Which mantra/s do you use?

[cookies]

Which mantras/dharanis do you use and how has it benefited you and your practice?

[Konchog Thogme Jampa]

Which mantras/dharanis do you use and how has it benefited you and your practice?

Should be secret unless its common mahayana

[PadmaVonSamba]

I recite an amitayus long life mantra to keep polar bears away from my meditation area.

So far, it’s worked wonders!

Which mantras/dharanis do you use and how has it benefited you and your practice?

[cookies]

why are there polar bears in your area? you meditate in a zoo?

[PadmaVonSamba]

why are there polar bears in your area? you meditate in a zoo?

That’s the amazing thing about this mantra. It repels them all the way to the arctic.

[cookies]

meh

[PadmaVonSamba]

meh

I’m joking, because most people don’t discuss mantras except in terms of general usage in the context of a yidam practice.

So, for example, I can say “I use OM MANI PADME HUM in Chenrezig visualization practice” but that’s the mantra of Chenrezig anyway. It’s the syllabic embodiment of Chenrezig. It’s simply the one to use with that practice.

But people might privately recite mantras for personal reasons: Manjushri mantra before studying for a test, or they might recite Padmasambhava mantra before sharing a dharma teaching. Some might recite Vajrakilaya mantra when encountering people who give off a negative vibe or whatever, but these are all what you might call “off-label” applications. And most people aren’t going to discuss that.

Maybe you can clarify your question a little bit.

[conebeckham]

I use the mantras I have been given—in the context in which they are to be used.

There is a reason we call the Vajrayana the “Secret Mantra” vehicle.

You may as well ask me what my yidam is. Don’t expect an answer.

[Ayu]

But we could talk about the use of mantra in general without specifying on what and which.

I don't believe in all this talk (which happens everywhere on www) about which mantra is better or lesser for which occasion. This solely depends on the practicioners IMHO.
The variety of mantras serves the variety of people. And it's more important how dedicated a practice is being performed than what exactly is being used.

It's not so important which item you choose from the (imagined) supermarket but how you respect it.
This is only my personal opinion and I am not criticizing the OP. I'm just pointing to the consumers stance in general which seems to be inherently to our thinking.

[PadmaVonSamba]

Which mantras/dharanis do you use and how has it benefited you and your practice?

I think there is a tendency to refer to “affirmations”, short statements that that help boost confidence and self-esteem, as mantras. In the sense that one repeats them over and over, I guess the term ‘mantra’ is applicable. But the term ‘mantra’ used in psychology is different than ‘mantra’ in tune Buddhist context.

[Giovanni]

Which mantras/dharanis do you use and how has it benefited you and your practice?

The ones that were literally whispered in my ear by my teacher.
They are my practice, or at least an important part of it.
I can’t really answer the question concerning how it has benefitted me, except to point to the idea of Shraddha.

[Kai lord]

Which mantras/dharanis do you use

Om Mani Padme Hum.

and how has it benefited you and your practice?

In developing bodhicitta of course. The following are the rest of the benefits:

It is also mentioned in the tantras that by reciting this mantra you achieve the four qualities of being born in the Amitabha Buddha pure land and other pure lands; at the time of death, seeing Buddha and lights appearing in the sky; the devas making you offerings; and never being reborn in the hell, hungry ghost or animals realms. You will be reborn in the pure land of Buddha or as a happy transmigratory being.

When one who recites ten malas a day goes swimming, whether in a river, an ocean or some other body of water, the water that touches that person’s body gets blessed.

It is said that up to seven generations of that person’s descendents won’t get reborn in the lower realms. The reason for this is that due to the power of mantra, the body is blessed by the person reciting the mantra and visualizing their body in form of the holy body of Chenrezig. Therefore, the body becomes so powerful, so blessed that this affects the consciousness up to seven generations and has the effect that if one dies with a non-virtuous thought, one is not reborn in a lower realm.

Thus, when a person who has recited ten malas of OM MANI PADME HUM a day goes into a river or an ocean, the water that touches the person’s body gets blessed, and this blessed water then purifies all the billions and billions of sentient beings in the water. So it’s unbelievably beneficial; this person saves the animals in that water from the most unbelievable suffering of the lower realms.

When such a person walks down a road and the wind touches his or her body and then goes on to touch insects, their negative karma gets purified and causes them to have a good rebirth. Similarly, when such a person does massage or otherwise touches others’ bodies, those people’s negative karma also gets purified.

Such a person becomes meaningful to behold; being seen and touched becomes a means of liberating other sentient beings. This means that even the person’s breath touching the bodies of other sentient beings purifies their negative karma. Anybody who drinks the water in which such a person has swum gets purified.

Mani Kabum also says that all the buddhas have blessed these six syllables again and again. Praying to Chenrezig is the same as praying to all the buddhas and bodhisattvas of the ten directions and chanting the Chenrezig mantra, OM MANI PADME HUM, is the same as chanting the mantras of all the buddhas. By reciting OM MANI PADME HUM, we get the benefit of having chanted all the rest of the buddhas’ mantras.

It is said that these six syllables are the heart of Arya Compassion Buddha.

In The Mirror Clarifying History, it says that this six-syllable mantra is the heart of the 84,000 teachings taught by Buddha. OM MANI PADME HUM contains the thought, or view, of all the buddhas embodied in one.

