Om mani padme hum

The mantra in Tibetan script

"om manipadme hūṃ", written in Tibetan script on a rock outside the Potala Palace in Tibet

Oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ^[1] (Sanskrit: ओं मणिपद्मे हूं, IPA: [õːː məɳipəd̪meː ɦũː]) is the six syllabled mantra particularly associated with the four-armed Shadakshari form of Avalokiteshvara (Tibetan Chenrezig, Chinese Guanyin), the bodhisattva of compassion. Mani means "the jewel" and Padma means "the lotus".

The mantra is especially revered by devotees of the Dalai Lama, as he is said to be an incarnation of Chenrezig or Avalokiteshvara.

It is commonly carved onto rocks or written on paper which is inserted into prayer wheels, said to increase the mantra's effects.

Transliterations

Om Mani Peme Hung in Tibetan script

In English the mantra is variously transliterated, depending on the schools of Buddhism as well as individual teachers.

Most authorities consider maṇipadme to be one compound word rather than two simple words^{[citation needed]}. Sanskrit writing does not have capital letters leaving capitalisation of transliterated mantras varying irrationally from all caps, to initial caps, to no caps. All caps is typical of older scholarly works, and in Tibetan Sadhana texts.

Possible spellings and their transliterations include:

Language	Script	Transliteration and notes
Tibetan	ༀམཎིཔདྨེཧཱུྃ།	Om Mani Peme Hung or Om Mani Beh Meh Hung or Om mani padme hum (Ladakh)
Devanagari	ओं मणिपद्मे हूँ;	IAST: oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ
Bengali	ওঁ মণিপদ্মে হুঁ
Malayalam	ഓം മണി പദ്മേ ഹും
Tamil	ஓம் மணி பத்மே ஹூம்
Chinese	嗡嘛呢叭咩吽	Om Má Ní Bā Me Hōng
Chinese	唵嘛呢叭咪吽	pinyin Ǎn mání bāmī hōng (due to changes over time in pronunciation, this transcription has been adopted in favor of the transliteration found in the Karandavyuha Sutra, 唵麼抳缽訥銘吽 Ǎn mání bōnàmíng hōng)
Korean Hangul	옴 마니 파드메 훔	Om mani padeume hum
Korean Hangul	옴 마니 반메 훔	Om mani banme hum
Japanese Katakana	オーン マニ パドメー フーン	Ōn mani padomē hūn
Japanese Katakana	オン マニ ペメ フン	On mani peme hun
Russian	Ом мани падме хум
Mongolian	Ум маани бадми хум	Um maani badmi khum
Vietnamese	Úm ma ni bát ni hồng
Vietnamese	Án ma ni bát mê hồng
Thai	โอมฺ มณิ ปทฺเม หูมฺ

Meaning

The mantra with the six syllables coloured

Mantras may be interpreted by practitioners in many ways, or even as mere sequences of sound whose effects lie beyond strict meaning.

The middle part of the mantra, maṇipadme, is often interpreted as "jewel in the lotus," Sanskrit maṇí "jewel, gem, cintamani" and the locative of padma "lotus", but according to Donald Lopez it is much more likely that maṇipadme is in fact a vocative, not a locative, addressing a bodhisattva called maṇipadma, "Jewel-Lotus"- an alternate epithet of the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara.^[2] It is preceded by the oṃ syllable and followed by the hūṃ syllable, both interjections without linguistic meaning.

Lopez also notes that the majority of Tibetan Buddhist texts have regarded the translation of the mantra as secondary, focusing instead on the correspondence of the six syllables of the mantra to various other groupings of six in the Buddhist tradition.^[3] For example, in the Chenrezig Sadhana, Tsangsar Tulku Rinpoche expands upon the mantra's meaning, taking its six syllables to represent the purification of the six realms of existence:^[4]

Syllable	Six Pāramitās	Purifies	Samsaric realm	Colours	Symbol of the Deity	(Wish them) To be born in
Om	Generosity	Pride / Ego	Devas	White	Wisdom	Perfect Realm of Potala
Ma	Ethics	Jealousy / Lust for entertainment	Asuras	Green	Compassion	Perfect Realm of Potala
Ni	Patience	Passion / desire	Humans	Yellow	Body, speech, mind quality and activity	Dewachen
Pad	Diligence	Ignorance / prejudice	Animals	Blue	Equanimity	the presence of Protector (Chenrezig)
Me	Renunciation	Poverty / possessiveness	Pretas (hungry ghosts)	Red	Bliss	Perfect Realm of Potala
Hum	Wisdom	Aggression / hatred	Naraka	Black	Quality of Compassion	the presence of the Lotus Throne (of Chenrezig)

