Among the Buddhist mantras commonly used by Tibetans, the Buddha Shakyamuni mantra – om muni muni maha muniye soha – is one of the most popular. (Along with some others, like the mantras associated with Avalokitesvara and Green Tara.) Many Tibetans recite this mantra every day, many times a day, while praying on [...]
Hand Mudras: How to Use the Vajra and Bell
July 28, 2012 By 5 Comments
To learn more about the use of hand mudras (chakya) in Tibetan Buddhist offering prayers, we recently attended a fascinating class by the Venerable Thupten Donyo, Founder and Director of the Gyuto Vajrayana Center in San Jose, California. We learned that these hand mudras, in general, represent various kinds of offerings to enlightened beings. [...]
White Tara
June 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment
White Tara and the 21 Taras Tibetans usually think of Tara as having 21 manifestations, as she does in the common Tibetan Buddhist prayer — In Praise of the 21 Taras. In each form she takes a different color — like Blue Tara and Black Tara — and offers a different energy or [...]
Green Tara Mantra: Om Tare Tuttare Ture Soha
April 14, 2012 By 24 Comments
In Tibetan Buddhism, om tare tuttare ture soha is an ancient mantra that is related to Tara, the “Mother of all Buddhas,” and especially to her manifestation as Green Tara. Tara, who Tibetans also call Dolma, is commonly thought to be a Bodhisatva or Buddha of compassion and action, a protector who comes to [...]
What Could Mean More? Om Mani Padme Hum
January 14, 2012 By 11 Comments
Om mani padme hum is an ancient mantra that is related to the boddhisatva of compassion, Avalokiteshvara, and with therefore the Dalai Lama, who is considered to be an incarnation of Avalokiteshvara. * Tibetans, who typically pronounce the mantra as “Om mani peme hung,” believe that Avalokiteshvara, who we call Chenrezig, has a very [...]
