Prayer beads

(See: Prayer)

Prayer beads are traditionally used to keep count of the repetitions of prayers, chants or devotions. They are used by followers of Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism and the Bahá'í Faith.

There seem to be basically three uses for prayer beads:

Repetition of the same devotion a set (usually large) number of times. This is the earliest form of prayer beads (the Japa Mala) and the earliest Christian form (the prayer rope). This is also the type of use in the Bahá'í Faith
Repetition of several different prayers in some pattern (the usual Western Christian form), possibly interspersed with meditations.
Meditation on a series of spiritual themes (Islam, and the Pearls of Life).

Bahá'í

Bahá'ís recite the phrase "Alláh'u'Abhá", a form of the Greatest Name 95 times per day, sometimes using prayer beads.

Buddhism

For main article, see Buddhist prayer beads

Prayer beads, or Japa Malas, are also used in many forms of Mahayana Buddhism, often with a lesser number of beads (usually a divisor of 108). In Pure Land Buddhism, for instance, 27 beads rosaries are common. In China such rosaries are named "Shu-Zhu" ("Counting Beads"); in Japan, "Juzu". These shorter rosaries are sometimes called 'prostration rosaries', because they are easier to hold when enumerating repeated prostrations. In Tibetan Buddhism, often larger malas are used of for example 111 beads: when counting, they calculate one mala as 100 mantras, and the 11 extra are taken as extra to compensate for errors.

Christianity

The Desert Fathers (third-fifth century) used knotted ropes to count prayers, typically the Jesus Prayer ("Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner"). The invention is attributed to St Anthony or his associate St Pachomius in the fourth century.

Catholic Christians use the Rosary as Prayer beads. The Rosary (its name comes from the Latin "rosarium," meaning "crown of roses"), is an important and traditional devotion of the Roman Catholic Church, combining prayer and meditation in sequences of ten "Hail Marys," each sequence being called a decade. A complete Rosary involves the completion of fifteen (now twenty) decades.

Many Eastern Christians use a prayer rope instead. Old Believers use special prayer rope made of leather, called lestovka. This type of prayer beads is not used now by the Russian Orthodox Church.

According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, "The rosary is conferred upon the Greek monk as a part of his investiture with the mandyas or full monastic habit, as the second step in the monastic life, and is called his 'spiritual sword'." Monks use the prayer rope, archimandrites and bishops use beads.

In the mid-1980s Anglican prayer beads or "Christian prayer beads" were developed in the Episcopal Church. They have since been adopted by other Protestants. The set consists of 33 beads (representing the 33 years of the life of Christ) arranged in four groupings of symbolic significance. Many Anglo-Catholics use the Catholic rosary in addition to or instead of Anglican prayer beads.

The contemporary Pearls of Life, invented by Swedish Bishop Emeritus Martin Lönnebo, is a set of 18 beads, some round and some elongated, arranged in an irregular pattern. Each one has its own significance as a stimulus and reminder for meditation, although they can also be used for repetitive prayer.

Hinduism

Earliest use of prayer beads can be traced to Hinduism, where it is called a Japa Mala and has 108 beads. Japa is the repeating of the name of God or a mantra, while Mala itself is a Sanskrit term meaning 'garland' or 'necklace'. The most common materials used for making the beads is Rudraksha seeds (used by Shaivites) and Tulsi stem (used by Vaishnavites). They are used for repetition of a mantra, other forms of Sadhana (spiritual exercise) and as an aid to meditation.

Islam

Muslim prayer beads, called tasbih, are used to recite the 99 Names of God or Surahs from the Qur'an. There are various forms of prayers that the tasbhi is used for.

Subhanallahiul Azeem (Glory be to you O Allah (O God, O Creator) Subhanallahi Wa Bi Hamdhi (Praise and Thanks to you O Allah (O God, O Creator)

These and various other forms of remembrance of God, the Most Loving and the Most Merciful stenghten the bond between a Muslim and his/her Creator and Protector. In Islam, the reward for engaging in remembrance produces the greatest rewards and benefits. The heart is said to become purified from engaging in remembrance and gratefulness towards God. Also this act is most beloved and dear to God.

Sikhism

Sikhs use a prayer string made of wool with 99 knots instead of beads.