Skip to main content

Phrases / Mantra List

Sacred Phrases for Devotional Practice​

This section collects the sacred phrases I have learned over the years, kept here as a simple reference for my own practice and for anyone else who finds them useful.

I use the word phrase to describe what is often known as a mantra - a short, complete saying used in devotional practice. For example, oṃ tāre tuttāre ture svāhā is a single phrase directed to Āryatārā.

Rather than the word prayer, which can sometimes suggest a full ritual sequence or structured worship service, I focus here on the spoken invocations themselves - the concise expressions of devotion, intention, and reverence.

Each phrase listed here is a distinct spiritual utterance, often associated with a particular deity, purpose, or blessing. Whether used on its own or as part of a larger practice, each one stands as a meaningful and complete act of connection. Each carries its own tone and direction, and most practitioners find that one or two of them resonate more deeply than the rest. That resonance is worth listening to.

Abhiṣeka​

oṃ sarva tathāgata abhiṣekate samaya śrīye hūṃ॥
7x

The prayer of empowerment invites the awakened qualities of body, speech, and mind into the sacred objects of practice. It is the invocation through which those objects are made ready to serve as supports of the practice, so that the qualities of awakening are understood to be present within them.

Source: Empowerment Series - Lotsawa House
अभिषेक
ॐ सर्वतथागता अभिषेकते समय श्रीये हूं॥

Abhiṣekapūjā​

oṃ sarva tathāgata mahāpūja pratīccha hoḥ । oṃ puruṣāya hoḥ॥
3x

The prayer of empowerment is here offered as a gift to the sacred objects of practice. Offering the prayer in this way presents the empowerment itself as an act of generosity directed towards those objects, which are honoured as the supports of practice.

Source: Empowerment Series - Lotsawa House
अभिषेकपूजा
ॐ भगवं सर्वतथागत परमपूजा प्रतीच्छ होः । ॐ पुरुषाय होः॥

Āhvāna​

oṃ guru ārya tārā saparivāra । ārya tārā jaḥ । padma kamalāya satvam॥
7x

A gentle invitation that calls Tārā's wisdom and swift compassion to be present in the practice. The verse is recited as a way of summoning those qualities into the practitioner's presence, so that wisdom and compassion are understood to attend the practice that follows.

Source: Invocation Prayer from Tārā Sādhana - Lotsawa House
आह्वान
ॐ गुरु आर्य तारा सपरिवार । आर्य तारा जः । पद्म कमलाय सत्वम्॥

Akṣara​

a॥

The primordial, unborn state from which all sounds and phenomena arise. It is the silent letter that holds the seed of every syllable and every form, the ground from which speech and appearances unfold without itself being spoken or formed.

Source: The Perfection of Wisdom in One Syllable (Toh 23) - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
अक्षर
अ॥

Akṣobhya Dhāraṇī​

oṃ kaṃkaṇi kaṃkaṇi । rocani rocani । troṭani troṭani । trāsani trāsani । pratihana pratihana । sarva karma paramparāṇi me sarva sattvānāñca svāhā॥

Akṣobhya is one of the Five Wisdom Buddhas, a figure arising from the principle of the Adibuddha. He is understood to represent consciousness as an aspect of reality, and the dhāraṇī that bears his name is associated with that same principle.

Source: The Array of the Thus-Gone One Akṣobhya - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
अक्षोभ्य धारणी
ॐ कंकनी कंकनी । रोचनी रोचनी । त्रोटनी त्रोटनी । त्रसनी त्रसनी । प्रतिहन प्रतिहन । सर्व कर्म परंपरनिमे सर्व सत्वनाञ्च स्वाहा॥

Amitābha Hṛdaya​

oṃ amitābha hrīḥ॥

Amitābha is known for his longevity, discernment, pure perception, and the purification of aggregates. Those qualities are linked to a deep awareness of the emptiness of all phenomena, the recognition through which the aggregates are purified.

Source: The Dhāraṇī-mantra of Amitābha - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

Oṃ Infinite Light, Hūṃ!

अमिताभ
ॐ अमिताभ ह्रीः॥

Amoghapāśa Maṇi Pūjā​

oṃ amogha pūja maṇipadma vajre tathāgata vilokite samanta prasara hūṃ । oṃ padma uṣṇīṣa vimale hūṃ phaṭ॥
3x

Amoghapāśa is able to perfectly and completely accomplish the eradication of disasters and calamities, the enhancement of love and respect, and the subjugation of harmful forces. The rite is performed in reliance on that power, which is understood to act on all three fronts at once.

Source: 不空羂索神變真言經 (T1092) - CBETA, Taishō Tripiṭaka
अमोघपाश मणि पूजा
ॐ अमोघ पूजा मणिपद्म वज्रे तथागत विलोकिते समन्त प्रसर हूँ । ॐ पद्म उष्णीष विमले हूँ फट्॥

Amoghapāśa Padma Uṣṇīṣa​

oṃ padma uṣṇīṣa vimale hūṃ phaṭ॥

A highly esoteric emanation of Amoghapāśa. Whoever sees, hears, remembers, or touches this prayer is purified of all negativities and gains freedom from rebirth in the lower realms. The benefit is said to reach anyone who encounters the prayer through any of the senses or through memory, without distinction.

Source: 不空羂索神變真言經 (T1092) - CBETA, Taishō Tripiṭaka
अमोघपाश पद्म उष्णीष
ॐ पद्म उष्णीष विमले हूँ फट्॥

Ārya Bhagavate Majū Hṛdaya​

oṃ ārya sūrya tatama svāhā॥

Ārya Bhagavate Majū Hṛdaya is a devotional invocation associated with Majū (Chinese: 媽祖), who was traditionally thought to roam the seas and to protect her believers through miraculous interventions. She is now generally regarded by her believers as a powerful and benevolent Queen of Heaven (Chinese: 天上聖母), and this heart-mantra invokes her protecting presence. Its Sanskrit line, oṃ ārya sūrya tatama svāhā, is a short mantra-like offering addressed to her, and devotees are said to recite it seeking safety at sea and general blessings.

Source: Mazu Worship in Singapore - BiblioAsia, National Library Board Singapore

Oṃ Noble Sūrya (sun and sky - incarnation of Avalokiteśvara), The One, So Be It!

आर्य भगवते मजु
ॐ आर्य सूर्य ततम स्वाहा॥

Āryatārā Hṛdaya​

oṃ tāre tuttāre ture svāhā॥
21x

Āryatārā Hṛdaya is the heart mantra of Noble Tārā, an important figure in Buddhism known as a saviouress who hears the cries of beings in saṃsāra and answers them from worldly and spiritual danger. She is especially the green form central to Tibetan Buddhist devotion. The mantra oṃ tāre tuttāre ture svāhā is said to call on her to protect beings from suffering and to act with swift, unobstructed compassion; reciting it expresses homage and requests her accomplishment.

Source: Prayer to Tārā, Combined with Her Mantra - Lotsawa House

Oṃ O Tārā, I pray O Tārā, O Swift One, So Be It!

आर्यतारा
ॐ तारे तुत्तारे तुरे स्वाहा॥

Āryatārā Aṣṭaghora Tāraṇī Sūtra​

Tārā who protects from the Eight Dangers.

oṃ tāre tuttāre ture sarvaduṣṭān praduṣṭān । mama kṛte jambhaya stambhaya mohaya bandhaya vidhvaṃsaya । hūṃ hūṃ hūṃ phaṭ phaṭ phaṭ svāhā । sarvaduṣṭastambhani tāre svāhā॥
3x

The Āryatārā Aṣṭaghora Tāraṇī Sūtra presents Tārā explaining that the fate of each being is the result of past negative actions and that virtuous conduct is the only way to avoid suffering in the future. She describes the path to liberation through a series of evocative metaphors and offers a sacred dhāraṇī as a means to help others achieve liberation from saṃsāra. She also outlines for recitation a praise of her myriad qualities, in particular her ability to protect beings from the eight dangers - traditionally lions, elephants, fire, snakes, robbers, floods, disease, and demons. The text presents Tārā as a saviouress who guards practitioners from such perils, outer and inner.

Source: Introduction to Tārā - Lotsawa House
आर्यतारा अस्तघोरतारणी सूत्र
ॐ तारे तुत्तारे तुरे सर्वदुष्टान् प्रदुष्टान् । मम कृते जंभय स्तंभय मोहय बन्धाया विध्वंसय । हूँ हूँ हूँ फट् फट् फट् स्वाहा । सर्वदुष्टास्तम्भनी तारे स्वाहा॥

Āryatārā Bījākṣara​

tāṃ॥

Āryatārā Bījākṣara is the seed syllable of Noble Tārā - the single sound from which she is generated in visualization and recitation. In the Tārā tantra she is described as emerging from the syllable tāṃ, and reciting the seed syllable is understood to invoke her presence in tantric deity meditation.

Source: The Tantra on the Origin of All Rites of Tārā, Mother of All the Tathāgatas - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
आर्यतारा बीजाक्षर
ताँ॥

Āryatārā Nāma​

Directly invoking and addressing Noble Tārā.
tāre॥

Āryatārā Nāma is a direct invocation of Noble Tārā through her sacred name. The name derives from the Sanskrit root meaning to cross, so Tāre is often translated as Deliverer or Saviouress. Reciting just this name directly invokes and addresses her - short, intimate, and easy to carry into the breath.

Source: Introduction to Tārā - Lotsawa House

O Tārā

आर्यतारा नाम
तारे॥

Āryatārā Śatākṣara​

oṃ ārya tārā samaya manupālaya । ārya tārā tvenopatiṣṭha । dṛḍho me bhava । sutoṣyo me bhava । supoṣyo me bhava । anurakto me bhava । sarva siddhiṃ me prayaccha । sarva karmasu ca me । cittaṃ śreyaḥ kuru hūṃ । ha ha ha ha hoḥ । bhagavan sarva tathāgata tārā mā me muñca । tārā bhava mahāsamaya sattva āḥ॥

Āryatārā Śatākṣara is the hundred syllables of Noble Tārā, a longer heart-recitation and a form of the hundred-syllable mantra used in tantric ritual. Reciting it is said to purify obscurations and to draw the mind into her swift, compassionate activity.

आर्य तारा शताक्षर
ॐ आर्य तारा समय मनुपालय । आर्य तारा त्वेनोपतिष्ठ । दृढो मे भव । सुतोष्यो मे भव । सुपोष्यो मे भव । अनुरक्तो मे भव । सर्वसिद्धिं मे प्रयच्छ । सर्वकर्मसु च मे । चित्तं श्रियं कुरु हूं । ह ह ह ह होः । भगवं सर्वतथागत तारा मा मे मुञ्च । तारा भव महासमय सत्त्व आः॥

Āryatārā Svapratijñā Nāma Dhāraṇī​

oṃ tāre tārāye । hūṃ hūṃ hūṃ । samayasthite । bhara bhara । sarvābharaṇavibhūṣite । padmani padma । mahāpadmāsanasthite । hasa hasa । trailokyavarade । sarvadevadānavapūjite smarāhi । bhagavate tāre smarāhi । bhagavān tathāgatasya purata samayaṃ । dhara dhara । mahāsattvāvalokite maṇikanakavicitrābharaṇe । oṃ vilokāya [say the name] bhagavate tāre । hrīṃ hrīṃ hrīṃ phaṭ svāhā॥

The Āryatārā Svapratijñā Nāma Dhāraṇī is Tārā's own promise - a dhāraṇī spoken in her voice, expressing the vows she has made on behalf of beings. Reciting it calls practitioners to remember and to rely upon that promise.

Source: The Dhāraṇī "Tārā’s Own Promise" - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
आर्य तारा स्वप्रतिज्ञा नाम धारणी
ॐ तारे ताराये । हूँ हूँ हूँ । समयस्थिति । भारा भारा । सर्वअभरणविभूषिते । पद्मनि पद्म । महापद्मआसनस्थिति । हस हस । त्रैलोक्यवरदे । सर्वदेवदानवपूजिते स्मरहि । भगवते तारे स्मरहि । भगवान् तथागतस्य पुरत समयं । धर धर । महासत्वावलोकिते मणिकनकविचित्राभरणे । ॐ विलोक्य [अमुकः] भगवते तारे । ह्रीं ह्रीं ह्रीं फट् स्वाहा॥

Avalokiteśvara Hṛdaya​

oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ॥

Avalokiteśvara is a bodhisattva of compassion venerated throughout the Buddhist world, and the Avalokiteśvara Hṛdaya is the six-syllable mantra oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ, understood as Jewel-Lotus. While Avalokiteśvara was depicted as male in India, in East Asian Buddhism Avalokiteśvara is most often shown as a female figure known as Guanyin. The Buddha taught that recitation of this prayer while focusing on the sound can lead to the attainment of eight hundred samādhis, and the dhāraṇī text states that reciting the mantra purifies negative karma and prevents lower rebirths.

Source: The Dhāraṇī of Avalokiteśvara - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

Oṃ Jewel-Lotus (Avalokiteśvara Ephitet), Hūṃ!

अवलोकितेश्वर
ॐ मणिपद्मे हूँ॥

Bhaiṣajyaguru Hṛdaya​

oṃ bhaiṣajye bhaiṣajye bhaiṣajya samudgate svāhā॥

Bhaiṣajyaguru, the Medicine Buddha, is the Buddha of healing and medicine in Mahāyāna Buddhism and the Vajrayāna traditions, curing suffering (duḥkha) with the medicine of his teachings. His name means Medicine Master, and his heart dhāraṇī invokes him by that name; reciting it is understood to support healing and the relief of suffering.

Source: The Essence Dhāraṇī of the Tathāgata Bhaiṣajyaguru - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
भैषज्यगुरु
ॐ भैषज्ये भैषज्ये भैषज्य समुद्गते स्वाहा॥

Bodhigarbhālaṃkāralakṣa​

bodhi bodhi । bodhanī bodhanī । sarva tathāgata gocarī । dhara dhara । hara hara । prahara prahara । mahā bodhicitta dhāre । culu culu । śata raśmi sañcodite । sarva tathāgatābhiṣikte । guṇī guṇapate । sarva buddha guṇāvabhāse । mili mili । gaganatale । sarva tathāgatādhiṣṭhite । nabhasthale । śame śame । praśame praśame । sarva pāpam praśame । sarva pāpaṃ viśodhane । hulu hulu । mahābodhi mārga sampratiṣṭhite । sarva tathāgata supratiṣṭhite śuddhe svāhā । oṃ sarva tathāgata vyavalokite । jaya jaya svāhā । oṃ dhuru dhuru jayamukhe svāhā । oṃ vajrāyuṣe svāhā॥

The Bodhigarbhālaṃkāralakṣa is a dhāraṇī whose title names a hundred thousand ornaments of the essence of awakening. Placing even one prayer of it inside a stupa is promised the same merit as building 100,000 stupas - whether that stupa is gigantic like Bodh Gayā or tiny as a finger. Dedicating the merit to sentient beings, for their happiness up to full enlightenment, is said to bring them unbelievable benefits and the practitioner unbelievable merit.

Offering to such a stupa is understood to reach beyond the physical structure, becoming an offering to all Buddhas, all Dharma, and all Sangha - the Three Rare Sublime Ones - in the ten directions and in any universe.

Historically the dhāraṇī functioned as a "secret relic", a substitute for the Buddha's bodily relics. It appears widely across India, Southeast Asia, and Afghanistan, often stamped onto clay tablets and sealings found at sacred sites such as Bodh Gayā, frequently alongside the Vimaloṣṇīṣa and Ye Dharmā formulas. Its use reflects a major consecration tradition in which dhāraṇī texts empower stupas and images, generating merit equivalent to reciting vast scriptures and establishing a direct connection with both mundane and transcendent maṇḍalas.

