Padmasambhava was a historical teacher who is said to have converted Tibet to Buddhism. He was a renowned scholar, meditator, and magician, and his mantra suggests his rich and diverse nature.
In Tibetan Buddhism the mantra is pronounced differently. There it’s Om ah hung benza guru pema siddhi hung. The difference arises solely because Tibetan and Sanskrit are from different language groups, and the sounds of Sanskrit are not easily pronounced by Tibetans. This doesn’t mean that the Tibetan form is wrong; Om ah hung benza guru pema siddhi hung is the official and correct form of the mantra in Tibetan.
The three syllables Oṃ Āḥ Hūṃ have no conceptual meaning. They’re symbolic, and have symbolic meanings.
Oṃ is often regarded as being the primeval sound, and in fact the sound-symbol of reality itself. It represents the universal principle of enlightenment. You can read about Om in more detail on the page about the Om Shanti mantra.
Āḥ, in traditional explanations, is usually said to be connected with speech (more about that in a moment) but in Sanskrit “ah” is a verb meaning “to express , signify ; to call (by name).” So it suggests evoking, or calling forth, the manifestation of enlightenment.
Hūṃ is often thought of as representing the manifestation of enlightenment in the individual human being. This may be a complete coincidence, but hum is similar to the first person singular “aham,” which means of course “I.”
Often these three syllables are associated with body, speech, and mind respectively (i.e. the whole of one’s being). So there’s a suggestion that we are saluting the qualities that Padmasambhava represents with all of our hearts (and minds, and bodies).
Vajra means thunderbolt, and represents the energy of the enlightened mind. It can also mean diamond. The implication is that the diamond/thunderbolt can cut through anything. The diamond is the indestructible object, while the thunderbolt is the unstoppable force. The vajra also stands for compassion. While it may seem odd to have such a “masculine” object representing compassion, this makes sense in esoteric Buddhism because compassion is active, and therefore aligned with this masculine symbol. (The term “masculine” does not of course imply that compassion is limited to males!)
Guru, of course, means a wise teacher. It comes from a root word, garu, which means “weighty.” So you can think of the guru as one who is a weighty teacher. Padmasambhava is so highly regarded in Tibetan Buddhism that he is often referred to as the second Buddha.
And Siddhi means accomplishment or supernatural powers, suggesting the way in which those who are enlightened can act wisely, but in ways that we can’t necessarily understand. Padmasambhava is a magical figure, and in his biography there are many miracles and tussles with supernatural beings.
Many Buddhist mantras start with Oṃ and end with Hūṃ.
One way you can think of this is that Oṃ represents the abstract principle of enlightenment, or the potential for awakening that exists in the world and in our minds. Hūṃ on the other hand represents our individual selves (hūṃ may be an ancient and non-standard equivalent of ahaṃ, which is the Pali and Sanskrit word for “I” (the first person singular pronoun). The middle part of the mantra is the invocation that connects us, as individuals, with enlightenment. In other words we’re inviting enlightenment to transform us.
In this case it’s the qualities of Padmasambhava (as “the thunderbolt teacher” and the “lotus realized one”) that are our bridge to enlightenment.
To hear the pronunciation of the Padmasambhava mantra, Om Ah Hum Vajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hum, click below to hear a recorded version chanted by Bodhipaksa:
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You can also chant the prajna paramita from the diamond sutra. Oh ma hum vaijra guru padma siddhi hum did you know that the tibetan pronunciation is oh ma hum benza guru pema siddhi
i have a question: what was the translation of this mantra? i know that there are the words and their meanings but i want to see the translation...
It's not a sentence, so it can't really be translated.
Hi,
Just wanted to share this experience with you. Guru Rinpoche has helped me on many occasions and whenever I am in deep trouble or I feel like there is no way out, I leave everything on him with my deep faith and he has always helped me. So if anyone has a problem ,if you pray to him with pure heart and belief, he will help you for sure "Om Ah Hung Benzar Guru Pema Sithe Hung". Thank you for your great inputs all...May Guru Rinpoche bless you all.
