Canonical definition
This category covers mantras defined by their ritual function rather than their textual genre — the saṃkalpa (statement of ritual intention) that opens any pūjā, prāṇāyāma mantras used in breath practice, and the specific mantra sets attached to each of the sixteen life-cycle saṃskāras (Upanayana, Vivāha, Antyeṣṭi, and others). These mantras are often drawn from Vedic sources but are grouped here by how they are used rather than where they originate.