Source: The Dhāraṇī "One Hundred Thousand Ornaments of the Essence of Awakening" - 84000 Translating the Words of the Buddha
बोधि गर्भालंकार लक्ष
बोधि बोधि । बोधनी बोधनी । सर्वतथागता गोचरी । धर धर । हर हर । प्रहर प्रहर । महा बोधिचित्त धारे । चुलु चुलु । शत रश्मि सञ्चोदिते । सर्व तथागताभिषिक्ते । गुणी गुणपाते । सर्व बुद्धा गुणावभासे । मिल् मिल् । गगनतले । सर्व तथागताधिष्ठिते । नभस्तले । शमे शमे । प्रशमे प्रशमे । सर्व पापं प्रशमे । सर्व पापं विशोधने । हुलु हुलु । महाबोधि मार्ग सम्प्रतिष्ठिते । सर्वतथागता सुप्रतिष्ठिते शुद्धे स्वाहा । ॐ सर्वतथागता व्यवलोकिते । जय जय स्वाहा । ॐ धुरु धुरु जयामुखे स्वाहा । ॐ वज्रायुषे स्वाहा॥

Cakṣu Unmīlana​

oṃ jñāna cakṣu praveśāya phaṭ॥
3x

Cakṣu Unmīlana, the opening of the eyes, is a brief rite of consecration in which the awakened gaze of a sacred image is established, inviting the wisdom beings to dwell within it. In the Tibetan consecration sequence, the rite follows the bathing and empowerment of the object.

Those who behold the image are said thereby to meet the awakened mind directly.

Source: Consecration Series - Lotsawa House
चक्षु उन्मीलन
ॐ ज्ञान चक्षु प्रवेशय फट्॥

Catvāry Apramāṇāni​

sattvāḥ sukhena samprayujyeran । sattvā duḥkhena viyujyeran । sattvāḥ sukhena na viyujyeran । sattvāḥ hitaṁ labheran॥
3x

Catvāry Apramāṇāni, the four immeasurables, are maitrī (loving-kindness), karuṇā (compassion), muditā (sympathetic joy), and upekṣā (equanimity) - the boundless qualities of heart that the bodhisattva cultivates without limit.

In practice they are extended without limit toward all sentient beings. The traditional prayer expresses the wish that beings meet with happiness, be free from suffering, and remain undisturbed. Cultivating them is held to calm the mind and support the bodhisattva path.

Source: An Extensive Commentary on the Four Immeasurables - Lotsawa House
चत्वार्यप्रमाणानि
सत्त्वाः सुखेन सम्प्रयुज्येरन् । सत्त्वा दुःखेन वियुज्येरन् । सत्त्वाः सुखेन न वियुज्येरन् । सत्त्वाः हितं लभेरन्॥

Darśana Mukta​

oṃ hanu pāśa bhāra hṛdaya svāhā॥

Darśana Mukta, Liberation by seeing, is a Tibetan Buddhist prayer held to purify 100,000 eons of negative karma (Sanskrit: पापकर्मन्, Romanized: pāpakarman) merely by being seen.

Its Sanskrit title pairs darśana, seeing or beholding, with mukta, freed or liberated. Both its recitation and its sight are traditionally linked with purification and with support for liberation.

दर्शन मुक्त
ॐ हनु पाश भार हृदय स्वाहा॥

Daśa Atyaya Mantrāḥ​

꣼ oṃ dhara dhara । dhīre dhīre । dhuru dhuru । iṭṭe viṭṭe । cale cale । pracale pracale । kusume kusumavare । ili mili viṭi । citti jvālaṃ āpanāya । parama śuddhasattva mahā kāruṇika svāhā । oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ॥
꣼ oṃ bhrūṃ svāhā । oṃ amṛta āyurdade svāhā । oṃ amṛta tejavati svāhā । oṃ amṛte । amṛta udbhave । amṛta vikrānte । amṛta gātre । amṛta gāmine । amṛta āyurdade । gagana kṛtikare । sarva kleśa kṣayaṃkarīye svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ āḥ guru hasavajra sarvasiddhi phala hūṃ॥
꣼ oṃ śodhani śodhani । sarva pāpaṁ viśodhani । śuddhe viśuddhe । sarva karma āvaraṇa viśodhani svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ bhaiṣajye bhaiṣajye bhaiṣajya samudgate svāhā॥
꣼ namo sapta saptatibhyaḥ । samyaksaṃbuddha koṭināṃ pariśuddha manasa । vācitta pratiṣṭitānāṃ । namo bhagavate amitāyuṣasya tathāgatasya । oṃ tathāgata śuddhe āyuviśuddhani । saṃhāra saṃhāra । sarva tathāgata vīrya valeda prati saṃhāra । āyu smara smara । sarva tathāgata samayaṃ । bodhi bodhi । buddhyā vibuddhyā । bodhaya bodhaya । sarva satvanāṃ । sarva pāpā varaṇa viśuddhe । vigatamāra bhayaṃ । subuddhā buddhe huru huru svāhā॥
꣼ namo nava navatīnāṃ tathāgata । gaṅgā nadī vālukā । koṭinayuta śata sahasrānām । oṃ bhūbhūri । cārini cari । caraṇa cire । muni muni । śreṣṭha alaṃkāre svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ namastryadhvikānāṃ । sarva tathāgata hṛdaya garbhe । jvāla jvāla । dharmadhātu garbhe । saṁbhara mama āyuḥ saṃśodhaya mama sarva pāpaṁ । sarva tathāgata samanta uṣṇīṣa vimale viśuddhe । hūṁ hūṁ hūṁ hūṁ । aṁ vaṁ saṁ jaḥ svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ padma uṣṇīṣa vimale hūṃ phaṭ॥
꣼ oṃ kaṃkaṇi kaṃkaṇi । rocani rocani । troṭani troṭani । trāsani trāsani । pratihana pratihana । sarva karma paramparāṇi me sarva sattvānāñca svāhā॥

Daśa Atyaya Mantrāḥ, the Ten Prayers for the Dead (Chinese: 十臨終咒), is a collection of esoteric Buddhist prayers recited for those at the threshold of death. The ten are:

  1. Ekādaśamukhalokeśvara (Chinese: 十一面觀音): the eleven-faced form of Avalokiteśvara, whose spell is taught in the 十一面神呪心經 (T1071), translated by Xuanzang. Its promised benefits are the ones the dying need most: the dying see the buddhas, are not reborn in the lower realms, and do not die from accident or hardship, while a single recitation erases the four root offences together with the five inexpiable acts.
  2. Uṣṇīṣavijayā (Chinese: 佛頂尊勝佛母): the victorious-crown goddess who issues from the Buddha's uṣṇīṣa, and one of the three principal long-life deities of Vajrayāna. Her scripture (T0967), translated by Buddhapāli in 676, gives the funeral rite directly. The dhāraṇī is recited twenty-one times over a handful of earth, which is scattered on the bones of the dead, and they are then reborn in the heavens.
  3. Milarepa (Chinese: 密勒日巴): the Tibetan yogi and poet-saint (1040-1123) of the Kagyü lineage, invoked here as the guru of the lineage. His Hṛdaya is a guru-yoga heart mantra; the tradition holds that whoever thinks of him or prays to him has him present, and that those who see or hear of him are reborn in a pure land within seven lifetimes.
  4. Mahāvairocana (Chinese: 毗盧遮那佛) with the Sarvadurgatipariśodhana Dhāraṇī: the purification form of Vairocana, the dharmakāya and central figure of the Five Jinas. The tantra to which the dhāraṇī belongs is organised around the purification of karma through funerary ritual, its frame story being a god who has fallen into hell. The Tibetan translation (Toh 483) gives Sarvavid Vairocana as its maṇḍala deity, while the Chinese version (T0939), translated in 1001, gives the tathāgata 淨諸惡趣王如來.
  5. Bhaiṣajyaguru (Chinese: 藥師佛) Hṛdaya: the Medicine Buddha of the eastern realm Vaiḍūrya. His scripture, the 藥師琉璃光如來本願功德經 (T0450), translated by Xuanzang, promises that those who hear his name are met at death by eight bodhisattvas who show them the way and are born in his realm, no longer to fall into the lower realms; the heart mantra itself, the 藥師灌頂真言, is spoken from the Buddha's uṣṇīṣa.
  6. Raśmi Vimala Viśuddha Prabhā Nāma Dhāraṇī (Chinese: 無垢淨光大陀羅尼經): the "Stainless Rays of Pure Light" dhāraṇī, which purifies the five uninterrupted negative karmas. Its scripture (T1024) was translated by Mitraśānta in 704, and is centered on making stūpas. Writing the dhāraṇī out and placing it in a stūpa, and reciting it seventy-seven times over the name of the dead, frees the deceased from the lower realms and brings rebirth in the heavens or in Tuṣita.
  7. Raśmi Vimala Viśuddha Prabhā Nāma Hṛdaya (Chinese: 遠塔陀羅尼): the heart-recitation that belongs with the longer dhāraṇī above, known in Tibetan as Özer drimé nyingpo, Heart of Stainless Rays. It is carried in the tradition under the Chinese name 遠塔陀羅尼.
  8. Vimala Uṣṇīṣa (Chinese: 無垢仏頂): the Stainless Crown, one of the seventeen uṣṇīṣa-rāja deities and a principal dhāraṇī of consecration. Its scripture (T1025), translated by Dānapāla, tells of a god in Tuṣita doomed to hell within seven days whom neither Indra nor the other gods can save, and whose rescue comes when the Buddha emits light from his uṣṇīṣa and teaches the dhāraṇī; writing it out and placing it in a stūpa is likened to enshrining the whole-body relics of countless tathāgatas.
  9. Amoghapāśa Padma Uṣṇīṣa (Chinese: 白蓮花頂髻無垢密咒): the lotus-crown dhāraṇī of the Amoghapāśa series of Avalokiteśvara. Whoever sees, hears, remembers, or touches it is purified of all negativities and freed from rebirth in the lower realms. It is preserved within the larger 不空羂索神變真言經 (T1092), translated by Bodhiruci, and 白蓮花頂髻無垢密咒 is the name it goes by in devotional use.
  10. Akṣobhya (Chinese: 阿閦佛): the buddha of the eastern realm Abhirati, one of the Five Wisdom Buddhas. The dhāraṇī bearing his name, in the 拔濟苦難陀羅尼經 (T1395) translated by Xuanzang, erases the five inexpiable acts together with the four grave offences and the slander of the Dharma, and promises that at death Akṣobhya and his bodhisattvas appear before the dying to welcome them to his pure land.

The set is associated with rites for the dying, and reciting these prayers is held to support the dying and the recently deceased. The Chinese title 十臨終咒 gathers ten prayers that the tradition recites at the threshold of death, drawn from the funerary and purification liturgies in which each one stands.

Source: CBETA - Taishō T1071, T0967, T0450, T1024, T1025, T1092, T1395
दश अत्यय मन्त्राः
꣼ ॐ धर धर । धिरि धिरि । धुरु धुरु । इट्टे विट्टे । चले चले । प्रचले प्रचले । कुसुमे कुसुमवरे । इलि मिलि विटि । चित्ति ज्वालम् आपनाय । परम शुद्धसत्त्व महा कारुणिक स्वाहा । ॐ मणिपद्मे हूँ॥
꣼ ॐ भ्रूं स्वाहा । ॐ अमृत आयुर्ददे स्वाहा । ॐ अमृत तेजवति स्वाहा । ॐ अमृते । अमृत उद्भवे । अमृत विक्रान्ते । अमृत गात्रे । अमृत गामिने । अमृत आयुर्ददे । गगन कृतिकरे । सर्व क्लेश क्षयंकरीये स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ आः गुरु हसवज्र सर्व सिद्धि फल हूं॥
꣼ ॐ शोधनि शोधनि । सर्व पापं विशोधनि । शुद्धे विशुद्धे । सर्व कर्म आवरण विशोधनि स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ भैषज्ये भैषज्ये भैषज्य समुद्गते स्वाहा॥
꣼ नमो सप्त सप्ततिभ्यः । सम्यक्संबुद्ध कोटिनां परिशुद्ध मनस । वाचित्त प्रतिष्टितानां । नमो भगवते अमितायुशस्य तथागतस्य । ॐ तथागत शुद्धे आयुविशुद्धनि । संहार संहार । सर्वतथागता वीर्य वलेद प्रति संहार । आयु स्मर स्मर । सर्वतथागता समयम् । बोधि बोधि । बुद्ध्या विबुद्ध्या । बोधय बोधय । सर्व सत्वनां । सर्व पापं वरण विशुद्धे । विगतमार भयं । सुबुद्धा बुद्धे हुरु हुरु स्वाहा॥
꣼ नमो नव नवतीनां तथागत । गङ्गा नदी वालुका । कोटिनयुत शत सहस्रनाम् । ॐ भूभूरि । चारिनि चरि । चरण चिरे । मुनि मुनि । श्रेष्ठ अलंकारे स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ नमस्त्र्यध्विकानां । सर्वतथागता हृदय गर्भे । ज्वल ज्वल । धर्मधातु गर्भे । सांभारा मम आयु संशोधय मम सर्व पापं । सर्व तथागत समन्त उष्णीष विमले विशुद्धे । हूँ हूँ हूँ हूँ । अं वं सं जः स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ पद्म उष्णीष विमले हूँ फट्॥
꣼ ॐ कंकनी कंकनी । रोचनी रोचनी । त्रोटनी त्रोटनी । त्रसनी त्रसनी । प्रतिहन प्रतिहन । सर्व कर्म परंपरनिमे सर्व सत्वनाञ्च स्वाहा॥

Daśa Cūla Dhāraṇī​

꣼ oṃ cakravarti cintāmaṇi mahāpadme ru ru tiṣṭha jvāla ākarṣāya hūṃ phaṭ svāhā । oṃ padma cintāmaṇi jvāla hūṃ । oṃ varada padme hūṃ॥
꣼ oṃ kha kha । khāhi khāhi । hūṃ hūṃ jvāla jvāla । prajvāla prajvāla । tiṣṭha tiṣṭha ṣṭiri ṣṭiri sphoṭa sphoṭa । śāntika śriye svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ siddhe huru huru sidhuru kṛpā kṛpā siddhāṇi puruṇi svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ cale cule cunde svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ sarva saṃskāra pariśuddha । dharmate gagana samudgate । svabhāva viśuddhe । mahānaya parivāre svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ bhaiṣajye bhaiṣajye bhaiṣajya samudgate svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ । mahā niryāṇa cittotpāda । cittakṣana vitarka । sarvārtha bhūri siddha kāmapūrṇa । bhūri dyototpanna । namaḥ lokeśvarāya svāhā॥
꣼ ripa ripate kuha kuhate traṇite ṇigalate vimarite mahāgate jaṃlaṃcaṃte svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ amṛte । amṛta udbhave । amṛta saṃbhave । amṛta garbhe । amṛta siddhe । amṛta teje । amṛta vikrānte । amṛta vikrānta gāmine । amṛta gagana kṛtikare । amṛta duṃdubhi svare । sarva artha sādhane । sarva karma kleśa kṣayaṃkare svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ paripūrṇa cāre । samanta darśane । mahā vihāra gate । samanta vidhāmane । mahā kārya pratiṣṭhāpane । sarvārtha sādhane supratipūre । āyāna dharmatā mahā vikurvite । mahā maitrī upasaṃhite । mahārṣi susaṃgṛhīte । samantārtha anupālane svāhā॥

Daśa Cūla Dhāraṇī, the Ten Short Prayers (Chinese: 十小咒), is a collection of short esoteric Buddhist dhāraṇīs for daily recitation. The ten are:

