OM MANI PADME HUM Prayer Flags

Today was gorgeous in north Florida: temps in the high 50's with a clear blue sky. I had put the finishing touches on my drawing for a new OM MANI prayer flag design, and was ready to shoot a screen (you can see the screen in the foreground). After everything dried and I had cut the fabric into 10" x 12" pieces, I was ready to go! I listened to Cho (Choying Drolma & Steve Tibbetts) while I printed the flags. I hung them out to dry on the clothesline in my backyard and pretended I was crossing a pass in the high Himalayas!

The new design, composed of Sanskrit seed syllables for the 'Mother of all mantras' Om Mani Padme Hum, is arranged in a decorative circle around the syllable HRI in the center. The design is a variation on the tradition of block printed flags containing prayers for compassion for all beings. These prayers are carried by the wind to all corners of the universe, to grant this ultimate blessing. Similarly, with the proper intention when hanging these flags, we can wish for benefit and happiness for all beings here and beyond!

Please visit my Etsy store for more Tibetan-style prayer flags, cards, and journal books.

Silk screened Tibetan Buddhist Prayer Flags

Today was a nice sunny welcome change from the relentless wind and rain of Tropical Storm Fay which had taken a very slow course through northeast Florida a couple of days ago.

Hoping for some more sun tomorrow, I'm gearing up for a day of printing prayer flags in a new, 'petite' size of 7" x 10", a popular item in my Eastern Sun Printworks dharma emporium on Etsy.

"Unique to Tibetan Buddhism, prayer flags printed with auspicious symbols and colors are believed to transmit blessings and exert a powerful force for good when they flutter in the wind. High in the Himalayas, such sacred flags have been flown for more than a thousand years, symbolizing the protective and healing influence of the Dharma." Thanks to the Tibetan Aid Project.

I have adapted a traditional design I found long ago in a Dover Art Book, from which I have made silkscreen stencils in various sizes. I print on cotton fabric in the 5 colors of the 5 Dhyani Buddha families. The Lung-ta or Windhorse in the center carries the prayers to every corner of every conceivable universe, to bring compassionate wishes to all beings. The flags are typically hung outdoors where they eventually disintegrate in the elements. They may also be hung anywhere inside the home, for example, in the doorway leading to your shrine room.

May all sentient beings benefit!