A prayer wheel, or mani wheel, is a cylinder that spins on an axle and holds a tightly rolled scroll printed with a mantra, most often Om Mani Padme Hum. In Tibetan Buddhism, turning the wheel clockwise is held to equal reciting the mantra written inside.
What is inside a prayer wheel
The paper scroll is wound around the central axle. Depending on its size, a wheel can hold anywhere from several thousand to millions of written mantras. The outside of the cylinder is often decorated with mantras in raised Lantsa letters, a script thought to have begun in eastern India.
Why turning it counts as reciting
Britannica puts the belief simply: each turn is equal to saying the mantra aloud as many times as it is printed on the scroll. Tibetan sources describe the main benefit as merit, the good karma that comes from positive actions. Turning the wheel with a good intention is believed to release the mantras into the world for the benefit of all beings.
The wheel turns clockwise so the mantras inside can be read in the right order, from left to right. People often recite the mantra as they turn it, or walk clockwise around a temple at the same time. Those who cannot read are taught to spin a wheel instead.
Hand wheels, temple wheels, water and wind
The handheld wheel, called lakkhor, has a handle that runs up into the axle and a small weight that keeps the cylinder spinning. Monks and lay people alike turn one as they go about the day.
Larger wheels, commonly called mani khorlo, stand at temples and pilgrimage sites. Visitors turn them on the way in and out and as they walk around the temple. Britannica pictures them at Swayambhunath Temple in Kathmandu and at the base of the Potala Palace in Lhasa. The biggest, called chokhor, take several people pushing together to turn.
Not every wheel needs a hand. Some are fixed to windmills or waterwheels so they stay in constant motion, and others turn in hot air rising from a flame. Newer versions run on solar power, and there are prayer wheel apps for phones.
Where the prayer wheel comes from
Tibetan tradition traces the practice to the Indian master Nagarjuna. Art historians link its form to the revolving scripture bookcases of Chinese and Japanese Buddhist temples, where one turn came to count as reading the whole canon. The handheld wheel seems to be a Tibetan invention.
The mantra of Avalokiteshvara
Om Mani Padme Hum is the mantra of Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion, called Chenrezig in Tibetan. The Rubin Museum describes him as the most popular deity in Tibetan culture, and Britannica notes that he is credited with bringing this prayer to the people of Tibet. Our guide to Om Mani Padme Hum explains its six syllables.
Prayer beads serve the same aim of gathering merit through repetition. Our guide on how to use mala beads walks through a full round.
Prayer wheels at Buddha.store
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