Mantra of Light
Encyclopedia
The , also called the Mantra of the Unfailing Rope Snare, is an important mantra
of the Shingon sect of Buddhism, but is not emphasized in other Vajrayana
sects of Buddhism. It is taken from the Amoghapāśakalparāja-sūtra (Chinese translation Taisho ed. no. 1092) or Sutra of the Mantra of the Unfailing Rope Snare of the Buddha Vairocana's Great Baptism and is chanted as follows:
The translation of this mantra, according to Professor Mark Unno, is roughly:
Initially, the mantra received little mention in East Asian Buddhist texts, and although Kukai
brought the sutra to Japan in the 9th century, there are no records that he ever utilized it in tantric practices. Records show gradually increasing use in the Heian Period
, until the 13th century when it was popularized in medieval Japanese Buddhism by Myōe
, and later by Shingon monks Eison and Ninshō
in their ministries. Both the Mantra and the nembutsu were often incorporated by medieval Buddhists at one time or another, often in the same service. A common practice for the Mantra of Light was to sprinkle pure sand, blessed with this mantra, on the body of a deceased person or their tomb, based on teachings expounded in the Sutra. The belief was that a person who had accumulated much bad karma, and possible rebirth in Hell
would be immediately freed and allowed a favorable rebirth into the Pure Land
of Amitabha Buddha. This practice is known as in Japanese.
Mantra
A mantra is a sound, syllable, word, or group of words that is considered capable of "creating transformation"...
of the Shingon sect of Buddhism, but is not emphasized in other Vajrayana
Vajrayana
Vajrayāna Buddhism is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and the Diamond Vehicle...
sects of Buddhism. It is taken from the Amoghapāśakalparāja-sūtra (Chinese translation Taisho ed. no. 1092) or Sutra of the Mantra of the Unfailing Rope Snare of the Buddha Vairocana's Great Baptism and is chanted as follows:
- SanskritSanskritSanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
- Roman script: oṃ amogha vairocana mahāmudrā maṇipadma jvāla pravarttaya hūṃ
- DevanagariDevanagariDevanagari |deva]]" and "nāgarī" ), also called Nagari , is an abugida alphabet of India and Nepal...
: ओं अमोघ वैरोचन महामुद्रा मणि पद्म ज्वाल प्रवर्त्तय हूं - Siddhaṃ
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- JapaneseJapanese languageis a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
: On abokya beiroshanō makabodara mani handoma jimbara harabaritaya un - KanjiKanjiKanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...
and Chinese scriptChinese languageThe Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
: 唵 阿謨伽 尾盧左曩 摩訶母捺囉 麽抳 鉢納麽 入嚩攞 鉢囉韈哆野 吽
- Japanese
The translation of this mantra, according to Professor Mark Unno, is roughly:
Initially, the mantra received little mention in East Asian Buddhist texts, and although Kukai
Kukai
Kūkai , also known posthumously as , 774–835, was a Japanese monk, civil servant, scholar, poet, and artist, founder of the Shingon or "True Word" school of Buddhism. Shingon followers usually refer to him by the honorific titles of and ....
brought the sutra to Japan in the 9th century, there are no records that he ever utilized it in tantric practices. Records show gradually increasing use in the Heian Period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, until the 13th century when it was popularized in medieval Japanese Buddhism by Myōe
Myoe
Myōe was a Japanese Buddhist monk active during the Kamakura period who also went by the name Kōben , and contemporary of Jōkei and Honen. Born into the Yuasa family , allegedly descended from a branch of the Fujiwara clan, he came to be ordained in both the Shingon school of Buddhism and the...
, and later by Shingon monks Eison and Ninshō
Ninshō
was a Japanese Shingon Risshu priest during the Kamakura period. His was instrumental in reviving Ritsu Buddhism during this period, as well as establishing facilities to care for invalids. He was criticized by his contemporary Nichiren....
in their ministries. Both the Mantra and the nembutsu were often incorporated by medieval Buddhists at one time or another, often in the same service. A common practice for the Mantra of Light was to sprinkle pure sand, blessed with this mantra, on the body of a deceased person or their tomb, based on teachings expounded in the Sutra. The belief was that a person who had accumulated much bad karma, and possible rebirth in Hell
Avici
In Buddhism, ' is the lowest level of the Naraka or "hell" realm, into which the dead who have committed grave misdeeds may be reborn...
would be immediately freed and allowed a favorable rebirth into the Pure Land
Pure land
A pure land, in Mahayana Buddhism, is the celestial realm or pure abode of a Buddha or Bodhisattva. The various traditions that focus on Pure Lands have been given the nomenclature Pure Land Buddhism. Pure lands are also evident in the literature and traditions of Taoism and Bön.The notion of 'pure...
of Amitabha Buddha. This practice is known as in Japanese.