OM MANI PADME HUM

Meeting with disciples on auspicious days is good and giving them simple guidance that leads to more serious cultivation will help them to move along with greater meaning and progress. However, the state of mind of those who are present is important. When they come with full faith and enjoy having a private gathering for the purpose of learning and worship, things will be smooth. But there are always one or two who do not have a happy mind, an eager mind, or the right state of mind which is free from false thoughts, and this causes the vibrations to be stepped down. Only when all have a mind which is faith-filled, when they are here without being urged, and when they are here purely to enjoy reciting prayers or even sitting quietly together with others who are not expecting blessings or merits but indulge in pure thoughts which purify themselves and benefit others, will Niang descend with full heart and give the blessings as they deserve. Then they may hear or see, what will benefit them through meaningful messages or sights. Then that gathering will be a blessed one.

Disciples have lost their tracks and some do not treat the prayers with correct attitudes. To have to sit and recite prayers without deeper meaning is but a waste of time, which, although is a good act, is quite meritless. To indulge in prayers out of habit or compulsion, out of necessity, and depending on the mood of the day, they sink back to the minds of the uninitiated. It is allowed to pray for self-gain, blessing for oneself and the family, but this manner of praying is performed by those who have no understanding whatsoever of the path of progress. Spiritual attainment is not possible when prayers are recited out of selfish effort and the Bodhisattva’s prayers in the forms of mantras and dharanis have been recited needlessly. Without compassion as the energy, one should not invoke the Bodhisattvas, one need not think of spiritual progress without the true spirit as contained in the Mahayana teachings, the worship of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas is lost and all the prayers that have been recited are hollow in nature.

Disciples who recite the “Mani Prayer” should do it with effort, with love and with aspirations. It is not enough to recite three or five rosaries (malas), even ten is inadequate, so that they should recite until oneness with the prayer has been experienced. Then the prayer lives in the mind, becomes a living energy that can be felt, and devotion has begun. In a group, the Mani Prayer may be recited with dedication, with guided aspirations so that recitation will bear weight. To recite a few thousand times of the ‘Om Mani Padme Hum’ is no great task, but to recite it once, with the right aspiration, how much more efficacious it becomes.

The Mani Mantra is filled with meanings and powers which can be developed by the mind. Since myriad beings recite it and each has his own thought with regard to the mantra, how is it possible to describe what this great mantra really means? To those who are in danger and their lives have been spared through the recitation of this prayer, then it is meant to be used during emergencies or when faced with danger. To those who have difficulty with childbirth and this prayer has helped them, then it is especially meant for pregnant women. To those who have stress and pains and this prayer brings them relief, then the Mani Prayer removes sufferings. How can the power of these wondrous sounds end if not to say that they are the sounds of blessings to one and all, for every situation and occasion?

Bring forth the power of the Mani then whenever you place your hands together and this prayer is being recited. Use your wisdom to embrace all beings so that your effort will benefit more than just a few. Learn selflessness through this prayer, in fact, learn more about what you can be, through these six sounds.

‘Om Mani Padme Hum’ has been explained to be beneficent to the beings of the six existences. It is said that the ‘Om’ benefits the gods in the Deva realm, the ‘Ma’ blesses the asuras, the ‘Ni’ brings relief to the humans, and so on, but there is more to it than that. It is up to one to generate much more vivid details so that these words can truly and quickly help the beings of these realms. It has been taught that the “Om” closes the door of rebirth into the Deva World, the “Ma” severs the link with the Asura World, and so on, what else can one think of that will make the prayer much more wonderful?

The lazy minds follow the explanation and pray according to what have been told. They will enjoy the feelings derived out of those meanings, but only for a while. Soon they will find it to be quite meaningless and yearn for yet other aspirations. Instead of depending on others to make your prayers more meaningful, try being creative for a change and see how much more wonderful inspirational thoughts that your mind can create.

The next time you lead others to pray for the benefit of the beings of the six realms, try saying a full rosary for each. This will give time for deeper reflections and much more meaningful dedications. Having set the mind thus, then the prayers may be recited without haste so that during the first rosary of 108 times, you can be reciting while the mind dwells on the thought that since the devas already have vast merits and have the happy environment and conditions to cultivate, may your prayers, especially the ‘Om’ awaken them to generate the thought of cultivation.

As you pray, you may visualise the devas hearing the sounds of the prayer and, as many as you can imagine, join in the prayers. This way of thinking will form a link between you and the devas so that they in turn will do their best to help you in your practice of the Dharma. When the second rosary is recited with the stress on the ‘Ma’ syllable, imagine the asuras losing their jealous thoughts and gain realisation that they too are having the great advantage as enjoyed by the devas, that you are in the midst and leading them to awaken to the fact that they too have better conditions than beings of the lower existences to cultivate. In this way, these fierce gods too will befriend and protect you from the interferers who are hindrances to your path of practice. During the third rosary, you imagine all the people in the world seated around you and in a state of prayers. Imagine a very calm scene with happy and contented beings who are aware of the teachings of the Buddha and are inclined to practise the Eightfold Path. During the prayers, visualise the host of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas around, listening to their prayers and sending forth rays of light which will help to reduce their evil karma. Train your thoughts specifically on their recovery of the divine blessings. Those whom you love or hate, let them be seated before you and thus receiving the blessings first. For the animals, pray that human’s do not kill them needlessly, that they be free from ills and pains and that they will quickly take rebirth in the human realm where the Dharma is heard. When praying for the benefit of the pretas, imagine that as you pray, they too are able to join you, that during the duration of prayer recitation, the ‘Me’ will bring cessation to their thirst and hunger, that for once they have found the formula to satisfy their desires and that they will have the wisdom to use the Mani Prayer to bring relief to their suffering, shorten their lives in this terrible realm, and quickly take rebirth as cultivators. Finally for the hell-beings whose sufferings are unimaginable, let the “Hum” be loud and clear so as to penetrate that realm and bring suffering to a halt as long as you are praying.

Let this be the time for the hell being to realise their past misdeeds, repent, and vow that in their future lifetimes they will avoid non-virtuous thoughts, deeds and words. Let them have a longer rest and recite the prayer unhurriedly. Know for sure that these suffering beings have been related to you in your past lives and that it is your duty to think of them, to pass them your merits, to halt their sufferings through your prayers and compassionate thought, and to lead them out of the horrible hells.

Imagine the host of Bodhisattvas together with Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva radiating them lights which are healing balms to ease their great pains, and consciously wishing that they will henceforth take better rebirth which have conditions to cultivate.

How you think of them will depend on your nature. If you are able to realise that only good karmic roots can bring them out of hell, then from now onwards, whenever you practise, imagine your prayers as fertilisers which will then surface their good karmic roots so that rebirth is hastened. By this method, you will experience the benefits of a purposeful prayer session. You will be led to contemplation so that the Dharma will be much more appealing to you. You have then created the right conditions to induce yourself into cultivation - and will no longer find prayers to be meaningless.

Learn to find more meaning through seeing your mind. Life cannot be meaningless when the goal is of such importance. Liberation from suffering is only possible when there is life and even though some may be faced with misfortunes of all kinds including ill health, there is always hope when there are still bodhisattvas around!

Tuesday, 21st May 1985 (4th Moon 2nd Day )