From the archive record
Om Mane Padme Hum through antique prayer wheels at the Swayambhunath temple in Kathmandu, Nepal. Also, images of Hindu deities... Did you know Nepal is the only largely-Hindu country in the world? A statue has vermillion and sandalwood paste or haldi (turmeric) smeared on it. Tibetan prayer (called Mani wheels by the Tibetans) are cylindrical devices for spreading spiritual blessings and well being. Rolls of thin paper, imprinted with many copies of the mantra (prayer) Om Mani Padme Hum, are wound around an axle in a protective container, and spun around and around. Tibetan Buddhists believe that saying this mantra, out loud or silently to oneself, invokes the powerful benevolent attention and blessings of Chenrezig, the embodiment of compassion. As the practitioner turns the wheel, it is