Oṃ maṇi padme hūṃ[1] (Sanskrit: ओं मणिपद्मे हूं, IPA: [õːː məɳipəd̪meː ɦũː]) is the six syllabled mantra particularly associated with the four-armed Shadakshari form of Avalokiteshvara (Tibetan Chenrezig, Chinese Guanyin), the bodhisattva of compassion. Mani means "the jewel" and Padma means "the lotus".
The mantra is especially revered by devotees of the Dalai Lama, as he is said to be an incarnation of Chenrezig or Avalokiteshvara.
It is commonly carved onto rocks or written on paper which is inserted into prayer wheels, said to increase the mantra's effects.
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In English the mantra is variously transliterated, depending on the schools of Buddhism as well as individual teachers.
Most authorities consider maṇipadme to be one compound word rather than two simple words . Sanskrit writing does not have capital letters leaving capitalisation of transliterated mantras varying irrationally from all caps, to initial caps, to no caps. All caps is typical of older scholarly works, and in Tibetan Sadhana texts.
Possible spellings and their transliterations include:
| Language | Script | Transliteration and notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tibetan | ༀམཎིཔདྨེཧཱུྃ། | Om Mani Peme Hung or Om Mani Beh Meh Hung or Om mani padme hum (Ladakh) |
| Devanagari | ओं मणिपद्मे हूँ; | IAST: oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ |
| Bengali | ওঁ মণিপদ্মে হুঁ | |
| Malayalam | ഓം മണി പദ്മേ ഹും | |
| Tamil | ஓம் மணி பத்மே ஹூம் | |
| Chinese | 嗡嘛呢叭咩吽 | Om Má Ní Bā Me Hōng |
| Chinese | 唵嘛呢叭咪吽 | pinyin Ǎn mání bāmī hōng (due to changes over time in pronunciation, this transcription has been adopted in favor of the transliteration found in the Karandavyuha Sutra, 唵麼抳缽訥銘吽 Ǎn mání bōnàmíng hōng) |
| Korean Hangul | 옴 마니 파드메 훔 | Om mani padeume hum |
| Korean Hangul | 옴 마니 반메 훔 | Om mani banme hum |
| Japanese Katakana | オーン マニ パドメー フーン | Ōn mani padomē hūn |
| Japanese Katakana | オン マニ ペメ フン | On mani peme hun |
| Russian | Ом мани падме хум | |
| Mongolian | Ум маани бадми хум | Um maani badmi khum |
| Vietnamese | Úm ma ni bát ni hồng | |
| Vietnamese | Án ma ni bát mê hồng | |
| Thai | โอมฺ มณิ ปทฺเม หูมฺ |
Mantras may be interpreted by practitioners in many ways, or even as mere sequences of sound whose effects lie beyond strict meaning.
The middle part of the mantra, maṇipadme, is often interpreted as "jewel in the lotus," Sanskrit maṇí "jewel, gem, cintamani" and the locative of padma "lotus", but according to Donald Lopez it is much more likely that maṇipadme is in fact a vocative, not a locative, addressing a bodhisattva called maṇipadma, "Jewel-Lotus"- an alternate epithet of the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara.[2] It is preceded by the oṃ syllable and followed by the hūṃ syllable, both interjections without linguistic meaning.
Lopez also notes that the majority of Tibetan Buddhist texts have regarded the translation of the mantra as secondary, focusing instead on the correspondence of the six syllables of the mantra to various other groupings of six in the Buddhist tradition.[3] For example, in the Chenrezig Sadhana, Tsangsar Tulku Rinpoche expands upon the mantra's meaning, taking its six syllables to represent the purification of the six realms of existence:[4]
| Syllable | Six Pāramitās | Purifies | Samsaric realm | Colours | Symbol of the Deity | (Wish them) To be born in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Om | Generosity | Pride / Ego | Devas | White | Wisdom | Perfect Realm of Potala |
| Ma | Ethics | Jealousy / Lust for entertainment | Asuras | Green | Compassion | Perfect Realm of Potala |
| Ni | Patience | Passion / desire | Humans | Yellow | Body, speech, mind quality and activity |
Dewachen |
| Pad | Diligence | Ignorance / prejudice | Animals | Blue | Equanimity | the presence of Protector (Chenrezig) |
| Me | Renunciation | Poverty / possessiveness | Pretas (hungry ghosts) | Red | Bliss | Perfect Realm of Potala |
| Hum | Wisdom | Aggression / hatred | Naraka | Black | Quality of Compassion | the presence of the Lotus Throne (of Chenrezig) |
The first known description of the mantra appears in the Karandavyuha Sutra (Chinese: 佛說大乘莊嚴寶王經 (Taisho Tripitaka 1050);[5] English: Buddha speaks Mahayana Sublime Treasure King Sutra), which is part of certain Mahayana canons such as the Tibetan. In this sutra, Shakyamuni Buddha states, "This is the most beneficial mantra. Even I made this aspiration to all the million Buddhas and subsequently received this teaching from Buddha Amitabha."[6]
As Bucknell, et al. (1986: p. 15) opine, the complete Avalokiteshvara Mantra includes a final hrīḥ (Sanskrit: ह्रीः, IPA: [ɦriːh]), which is iconographically depicted in the central space of the syllabic mandala as seen in the ceiling decoration of the Potala Palace.[9] The hrīḥ is not always vocalized audibly, and may be resonated "internally" or "secretly" through intentionality.
The first known citation of the mantra occurs in the Karandavyuha Sutra published in the 11th Century which appears in the Chinese Buddhist canon.[5] However, some Buddhist scholars argue that the mantra as practiced in Tibetan Buddhism was based on the Sadhanamala, a collection of sadhana published in the twelfth century.[10]
This mantra is also currently practiced by Sufis, with some variation, in the Naqshbandi tariqa ruled by Arif Shah, Omar Ali Shah's son and heir. They say this mantra originated in Afghanistan.