Tag Archives: Tibetan culture

Why do Tibetans Give White Scarves or Kataks?

Tibetans give white scarves or kataks on many occasions. This blog post answers common questions about this beautiful and ancient practice.

What is the meaning of the Tibetan scarf or katak?

A katak is a traditional Tibetan ceremonial scarf offered as a sign of respect, gratitude, or greeting. The Tibetan word is ཁ་བཏགས་ and in English it is also spelled khata or khatak.

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Tibetan Buddhist nuns offer kataks to nuns who have just graduated with their Geshema degrees, a degree roughly equivalent to a PhD. Offering a katak is a sign of respect. Photo by the Dolma Ling Media Nuns

Kataks are offered for many occasions including births, weddings, funerals, graduations, and the arrival or departure of guests. When given to a guest it symbolizes welcome and to a person departing it conveys wishes for a safe journey.

It is also a Tibetan practice to put kataks over thangka paintings, statues, altars, as well as photos of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and reincarnated lamas or rinpoches. Bringing a katak when visiting a temple, shrine, guru, or teacher shows gratitude for the kindness of your teacher and the gems of their teachings.

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A Tibetan Buddhist nun offers a katak to a portrait of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in the holy city of Bodh Gaya. Photo by Olivier Adam

With its many uses, a Tibetan katak is akin to flower garlands or leis common in Hawaii and Polynesia which are given as a sign of peace, love, honor, or friendship. Leis, like kataks, are also offered to visiting dignitaries, graduates, and loved ones who are departing on a journey.

Kataks are used in Tibet and throughout the Tibetan diaspora as well as across many Himalayan communities with strong ties to Tibet and its culture, including Nepal, Bhutan, Sikkim, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, and Arunachal Pradesh.

How Do You Offer a Katak?

To prepare for offering a katak, fold it lengthwise into a double layer. This represents interdependence. Next, fold the scarf into seven folds and roll the remainder over the folded part into a loose roll, unfurling it before you offer it. It is helpful to have two people to stretch out the katak and do the folding and rolling together. Traditionally, Tibetans then carefully tuck the katak into the upper portion of their chubas (traditional Tibetan clothing) ready for offering.

Graduating nuns at Shugsep Nunnery and Institute surrounded by mountains of kataks at their graduation ceremony on October 2022.

Graduating nuns at Shugsep Nunnery and Institute are surrounded by mountains of kataks at their graduation ceremony on October 2022.

When you are offering a katak to a Buddhist teacher, lama, elder, or dignitary, you should hold the scarf in both hands. The folded section of the katak should face towards you and the open edges should face the teacher or elder, representing your open pure heart.

While holding the katak in both hands, join your palms together in respect and bring your folded hands above your head or to your forehead and make a reverent bow, bending 90 degrees at the waist. When you are presenting a katak to a Buddhist teacher, unlike with arriving or departing guests, you do not put the katak over the neck of the person being honored. The teacher or lama will receive the katak and then, as a blessing, will usually return it to you the giver by placing it over the your own neck.

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Nuns at Dolma Ling offer kataks at the altar during Losar, Tibetan New Year. Photo courtesy of Olivier Adam.

Tibetans consider a katak to be a very important gift. For instance, is traditional to offer a katak to a Buddhist teacher after the last session of a teaching often with dana, a monetary offering in an envelope. You should always treat kataks with respect. Never let them touch the floor or ground.

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At a party in their honor, the senior nuns at Geden Choeling Nunnery are draped with kataks, the traditional ceremonial white scarves offered by Tibetans.

The Colors and Patterns of Kataks

The most common color of a katak is white. White is a symbol of purity, auspiciousness, sincerity, kindness, and justice. Ivory kataks are also very common.

The ends of a katak have fringes or tassels. The ashi katak is the most commonly used type. It is simpler and has a single layer of tassels. Nangzö kataks, like the ones sold in the Tibetan Nuns Project online store, are much longer, wider, and have a double layer of tassels. Nangzö kataks are generally reserved for very important occasions, such as the enthronement of high lamas or for diplomatic occasions.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama gave this explanation of the traditional Tibetan white scarf when he presented a katak to the Mayor of Vilnius. He said, “I want to explain the significance of this scarf. I usually describe the colour white meaning warm-heartedness, honest and true. The smooth texture of the scarf represents your non-violent behavior. If possible try to help others, if not at least don’t harm them.”

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The Tibetan Nuns Project online store sells special long silk kataks blessed by Tibetan Buddhist nuns. Each katak has mantras and the eight auspicious Buddhist symbols woven into the fabric.

