Buddhist mantras are sacred syllables mainly associated with tantric practice. They are very effective in protecting the minds of practitioners from all negativities and invoking the blessings from deities, thereby creating special conditions for attaining enlightenment. Among the immeasurable numbers of mantras, the benefits of the Mani mantra of Avalokiteshvara1 will be explained briefly here.
Generally, Guru Chöwang2 (1212–1270) said that whoever sees, hears or remembers, or touches, writes, holds or recites the Mani mantra will achieve all spiritual qualities and never be separate from Avalokiteshvara in all lifetimes. Likewise, the benefits of seeing the Mani mantra are explained in the text entitled the Sutra Designed like a Jewel Chest as follows:
“If the Mani mantra is seen by a man, woman, boy or girl, or even by a wild animal, bird, dog, cow, ox, horse, donkey or others, they will be born as bodhisattvas and also that will be their last ‘samsaric’ life.3 They will be liberated from the sufferings of birth, old age, sickness, death, meeting with what one does not want and separation from what one loves.”
Furthermore, it is stated in a tantra text that those who see this will achieve enlightenment.
The benefits of hearing the Mani mantra are indicated in many sutras like the Eleven-Faced Avalokiteshvara Heart Dharani Sutra and the Amoghapasha Sutra (Meaningful Lasso Sutra). According to these sutras, hearing the Mani mantra once is like generating the roots of limitless virtues: all of one’s wishes will be fully accomplished, and the misdeeds of defaming noble ones, abandoning the sublime dharma, and the ‘five heinous deeds’4 will be purified within that very life.
The benefits of remembering the Mani mantra are explained in the Sutra Designed like a Jewel Chest as follows: “One who remembers the Mani mantra will have peaceful life in the world and abandon all their suffering.”
The Buddha also explained that if one remembers this essential mantra, acts of the five heinous deeds, the ‘five deeds with similar consequences’,5 and all evil deeds will be purified; thereby one will never take rebirth in the hell, hungry ghost or animal realms. One will abandon the ‘eight non-freedoms’6 and will not experience sufferings of body, speech and mind. Moreover, one will be free from the fear of wild beasts, demons, humans, non-humans and sickness. One will realize the meaning of dharmakaya,7 experience a vision of the ‘form body’8 of Avalokiteshvara, and accomplish spiritual activities spontaneously.
The benefits of touching the Mani mantra are explained in the tantra entitled Shaking Samsara from its Depths, that whoever touches ‘the seven-syllable essence’9 with their body or any parts of the body will definitely born in the lotus-endowed realm. Thus, if one receives blessing from self-arisen, crafted or written Mani mantras, or touches them with any body part, one will take rebirth in the Realm of Great Bliss (the pure land of Buddha Amitabha), one will achieve avinivartaniya-bhumi,10 and receive many other benefits. As the Sutra Designed like a Jewel Chest states: “The one who simply touches the Mani mantra will achieve avinivartaniya-bhumi.”
The benefits of writing Mani mantra with gold, silver or precious minerals are that one will be able to accumulate infinite merits; it was proclaimed by the Buddha that one who writes the Mani mantra performs an action that is equivalent to that of writing all ‘84,000 gates of Dharma’.11 The merit of writing even a single syllable of this mantra is greater than that of building as many golden statues of the Buddha as there are subtle particles, and offering relics daily to them. One will become a universal emperor, will be extremely fearless and will achieve many other great qualities as well.
The benefits of holding the Mani mantra are explained in the text entitled the Quintessential Lotus Sutra as follows: “If a person possessing this mantra takes a bath along the shore of a river, consequently, whoever comes into contact with this very water or drinks it will purify all negativities and obscurations and will not take rebirth in the lower realms.” It is also stated in the Sutra Designed like a Jewel Chest that whoever wears the ‘six-syllable mantra’12 on one’s body, that should be regarded as a vajra body, a stupa and ten millions relics of the Buddha. Furthermore, whoever holds this mantra will be free of attachment, hatred, delusion, pride and envy.
