The origin of OM (ओम्)

 

The sacred syllable Om (ओम्) was first mentioned in the brAhmanas/Upanishads. 

 It has been associated with various concepts, such as "cosmic sound", "mystical syllable", "affirmation to something divine", or as symbolism for abstract spiritual concepts in the Upanishads.

 Interestingly, it was not mentioned in the Rig Veda, from which the other 3 vedas, i.e., Samaveda, Yayurveda and Atharva Veda, the brahmanas, upanishads, puranas, etc., had emanated, but, why?

 -----

The Aitareya Brahmana of Rig Veda (5.32) states, on the origin of OM (ओम्), as follows.

“Prajapati had the desire of creating beings and multiplying himself.  He underwent (consequently) austerities. Having finished them, he created these worlds, viz., earth, air and heaven. He heated them (with the lustre of his mind, pursuing a course of austerities) ; three lights were produced.

Agni from the earth, Vayu from the air, and Aditya from heaven. He heated them again, in consequence of which the three Vedas were produced. The Rigveda came from Agni, the Yayurveda from Vayu, and the Samaveda from Aditya.

He heated these Vedas, in consequence of which three luminaries arose, viz., Bhur came from the Rigveda, Bhuvah from the Yajurveda, and Svar from the Sāmaveda.

He heated these luminaries again, and three sounds, a (अ-कार), u(उ-कार) and m (म-कार), came out of them. By putting them together, he made the syllable Om (अ+उ+म्=ओम्).

 Therefore he repeats “Om ! Om !,” for Om is the heaven-world, and Om is that one who shines  - ओम् इति असौ योऽसौ तपति”.

(https://archive.org/details/aitareyabrahmana04hauguoft/page/252/mode/2up)

-----

Interestingly, in the above narration from Aitareya Brahmana we can find the mention of Rig Veda, Sama Veda and Yajur Veda , but not Atharva Veda.

Does it indicate that by the time Aitareya Brahmana was composed, Atharva Veda was not in existence?

-----

It is for sure that the sacred syllable OM (ओम्) was not explicitly mentioned in the Rig Veda.  Thus, an inference can be made that the OM (ओम्) was derived by the composers of Aitareya Brahmana, from some other word/phrase that had been mentioned in the Rig Veda, which is the source of all spiritual concepts.

As the meaning of  OM (ओम्) was derived as that one who shines  - ओम् इति असौ योऽसौ तपति”, that word/phrase used in the Rig Veda also should have an explicit or implicit meaning of DIVINE/LUMINOUS/LORD OF EVERYTHING.

According to my understanding, OM (ओम्) could have been derived from the word Soma (सोम), used in the Rig Veda.

---

Shri Aurobindo explains Soma, in his “The Secret of the Veda” as follows;

But what is this Soma, called sometimes amrita, the Greek ambrosia, as if it were itself the substance of immortality? It is a figure for the divine Ananda, the principle of Bliss, from which, in the Vedic conception, the existence of Man, this mental being, is drawn (P.260).

Brahman in the Veda is the soul or soul-consciousness emerging from the secret heart of things, but more often the thought, inspired, creative, full of the secret truth, which emerges from that consciousness and becomes thought of the mind, manma. Here, however, it seems to mean the soul itself. Soma, Lord of the Ananda, is the true creator who possesses the soul and brings out of it a divine creation. For him the mind and heart, enlightened, have been formed into a purifying instrument; freed from all narrowness and duality the consciousness in it has been extended widely to receive the full flow of the sense-life and mind-life and turn it into pure delight of the true existence, the divine, the immortal Ananda.(P.355)

-------

Soma (सोम) is explained to mean sa-umā (स + उमा), i.e. “with/accompanied by Umā”

(https://www.wisdomlib.org/definition/soma#shaivism).

One of the meanings of Umā is Light, splendor, apart from the puranic meaning of Uma, the wife of Shiva.

If we go by esoteric meaning of Light, we can understand that it indicates the DIVINE LIGHT or Jnana or Immortality.

Hence, the Soma (सोम) can be explained as “with/accompanied by the DIVINE LIGHT or Jnana or Immortality”.

---

If we further observe, we can find that the word Umā – उमा, is made up of 3 (three) aksharas “”, उ-कारः, म-कार अ-कार,u, m and ā”.

----

Both Umā – उमा and OM (ओम्) contain the same 3 aksharas, i.e., u, m and a, but positioned in different places.

Umā – उमा means DIVINE LIGHT or Jnana or Immortality and OM (ओम्) indicates  "something divine/ splendorous ".

The rishis, who compiled brAhmanAs and Upanishads, might have adopted the word Umā – उमा,  to derive the sacred syllable OM (ओम्).