A bījamantra (Sanskrit: बीजमन्त्र, romanized: bījamantra, lit. 'seed-mantra', in modern schwa-deleted Indo-Aryan languages: beej mantra),[1] or a bījākṣara ("seed-syllable"), is a monosyllabic mantra believed to contain the essence of a given deity. They are found in Tantric Hinduism and in Esoteric Buddhism.[2][3]

A bījamantra is ritually uttered for the invocation of a deity. It is considered the true name of the deity as well as a manifestation of the deity in sonic form.[4] It is also found in religious art, often standing for a specific deity. A bījamantra can be regarded to be a mystic sound made of the first few characters of a given deity's name, the chanting of which is regarded to allow an adherent to achieve a state of spiritual sanctity.[5] These mantras are also associated with the chakras of the body.[6]

The Romanian scholar Mircea Eliade stated that an adherent who chants the semantically meaningless bījamantra "appropriates its ontological essence, concretely and directly assimilates with the god".[7]

Hindu bījamantras

A few of the major bījamantras in Hinduism include:

DevanagariTransliterationDeity
औंauṃParabrahma
श्रींśrīṃLakshmi
ल्क्ष्मीःlakṣmīḥMahalakshmi
त्व्म्श्रीःMahasaraswatiMahasaraswati
क्म्लीःkāmalīḥMahakali
ल्क्ष्मींlakṣmīLakshmi
ऐंaiṃSaraswati
क्लींklīmKali
क्रींkrīṃKali
ह्रौंhrauṃShiva
श्वींśviShiva
गंgaṃGanesha
हूँhūṃShiva
फट्phaṭDestruction
ह्रींhrīṃBhuvaneshvari
क्लींklīṃShakti
दुंduṃDurga
फ्रौंphrauṃHanuman
दंdaṃVishnu

Other notable bījamantras include

DevanagariTransliterationDeity
भ्रंbhraṃBhairava
धूंdhūṃDhumavati
ह्लींhlīṃBagalamukhi
त्रींtrīṃTara
क्ष्रौंkṣrauṃNarasimha
हंhaṃAkasha
यंyaṃVayu
रांrāṃAgni
क्षंkṣaṃPrithvi

Buddhist bījākṣaras

Esoteric Buddhism contains numerous seed syllables with varying meanings. Depending on the tantra or on the tradition, they may represent different concepts, deities or forces.

The following are some common Buddhist bījākṣaras:[8][9][10][11]

Sanskrit (IAST) Meaning / use Deity
A The unborn, emptiness, Dharmakaya Mahāvairocana, or other Adi-Buddha figures
āḥ found in oṃ āḥ hūṃ Amoghasiddhi, Karma Buddha Family
aṃ Samantabhadra bodhisattva
bhai Bhaiṣajyaguru
bhaḥ Shakyamuni
dhīḥ Prajñāpāramita, from the Vedic word meaning to think, or meditate Mañjusri, Prajñaparamita Devi
hrīḥ Compassion Amitabha, Avalokiteshvara, Lotus Family
ha Earth Kṣitigarbha bodhisattva
hūṃ Usually found at the end of a mantra, e.g. oṃ āḥ hūṃ and can also mean the wind element in certain contexts (e.g. in the a vi ra hūṃ khaṃ mantra) Akshobhya
maiṃ Maitreya, Vajra family
maṃ Mañjusri
oṃ Usually found at the beginning of Buddhist mantras, may signify the body, speech and mind of the Buddha in Tibetan Buddhism (when interpreted as A-u-m)
tāṃ Tara
traṃ Ratnasambhava, Jewel Buddha Family
trāḥ Ākāśa (Space) Ākāśagarbha Bodhisattva
phaṭ wrathful / subjugation of demons / forceful shout
vaṃ, for vac, the voice of the Buddha Mahāvairocana (in the Vajradhatu mandala)
vi the water element
ra, raṃ fire element (e.g. in the a vi ra hūṃ khaṃ mantra)
khaṃ the space element
hāṃ Acala (Fudo-Myoo)

References

  1. ↑ Jacobsen, Knut A.; Aktor, Mikael; Myrvold, Kristina (2014-08-27). Objects of Worship in South Asian Religions: Forms, Practices and Meanings. Routledge. p. 74. ISBN 978-1-317-67595-2.
  2. ↑ Long, Jeffery D. (2011-09-09). Historical Dictionary of Hinduism. Scarecrow Press. p. 64. ISBN 978-0-8108-7960-7.
  3. ↑ Klostermaier, Klaus K. (2014-10-01). A Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Simon and Schuster. p. 43. ISBN 978-1-78074-672-2.
  4. ↑ Stutley, Margaret (2019-04-09). The Illustrated Dictionary of Hindu Iconography. Routledge. p. 92. ISBN 978-0-429-62425-4.
  5. ↑ Goa, Harold G. Coward And David J. (2008). Mantra: 'Hearing the Divine In India and America. Motilal Banarsidass Publishe. p. 47. ISBN 978-81-208-3261-9.
  6. ↑ Feuerstein, Georg (2022-08-16). The Encyclopedia of Yoga and Tantra. Shambhala Publications. p. 154. ISBN 978-0-8348-4440-7.
  7. ↑ Farias, Miguel; Brazier, David; Lalljee, Mansur (2021). The Oxford Handbook of Meditation. Oxford University Press. p. 795. ISBN 978-0-19-880864-0.
  8. ↑ Jayarava (2011). Visible Mantra: Visualising & Writing Buddhist Mantras
  9. ↑ Shingon Buddhist International Institute. "Jusan Butsu – The Thirteen Buddhas of the Shingon School". Archived from the original on 1 April 2013. Retrieved 5 July 2007.
  10. ↑ "Thirteen Deities Of The Shingon Tradition Giclee Print by Pasang Lama". www.tibetanart.com. Retrieved 2023-10-18.
  11. ↑ Hutchins, Steven J (2015). Thirteen Buddhas: Tracing the Roots of the Thirteen Buddha Rites, Introduction. Vivlia Limited
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