Before this class, one of the things that came to mind when I thought of Buddhism was the prayer wheel. I didn’t really know what what they were exactly, so I decided to research them a bit. As it turns out prayer wheels are pretty much exclusive to Tibetan Buddhism. They are cylindrical, made of metal or wood, and have a handle attached. Prayers (mantras) are sealed inside and the wheel is spun. Each rotation is seen as the prayer being ‘said’ or ‘sent out’ once, so spinning the wheel is a way to send out far more prayers than one would be able to do if they were just saying them throughout the day. There are also types of of prayer wheels that can be powered by a river or spun because of steam rising from a heater.
The 21st Century has led to some interesting developments in prayer wheels. The Dalai Lama has stated that “having the mantra on your computer works the same as a traditional prayer wheel, since a computer’s hard drive spins hundreds of thousands of times per hour” (Dharma-haven.org). GIFs of spinning prayer wheels can also ‘count’, as well as spinning prayer wheel screen savers.
Prayer wheels are traditionally spun clockwise, as that is the direction the mantras are written in. The spinner is supposed to spin the wheel gently while focusing on mindfulness and reciting a mantra (usually the one that in contained within the prayer wheel).
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Thanks for sharing this! I've always been curious about Buddhist prayer wheels. I do wonder why they are only exclusive to Tibetan Buddhism though.
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