Mantras for Each Planet and Their Benefits: A Simple Guide for Beginners

There are times when life seems stuck in one place, no matter how hard you try a different strategy or put more effort in. You feel like you are treading water in your career, relationships become more of a chore, or you experience unexplained medical issues. According to Vedic astrology, such stagnation can be related to the planets in the birth chart, and one of the simplest and most effective solutions to this is chanting planetary mantras.

This doesn't mean you need to speak Sanskrit or go to the temple daily. Let's simplify it so that you can get a basic understanding of it. 

The planets are like giant lighthouses that send us a specific type of energy out to the Earth and all its inhabitants. If it's in sync with your life, things generally run pretty smoothly and opportunities come fairly easily. When it is not in harmony with your horoscope, you experience life in a much more challenging way. Astrology mantras for planets are similar to tuning forks; the more you chant them, the more attuned you become to the frequency of the planet, and the more things return to a state of balance.

These chants are from ancient, thousands-of-year-old Vedic texts. The most potent are known as "Beej Mantras," which means "seed mantra." It's just like a seed that contains the potential of a tree; a beej mantra contains the essence of a planet within a few syllables. Isn't that an interesting thought?

In Vedic astrology we study nine planets, known as the Navagrahas: Surya (Sun), Chandra (Moon), Mangal (Mars), Budha (Mercury), Guru (Jupiter), Shukra (Venus), Shani (Saturn), Rahu, and Ketu. Each planet governs a different aspect of your life, and each has its own mantra, which specifically appeals to its energy.

Let's have a planet-wise look at the most common mantras and the benefits they bring to your life. 

1. Surya (Sun) — Om Hraam Hreem Hraum Sah Suryaya Namah

In Vedic astrology, the Sun is the ruler of all the planets and controls your soul, confidence, natural authority, and your relationship with your father. A weak Sun in your horoscope may mean that you have trouble with low self-esteem, frequent health problems related to the heart or eyes, or an inability to cope with those in authority. Reciting this Surya mantra on Sundays, ideally in the early morning facing east, can slowly nourish you with clarity, courage, and a solid sense of self-worthiness. It is among the most fundamental mantras of each planet since a well-supported Sun quietly raises the quality of all the other things in your chart. 

2. Chandra (Moon) — Om Shraam Shreem Shraum Sah Chandraya Namah

The Moon defines your mind, your emotional reaction, and the quality of your mental calmness, which is actually one of the greatest concerns in the life of any individual. Anxiety, unpredictable mood swings, sleep disturbances, and a poor relationship with the women in your life, when the Moon is weak or afflicted in a chart, are likely to become the order of the day. This mantra is best recited on Monday evenings after the sun has set, preferably 108 times, while sitting on a white mat or cloth. Repeating the mantra of Chanda will always have a strong calming effect on the nervous system, almost like it is pouring cool water over a mind that is just going to run. 

3. Mangal (Mars) — Om Kraam Kreem Kraum Sah Bhaumaya Namah

Mars is nothing but pure fire, or courage; brute physical strength; resolve; and everything connected with land and property. In case Mars happens to sit in a bad position in your chart, particularly when you have Mangal dosha, you may begin to see trends of marriage delays, unnecessary quarrels, a greater propensity to accidents, or debt-and-debt cycles that are difficult to escape. This mantra is recited on Tuesdays and serves to minimise that uncontrollable, aggressive Martian energy and instead force it into more productive use, such as discipline and determination. When it comes to planets, many individuals seek this mantra in astrology when things get legal, when property is at stake, or when they just require more grit to get them through a rough patch. 

4. Budha (Mercury) — Om Braam Breem Braum Sah Budhaya Namah

Mercury is the intelligence, communication, business, and even skin-related planet, as most people are not aware of its association with this planet. Weakened Mercury in the birth chart may cause an inability to make the right decisions, speech problems, academic failure that surprises you despite your efforts or even business transactions that refuse to turn in the right direction despite your attempts. Mercury is the ruling planet on Wednesday, and this mantra is best chanted in the morning. This planetary mantra is actually helpful in the long term to students who are drilling through competitive exams or workers in such areas as writing, trading, media, or sales. 

5. Guru (Jupiter) — Om Graam Greem Graum Sah Gurave Namah

The planet of wisdom, spirituality, true wealth, and children, Jupiter is commonly considered to be the most naturally auspicious of all Vedic astrology. With a weak or poorly placed Jupiter, one may have slow financial development, unforeseen delays in getting married or having children, and an overall tendency towards poor judgement as far as making key decisions in life is concerned. Saying this mantra on Thursday and wearing yellow or sitting on a yellow mat brings the warm and spacious energy that Jupiter is reputed to bring. This is one of those all-planet mantras that nearly everyone can use to his/her advantage to recite every day, without regard to what his/her own chart resembles. 

