Learning to Meditate

A quick search on 'learning to meditate' came up with so many sites where you pay them a little bit of money and they will send a book or cd on how to meditate that it made me want to meditate to calm myself down a bit. There are various religions and forms of spirituality who use meditation as a key component. Meditation is important in both Buddhism and Hinduism. Meditation is used in yoga and some forms of it are used in Tai Chi and Qigong as well. Simply slowing down, and listening to your breath, is a simple way of beginning to meditate for the novice. There are also various forms of pranayama, or focusing on the breath, that are used in yoga and provide the foundation for a good meditation practice. It is a little known thing about yoga that the primary purpose for the physical part of yoga is to get your body into a relaxed state for meditation. When our bodies are comfortable and free from pain, it allows us to focus on our meditation, rather than thinking, "ooh, my hip hurts, I have a pain in my knee," etc. I wrote a pretty good article (if I say so myself) on Buddhist meditation that can be found on Bodhi Seed Prayer Beads.

And there is always more that I want to add. It is important to remember before meditating that you should do something to help your body limber up a bit. You can also meditate in a chair, especially if it is very uncomfortable for you to sit on the ground. Also if your mind wanders, you should gently bring your mind back to task rather than berating yourself for forgetting to concentrate. Meditating should be a small gift that you are giving yourself. The time to relax and try to free your mind from your everyday worries.

The benefits of meditation are great. Meditation can increase blood flow and slow down the heart rate. It enhances weight loss and increases energy. Meditation can also help with your concentration and focus in all aspects of life.

Prayer Beads are great for meditation because they give your mind something to focus on while you meditate. You can use a mantra with the prayer beads as you pass over each bead. And this doesn't have to be rigid. You could use a Buddhist or Hindu mantra, or you could just say a small prayer for someone in your life, or give yourself an affirmation as you use the prayer beads. You can also focus on your breath, focus on a mudra (a yogic hand position), focus on something you want to come true, or focus on a mandala or another sacred object. There are also forms of walking meditations and much more. It's important that you take some time for yourself, and meditation is a great way to do it!

Make your own Prayer Beads

While many of our customers enjoy purchasing prayer beads that are already made and wearing them, some practitioners like to purchase the beads instead and make their own prayer beads. For instructions on how to make your own prayer beads, please check out our article, How to make Prayer Beads.

Bodhi Seed Prayer Beads offers many different types of beads and accent beads to make your own mala. Accent beads can be used as spacer beads, to help you keep track of where you are in your rotation, or as guru beads, that help you keep track of how many times you have gone around the mala. Another popular item when you are making a mala are counter beads, in our prayer beads accessories section.

Here are some examples of our loose beads...

Turquoise and Coral Bead

This bead is made from turquoise, coral, and the metal is copper. This bead is 18 mm wide and it was handmade in Nepal. This is a beautiful and popular bead.



Rudraksha Seed Bead

This bead is very popular to use for the majority of the beads on the mala. Rudraksha seeds are very coarse to the touch, and these beads are 7 mm wide. Rudraksha seeds are very popular material for making malas.



And here is an example of our mala counters...

Leather and Copper Dorje Mala Counter
This mala counter is made from leather, and the dorje and the beads are made from copper and other metals. This mala counter was handmade in Nepal.



Making your own prayer beads helps make your mala personalized and special to you, and this in turn can enhance your meditation experience.

Tibetan Jewelry- Now at Bodhi Seed Prayer Beads

We are always adding more products to Bodhi Seed Prayer Beads. It's important to us to keep our beads new and fresh. We have also added some new sections to the store. A few months ago we added the Himalayan Masks section. This week we added a Tibetan Jewelry section. This section has every type of Nepalese and Tibetan jewelry item you can imagine, from bracelets to rings to earrings. Check out some of our feature products from our Tibetan jewelry section.

Copper Three Metal Bracelet- This bracelet is made from three metals, copper, brass, and Tibetan silver. Tibetan silver is a composite of silver and other metals. The difference in Tibetan silver and sterling silver is that sterling silver is 92.5% silver while Tibetan silver is 63% silver. A three metal bracelet is also often called a healing bracelet because the combination of the three metals is thought to cure arthritis. This bracelet has the Tibetan Buddhist mantra, om mani padme hum, on the front, and there are two turquoise beads on either side of the mantra. This bracelet was handmade in Nepal.