  1. Cintāmaṇi Cakravarti Dhāraṇī (Chinese: 如意寶輪王陀羅尼): the wish-fulfilling wheel of the Cintāmaṇicakra form of Avalokiteśvara, who holds the wish-granting jewel and the wheel. It clears obstacles and fulfils wishes, and comes from the 如意寶輪王陀羅尼經 (T1081), translated by Yijing in 710.
  2. Jvāla Mahāugra Dhāranī (Chinese: 消災吉祥神咒): the blazing-radiance formula of the Buddha 熾盛光如來, recited to avert calamity and inauspicious conditions. Its scripture (T0963) was translated by Amoghavajra, who worked between 746 and 774.
  3. Guṇaratna Śīla Dhāranī (Chinese: 功德寶山神咒): the jewel-mountain of merit formula. It comes down through the daily-recitation anthologies, the earliest combined witness being the Ming collection 諸經日誦集要 (J19nB044).
  4. Mahā Cundī Durgā Dhāranī (Chinese: 準提神咒): the mantra of Cundī, the pure goddess titled mother of the seven koṭis of buddhas. It purifies karma and removes obstructions, and its scripture (T1076) was translated by Amoghavajra, with an earlier version (T1075) by Vajrabodhi in 723.
  5. Aparimitāyurjñāna Suviniścita Tejorājāya Dhāraṇī (Chinese: 聖無量壽決定光明王陀羅尼): the long-life formula of the Tathāgata 聖無量壽決定光明王, Holy Unmeasured Life of Decided Radiance. It is recited for longevity and the clearing of obstructive karma, and its scripture (T0937) was translated by 法天 in 973.
  6. Bhaiṣajyaguru Vaiḍūrya Prabhāsa Tathāgata Abhiṣecanī Dhāraṇī (Chinese: 藥師灌頂真言): the Medicine Buddha's consecration mantra, recited for healing and for the removal of illness and karmic obstruction. It stands in the Medicine Buddha scriptures: the seven-buddha version (T0451), translated by Yijing in 707, and the single-buddha version (T0450), translated by Xuanzang in 650.
  7. Āryavalokiteśvarā Bodhisattva Vikurvāṇā Dhāraṇī (Chinese: 觀音靈感真言): the responsive-manifestation formula of Avalokiteśvara, which incorporates the six-syllable 六字大明咒, oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ. It comes down through the daily-recitation anthologies, the earliest witness being the Ming collection 諸經日誦集要 (J19nB044).
  8. Sapta Atītabuddha Karasaniya Dhāraṇī (Chinese: 七佛滅罪真言): the absolution of the seven past buddhas. It is recited in the 方等三昧 repentance practice and stands in its manual, the 方等三昧行法 (T1940), which derives from the 大方等陀羅尼經 (T1339), translated by 法眾 between 402 and 413. The name 七佛滅罪真言 is the one carried by the Ming daily-recitation anthologies.
  9. Sukhāvatīvyūha Dhāraṇī (Chinese: 拔一切業障根本得生淨土陀羅尼): Amitābha's rebirth mantra, better known as 往生咒. It uproots obstructive karma and secures rebirth in Sukhāvatī; its scripture (T0368) was retranslated by Guṇabhadra between 435 and 443.
  10. Śrīdēvī Dhāraṇī (Chinese: 大吉祥天女咒): the formula of 大吉祥天女, the goddess of fortune, invoked for wealth, the relief of poverty, and auspicious conditions. It comes from the eighth fascicle of the 金光明最勝王經 (T0665), the chapter on her increase of wealth, translated by Yijing in 703.

The set is preserved in the traditional daily-recitation collection 諸經日誦集要.

Source: 諸經日誦集要 - CBETA, J19nB044
दश चूल धारणी
꣼ ॐ चक्रवर्तिन् चिन्तामणि महापद्मे रु रु तिष्ठ ज्वल आकर्शाय हूँ फट् स्वाहा । ॐ पद्म चिन्तामणि ज्वल हूँ । ॐ वरद पद्मे हूँ॥
꣼ ॐ ख ख । खाहि खाहि । हूँ हूँ ज्वल ज्वल । प्रज्वल प्रज्वल । तिष्ठ तिष्ठ ष्टिरि ष्टिरि स्फोट स्फोट । शान्तिक श्रिये स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ सिद्धे हुरु हुरु सिधुरु कृपा कृपा सिद्धाणि पूरुणि स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ चले चुले चुन्दी स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ सर्वसंस्कार परिशुद्धे धर्मते गगन समुद्गते स्वभाव विशुद्धे महानय परिवारे स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ भैषज्ये भैषज्ये भैषज्य समुद्गते स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ मणिपद्मे हूँ । महा निर्याण चित्तोत्पाद । चित्तक्षन वितर्क । सर्वार्थ भूरि सिद्ध कामपूर्ण । भूरि द्योतोत्पान्न । नमः लोकेश्वराय स्वाहा॥
꣼ रिप रिपते कुह कुहते त्रणिते णिगलते विमरिते महागते जंलंचंते स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ अमृते । अमृत उद्भवे । अमृत संभवे । अमृत गर्भे । अमृत सिद्धे । अमृत तेजे । अमृत विक्रान्ते । अमृत विक्रान्त गामिने । अमृत गगन कृतिकरे । अमृत दुंदुभि स्वरे । सर्व अर्थ साधने । सर्व कर्म क्लेश क्षयंकरे स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ परिपूर्ण चरे । समन्त दर्शने । महा विहार गते । समन्त विधामने । महा कार्य प्रतिष्ठापने । सर्वार्थ साधने सुप्रतिपूरे । आयान धर्मता महा विकुर्विते । महा मैत्री उपसंहिते । महार्षि सुसंगृहीते । समन्तार्थ अनुपालने स्वाहा॥

Daśa Mukta Mantrāḥ​

꣼ oṃ padma uṣṇīṣa vimale hūṃ phaṭ॥
꣼ oṃ hanu pāśa bhāra hṛdaya svāhā॥
꣼ a āḥ śa sa ma ha॥
꣼ oṃ vipulagarbhe maṇiprabhe tathāgatanidarśane । maṇi maṇi suprabhe vimale sāgara gambhīre hūṃ hūṃ jvāla jvāla । buddhāvilokite guhyādhiṣṭita garbhe svāhā । padmadhara amogha jayate curu curu svāhā । oṃ maṇivajre hūṃ । oṃ maṇidhare hūṃ phaṭ । oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ hrīḥ arapacamita hṛdaya svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ kaṃkaṇi kaṃkaṇi । rocani rocani । troṭani troṭani । trāsani trāsani । pratihana pratihana । sarva karma paramparāṇi me sarva sattvānāñca svāhā॥
꣼ ratna ratna ratnaśikhin svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ bhaiṣajye bhaiṣajye bhaiṣajya samudgate svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ bhrūṃ svāhā । oṃ amṛta āyurdade svāhā । oṃ amṛta tejavati svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ॥
꣼ oṃ amitābha hrīḥ॥

Daśa Mukta Mantrāḥ, the Ten Liberation Prayers (Chinese: 十解脱咒), is a collection of esoteric Buddhist prayers recited for those near the end of life. The ten are:

  1. Amoghapāśa Padma Uṣṇīṣa (Chinese: 白蓮花頂髻無垢密咒): the lotus-crown dhāraṇī of Amoghapāśa Avalokiteśvara, and the tenth of the ten lotus-crown mantras in the 不空羂索神變真言經 (T1092), translated by Bodhiruci between 707 and 709. The mantra is oṃ padma uṣṇīṣa vimale hūṃ phaṭ; it is written out and posted over a doorway so that anyone passing beneath it receives the blessing, and it is also used on funeral banners and in the consecration of images.
  2. Darśana Mukta (Chinese: 見即解脱咒): "liberation by seeing", a Tibetan prayer held to purify a hundred thousand eons of negative karma merely by being seen. Its name joins darśana, seeing, to mukta, freed. It comes down through the Tibetan lineage, which treasures it as a mantra to be seen, and it is widely known today through the mantra cards printed for that purpose. The form carried with it is oṃ hanu pāśa bhāra hṛdaya svāhā.
  3. Samantabhadra Ṣaḍja Mukta (Chinese: 听即解脱咒): "liberation by hearing", linked with the Six Spaces of Samantabhadra and the six realms. The six syllables a, āḥ, śa, sa, ma, and ha are traditionally said to free beings in any realm upon hearing or seeing them, and in Dzogchen they express six aspects of primordial awareness. The tradition traces it to a terma of Padmasambhava, and it has come into wide public circulation in recent times.
  4. Mahāmaṇi Vipulavimāna (Chinese: 大寶廣博樓閣善住祕密陀羅尼經): the dhāraṇī of the jewelled palace, taught by Śākyamuni and translated by Amoghavajra as the 大寶廣博樓閣善住祕密陀羅尼經 (T1005A). Reciting it erases the five inexpiable acts and the four grave offences, and it is used widely for the dead. At the moment of death the buddhas comfort the dying and lead them to a pure land, and even insects and birds touched by its shadow or dust are freed.
  5. Akṣobhya (Chinese: 阿閦佛) Hṛdaya: the buddha of the eastern realm Abhirati, one of the Five Wisdom Buddhas. In the 拔濟苦難陀羅尼經 (T1395), translated by Xuanzang, the Buddha proclaims his dhāraṇī - there under the name 不動如來 - for the benefit of beings; hearing it clears karmic obstruction including the five inexpiable acts, and sand, water, or white sesame blessed with the mantra and sprinkled on the dead is held to release them from the lower realms.
  6. Ratnaśikhin (Chinese: 宝髻佛) Hṛdaya: Jewel Crest, a buddha of the past whose vow is that anyone in the worlds of the ten directions who hears his name at the moment of death will be reborn as a god in Trāyastriṃśa. That vow is recorded in the 金光明最勝王經 (T0665), translated by Yijing in 703. His heart mantra is carried in the practice of reciting over water that holds insects, so that the creatures in it are freed.
  7. Bhaiṣajyaguru (Chinese: 藥師佛) Hṛdaya: the Medicine Buddha of the eastern realm Vaiḍūrya. His scripture (T0450), translated by Xuanzang in 650, has the Buddha enter samādhi and send the 藥師灌頂真言 forth from the light of his uṣṇīṣa; reciting it heals illness and fulfils wishes, and those who hear his name are met at death by eight bodhisattvas who show them the way to his realm.
  8. Uṣṇīṣavijayā (Chinese: 佛頂尊勝佛母): the victorious-crown goddess who issued from the Buddha's uṣṇīṣa, and one of the three principal long-life deities of Vajrayāna. Her scripture (T0967), translated by Buddhapāli in 676, was spoken for the god 善住, who had been told he would die in seven days; it purifies all evil destinies, and is the prayer most used for the dead, recited over the body and inscribed on the 尊勝幢.
  9. Avalokiteśvara (Chinese: 觀世音) Hṛdaya: the six-syllable mantra oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ, the heart of Avalokiteśvara, understood as Jewel-Lotus. It is the 六字大明陀羅尼 of the 佛說大乘莊嚴寶王經 (T1050), a mantra that scripture calls difficult to encounter; the Buddha taught that reciting it while attending to the sound can lead to eight hundred samādhis, and that it purifies negative karma and prevents lower rebirth.
  10. Amitābha (Chinese: 阿彌陀佛) Hṛdaya: Amitābha of Sukhāvatī, whose heart dhāraṇī is linked with longevity, discernment, and the purification of the aggregates. It carries the recognition of the emptiness of all phenomena, through which the aggregates are purified, and it is recited to support rebirth in the pure land.

Reciting these prayers is held to aid the dying and the deceased. The Chinese title 十解脫咒, the Ten Liberation Prayers, gathers mantras that have come down through both the Chinese esoteric canon and the Tibetan terma traditions, and it follows the way these ten are recited together in practice.

Source: CBETA - Taishō T1092, T1005A, T1395, T0665, T0450, T0967; 84000 - Toh 677
दश मुक्त र्मन्त्राः
꣼ ॐ पद्म उष्णीष विमले हूँ फट्॥
꣼ ॐ हनु पाश भार हृदय स्वाहा॥
꣼ अ आ शा स म ह॥
꣼ ॐ विपुलगर्भे मणिप्रभे तथागतनिदर्शने । मणि मणि सुप्रभे विमले सागर गंभीरे हूं हूं ज्वल ज्वल । बुद्धविलोकिते गुह्याधिष्ठित गर्भे स्वाहा । पद्मधर अमोघ जायते चुरुचुरु स्वाहा । ॐ मणिवज्रे हूँ । ॐ मणिधरे हूँ फट् । ॐ मणिपद्मे हूँ ह्रीः अरपचमित हृदय स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ कंकनी कंकनी । रोचनी रोचनी । त्रोटनी त्रोटनी । त्रसनी त्रसनी । प्रतिहन प्रतिहन । सर्व कर्म परंपरनिमे सर्व सत्वनाञ्च स्वाहा॥
꣼ रत्न रत्न रत्नशिखिन् स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ भैषज्ये भैषज्ये भैषज्य समुद्गते स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ भ्रूं स्वाहा । ॐ अमृत आयुर्ददे स्वाहा । ॐ अमृत तेजवति स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ मणिपद्मे हूँ॥
꣼ ॐ अमिताभ ह्रीः॥

Dhanadatārā​

oṃ tāre tuttāre ture dhanaṃ me dada svāhā॥
3x

Dhanadatārā is a manifestation of Tārā associated with granting success, ultimate happiness, and enough financial resources to live with dignity and generosity. Her name combines the Sanskrit words for wealth and giving with Tārā, the saviouress.

The Hundred and Eight Names of the Goddess Tārā praises her for making wealth increase and merit ever-victorious, and she is invoked for material support and success in undertakings.

Source: The Hundred and Eight Names of the Goddess Tārā - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
धनदतारा
ॐ तारे तुत्तारे तुरे धनम् मे दद स्वाहा॥

Dharma​

oṃ dhuru dhuru jayaṃukḥe svāhā॥
3x

Dharma is the Sanskrit term for the Buddha's teaching, the truth of how things are, and the virtuous qualities that follow from understanding it; its scope includes both the doctrine and the practice that embodies it. The Buddha's first discourse, the Rolling Forth of the Dhamma, presents the four noble truths as the foundation of that teaching.

The blessing of virtue is a short dedication that gathers the heart around the Dharma and asks that the teaching continue to shine through the practitioner's actions.

Source: Rolling Forth the Dhamma (SN 56.11) - SuttaCentral
धर्म
ॐ धुरु धुरु जयामुखे स्वाहा॥

Ekādaśamukhalokeśvara​

oṃ dhara dhara । dhīre dhīre । dhuru dhuru । iṭṭe viṭṭe । cale cale । pracale pracale । kusume kusumavare । ili mili viṭi । citti jvālaṃ āpanāya । parama śuddhasattva mahā kāruṇika svāhā॥
3x

The Ekādaśamukhalokeśvara prayer is recited to purify negative karma and to remove obstacles. It is understood to support protection, well-being, and the cultivation of a loving heart, and it is described as a quiet daily companion for keeping the path clear and the mind kind.

Source: 十一面神呪心經 (T1071) - CBETA, Taishō Tripiṭaka

Bhagavan, I have a mantra of Great-Compassionate Heart Dharani and now wish to proclaim it, for comforting and pleasing all living beings; for healing all illness; for living beings to attain additional lifespan; for living beings to gain wealth; for extinguishing all evil karma and weighty sins; for keeping away from hindrance and disasters; for producing merits of all Pure Dharmas; for maturing all virtuous-roots; for overcoming all fears; for fulfilling all good wishes.

  • Great-Compassionate Heart Dharani Sutra
एकादशमुखलोकेश्वर
ॐ धर धर । धिरि धिरि । धुरु धुरु । इट्टे विट्टे । चले चले । प्रचले प्रचले । कुसुमे कुसुमवरे । इलि मिलि विटि । चित्ति ज्वालम् आपनाय । परम शुद्धसत्त्व महा कारुणिक स्वाहा॥

Ekajaṭī Hṛdaya​

samaya hoḥ । oṃ mama rulu rulu hūṃ bhyō hūṃ । mahā amṛta rakta baliṃta pūja hoḥ dharmadhātu evaṃ॥

Ekajaṭī, also known as Ekajaṭā, Māhacīna Tārā, Vajra Tārā, or Ugra Tārā, is one of the most powerful and fierce protectors and liberators in the maṇḍala of Ārya Tārā. The powers ascribed to her are the removal of the fear of enemies, the spreading of joy, and the clearing of personal hindrances on the path to enlightenment.

