History of Buddhist Prayer Beads
Mark Bingaman

Mark Bingaman has entertained and informed listeners as a radio personality and director of programming at stations across the U.S. A recognized expert in the integration of broadcast media with new media, he served as associate editor and director of Internet development for two industry trade publications, "Radio Ink" and "Streaming Magazine." Today, he heads the International Social Media Chamber of Commerce.

By Mark Bingaman, eHow Contributor

Buddha

The repetition of prayer has been a meditation technique for centuries. Buddhist prayer beads are used by believers to count petitions to the Universe and remind followers of both their flaws and level of enlightenment. The origin of these beads can be traced to an even earlier religion. Eventually, these tools of contemplation, endorsed by the Buddha, spread to other forms of spirituality.

History

Buddhist prayer beads, traditionally called mala, first developed as a religious tool on the Indian continent. "The use of beads in prayer appears to have originated with Hindu religious practices in India, possibly around the 8th century," writes the Museum of Anthropology at the University of Missouri. "B.C.E. Buddhism, which developed from a sect of Hinduism, retained the use of prayer beads as it became established in China, Korea, Japan, and Tibet."

Identification

Just like the Hindu variety, Buddhist mala consist of a strand of 108 beads, each a symbol of impurities and flaws that an individual must overcome in order to progress to the blissful existence of nirvana. Prayer, for each one of these character defects, is crucial to achieving release from a failing of the flesh. Most Buddhists normally utilize mala consisting of 108 beads, but the number may vary in different sects of Buddhism.

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