Prayer Wheels

Tibetan Prayer Wheels
by Thain Irwin

Prayer Wheels are common religious objects in Tibetan culture. They are often referred to as Prayer Wheels, Dharma Wheels, or in Tibetan, mani chho-khor. According to Brian Zaharack, essayist on the Ohio State web page Mirrors of the Heart-Mind, "The prayer wheel dates back five or six centuries and is a Tibetan innovation. The idea has its origins in a play on the Sanskrit phrase 'to turn the wheel of the law' meaning 'to teach the Dharma' and refers to the event when Shakyamuni Buddha began to preach". Although, Tibetan Prayer Wheels have not simply stayed in Tibet. An article on prayer wheels at www.dharmapress.com/section4.html states that, "Since the 1950s, when tens of thousands of Tibetans became refugees, dharma wheels have begun turning in new lands." So as the Tibetan culture spreads, so does the Prayer Wheel.

The simplest definition of a Prayer Wheel is a mechanical device consisting of a metal cylinder, attached to a rod handle, that contains special prayers, or mantras, written on rolls of paper. The purpose of the Prayer Wheel is a mechanical means to reproduce the vocal saying of the prayers written in the Prayer Wheel. In other words each turn of the wheel is equivalent to one saying of the prayer. It is important for the Prayer Wheel to be spun clockwise since that is the direction in which to properly read the prayers, it is the direction the sun travels, and it matches the directions of the chortens or stupas, burial mounds. It is then said that these prayers are to ascend to the heavens to benefit all. There are many varieties of Prayer Wheels from small hand held ones, to larger ones such as the one shown on the right. Newer inventions in regards to Prayer Wheels have been ones that rotate on their own to burn more negative karma and recently electronic ones, such as the one above. These two new types have both been endorsed by the Dalai Lama as being effective.

According to the Encyclopaedia Britanica, a mantra is, "...a sacred utterance (syllable, word, or verse) that is considered to possess mystical or spiritual efficacy. Various mantras are either spoken aloud or merely sounded internally in one's thoughts, and they are either repeated continuously for some time or just sounded once." Also, the Worldbridges Tibet glossary says that a mantra is, "a Sanskrit word with the literal meaning of 'protection of the mind'" Such mantras are the written on pieces of paper and put in the Prayer Wheels. The most common mantra is Om Mani Peme Hung, the mantra of Chenrezi, the Buddha of compassion. The English translation of Om Mani Peme Hung is "the jewel in the lotus of the heart" and the repetition of it is suppose to burn the negative karma in the practitioner. A greater breakdown of the negative emotions being purified in the mantra is given at dharma-haven.org. They break the mantra down into it's various parts: OM (bliss/pride), MA (jealousy/lust for entertainment), NI (passion/desire), PE (stupidity/prejudice), ME (poverty/possessiveness), HUNG (aggression/hatred). To hear an example of the mantra click here.

The recitation of the mantra seems to correspond to what Thich Nhat Hanh says about the Buddhist principle of Right Speech. He says, "Right Speech is based on Right Thinking. Speech is the way for our thinking to express itself aloud...Deep listening is at the foundation of Right Speech...Compassionate listening brings about healing. When someone listens to us this way, we feel some relief right away...When communication is cut off, we all suffer" (Hanh 85-86). This is the basic premise behind the Prayer Wheel, except that it translate spoken speech into written speech. In this way we communicate positive thoughts to the universe. For more information on the benefits of prayer wheels you can go to an essay by Lama Zopa Rinpoche at dharma-haven.org. There is also another essay by Lama Zopa Rinpoche on the benefits of Om Mani Peme Hung at Buddha's Village. On the same web site is an essay by H.H. the Fourteenth Dalai Lama on the meaning of Om Mani Peme Hung.