There are infinite benefits to visualizing the Mani mantra such as attaining enlightenment in this very lifetime, or if not, in the next life by taking rebirth in the Blissful Pure Land, as stated in the Mahayana texts: “The Mani mantra is the essence of a wish-fulfilling jewel, and a treasury of the inexhaustible sphere of reality. If this mantra is visualized and recited always, superior practitioners will attain enlightenment in this lifetime; intermediate ones will attain enlightenment in the ‘intermediate state’;13 and inferior ones will miraculously take birth from a lotus in the presence of Buddha Amitabha, in the Blissful Pure Land, and will achieve liberation in that very lifetime. This also possesses benefits which are inconceivable, immeasurable, inexpressible, unsurpassable and beyond any extremes of expression.” The benefits of visualising this mantra are also proclaimed in the text entitled Supreme Knowledge Tantra as follows:
Since whoever visualizes this essence
Is Avalokiteshvara, the Great Compassionate One,
One will be free of obstacles and obscurations, and will be able to benefit sentient beings;
One will dominate all phenomenal existence of samsara and nirvana.
Some of the benefits of reciting the Mani mantra are that one will receive blessings from millions of buddhas; one will obtain a wish-fulfilling jewel; even one’s family will be saved from taking rebirth in the lower realms; and one will possess great love and compassion. As the text entitled the Sutra Designed like a Jewel Chest highlights: “When someone recites this great mantra, the ten million buddhas will be seated in every pore of this very noble son; therefore, he will obtain such wish-fulfilling jewels. For seven generations this noble son’s family will not take rebirth in the lower realms. Noble son, all creatures living in your belly will become non-returner bodhisattvas. Furthermore, if any noble son or noble daughter recites the six-syllable mantra, their courage will become inexhaustible, they will become an embodiment of the wisdom form, and they will possess great love and compassion. They will perfectly complete the six paramitas14 every day and this will enable them to achieve the vidyadhara levels.”15 It is also said that the number of subtle particles can be calculated, but the merit of reciting the six-syllable mantra even once is incalculable. One will not take rebirth in any of the lower realms, including the Most Torturous Hell realm; one will be free from all diseases, never separate from Avalokiteshvara wherever one is born, and will eventually attain enlightenment.
The benefits of teaching the Mani mantra to others are explained in a sutra as follows: “The proponents of the buddhadharma holding this great Mani mantra are extremely rare; one must regard them as the Buddha.” It is also said that since this profound mantra is the sublime essence of Avalokiteshvara; the one who knows how to teach this knows how to show the path of liberation. These are the priceless words of the Buddha and it was predicted that this essence should be taught during the degenerate age of strife for the well-being of all sentient beings.
Just like the sun that illuminates the darkness of our earth, this six-syllable essence dispels the darkness of our ignorance. Last, but clearly not least, the virtue of sharing a single aspect of the Mani mantra’s benefits from the profound treasury of buddhadharma is dedicated to the longevity of His Holiness the Fourth Drubwang Padma Norbu Rinpoche and all the living masters of Buddhism. May all beings attain enlightenment!
By Lopon Geduen Drukpa
Namdroling
- The Lord of Great Compassion or the Buddha of Compassion.
- One of the Five Tertön Kings, or five king-like treasure discoverers.
- Life in cyclic existence, or this ordinary world.
- The five grave deeds with immediate result: killing one’s father; killing one’s mother; killing an arhat; with bad intention; causing blood to flow from the body of a Buddha; and causing dissension in the spiritual community.
- Engaging in sexual misconduct with female arhat, killing a bodhisattva, killing a monk, robbing property of the sangha and destroying a stupa.
- Birth as a hell being, hungry ghost, animal, long-lived god, barbarian, with wrong views, in a time without buddhas, or as one mentally handicapped or without speech.
- Realizing the true ultimate nature of one’s own mind.
- Buddha Bodies of Form—the body of perfect rapture (sambhogakaya) and the emanation body (nirmanakaya).
- The seven-syllable mantra is ‘om ma ni pad me hung hri’.
- The stage of non-regression.
- The eighty-four thousand divisions of the Dharma, taught by the Buddha to liberate all sentient beings from immense suffering.
- The six-syllable mantra is ‘om ma ni pad me hung’.
- Usually refers to the period between death and the next rebirth.
- The six transcendent actions of generosity, discipline, patience, diligence, concentration, and discriminating knowledge.
- Vidyadhara level is based on the four stages on the tantric path of Mahayoga. There are four Vidyadhara levels or four kinds of holders of intrinsic awareness which result from Mahayoga practice: Vidyadhara holder of complete ripening, Vidyadhara holder of long life, Vidyadhara holder of mahamudra and Vidyadhara holder of self-perfection.
