Today, I am sharing—or perhaps reintroducing—my practice version of the Great Compassion Mantra in Sanskrit.

Personally, I have found this version to be efficacious and full of blessings. Whether that is because of the mantra itself, years of practice, or the compassionate vows of Avalokiteśvara, I cannot say. I simply know that it has been a constant companion on my Buddhist journey.

I hope more people will recite it, practise it, and help energise this world with compassion, wisdom and positive energy.

Why are there so many Sanskrit versions?

The Great Compassion Mantra (大悲咒, Dàbēi Zhòu), also known as the Nīlakaṇṭha Dhāraṇī (नीलकण्ठ धारणी), is one of the most textually complicated Buddhist dhāraṇīs because there is no single, universally accepted Sanskrit version.

The mantra travelled from India into China, Tibet, Nepal and Japan through different lineages over many centuries. During this process, parts of the original Sanskrit were preserved, parts were transliterated into Chinese, and some portions became difficult to reconstruct.

As a result, modern scholars have proposed several Sanskrit recensions based on different historical sources, including:

• The Chinese Canonical Version
• The Nepalese Sanskrit Manuscript Version
• The Tibetan Version
• The Dunhuang Version
• The Japanese Shingon Version

One of the best-known modern reconstructions is by Lokesh Chandra, who compared the Chinese transliteration, Tibetan sources and Nepalese manuscripts to reconstruct what the Sanskrit may have looked like. His work is now widely circulated and is probably the source of many modern recordings of the Great Compassion Mantra in Sanskrit.

How my version came about

My own version came from a completely different journey.

When I was about 15 or 16 years old, I came across two different Sanskrit reconstructions.

The first was Dr D. T. Suzuki’s reconstruction, reproduced in Bodhisattva of Compassion: The Mystical Tradition of Kuan Yin by John Blofeld.

The second was a reconstruction by Lai Shih-pei and Deepak Shimkhada, based largely on the Chinese Canonical version.

Seeing these two versions, something inside me—perhaps a rather oversized teenage ego—decided that neither version had to be followed completely. So… I cherry-picked!

Whichever Sanskrit word sounded nicer to my ears, I kept. Whichever version felt more natural to chant, I adopted.

The result was a hybrid version.

Looking back now, nearly forty years later, I have to laugh.

Sometimes I honestly don’t know what was going through my mind. I imagine myself sitting in humid tropical Singapore, slightly dazed, happily copying Sanskrit by hand and merging two different reconstructions into one. Perhaps it was inspiration. Perhaps it was youthful confidence. Perhaps it was both.

Why I hardly shared this version

Because of this unusual history, I have rarely shared this version with anyone.

When Lokesh Chandra’s reconstruction became widely known, I admit my confidence was shaken. I wondered whether my youthful attempt was simply wrong.

Recently, however, I decided to revisit my old manuscript.

Using AI as a research assistant, I compared my practice version against Dr Suzuki’s reconstruction, the Shimkhada–Lai reconstruction, and Lokesh Chandra’s critical reconstruction. AI helped me compare the texts, identify similarities and differences, and highlight places where my version appears closer to one recension than another. Of course, I do not regard AI as the final authority, but it proved to be an extremely useful research tool.

What surprised me was that my version wasn’t nearly as random as I had feared. Somehow, it turned out to be a genuine hybrid recension.

Based on the comparison, it appears to be approximately:

• 75% Shimkhada–Lai
• 15% Lokesh Chandra
• 10% my own liturgical innovations

That final 10% appears to be the work of a teenager who spent one trance-like afternoon almost forty years ago making choices that somehow stayed with him ever since.

Looking back now, what surprises me most is this: some of those “made-up” Sanskrit phrases that simply sounded right to me back then actually turned out to have meaningful Sanskrit readings and translations. I certainly wasn’t clever enough to have planned that! Somehow, those choices emerged naturally.

Discovering this—with the help of AI as a research assistant—gave me the confidence to finally share this version. AI helped me compare the different recensions and understand where my hybrid text fits among them. It also encouraged me to take one step further: with the help of an AI songwriter, I am now trying to give this ancient dhāraṇī a modern musical voice.

A note about translation

Another interesting discovery from my research is that probably more than one-third of the Great Compassion Mantra consists of dhāraṇī syllables that were never intended to be translated literally.

Many phrases simply do not have a clear grammatical meaning in Sanskrit today, even for scholars. They function as sacred sounds rather than ordinary language.

So when you encounter different Sanskrit reconstructions—or different translations—there is no need to become anxious about finding the one “correct” version.

My conclusion

After all this research, something rather unexpected happened.

Instead of becoming less confident about my old practice version, I actually became more comfortable with it.

Not because I think it is the “best” version.

Not because I think it is more authentic than anyone else’s.

But because I now better understand that there has probably never been a single universally accepted Sanskrit version of the Great Compassion Mantra. Every modern Sanskrit recension represents an attempt to reconstruct a text that travelled across languages, countries and centuries.

So this is simply my practice version.

It has served me well for decades, and I offer it here in the hope that it may inspire others.

If another Sanskrit version resonates more deeply with you, then by all means practise that version instead.

If you prefer the traditional Chinese recitation, continue with that.

If you follow the Tibetan tradition, practise the Tibetan version.

The important thing is not which reconstruction we chant, but that we cultivate the Great Compassion that Avalokiteśvara embodies.

May all beings be free from suffering.

