stay Connected & Explore More:

📸 Instagram: @ashbrown.meditation

Before we can really understand mantra, we first need to understand the language it comes from: Sanskrit.

In this first episode of our three-part series on Mantra Meditation, we explore what makes Sanskrit so unique, where it comes from, and why sound and vibration are considered such an important part of this ancient language. 

Rather than approaching Sanskrit purely as a language of words and meanings, we explore it as a highly refined system of sound designed to communicate, preserve and transmit subtle dimensions of experience.

Topics covered:

✨ What is Sanskrit?

✨ Sanskrit as a language of sound and vibration

✨ Why pronunciation matters and why intention matters even more

✨ The difference between mantra and affirmation

✨ The Vedas, Upanishads and the origins of Sanskrit

✨ Shruti, the rishis and “unchanging truths”

✨ Why Sanskrit has remained so significant for thousands of years

Sanskrit offers us a fascinating doorway into understanding mantra because its sounds are traditionally understood to carry significance beyond intellectual meaning alone. Through the Vedas, the Upanishads and the concept of shruti, we begin to see Sanskrit not simply as an ancient language, but as a vehicle for exploring consciousness, reality and the deeper nature of the self.

In Part 2, we’ll move deeper into mantra itself, exploring the meaning of the word mantra, the philosophy of vibration, and how mantra works within the mind during meditation.

🙏 Stay Connected & Explore More:

📸 Instagram: @ashbrown.meditation

Join Ash for a gentle guided mantra meditation designed to help you return to your natural state through the rhythm of the breath.

In this meditation, you will be guided through the mantra So Hum, a Sahaja mantra, meaning natural, spontaneous, or that which arises by itself.

The essence of this practice is that the mantra is already embedded within the breath. 

So is the subtle sound of the inhale. 

Hum is the subtle sound of the exhale. 

Rather than imposing the mantra onto the breath, we simply learn to listen for it.

As the mantra begins to reveal itself within the breath, the mind is given a gentle pathway back toward stillness, presence and inner awareness.

So Hum is often translated as “I am That”. 

That meaning consciousness, totality, pure unbounded awareness and unconditional love.

This practice is a gentle reminder that life itself is continuously guiding us back to our true nature through the breath, roughly 21,600 times each day and night.

This meditation is perfect for anyone wanting to soften the mind, deepen their connection to the breath, explore mantra meditation, or return to a feeling of inner steadiness and quiet presence.

All you need is a comfortable space, a willingness to listen, and the breath that is already moving through you.

So with that being said... sit back, relax, and enjoy.

🙏 Stay Connected & Explore More:

🎶 Music from Uppbeat:

Join Ash for a gentle guided mantra meditation designed to help you return to your natural state through the rhythm of the breath.

In this meditation, you will be guided through the mantra So Hum, a Sahaja mantra, meaning natural, spontaneous, or that which arises by itself.

The essence of this practice is that the mantra is already embedded within the breath. 

So is the subtle sound of the inhale. 

Hum is the subtle sound of the exhale. 

Rather than imposing the mantra onto the breath, we simply learn to listen for it.

As the mantra begins to reveal itself within the breath, the mind is given a gentle pathway back toward stillness, presence and inner awareness.

So Hum is often translated as “I am That”. 

That meaning consciousness, totality, pure unbounded awareness and unconditional love.

This practice is a gentle reminder that life itself is continuously guiding us back to our true nature through the breath, roughly 21,600 times each day and night.

This meditation is perfect for anyone wanting to soften the mind, deepen their connection to the breath, explore mantra meditation, or return to a feeling of inner steadiness and quiet presence.

All you need is a comfortable space, a willingness to listen, and the breath that is already moving through you.

So with that being said... sit back, relax, and enjoy.

🙏 Stay Connected & Explore More:

🎶 Music from Uppbeat:

Mindfulness is one of the most commonly used words in the world of meditation, but what does it actually mean? And how does engaging with it transform our experience, both inner and outer?