Source: Ekajaṭī Series - Lotsawa House
एकजटी
समय होः । ॐ मम रुलु रुलु हूँ भ्यो हूँ । महा अमृत रक्त बलिंत पूजा होः धर्मधातु एवं॥

Guhyadhātukaraṇḍa​

namastryadhvikānāṃ sarvatathāgatānāṃ । oṃ bhuvibhavanavare vacanavacati । suru suru dhara dhara । sarva tathāgatadhātu dhare padmaṃ bhavati । jayavare mudre । smara tathāgata dharmacakra pravartana vajre bodhi maṇḍālaṅ-kārālaṅ-kṛte । sarva tathāgatādhiṣṭhite । bodhaya bodhaya bodhi bodhi budhya budhya । saṃbodhani saṃbodhaya । cala cala calantu sarvāvaraṇāni । sarva pāpavigate । huru huru sarva śokavigate । sarva tathāgata hṛdaya vajriṇi । saṃbhāra saṃbhāra । sarva tathāgata guhya dhāraṇī mudre । bhūte subhūte । sarva tathāgatādhiṣṭhitadhātu garbhe svāhā । samayādhiṣṭhite svāhā । sarva tathāgata hṛdaya dhātu mudre svāhā । supratiṣṭhitastūpe tathāgatādhiṣṭhite huru huru hūṃ hūṃ svāhā । oṃ sarva tathāgatoṣṇīṣa dhātu mudrāṇi sarva tathāgata sadhātu vibhūṣitādhiṣṭhite hūṃ hūṃ svāhā॥

Guhyadhātukaraṇḍa is understood to purify the negative karma of the ten non-virtuous actions and to liberate beings from the eight hot hells, including the unbearable hell (Avīci). The prayer also purifies the five uninterrupted negative karmas.

Printing this prayer just once is said to collect the same amount of merit as making offerings to 100,000 x 10 million x 100 billion Buddhas. The merit is described as vast as the number of Buddhas that could fit in ninety-nine sesame seed pods, and the practitioner is said to be guided by exactly that many Buddhas.

Source: The Dhāraṇī for Secret Relics - 84000 Translating the Words of the Buddha
गुह्यधातुकरण्ड
नमस्त्र्यध्विकानां सर्वतथागतानां । ॐ भुविभवनवरे वचनवचति । सुरु सुरु धर धर । सर्व तथागतधातु धरे पद्मं भवति । जयवरे मुद्रे । स्मर तथागत धर्मचक्र प्रवर्तन वज्रे बोधि मण्डालङ्कारालङ्कृते । सर्व तथागताधिष्ठिते । बोधय बोधय बोधि बोधि बुध्य बुध्य । संबोधनि संबोधय । चल चल चलन्तु सर्वावरणानि । सर्व पापविगते । हुरु हुरु सर्व शोकविगते । सर्व तथागत हृदय वज्रिणि । संभार संभार । सर्व तथागत गुह्य धारणी मुद्रे । भूते सुभूते । सर्व तथागताधिष्ठितधातु गर्भे स्वाहा । समयाधिष्ठिते स्वाहा । सर्व तथागत हृदय धातु मुद्रे स्वाहा । सुप्रतिष्ठितस्तूपे तथागताधिष्ठिते हुरु हुरु हूं हूं स्वाहा । ॐ सर्व तथागतोष्णीष धातु मुद्राणि सर्व तथागत सधातु विभूषिताधिष्ठिते हूं हूं स्वाहा॥

Japa​

oṃ sambhara sambhara vimānasara mahājapa hūṃ । oṃ smara smara vimānaskara mahājapa hūṃ॥
3x

The blessing of prayer is a short dedication that gathers the heart around recitation and asks that each repetition deepen the practice.

Source: Recitation Manuals Series - Lotsawa House
जप
ॐ सांभारा सांभारा विमानसारा महाजप हूं । ॐ स्मरा स्मरा विमानस्कारा महाजप हूं॥

Mahā Cakra Vajra​

oṃ virāji virāji mahā-cakra-vajri । sata sata sarate sarate trayī trayī vidhamani saṃbhañjani । tramati siddhā gryatvaṃ svāhā॥

The Mahā Cakra Vajra prayer is understood to support success in all prayer cultivation, so that virtuous deeds find swift accomplishment. It is also said to help complete the attainment of all mudra practices - a quiet dedication that steadies the hands and the heart together.

महाचक्रवज्र
ॐ विराजि विराजि महाचक्रवज्रि । सत सत सरते सरते त्रयी त्रयी विधमणि संभञ्जनी । त्रमति सिद्धाग्र्यत्वं स्वाहा॥

Mahā Cundī Durgā Dhāranī​

oṃ cale cule cunde svāhā॥

Cundī is a female Indian Buddhist deity who remains popular in East Asian Buddhism. In Chinese Buddhism, she is associated with the practice of the well-known Cundī dhāraṇī, which is performed with a specific mudra (hand gesture) and the use of a circular mirror. She is considered able to purify negative karma, to provide protection, and to support spiritual practice so that one may quickly attain Buddhahood.

Source: 佛說七俱胝佛母心大准提陀羅尼經 (T1077) - CBETA, Taishō Tripiṭaka
महा चुन्दी दुर्गा धारणी
ॐ चले चुले चुन्दी स्वाहा॥

Mahāmaṇiratanapaṭimākara Hṛdaya​

buddho mahāmaṇiratana paṭimākara pūjemi । etena saccavajjena mahātejo ceva mahāpañño । ca mahābhogo ca mahāyaso ca bhavantu me । nibbānassa paccayo hotu॥

The Emerald Buddha (Chinese: 玉佛, Thai: พระแก้วมรกต) is a statuette that portrays the historical Buddha Śākyamuni, clothed in gold and seated on the throne under a five-tiered chatra. It is sculpted from an unknown green stone, most likely jasper rather than emerald, and its perceived powers are described as of epic proportions. One of the jewels of the Chakravartin, it is also regarded as arguably the most sacred Buddhist icon in mainland Southeast Asia.

महामणिरत्नप्रतिमाकार
बुद्धो महामणिरत्नः प्रतिमाकारः पूजयामि । एतेन सत्यवचनेन महातेजश्चैव महाप्रज्ञः । च महाभोगश्च महायशश्च भवंतु मे । निर्वाणस्य प्रत्ययः भवतु॥

Mahāmaṇi Vipulavimāna​

oṃ vipulagarbhe maṇiprabhe tathāgatanidarśane । maṇi maṇi suprabhe vimale sāgara gambhīre hūṃ hūṃ jvāla jvāla । buddhāvilokite guhyādhiṣṭita garbhe svāhā । padmadhara amogha jayate curu curu svāhā । oṃ maṇivajre hūṃ । oṃ maṇidhare hūṃ phaṭ । oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ hrīḥ arapacamita hṛdaya svāhā । oṃ hanu pāśa bhāra hṛdaya svāhā॥
3x

Through this prayer the Buddha attains nirvāṇa and subdues demons. Any being who sees, recites, hears, touches, or wears this victorious prayer is said to purify their negative karmas and unholy obstacles.

Source: The Dhāraṇī of the Sovereign Practice of the Supreme Secret Found Especially in the Great Jewel Palace - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
महामणि विपुलविमान
ॐ विपुलगर्भे मणिप्रभे तथागतनिदर्शने । मणि मणि सुप्रभे विमले सागर गंभीरे हूं हूं ज्वल ज्वल । बुद्धविलोकिते गुह्याधिष्ठित गर्भे स्वाहा । पद्मधर अमोघ जायते चुरुचुरु स्वाहा । ॐ मणिवज्रे हूँ । ॐ मणिधरे हूँ फट् । ॐ मणिपद्मे हूँ ह्रीः अरपचमित हृदय स्वाहा । ॐ हनु पाश भार हृदय स्वाहा॥

Mahāpratisarā Vidyā Dhāraṇī​

oṃ amṛtavare vara-vara pravara viśuddhe hūṃ hūṃ phaṭ phaṭ svāhā । oṃ amṛtavilokini garbhe saṃrakṣaṇi ākarṣaṇi hūṃ hūṃ phaṭ phaṭ svāhā । oṃ vimale vipule jayavare jayavāhini amṛtaviraje hūṃ hūṃ phaṭ phaṭ svāhā । oṃ bhara-bhara saṃbhara-saṃbhara indriyabala-viśodhani ruru cale hūṃ hūṃ phaṭ phaṭ svāhā । oṃ maṇidhari vajriṇi mahāpratisare hūṃ hūṃ phaṭ phaṭ svāhā॥

The Mahāpratisarā Vidyā Dhāraṇī is one of the most revered protective formulas in the Buddhist world, centered on the goddess Mahāpratisarā, a radiant embodiment of safeguard, healing, and karmic purification. Regarded as the "Great Amulet", this dhāraṇī occupies a central place within the Pañcarakṣā (Five Great Protectors), a collection of scriptures believed to shield practitioners from illness, misfortune, and untimely death.

The five protectors, each a scripture and the goddess it personifies, are:

  1. Mahāpratisarā (Chinese: 大隨求): the Great Amulet herself, invoked to grant wishes, purify karma, and shield whoever recites, writes, or carries the dhāraṇī. Her scriptures include the 大隨求陀羅尼經 (T1153), translated by Amoghavajra, and the 佛說隨求即得大自在陀羅尼神呪經 (T1154), translated by 寶思惟 in 693.
  2. Mahāsahasrapramardinī (Chinese: 大千摧碎): the Destroyer of the Great Trichiliocosm, invoked against calamity, nāgas, and epidemic. Its scripture is the 佛說守護大千國土經 (T0999), translated by 施護 in 980.
  3. Mahāmāyūrī (Chinese: 大孔雀明王): the Great Peacock Queen of Mantras, invoked against snakebite, poison, and disease. Its scripture is the 佛母大孔雀明王經 (T0982), translated by Amoghavajra.
  4. Mahāśītavatī (Chinese: 大寒林): the goddess of the Great Cool Grove, invoked against harmful spirits and disease. Its scripture is the 大寒林聖難拏陀羅尼經 (T1392), translated by 法天 in 973.
  5. Mahāmantrānusāriṇī (Chinese: 大秘咒隨持): the Great Upholder of the Secret Mantra, invoked for protection and the growth of wholesome roots. It is identified with the 佛說大護明大陀羅尼經 (T1048), translated by 法天 in 973.

Each of the five comes down in its own scripture.

Often depicted as a Vidyārājñī ("Queen of Mantras"), Mahāpratisarā is invoked for her power to dispel obstacles, neutralize malevolent forces, and grant well-being to those who recite, write, or carry her dhāraṇī. The mantra itself contains potent syllables - such as oṃ, āḥ, and hūṃ - associated with illumination, protection, and the cutting of negativity. Across South Asia, Tibet, and East Asia, this dhāraṇī has been inscribed on amulets, printed on talismans, and recited in rituals for centuries, earning a reputation as one of Buddhism's most effective and compassionate protective formulas.

Source: Mahāpratisarāvidyādhāraṇī - GRETIL, University of Göttingen
महाप्रतिसरा विद्या धारणी
ॐ अमृतवरे वरवर प्रवरे विशुद्धे हूँ हूँ फट् फट् स्वाहा । ॐ अमृतविलोकिनि गर्भे संरक्षिणि आकर्षिणि हूँ हूँ फट् फट् स्वाहा । ॐ विमले विपुले जयवरे जयवाहिनि अमृतविरजे हूँ हूँ फट् फट् स्वाहा । ॐ भरभर सम्भरसम्भर इन्द्रियबलविशोधनि रुरु चले हूँ हूँ फट् फट् स्वाहा । ॐ मणिधरि वज्रिणि महाप्रतिसरे हूँ हूँ फट् फट् स्वाहा॥

Mahāvairocana Sarvadurgati Pariśodhana Dhāraṇī​

oṃ śodhani śodhani । sarva pāpaṁ viśodhani । śuddhe viśuddhe । sarva karma āvaraṇa viśodhani svāhā॥

Vairocana is seen as the dharmakāya - the supreme buddha-body, the body of ultimate reality - and the embodiment of the Buddhist concept of wisdom and purity. In the conception of the Five Jinas of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism, Vairocana sits at the centre and is often considered a Primordial Buddha, and in East Asian esoteric Buddhism Mahāvairocana is regarded as a cosmic Buddha whose body is the entire universe, the Dharmadhātu. The Mahāvairocana Sarvadurgati Pariśodhana Dhāraṇī is a purification dhāraṇī centered on him. Its Sanskrit title names the purification of all bad rebirths, and the tantra to which it belongs is classified among the Yoga tantras of the Tibetan canon. The mantra is said to purify negative karma, avert lower rebirths, and cleanse obscurations.

Source: The Tantra Purifying Bad Rebirths - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
महावैरोचन सर्वदुर्गति परिशोधन धारणी
ॐ शोधनि शोधनि । सर्व पापं विशोधनि । शुद्धे विशुद्धे । सर्व कर्म आवरण विशोधनि स्वाहा॥

Maitreya Hṛdaya​

oṃ mohi mohi mahāmohi svāhā । oṃ muni muni smarā svāhā॥

Maitreya is regarded in all schools of Buddhism as the future Buddha of this world, the fifth and final Buddha of the current kalpa (eon). He is traditionally placed in the Tuṣita heaven. His name derives from maitrī, meaning loving-kindness, and his heart dhāraṇī is preserved in the Tibetan Buddhist canon, where it is widely recited in devotional practice.

Source: The Dhāraṇī "Maitreya’s Pledge" - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

Oṃ fascinating, fascinating, greatly fascinating, So Be It! Oṃ wise one, wise one, remember, So Be It!

मैत्रेय
ॐ मोहि मोहि महामोहि स्वाहा । ॐ मुनि मुनि स्मरा स्वाहा॥

Mālā​

Recite the prayer, gently blow on the mālā and rub it lightly.
oṃ rucirā maṇi pravartamānaye svāhā॥
3x

The prayer beads blessing is a short dedication blessing that gathers the heart around the mālā and asks that each touch of the beads deepen the recitation. A mālā is a garland or string of beads used to count repetitions of a mantra or sacred phrase, and moving through it with each repetition is understood to settle the mind and mark the completion of a round.

माला
ॐ रुचिरा मणि प्रवर्तमानये स्वाहा॥

Maṇḍalapūjā​

oṃ guru ārya tārā saparivāraṇām idaṃ ratna maṇḍalakaṃ niryātayāmi॥
7x

The maṇḍala offering is described in the tradition as offering the entire universe itself, in gratitude, into the hands of the awakened ones. The universe is visualized and symbolically offered to the field of merit - the assembled buddhas and bodhisattvas - as an expression of gratitude and generosity. It is a preliminary practice performed to accumulate merit and to loosen attachment to possessions, and it appears throughout Tibetan ngöndro and ritual liturgies.

Source: Maṇḍala Offering Series - Lotsawa House

Oṃ guru Noble Tārā and retinues, I offer up this jewel mandala

मण्डलपूजा
ॐ गुरु आर्य तारा सपरिवारणाम् इदं रत्नमण्डलकं निर्यातयामि॥

Mañjuśrī Hṛdaya​

oṃ arapacana dhīḥ॥

Mañjuśrī is a bodhisattva associated with wisdom and insight in Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna Buddhism, and his name is often translated as Gentle Glory. His heart mantra is oṃ arapacana dhīḥ, and this prayer opens the five Dharma doors. The five syllables are the opening of the arapacana, the syllabary the Prajñāpāramitā uses to spell out the whole of the teaching, and they stand at the head of its forty-two letter doors. Each syllable marks one door:

  1. ādya-anutpannatvād: a door to the insight that all dharmas are unproduced from the very beginning.
  2. rajas: a door to the insight that all dharmas are without dirt.
  3. paramārtha: a door to the insight that all dharmas have been expounded in the ultimate sense.
  4. cyavana: a door to the insight that the decrease or rebirth of any dharma cannot be apprehended, because all dharmas do not decrease, nor are they reborn.
  5. nāma: a door to the insight that the names of all dharmas have vanished, so that the essential nature behind names can be neither gained nor lost.

This prayer is believed to enhance wisdom and to improve skill in debating, memory, writing, and other literary abilities. The sūtra itself promises twenty benefits to anyone who receives these letter doors, recites them, or explains them to others, and it opens that list with a strong memory, wisdom, and unhindered eloquence in teaching.

