The most basic mantra is a single syllable repeated over and over. Most people have heard of the "Om" repeated during meditation. Some actually enunciate the "om", while others use a sort of hum. With a monosyllabic mantra, whichever sound you use, the purpose is to clear the mind of outside thoughts and distractions. It takes a bit of metacognition, but if you stop for a minute and "listen to yourself think", you will be surprised at all of the thoughts that run through your head at a near ceaseless pace. Writers call this "stream of consciousness" technique - writing as if you in someone's head, seeing their thoughts. Take a minute and become conscious of all the thoughts that go through your mind constantly. Most of us cannot sit quietly and think NOTHING. It sounds ironic, but it takes a lot of practice to actually clear your mind. It's like the old cliche...tell someone not to think of a pink elephant for the next 5 minutes...and what do they think of? A pink elephant! A monosyllabic mantra helps to clear the mind of this "endless chatter" to allow for a state of true relaxation and communion with the inner self and the divine. When you vocalize a single syllable, you can at the same time concentrate and think of only that sound. You lose yourself in the sound and are able to interrupt normal consciousness and mental chatter.
The other type of mantra takes the form of a prayer. It is akin to the monosyllabic mantra in that you are focusing solely on the sounds you are making, but you are putting a specific purpose behind the sound. You are asking God, or Goddess, as you understand him or her, to give you a specific message or, if you are not a theistic person, seeking for a very specific message from the inner reaches of your soul. This is where yoga can embrace people of any religion, or people of no religion. What you pray for in your mantric meditation is a private matter between you and your deity/self. The important thing is the focus and the heightened sense of consciousness you acquire.
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