Public vs Private Mala???

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Mantrik
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by Mantrik »

tiagolps wrote: Wed Jan 10, 2018 8:54 pm
Mantrik wrote: Wed Jan 10, 2018 8:44 pm
Grigoris wrote: Wed Jan 10, 2018 8:02 pm Sure, once you have trained to the level of the Mahasiddha Virupa I am sure you can pull off the feat. :smile:
Just tried it, but some snake thingies hurled it back out of the pan at me and told me to do something like Snag a Poo Jar and stop pissing them off. Sometimes, the advice we get on this forum..............
The snake thingies didn't tell you to ask your teacher? :smile:
They said 'ask a Garuda' :)

Seriously, 'ask your teacher' IS the answer. Again! :)

As with so many aspects of practice, Lamas differ in their advice.
People can tell you what their own Lamas recommend but that doesn't mean your own Lama will agree, and since they gave you the mantra, it makes sense to ask them.

Using a mala in public is a matter of 'working with circumstances'. If you use a mala in full view then just be aware of where you are and how others may react - which can be positive or negative.

You may see a Hindu using a mala bag to hide the mala, but you can see they are using one. It was really funny when I saw a monk at Delhi airport using his mala in his lap under his zen - he drew some very strange looks from Westerners who were obviously convinced that he was masturbating! :)
http://www.khyung.com ཁྲོཾ

Om Thathpurushaya Vidhmahe
Suvarna Pakshaya Dheemahe
Thanno Garuda Prachodayath

Micchāmi Dukkaḍaṃ (मिच्छामि दुक्कडम्)
Simon E.
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by Simon E. »

That's quite right.

That those without a teacher become impatient when told that the answer is ' ask your teacher' does not detract from the fact that fairly frequently when discussing the Vajrayana, that is the only true answer.
And often is the only answer which is in keeping with samaya.
“You don’t know it. You just know about it. That is not the same thing.”

Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche to me.
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heart
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by heart »

florin wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 10:32 am
heart wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 10:05 am
liuzg150181 wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 8:54 am
Shall keep that in mind and to heart.
Also does the public mala need to be blessed before being used? I assume if I get new private mala,I need it to be blessed by lama first before using it.
I have done several retreats with the Lama that gave me this information. He say like this:

1. Always get your malas (as well as all other ritual objects) blessed.
2. Keep it in pouch when not using
3. Never show it to anyone nor let anyone touch it except your Lama

He always keep it hidden under his zen while using during group retreat. I think he don't approve of public malas but many Rinpoches use them.

/magnus
I wonder about all these tibetan monks or otherwise which constantly wear their malas around the neck, wrist or count in public. I see this all the time...
Yes, I know, but they for sure have a retreat mala that no one can see. Anyway, this particular Lama never wear a mala around his neck.

/magnus
"We are all here to help each other go through this thing, whatever it is."
~Kurt Vonnegut

"The principal practice is Guruyoga. But we need to understand that any secondary practice combined with Guruyoga becomes a principal practice." ChNNR (Teachings on Thun and Ganapuja)
liuzg150181
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by liuzg150181 »

heart wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 10:05 am
liuzg150181 wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 8:54 am
heart wrote: Wed Jan 10, 2018 8:29 pm

Yes, it is kept from everyone if you want to be serious.

/magnus
Shall keep that in mind and to heart.
Also does the public mala need to be blessed before being used? I assume if I get new private mala,I need it to be blessed by lama first before using it.
I have done several retreats with the Lama that gave me this information. He say like this:

1. Always get your malas (as well as all other ritual objects) blessed.
2. Keep it in pouch when not using
3. Never show it to anyone nor let anyone touch it except your Lama

He always keep it hidden under his zen while using during group retreat. I think he don't approve of public malas but many Rinpoches use them.

/magnus
Backtrack a little bit,you mean even dorje,bell and drum(or even zen robe) needs to be blessed before use? :shock:
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Harimoo
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by Harimoo »

An anecdote :
During a teaching, a lama (in his 80s) told about the preciousness of the malas and said that he received, in his teenagehood, a blessed mala from his late guru. He said he used it daily until now and that he planned to be cremated or buried with it after he died.
At that time, the mala he had in hand seemed quite new, so he wasn't using his ancient mala publicly. Many people in the assistance noticied this fact.
philji
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by philji »

liuzg150181 wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 5:30 pm
heart wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 10:05 am
liuzg150181 wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 8:54 am
Shall keep that in mind and to heart.
Also does the public mala need to be blessed before being used? I assume if I get new private mala,I need it to be blessed by lama first before using it.
I have done several retreats with the Lama that gave me this information. He say like this:

1. Always get your malas (as well as all other ritual objects) blessed.
2. Keep it in pouch when not using
3. Never show it to anyone nor let anyone touch it except your Lama

He always keep it hidden under his zen while using during group retreat. I think he don't approve of public malas but many Rinpoches use them.

