Generally people can be divided into two broad categories: the Shaivites, who worship Lord Shiva as the supreme, and the Vaishnavites, who worship Lord Vishnu and His forms as the the supreme Being. The most significant Mantra for any Vaishnavite is the 'Ashtakshari' (it contains eight letters in sanskrit) mantra 'Om Namo Narayana' .
The chief among the Mantras for the Shaivites is the Panchakshari (5 lettered) mantra, 'Om Nama Shivaya'. Without the letter ‘ra’, ‘Narayana’ would read as ‘Nayana’ that means one without a way (‘gati’); without the letter ‘ma’, ‘Namasivaya’ would read as ‘Nasivaya’ that means inauspicious.
So the jiva akshara (life giving letters) 'Ra' and 'Ma' of these two Mantras are put together to form the Rama Nama!
Anyone chanting this Divine Name thus worships both Shiva and Vishnu at the same time.
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