Karandavyuha Sutra definition

The first known description of the mantra appears in the Karandavyuha Sutra (Chinese: 佛說大乘莊嚴寶王經 (Taisho Tripitaka 1050);^[5] English: Buddha speaks Mahayana Sublime Treasure King Sutra), which is part of certain Mahayana canons such as the Tibetan. In this sutra, Shakyamuni Buddha states, "This is the most beneficial mantra. Even I made this aspiration to all the million Buddhas and subsequently received this teaching from Buddha Amitabha."^[6]

H.H. the 14th Dalai Lama's definition

"It is very good to recite the mantra Om mani padme hum, but while you are doing it, you should be thinking on its meaning, for the meaning of the six syllables is great and vast... The first, Om [...] symbolizes the practitioner's impure body, speech, and mind; it also symbolizes the pure exalted body, speech, and mind of a Buddha[...]"

"The path is indicated by the next four syllables. Mani, meaning jewel, symbolizes the factors of method: (the) altruistic intention to become enlightened, compassion, and love.[...]"

"The two syllables, padme, meaning lotus, symbolize wisdom[...]"

"Purity must be achieved by an indivisible unity of method and wisdom, symbolized by the final syllable hum, which indicates indivisibility[...]"

"Thus the six syllables, om mani padme hum, mean that in dependence on the practice of a path which is an indivisible union of method and wisdom, you can transform your impure body, speech, and mind into the pure exalted body, speech, and mind of a Buddha[...]"

-- H.H. Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama, "Om Mani Padme Hum"^[7]

Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche's definition

"The mantra Om Mani Päme Hum is easy to say yet quite powerful, because it contains the essence of the entire teaching. When you say the first syllable Om it is blessed to help you achieve perfection in the practice of generosity, Ma helps perfect the practice of pure ethics, and Ni helps achieve perfection in the practice of tolerance and patience. Pä, the fourth syllable, helps to achieve perfection of perseverance, Me helps achieve perfection in the practice of concentration, and the final sixth syllable Hum helps achieve perfection in the practice of wisdom.

"So in this way recitation of the mantra helps achieve perfection in the six practices from generosity to wisdom. The path of these six perfections is the path walked by all the Buddhas of the three times. What could then be more meaningful than to say the mantra and accomplish the six perfections?"

— Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Heart Treasure of the Enlightened Ones^[8]

Karma Thubten Trinley's definition

"These are the six syllables which prevent rebirth into the six realms of cyclic existence. It translates literally as 'OM the jewel in the lotus HUM'. OM prevents rebirth in the god realm, MA prevents rebirth in the Asura (Titan) Realm, NI prevents rebirth in the Human realm, PA prevents rebirth in the Animal realm, ME prevents rebirth in the Hungry ghost realm, and HUM prevents rebirth in the Hell realm."

—Karma Thubten Trinley^{[citation needed]}

Variation

The mantra: Om Mani Peme Hung Hri

As Bucknell, et al. (1986: p. 15) opine, the complete Avalokiteshvara Mantra includes a final hrīḥ (Sanskrit: ह्रीः, IPA: [ɦriːh]), which is iconographically depicted in the central space of the syllabic mandala as seen in the ceiling decoration of the Potala Palace.^[9] The hrīḥ is not always vocalized audibly, and may be resonated "internally" or "secretly" through intentionality.

Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism

The first known citation of the mantra occurs in the Karandavyuha Sutra published in the 11th Century which appears in the Chinese Buddhist canon.^[5] However, some Buddhist scholars argue that the mantra as practiced in Tibetan Buddhism was based on the Sadhanamala, a collection of sadhana published in the twelfth century.^[10]

Sufi variation

This mantra is also currently practiced by Sufis, with some variation, in the Naqshbandi tariqa ruled by Arif Shah, Omar Ali Shah's son and heir. They say this mantra originated in Afghanistan.

