Mantra

DaveG

I can't say that I'm a Buddhist or that I every will become one. I can say that I came here to understand and found alot of good people posting alot of good things. I'd like to ask: What is a mantra to you? Why use it and when?

Dave

Jason

To me mantras are a tool for meditation. You recite it over and over again and it becomes your object of meditation, just like focusing on the breath or repeating buddho. Any object of mindfulness is valuable because meditation is the key to the Buddha's teachings. Meditation is the cure the Buddha gave to us for the disease of our minds. This is from a Theravada perspective, though, and other traditions may use mantras differently.

comicallyinsane

When I heard mantra I thought of that villain on superfreinds. Aquamans nemesis. Too many comic books in my life I suppose. I prefer quiet meditation myself. Or I prefer meditation in chaos while being around a lot of people or driving.

DaveG

comicallyinsane wrote:

When I heard mantra I thought of that villain on superfreinds. Aquamans nemesis. Too many comic books in my life I suppose. I prefer quiet meditation myself. Or I prefer meditation in chaos while being around a lot of people or driving.

Then you use a form of meditation just to clear your mind?

A lesson in perception. I thought your username referred to "comedian" now it seems to referred to a comic book reader.

comicallyinsane

I use meditation to clear my mind and to help me focus my thoughts and to relax.

Simonthepilgrim

All the religions that I have encountered use some sort of repetitive prayer. Even some forms of psychotherapy do so, as, for example, the work of Emile Coué.

We tend to think of mantra in terms of the famous, brief 'acclamations' such as the OM MANE PADME HUM of Indian/Tibertan Buddhism or the chants of China and Japan. There are, however, much longer, more complex mantras which have a different function. Some, of course, are linked to specific stories or myths and may even have 'magical' overtones.

In Christian groups, the "Jesus Prayer", from the Orthodox tradition, has gained a lot of popularity among Western Christians, and the Rosary has a long and venerable history.

And I use mantras daily. I really love them. I use them on my daily walk to and from town. I use them when I'm sitting, 'telling my beads'. Most of the time, I use them as a way of giving my conscious mind something to do, just as my mala distracts my fingers. After 108 repetitions, or 316 or whatever, even 'I' is nothing more than the sound and silence of the mantra.


What's more, constant repetitions resulting in calm, focused attention set up a conditioned response which is available in all times of mental perturbation.

DharmaKitten

DaveG wrote:

I can't say that I'm a Buddhist or that I every will become one. I can say that I came here to understand and found alot of good people posting alot of good things. I'd like to ask: What is a mantra to you? Why use it and when?

Dave

Sometimes if I can't help but think about something negative, I pick something positive to repeat until it drowns out the original thought. It might be something as simple as "I can do this" or "I am beautiful".

federica

"No more grumbling or sulking
Or hating my state,
No more fretting, or letting
My troubles confound me -
But Laughing. And loving
The friends all around me....
And soon, I shall find -
If I really keep trying,
I have enough blessings
To keep me from crying."

I then shortened this to the second signature below, and here I am today, with my favourite Mantra....!! :bigclap:
I say it some of the time, I think it most of the time - I am it, all the time!!

garryageez

hi im garry from north wales uk. your description of your use of mantras was very educating, thankyou. My introduction to mantras was quite strange, i saw the part of the tina turner movie, her life story, the part where she was going through a very difficult and violent time of her life and her close friend taught her the lotus mantra. As i was going through a rather difficult time of ny life i remembered the mantra and begun to chant it myself. This had a profound effect on my sense of well being, even though i at the time had no idea as to the meaning of the lotus mantra. Through the chanting of this mantra i feel it has led me closer toward the buddhist path. I feel a warmth within that comes from the truth.

Brian

Welcome to the site, Garryageez