Buddha does not lead us to God. He showed us a path where we can develop our own understanding, through our own experience. He taught that the Truth is not to be found in books or scriptures but can be discovered in the workings of our own sense perceptions, our eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind. To study these in an immediate and wakeful way and cultivate mindfulness is the path of insight prescribed by the Buddha. He urged us to work with our practice, not as an ideal but in our everyday life situations. It is here that we can develop strength to overcome our difficulties, and a constancy and greatness of heart. It is here that we can step out of our struggle with life and find the Middle Way, the inner meaning of right understanding, freedom from sorrow and peace.

Buddha taught two levels of practice. Understanding these two levels is the basis of Buddhism:

1. FOUNDATION – The development of virtue and morality in order to bring happiness, comfort and harmony among people. Virtue and morality are the mother and father of Dharma – the path of Truth, that grows within us, providing us with nourishment and direction.

2. LIBERATION OF THE HEART – The practice directed solely toward awakening, more intensive and unconcerned with comfort. This liberation is the source of wisdom and compassion and the true reason for the Buddha’s teaching.

MANTRA

Mantra is a Sanskrit word meaning ‘the thought that liberates and protects’. A mantra is a word or group of words that contain powerful healing vibrations within the syllables of the words. Mantras are used to focus and concentrate the mind, and act as a pathway between normal states of consciousness and super consciousness. It is a very powerful way of approaching meditational states. Mantras are also used to invoke a particular deity that is being asked to bring physical, mental and spiritual healing. Many cultures and religions make use of mantras. One does not need to be a Hindu or a Buddhist to make use of a particular mantra. Devotees of Christ may use the name Jesus or Hail Mary, or Mother of Jesus. Parsis, Sikhs and Muslims may select a name or mantra from the Zend Avesta, Granth Sahib, or Koran respectively.

The chanting of mantras activates and accelerates the creative spiritual force, promoting harmony throughout our whole being. The devotee is gradually converted into a living centre of spiritual vibration, which may be directed for the benefit of the one who uses it and for that of others. During the early stages of yogic practice, the chosen mantra should be repeated over and over again with effort of will and full awareness. This awareness and concentration prevents the mind from thinking of other things. Eventually after continuous and dedicated practice, the mantra is repeated automatically without strain or effort. The mantra spontaneously manifests itself and becomes an integral part of the mind. The mind vibrates with the sound of the mantra. It becomes an integral part of the individual’s being and needs absolutely no conscious effort. It repeats itself spontaneously with every breath, day and night. This is a very powerful way of approaching meditation states, for the mind is rendered calm and concentrated. In this way the mantra acts as a pathway between normal states of consciousness and super consciousness.

When first using a mantra it is best to repeat it aloud by co-ordinating the repetition with the breath. Later, and more potent, is to repeat the mantra mentally. If you do not have a personal mantra, speak to your spiritual teacher, or OM may be used. Although mental repetition is stronger, the mantra may be repeated aloud if you become drowsy. Never change the mantra unless instructed to do so. Repetition will lead to pure thought, in which sound vibration joins with thought vibration and there is no awareness of meaning. If used correctly they can bestow many blessings on the practitioner. There are thousands of mantras in use today. Ask your spiritual guide which mantra is most suitable for you. Your mantra may also come to you in a dream or in meditation. A personal mantra is a spiritual tool and should not be discussed in general conversation, except with your spiritual guide. In this course I have suggested OM AH HUM or OM MANI PADME HUM but this may be exchanged for your personal mantra.

The following is a selection of mantras that I have found to be widely used in Buddhist meditation:

OM AH HUM – From the hearts of all the holy beings, may we receive thy blessings on our body, speech and mind.

OM MANI PADME HUM – May we receive the blessings of love, wisdom and compassion and reach self-realisation like the jewel in the lotus.

NAMU MYOHO RENGE KYO – Glory to the Lotus Sutra and the teachings Buddha.

OM AH HUM VAJRA GURU PADMA SIDDHI HUM – Salutations to great guru Padmasambhava. By your blessings and gifts may we reach perfection and enlightenment.

OM TARE TUTTARE TURE SVAHA – O Mother of all the Buddhas may the meaning of this mantra take root in my mind liberating me from all discontent, danger, delusions and duality.

GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAMGATE BODHI SVAHA – Gone, gone, gone beyond, gone completely beyond.

OM AH HUM – Mantra of all Buddhas

Many Tibetan Buddhists believe that all mantras are contained within these three syllables, OM AH HUM. If we recite this mantra with motivation and awareness we shall receive, from all the Enlightened Ones, many blessing upon our body, speech and mind. There are many variations of this meditation and that this mantra can also be substituted by OM MANI PADMA HUM, which represents the Six Perfections in Tibetan Buddhism. If you are not Buddhist, you may choose to receive this blessing according to your own belief by using your personal mantra.

