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Tibetan MO
Divination System
September 29, 2012Dharma Talk
Dhi.
In his wrathful form, he is Yamantaka, the
Destroyer of Death. Mipham the Great, who authored the standard textbook on
Tibetan MO divination, is considered a human emanation of Manjushri. In Japan,
synchronicity arose out of conversations he had with Albert Einstein prior to World
War I. The fundamental conception underlying Jungs concept of synchronicity is
that events may be meaningfully correlated by relationships outside physical cause
and effect, which Jung called temporally coincident occurrences of acausal
events. Jungs concept of synchronicity is often misunderstood as coincidence, but
this is actually a misunderstanding of the concept, since meaningful correlation
implies that the correlation is ontologically given and not arbitrarily misinterpreted
by the meaning-seeking mind. Synchronicity is not a psychological error. Such
correlations may or may not be statistically demonstrable. They may be singular
events that, as such, cannot be analyzed but are nonetheless valid. In other words,
meaningfully related events tend to co-occur even if they are not mutually causally
connected. Jung believed that the phenomenon of synchronicity demonstrated the
significance of higher dynamics of meaning and order operating throughout the
universe. The occurrence of synchronicities is often associated with altered,
artistic-creative, and visionary states of consciousness, and are commonly
reported by writers, artists, and mystics. In Buddhist thought, synchronicity attests
to the truth of the doctrine of pratityasamutpada (Pali paticcasamuppada), the
phenomenon of interdependent co-arising by which all phenomena appearing in
the universe are mutually inter-involved to an infinite extent. This was proved by
Bells Theorem in 1964. In such a worldview, consulting a chance event like
throwing a die may actually reveal a deeper underlying meaning that is obscured
by the causal relationships of physical events.
that Shariputra heard from the monk Ashvajit when asking for a summary of the
teachings of the Buddha. Shariputra passed the message onto his close
friend Maudgalyayana and together they became followers of the Buddha, and
went on to become his foremost disciples. When it is used as a mantra, o is
added at the beginning for auspiciousness and svh at the end for the sake of
stability. One then formulates the question, breathes onto the die, and throws it
twice.
The Dalai Lama uses the MO when faced with a difficult decision, including the
selection of tulkus. One way that the MO may be used is to cast a MO for each
possible course of action. If there is any ambiguity, additional MOs may be cast
until the matter is clarified. The MO has a reputation in Tibet as being a very clear
and decisive method for resolving confusion and making decisions. In my
experience this is far clearer than the Chinese system of the I Ching, which suffers
from obscurity and is so abstract that it can be interpreted in many different ways.
Although the MO only generates 36 possible scenarios compared with the I
Chings 64, many MO have double meanings in different circumstances, one
positive, one negative, so in fact there are potentially 72 possible interpretations of
the MO. The Shaivites have 36 tattvas, whereas the archetypal associations of 72
are too numerous to mention. It is one-fifth of the circle, and the number of stupas
at Burubador, the worlds largest Buddhist temple. In the MO, sequence matters so
that a throw of 1, 2 is not the same as a throw of 2, 1, again exactly as in the I
Ching.
In important questions two MO divinations should be performed in sequence, thus
tossing the die four times. This generates a second MO, similar in principle to the
reversed hexagram in I Ching divination. The second MO will be in one of three
possible states:
1.
It may replicate the original MO. This means that the answer is strong.
2.
It may reverse the sequence of the original MO. This means that the answer
is weak and is likely to be reversed or superseded in some way.
3.
This is part of the procedure that the Dalai Lama uses when choosing a tulku.
Another approach is to identify a series of alternatives and cast a MO for each one.
One can also perform a MO for the present and one for the future. When casting a
MO for two people, one can interpret the first syllable as representing oneself and
the second as representing the other person, or you can cast two MO, one for
yourself and one for the other person. All of this must be very clear in the mind
before casting the MO in order for there to be no confusion. For this purpose, a
written form is useful. In addition, each syllable is believed to be intrinsically binary,
having an inner and an outer meaning. If the two syllables are identical, the inner
and the outer meaning is the same.
2.
RA. Power. Fire. Eye. Form. Heart. Desires of the mind. Voice and speech.
3.
4.
5.
TSA. Violence. Air and Earth. Body. Messages. Airs of the body. Breath.
6.
AH. All-Pervading. Space. Spirit. AH in the first place means that the answer
is mediocre. In the second place it means that there are no obstacles.
AH, DHI, RA, and TSA all share insight wisdom, violence, and the waning moon
and are therefore negative or yin. NA and PA have concentration, gentleness, and
the waxing moon in common and are therefore positive or yang.