Bodhi-Bowl Version of the Great Compassion Dharani

Namo ratna-trayāya, namo āryāvalokiteśvarāya, bodhisattvāya mahāsattvāya mahākaruṇikāya, oṃ sarva rabhaye sunadasya, namo skṛtve mama āryāvalokiteśvarā, garbha, namo nīlakaṇṭha, hri mahā bhadraśrame,sarvatha śubhuṃ, ajeyaṃ sarva sattva, namah varga maha dhatu, tadyathā, oṃ avaloke lokite kalate hari, mahābodhisatva, sarva sarva, mala mala, māśi maha hṛdayaṃ, kuru kuru karmaṃ kuru kuru vijayate,mahāvijayate, dhara dhara dhariṇ suraya, cala cala, mama bhramara muktir, ehi ehi, cinda cinda, harsaṃ pracali, bhāsa bhāsaṃ preśaya, hulu hulu mala, hulu hulu hilo, sara sara, siri siri, suru suru, bodhiya bodhiya, bodhaya bodhaya, maitriye nīlakaṇṭha, dharṣiṇina payamāna svaha, siddhāya svāhā, mahā siddhāya svāhā, siddhayogeśvarāya svāhā, nīlakaṇṭha svāhā, varahananaya svāhā, simha sira mukhāya svāhā, sarva mahāsiddhāya svāhā, cakrāsiddhāya svāhā, padmahastaya svāhā, nīlakaṇṭha vikarāya svāhā, maha riś saṅkarāya svāhā, namo ratna-trayāya, namaḥ ārya avalokiteśvaraya svāhā, oṃ siddhyantu mantra padāya svāhā

AI translation of the meaning.

I. The Invocation of the Noble One

• Namo ratna-trayāya: Homage to the Three Jewels (Buddha, Dharma, Sangha).
• Namo āryāvalokiteśvarāya, bodhisattvāya mahāsattvāya mahākaruṇikāya: Homage to the Noble Avalokiteśvara, the Great Bodhisattva, the Great Being, the Greatly Compassionate One.
• Oṃ sarva rabhaye sudhanadasya: Oṃ, [I invoke] all fears/obstacles to be pacified by the nectar of virtuous giving.
• Namo skṛtve mama āryāvalokiteśvarā, garbha: Having made salutation, I offer homage to my Noble Avalokiteśvara, the Womb/Core [of compassion].

II. The Petition for Purification and Strength

• Namo nīlakaṇṭha: Homage to the Blue-Throated One [the transformer of poison/suffering].
• Hri mahā bhadraśrame: [Seed syllable Hri], in the great, noble, and auspicious labor [of the path].
• Sarvatha śubhuṃ, ajeyaṃ sarva sattva: In all ways auspicious, [to the] unconquerable [nature of] all beings.
• Namo varga maha dhatu: Homage to the group of the Great Elements.
• Tadyathā: Thus it is / Like this [the command follows].

III. The Mantric Flow (The “Dharma Pop” Pulse)

• Oṃ avaloke lokite karate hari, mahābodhisatva: Oṃ, O Observer of the world, who removes [suffering] in the unfolding of time, O Great Bodhisattva.
• Sarva sarva, mala mala: All, all, clear the impurities, clear the impurities.
• Māśi maha hṛdayaṃ: In the great, unattached heart.
• Kuru kuru karmaṃ, kuru kuru vijayate, mahāvijayate: Do, do the work; do, do the victory, the great victory.
• Dhara dhara dhariṇ suraya, jala jala: Sustain, sustain, O foundation of light; flow, flow.
• Mama bhramara muktir: My mind-bee [is] liberated.
• Ehi ehi, cinda cinda: Come, come; cut, cut [the bonds].
• Harsaṃ pracali: Joy set in motion.
• Bhāsa bhāsaṃ preyśaya: Shine, shine, send forth the light.
• Huru huru mala, huru huru hilo: [Sonic flow/clearing], [Dharanic sound].
• Sara sara, siri siri, suru suru: [The sounds of shimmering, flowing, and effortless motion].
• Bodhiya bodhiya, bodhaya bodhaya: Awaken, awaken, enlighten, enlighten.
• Maitriye nīlakaṇṭha: [In the spirit of] Loving-kindness of the Blue-Throated One.

IV. The Sealing Exclamations (Svāhā)

These concluding phrases solidify the intention of the mantra:

• Dharṣiṇina payamāna svāhā: To the bold manifestation unfolding, hail.
• Siddhāya svāhā, mahā siddhāya svāhā: To the Accomplished One, hail; to the Greatly Accomplished One, hail.
• Siddhayogeśvarāya svāhā: To the Lord of Accomplished Yoga, hail.
• Nīlakaṇṭha svāhā, varahananaya svāhā: To the Blue-Throated One, hail; to the removal of obstacles through the excellent path, hail.
• Simha sira mukhāya svāhā: To the Lion-Faced One [symbol of fierce wisdom], hail.
• Sarva mahāsiddhāya svāhā: To all Great Accomplished Ones, hail.
• Cakrāsiddhāya svāhā, padmahastaya svāhā: To the achievement of the Wheel [Dharma], hail; to the Lotus-Handed One, hail.
• Nīlakaṇṭha vikarāya svāhā: To the metamorphosis of the Blue-Throated One, hail.
• Maha riś saṅkarāya svāhā: To the Great Shattering and [subsequent] Union, hail.

V. Final Dedication

• Namo ratna-trayāya, namaḥ ārya avalokiteśvaraya svāhā: Homage to the Three Jewels; homage to the Noble Avalokiteśvara, hail.
• Oṃ siddhyantu mantra padāya svāhā: Oṃ, may the power of this mantra be accomplished, hail.