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Re amen and Om

From the Bhakti List Archives

A. Bharat • August 3, 1999 


Mani writes:

It would indeed be a strange metamorphosis for a composite syllable 
used so precisely in a religious context and treasured so carefully to 
have transformed into the multisyllabic "amen".
                 *******
    
However it is quite evident that both "Amen" and "Ameen" are
synonyms of "Aam" which exists both in Tamil and Sanskrit;
and was the universal response of assent for man, be he of
Indo-European or Semetic origin.

    But what is more interesting is that "Aam" and "Om"
were used interchangeably  for "yes" as seen in Sanskrit literature
AND Divyaprabandha commentaries! Hence clearly it was in
the spoken language of our forefathers during the past
two milenniums.

EmberumAnAr TiruvaDigaLE SaraNam!
aDiyEn
BHARAT