Tendai juzu, or counting beads, have a unique style, unlike other schools of Buddhism. The make-up of Tendai juzu is as follows;
There are 108 Omodama (主珠) which means ‘main beads’. These are the beads that we use to count the mantras with. There are 108 representing 108 bonno 煩悩(kleshas) or human afflictions. With each bead/mantra, we are burning away our afflictions. You will notice that the main beads of Tendai juzu are flattend, or disc shape. These are called hiradama or sorobandama 平玉, which literally means “flat beads”. No-one really knows for sure why they have flat beads and not the traditional round type. Some say it’s because it makes it easier to count mantras, that your fingers are less likely to slip when counting mantras. Another possible reason could be because of the location of Mt Hiei. Mt Hiei is a wild mountain with bears and other such wild animals. Priests often rub the beads together when saying prayers, and flat beads make a lot more noise than round beads, so they are better for scaring off animals. Who knows!
As with all Buddhist prayer beads, there is a large bead at the “start” called the oyadama 親珠, which means mother bead or parent bead. This bead represents our teachers, especially Shakyamuni Buddha. It is also the marker of the beginning and end of the rosary. When we chant mantras, we do not cross over this bead. Instead, we stop and turn the juzu around and start chanting back the other way.
Amongst the main beads you will find four smaller beads, which are called shitendama 四天珠, which means,’ Four Heavenly Kings beads’. The Four Heavenly Kings are gods who reside at the bottom of Mt Sumeru (the mythical centre of the universe) and have vowed to be the guardians of the world. In Sanskrit they are known as the Caturmahārāja, namely - Dhrtarastra, Virudhaka, Virupaksa, and Vaisravana who watch over the cardinal directions, also known as Lokapāla, or Guardians of the world. These smaller beads are not meant to be counted, but are markers for smaller recitations. Some mantras or services only require you to chant a mantra 7 times, for example. So, if we look at the Tendai juzu, we will see that there are 7 main beads (omodama) between the parent bead (oyadama) and the first marker bead (shitendama). There are also other, more esoteric, reasons for the number of beads between markers, and are used for various ritual purposes.
When the juzu is not in use, we twist the juzu round on itself forming a perfect circle. And looking closely, we see that the four shitendama beads are now perfectly aligned with the cardinal points.
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Coming from the parent bead, there is a knot, followed by a small loop. In many Tendai juzu (although not all) there is a small bead in this loop called Jō-mei 浄名, however I do not know the significance or meaning of this bead, although I have been told that this bead is moved up when chanting begins. From this loop is another knot and then two tassels (Bō 房), one with 10 round beads and one with 20 flat/disk beads. These beads are called Deshidama 弟子珠, meaning ‘disciple beads’. At the end of each tassel are Namidagatadama 涙型珠 or teardrop beads, followed by a small pom pom known as Kiku bō 菊房 meaning chrysanthemum tassel, the chrysanthemum being the national flower of Japan, the crest of the emperor and also the crest of Tendai Shu.
These ‘desciple beads’ are used for counting large numbers of mantras. After each 108 mantras, one disciple bead is moved up. This continues until all 10 round beads have been moved, at which point 1 flat disciple bead is moved, and the pattern continues; 108 = 1 round bead. 10 round beads = 1080 mantras = 1 flat bead. 20 flat beads = total of 21,600 mantras.
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To count mantras, use your thumb on your left hand and move a bead on the last syllable of the mantra. Remember, do not count the shitendama or parent bead. And when you approach the parent bead, stop and turn the juzu 180 degrees, and then count the mantras.
When not in use, you may leave the juzu folded in a circle (see top image) on your butsudan, with the parent bead facing forward, or if you have a bag to place it in. The juzu is not jewellery, and so shouldn’t be worn as such, and should be treated with respect. Remove it to go to the toilet, or when cleaning etc, and do not place on the floor.
