Detailed Introduction
Walk into the morning or evening service of almost any Buddhist temple in Taiwan and you will hear it -- the Great Compassion Mantra, formally titled "The Great Compassion Heart Dharani of the Thousand-Handed and Thousand-Eyed Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva," eighty-four lines in all. It is an indispensable part of temple liturgy and one of the long mantras that lay practitioners keep most readily on their lips.
Origin of the Mantra
The Great Compassion Heart Dharani Sutra tells it this way: countless eons ago, Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva heard this mantra for the first time before the Thousand Radiance Stillness Tathagata. After hearing it just once, the bodhisattva leapt from the first bhumi (stage of a bodhisattva) straight to the eighth, and in great joy made this vow: "If in the future I am able to benefit and bring peace to all sentient beings, may I instantly manifest a thousand hands and a thousand eyes." No sooner were the words spoken than a thousand hands and a thousand eyes appeared upon the bodhisattva's body. Avalokitesvara later told the assembly: "If any sentient being recites and upholds this Great Compassion Dharani, they shall not suffer fifteen kinds of evil death and shall obtain fifteen kinds of good rebirth."
Content of the Mantra
The mantra is mostly a phonetic transliteration from Sanskrit. It opens with "Namo heladana duolayeye" (taking refuge in the Three Jewels), continues with "Namo aliye" (taking refuge in the Holy One), and only then enters the core of the mantra. Each line is regarded as a manifestation of Avalokitesvara's vow power, answering to a different work of compassionate rescue. Most people cannot actually read the Sanskrit, but in the Buddhist understanding the mantra's power comes from the vibration of the sound itself together with the sincerity of the one reciting -- you need not grasp every word to receive its blessing.
Methods of Practice
A daily commitment is usually seven, twenty-one, or one hundred and eight recitations. Before you begin, wash your hands and rinse your mouth, sit upright with palms joined, recite "Namo Great Compassion Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva" three times, and only then start the mantra; a string of mala beads at hand helps keep count. Keep the pace even, neither rushed nor dragging, and enunciate clearly. Those who have walked this road usually suggest beginners recite along with a recording first, then chant alone once it feels familiar. For many Taiwanese Buddhists, being able to recite the whole Great Compassion Mantra from memory is an unforgettable milestone on the path.
Great Compassion Water
Clean water blessed with the Great Compassion Mantra is called "Great Compassion Water," and it is much valued in Taiwanese folk religion. The method is simple: take a cup of clean water, recite the Great Compassion Mantra seven times (or more) before a Buddha image, and after each round trace the sacred syllable "Om" on the water's surface with a finger; when you finish, it has become Great Compassion Water. Devotees believe drinking it can dissolve karmic obstacles, ease illness, and purify body and mind. Major Buddhist organizations in Taiwan, such as Dharma Drum Mountain and Fo Guang Shan, often keep Great Compassion Water on hand for devotees during dharma assemblies.
Merits and Blessings
The sutras record no shortage of merits for upholding the mantra: at the moment of death being received by the hands of the Buddhas of the ten directions, never falling into the three evil realms, having one's wishes fulfilled, and the wiping away of all karmic obstacles. Taiwanese folk culture also passes down all kinds of miracle stories -- someone gravely ill who recovered after sustained recitation, someone who came through disaster unscathed. Such accounts are hard to verify one by one, but the peace of mind and inner strength the Great Compassion Mantra gives those who recite it are real enough.
Practice in Taiwan
Nearly every major practice center in Taiwan works the Great Compassion Mantra into its daily liturgy; in the group services of Dharma Drum Mountain, Tzu Chi Foundation, and Fo Guang Shan it is among the most common practices. On the 19th day of the second, sixth, and ninth lunar months -- Guanyin's birthday, enlightenment day, and renunciation day respectively -- temples hold "Great Compassion Repentance Assemblies" built around the mantra, coming together to repent and to pray.