This multi-colored braided bracelet is made from leather. This bracelet is braided together in four colors. It's adjustable, and also handmade in Nepal.



This Tibetan sun pendant is made from Tibetan silver. This pendant is 2.25 inches long and 1.75 inches wide.



The next featured jewelry item is this sterling silver prayer box. A prayer box is also known as a ghau, gau, or gao. We may also call it a locket in the west. Prayer boxes can hold small prayers, or other types of trinkets. This prayer box is 1 1/2 inches long, and it can hold a small rolled up scroll with a prayer or mantra on it. The Tibetan Buddhist mantra, om mani padme hum, is on the front of this prayer box.

Huge Christmas sale!

Bodhi Seed Prayer Beads is having a huge Christmas sale! We are about to list a ton of new prayer beads, and so we are trying to clear out some inventory to make way for the new stuff.

This huge beeswax mala is on sale for only $17- that's down from the original price of $29. Each bead on this mala is 20mm wide. This mala is 20 inches long. There are two small counting beads on the end of this mala too.



Here is a wooden mala, that is even larger than the one above. Each bead on this mala is 1.25 inches wide. This mala is seriously huge. Now- you may think, who would want to recite mantras using such a huge mala? But this mala is for decoration as well, it would look great as decoration for your altar or your home. And this mala is only $17.99- down from $36.99.



Bodhi seed malas are often SO expensive, but this one is only $17- this mala is made from beautiful light colored bodhi seeds, with a yellow tassel on the end. This mala has 108 beads, a significant number in both Buddhism and Hinduism.



There are so many more malas on sale at Bodhi Seed Prayer Beads! Come on and check us out!

Crystal Prayer Beads

Many people use crystals for metaphysical healing, you can more about crystal healing here. Here is a list found on the website above that shows which gemstone works with which chakras.

1.
Root/Base Chakra: Black Onyx/Obsidian
2.
Sex/Navel Chakra: Carnelian
3.
Stomach/Solar Plexus Chakra: Citrine
4.
Heart Chakra: Rose Quartz/Ruby
5.
Throat Chakra: Indigo (translucent Sodalight)/Purple Rainbow Fluorite
6.
Brow/Third Eye Chakra: Amethyst/Aquamarine/Lapis Lazuli/Clear Quartz
7.
Crown Chakra: Amethyst/Clear Quartz

Bodhi Seed Prayer Beads offers crystal prayer beads and wrist malas in a variety of color combinations and styles. Plus, these malas can be used for their healing energies as well as for meditation.

Crystal Wrist Mala



Rock Crystal Prayer Beads- 6mm



Crystal Yellow Wrist Mala

Prayer Flags and Wall Hangings

Bodhi Seed Prayer Beads is now offering prayer flags and Tibetan Buddhist wall hangings. Prayer flags are multi-colored strands of flags that can hang outside of your house, or on the inside as decoration. Prayer flags are often seen outside of temples in Tibet, Nepal, and Bhutan. You can also use prayer flags to decorate your personal meditation room. The wall hangings we have in stock have the Tibetan Buddhist eight auspicious symbols on the front. These symbols include the lotus flower, the two fishes, the conch shell, the parasol, the eternity knot, and more. Here are some images of our prayer flags and wall hangings.

Traditional 15 Feet Long Prayer Flags



Satin Prayer Flags



Eight Auspicious Signs Wall Hanging

Jade Prayer Beads Malas

Jade Prayer Beads are popular malas because it blocks evil, and can help bring love and compassion into your heart. Jade also brings harmony into your life. Jade also can be used for healing. It is good for ailments of the kidneys and heart. At one time jade was believed to be more valuable than silver or gold. Especially in China and other Asian countries, and in New Zealand as well. In New Zealand, the Maori tribe used Jade for weapons, and it was used for weapons in China at one time as well. Jade is very strong, and difficult to break. There are many different colors of jade, including different shades of green, white, and orange. Jade is popular in prayer beads and malas, especially by Chinese Buddhists and Zen Buddhists. Here are some of the styles of jade prayer beads we offer.

Green Jade Mala
This mala has 108 beads and there is a tassel at the end of this mala.



White Jade Mala
There are 108 beads on this mala, and a yellow tassel at the end of the mala.



Red Jade Lotus Mala
There are 19 beads on this wrist mala, and a small tassel at the end of the mala. There are small lotus flowers painted on each bead on this wrist mala.