The Origins of Oṃ Manipadme Hūṃ : A Study of the Kāranḍavyūha Sūtra

Sets out a history of the famous Buddhist mantra, Om Manipadme Hum, and offers new insights on its meaning.Oṃ Manipadme Hūṃ, perhaps the most well-known of all Buddhist mantras, lies at the heart of the Tibetan system and is cherished by both layman and lama alike. This book documents the origins of the mantra, and presents a new interpretation of the meaning of Oṃ Manipadme Hūṃ, and includes a detailed, annotated precis of the Kāranḍavyūha Sūtra, opening up this important Mahayana Buddhist work to a wider audience.The Kāranḍavyūha- the earliest textual source for Oṃ Manipadme Hūṃ-which describes both the compassionate activity of Avalokiteśvara, the bodhisattva whose power the mantra invokes, and the mythical tale of the search for and discovery of the mantra. Through a detailed analysis of this sutra, Studholme explores the historical and doctrinal forces behind the appearance of Oṃ Manipadme Hūṃ in India at around the middle of the first millennium C.E. He argues that the Kāranḍavyūha has close affinities

to non-Buddhist puranic literature, and that the conception of Avalokiteśvara and his six-syllable mantra is informed by the conception of the Hindu deity Śiva and his five-syllable mantra Namaḥ Śivāya. The sutra reflects an historical situation in which the Buddhist monastic establishment was coming into contact with Buddhist tantric practitioners, themselves influenced by Saivite practitioners. [Publisher's Text]