Many people believe meditation is about emptying the mind, silencing thoughts, or somehow stopping the mind from doing what it naturally does. But what if the pathway to inner stillness isn't through force, control, or pushing thoughts away in search of emptiness?

Topics covered:

✨ What is mindfulness?

✨ Emptiness vs fullness

✨ Shunya and Buddhist emptiness

✨ Why thoughts aren't the problem

✨ The true skill of meditation

✨ The power of the present moment

✨ Awareness, freedom & choice

✨ Mindfulness vs heartfulness

✨ The Nature of Pure Awareness

✨ Being present vs becoming

Mindfulness is not only a doorway into the miracle of our existence, but also a portal into deeper and more expansive states of awareness. Through presence, we begin to reclaim our freedom, reconnect with what matters most, and rediscover the sacredness and preciousness of life.

🙏 Stay Connected & Explore More:

Join Ash for a gentle guided grounding meditation designed to help you return to the Here & Now through the gateway of awareness.

In this meditation, you will be guided through a simple yet powerful sensory awareness practice that uses touch, sound, sight, feeling, and awareness itself as anchors into the present moment.

This meditation is perfect for anyone feeling overwhelmed, distracted, anxious, scattered, or disconnected from life or themselves.

It can be practised at any time of day and is particularly helpful when you need to slow down, ground your nervous system, and reconnect with what is most alive. 

All you need is a comfortable space and a willingness to pause.

So with that being said... sit back, relax, and enjoy.

🙏 Stay Connected & Explore More:

📸 Instagram: @ashbrown.meditation

📺 YouTube: Ash Brown Meditation

🎙 Spotify: Ash Brown Meditation Show

🌐 Website: ashbrownmeditation.com

📩 Email: [email protected]

🎶 Music from Upbeat (free for Creators!):

Shrine by Tranquilium https://uppbeat.io/track/tranquilium/shrine

Join Ash for a gentle guided grounding meditation designed to help you return to the Here & Now through the gateway of awareness.

In this meditation, you will be guided through a simple yet powerful sensory awareness practice that uses touch, sound, sight, feeling, and awareness itself as anchors into the present moment.

This meditation is perfect for anyone feeling overwhelmed, distracted, anxious, scattered, or disconnected from life or themselves.

It can be practised at any time of day and is particularly helpful when you need to slow down, ground your nervous system, and reconnect with what is most alive. 

All you need is a comfortable space and a willingness to pause.

So with that being said... sit back, relax, and enjoy.

🙏 Stay Connected & Explore More:

📸 Instagram: @ashbrown.meditation

📺 YouTube: Ash Brown Meditation

🎙 Spotify: Ash Brown Meditation Show

🌐 Website: ashbrownmeditation.com

📩 Email: [email protected]

🎶 Music from Upbeat (free for Creators!):

Shrine by Tranquilium https://uppbeat.io/track/tranquilium/shrine

In this episode, I sit down with Krista Marie Star to explore meditation, mysticism, awakening, ritual, non duality, Kashmir Shaivism, and the deeper dimensions of the spiritual path.

Krista is a mystic, yogi, artist, ritualist, channel, and spiritual guide whose work beautifully bridges the worlds of ancient wisdom and modern life. 

Topics Covered:

• What is spiritual awakening?

• 3 helpful things on the path to awakening

• Direct experience, teachers & teachings

• Balancing the esoteric & the everyday

• Mysticism and why it matters

• Ritual as a pathway to the divine

• Kashmir Shaivism and non dual philosophy

• Working with archetypes, gods & goddesses

• The spiritual heart (Hridaya)

• The subtle body and subtle perception

• The nature of mind

• Dharma and life purpose

• How to relate to thoughts in meditation

• True nature, Self, and consciousness

Timings:

00:00 Introduction

01:09 Meditation as Prayer

03:04 The force of awakening

08:25 3 helpful things on the path of awakening

14:03 Bridging the esoteric and the everyday

17:30 3 main rivers of yoga

26:52 God v Goddess

29:48 Mysticism

34:29 Connecting to the divine through ritual

38:04 The Spiritual Heart

41:20 Connection to the subtle

45:30 What is the mind?

