The six-character mantra of Tibetan Buddhism

 

The six-character mantra of Tibetan Buddhism

 

When Agudengpa and Lacuo chatted about Tibetan "Buddhism", the two started chatting about the "Six-Character Mantra" in Tibetan Buddhism.

Agudemba said:

The Six-Character Mantra, the Six-Character Sutra, or the Six-Character Great Ming Mantra is the six-character Tibetan "Buddhist" mantra of "Om, Mah, Ni, Ba, Mi, and Hum". It is said to be the fundamental mantra of the secret lotus branch of Buddhism. There are many interpretations of the "Six-Character Mantra", but the fundamentals are nothing more than the following:

(1) The six-character mantra, "Om" means "Buddha's mind", means that when you recite this word, your body should correspond to the Buddha's body, your mouth should correspond to the Buddha's mouth, and your mind should correspond to the Buddha's mind. Think of body, speech Only when one's mind is integrated with the Buddha can one achieve success; "Mani" means "wish-fulfilling treasure" in Sanskrit, which means "treasure heart". It is said that this treasure comes from the brain of the Dragon King. If you get this pearl, you can gather all the treasures in the sea. You can go up the mountain without finding any treasures, so it is also called "Jubao"; "Pami" means "lotus" in Sanskrit, which means "lotus heart", which is a metaphor for the nature of the law as pure and flawless as a lotus; "Hum" means "Vajra Part" "Heart" means to pray for success, which means that you must rely on the power of the Buddha.

(2) Songtsen Gampo's "Collection of Mani's Teachings" elaborates on the various practice methods and profound meanings of the "Six-Character Mantra". Say that the six characters in the "Six-Character Mantra" represent the salvation of sentient beings in the six paths, the elimination of the six kinds of troubles, the practice of the six prajna practices, the acquisition of the six kinds of Buddha bodies, the birth of the six kinds of wisdom, etc.;

(3) "Tibetan Buddhist Chanting Collection" says: "Om" has the five wisdoms, "Ma" pervades all kindness, "Ne" guides the six beings, "Ba" relieves all suffering, "Mi" means the suffering of Brahma people, "Hum" gathers all the merits. The six words are blessed, and all sentient beings in the snowy land are willing to go to the path of liberation! Blessed by all the Buddhas, it is the most precise treasure, the source of welfare, the foundation of achievement, the stage of rebirth in the good destination, and the gate of the evil destiny is closed.

Tibetan Buddhists often recite the six-character mantra, just like mainland Buddhists often recite "Namo Amitabha". In Tibetan areas, the "Six-Character Mantra" has become the most commonly used mantra in Tibetan Buddhism, to the point where almost everyone knows it and doesn't recite it. Many people were born and died while reciting the Six-Character Mantra.

The Six-Character Mantra almost accompanies the long lives of religious monks and laypeople. In Tibetan areas, you can see the writing of the Six-Character Mantra everywhere. The "Six-Character Mantra" is printed on prayer flags and flutters in the mountains, rivers, lakes, and pastoral temples. top. Flying in the sky, flowing in rivers, and carved on stone cliffs, they accumulate over time to form a spectacular plateau Mani stone carving wonder. For example, there are hundreds of millions of Mani stone carvings in one place in Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province.

Around Tibetan Buddhist temples and temples, there are countless mani wheels containing the "six-character mantra". In some Tibetan homes, there are mani wheels lined up on both sides of the doorway, which are small enough for believers to hold in their hands. The six-character mantra is engraved on the prayer wheel, and the same six-character mantra is engraved on the prayer wheel as big as a house. Others are written on wide and long strips of cloth and hidden in sutra tubes.

For thousands of years, Tibetan monks and laypeople have used this short mantra to pray for happiness, drive away worries, and purify the soul. Tibetan Buddhists' profound respect for the Six-Character Mantra and their pious belief are truly extraordinary.

Agudengba said to Lacuo:

I believe that the "Six-Character Mantra" widely circulated in Tibetan Buddhism is directly derived from Tantric Buddhism. The "Six-Character Mantra" was originally a prayer in India. It was inherited by Brahmanism and Hinduism, and was even absorbed by Esoteric Buddhism. As a mantra of Tantric Buddhism, it has been circulated over and over again, and its ancient meaning has gradually been forgotten. You know it, but you can't understand why.

The first and last two characters of the "Six-Character Mantra" are function words, and the middle two characters are content words. The original meaning of Sanskrit is "Om! Maniba, Mi, Hum!" "Om" and "Hum" are function words, which have the meaning of "sacred" and "auspicious" in ancient Indian culture. "Mani" is translated as "Mani" in Chinese, and its original meaning in Sanskrit is "baozhu"; "Ba, Mi" means "red lotus". From this, we can simply understand the "Six-Character Mantra" according to its original meaning in Sanskrit as: "Holy! The orb on the red lotus is auspicious!".

If the six-character mantra is the foundation of Tibetan Buddhist scriptures, then the six-character mantra is also the badge of Tibetan Buddhism. Today, when the world is paying attention to the study of Tibetan Buddhist culture, the Six-Character Mantra is not simply a prayer for people to pray for happiness, but has a more charming cultural connotation - that is, it unites the hearts of millions of monks and lay people, making them Constantly strive for self-improvement and move forward courageously.

Lacuo was speechless and said nothing more.

Agudengba pointed to the snow-capped mountains in the distance and sang an impromptu song "Six-Character Mantra":

 

The Tantric Mantras of the Buddhas,

The elites of all dharma collections,

All living beings are auspicious,

The Six-Character Ming of Initiation.

 

"Om" can eliminate the suffering of life and death in the heavenly realm.

"Ma" can eliminate the pain of non-natural struggle,

"Ne" can eliminate the pain of birth, old age, illness and death,

"Ba" can eliminate the pain of working as an animal,

"Mi" can eliminate the hunger and thirst of hungry ghosts,

"Hum" can eliminate the pain of hot and cold hells.

 

Initiation of the hearts of all Buddhas,

Now I will teach you,

All the Buddhas gathered together,

Initiate the Mingwang Mantra.