m a n i s t o n e s

Mani stones (མ་ཎི་རྡོ་འབུམ།) are stone plates or rocks that are carved with the Tibetan Buddhism six-word mantra Om Mani Padme Hum.

The first word, Om, symbolizes the practitioner’s impure body, speech, and mind; it also symbolizes the pure exalted body, speech, and mind of a Buddha. Mani meaning jewel, symbolizes the factors of method: altruistic intention to practice compassion and love. Padme, meaning lotus, symbolizes wisdom. Purity must be achieved by an indivisible unity of method and wisdom, symbolized by the final syllable Hum, which indicates indivisibility.

Thus the six syllables, om mani padme hum, mean that in dependence on the practice of a path which is an indivisible union of method and wisdom, you can transform your impure body, speech, and mind into the pure exalted body, speech, and mind of a Buddha. But nowadays people also carve other texts from Buddhism.

The Mani stone is the one of the most popular forms of prayer and ritual in Tibetan culture. It’s originally from Bon’s stone worship. When you are traveling to Tibet, you will find a lot of Mani stones. They are intentionally placed along the roadsides and rivers or placed together to form a big stupa, temple and mountain shapes. People also place the Mani stones along walls, as an offering to spirits of a place.