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There is a chap on u-tube that says women should not say "Om" - they should say "am".

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  • All Vedanta sects...
    – Rakesh Joshi
    Jan 29, 2019 at 18:12
  • @Ikshvaku its false claim and i.have discussed it in detail in my posts. The fact that rig Veda has about 30 women seers dismisses all such claims of them not being entitled to chant Vedas.
    – Rakesh Joshi
    Jan 29, 2019 at 18:31
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    @RakeshJoshi The Harita and Yama smriti do allow Brahmavadini women to chant. But there are no Brahmavadini women today.
    – Ikshvaku
    Jan 29, 2019 at 20:10
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    Obviously Anuradha Paudwal's sect does :-) @sv.
    – S K
    Jan 29, 2019 at 20:24
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    Not just women, it is said all Grihastyas shouldn't chant "OM" alone as it is said it gives vairagya (dispassion) on repeated chanting. But i'm not aware of scriptural reference for this.
    – The Destroyer ♦
    Jan 30, 2019 at 7:22

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It is NOT a question of sect.The Smiritis and Puranas prohibit the utterance of OM for all who are not having the sacred thread.

In the commentary of sloka 29 chapter 289 of Santiparva of Mahabharata, Haridasa Siddhantabagish writes:

Shudras and females are not allowed to utter OM, because the Sruti (The Vedas) prohibits it ..सावित्रीं प्रणवं यजुरर्लक्ष्मीं स्त्री-शूद्रयोर्नेच्छन्ति इति श्रुत्या निषेधात्.[SAVITRIM PRANAVAM YAJUR LAKSHMIM STREE- SUDRAYOR NECHCHHANTI ITI SRUTYA NISHEDHAT]

Srmadbhagavam says (1/4/25) that "trayi" (which means both the A-U-M and the three vedas, should not be heard by women and the sudras.

In the Pranavakalpa of Skandapurana(Chapter 1, sloka 17-8), Lord Shiva says to Goddess Parvati : O Devi, being a female you are not allowed to utter OM.

Saints like Sri Ramakrishna(Reference:Sri Sri Ramakrishna-Leelamrita by Vaikunthanath Sannyal), Sri Sitaramdas Omkarnath(Reference-Pita-Putra by Sri Omkarnath) did not allow the sudras and women to utter OM.

And there are different religious restrictions on males also, especially on brahmins. No religion can accept 'Go as you like' and 'Do as your like' approaches until the aspirant attains Para-bhakti that frees him or her from all bondages and bindings

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  • please tell me it ain't so about Siva :-) - @Partha Banerjee if anything is an interpolation, this has to be one.
    – S K
    Jan 29, 2019 at 18:40
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    @SK that i dont know. i dont have the authority. I dont find any cruelty in this.
    – user17294
    Jan 29, 2019 at 18:41
  • @SK I have quoted the reference. There is another reference in a collection of His sayings by Satish chandra Mukhopadhyaya, as referred to in Pita-Putra mentioned above.
    – user17294
    Jan 29, 2019 at 19:08
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    hinduism.stackexchange.com/a/17134/7853
    – Rakesh Joshi
    Jan 29, 2019 at 20:54
  • Please add transliteration of these Sanskrit verse because some users don't understand the script
    – user6981
    Jan 30, 2019 at 11:23

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