What happens in your body when you chant Om Mani Padme Hum?

Jarvis Lin · 2026-10-31

It is a quiet night. You softly recite "Om Mani Padme Hum" once.

Then you notice that your breathing seems to have slowed down.

The short answer: someone has measured it. While people recited the Om Mani Padme Hum mantra, their breathing became slow and steady, about 6 breaths a minute. But it was a small experiment, and it measured breathing, not mood.

What did the studies see?

In 2001, researchers found 23 healthy adults and measured their breathing and cardiovascular rhythms (the heartbeat and blood pressure rise and fall along with the breath) in different situations. One of the situations was reciting the mantra "om-mani-padme-om", the Om Mani Padme Hum mantra.

Ordinary breathing: about 14 breaths a minute.
Reciting the mantra: breathing slowed to about 5.7 breaths a minute, and became very regular.
For comparison: reciting the Ave Maria slowed it just as much (about 5.6); deliberate slow breathing was 6; free talking was uneven.

In other words, reciting a fixed phrase brought people's breathing close to the pattern of deliberate slow breathing.

Does a mantra help how you feel? Researchers gathered 51 randomised trials of mantra meditation into one report (2022). They found that people who practised mantra meditation scored lower on tension, stress and low mood than the comparison groups, with small to moderate effects.

What we cannot tell yet

One thing needs saying clearly: neither piece of research studied Tibetan practice. In the breathing experiment the volunteers were taught only briefly, and most of the 51 studies used a different method (Transcendental Meditation). So we cannot say Tibetan practice works this way.

Also, the breathing experiment had only 23 people and nothing of similar speed to compare against, so we cannot tell whether the mantra is special or any rhythmic recitation would do the same. None of the 51 studies was rated as solidly made, so the true effect may be smaller than it looks.

Either way, giving yourself some time to breathe slowly is never a loss.

Three minutes to try tonight

This is not what the studies did. It is just my invitation:

Sit comfortably, open reCalm and pick "Peace", or recite softly yourself.
Breathe in, and as you breathe out, slowly recite "Om Mani Padme Hum" once.
If other thoughts come, that is fine. You do not need to chase them away.

Afterwards, notice whether your shoulders or your breathing feel even a little different. If not, that is fine too. You can try again tomorrow.

If you are struggling with poor sleep, anxiety or anything else that feels wrong, a mantra can be one part of how you look after yourself. Please let a doctor or other professional help you as well.

From my practice

This section is personal experience. It is not scientifically verified.

When I recite a mantra myself, I usually feel very relaxed and drift into a half-asleep, half-awake state. To me, it feels like a very deep meditation.

Limits of this research

The breathing experiment had only 23 healthy adults (average age 34) and people were not split into groups by chance: everyone went through the conditions in turn, and deliberate slow breathing always came last.
It compared against ordinary breathing and free talking, not against a recitation of similar speed and length, so we cannot tell whether the mantra is special or any rhythmic recitation would do the same.
The paper calls it a "yoga mantra" and writes it as om-mani-padme-om. The volunteers had no yoga experience and were taught briefly by a yoga teacher; they were not Tibetan Buddhist practitioners. We cannot treat the result as a result about Tibetan practice.
The experiment measured breathing and cardiovascular rhythms. It did not ask how people felt, and does not say whether anyone felt unwell.
The review of 51 studies is mostly Transcendental Meditation (27 studies); the rest use other mantra methods. They are not Tibetan mantras, and the review does not report results by religion or tradition.
None of the 51 studies was rated low risk of bias and most were rated high; people and teachers knew what they were doing. The effect was larger against doing nothing and smaller against another relaxation method.
The authors warn that in a new setting the true effect could be small, close to zero. Few studies had people with a diagnosed mental illness (apart from trauma symptoms), and most followed people for a short time.
The review included only English and Spanish studies. We read its abstract and main results only.

Sources

Bernardi L, Sleight P, Bandinelli G, Cencetti S, Fattorini L, Wdowczyc-Szulc J, Lagi A. Effect of rosary prayer and yoga mantras on autonomic cardiovascular rhythms: comparative study. BMJ, 2001. doi:10.1136/bmj.323.7327.1446 · © BMJ 2001 (no open license: facts only, no tables)
Álvarez-Pérez Y, Rivero-Santana A, Perestelo-Pérez L, et al.. Effectiveness of Mantra-Based Meditation on Mental Health: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2022. doi:10.3390/ijerph19063380 · CC BY 4.0

If you would like to try it yourself, ten quiet minutes are waiting. Open reCalm

This article is a general introduction to research. It is not medical advice and does not replace care from a health professional.