OM MANI PADME HUM contains the Hinayana path, the Mahayana Paramitayana path and the paths of the four classes of tantra; it contains the whole path to enlightenment. That means that all the extensive sutra teachings—Pramanavarttika, Abhisamayalamkara, Abhidharmakosha, Madhyamaka and Vinaya—are rooted in OM MANI PADME HUM, as are the extensive tantric teachings, such as The Great Graduated Tantric Path to Enlightenment (Ngag Rim Chenmo), which covers the five stages of the completion stage, including clear light. The entire extensive teachings are rooted, or embodied, in OM MANI PADME HUM. It also contains all the qualities of a buddha.

OM MANI PADME HUM is also the heart of the five types of buddha and of the deities who are the owners of the secret.

And OM MANI PADME HUM is the source of all the collections of virtue, of all the collections of happiness, and it is the root from where you and all other sentient beings receive all benefit, all happiness, all attainment.

This mantra, OM MANI PADME HUM, is a great path to achieve higher rebirth and liberation, which includes enlightenment.

If you chant Chenrezig mantras every day, whether the long dharani or the six-syllable mantra, OM MANI PADME HUM, all your wishes come true. Before, Chenrezig made the promise, “If that doesn’t happen, may I not achieve enlightenment.” There is no doubt that we actually receive all the benefits of the mantra as mentioned by Chenrezig. Then, at the time of death, Chenrezig will stretch out his hand to guide us to the pure land.

[jet.urgyen]

Which mantras/dharanis do you use and how has it benefited you and your practice?

Avalokiteshvara's, while one is in samadhi/concentration. The benefit is so big that one doesn't recognize it at first look.

[????]

Where does the power of the mantra come from?

From faith in its power, i.e. from our head

or from language in which it was originally created
so you can use "echo" of energy recording created over the years of practice of thousands of people

or no matter the language and its sound, only the intention?

[conebeckham]

Where does the power of the mantra come from?

From faith in its power, i.e. from our head

or from language in which it was originally created
so you can use "echo" of energy recording created over the years of practice of thousands of people

or no matter the language and its sound, only the intention?

Perhaps all these things, in a mutual interdependence? Though I think Faith is not really “in the head”-perhaps in the heart center? Along with devotion.

[????]

I had three possibilities in mind:

placebo and nocebo - our belief gives power to any thing or action

an energetic pattern encoded in space - in order to use its power, we have to recreate the pattern,
something like enter the access password,each folder protected with a different password
you want health, you need to open the folder with health, you need to know the folder password
(in the case of mantras, they are words,word is sound, sound is vibration,vibration leaves a print in the form of an "echo")
we have to repeat the given pattern perfectly for it to work,our faith and intentions have nothing to do with it

or will, intention - no matter what and how, it is important to precisely define the purpose of the action


Native Americans recall a period of "civilizing" them by Judeo-Christianity on the basis of prohibiting the use of their own language,
according to them, this meant that if they prayed to their gods they would not be heard
because they would not pray in a language understood by their gods.

Could it be that their language is for them a specific pattern of vibration
that will not produce the expected effect, despite intention and belief,
because the words/patterns will be different?


PS.Heart and brain, hmm
heart is factory of emotions, brain is factory of feelings, both are fuel for...actions
faith is action,behavior and actions are controlled by the brain..nevermind

[jet.urgyen]

Where does the power of the mantra come from?

From faith in its power, i.e. from our head

or from language in which it was originally created
so you can use "echo" of energy recording created over the years of practice of thousands of people

or no matter the language and its sound, only the intention?

from sound and permission. and concentration (the know-how to use).

good relationship helps.

[Aemilius]

Where does the power of the mantra come from?

From faith in its power, i.e. from our head

or from language in which it was originally created
so you can use "echo" of energy recording created over the years of practice of thousands of people

or no matter the language and its sound, only the intention?

One's own mind, one's faith, merit and other qualities have a primary importance.
But there is also the property of adhisthna or a person's authority or status in the spiritual world. This derives from your merit, from your practice of morality and your ascetism, from your power of samadhi. Based on this you have some degree of control over the manifested wolrd. And thus your words can be effective enough so that they can cause changes in the outer manifested world (magically). Mantras and dharanis can be and are created by persons with spiritual authority/adhisthana. Also the reading of sutras is regarded to have magical effects. Especially with certain Mahayana sutras like Lotus Sutra and the Sutra of Golden Light. These sutras promise magical effects for their upholder, for their reader and reciter.

This principle is found also in the Sravakayana sutras. Vasubandhu says in the AKB that the blessing and authority of certain spells or paritta, that are based on the events that occured during the Buddha's lifetime on earth, last till the end of the present kalpa. For example, the capability to control the nagas appears in the Sravakayana sutras, and there is also a protection(spell) against the (negative)influence of Yakshas in the sravakayana sutras.

"...The four great kings arose from their seats, and saluting the Blessed One, circled round him on his right side, and there and then vanished. From among the (attendant) Yakkhas some arose from their seats, and saluted the Blessed One, circled round him on his right side, and there and then vanished; some exchanged greetings with the Blessed One conversing in a friendly and courteous manner, and there and then vanished; some saluted the Blessed One with clasped hands, and there and then vanished; some announced their name and lineage, and there and then vanished; some in silence there and then vanished.

When the night had passed the Blessed One addressed the monks: (The Buddha related to the monks word for word what has been said by the great King Vessavana, see above.) "Learn by heart, monks, the Atanata protection, constantly make use of it, bear it in mind. This Atanata protection, monks, pertains to your welfare, and by virtue of it, monks and nuns, laymen and laywomen may live at ease, guarded, protected, and unharmed."

This the Blessed One said. Those monks glad at heart rejoiced at the words of the Blessed One."

Atanatiya Sutta: Discourse on Atanatiya, translated from the Pali by Piyadassi Thera
complete sutra https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitak ... .piya.html