Source: One Hundred and Eight Names of Mañjuśrī - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha; 摩訶般若波羅蜜經 (T0223) - CBETA, Taishō Tripiṭaka

Oṃ Five Dharma Doors, Dhīḥ!

मञ्जुश्री
ॐ अरपचन धीः॥

Milarepa Hṛdaya​

oṃ āḥ guru hasavajra sarvasiddhi phala hūṃ॥

Milarepa taught that whoever has heard of him or seen statues and representations of him will be reborn in one of the pure lands within seven lifetimes. He also taught that whenever one thinks of Milarepa, whenever one prays to Milarepa, Milarepa is right in front of that person. Jetsün Milarepa (1040-1123) was a Tibetan yogi and poet-saint of the Kagyü tradition, and his Hṛdaya is a heart mantra that invokes him as a guru.

Source: Milarepa Series - Lotsawa House
मिलरेप
ॐ आः गुरु हसवज्र सर्व सिद्धि फल हूं॥

Namaskāra​

oṃ namo mañjuśrīye । namo suśrīye । namo uttamaśrīye svāhā॥
3x

The prostration blessing is a short dedication that gathers the heart in veneration and lets the body follow. Namaskāra means homage or prostration, a gesture offered to buddhas, bodhisattvas, and teachers with body, speech, and mind. It commonly opens the seven-branch service, expresses respect and the taking of refuge, and begins many sessions of practice or devotion.

Source: Seven Branches Series - Lotsawa House
नमस्कार
ॐ: नमो मंजुश्रिये । नमो सुश्रिये । नमो उत्तमश्रिये स्वाहा:॥

Nīlakaṇṭha Dhāraṇī​

oṃ apaloka lokātikrānta ehi hare mahābodhisattva sarpa-sarpa । smara smara mama hṛdayam । kuru-kuru karma । dhuru-dhuru vijayate mahā-vijayate । dhara-dhara dhāraṇī-śvarāya । cala-cala mama vimala-mūrtte re । ehy-ehi śina-śina ārṣam prasari । viṣa-viṣaṃ praṇāśaya । hulu-hulu malla । hulu-hulu hare । sara-sara siri-siri suru-suru । bodhiya-bodhiya bodhaya-bodhaya maitriya nīlakaṇṭha । darśanena prahlādaya manaḥ svāhā । siddhāya svāhā । mahāsiddhāya svāhā । siddha-yogeśvarāya svāhā । nīlakaṇṭhāya svāhā । varāha-mukhāya svāhā । narasiṃha-mukhāya svāhā । sarva-mahā-siddhāya svāhā । cakra-hastāya svāhā । padma-hastāya svāhā । nīlakaṇṭha-vyāghrāya svāhā । mahābali-śankarāya svāhā॥

The most widely practiced Far East version, cross-checked with the Dunhuang manuscript S.231, is known as the Great Compassion Dhāraṇī (Sanskrit: महाकारुणिक धारणी, Romanized: Mahākāruṇika Dhāraṇī, Chinese: 大悲咒). It is a long spell associated with Avalokiteśvara and prominent in East Asian Buddhism, and its Sanskrit name means Blue-Necked. It is held to bring protection, purification, and healing, and to embody the boundless compassion of Avalokiteśvara; it is often used on behalf of the sick and the dying.

Source: 千手千眼觀世音菩薩廣大圓滿無礙大悲心陀羅尼經 (T1060) - CBETA, Taishō Tripiṭaka
नीलकण्ठ धारणी
ॐ अपलोक लोकातिक्रान्त एहि हरे महाबोधिसत्त्व सर्पसर्प । मर स्मर मम हृदयम् । कुरुकुरु कर्म । धुरुधुरु विजयते महाविजयते । धरधर धारणीश्वराय । चलचल मम विमलमूर्ते रे । एह्येहि शिनशिन आर्षं प्रसरि । विषविषं प्रणाशय । हुलुहुलु मल्ल । हुलुहुलु हरे । सरसर सिरिसिरि सुरुसुरु । बोधियबोधिय बोधयबोधय मैत्रिय नीलकण्ठ । दर्शनेन प्रह्लादय मनः स्वाहा । सिद्धाय स्वाहा । महासिद्धाय स्वाहा । सिद्धयोगेश्वराय स्वाहा । नीलकण्ठाय स्वाहा । वराहमुखाय स्वाहा । नारसिंहमुखाय स्वाहा । सर्वमहासिद्धाय स्वाहा । चक्रहस्ताय स्वाहा । पद्महस्ताय स्वाहा । नीलकण्ठव्याघ्राय स्वाहा । महाबलिशङ्कराय स्वाहा॥

Pañcabhūta​

oṃ e ho śuddhe śuddhe । yaṃ ho śuddhe śuddhe । raṃ ho śuddhe śuddhe । vaṃ ho śuddhe śuddhe । laṃ ho śuddhe śuddhe । e yaṃ raṃ vaṃ laṃ śuddhe śodhanaye svāhā॥

The five great elements - earth, water, fire, air, and space - are the basic constituents of experience that the visualization practice gathers into a single, luminous field. Pañcabhūta is the Sanskrit name for these elements, to which the syllables e, yaṃ, raṃ, vaṃ, and laṃ correspond. The mantra purifies the elements and gathers them into that luminous field.

Source: pañcabhūta - SuttaCentral
पञ्चभूत
ॐ एहो शुद्धेशुद्धे । यंहो शुद्धेशुद्धे । रंहो शुद्धेशुद्धे । बंहो शुद्धेशुद्धे । लंहो शुद्धेशुद्धे । ए यं रं बं लं शुद्धे शोधनये स्वाहा॥

Pañca Jambhala​

oṃ jambhala jalendraye svāhā॥ oṃ jambhala jalendraye dhanam medhī hrīḥ ḍākinī jambhala sambhara svāhā॥ oṃ jambhala jalendraye vasudhāriṇī svāhā॥ oṃ padma krodha ārya jambhala hṛdaya hūṃ phaṭ॥ oṃ karma jambhala āḥ svāhā॥

The five Jambhalas are forms of Jambhala, the deity of wealth in Tibetan Buddhism, honoured in rituals for prosperity and enrichment. They are manifestations of the compassion of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, guiding sentient beings along the path to enlightenment. They carry the essence of generosity and represent the activity of increasing benefit; their aspiration is to help the poor and those suffering from ill-fortune, and they are invoked to relieve poverty and support Dharma practice.

Source: Jambhala Series - Lotsawa House
पञ्च जम्भल
ॐ जम्भल जलेन्द्रये स्वाहा॥ ॐ जम्भल जलेन्द्रये धनम् मेधी ह्रीः डाकिनी जम्भल सांभारा स्वाहा॥ ॐ जम्भल जलेन्द्रये वसुधारिणी स्वाहा॥ ॐ पद्म क्रोध आर्य जम्भल हृदय हूँ फट्॥ ॐ कर्म जम्भल आः स्वाहा॥

Pañcajñāna​

oṃ āḥ hūṃ svāhā॥
3x

Pañcajñāna, the five wisdoms, is a Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna schema describing the awakened mind. The set comprises the mirror-like, the equanimous, the discriminating, the all-accomplishing, and the dharmadhātu wisdoms - also rendered as the wisdom of equality, discerning wisdom, all-accomplishing wisdom, and the wisdom of dharmadhātu. A short mantra, oṃ āḥ hūṃ svāhā, is recited as a condensation of these five aspects, a short prayer that gathers the mind into the fullness of the awakened view.

Source: The Five Wisdoms - Lotsawa House
पञ्चज्ञान
ॐ आः हूँ स्वाहा॥

Pañca Mahā Śuddhi​

꣼ oṃ śodhani śodhani । sarva pāpaṁ viśodhani । śuddhe viśuddhe । sarva karma āvaraṇa viśodhani svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ kaṃkaṇi kaṃkaṇi । rocani rocani । troṭani troṭani । trāsani trāsani । pratihana pratihana । sarva karma paramparāṇi me sarva sattvānāñca svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ bhrūṃ svāhā । oṃ amṛta āyurdade svāhā । oṃ amṛta tejavati svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ namastryadhvikānāṃ । sarva tathāgata hṛdaya garbhe । jvāla jvāla । dharmadhātu garbhe । saṁbhara mama āyuḥ saṃśodhaya mama sarva pāpaṁ । sarva tathāgata samanta uṣṇīṣa vimale viśuddhe । hūṁ hūṁ hūṁ hūṁ । aṁ vaṁ saṁ jaḥ svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ padma uṣṇīṣa vimale hūṃ phaṭ॥

Pañca Mahā Śuddhi, the Five Great Purifications (Chinese: 五大具威力的咒), is a set of powerful mantras used in various purification and consecration practices. They are traditionally listed as:

  1. Mahāvairocana (Chinese: 毗盧遮那佛) - the Sarvadurgatipariśodhana Dhāraṇī: the purification form of Mahāvairocana, whose dhāraṇī is named for cleansing and liberating beings from the lower realms. Its tantra is the Sarvadurgatipariśodhana, whose Chinese version is the 佛說大乘觀想曼拏羅淨諸惡趣經 (T0939), translated in 1001.
  2. Akṣobhya (Chinese: 阿閦佛): the buddha of the eastern realm Abhirati, invoked for the purification of negativity and for protection. The dhāraṇī bearing his name is taught in the 拔濟苦難陀羅尼經 (T1395), translated by Xuanzang.
  3. Uṣṇīṣavijayā (Chinese: 佛頂尊勝佛母): the victorious-crown goddess who issued from the Buddha's uṣṇīṣa, recited for long life and the purification of karmic obscuration. Its scripture (T0967) was translated by Buddhapāli in 676.
  4. Vimala Uṣṇīṣa (Chinese: 無垢仏頂): the Stainless Crown goddess, recited for the clearing of obscurations and for longevity. She is also the second of the five great dhāraṇīs, so she belongs to the Six Dharmakāya Relics set as well.
  5. Amoghapāśa Padma Uṣṇīṣa (Chinese: 白蓮花頂髻無垢密咒): the lotus-crown form in the Amoghapāśa series of Avalokiteśvara, recited for purification and blessing. It is preserved within the larger 不空羂索神變真言經 (T1092), translated by Bodhiruci between 707 and 709.

Reciting them is held to purify and consecrate persons, places, and offerings.

This set is distinct from the five great dhāraṇīs found in the Six Dharmakāya Relics collection, which form another traditional grouping used for consecration and blessing practices.

पञ्च महा शुद्धि
꣼ ॐ शोधनि शोधनि । सर्व पापं विशोधनि । शुद्धे विशुद्धे । सर्व कर्म आवरण विशोधनि स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ कंकनी कंकनी । रोचनी रोचनी । त्रोटनी त्रोटनी । त्रसनी त्रसनी । प्रतिहन प्रतिहन । सर्व कर्म परंपरनिमे सर्व सत्वनाञ्च स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ भ्रूं स्वाहा । ॐ अमृत आयुर्ददे स्वाहा । ॐ अमृत तेजवति स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ नमस्त्र्यध्विकानां । सर्वतथागता हृदय गर्भे । ज्वल ज्वल । धर्मधातु गर्भे । सांभारा मम आयु संशोधय मम सर्व पापं । सर्व तथागत समन्त उष्णीष विमले विशुद्धे । हूँ हूँ हूँ हूँ । अं वं सं जः स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ पद्म उष्णीष विमले हूँ फट्॥

Pañcaśīla​

pāṇātipātā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi । adinnādānā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi । kāmesumicchācāra veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi । musāvādā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi । surāmeraya majjapamādaṭṭhānā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi॥

Pañcaśīla, the five precepts, are the basic training rules undertaken by lay Buddhists, consisting of abstaining from killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, false speech, and intoxication. They are the simplest way to avoid creating new karmic debts and serve as gentle reminders to stay kind and careful, and they are recited as a commitment to ethical conduct and non-harm.

Keeping these precepts keeps the karmic balance sheet clean - fewer new debts, fewer complications, and a quieter heart, and it is traditionally held to protect the mind, reduce remorse, and support meditation.

  1. Don't hurt living beings (pāṇātipātā veramaṇī): every creature wants to live. Be gentle with people, animals, even tiny bugs.
  2. Don't take what isn't yours (adinnādānā veramaṇī): if it doesn't belong to you, leave it. Sharing is good, stealing is not.
  3. Don't break trust in love (kāmesumicchācārā veramaṇī): be honest and kind in friendships and relationships. Don't cause harm with your choices.
  4. Don't lie (musāvādā veramaṇī): words can heal or hurt. Speak the truth, and use words to help, not harm.
  5. Don't cloud your mind (surāmerayamajjapamādaṭṭhānā veramaṇī): stay clear and mindful. Avoid things that make you lose control or forget kindness.

Each precept is a veramaṇī, an abstention taken on as a training rule. The suttas call the keeping of them the giving of five great gifts: whoever refrains gives countless beings the gift of freedom from fear, enmity, and ill will, and enjoys that same unlimited freedom themselves.

Source: Sāmaññaphala Sutta (DN 2) - SuttaCentral; Abhisanda Sutta (AN 8.39) - SuttaCentral
पञ्चशील
प्राणातिपातात् विरतिः शिक्षापदं समादियामि । अदत्तादानात् विरतिः शिक्षापदं समादियामि । काममिथ्याचारात् विरतिः शिक्षापदं समादियामि । मृषावादात् विरतिः शिक्षापदं समादियामि । सुरा-मैरेय-मद्यप्रमादस्थानात् विरतिः शिक्षापदं समादियामि॥

Pariṇāmanā​

oṃ dhare dhare bandhare svāhā । jayā jayā siddhi siddhi phala phala । a āḥ śa sa ma ha । mama koling samanta॥
3x

Pariṇāmanā is the dedication of merit, a short closing that gathers the goodness of the practice and offers it freely to all beings, that they too may come to peace. The term conveys the turning or directing of merit toward a chosen aim rather than retaining it; a common Tibetan prayer of four lines asks that by this merit all beings attain enlightenment. The practice closes a session and is held to protect and multiply the merit thus offered for the welfare of all beings.

Source: Dedication of Merit - Lotsawa House
परिणमन
ॐ धरे धरे बंधरे स्वहा । जय जय सिद्धि सिद्धि फल फल । अ आ शा स म ह । मम कॉलिंग समन्त॥

Prajñāpāramitā Hṛdaya​

oṃ gate gate pāragate pārasaṃgate bodhi svāhā॥
3x

Prajñāpāramitā Hṛdaya is the Heart Sutra, a concise Perfection of Wisdom scripture. All Buddhas of the three ages - past, present, and future - rely on the Perfection of Wisdom to reach unexcelled complete enlightenment. The text describes the emptiness of all phenomena and the path of the bodhisattva. Its closing mantra - oṃ gate gate pāragate pārasaṃgate bodhi svāhā - encapsulates the teaching in a single utterance; the Perfection of Wisdom is the all-powerful prayer, able to dispel all suffering, and reciting the mantra is held to dispel suffering and support the realization of awakening.

Source: The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom - 84000

Oṃ Gone, Gone, Everyone gone to the other shore, Awakening, So Be It!

प्रज्ञापारमिताहृदय
ॐ गते गते पारगते पारसंगते बोधि स्वाहा॥

Prārthanāsiddhiḥ​

pañcendriyāvabodhanīye svāhā । jaya jaya sujaya॥

Prārthanāsiddhiḥ translates as 'fulfillment of aspiration' and names a mantra for awakening the faculties and accomplishing one's aspirations - recited at the close of a practice to seal the heart's intention and align the mind with what is being sought. Its Sanskrit phrase invokes the awakening of the five faculties, and it is held to align the mind with what is being sought and to bring aspirations to accomplishment.

