Hamm…sahhh…sohhh…hammm…

And so it went it my head at a guided mediation class Tuesday night.

We repeated “hamsa” with every breath we took --“ham” on the inhale and “sa” on the exhale.

A large component of mediation – and yoga – is focusing on your breathing. It’s supposed to calm and focus you.

I don’t speak a lick of Sanskrit – so why was I repeating this mantra over and over again in my head when I had no idea what it meant?

I set my skepticism aside. I calmed down, repeated the mantra and listened to the Tambura, a trippy-sounding stringed instrument that reminded me of when The Beatles teamed up with Sitar player Ravi Shankar.

Our teacher told us that “hamsa” was a natural mantra – the sound it makes when you say it is the same sound that you make when you inhale “ham,” exhale “sa.” It’s believed that the sounds of mantras such as “hamsa” and “ohm” have a meaning independent of the translation.

As soon as I got home, I Googled “Hamsa mantra.”

It’s a declaration of self.

When you repeat ”soham” (the sound of hamsa backward) it means “I am that I am that I am that I am,” according to Swami Jnaneshvara Bharati’s Web site.

I smiled.

It’s a more universal message than Stuart Smalley’s self-acceptance affirmations (You’re Good Enough, You’re Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like You!). There’s no book to buy or elaborate self-improvement plan - there’s just one word.

And hey, if you need an affirmation and say it out loud, chances are no one will know what it means.