Benefits and
Qualities of the Six Syllables Mantra
Spoken by Penor Rinpoche
Presently, we are in the dharma-ending age, where people have
limited wisdom, faith and diligence. Thus, it is necessary to
persevere diligently in the practice of dharma. A practice that
fulfills this necessity is reciting the six-syllables mani mantra
while viewing through one’s devotion that the guru is not different
from Chenrezig. The six syllables mani mantra is very easy to
recite and encompasses the essential meaning of all the Buddha’s
teachings. It is the heart-essence of Chenrezig (or
Avalokiteshvara) and brings infinite blessings. If one takes it as
one’s primary practice, then all humans, celestial beings, and even
the harmful ghosts or gods will bless you benevolently and you will
have a long life without any sickness or calamities. In the
next life, you will be reborn in Potala mountain or Amitabha’s
pureland, or at least, you will take rebirth in a land where the
Buddha-dharma is flourishing. This is because Chenrezig’s
heart mantra is imbued with the limitless blessings, loving
kindness and compassion of all the Buddhas.
In a sutra, it says, “If one recites this mantra, innumerable
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, Gods, Dragons and beings of the eight
classifications will congregate where one dwells and there will be
endless dharma-doors of samadhi. Seven generations of the
family of one who recites (this mantra) will be liberated.
The worms (or sentient beings) in one’s stomach will attain levels
on the Bodhisattva path. Such a person (who recites the
mantra) will perfect the paramitas daily, have unimpeded eloquence
and purify his wisdom aggregate. Whenever his breath touches
others’ bodies, it would cause that person to attain levels on the
Bodhisattva path. If, for instance, all beings below the
fourth heaven realm attained to the seventh bhumi Bodhisattva
position, all their combined merit would be the same as reciting
the six syllables mani mantra once. If one used gold and
jewels to build Buddha statues as numerous as dust, it would not be
as meritorious as writing one syllable of the six syllables mani
mantra. If one obtained the six syllables mani mantra, one
will not be contaminated by the greed, hatred and ignorance.
If one wore this mantra on the body, one will likewise not be
contaminated by the sickness of greed, hatred and ignorance. Anyone
who wears, touches, sees (the mantra), all such sentient beings
will attain the levels on the Bodhisattva path and be forever set
apart from the sufferings such as birth, old age, sickness and
death.”
The six syllables mani mantra of Chenrezig, Om Mani Padme Hung,
is the manifestation of all the Buddhas’ compassion in the form of
sound. Within it, the 84,000 dharma-doors of the Buddha are
encapsulated. Although there are many different kinds of
mantras, such as awareness-mantra, dharanis, secret mantras, but
none of them is more sublime than the six syllables mani
mantra. The vast benefits of reciting this mantra (which is
usually just called ‘mani’) has been mentioned frequently in the
Buddha’s sutras and tantras. It is said that just reciting
this mantra once is equivalent to reciting all the 12 categories of
the Buddha’s teachings. Reciting the six syllables mani
mantra can perfect the six bodhisattva paramitas and firmly seal
off all possibilities of taking rebirth in the six realms.
This is a simple practice, easy to understand. All the people
can practice its recitation and it encompasses the essence of the
Buddhadharma. If you are able to regard the mani mantra as
your refuge in times of happiness or suffering, then Chenrezig will
always be with you. You will become more and more devoted
without even trying to. The realisation of the mahayana path
will naturally arise in your mindstream.
According to the records in the Jewel-Chest sutra, reciting a
hundred-million times of this mantra will cause all the organisms
on one’s body to receive Chenrezig’s blessings and after one’s
death, the smoke from the cremation of one’s corpse can protect
anyone who breathes it from rebirth in the three lower realms.
Even one syllable from this mantra, whether it be ‘Om’, ‘Ma’ or
‘Ni’ has inconceivable power. It can bless and cause sentient
beings to be liberated. It is said that the Buddha, who has
such extraordinary power far exceeding those of any sentient being,
is able to tell accurately how many raindrops there are in a
rainstorm lasting 12 years but yet, even he is unable to completely
express the merit of saying the mani mantra once. If the
Buddha began to express its merit, even if all the world’s forests
and trees were made into paper, it would not be sufficient for
writing down even the smallest part of the merit of the mantra.
There is nothing in this world that can really frighten the god
of death and make him retreat, but the warm radiance of Chenrezig’s
compassion can remove all fear that anyone felt at the point of
death. This is what is called, “the refuge which never
deceives”.
The six syllables mani mantra is Chenrezig’s heart-essence, it
is the bodhisattvas’ paramitas in the form of mantra. If you
recite this mantra, all the six paramitas will automatically arise
and action-bodhichitta will spontaneously be
accomplished.
Mantra is one essential component of the Vajrayana path but not
one mantra is better than the mani mantra. It encompasses all
the functions of all mantras and also embodies all the other
mantras’ blessings and power. Even the great Karma Chakme and
other well-learned noble beings could not find any mantra in the
teachings that was of more benefit, more quintessential and simple
to practise than the mani, and thus utilised the mani mantra as
their main practice. Even hearing the mani mantra can
liberate one from samsara. Just as Chenrezig has said, anyone
who practises this mani mantra will perfect all the six bodhisattva
paramitas and cleanse all their obscurations and karma.
In order to bless sentient beings, Chenrezig endowed the mani
mantra with the same power as his very own body, this is the
‘dedication of unborn emptiness’. Writing the six syllables
mani mantra will lead all beings who see it to be liberated.
Reciting the six syllables mani mantra will lead all beings who
hear it to be liberated. If one thought of the mantra, then
one will be liberated by recalling. By wearing it on one’s
body, there will be liberation by contact. If you are
accustomed to regarding all sounds as the mani mantra, then all the
fearful sounds in the bardo will not cause you any trepidation.
In this age of the five degenerations, the compassionate
Chenrezig’s blessings is exceptionally strong. But, just as
Guru Rinpoche has predicted, “in the future, there will be some
beings with insufficient merit who will not treasure the six
syllables mani mantra.” Chenrezig’s emanation, the Tibetan
king Songtsen Gampo also said, “in the future, there will be some
beings who will discriminate the dharma due to their own
self-clinging, they will abandon all positive actions and belittle
the six syllables mani mantra saying that it is a practice for old
people or children. These people have been led by the demonic
obstacles into the deviant paths. Their future life would
definitely be in the hells. Thus you should not give rise to
any doubt about compassionate Chenrezig’s dharma practice but
should instead practice it diligently, because this practice is the
easiest to accomplish and there is no other practice that bestows
greater blessings that this.”
The six syllables mani mantra has worldly benefits such as
removing all sickness, pain, negative karma, obscurations and
demonic obstacles, increasing one’s merit and prosperity. Its
ultimate benefit is to end samsara and bring one to the state of
perfect unsurpassed Buddhahood.
