What’s in a mantra? Maybe better direction

“What’s your mantra?” Sometimes, as a Buddhist, folks ask me this. They’ve heard about Buddhism’s short, repeated prayers and want to know if I have a special one, and what its meaning is.

Nevermind that it’s a rather complicated topic, requiring the practitioner to look over their personality with both compassion and honesty, making note of both their negative and positive mental tendencies, the well-worn grooves in their emotional landscapes, and their particular spiritual aspirations.

I usually just smile and say: “Oh, that’s simple. It’s OM MANI PADME HUM.” Sometimes, the simple answer is the best one.

But at times, we might be prompted into a deeper conversation – a discussion about what *their* mantra might be and how it might be adjusted to help move them in a more positive direction in their lives.

The word “mantra” comes from the ancient Indian spiritual traditions, from which Buddhism arose 2,500 years ago. It has countless meanings, but there are a few that ring true for me.

“A sacred word of power” is one, and “a protection for the mind” is another. But the roots of the word come from Sanskrit, an ancient Indian language: "manas" meaning “mind” and "tra" meaning “tool.”

These days, the word mantra has become part of our English language vernacular to mean any often-repeated thought or slogan. A mantra for environmentalists is "reduce, reuse, recycle.”

This is actually a wonderful development because it gives us a chance to realize that as humans we learn through repetition – just ask any child who has learned to ride a bicycle, sing a song, or even tie their shoes.

Daily we chant mantras in our heads, sometimes to our detriment, without even knowing it: “Why can’t I learn this?” “How come other people are so lucky?” or even, “Oh, I’m so stupid.”

In the modern world, we’re bombarded by messages from advertising, social media, our friends, our families, about how we should look, what we should do, and even what we should think. It’s hard not to internalize these messages, and start a self-dialogue laced with selfcriticism and self-dislike.

In such a tense and difficult environment, a truly radical act of rebellion would be to consciously generate thoughts of love, compassion, and acceptance.

Here is where those other mantras come in – the sacred kind.

Buddhism teaches that while we human beings are basically good, we are easily influenced by our thoughts and can be turned in different directions – positive and negative – by our thoughts at any given moment.

My Dad used to be a master of this magical redirection. When I would get flustered about this or that, he would gently remind me, “Easy does it,” or “Do first things first.” And I’d allow myself to relax into a different mood of possibilities. Gentle words brought gentle thoughts, and gentle thoughts gave me a way to move past my difficulty and feel some caring for myself.

These examples illustrate how “a sacred word of power” can become a “protection for the mind” and even a “mind tool” for transformative change.

I’ve had my Christian friends tell me their mantra is “Let go, and let God.” Others choose “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.” It’s easy to see how these short prayers can interrupt the flow of angry or unhappy inner narratives and redirect our intentions and energy in more positive directions.

My favorite mantra, OM MANI PADME HUM, is used in both Indian and Tibetan Buddhist traditions. It’s an example of another prayer that can move us toward the good.

OM is an ancient sacred word with many meanings, but it also can symbolize one of the three aspects of a spiritually awakened being, or Buddha – the awakened body.

HUM is likewise a deeply powerful sacred syllable, but here, it symbolizes the third of the three aspects of an awakened being – the awakened mind.

The second and remaining aspect – awakened speech – could be seen in the middle two words, MANI and PADME. MANI means “jewel” and PADME means “lotus.” The awakened being who is shown holding a jewel and lotus in Buddhist

statuary and paintings is called Avalokiteshvara in Sanskrit and Chenrezik in Tibetan.

Chenrezik made a vow that he would remain in the world until every suffering being had been liberated and enlightened. In this way, his name, in a sacred form of shorthand, is “the one who holds the jewel and lotus.”

Saying the name of an awakened being is a powerful way of reminding ourselves to be good to ourselves and grow more loving toward ourselves, one mantra at a time.

When we catch ourselves thinking or saying unkind things to ourselves, consciously withdrawing attention from the bad habit and putting our attention toward something kind and loving – such as the name of Chenrezik – can calm us down and give us time to re-focus our minds on something good. So what’s your mantra?

Being honest with ourselves and taking charge of our most precious natural resource – our thoughts and intentions – can lead to a more positive inner dialogue that’s led by love.

The Columbus Karma Thegsum Chöling will lead a 20-minute OM MANI PADME HUM chant at 11 a.m. June 25 at the Live Arts Stage in Goodale Park during the 50th annual Community Festival.

Lama Kathy Wesley is a Columbus native and a Buddhist minister at the Karma Thegsum Chöling Buddhist Meditation Center in Franklinton.

Keeping the Faith is a column featuring the perspectives of a variety of faith leaders from the Columbus area.