6. Shukra (Venus) — Om Draam Dreem Draum Sah Shukraya Namah

Venus is also the ruler of love, beauty, luxury, creativity, and the quality of your love life, and people are most emotionally committed to getting this planet right. A weak Venus is likely to manifest itself in the form of recurring love failures, artistic stagnation, skin or reproductive health issues, or even in the fact that one is always earning money and yet never seems to keep it. Friday is the day of Venus, and this mantra is most effective when recited with an open heart and not merely going through the motions. It will make you more open to love and abundance over time and will also naturally make you more attractive and make you more aware of what is beautiful in the world around you. 

7. Shani (Saturn) — Om Praam Preem Praum Sah Shanaischaraya Namah

Saturn is the planet that causes most people anxiety, especially during Sade Sati, the seven-and-a-half-year cycle that visits each person at some stage in life. The thing is though, that Shani is not your enemy; he is, as a matter of fact, a strict teacher, but he is also a fair teacher and will only give you what you have earned by your own karma, nothing more and nothing less. In case of a malefic Saturn, you might also experience prolonged delays, loss of energy, depression, chronic illness, or financial strain that does not appear to have a definite end. Reciting this mantra on a Saturday, 108 times on a Rudraksha mala, is popularly thought of as one of the strongest antidotes against trouble with Saturn, and the one rule that is of utmost importance with this mantra is to be consistent since Shani is least bothered with anything except patience. 

8. Rahu — Om Bhraam Bhreem Bhraum Sah Rahave Namah

Rahu is a shadow planet that has no physical body in the sky, and one who has experienced a hard Rahu period knows that the consequences of its impact on actual life are more than just subtle. It generates obsessions, profound illusions, abrupt and unforeseen disturbances, and attraction to things that seem impossible to fulfill. Poorly located Rahu may result in mental disorientation, addictive behavior, irrational phobias, and difficulties with travels abroad or unorthodox life decisions. Chanting this mantra on Saturday or Wednesday is a good idea, and night chanting is usually preferable to morning chanting. The constant chanting slowly creates clarity of mind and a more healthy perspective of the reality of what is real and what is mere smoke and mirrors. 

9. Ketu — Om Straam Streem Straum Sah Ketave Namah

Ketu is the planet of spirituality, liberation, and extreme past-life karma, and it works in an entirely different manner than all the other planets since it does not attract you to this material world but rather drives you outside of it. A distressed Ketu in your chart can result in unexpected losses that appear out of the blue, unexplainable illnesses that doctors can hardly diagnose, and an unrelenting inner discontent despite the fact that everything in your exterior life appears to be just fine. Reciting this mantra at night, on Fridays or Saturdays, helps to make it less disturbing and, in any case, aids in the real spiritual development and the keen intuition Ketu at its best may bestow upon you. 

Intention matters more than perfect pronunciation
Proper pronunciation is certainly beneficial and worth practicing, though when you are chanting with sincerity and a sense of purpose in doing so, the mantra resonates with its origin even in the event that your Sanskrit is not impeccable. Fear of pronouncing it wrong is no excuse to quit. 

Your ruling day is your anchor point
Each planet is the ruler of a certain day: on Sunday the Sun, on Monday the Moon, on Tuesday Mars, on Wednesday Mercury, on Thursday Jupiter, on Friday Venus, and on Saturday Saturn, and Rahu and Ketu share Saturday. It is by starting your practice on the day of that planet and keeping it up through a 40-day cycle that results will be occasionally significant and sometimes of a genuinely important kind. 

108 repetitions is the standard
The number of repetitions is widely suggested to be 108 times in one sitting, and because a Rudraksha mala has 108 beads, it is easy to keep track of the number without having to continuously interrupt your concentration. 

Colour and direction genuinely add to the practice
Eastern morning chants, wearing the color related to the planet you are working with (yellow with Jupiter, white with the Moon, or blue or black with Saturn), and a mat of a similar color will help produce a more powerful and consistent energetic contact with the frequency of the planet you are working with. 

A clean lifestyle supports deeper results
When you undergo an intensive 40-day chanting cycle, it is best to avoid eating non-vegetarian food, and maintaining a smooth and regular routine throughout your day can make the mantra work and achieve a whole new level. Imagine it is like tilling the appropriate earth, and then the seed mantra has the appropriate environment to germinate.

This is genuinely the most common question that comes up for beginners who are new to this practice. In case you are already so familiar with your birth chart that you already know which planet is causing you the most trouble at the moment, then it is logical that you begin with the mantra of that particular planet. When in doubt or just feeling the need to be broadly covered and balanced in all aspects of your life, the combined Navagraha Mantra, which encompasses all 9 planets simultaneously, is a beautiful and secure starting point. 

"Om Adityaya Cha Somaya Mangalaya Budhaya Cha, Guru Shukra Shanibhyascha Rahave Ketave Namah."

This one mantra is a way of honoring all the nine planets as one and is effective in people who simply desire harmony but do not need to break down the details of their chart.