प्रार्थनासिद्धिः
पञ्चेन्द्रियावबोधनीये स्वहा । जय जय सुजय॥

Pratītyasamutpāda Gāthā​

ye dharmā hetuprabhavā hetuṃ teṣāṃ tathāgata uvāca । teṣāṃ-ca yo nirodha evaṃvādi mahāśramaṇaḥ । ajñānāc cīyate karma janmanaḥ karma kāraṇam । jñānān na cīyate karma karmābhāvān na jāyate॥
7x

Pratītyasamutpāda Gāthā is the verse on dependent origination, the teaching that phenomena arise from causes and conditions rather than independently. Dependent origination can be contrasted with the classic Western concept of causation, in which an action by one thing is said to cause a change in another; instead it sees the change as arising from many factors - not one, not a few, but a whole web of conditions coming together. The teaching is held throughout the Buddhist tradition to be the Buddha's most essential and foundational teaching, associated with the Buddha's awakening and with the formula that seeing dependent origination is seeing the teaching, and the verse is recited to contemplate cause and effect and the possibility of cessation.

"yo paṭiccasamuppādaṁ passati so dhammaṁ passati; yo dhammaṁ passati so paṭiccasamuppādaṁ passatī"ti.

"One who sees dependent origination sees the teaching. One who sees the teaching sees dependent origination."

-- Mahāhatthipadopamasutta (MN 28), Majjhima Nikāya

Source: Mahāhatthipadopama Sutta (MN 28) - SuttaCentral

Those dharmas which arise from a cause, the Tathāgata has declared their cause.
And that which is the cessation of them, thus the great renunciant (sramana) has taught.
Through ignorance, karma is accumulated, karma is the cause of (re)birth.
Through knowledge, karma is not accumulated, through absence of karma, one is not (re)born.

The additional verse is Southeast Asia specific (fifth century date) and does not have an equivalent in any Buddhist text, whether in the original Indic language or Tibetan or Chinese translation.

प्रतीत्यसमुत्पाद गाथा
ये धर्मा हेतुप्रभवा हेतुं तेषां तथागत उवाच । तेषांच यो निरोध एवंवादी महाश्रमणः । अज्ञानाच्चीयते कर्म जन्मनः कर्म कारणम् । ज्ञानान्नचीयते कर्म कर्माभावान्न जायते॥

Raktatārā Hṛdaya​

oṃ tāre tāṃ svāhā॥
21x

Tārā's red form is the expression of her power to magnetize, to subdue, and to transform desire into awakened activity.

Source: Red Tārā Series - Lotsawa House

Oṃ O Tārā, Tāṃ (bījākṣara), So Be It!

रक्ततर
ॐ तारे ताँ स्वाहा॥

Raśmi Vimala Viśuddha Prabhā Nāma Dhāraṇī​

namo sapta saptatibhyaḥ । samyaksaṃbuddha koṭināṃ pariśuddha manasa । vācitta pratiṣṭitānāṃ । namo bhagavate amitāyuṣasya tathāgatasya । oṃ tathāgata śuddhe āyuviśuddhani । saṃhāra saṃhāra । sarva tathāgata vīrya valeda prati saṃhāra । āyu smara smara । sarva tathāgata samayaṃ । bodhi bodhi । buddhyā vibuddhyā । bodhaya bodhaya । sarva satvanāṃ । sarva pāpā varaṇa viśuddhe । vigatamāra bhayaṃ । subuddhā buddhe huru huru svāhā॥

The Raśmi Vimala Viśuddha Prabhā Nāma Dhāraṇī, whose English title is The Dhāraṇī "Stainless Rays of Pure Light", purifies the five uninterrupted negative karmas; its name means rays of stainless and pure light.

If this prayer is placed inside a stupa, then any being - including difficult transmigratory beings - who sees the stupa, hears of it, touches it, or is touched by dust or wind that comes from it, is freed from all negative karmas. They will be reborn in the realms of fortunate transmigratory beings and will not fall into the lower realms.

If one offers even a bell to a stupa containing this prayer, all the sentient beings in that area - animals or humans - by hearing the sound of that bell are completely purified of the five uninterrupted negative karmas. Even just thinking about the stupa purifies the five uninterrupted negative karmas.

Source: The Dhāraṇī "Stainless Rays of Pure Light" - 84000 Translating the Words of the Buddha
रश्मिविमलविशुद्धप्रभा नाम धारणी
नमो सप्त सप्ततिभ्यः । सम्यक्संबुद्ध कोटिनां परिशुद्ध मनस । वाचित्त प्रतिष्टितानां । नमो भगवते अमितायुशस्य तथागतस्य । ॐ तथागत शुद्धे आयुविशुद्धनि । संहार संहार । सर्वतथागता वीर्य वलेद प्रति संहार । आयु स्मर स्मर । सर्वतथागता समयम् । बोधि बोधि । बुद्ध्या विबुद्ध्या । बोधय बोधय । सर्व सत्वनां । सर्व पापं वरण विशुद्धे । विगतमार भयं । सुबुद्धा बुद्धे हुरु हुरु स्वाहा॥

Raśmi Vimala Viśuddha Prabhā Nāma Hṛdaya​

namo nava navatīnāṃ tathāgata । gaṅgā nadī vālukā । koṭinayuta śata sahasrānām । oṃ bhūbhūri । cārini cari । caraṇa cire । muni muni । śreṣṭha alaṃkāre svāhā॥

The Raśmi Vimala Viśuddha Prabhā Nāma Hṛdaya is the heart-recitation of the longer Stainless Rays of Pure Light dhāraṇī, and its Tibetan title, Özer drimé nyingpo, means Heart of Stainless Rays. It also purifies the five uninterrupted negative karmas.

If this prayer is placed inside a stupa, then any being - including difficult transmigratory beings - who sees the stupa, hears of it, touches it, or is touched by dust or wind that comes from it, is freed from all negative karmas. They will be reborn in the realms of fortunate transmigratory beings and will not fall into the lower realms.

If one offers even a bell to a stupa containing this prayer, all the sentient beings in that area - animals or humans - by hearing the sound of that bell are completely purified of the five uninterrupted negative karmas. Even just thinking about the stupa purifies the five uninterrupted negative karmas.

रश्मिविमलविशुद्धप्रभा नाम हृदय
नमो नव नवतीनां तथागत । गङ्गा नदी वालुका । कोटिनयुत शत सहस्रनाम् । ॐ भूभूरि । चारिनि चरि । चरण चिरे । मुनि मुनि । श्रेष्ठ अलंकारे स्वाहा॥

Ratnadhvaja Parikrama Dhāraṇī​

oṃ ratne ratne mahāratne ratnavijaye svāhā॥
3x

The Ratnadhvaja Parikrama Dhāraṇī is the circumambulation dhāraṇī, whose name joins ratna (jewel), dhvaja (banner), and parikrama (circumambulation); its mantra is oṃ ratne ratne mahāratne ratnavijaye svāhā. It is recited as one walks clockwise around a stupa, image, or sacred seat, so that each step gathers the heart toward the awakened object of veneration.

रत्नध्वज परिक्रम धारणी
ॐ रत्ने रत्ने महारत्ने रत्नविजये स्वाहा॥

Ratnaśikhin Hṛdaya​

ratna ratna ratnaśikhin svāhā॥

Ratnaśikhin, Jewel Crest, is a Buddha of the past invoked in Tibetan Buddhist homage liturgies; his name combines ratna, jewel, and śikhin, one who has a crest or topknot. He made the aspiration that anyone in the world-realms of the ten directions who hears his name at the moment of death will, after passing, be reborn as a deva in Trāyastriṃśa. His vow is remembered as a source of comfort and confidence for those approaching death, offering a connection to virtue, clarity, and an auspicious rebirth.

Source: Homage to the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas - Lotsawa House
रत्नशिखिन्
रत्न रत्न रत्नशिखिन् स्वाहा॥

Ṣaḍja Mukta​

a āḥ śa sa ma ha॥

Ṣaḍja Mukta, linked with the Six Spaces of Samantabhadra, is a "liberation through hearing" prayer connected with the six lokas. The six syllables a, āḥ, śa, sa, ma, and ha are traditionally said to free beings in any realm upon hearing or seeing them. In Dzogchen teachings, they express six aspects of primordial awareness: unborn purity, open presence, wisdom display, stability, the treasury of dharmatā, and the unceasing play of phenomena. Reciting or encountering this mantra is believed to purify obscurations and support the recognition of the mind's natural state.

षड्जः मुक्त
अ आ शा स म ह॥

Śākyamuni Hṛdaya​

oṃ muni muni mahāmuni śākyamuni svāhā॥

The Śākyamuni Hṛdaya is the heart-essence of Buddha Śākyamuni, the historical sage of the Śākya clan, known here as the Munīndra Hṛdaya Mantraḥ. Through simply hearing it, one is said to gather vast merit and purify karmic obscurations. When recited, it is understood to protect the practitioner from obstacles and to support the unfolding of wisdom. These qualities are taught in the abridged Prajñāpāramitā, where this mantra is praised as the essence of the Buddha's liberating insight.

Source: The Dhāraṇī of the Essence of Śākyamuni - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

Oṃ Wise One, Wise One, Greatly Wise One, Wise One Of The Shakyans, Hail!

शाक्यमुनि
ॐ मुनि मुनि महामुनि शाक्यमुनि स्वाहा॥

Saṃghārāma Hṛdaya​

oṃ saṃghārāma siddhi hūṃ॥

In Chinese Buddhism, the guardian deity known as Sangharama Bodhisattva (伽藍菩薩) is revered in the form of Guan Yu (關羽), the historical general who became a symbol of loyalty, integrity, and steadfast protection. As a temple guardian, he embodies the vow to defend the Dharma and safeguard the monastic community.

Source: 佛祖統紀 - CBETA, T49n2035
संघाराम
ॐ संघाराम सिद्धि हूँ॥

Sapta Atītabuddha Karasaniya​

ripa ripate kuha kuhate traṇite ṇigalate vimarite mahāgate jaṃlaṃcaṃte svāhā॥

This prayer is recited to eliminate karmic obstacles arising from negative actions, obtain safety and good fortune, experience success in daily activities, and generate merit for younger generations. It is widely known in East Asian Buddhism as the "True Words of the Seven Buddhas for the Eradication of Sins" (Chinese: 七佛滅罪真言), and is one of the commonly recited Ten Small Mantras in Chinese Buddhist liturgy. According to the Mahāvaipulya Dhāraṇī Sūtra: The Chapter on Upholding Precepts (Taishō Tripiṭaka, Vol. 21, no. 1339, fascicle 4, p. 656b), this dhāraṇī was taught when Mañjuśrī asked the Buddha how future practitioners who violated major precepts could purify their grave offenses. The Buddha explained that the dhāraṇī had been proclaimed by the Seven Buddhas of the past, present, and future to save and embrace sentient beings, and prescribed its recitation as a powerful method for repentance and the restoration of purity. The prayer is also included in the High King Avalokiteśvara Sutra (Chinese: 高王觀世音真經) (Taishō Tripiṭaka, Vol. 85, no. 2898), a popular Mahāyāna protective scripture invoking Avalokiteśvara and the Buddhas of the ten directions for deliverance from suffering and the purification of karmic obstacles.

Source: 大方等陀羅尼經 - CBETA, T21n1339

Calling, calling out; Revealing, revealing all; Making heartfelt prayers; Dissolving, disappearing blame; Vanishing vanished blame; Eminent virtues appear; All blame is truly buried and gone by this power; So Be It!

सप्त अतीतबुद्ध करसणिया
रिप रिपते कुह कुहते त्रणिते णिगलते विमरिते महागते जंलंचंते स्वाहा॥

Śaraṇagamana Cittotpāda Gāthā​

buddhaṁ ca dharmaṁ ca gaṇottamaṁ ca । yāvaddhi bodhiṁ śaraṇaṁ prayāmi । dānādi kṛtyaścā kṛtaiḥ mayāebhīḥ buddho । bhāvyaṁ jagato hitāya॥
3x

The Śaraṇagamana Cittotpāda Gāthā is a verse for taking refuge and giving rise to bodhicitta. It expresses the practitioner's commitment to rely on the Three Jewels and to cultivate the altruistic intention to attain awakening for the benefit of all beings. Recited at the beginning of Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna practices, it establishes the foundation of refuge and compassion that supports all subsequent meditation and activity.

Source: A Simple Commentary on the Prayer of Refuge and Bodhichitta - Lotsawa House
शरणगमनचित्तोत्पादगाथा
बुद्धं च धर्मं च गणोत्तमं च यावद्धि बोधिं शरणं प्रयामि । दानादिकृत्यैश्च कृतैर्मयैभिर्बुद्धो भवेयं जगतो हिताय॥

Ṣáṭ Dharmakāya Śarīrāḥ​

꣼ oṃ bhrūṃ svāhā । oṃ amṛta āyurdade svāhā । oṃ amṛta tejavati svāhā॥
꣼ oṃ namastryadhvikānāṃ । sarva tathāgata hṛdaya garbhe । jvāla jvāla । dharmadhātu garbhe । saṁbhara mama āyuḥ saṃśodhaya mama sarva pāpaṁ । sarva tathāgata samanta uṣṇīṣa vimale viśuddhe । hūṁ hūṁ hūṁ hūṁ । aṁ vaṁ saṁ jaḥ svāhā॥
꣼ namastryadhvikānāṃ sarvatathāgatānāṃ । oṃ bhuvibhavanavare vacanavacati । suru suru dhara dhara । sarva tathāgatadhātu dhare padmaṃ bhavati । jayavare mudre । smara tathāgata dharmacakra pravartana vajre bodhi maṇḍālaṅ-kārālaṅ-kṛte । sarva tathāgatādhiṣṭhite । bodhaya bodhaya bodhi bodhi budhya budhya । saṃbodhani saṃbodhaya । cala cala calantu sarvāvaraṇāni । sarva pāpavigate । huru huru sarva śokavigate । sarva tathāgata hṛdaya vajriṇi । saṃbhāra saṃbhāra । sarva tathāgata guhya dhāraṇī mudre । bhūte subhūte । sarva tathāgatādhiṣṭhitadhātu garbhe svāhā । samayādhiṣṭhite svāhā । sarva tathāgata hṛdaya dhātu mudre svāhā । supratiṣṭhitastūpe tathāgatādhiṣṭhite huru huru hūṃ hūṃ svāhā । oṃ sarva tathāgatoṣṇīṣa dhātu mudrāṇi sarva tathāgata sadhātu vibhūṣitādhiṣṭhite hūṃ hūṃ svāhā॥
꣼ bodhi bodhi । bodhanī bodhanī । sarva tathāgata gocarī । dhara dhara । hara hara । prahara prahara । mahā bodhicitta dhāre । culu culu । śata raśmi sañcodite । sarva tathāgatābhiṣikte । guṇī guṇapate । sarva buddha guṇāvabhāse । mili mili । gaganatale । sarva tathāgatādhiṣṭhite । nabhasthale । śame śame । praśame praśame । sarva pāpam praśame । sarva pāpaṃ viśodhane । hulu hulu । mahābodhi mārga sampratiṣṭhite । sarva tathāgata supratiṣṭhite śuddhe svāhā । oṃ sarva tathāgata vyavalokite । jaya jaya svāhā । oṃ dhuru dhuru jayamukhe svāhā । oṃ vajrāyuṣe svāhā॥
꣼ ye dharmā hetuprabhavā hetuṃ teṣāṃ tathāgata uvāca । teṣāṃ-ca yo nirodha evaṃvādi mahāśramaṇaḥ॥
꣼ namo sapta saptatibhyaḥ । samyaksaṃbuddha koṭināṃ pariśuddha manasa । vācitta pratiṣṭitānāṃ । namo bhagavate amitāyuṣasya tathāgatasya । oṃ tathāgata śuddhe āyuviśuddhani । saṃhāra saṃhāra । sarva tathāgata vīrya valeda prati saṃhāra । āyu smara smara । sarva tathāgata samayaṃ । bodhi bodhi । buddhyā vibuddhyā । bodhaya bodhaya । sarva satvanāṃ । sarva pāpā varaṇa viśuddhe । vigatamāra bhayaṃ । subuddhā buddhe huru huru svāhā । namo nava navatīnāṃ tathāgata । gaṅgā nadī vālukā । koṭinayuta śata sahasrānām । oṃ bhūbhūri । cārini cari । caraṇa cire । muni muni । śreṣṭha alaṃkāre svāhā॥

The Six Dharmakāya Relics1 consist of the five great dhāraṇīs2 together with the Kriyayogatantra, Immaculate Radiance3. In the Tibetan tradition, these are upheld as the most important and authoritative Dharmakāya relics4 to be placed inside stupas, statues, tsatsas5, and other sacred images that represent the enlightened body, speech, and mind (སྐུ་གསུང་ཐུགས་རྟེན - sku gsung thugs rten).

