Bead Size : 10mm
Material : Sandalwood

NOTE : Free mala bag will be included.

A Japa mala or mala (Sanskrit:माला; mālā, meaning garland) is a set of beads commonly used by Hindus and Buddhists. Malas are used for keeping count while reciting, chanting, or mentally repeating a mantra or the name or names of a deity. Malas are typically made with 18, 27, 54 or 108 beads. There are numerous explanations why there are 108 beads, with the number 108 bearing special religious significance in a number of Hindu and Buddhist traditions. The 109th bead on a mala is called the sumeru or guru bead. Counting should always begin with a bead next to the sumeru.

A wide variety of materials are used to make mala beads : seeds of rudraksha, tulsi, wood or sandalwood, seeds of Lotus plant, yak bone, shells, semiprecious stones and resin.

Mantras are typically repeated hundreds or even thousands of times. The mala is used so that one can focus on the meaning or sound of the mantra rather than counting its repetitions. One repetition is usually said for each bead while turning the thumb clockwise around each bead, though some traditions or practices may call for counterclockwise motion or specific finger usage. When arriving at the head bead, one turns the mala around and then goes back in the opposing direction.

HOW TO USE A MALA :

The mala is traditionally held in the right hand and used in two ways :

In one method, the mala is hanging between the thumb and the ring (third) finger. The middle (second) finger is used to rotate the mala by one bead towards oneself with each repetition of the mantra. Mala is hanging between the thumb and the ring finger is used to rotate the mala by one bead towards oneself with each repetition of the mantra.

In the other method, the mala is hanging on the middle finger, with the thumb used to rotate the mala just as explained – one bead at a time. Either way, the index finger is never used to touch the mala.

The mala may coil on the floor with the hand resting on the right knee or used with the hand concealed in the Mala Bag.