Everything You Need To Know About A Japa Mala

Posted by Zara Hyatt on May 11th, 2021

A Mala is a simple string of pearls used to count mantras, prayers or intentions during Japa meditation. Malas can also be used for breathing counts or in the meditation of gratitude. Mala is the Sanskrit word for man. Malas are a kind of perforations of meditation or prayer and are ancient resources that have been created to keep the mind centred and clear.

Buy prayer Japa Mala online India to derive all its benefits.

A complete mala comprises 108 beads and one guru or Meru bead. A 108 bead mala is usually long enough for the collar to wear. A Mala may also be stretched as a half mala with 54 beads, or as a bracelet, with twenty-seven counting beads. The Guru (teacher) or Meru (Mountain) bead is always bigger than the others and it offers the start and end of the repetitions of the mantra. At the end of the Guru/Meru bead, a tassel is attached to finish the mala with the last knot. Mala beads are also called mantra beads, beads for meditation, Hindu rosaries and Buddhist beads.

Why do Malas have 108 beads?

The number 108 plays a very important role in India's science and spirituality. The Sanskrit alphabet contains 108 letters! The Sun's diameter was 108 times the Earth's diameter, and the distance from the Sun and Earth was 108 times that of the Sun's diameter, as Vedic mathematicians measured.

In the yogic tradition, we find 108 Upanishad sacred texts, 108 Indian sacred sites and 108 body marmas (similar to acupressure) points. There are 108 Gopis dancing with Krishna in Vrindavan and 108 names of the divine in bhakti-yoga tradition. 108 energy lines are represented in tantric yoga all over the body and converge and join in the chakra of the heart.

What is Malas made from?

Prayer Japa Mala can be made of various materials. The most popular types of beads that are used in mala are made of wood or seeds. The properties of the beads can have some energetic effects, depending on the material used. Historical beads of a certain material have used various spiritual rituals and religious customs. Malas are mainly made of sandalwood, tulsi, and rudraksha seeds in India. The majority of bodhi seeds, lotus seeds and bone make up Malas in Nepal and Tibet.

Sizes and types of beads

The beads in a mala normally range from 6mm to 10mm, with 8mm the most frequent. Larger beads are easier to count and exercise with Japa but make it longer and heavier. Mala beads can be made from one or more different kinds of wood and stone beads. Mala beads can also contain thin metal spacers which are to be decorated and not counted. The Mala beads can be of the same size or greater size than the counting beads. The guru bead is usually made with the same sort of stuff as the beads.

History of mala beads

In other cultures and religions, mala beads are used, but different names are commonly recognized, such as prayer beads, rosary beads, worry beads. About two-thirds of the global population are employed in their spiritual practice by some kind of counting beads. The use of beads in prayer seems to have come about in India around the 8th-century.

Beads alone were strongly influenced and significant in human history. To date, the oldest beads are about 42,0000 years old. Throughout our culture, beads have been used as talismans for protection, luck amulets, prosperity symbols, spiritual and religious instruments and as trading aids.

Benefits of mala beads

In many different spiritual practices, Mala beads have been used for so many years since they have many important benefits for the mind, body and spirit. Some of the below

positive effects are standardized for all types of prayer or counting beads but many of these advantages are explicit to mala beads.

 ● Improves concentration when meditating on a mantra.

 ● An effective and convenient method for counting mantras.

 ● A simple way to track the number of mantras that have been recited.

 ● Prayer beads are physically linked with their innate powers of healing.

 ● If mala has been empowered, it can be used to cure yourself and others even more powerfully.

 ● Choosing a mala purchase can aid in the identification of spiritual objectives and intentions.

Final Words

To see or use a mala may be a reminder of one's purpose and objectives. It can also be used as a token or reward for doing a hard job.