/magnus
Backtrack a little bit,you mean even dorje,bell and drum(or even zen robe) needs to be blessed before use? :shock:
Yes, all are samaya substances.
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heart
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by heart »

liuzg150181 wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 5:30 pm
heart wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 10:05 am
liuzg150181 wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 8:54 am
Shall keep that in mind and to heart.
Also does the public mala need to be blessed before being used? I assume if I get new private mala,I need it to be blessed by lama first before using it.
I have done several retreats with the Lama that gave me this information. He say like this:

1. Always get your malas (as well as all other ritual objects) blessed.
2. Keep it in pouch when not using
3. Never show it to anyone nor let anyone touch it except your Lama

He always keep it hidden under his zen while using during group retreat. I think he don't approve of public malas but many Rinpoches use them.

/magnus
Backtrack a little bit,you mean even dorje,bell and drum(or even zen robe) needs to be blessed before use? :shock:
Yes, everything. He says it is enough if a real master just touch the ritual object.

/magnus
"We are all here to help each other go through this thing, whatever it is."
~Kurt Vonnegut

"The principal practice is Guruyoga. But we need to understand that any secondary practice combined with Guruyoga becomes a principal practice." ChNNR (Teachings on Thun and Ganapuja)
liuzg150181
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by liuzg150181 »

heart wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 8:59 pm
liuzg150181 wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 5:30 pm
heart wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 10:05 am

I have done several retreats with the Lama that gave me this information. He say like this:

1. Always get your malas (as well as all other ritual objects) blessed.
2. Keep it in pouch when not using
3. Never show it to anyone nor let anyone touch it except your Lama

He always keep it hidden under his zen while using during group retreat. I think he don't approve of public malas but many Rinpoches use them.

/magnus
Backtrack a little bit,you mean even dorje,bell and drum(or even zen robe) needs to be blessed before use? :shock:
Yes, everything. He says it is enough if a real master just touch the ritual object.

/magnus
Only seen ppl asking lamas and rinpoches to bless malas,but not dorje,bell and drum(or even zen robe),but still......
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heart
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by heart »

liuzg150181 wrote: Fri Jan 12, 2018 5:32 pm
heart wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 8:59 pm
liuzg150181 wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 5:30 pm
Backtrack a little bit,you mean even dorje,bell and drum(or even zen robe) needs to be blessed before use? :shock:
Yes, everything. He says it is enough if a real master just touch the ritual object.

/magnus
Only seen ppl asking lamas and rinpoches to bless malas,but not dorje,bell and drum(or even zen robe),but still......
They might do it more in private or they don't know.

/magnus
"We are all here to help each other go through this thing, whatever it is."
~Kurt Vonnegut

"The principal practice is Guruyoga. But we need to understand that any secondary practice combined with Guruyoga becomes a principal practice." ChNNR (Teachings on Thun and Ganapuja)
pemachophel
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by pemachophel »

actually, it's best get bell, doje, zen from your Teacher, in which case they will come blessed. there are specific blessing practices for bell, dorje, damaru, kangling, phurba, tingsha...
Pema Chophel པདྨ་ཆོས་འཕེལ
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by Karma Tsewang »

For those who may be interested, there's this book on using a mala:

https://www.amazon.ca/Garland-Advice-In ... hikling-20
With wishes for your good health and happiness,

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"May all who are connected to me, through good or bad karma, accomplish the final result of Buddhahood."
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Mantrik
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by Mantrik »

Karma Tsewang wrote: Sun Feb 25, 2018 3:49 pm For those who may be interested, there's this book on using a mala:

https://www.amazon.ca/Garland-Advice-In ... hikling-20
In terms of blessing the mala.........does it advise you seek out a qualified Lama or receive teachings which enable you to perform the blessing yourself, or perhaps to use mantras from an empowerment you have received?
http://www.khyung.com ཁྲོཾ

Om Thathpurushaya Vidhmahe
Suvarna Pakshaya Dheemahe
Thanno Garuda Prachodayath

Micchāmi Dukkaḍaṃ (मिच्छामि दुक्कडम्)
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Re: Public vs Private Mala???

Post by pemachophel »

very good to learn how to bless your mala(s) yourself. i bless my main mala every morning. some practitioners bless their mala before every thun/session. some sadhanas have a particular mala-blessing built into them. however there are་ "generic" versions. typically, mala-blessings require lung. usually only one stanza plus a mantra repeated seven times.

when Lamas bless someone else's mala, They may use a standard mala-blessing prayer and mantra. however, They usually say a round of whatever mantra(s) They have accomplished and end by blowing on the mala. so different Lamas will say different mantra depending on Their personal "specialty," e.g. Vajrakilaya, Chenrezig, Tara, etc.
Pema Chophel པདྨ་ཆོས་འཕེལ
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