Category: Buddhist Meditation | Buddhist Path | Love & Compassion Meditation | Recent Meditation Posts
The om mani padme hum mantra encompasses multiple layers of meaning. Literally translated as ‘jewel in the lotus,’ this compassion mantra contains the essence of all dharma within its six syllables.
Om Mani Padme Hum Meaning (Revered Buddhist Mantra Explained)
Om mani padme hum is among the most popular Buddhist mantras. A mantra is a sacred word or phrase, used in meditation practice to protect the mind. In meditation, one might repeat a mantra silently to themselves, speak or sing it. Reciting a mantra involves body, speech and mind in our meditation practice. As we say the mantra aloud, we benefit from contemplating its meaning while sensing its vibration in our body.
The Buddhist Sanskrit mantra ‘om mani padme hum’ (pronounced ‘om mane peme hung’ in Tibetan) represents the sacred speech of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara. This profound mantra has multiple layers of meaning, which we can explore in depth during meditation.
Avalokiteshvara, known as Chenrezig in Tibetan, is the bodhisattva of Great Compassion. He is the jewel in the lotus, the compassion that arises in the presence of suffering. In its most literal translation, this mantra exclaims ‘the jewel in the lotus!’ The Sanskrit word mani means jewel, while padme translates to lotus. The jewel symbolizes compassion, while the lotus represents wisdom. Together, compassion and wisdom represent the essence of Mahayana Buddhism.
To repeat the mantra then, is to evoke the Buddhas and bodhisattvas of compassion and their blessing. It brings to mind the union of compassion and wisdom and their power to free us from suffering, stoking bodhicitta. The meaning of om mani padme hum, however, doesn’t end there.
The Six Syllables Of Om Mani Padme Hum
Om is a sacred syllable that typically signifies the beginning of a mantra, while hum signifies its completion. Om, pronounced as ah-uh-hum, represents the impure body, speech and mind of us ordinary human beings as well as the pure body, speech and mind of the Buddha. It is a reminder that through purification, we can transform into enlightened beings, just as the Buddha did.
Mani is the method of transformation. Just as a jewel transforms poverty into riches, fulfilling our desires, bodhicitta, the altruistic pursuit of enlightenment, transforms our suffering into contentment.
Padme, the lotus, reminds us that this transformation is not a process of becoming something that we are not. It is the process of our own true nature revealing itself. Just as a lotus grows out of mud, unsoiled and perfect in its beauty, we too have an untainted beauty within, waiting to arise.
Hum, the final symbol, represents the union of mani and padme. More than just a signifier of the completion of the mantra, it represents the non-dual awareness within our hearts. Functioning as an imperative, it implores the Buddha of Great Compassion to ‘make it so,’ to bless us with the great perfection of compassion and wisdom joined.
Collectively, we could think of om as representative of the body of a Buddha, mani padme as representative of the Buddha’s speech, and hum as representative of the Buddha’s mind. The om mani padme hum meaning can also be broken down into six separate syllables.
Each of the six syllables represents one of the six realms of being. They are also representative of the six paramitas, the means of liberation from each of these samsaric realms.
OM represents generosity
MA represents ethical self-discipline
NI represents patience
PAD represents joyful effort
ME represents meditative concentration
HUM stands for wisdom
Reciting the mantra transforms the mental afflictions of desire, anger, ignorance, pride and jealousy, unveiling the wisdom these unskillful states of mind have been shrouding.
Om Mani Padme Hum Mantra Benefits
The first textual evidence we have of the om mani padme hum mantra is in the 4th or 5th century Kāraṇḍavyūha Sūtra. In this Mahanayana Buddhist text, the mantra is described as representing the entirety of the Buddha’s teachings. To know it then, is to understand all dharma.
It is said that those who repeat this mantra will be led to liberation. In the Kāraṇḍavyūha Sūtra, the historical Buddha himself refers to om mani padme hum as ‘the most beneficial mantra.’ By repeating it, and by deeply understanding its meaning, we purify our ordinary bodies and each of our mental afflictions. We realize the six perfections and manifest the perfect union of compassion and wisdom.
The mantra meditation reminds us that we each carry the seeds of Buddhahood within. When we commit to the path and ask for the blessings of compassion, these seeds flower, revealing the jewel in the lotus. To practice om mani padme hum meditation, we engage body, speech and mind by using a mala to count our recitations, repeating the mantra 7, 21 or 108 times. At the same time, we can visualize Avalokiteshvara blessing us with compassion and understanding by sending us warmth, love and light. As our practice matures, our identification with the bodhisattva of compassion purifies our hearts so we too can send out rays of light, love and benefit to all sentient beings.
