Praise to Mañjushri

Praise to Mañjushri (Shri Jñana Gunaphala)

by Acharya Vajrayudha

Introduction

This is perhaps the most famous praise to Mañjushri recited by Tibetan Buddhists. According to legend it was composed by 500 Indian panditas simultaneously, in response to a request from their abbot, after whom it takes its formal name — Shri Jñana Gunaphala, “Glorious Wisdom’s Excellent Qualities”. The translation below is by Rigpa Translations.

Praise to Mañjushri: Glorious Wisdom’s Excellent Qualities

Homage to the Lord Mañjughosha!

Your wisdom is brilliant and pure like the sun, free from the clouds of the two obscurations.

You perceive the whole of reality, exactly as it is, and so hold the book of Transcendental Wisdom at your heart.

You look upon all beings imprisoned within samsara, enshrouded by the thick darkness of ignorance and tormented by suffering,

With the love of a mother for her only child. Your enlightened speech, endowed with sixty melodious tones,

Like the thundering roar of a dragon, awakens us from the sleep of destructive emotions and frees us from the chains of karma.

Dispelling the darkness of ignorance, you wield the sword of wisdom to cut through all our suffering.

Pure from the very beginning, you have reached the end of the ten bhumis and perfected all enlightened qualities. Foremost of the Buddha’s heirs,

Your body is adorned with the hundred and twelve marks of enlightenment. To Mañjughosha, the ‘Gentle-voiced’, I prostrate, and pray: dispel the darkness from my mind!

Colophon:

Anyone, who recites this aloud once, seven times, twenty-one times, one hundred times or one thousand or more times a day with a completely pure motivation will gradually purify the obscurations, and will gain immeasurable qualities, such as remembering one’s studies with confidence and unfailing retention, and the power and strength of wisdom through which one can defeat opponents in debate.

Anyone who offers praise in this way three times a day will gain the qualities just mentioned and will develop wisdom and compassion, gradually progressing along the paths and stages, gaining ever greater qualities before swiftly reaching the citadel of omniscience and becoming a great guide to liberate all beings from samsara.

This completes the praise entitled The Splendor of Wisdom’s Excellent Qualities composed by Vajrashastra. It was translated by Ngok Lotsawa.

Notes:

Translated by Rigpa Translations (2011). Text available in English, German, Spanish, French, Dutch and Tibetan at Lotsawa House.

This work is licensed by Lotsawa House under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial 3.0 Unported License.

Artwork: Mañjushri, 14th century, Sakya lineage, Tibet. Collection of Rubin Museum of Art, Himalayan Art

Page last updated January 18, 2021