OM AH HUM can be chanted mentally or aloud 158 times every morning and evening at sunrise and sunset. If you do not have time to chant 158 times then you may chant 54 or 27 times. The mantra maybe chanted fast or slow, but with full awareness on the heart, throat and head. A mala containing 158 beads maybe used to count the repetitions. It is held in the right hand, resting on the right knee. The mantra may also be sung in an ascending melody roughly corresponding to D, F, G. Sincerely chanting OM AH HUM 158 times with a mala produces many good results. All thought, speech and action are purified. It has a powerful effect on balancing and harmonising our whole being. It calms the mind and causes our distracting conceptions to subside. It strengthens the heart and increases our lifespan by protecting us from premature death. It attracts many good qualities and blessings into our lives, promoting moral discipline, concentration and wisdom.

There are two essential experiences that we can achieve through this OM AH HUM Meditation: wisdom and method. The wisdom experience is intensive awareness of your own consciousness. The method experience comes when you get distracted and use that lack of control as a resource to re-generate loving kindness. Then, when you are again free of distraction, remain in the experience of wisdom. In summary, when your concentration is good, place your attention on wisdom; when you are distracted, generate loving kindness. Recitation of the OM AH HUM mantra is very useful. Since you are often too busy to recite long mantras, you can recite this short one, which represents all other mantras. In particular, when you say “OM,” intensive awareness is energized and your consciousness awakens within you. The purpose of meditation is to awaken us from the deep sleep of ignorance—to awaken us to universal reality, not to our usual fanatic reality. Mantra touches a wider reality; that’s why it’s useful.

When you meditate, don’t squeeze yourself. Just sit comfortably and let your breath energy flow naturally; be just as you are. Don’t think, “I’m a meditator”; don’t think, “I’m humble”; don’t think, “I’m an egotist.” Don’t think anything; just be.

OM AH HUM Meditation

Place your hands in whatever position is comfortable for you and close your eyes. Visualize a white OM at the center of your brain, a red AH at your throat and a blue HUM at your heart. These letters are made of radiant light. If you can’t visualize these letters in Tibetan or Sanskrit, you can visualize them in English or any other language.

PURIFICATION OF BODY – Concentrate on the white OM in your brain. Recognize that this white OM is the pure energy of the divine body of the buddhas and bodhisattvas. Make the sound “OM” and visualize that radiant white light emanates from the syllable, goes down your central psychic channel and fills your whole body with blissful, radiant white light energy. All conceptions and impure energy of body are cleansed and purified. It is important to visualize that your entire body, from head to toe, is completely full of blissful, radiant white light energy. Feel that. Continue making the sound “OM” for two or three minutes while you are meditating and purifying your body. When you stop making the sound, don’t do or think anything. Remain perfectly still, fully aware, unconcerned with good or bad, not reacting, free of any internal conversation, with all your attention on the light consciousness at the center of your brain. Be there. Be intensely aware and let go, without sluggishness, without distraction, without expectation. Intensive awareness leads to the experience of zero, or egolessness; emptiness; nothing. Comprehend this intense awareness and let go.

PURIFICATION OF SPEECH – Concentrate on the red AH at your throat chakra, like the sun at sunset. Recognize that this red AH is the pure speech of the buddhas and bodhisattvas. Make the sound “AH” for two or three minutes and visualize that radiant red light emanates from the syllable, goes down your central psychic channel and fills your whole body with blissful, radiant red light energy. All conceptions and impure energy of speech are cleansed and purified. Again, when you finish the recitation, just be, without any expectation or interpretation, in a state of intense awareness of your own consciousness. Understand your experience of the non-dual, of the non-self-existent I, of nothingness, zero, empty space as truth; as reality. This increases your energy for strong comprehension of reality. This experience is much more real than your waking, fantasy sense world. When uncontrolled, distracting thoughts come during meditation, realize that not only you but also all other sentient beings are in the same situation of not being able to control the mind. On this basis, cultivate equilibrium and loving kindness for all others. Thus, your uncontrolled, distracted mind becomes a resource for the development of loving kindness. When it arises, direct that intense awareness of loving kindness towards your consciousness. Hence, there are two ways you can meditate here. Either place intense awareness on your own consciousness or, when distractions arise, direct intense awareness of loving kindness on your own consciousness. Alternate these two. Then, your loving kindness manifests in your central channel at your heart as a full moon disc.

PURIFICATION OF MIND – At your heart, on the moon disc, stands a radiant blue HUM. Recognize that this blue HUM is the non-dual wisdom of all the buddhas and bodhisattvas. Your heart is pure, cool and calm, opened by the radiant light of the moon and the HUM. Infinite blue light radiates from the HUM. All narrow thoughts disappear; all indecisive minds disappear; all obsessed minds disappear. The radiant blue light from the moon and the HUM fills your whole body. Your whole body feels blissful. Filled with light, there is no room for fanatical, dualistic concepts. At the same time, make the sound “HUM” for two or three minutes. Then feel infinite blue light, like your consciousness, embrace the entire universal reality. Your intensive awareness embraces all of universal reality. Feel and be, without expectation or superstition.