49:10 The Bodies role in awakening

This was one of those conversations that invites you to slow down, listen deeply, and remember that the wisdom we seek is often much closer than we imagine.

Connect with Krista:

📸 Instagram → @kristamariestarr

🌿 Wild Light Academy → https://templeofwildlight.mykajabi.com 

Stay Connected & Explore More:

📸 Instagram → @ashbrown.meditation

📺 YouTube → Ash Brown Meditation

🎙 Spotify → Ash Brown Meditation Show

🌐 Website → ashbrownmeditation.com

In this episode, I sit down with Annie McCallum, a Menstrual Cycle Coach and Certified Fertility Yoga Teacher for a deeply important conversation around... meditation, hormones, nervous system regulation, and the wisdom of the menstrual cycle.

Together we explore how meditation and yoga practices can evolve to honour female biology rather than work against it. We explore the profound relationship between stress, hormones, fertility, emotional wellbeing, and the nervous system… and how reconnecting to the body can become a powerful path of healing, empowerment, and self-trust.

⸻

00:00 Introduction

00:30 What it means to be a Menstrual Cycle Coach & Fertility Yoga Teacher

08:32 Masculine & Feminine Energy as Principles

13:56 Honouring the Phases of Your Cycle

15:51 The Inner Seasons

19:09 The Vayus

28:25 Menstruation as a Superpower

33:00 How Women Can Adapt Yoga for Their Biology

35:36 Ash’s Personal Story

39:13 The Myth of Period Pain

⸻

Topics Covered:

• Meditation through the menstrual cycle

• The inner seasons of the feminine body

• Hormones, mood, energy & creativity

• Masculine and feminine energy

• PMS, pain & hormonal imbalance

• Stress, fertility & the nervous system

• Practices for different phases of the cycle

• Making fluctuations part of the practice

⸻

This was such a beautiful and important conversation… and one I truly wish I had heard much earlier in life.

Connect with Annie.

Instagram → @flowincycle

12 Week Course & Coaching → https://www.flowincycle.com.au/work-with-me

Online Yoga & Monthly Live Workshops → https://sacred.flowincycle.com.au/offers/vBTb43aD/checkout

Resources & Free guides→ https://sacred.flowincycle.com.au/store

⸻

Stay Connected & Explore More:

📸 Instagram → @ashbrown.meditation

📺 YouTube → Ash Brown Meditation

🎙 Spotify → Ash Brown Meditation Show

🌐 Website → ashbrownmeditation.com

📩 Email → [email protected]

What is Vedic Meditation… & why has it transformed millions of lives around the world?

In this episode, Ash explores the roots, philosophy, and experience of Vedic Meditation, a powerful technique designed to take the mind beyond thought and into deep states of rest and awareness.

Originating from the ancient Vedic tradition of India, passed down by Brahmananda Saraswati and later brought into the modern world by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Today, it is widely practised as a simple, accessible pathway to transcendence.

In this episode, Ash explores:

00:00 Introduction

_______

1:12 What is Transcendence

2:03 The experience of Being

4:02 4 States of consciousness

5:19 Order of Reality

7:42 Mantra

9:18 Art of letting go

11:50 Why do we control

12:54 The intelligence of nature

14:10 Universal Technique

14:31 The Vedas

17:01 Where did Vedic meditation come from?

18:24 Other opinions

20:15 Become embodied in being, perform action

_______

This episode offers a grounded and experiential look into meditation the art of transcendence. 

If you have ever been curious about Vedic Meditation, Transcendental Meditation, or how to go beyond the mind, this episode will give you a clear and powerful entry point.

🙏 Stay Connected & Explore More:

Intro music from Upbeat (free for Creators!):

Amazing Day by Iris Young https://uppbeat.io/track/iros-young/amazing-day