Buddha Mantra - Buddhist Prayer - Namo

Namo is a Sanskrit word meaning Homage. The word Namo is a short version of the universal Prayer or Buddhist Mantra used by Thai people to show their respect and pay homage to the Lord Buddha and when time is short can be used on its own as a prayer. Namo is the first word of this Buddhist prayer which declares the 3 main virtues of the Lord Buddha. The three virtues expressed in this Buddhist Prayer are compassion, purity and wisdom. This prayer, like many other Buddhist scriptures, is written in Pali, an ancient language of Indian origin which can conceal various and complex meanings.

Namo tassa Bhagavato
Arahato
Samma sambuddhassa

I pay homage to the Exalted One
The One who is free from all defilements
The One who is fully self-enlightened

The first thing Thai people will do when they enter a Temple is to kneel in front of the image of the Lord Buddha and “Wai” 3 times.

They use a special form of the Wai to show their respect and devotion for the Lord Buddha. Whilst kneeling, they sit back on their heels and with their hands placed together in a Wai will bend forward and touch the floor with their foreheads whilst spreading their hands on the floor at the same time. At this time, 5 points of the body will be touching the floor, the knees, head and hands. This is repeated 3 times. After this, Thai Buddhists will recite the universal prayer 3 times. You may notice that in some Temples there is a board or plaque in front of the Buddha image with a Thai translation of Sanskrit on it. This will be a special prayer written to pay homage to that particular Buddha image and Thai people will recite that prayer instead of or as well as the universal prayer above.

As I mentioned, Sanskrit is a complex language and can contain many meanings. The short universal prayer contains 3 descriptions of the Lord Buddha. Bhagavato – meaning one who has fully analysed the Dhamma. Arahato – means that he has become an Arahant and is without blemish. Samma sambuddhassa – meaning one who has attained enlightenment on his own without a teacher.