The Fifth Dalai Lama states that the most essential relics of the dharmakāya in a stupa are dhāraṇīs themselves. Following this, Tibetan scholars identify five classes of great dhāraṇīs as the core Dharmakāya relics. Jamgön Kongtrul further explains that -whether in long or short form- one of each of these five dhāraṇīs must be inserted into every stupa, statue, tsatsa5, or other sacred images, together with the Kriyayogatantra, Immaculate Radiance3.

These dhāraṇīs are treasured for their vast protective and purifying power. They purify negative karma accumulated over countless kalpas, avert misfortune, prevent untimely death, increase longevity, protect against illness and harmful forces, and generate boundless merit. Simply seeing, hearing, touching, or remembering these dhāraṇīs is said to plant the seed of liberation. For this reason, they are widely used as powerful amulets, carried on the body for protection and auspicious conditions.

When placed inside a stupa, statue, tsatsa5, or other sacred images -especially within the life-tree6- these substances become the supreme essence of consecration (རབ་གནས་ - rab gnas). In this role, they transform the support into a living field of awakened presence, continuously radiating blessings to all beings.

The six Dharmakāya relics are the five great dhāraṇīs2 together with the Kriyayogatantra, Immaculate Radiance3:

  1. Uṣṇīṣavijayā7: renowned for longevity, purification, and protection from lower rebirths. The Chinese canon preserves several recensions of its scripture; the earliest, 佛頂尊勝陀羅尼經 (T0967), was translated by Buddhapāli in 676.
  2. Vimala Uṣṇīṣa8: the Stainless Crown Dharani, clearing obscurations and defilements. In 佛頂放無垢光明入普門觀察一切如來心陀羅尼經 (T1025), writing this dhāraṇī out and placing it inside a stupa is likened to enshrining the whole-body relics of countless tathāgatas.
  3. Guhyadhātukaraṇḍa9: the Secret Relic Dharani, associated with profound protection. Its scripture, 一切如來心祕密全身舍利寶篋印陀羅尼經 (T1022A), was translated by Amoghavajra during the Tang.
  4. Bodhigarbhālaṃkāralakṣa10: the Ornament of Enlightenment Dharani, enhancing virtue and wisdom. Its scripture, 菩提場莊嚴陀羅尼經 (T1008), is also attributed to Amoghavajra.
  5. Pratītyasamutpādahṛdaya11: the Essence of Dependent Origination, praised for liberating upon hearing. The Tibetan form is held in the Kangyur (dpe bsdur ma vol. 88, p. 117).
  6. Kriyayogatantra, Immaculate Radiance3: the kriyāyoga tantra that accompanies the five dhāraṇīs. Its scripture, 無垢淨光大陀羅尼經 (T1024), was translated by Mitraśānta in 704.

Some traditions present the Dharmakāya relics as a set of four12:

  1. Vimala Uṣṇīṣa8: the Stainless Crown Dharani of the 無垢光明 line (T1025).
  2. Guhyadhātukaraṇḍa9: the Secret Relic Dharani of the 寶篋印 line (T1022A).
  3. Kriyayogatantra, Immaculate Radiance3: the kriyāyoga tantra of the 無垢淨光 line (T1024).
  4. Bodhigarbhālaṃkāralakṣa10: the Ornament of Enlightenment Dharani of the 菩提場莊嚴 line (T1008).

This shorter list leaves out the Uṣṇīṣavijayā and Pratītyasamutpādahṛdaya dhāraṇīs and keeps the other four.

Across all lineages, these relic-dhāraṇīs are regarded as the heart of consecration, the ultimate protection, and the most powerful blessing substances available. A stupa, statue, tsatsa5, or other sacred images containing them is not merely a crafted object but a living presence that continuously offers blessings, protection, and positive conditions to anyone who sponsors it, sees it, touches it, circumambulates it, or even encounters the wind that passes by it.

षट् धर्मकाय शरीराः
꣼ ॐ भ्रूं स्वाहा । ॐ अमृत आयुर्ददे स्वाहा । ॐ अमृत तेजवति स्वाहा॥
꣼ ॐ नमस्त्र्यध्विकानां । सर्वतथागता हृदय गर्भे । ज्वल ज्वल । धर्मधातु गर्भे । सांभारा मम आयु संशोधय मम सर्व पापं । सर्व तथागत समन्त उष्णीष विमले विशुद्धे । हूँ हूँ हूँ हूँ । अं वं सं जः स्वाहा॥
꣼ नमस्त्र्यध्विकानां सर्वतथागतानां । ॐ भुविभवनवरे वचनवचति । सुरु सुरु धर धर । सर्व तथागतधातु धरे पद्मं भवति । जयवरे मुद्रे । स्मर तथागत धर्मचक्र प्रवर्तन वज्रे बोधि मण्डालङ्कारालङ्कृते । सर्व तथागताधिष्ठिते । बोधय बोधय बोधि बोधि बुध्य बुध्य । संबोधनि संबोधय । चल चल चलन्तु सर्वावरणानि । सर्व पापविगते । हुरु हुरु सर्व शोकविगते । सर्व तथागत हृदय वज्रिणि । संभार संभार । सर्व तथागत गुह्य धारणी मुद्रे । भूते सुभूते । सर्व तथागताधिष्ठितधातु गर्भे स्वाहा । समयाधिष्ठिते स्वाहा । सर्व तथागत हृदय धातु मुद्रे स्वाहा । सुप्रतिष्ठितस्तूपे तथागताधिष्ठिते हुरु हुरु हूं हूं स्वाहा । ॐ सर्व तथागतोष्णीष धातु मुद्राणि सर्व तथागत सधातु विभूषिताधिष्ठिते हूं हूं स्वाहा॥
꣼ बोधि बोधि । बोधनी बोधनी । सर्वतथागता गोचरी । धर धर । हर हर । प्रहर प्रहर । महा बोधिचित्त धारे । चुलु चुलु । शत रश्मि सञ्चोदिते । सर्व तथागताभिषिक्ते । गुणी गुणपाते । सर्व बुद्धा गुणावभासे । मिल् मिल् । गगनतले । सर्व तथागताधिष्ठिते । नभस्तले । शमे शमे । प्रशमे प्रशमे । सर्व पापं प्रशमे । सर्व पापं विशोधने । हुलु हुलु । महाबोधि मार्ग सम्प्रतिष्ठिते । सर्वतथागता सुप्रतिष्ठिते शुद्धे स्वाहा । ॐ सर्वतथागता व्यवलोकिते । जय जय स्वाहा । ॐ धुरु धुरु जयामुखे स्वाहा । ॐ वज्रायुषे स्वाहा॥
꣼ ये धर्मा हेतुप्रभवा हेतुं तेषां तथागत उवाच । तेषांच यो निरोध एवंवादी महाश्रमणः॥
꣼ नमो सप्त सप्ततिभ्यः । सम्यक्संबुद्ध कोटिनां परिशुद्ध मनस । वाचित्त प्रतिष्टितानां । नमो भगवते अमितायुशस्य तथागतस्य । ॐ तथागत शुद्धे आयुविशुद्धनि । संहार संहार । सर्वतथागता वीर्य वलेद प्रति संहार । आयु स्मर स्मर । सर्वतथागता समयम् । बोधि बोधि । बुद्ध्या विबुद्ध्या । बोधय बोधय । सर्व सत्वनां । सर्व पापं वरण विशुद्धे । विगतमार भयं । सुबुद्धा बुद्धे हुरु हुरु स्वाहा । नमो नव नवतीनां तथागत । गङ्गा नदी वालुका । कोटिनयुत शत सहस्रनाम् । ॐ भूभूरि । चारिनि चरि । चरण चिरे । मुनि मुनि । श्रेष्ठ अलंकारे स्वाहा॥

Footnotes​

  1. Six Dharmakāya Relics (Sanskrit: षट् धर्मकाय शरीराः, Romanized: ṣáṭ dharmakāya śarīrāḥ, Chinese: 六部大陀羅尼, Tibetan: ཆོས་སྐུ་རིང་བསྲེལ་དྲུག, Wylie: chos sku ring bsrel drug, THL: chö ku ringsel druk) ↩

  2. Five Classes of Great Dhāraṇīs (Tibetan: གཟུངས་ཆེན་སྡེ་ལྔ, Wylie: gzungs chen sde lnga, THL: zung chen dé nga) ↩ ↩2

  3. Kriyayogatantra, Immaculate Radiance (Sanskrit: रश्मिविमल विशुद्ध प्रभा, Romanized: Raśmivimalaviśuddhaprabhā, Chinese: 無垢淨光大陀羅尼經, Tibetan: འོད་ཟེར་དྲི་མེད, Wylie: 'od zer dri med, THL: özer drimé) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  4. Relic of the Dharmakāya (Chinese: 法身舍利, Tibetan: ཆོས་ཀྱི་སྐུའི་རིང་བསྲེལ, Wylie: chos kyi sku'i ring bsrel, THL: chökyi kü ringsel) ↩

  5. Sculptural Votive Offering (Sanskrit: सच्छाय, Romanized: Sacchāya, Tibetan: ཚ་ཚ, Wylie: tsha tsha, THL: tsa tsa) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  6. Life Force Pillar (Sanskrit: यष्टि, Romanized: Yaṣṭi, Tibetan: སྲོག་ཤིང, Wylie: srog shing, THL: sokshing) ↩

  7. Uṣṇīṣavijayā (Sanskrit: उष्णीषविजया, Chinese: 佛頂尊勝陀羅尼咒, Tibetan: གཙུག་ཏོར་རྣམ་རྒྱལ་མ, Wylie: gtsug tor rnam rgyal ma, THL: Tsuktor Namgyalma) ↩

  8. Vimala Uṣṇīṣa (Sanskrit: विमल उष्णीष, Chinese: 佛頂無垢普門三世如來心陀羅尼, Tibetan: གཙུག་ཏོར་དྲི་མེད, Wylie: gtsug tor dri med, THL: Tsuktor Drimed) ↩ ↩2

  9. Guhyadhātukaraṇḍa (Sanskrit: गुह्यधातुकरण्ड, Chinese: 一切如來心秘密全身舍利寶篋印陀羅尼經, Tibetan: གསང་བ་རིང་བསྲེལ, Wylie: gsang ba ring bsrel, THL: Sangwa Ringsel) ↩ ↩2

  10. Bodhigarbhālaṃkāralakṣa (Sanskrit: बोधि गर्भालंकार लक्ष, Chinese: 菩提場莊嚴陀羅尼經, Tibetan: བྱང་ཆུབ་ཀྱི་སྙིང་པོའི་རྒྱན་འབུམ, Wylie: byang chub rgyan 'bum, THL: Jangchub Gyänbum) ↩ ↩2

  11. Pratītyasamutpādahṛdaya (Sanskrit: प्रतीत्यसमुत्पाद, Chinese: 緣起經, Tibetan: རྟེན་འབྲེལ་སྙིང་པོ, Wylie: rten 'brel snying po, THL: Tendrel Nyingpo) ↩

  12. Four Dharmakāya Relics (Sanskrit: चत्वारि धर्मकाय शरीराः, Romanized: chatvāri dharmakāya śarīrāḥ, Chinese: 四部大陀羅尼, Tibetan: ཆོས་སྐུ་རིང་བསྲེལ་བཞི, Wylie: chos sku ring bsrel bzhi, THL: chö ku ringsel shi) ↩

Sitātārā Hṛdaya​

oṃ tāre tuttāre ture mama āyuḥ-puṇya-jñāna-puṣṭiṃ kuru svāhā॥
21x

Tārā's white form embodies compassion expressed as healing, protection, and long life. Revered as one of the Three Deities of Longevity, White Tārā is associated with wisdom, vitality, and the gentle power to avert illness and untimely death. Her seven eyes - on her face, palms, and soles - symbolize her vigilant awareness and her ability to watch over beings with unwavering compassion. As a manifestation of Avalokiteśvara's healing activity, she offers blessings of longevity, inner peace, and spiritual well-being.

Source: White Tārā Series - Lotsawa House

Oṃ O Tārā, I Pray O Tārā, O Swift One, Mine, Long Life, Happy Life, Wisdom, Abundance, Make It So! So Be It!

सिततारा
ॐ तारे तुत्तारे तुरे मम आयुः-पुण्य-ज्ञान पुष्टिंकुरु स्वहा॥

Śrīdēvī Hṛdaya​

bhyoḥ rakmo bhyoḥ । rakmo bhyoḥ । bhyoḥ । rakmo thun bhyoḥ । kāla rakchenmo । rakmo avyatavya thun bhyoḥ । rulu rulu । hūṃ bhyoḥ hūṃ॥

A wrathful deity with a primary role as a dharmapala, Palden Lhamo (Śrīdevī) is revered as the principal female protector of Tibetan Buddhism and the special guardian of the Dalai Lamas. As the only female among the Eight Great Dharmapālas, she embodies the fierce, enlightened power that removes obstacles, repels harm, and safeguards the Dharma. In her most renowned form, Magzor Gyalmo ("Queen Who Repels Armies"), she is invoked for potent protection against negative forces, illness, and spiritual obstacles, and is regarded as one of the most swift and powerful protectresses in Vajrayāna practice.

Source: In Praise of Kālīdevī - Lotsawa House
श्रीदेवी
भ्योः रक्मो भ्योः । रक्मो भ्योः । भ्योः । रक्मो थुन भ्योः । काल रक्चेनमो । रक्मो अव्यतव्य थुन भ्योः । रुलु रुलु । हूँ भ्योः हूँ॥

Sukhāvatīvyūha Dhāraṇī​

oṃ amṛte । amṛta udbhave । amṛta saṃbhave । amṛta garbhe । amṛta siddhe । amṛta teje । amṛta vikrānte । amṛta vikrānta gāmine । amṛta gagana kṛtikare । amṛta duṃdubhi svare । sarva artha sādhane । sarva karma kleśa kṣayaṃkare svāhā । oṃ amitābha hrīḥ॥

This prayer's central purpose is to pull out the fundamental cause of karmic obstacles, purifying the roots of past actions and opening the way to liberation. Reciting it is traditionally believed to bring peace and clarity in this life, to purify accumulated karma, and to support rebirth in the highest level of Sukhāvatī, the Pure Land of Amitābha. Known as the Pure Land Rebirth Dhāraṇī (往生咒), it is widely used in East Asian Buddhism for oneself and for those who have passed away, helping to create auspicious conditions for release from suffering and for a favorable rebirth.

Source: 拔一切業障根本得生淨土神呪 (T0368) - CBETA, Taishō Tripiṭaka
सुखावतीव्यूह धारणी
ॐ अमृते । अमृत उद्भवे । अमृत संभवे । अमृत गर्भे । अमृत सिद्धे । अमृत तेजे । अमृत विक्रान्ते । अमृत विक्रान्त गामिने । अमृत गगन कृतिकरे । अमृत दुंदुभि स्वरे । सर्व अर्थ साधने । सर्व कर्म क्लेश क्षयंकरे स्वाहा । ॐ अमिताभ ह्रीः॥

Supratiṣṭha​

Perfect consecration mudrā:
  • The left hand is held above the items being blessed, palm facing downward, with the thumb pressing the little finger.
  • The right hand is held below the items being blessed, palm facing upward, with the thumb pressing the little finger.
oṃ guru buddha bodhisattva dharmapāla saparivāra ejati jaḥ hūṃ baṃ hoḥ । oṃ supratiṣṭha vajraye svāhā॥
3x

A request for the deities and their retinues to remain present. In Vajrayāna consecration rituals, this mantra is recited to invite the wisdom beings to approach a sacred object - such as a statue, stūpa, or painting - and to maintain a supportive presence. It creates a connection with their awakened qualities so the object can serve as a source of inspiration, protection, and practice.

