Don’t be fooled by Hollywood actors and other v-neck wearing LA types, a mala is not a necklace or a bracelet. It’s a tool for meditation.
There are a whole bunch of types of malas and a tradition to go with each, but I’m only going to tell you about the Tibetan Buddhist, 108 bead one today.
If you are new to meditation and you’re finding it hard not to drift into grocery lists or internet beef with some high school acquaintance when you sit down to meditate than a mala might be just the thing to get you focused.
The significance of the beads are to help you repeat a prayer or mantra, either out loud or in your head and keep count without having to think too much about it, so you can achieve that elusive no-mind that all yogis are chasing. 108 beads represents the number of klesas or afflictions that humans suffer from. In some forms of Buddhism, the mantra is repeated 100 times and the extra 8 beads are just in case you missed some. Good measure beads. The 108 beads are joined by a tassel at the end which represents enlightenment, the lightning bolt of the divine if you will.
Get a wooden mala if you want to infuse it with a magnetizing mantra. Sandalwood is best for strength and peace (example the famous Om Mani Padme Hum, the Tibetan chant for peace) or Rosewood for prosperity. There are other wood types but I advise you to go traditional rather than for look.
Crystal malas are for pacifying mantras and they last a long time. Clear quartz is good for all the chakras and balancing and rose quartz is really good for heart opening.
Pick something you can chant daily for a month or more. Pick something that resonates with you. “Money of everything” is a low vibration and probably not what you want to be chanting. World peace mantras are nice, but if you’re really just looking for inner peace, then go with that. You don’t always have to go big, you can start small. A bija (bija means seed) mantra that works really well out loud or in your head is “OM”. It’s simple and the resonance of the sound will help to heal you vibrationally.
Stick with one mantra per mala. Don’t get all fancy and over think it. Just pick your mantra and practice every day for 40 days. Once the mala is infused with the intention of the mantra, then you can wear it. But before that, keep it away in a cloth bag or case, separated from your other things.
My mantra is, “for love is the kingdom, and love is the power, and love is the glory, forever and ever”. It’s a simple easy one for me and it takes me about 20 minutes to say it 108 times on the subway with my eyes closed moving bead to bead with each round. I zone out into the no-mind space, but I find that when my mind does wander, it wanders onto the meaning of the words, picking out each and mini-meditating on that. And zoning into the word love is better than a grocery list in my book.
Checkout Anna’s awesome personal blog here.