Music

• DharmaSound: Oṃ Maṇi Padme Hūṃ (see Buddhismo Ch'an/Zen and Buddhismo Vajrayāna)
• "Om Mani Padme Hum" by Snuffaluffagus
• "Strange Phenomena" by Kate Bush
• "Om Mani Peme Hung" by Dead Skeletons
• "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence - FYI" by Utada Hikaru
• Mani by Mantrasphere

Literature

• "Thoughts Sitting Breathing" by Allen Ginsberg
• "I Will Fear No Evil" by Robert Heinlein

Bibliography

• Teachings from the Mani retreat, Chenrezig Institute, December 2000 (2001) by Shramana Lama Zopa Rinpoche, ISBN 978-1891868108, Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive downloadable
• Bucknell, Roderick & Stuart-Fox, Martin (1986). The Twilight Language: Explorations in Buddhist Meditation and Symbolism. Curzon Press: London. ISBN 0-312-82540-4
• Lopez, Donald (1998). Prisoners of Shangri-La: Tibetan Buddhism and the West. University of Chicago Press: Chicago. ISBN 0-226-49311-3.

See also

• Ashtamangala
• Buddhism
• Great Compassion Mantra – Expanded Compassion of Om Mani Padma Hum
• Heart sutra
• Karandavyuha Sutra
• Mani stone
• Mantra
• Samsara
• Shurangama Mantra – Expanded Protective Power of Om Mani Padma Hum

Footnotes

1. ^ Pronunciation of the mantra as chanted by a Tibetan refugee: Wave Format and Real Audio Format.
2. ^ Lopez, 331; the vocative would have to be feminine
3. ^ Lopez, 130
4. ^ Tsangsar Tulku Rinpoche, Chenrezig sadhana
5. ^ ^{a b} Studholme, Alexander (2002). The Origins of Om Manipadme Hum: A Study of the Karandavyuha Sutra. State University of New York Press. pp. 256. ISBN 0791453901. 
6. ^ Khandro.net: Mantras
7. ^ Gyatso, Tenzin. Om Mani Padme Hum
8. ^ Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Heart Treasure of the Enlightened Ones. ISBN 0-87773-493-3
9. ^ Bucknell, Roderick & Stuart-Fox, Martin (1986). The Twilight Language: Explorations in Buddhist Meditation and Symbolism. Curzon Press: London. ISBN 0-312-82540-4, p.15
10. ^ Li, Yu. "Analysis of the Six Syllable practice - the relationship between The Six Syllable and Amitabha". http://www.cqvip.com/QK/80443X/2003002/8922419.html. Retrieved September 1, 2008. 

Further reading

• Alexander Studholme: The Origins of Om Manipadme Hum. Albany NY: State University of New York Press, 2002 ISBN 0-7914-5389-8 (incl. Table of Contents)
• Mark Unno: Shingon Refractions: Myōe and the Mantra of Light. Somerville MA, USA: Wisdom Publications, 2004 ISBN 0-86171-390-7
• Bucknell, Roderick & Stuart-Fox, Martin (1986). The Twilight Language: Explorations in Buddhist Meditation and Symbolism. Curzon Press: London. ISBN 0-312-82540-4
• A.H. Francke: The Meaning of Om Mani Padme-Hum, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1915
• Lama Anagarika Govinda: Foundations of Tibetan Mysticism, 1969. Samuel Weiser, Inc: NYC, NY. ISBN 0-87728-064-9.
• Lopez, D. S. (jr.) Prisoners of Shangri-la : Tibetan Buddhism and the West. Chicago University Press, 1988. (p.114ff.)
• Rodger Kamenetz: The Jew in the Lotus (PLUS) with an afterword by the author. (HarperOne, 2007) non-fiction. Table of Contents

External links

• Tibetan calligraphy styles of the Mani Mantra
• Dharma Haven: Om Mani Padme Hum
• Khandro.net: Mantra
• Andrew West, An article on Om Mani Padme Hum in different scripts
• Buddha speaks Mahayana Sublime Treasure King Sutra English translation of Karandavyuha Sutra
• "Om Mani Padme Hum" Songs - collection 13 version of "Om Mani Padme Hum" songs (on 4 albums Mantra)