Source: Consecration Series - Lotsawa House
सुप्रतिष्ठ
ॐ गुरु बुद्ध बोधिसत्त्व धर्मपाल सपरिवार एजति जः हूं बं होः । ॐ सुप्रतिष्ठ वज्रये स्वाहा॥

Śūraṅgama​

The efficacious phrases of the Śūraṅgama prayer that keep the world from coming to an end.
oṃ anale anale viśade viśade vīra vajradhare bandha bandhani vajrapāṇī phaṭ । hūṃ trūṃ phaṭ svāhā॥

This prayer is traditionally recited to dispel internal and external obstacles that hinder spiritual progress. In East Asian Buddhism, the Śūraṅgama Mantra (楞嚴咒) is regarded as a powerful dhāraṇī for protection, purification, and stabilizing the mind, helping practitioners overcome afflictive emotions, harmful influences, and the conditions that obstruct meditation and ethical discipline. Like the well-known oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ and the Nīlakaṇṭha Dhāraṇī, it is closely associated with the compassionate activity of Avalokiteśvara and is one of the most widely chanted mantras in the Mahāyāna world.

The Śūraṅgama Mantra is also intimately connected with the practice of Sitātapatrā, the White Parasol protector, whose dhāraṇī it parallels in purpose and function. In East Asian liturgy it is recited daily, and in Tibetan Buddhism it corresponds to the "White Umbrella" (Wylie: gdugs dkar). Its deeper purpose is to subdue the inner "demons" of ignorance, desire, and aversion, clearing the path toward clarity and awakening.

Source: 大佛頂如來密因修證了義諸菩薩萬行首楞嚴經 (T0945) - CBETA, Taishō Tripiṭaka
शूरङ्गम
ॐ अनले अनले विशदे विशदे वीरवज्रधरे बंध बंधनी वज्रपाणी फट् । हूँ त्रूँ फट् स्वाहा॥

Trikāya​

oṃ āḥ hūṃ॥

Trikāya, the 'three bodies', refers to the three aspects of a buddha's awakening: the dharmakāya, the sambhogakāya, and the nirmāṇakāya. The seed syllables oṃ āḥ hūṃ represent vajra - the indestructible wisdom of body, speech, and mind. In Vajrayāna, these three syllables adorn the forehead, throat, and heart of all deities, expressing their enlightened essence. The syllable oṃ represents the union of form and emptiness; āḥ represents the indivisibility of speech and emptiness; and hūṃ represents the union of pure awareness and emptiness. Together, they encapsulate the vajra nature of awakened body, speech, and mind.

Source: Three-Kāya Maṇḍala Offering - Lotsawa House
त्रिकाय
ॐ आः हूँ॥

Trimūla Śaraṇa​

namo gurubhyaḥ । namo devábhyaḥ । namo ḍākinībhyaḥ॥

Trimūla Śaraṇa, the 'three roots refuge', is a Tibetan Buddhist homage to the three roots of practice. The Guru - the root of blessings - is the living embodiment of the Buddha; the Yidam - the root of accomplishment - manifests the transformative power of the Dharma; and the Ḍākinīs and Protectors - the root of enlightened activity - represent the dynamic support of the Saṅgha. The verse offers refuge to the buddhas, yidams, ḍākas, and ḍākinīs.

This threefold homage is the inner refuge of the Dzogchen and tantric traditions: honoring the teacher who reveals the path, the meditational deity who embodies realization, and the ḍākinīs and protectors who enact enlightened activity. Together, they represent the complete field of refuge for guidance, realization, and support on the path to awakening.

Source: Prayer to the Three Roots - Lotsawa House
त्रिमूल शरण
नमो गुरुभ्यः । नमो देवभ्यः । नमो डाकिनीभ्यः॥

Uṣṇīṣa Sitātapatrā Hṛdaya​

oṃ sarva tathāgata uṣṇīṣa sitātapatre hūṃ phaṭ hūṃ mama hūṃ ni svāhā॥

Sitātapatrā, the 'White Parasol', is a powerful protector against supernatural danger in Buddhism, revered in both the Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna traditions. Her name, sitātapatrā, means white parasol or white umbrella. She is believed to emanate from the Uṣṇīṣa of Gautama Buddha while he was abiding in deep samādhi, manifesting as an independent deity whose mantrapada offers protection from calamities, malevolent forces, and harmful influences. Brilliant white and radiating compassion, she is often depicted with a white parasol and, in her most elaborate form, with a thousand heads, arms, and eyes that watch over and safeguard beings.

Reciting her dhāraṇī is traditionally said to avert obstacles, purify defilements, and ensure a favorable rebirth, including the aspiration to be reborn in Amitābha's pure land of Sukhāvatī. Sitātapatrā's practice is widely used for protection, healing, and establishing protective boundaries, making her one of the most important guardians in Vajrayāna Buddhism.

Source: Sitātapatrā Born from the Uṣṇīṣa of All Tathāgatas - 84000 Translating the Words of the Buddha
ऊष्णीष सितातपत्रा
ॐ सर्व तथागत ऊष्णीष सितातपतत्रे हूँ फट हूँ मम हूँ नि स्वाहा॥

Uṣṇīṣavijayā Hṛdaya​

oṃ bhrūṃ svāhā । oṃ amṛta āyurdade svāhā । oṃ amṛta tejavati svāhā॥

A Buddha of longevity, purification, and liberation from lower rebirths, Uṣṇīṣavijayā (Namgyalma) is one of the three principal long-life deities of Vajrayāna Buddhism, together with Amitāyus and White Tara. Her name means victorious uṣṇīṣa, the crown protuberance of a buddha. She is traditionally depicted with an image of Vairocana in her headdress, symbolizing her connection to the wisdom of the Dharmakāya. Her dhāraṇī is revered across all four major Tibetan lineages for its power to purify negative karma, avert untimely death, and support auspicious rebirth.

This is the principal prayer used for purifying and liberating beings from the lower realms, especially when placed upon the body of someone who has died or recited on their behalf. Through her mantra and practice, Uṣṇīṣavijayā embodies the victorious, purifying activity of the Buddhas, clearing obstacles to life, health, and spiritual awakening.

Source: The Uṣṇīṣavijayā Dhāraṇī - 84000 Translating the Words of the Buddha
उष्णीषविजया
ॐ भ्रूं स्वाहा । ॐ अमृत आयुर्ददे स्वाहा । ॐ अमृत तेजवति स्वाहा॥

Vairocana Sarvakatāḍanavidhiḥ​

oṃ sūkṣme sūkṣme same samaye śānte dānte samārope anālambe tarambe yaśovati mahāteje nirākulanirvāṇe sarvabuddhādhiṣṭhānādhiṣṭhite svāhā॥
3x

The central purpose of this ordinance is the invocation of Sarvavid Vairocana - the 'All-Knowing' form of the Buddha Vairocana - who embodies the omniscient, purifying wisdom of the Dharmakāya. In Vajrayāna Buddhism, Sarvavid Vairocana is revered as the cosmic Buddha whose practice purifies negative karma, averts lower rebirths, and restores clarity to beings obscured by afflictions. Originating from the Sarvadurgati Pariśodhana Tantra, this ritual cycle centers on the 37-deity maṇḍala of Vairocana and is traditionally performed for purification, healing, and guiding the deceased. As the personification of complete enlightenment, Sarvavid Vairocana represents the ultimate reason and foundation for the entire rite.

Source: The Tantra Purifying Bad Rebirths - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
वैरोचन सर्वकताडनविधिः
ॐ सूक्ष्मे सूक्ष्मे समे समये शान्ते दान्ते समारोपे अनालम्बे तरम्बे यशोवति महातेजे निराकुलनिर्व्वाणे सर्व्वबुद्धाधिष्ठानाधिष्ठिते स्वाहा॥

Vajradhara Hṛdaya​

oṃ āḥ vajradhara siddhi hūṃ hūṃ । oṃ vajrayoginī hūṃ phaṭ svāhā॥

Vajradhara (Dorje Chang), the ultimate primordial Buddha or Adi-Buddha, is revered in the Sarma traditions - Gelug, Kagyu, and Sakya - as the Dharmakāya Buddha who embodies the essence of all tantric teachings. His name means Vajra Holder. Depicted in deep blue and often in union with his consort, he symbolizes the inseparability of wisdom and skillful means and is regarded as the source of the Vajrayāna tantras, closely associated with guru yoga and the transmission of those tantras.

In these traditions, Vajradhara is the primordial Buddha from whom the tantric transmissions arise, the ultimate realization of enlightenment itself, and the origin of the Five Wisdom Buddhas.

Source: Praise of the Great Vajradhara - 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
वज्रधर
ॐ आः वज्रधर सिद्धि हूँ हूँ । ॐ वज्रयोगिनी हूँ फट् स्वाहा॥

Vajragītā​

ema kiri kiri । mashta vāli vāli । samita suru suru । kutali masu masu । ekara suli bhatayé । cakira bhuli bhatayé । samunta carya sughayé । bhetasana bhyakulayé । sakari dhukana । matari vaitana । parali hisana । makharta kelanam । sambhara tameka cantapa । surya bhatare pashanapa । ranabhiti saghuralapa । masmin sagulitayapa । ghura ghura saga kharnalam । nara nara ithar patalam । sirna sirna bhesa raspalam । bhundha bhundha cisha sakelam । sasah । ririh । lilih । i ih । mimih । ra ra rah॥

This dharmatā song evokes the wisdom of Ādibuddha in union and is revered in the Dzogchen tradition as the naturally resonant mantra of the primordial Buddha Samantabhadra. Known as the Song of the Vajra (Tibetan: རྡོ་རྗེའི་གླུ), it originates from the Tantra of the Union of the Sun and Moon and appears in Longchenpa's Treasury of the Supreme Vehicle as a profound expression of the true nature of reality. Its arranged syllables are chanted to invoke the inseparable union of compassion and wisdom, symbolizing the primordial coalescence beyond duality and pointing directly to the awakened state.

This union is traditionally understood as the primordial (or mystical) union of compassion and wisdom, depicted as a male deity in union with his female consort through the principles of interpenetration or coalescence1, often illustrated through the metaphor of Indra's net.

While the Song of the Vajra belongs to the Dzogchen tradition, its symbolism resonates with the union imagery of Anuttarayoga tantra and the interpretive methods of twilight language. The masculine figure represents compassion (karuṇā) and skillful means (upāya-kauśalya), while the feminine partner embodies wisdom (prajñā). Their union symbolizes the realization that overcomes the veils of Maya - the false duality of subject and object.

Source: Song of the Vajra - Lotsawa House

Without birth and so without cease,
Not coming or going, but filling all,
Blissful dharma sublime and unmoving,
Sky-like, freed and without stain,
Rootless, and also without support,
Homeless, unattached, a dharma profound,
Ever free, ever vast, equality effortless,
Subject to neither bondage nor liberation,
An ever present palace encompassing all,
Beyond logic and reason.
So vast, so grand, the space of the sky!
Blazing dharma, the core of the sun and the moon,
Instant presence, now it's so plain to see,
A mountain of vajra, a lotus so immense,
The sun, a lion, this wisdom song.
A sound so great, a music beyond compare,
A pleasure reaching to the ends of space,
A Buddha equal to all of the Buddhas,
Samantabhadra the vast, the peak of dharma,
In the womb of Samantabhadrī, her sky-like space,
Open clarity, instantly present-the ever great perfection!

वज्रगीता
एम किरि किरि । मस्ह्त वालि वालि । समित सुरु सुरु । कुटाली मसु मसु । एकर सुलि भतये । चकिर भुलि भतये । समुन्त चर्य सुघये । भेतसन भ्यकुलये । सकरि धुकन । मतरि वैतन । परलि हिसन । मखर्त केलनम् । सम्भर तमेक चन्तप । सुर्य भतरे पशनप । रनभिति सघुरलप । मस्मिन् सगुलितयप । घुर घुर सग खर्नलम् । नर नर इथर् पतलम् । सिर्न सिर्न भेस रस्पलम् । भुन्ध भुन्ध चिस्ह सकेलम् । ससह् । रिरिह् । लिलिह् । इइह् । मिमिह् । रररह्॥

Footnotes​

  1. Interpenetration (Sanskrit: युगनद्ध, Romanized: Yuganaddha, Chinese: 雙連, Tibetan: ཟུང་འཇུག, Wylie: zung-'jug, THL: zunjuk) ↩

Vajrakīlāya Hṛdaya​

oṃ vajra kīli kīlāya sarva vighnān vaṃ hūṃ phaṭ । oṃ chinda bhiṇḍa hana daha dīptacakra hūṃ॥

A wrathful form of Vajrasattva, Vajrakīlaya (Dorje Phurba), also called Vajrakīla, is the yidam who embodies the unstoppable enlightened activity of all the Buddhas and is central to the Nyingma school. His practice is famed for cutting through the most stubborn obstacles, subduing harmful forces, and purifying the dense spiritual pollution of this degenerate age. With the phurba dagger that annihilates ignorance at its root, Vajrakīlaya manifests fierce compassion that clears the practitioner's path toward awakening.

Source: Introduction to Vajrakīlaya - Lotsawa House
वज्रकीलाय
ॐ वज्र कीलि कीलाय सर्व विघ्नान् वं हूँ फट् । ॐ छिंद भिण्ड हन दह दीप्तचक्र हूँ॥

Vasuratna​

oṃ āḥ hūṃ vajra guru padma tötreng tsal sarva vasuratna siddhi phala hūṃ āḥ॥

Vasuratna, 'wealth-jewel', names a mantra invoking Guru Rinpoche as Guru Jambhala, the wealth-bestowing manifestation arising from his Ratna Tötreng Tsal form - one of the five enlightened activities of Guru Rinpoche associated with prosperity, enrichment, and the removal of obstacles. Tötreng Tsal ('Powerful Garland of Skulls') is described in traditional sources as a secret name of Guru Rinpoche, invoked for swift enlightened action.

In this jewel-aspect, Guru Rinpoche manifests as Jambhala, the deity of wealth honored in practices for prosperity, to dispel poverty, increase resources, and create the supportive conditions necessary for Dharma practice.

Source: Jambhala Series - Lotsawa House
वसुरत्न
ॐ आ हूं वज्र गुरु पद्म तोत्रेङ्ग त्सल सर्व वसुरत्न सिद्धि फल हूं आ॥

Vimala Uṣṇīṣa​

oṃ namastryadhvikānāṃ । sarva tathāgata hṛdaya garbhe । jvāla jvāla । dharmadhātu garbhe । saṁbhara mama āyuḥ saṃśodhaya mama sarva pāpaṁ । sarva tathāgata samanta uṣṇīṣa vimale viśuddhe । hūṁ hūṁ hūṁ hūṁ । aṁ vaṁ saṁ jaḥ svāhā॥
21x

The Vimala Uṣṇīṣa, or Stainless Uṣṇīṣa, is a mantra recited for deep purification and the removal of heavy negative karma, and is widely regarded in Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna traditions as one of the most powerful dhāraṇīs for consecration. Its name joins vimala, meaning stainless, with uṣṇīṣa, the crown protuberance of a buddha, and it is also known as the Great Wisdom Vimaloṣṇīṣa Dhāraṇī. It is praised for its ability to purify even the five extremely negative karmas upon hearing, and is traditionally used to bless and consecrate sacred images, environments, and stūpas.

Historical evidence from sites such as Ratnagiri shows that copies of this dhāraṇī were placed inside stūpas for centuries, reflecting its long-standing role in Buddhist consecration practice. The Vimaloṣṇīṣa text itself states that inserting this dhāraṇī into a stūpa generates merit equivalent to filling it with the relics of countless Buddhas, making it one of the most revered dhāraṇīs for empowering and sanctifying holy objects.

Source: The Dhāraṇī, "The Stainless Uṣṇīṣa" - 84000 Translating the Words of the Buddha
विमल उष्णीष
ॐ नमस्त्र्यध्विकानां । सर्वतथागता हृदय गर्भे । ज्वल ज्वल । धर्मधातु गर्भे । सांभारा मम आयु संशोधय मम सर्व पापं । सर्व तथागत समन्त उष्णीष विमले विशुद्धे । हूँ हूँ हूँ हूँ । अं वं सं जः स्वाहा॥