I am relatively new to buddhism, (predominantly tibetan). I had a teacher for nine months, who relocated to Thailand, so now I study alone. I much appreciate actually hearing mantras. I have learnt seven so far, but never heard them. I have, since hearing it on this site, become attached to the Padmasambhava mantra and say it repeatedly in my head and out loud sometimes too. I have just finished morning meditation in which this mantra was an integral part. After completion, I felt so tranquil. Then on closing my eyes, a most beautiful red rose bush appeared, the colours were startling. This is the first time I have had such an experience.
Very beautiful, thank you very much for posting. I first started practicing the Vajra Guru mantra after going to the Padma Rigdzin Ling Buddhist Temple. The mantra is so wonderful, I am grateful everyday. May all sentient beings swiftly attain enlightenment. OM AH HUNG BENZAR GURU PADMA SIDDHI HUNG.
I stumbled onto this conversation...one thing leading to another, as usual.
Many thoughts came...one stayed. The transformation of the mantras over time, language, gurus, and ears. Like playing the game 'whisper in the ear".....what comes out at the other end of the circle is amazingly far from the original.
"Om aham (I am) the vajra (thunderbolt) guru as pure and accomplished as the Padma". That make sense?
It's a nice thought, but om ah hum is formed from three separate seed syllables that exist separately and have been combined: i.e. it's not that aham has been split into two.
I am no language guru and absolutely cannot talk about any language rules etc.
But am thinking: one could certainly split every word in any language to its root syllables, and if one does that with every sanskrit sentence ever spoken the sentence could start to take a different meaning....different life altogether.
In this sentence I see two possibilities: ahum as “I” or ahum as “my”.
The question is: is that ?? H?? a distorted version of ahum? I think yes. A new perspective to consider.
I was also wondering if care is not taken to maintain the originality of the sound spoken, what would become of Sohum?
I guess this also explains why Gita has so many commentaries ?
First, I'm sorry that this site chews up special characters and spits them out as question marks. This happened after a site update, and I haven't got it sorted out yet.
Sometimes when Sanskrit mantras have been repeated by speakers of another language, they do get a bit garbled. This has happened with the 100-syllable mantra of Vajrasattva, for example, and with a long Shakyamuni mantra I've come across. But the three syllables Oṃ, Āḥ, and Hūṃ are all very ancient and have their separate histories. Here they're combined together. It's not that the first person singular ahaṃ has been split. (In any event अ and आ sound completely different in Sanskrit. Splitting ahaṃ while also changing a into ā and adding ḥ is a huge series of changes.)
“Sometimes when Sanskrit mantras have been repeated by speakers of another language, they do get a bit garbled. “
I guess that’s what my analytical brain is harping on. Sorry about that. Now a days too many people are having kundalini awakening by just doing anulom vilom 5 times each nostril. I think I am actually irritated about that, and need to calm down with some real meditation ??
Wishing you peace in your search.
But thanks for letting me vent ?
You're welcome for the opportunity to vent, Rita!
Namaskar ?
I personally was guided and prefer to
chant o? ?? hr?? tra? h?? as this is a gate way to the Vajradhatu mind stream and in essence a combination of the five Tathagatas in harmony.
I must apologize. Since a developer did some work a while back this site has been eating diacritics for breakfast.
So is it bad for someone who has not yet taken their refuge with a lama, to recite Om Ah Hum Benza Guru Padma Siddhi Hum? Can I chant it as a person who hasn’t taken their vows in front of a lama? Is it considered Vajrayana Buddhism?
It's not bad at all. Chanting that mantra was common before Vajrayana Buddhism emerged.
I'm so confused, I don't know what's the correct way since I see many different ones!! which one is the correct way ? is it..
''Om Ah Hum Vajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hum'' or is it..
"Om Ah Hung Benza Guru Pema Siddhi Hung'' ? someone please help me out with this, Thank You :)
The first version you offer is correct Sanskrit (minus the diacritics).
The second version is how the Sanskrit is pronounced by Tibetans, who find it difficult to pronounce Sanskrit. People who speak European languages also have difficulty pronouncing Sanskrit, but in different ways. In a way it's hilarious that Westerners try so hard to faithfully reproduce Tibetan mispronunciations of Sanskrit, while also adding their own. I think it makes much more sense for us to actually try to pronounce the Sanskrit as best we can. Of course if you have a Tibetan teacher and chant with Tibetans then it would also make sense to go along with what they do.