As promised, in my previous post “It works“, Here’s a write up on Surangama Heart Mantra. The Surangama Heart mantra is found at the end of the Surangama Mantra (which is very long and profound; consisting of 5 parts)
You may experience profound peace or profound irritation when you 1st hear this mantra. If you experience extreme irritation, as if you want to jump out of your skin; do not worry. You can stop listening to it anytime. But if you can help it, just hang on and be patient, finish listening it (20 mins).
In case, you really must stop halfway, do remember to try listening to it again next time and try to complete listening to it, from the beginning, all the way to the end. (Try lower the volume if you find it too loud)
The long mantra takes 20 min, it involves invocation of various protectors and various Buddha and then the pacification, subduction of various spiritual entities. In the below youtube performance, the mantra is chanted in a style similar to Thai monk chanting (solemn and powerful). Hope you like it.
Here’s a link to it:
The Surangama Heart mantra starts at 18:33
OM! ANALE ANALE, VISADA VISADA, BANDHA BANDHA, BANDHANI BANDHANI, VIRA VAJRA-PANI PHAT, HUM BHRŪM PHAT SVĀHĀ.
or
OM
ANALE ANALE
VISADA VISADA
BANDHA BANDHA
BANDHANI BANDHANI
VAIRA VAJRAPANI PHAT
HUM BHRUM PHAT SVAHA
This heart mantra is short and can be easily adopted as a Heart practice (constant recitation)
If the 84000 Buddha dharma are medicine that cure our mental affliction, then wrong administration of drugs can have adverse side effects.
The fault is not in the medicine but in the skill of the doctor or the cooperativeness of the patient.
When I first heard of this mantra, it is touted as
- powerful.
- Able to subdue all evils.
- Receiving blessings of all Buddha.
And many many more benefits.
Like all Mahayana sutra, such claim is meant to attract followers and promote faith in the practice. (That’s what i think) Not saying that they are fabricated.
Just as the wrapper is part of a sweet, perhaps describing its flavour etc; But not meant to be consumed! Likewise, such claim is not meant to inflate our ego….
Unfortunately, many people are so attracted by the wrapper that they did not taste the sweet but chose to eat the wrapper instead.
When I first learnt of the mantra’s “POWER” or “POTENCY” over malevolent forces, I immediately felt like I had learnt a magic spell that will make me invincible over supernatural beings. I was sixteen at that time.
That is a very wrong attitude because it feeds our ego and increases the 3 poisons in our mind.
Buddhism is about conquering ourselves, not other beings.
So it is very important to understand that all Buddhist practice is meant to be internalised. What that means is that, the motivation of a practice is to get rid of the negativities within ourselves.
In this case, we have to practice Surangama as a way to eliminate hatred, desire and wrong views within ourselves. That means the “evil” that we wish to subdue is really within ourselves. In our mind.
When practicing this mantra, I will recall it and mentally recite it in my mind when I feel bad thoughts overpowering me. Angry thoughts, desirous ones, laziness, greed etc. It kind of act like a reminder to be better.
Therefore when I feel anger against someone, I recite this mantra to arrest my angry thoughts. The fault lies in me for generating anger out of attachment to an illusory self.
This mantra is not meant to be recited as a curse or hex on people or imaginary foe. Buddha never ever teach hatred.
I was also taught the followings.
It is best to recite this mantra mentally ONLY, when one is outside their home or outside a Buddhist temple. To practice verbal recitation, one should try to do so at home or within a Buddhist temple. I guess that is common sense. You surely do not wish to attract stares in public right?
Another reason is because, the verbal recitation may cause discomfort to unwholesome spiritual beings. We try to be considerate and compassionate when we practice.
After learning this mantra, the goal is to conquer our internal unwholesomeness. (ie. our 3 mental afflictions) It is not our goal to conquer external beings. We should not make it our mission to exorcise evil spirits or supernatural beings.
If we ever have a chance to use this mantra like in the story, “It works“. We must be compassionate and do not harm any beings with malice.
Last but not least and the MOST IMPORTANT.
Not all unexplainable situations and behaviours are caused by unwholesome supernatural beings. We may never experience anything supernatural in our entire life. Which is a good thing.
Unexplainable situations and behaviours can be psychological. If it is supernatural, a few recitation of this mantra will resolve it.
Otherwise, it is more likely due to a psychological disorder. Please see a doctor. (get a shrink)
Combination of professional help and the practice of chanting / meditation (with correct understanding) can help greatly.
I am just an ordinary guy in Singapore with a passion for Buddhism and I hope to share this passion with the community out there, across the world.
Bodhi-Bowl 
Does people need to be vegetarian to recite this?can you email me ? There something i would like to ask in private.
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I don’t think it is compulsory to be vegetarian but it is encouraged. Personally, i think the refuge in triple gems and observing the 5 precepts is more important .and if we can, then being vegetarian is encouraged.
My email to you was bounced by.
Here’s my email tranquilvoice@gmail.com
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my personal experience, once you start practising with Shurangama Mantra…… you will tend to lean towards vegetarian choice gradually… it will just somehow click.
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Thank you so much for sharing.