Each possible combination of the MO is associated with a name and a visual
image. The names allude to a many phenomena, including astronomical
phenomena (sky, sun, moon, star); nature (ground, tree, pool, ocean, lotus,
mountain, conch, fish); objects (knot, wheel, lamp, vase, weapon, vessel, streamer,
banner); supernatural beings (no less than four combinations are associated with
demons); and other things (tone, king of power, vision, medicine, house, mansion,
treasury). Only one combination refers to an action (adding butter to the burning
flames). Several are abstractions or qualities (visions, good fortune, ignorance).
Several refer to ritual objects or practices (ground, vajra, knot, wheel, lamp, vase,
streamer, banner, medicine). These provide a general indication of the tenor of the
divination, but must also be interpreted in the context of the general area of life to
which the divination pertains, which should be decided on when the question is
asked. This is similar to geomantic astrology, in which the question is attributed to
one of the houses of the horoscope. In addition to the foregoing, the final section of
the MO provides guidelines for acts that, through the twin agencies of the law of
karma and the power of truth, can neutralize a negative conclusion or enhance a
positive one. These include various ritual acts including offerings, building and
artistic projects, the use of symbols and symbolic objects, reading and reciting
mantras and sutras, and various yoga practices, including dedication to a deity or a
guru.
In the MO, the areas of life are:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Enemies;
5.
Guests;
6.
Illness;
7.
Evil spirits;
8.
Spiritual practice;
9.
Lost articles;
10.
11.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
Examine the first and second syllables of the first throw individually and note
any relevant indications or correspondences.
12.
13.
14.
If a second throw was done, examine the relationship of the syllables of the
second throw to those of the first throw with reference to the three possible
outcomes.
15.
OM! O you glorious Manjushri, you who possess the Eye of Transcendent Wisdom,
you who see past, present and future without limit, please hear me! By the Power
of the Truth of the real, interdependently arising Three Jewels and Three Roots,
please clarify what should be accepted and what discarded.
The Mantra of Manjushri
o a ra pa ca na dh
Pratityasamutpada Hridaya Dharani
OM
ye
dham
tesa
hetu
tesaca
yo
eva vd mah samao[1]
tathgato
SVAHA
Further Reading:
The Art of Mo
Dorjee Tseten, Tibetan Art of Divination
Evan Osnos, The Next Incarnation, The New Yorker
Interview with Yogi Walpo Kalsang in Ireland
Jamgon Mipham, MO: Tibetan Divination System
Mo Divination, Wikipedia
Tips on Mo Divination, Buddha and Me
hetuppabhav
ha
nirodho
Name
Major
Minor
Stainless Sky
Positive
Neutral
Positive
Mixed
Positive
Mixed
Bright Star
Positive
Mixed
Ground of Gold
Positive
Mixed
Tone of Vajra
Positive
Positive
Bright Lamp
Positive
Positive
Number
Positive
Mixed
Flames
Demon of Death
Negative
Mixed
10
King of Power
Positive
Mixed
11
Dried Up Tree
Negative
Negative
12
Positive
Positive
13
Vase of Nectar
Positive
Mixed
14
Negative
15
Ocean of Nectar
Positive
Mixed
16
Demon of Afflictions
Negative
Negative
17
Golden Lotus
Positive
Mixed
18
Nectar-Like Medicine
Positive
Positive
19
Positive
Positive
Fortune
20
Positive
Mixed
21
Empty of Intelligence
Negative
Negative
22
Streamer of Fame
Positive
Mixed
23
Mixed
24
Positive
Positive
25
Golden Mountain
Positive
Mixed
26
Negative
Mixed
27
Positive
Positive
28
Negative
Mixed
29
Mansion of Gold
Positive
Mixed
30
Treasury of Jewels
Positive
Positive
31
Manjushri Appears
Positive
Positive
32
Positive
Positive
33
Positive
Positive
34
White Conch
Positive
Positive
35
Golden Wheel
Positive
Positive
36
Positive
Positive
Type
Major
Minor
Total
Positive
28
14
42
Negative
12
Mixed
17
17
Neutral
72
Major
Minor
Total
Positive
28
35
Negative
10
+25
Note:
1. This popular Buddhist mantra explains the Buddhist
doctrine of dependent origination
(patticcyasamuppada). The Sanskrit version is
called Pratityasamutpada Hridaya Dharani [The Heart
Dharani of Dependant Origination]. Om is added to the
beginning of the verse, and Svaha added at the end,
turning the passage into a mantra based on the power
of truth (satyagraha).
Of things that proceed from a cause
their cause the Tathagatha has told
and also their cessation
Thus teaches the great ascetic