Kataks also come in colors representing the five elements, as with Tibetan prayer flags. Blue symbolizes the sky and space, white symbolizes the air and wind, red symbolizes fire, green symbolizes water, and yellow symbolizes earth.

The Meaning of the 8 Auspicious Symbols of Buddhism

Each of the kataks sold in the Tibetan Nuns Project online store has mantras and the eight auspicious symbols of Buddhism woven into the pattern. These 8 symbols represent the offerings made to the Buddha when he attained enlightenment. Their meanings are deep but here is the basic meaning of each symbol.

eight auspicious symbols in Buddhism from Wikicommons

Eight Auspicious Signs of Buddhism: (From top, left to right): The precious parasol or umbrella, the pair of golden fish, the white conch shell, the vase of great treasures, lotus, the eternal or infinite knot, the victory banner, and the dharma wheel. Hall of Fame, Leh Source: Wikicommons.

– The Precious Parasol represents protection from suffering. All take refuge in the dharma under the auspiciousness of the parasol.
– The Two Golden Fish symbolize living beings who practice the dharma in a state of fearlessness without danger of drowning in the ocean of suffering or samsara.
– The Vase of Great Treasures symbolizes health, long life, wisdom and prosperity. It also symbolizes the Buddha’s infinite quality of teaching the dharma: no matter how many teachings he shared, the treasure never lessened.
– The Lotus Flower has its roots in the mud but its flower lies immaculate above the water and thus it represents the primordial purity of body, speech, and mind, floating above the muddy waters of attachment and desire.
– The White Conch Shell represents the deep and beautiful sound of the dharma reaching far and wide, awakening beings from the slumber of ignorance.
– The Eternal Knot signifies both cause and effect and the union of compassion and wisdom.
– The Victory Banner represents the Buddha’s victory over the four māras, or hindrances in the path of enlightenment: pride, desire, disturbing emotions, and the fear of death.
– The Eight-Spoked Dharma Wheel represents the eight-fold path of virtuous actions directed towards enlightenment.

How to use a Tibetan mala or Tibetan prayer beads

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We are often asked how to use a Tibetan mala or Tibetan prayer beads. We hope this blog post will answer some common questions about Tibetan malas.

Through the Tibetan Nuns Project online store, we sell long malas and wrist malas made and blessed by Tibetan Buddhist nuns at Dolma Ling Nunnery.

What are Buddhist prayer beads?

Malas or Tibetan Buddhist prayer beads are similar to other prayer beads used in various world religions. Some people have called the mala a Buddhist rosary, but in Tibetan, a mala is called a threngwa (Tibetan ཕྲེང་བ). Mala is a Sanskrit word meaning “garland”. Malas are used to keep track while one recites, chants, or mentally repeats a mantra or the name or names of a deity. Malas are used as a tool to keep count of mantra repetitions. Mantras are spiritual syllables or prayers and are usually repeated many times.

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A Tibetan Buddhist nun performs the Mandala Mudra with her mala (Buddhist prayer beads). Photo courtesy of Olivier Adam

How are malas used?

Malas are used to help focus one’s awareness and concentration during spiritual practice. Long malas, as opposed to the shorter wrist malas, have 108 beads. The summit or head bead is called the guru bead or a sumeru. In Tibetan Buddhism, one mala constitutes 100 recitations of a mantra. There are 8 additional recitations done to ensure proper concentration.

What is the meaning of a guru bead?

In Tibetan Buddhism, people traditionally use malas with 108 counting beads and a special, three-holed, finishing bead called a “guru” bead or “Buddha” bead. Often the 108-bead malas have additional marker beads that may or may not be counted and that divide the mala into quadrants, constituting 108 counting beads all together.

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A long Tibetan mala from the Tibetan Nuns Project collection showing the guru bead. The guru bead has three stringing holes and here also has a smaller tower-shaped bead that holds the ends of the string.

The guru bead represents the relationship between the student and the guru or spiritual teacher. To use the mala, you start counting from the bead next to the guru bead. When you reach the guru bead again, it signifies the end of one round in the cycle of mantras.

Once you have completed a full circuit of the mala and reached the guru bead again, you reverse direction by flipping your mala. Then you continue again in reverse order. Most people believe that you do not cross over the guru bead as a sign of respect towards one’s spiritual teachers.

How do you hold and use a mala or prayer beads?

