Why are there 108 beads on a mala?

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Why are there 108 beads on a mala?

by Swami Jnaneshvara Bharati

 

On a mala, or set of mantra counting beads, there are generally 108

beads, or some fraction of that number. The question often

arises: "Why are there 108 beads on a mala?"

Below are some of the many reasons that have been given, as well as a

few other points of interest. None of these reasons are being

promoted here as more or less true than the others.

 

However, you may notice that 108 appears to be somewhat like a road

map of reality in general, and the human in particular.

 

Regardless of the meaning of 108, it is important that if a mala is

used to count mantras, the mantra be remembered with sincerity,

devotion, feeling, and full attention.

 

9 times 12: Both of these numbers have been said to have spiritual

significance in many traditions. 9 times 12 is 108. Also, 1 plus 8

equals 9. That 9 times 12 equals 108.

 

Powers of 1, 2, and 3 in math: 1 to 1st power=1; 2 to 2nd power=4

(2x2); 3 to 3rd power=27 (3x3x3). 1x4x27=108

 

Desires: There are said to be 108 earthly desires in mortals.

 

Lies: There are said to be 108 lies that humans tell.

 

Delusions: There are said to be 108 human delusions or forms of

ignorance.

 

Heart Chakra: The chakras are the intersections of energy lines, and

there are said to be a

 

total of 108 energy lines converging to form the heart chakra. One of

them, sushumna leads to

 

the crown chakra, and is said to be the path to Self-realization.

 

Sanskrit alphabet: There are 54 letters in the Sanskrit alphabet.

Each has masculine and

feminine, shiva and shakti. 54 times 2 is 108.

 

Pranayama: If one is able to be so calm in meditation as to have only

108 breaths in a day, enlightenment will come.

 

Upanishads: Some say there are 108 Upanishads, texts of the wisdom of

the ancient sages.

 

Sri Yantra: On the Sri Yantra there are marmas where three lines

intersect, and there are 54 such intersections. Each intersections

has masculine and feminine, shiva and shakti qualities. 54 times 2

equals 108. Thus, there are 108 points that define the Sri Yantra as

well as the human body.

 

Pentagon: The angle formed by two adjacent lines in a pentagon equals

108 degrees.

 

Marmas: Marmas or marmasthanas are like energy intersections called

chakras, except have fewer energy lines converging to form them.

There are said to be 108 marmas in the subtle body.

 

Time: Some say there are 108 feelings, with 36 related to the past,

36 related to the present, and 36 related to the future.

 

8 extra beads: In doing a practice of counting the number of

repetitions of the mala, 100 are counted as completed. The remaining

are said to cover errors or omissions. The 8 are also said to be an

offering to God and Guru.

 

Chemistry: Interestingly, there are about 115 elements known on the

periodic table of the elements. Most of those, around or higher than

the number 100 only exist in the laboratory, and some for only

thousandths of a second. The number that naturally exist on Earth is

around 100.

 

Astrology: There are 12 constellations, and 9 arc segments called

namshas or chandrakalas. 9 times 12 equals 108. Chandra is moon, and

kalas are the divisions within a whole.

River Ganga: The sacred River Ganga spans a longitude of 12 degrees

(79 to 91), and a latitude of 9 degrees (22 to 31). 12 times 9 equals

108.

 

Planets and Houses: In astrology, there are 12 houses and 9 planets.

12 times 9 equals 108.

 

Goddess names: There are said to be 108 Indian goddess names.

 

Gopis of Krishna: In the Krishna tradition, there were said to be 108

gopis of Krishna.

 

1, 0, and 8: Some say that 1 stands for God or higher Truth, 0 stands

for emptiness or completeness in spiritual practice, and 8 stands for

infinity or eternity.

 

Sun and Earth: The diameter of the Sun is 108 times the diameter of

the Earth. The distance from the Sun to the Earth is 108 times the

diameter of the Sun.

 

Moon and Earth: The average distance of the Moon from the Earth is

108 times the diameter of the Moon.

 

Silver and the moon: In astrology, the metal silver is said to

represent the moon. The atomic weight of silver is 108.

 

Numerical scale: The 1 of 108, and the 8 of 108, when added together

equals 9, which is the number of the numerical scale, i.e. 1, 2,

3 ... 10, etc., where 0 is not a number.

 

Meditations: Some say there are 108 styles of meditation.

 

Breath: Tantra estimates the average number of breaths per day at

21,600, of which 10,800 are solar energy, and 10,800 are lunar

energy. Multiplying 108 by 100 is 10,800. Multiplying 2 x 10,800

equals 21,600.

 

Paths to God: Some suggest that there are 108 paths to God.

 

Smaller divisions: The number 108 is divided, such as in half, third,

quarter, or twelfth, so that some malas have 54, 36, 27, or 9 beads.

 

Hinduism: 108 is said to refer to the number of Hindu deities. Some

say that each of the deities has 108 names.

 

Islam: The number 108 is used in Islam to refer to God.

 

Jain: In the Jain religion, 108 are the combined virtues of five

categories of holy ones, including 12, 8, 36, 25, and 27 virtues

respectively.

 

Sikh: The Sikh tradition has a mala of 108 knots tied in a string of

wool, rather than beads.

 

Buddhism: Some Buddhists carve 108 small Buddhas on a walnut for good

luck. Some ring a bell 108 times to celebrate a new year.

 

Chinese: The Chinese Buddhists and Taoists use a 108 bead mala, which

is called su-chu, and has three dividing beads, so the mala is

divided into three parts of 36 each.

 

Stages of the soul: Said that Atman, the human soul or center goes

through 108 stages on the journey.

 

Meru: This is a larger bead, not part of the 108. It is not tied in

the sequence of the other beads. It is the quiding bead, the one that

marks the beginning and end of the mala.

 

Dance: There are 108 forms of dance in the Indian traditions.

 

Praiseworthy souls: There are 108 qualities of praiseworthy souls