Om Mani Padme Hum: Compassion in Six Syllables

Om Mani Padme Hum is among the most widely printed mantras on earth, which is a mixed blessing. In Tibetan Buddhist practice it is the mantra of Chenrezig / Avalokiteśvara, the bodhisattva of compassion. Traditional teaching unpacks the six syllables as a path. Popular culture unpacks them as jewellery.

You may find the sound settling. You should still know whose house you are humming in. Compassion as a fashion is a parody of the practice that made the syllables famous.

Compassion that will not include the person in the queue is just a necklace.

If this mantra is yours through a Buddhist path, keep your teacher's instructions. If you are a guest, guest: learn a little, do not claim a lot, do not sell the beads back to the tradition as an aesthetic.