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To be honest i feel i like this mantra but some said one need to be vegetarian and need to be pure and once someone have dream that related to Buddha one had to stay pure or something like breaking precept will have bad consequences. But i feel like this mantra can help me help treat someone i know that afflicted by withcraft. I been following Guan Yin Citta teaching which is chanting The Great Compassion Mantra , Heart Sutra and The Great Repentance Sutra. And to heal someone who afflicted by witchcraft will require a lot of Mantra reading which i alone cannot bear since i need to help 3 person .so i want to add Shurangama Mantra in addition to my daily chanting. Hopefully it will not cause me to bear heavy karma.
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I think vegetarian diet can have many benefit. But if one is not ready to give up meat, then that should not stop one from practicing. Once our craving for delicious meat lessen, then becoming vegetarian is a natural process. But meanwhile, our diet should not disqualify us from practice the Dharma.
For practicing precepts, we also try our best. It is because we are not perfect, that is why we practice. Otherwise Buddhism can only be practiced by enlightened people? That doesn’t make sense. Therefore, we should just try our best to uphold the precepts. That trying our best is what practicing Buddhism is all about. Without practice we cannot improve and become enlightened.
I think we just have to acknowledge our imperfection and be humble when we are practicing. If possible, introduce people to chant too. Especially the people whom you are trying to help. There are many youtube to learn this mantra.
I think if one practice Buddhism correctly, our craving for delicious food and craving to do the wrong things or break the precepts will reduce. Once such craving reduces, we will make improvement in our practice.
To have improvement, we need practice. That is why we take precepts, chant and meditate. Therefore, I think Dharma is for everyone. As long as we are sincere in our practice, we just keep trying. Hope this make sense.
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Thank you for your guidance.it really comfort myself in order to start chanting shurangama mantra
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🙏😁
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This is a mantra, the shorten version of Surangama heart Dahrani. And if you are just a new Buddahism practitioner then I highly recommended do not perform any type of exorcism in any form or occasion. Facing a unholy spirit or unwholesome natural being is very dangerous! Required you to have self spirit power (through special secret training) and sometimes higher-power (empowered by higher being like bodhisattva… etc).
For example, Cundi bodhisattva mantra required at least 1000000 times chanting with mundra combined in order to have chance to meet with Cundi bodhisattva or just even his servent and have him empowered you! That number of chanting depends on how much bad karma you have till now, the number sometimes multiply.
And yes, it even depend on what type of buddahism you practice in order to have the power to perform exorcism. Vegeterian or not is no problem, it is how you practice and how you apply Buddahism in life is matter!
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Thank you very much for sharing.
Yes. Indeed. I think the motto is ‘Do not go and pick a fight.’ I have seen practitioners who had suffered terribly.
It is very difficult to see Buddha and bidhisattvas because our mind is deluded.
We need to chant correctly with non attachment and with concentration to achieve samandhi. Some people mistaken it to be a number game. We can chant a million time but not getting a single time correct if our mind is deluded by craving, aversion and ignorance.
One of our most challenging ignorance is attachment to form. Which is related to attachment to a self.
If we crave to see a bodhisattva, that is also craving. If we are attached to form. That allows Mara or Mara ghost to approach us and bewitched us. They appear as the bodhisattva or Buddha we desire to see and slowly turn us astray.
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This is an interesting article but of all the learning and understanding I have been taught on the Shurangama Mantra as well as the Shurangama Heart Mantra never have I heard anything as for it to be used to exercise other living beings in any way. The Shurangama Sutra has a very specific purpose as well as the mantra, but as practitioners our focus only has to do with the Mantra itself and to rid false thoughts. I recited the Mantra 3 times every morning until I memorized it then after would recite the heart mantra 108 times to complete as this is how it was taught to me. During the heart mantra, we are to visualize the Sankrit characters until we also memorize them and once we do, we contemplate them as we are reciting the mantra. So of all the time I recited it, I never had those thoughts of hurting any living being and it was never taught this way. Yes the mantra dispels evil, keeps demons at bay and this is why the Shurangama Sutra is the first Sutra to disappear because that is when demons will be able to roam free in the world but Master Hsuan Hua said just as long as there is one person in the world who can memorize and recite the Sutra, then Demons will never be able to roam free. Today, I only recite the name of Amitabha Buddha, Namo Amituofo. I can only say that once in awhile I unintentionally attract strange beings because of Amitabha’s Light, but I just treat it no different than anything else and I request for it to go with Amitabha. Just like a moth is attracted to the light at night, ghosts and evil beings are also attracted to a Buddhist’s light so it is true that we may encounter these things but the mantras and names of Buddha’s and Bodhisattva’s protect us. The Shurangama Mantra just as the same as Namo Amituofo, if you recite it sincerely everyday, you are also protected from things like Black Magic. Yes we do recite to keep ourselves protected, but if this is the only reason you are reciting then you are reciting for the wrong reasons. We should be reciting to leave the cycle of Rebirth and Death! This is the purpose of learning Buddhism. Namo Amituofo!
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Yes indeed, Buddhism is never a practice to hurt others, even spirits. I think the spirit feels hurt because they are stopped from negativity. Maybe like a child throwing tantrum and feeling anguish when you stop him from doing the wrong things. That not getting to do what we want can be very painful
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