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prayer wheel
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prayer wheels
prayer wheels Prayer wheels in the Swayambhunath Temple, Kathmandu, Nepal.

prayer wheel

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Also known as: ’khor-lo, mani chos ’khor
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Tibetan:
mani chos ’khor
Related Topics:
thang-ka
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prayer wheel, in Tibetan Buddhism, a mechanical device the use of which is equivalent to the recitation of a mantra (sacred syllable or verse). The prayer wheel consists of a hollow metal cylinder, often beautifully embossed, mounted on a rod handle and containing a tightly wound scroll printed with a mantra. Each turning of the wheel by hand is equivalent in efficacy to the prayer’s oral recitation multiplied by the number of times the mantra is printed on the scroll.

Buddhist prayer wheel
Buddhist prayer wheelBuddhist prayer wheels at the base of the Potala Palace, Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, China.

Variants to the hand-held prayer wheel are large cylinders that can be attached to windmills or waterwheels and thus kept in continuous motion. The mantra on a prayer flag is similarly activated by the blowing of the wind.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Kathleen Sheetz.