Oṃ Śāntiḥ Śāntiḥ Śāntiḥ: Why Peace Is Said Three Times

Written and reviewed by The Kriya Yogi · Updated 19 September 2026

oṃ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ

Om, peace, peace, peace.

Source: The standard closing of Upanishadic śānti pāṭhas
Tradition: Vedic and Upanishadic liturgy
Traditional use: Closes almost every invocation and recitation.
Repetition: Three, always.

In short

It closes the śānti pāṭhas attached to the Upanishads — it is a conclusion, not a standalone mantra.
The traditional explanation: the three address disturbance from the world, from other beings, and from oneself.
That threefold reading comes from the commentarial tradition, not from the words themselves.
*Śānti* is peace in the sense of settling or subsiding, not of pleasantness.

Where it sits

This line closes the Upanishadic peace invocations — you will hear it at the end of saha nāv avatu, pūrṇam adaḥ and most others. It is a conclusion rather than a practice in itself, though it is often chanted alone.

Why three

The explanation given in the commentarial tradition is that the three repetitions address three kinds of disturbance: ādhidaivika (from forces beyond us), ādhibhautika (from the world and other beings), and ādhyātmika (from within ourselves). Listed in any order, the point is the same — peace is asked for at three ranges, ending with the nearest and hardest.

It is worth being precise: this reading is traditional commentary, not something the three words say on their own.

The word itself

Śānti comes from a root meaning to subside or become quiet. It is closer to "settling" than to "pleasantness" — which lines up neatly with the definition of yoga as the settling of the mind's movements in Yoga Sutras 1.2.

Questions & answers

+ Why is shanti chanted three times?

The traditional explanation is that it addresses three sources of disturbance — beyond us, around us, and within us. That is commentary rather than something the words state.

+ Can I chant om shanti on its own?

Yes, it is commonly used alone to close a practice, though traditionally it is the ending of a longer invocation.

Mantra recitation is a contemplative practice, not a treatment for any condition. Nothing here should be read as medical advice.