The mala is held with gentleness and respect, generally in the left hand. To use your mala, hold it with your left hand and begin to recite from the guru bead, clockwise around the mala, using your thumb to move the beads. Count one bead for each recitation of the mantra. The first bead is held between the index finger and thumb, and with each recitation of the mantra move your thumb to pull another bead in place over the index finger.

Why is the number 108 sacred?

The number 108 is sacred in many Eastern religions including Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism. In Tibetan Buddhism malas or rosaries are usually 108 beads plus the guru bead, reflecting the words of the Buddha called in Tibetan the Kangyur in 108 volumes.

How to care for your mala

Malas are sacred objects believed to be charged with the energy of the deity. They should be treated with great reverence.

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An elderly nun at Geden Choeling Nunnery in Dharamsala, India gently holds her Tibetan mala. Photo courtesy of Brian Harris

As with all sacred objects, such as books and other spiritual instruments, one should keep malas off the ground. If your mala accidentally lands on the ground, you should touch it to the crown of your head and recite the sacred syllables Om Ah Hum, three times.

The mala should not be worn while bathing, or allowed to get wet, as this may weaken the cord on which the mala beads are strung. It is best to remove your mala before going to sleep so that you do not accidentally stress the cord and break it.

The nuns at Dolma Ling Nunnery and Institute also make and sell mala bags so that malas can be carefully protected.

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A selection of mala bags made by the nuns at Dolma Ling Nunnery. Our online store has a wide range of bags made from different fabrics and in different colors.

Choosing a Mala

You don’t have to be a Buddhist to wear a mala. The Tibetan Nuns Project has different kinds of long malas, each hand strung, knotted, and blessed by nuns at Dolma Ling Nunnery and Institute near Dharamsala in India. They are made from materials such as semiprecious stones, sandalwood, and bone and they range in price from $15 to $45.

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Assorted Tibetan Buddhist bone malas from the Tibetan Nuns Project

Long malas can be worn as a necklace or wrapped around your wrist. By purchasing these malas, you help provide the nuns with food, shelter, education, and health care – something you can feel great about every time you use your mala.

Our online store also has many types of wrist malas too, ranging in price from $11 to $22, and also made and blessed by the nuns at Dolma Ling. The wrist malas are approximately 6 inches (15 cm) in diameter and strung on elastic to fit most wrists.

Types of Malas

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Our online store sells dozens of types of wrist and long malas, made of wood, bone, and semi-precious stones like amethyst, garnet, jade, and lapis.

Here’s a list of some types of malas and their special properties:

Amethyst is the stone of spirituality and contentment. It balances the energy of one’s intellectual, emotional, and physical bodies.

Garnet enhances internal fire and brings about creative power. It is helpful during feelings of abandonment and brings freshness to one’s life.

Granite helps with balance in relationships, fosters cooperative efforts and facilitates diplomacy. It helps increase wealth while allowing the recipient to remain modest.

Jade assists in dream analysis and grants the user a long and fruitful life. It helps with the transition from this body to the spiritual world.

Lapis provides objectivity, clarity, and mental endurance during times of realizing emotions. It also helps with creativity, organization, and with easing depression.

Malachite creates an unobstructed path leading to a desired goal and helps the user accept responsibility for actions and circumstances.

Moonstone fosters balance, introspection, and reflection. It helps deal with emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual changes, and helps in recognizing “ups and downs”.

Quartz amplifies body and thought energy. It also brings the energy of the stars to the body.

Rose quartz creates harmony and self-love during chaotic situations. It is the stone of gentle love and brings peace to relationships.

Sandstone builds and strengthens relationships and/or groups. It provides insight into deceit and encourages truth.

Tiger eye brings about clarity when dealing with scattered intellectual fragments. This stone is practical and grounding.

Turquoise heals the spirit with soothing energy and provides peace-of-mind. It holds both spiritual and protective properties, and balances the male and female aspects of one’s character.

Visit our online store.

Buying Mala Beads

The nuns buy from local Indian or Tibetan vendors for their beads. The beads are then hand strung and knotted into mala form. Once complete, the malas are then blessed by the nuns. We try to keep our prices reasonable so that our prayer beads can be accessed by everyone.

What do Tibetan Buddhist nuns study?

Tibetan Cultural Geography

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Since its inception in 1987, The Tibetan Nuns Project has set out to assist nuns from all parts of Tibet and from all the different Tibetan Buddhist lineages without preference or distinction.

While our initial concept was to help refugees from Tibet access their educational tradition, over the years we have received increasing numbers of requests for religious education from nuns from the Himalayan regions on the border between Tibet and India: Ladakh, Zanskar, Spiti, Lahoul, and Kinnaur.

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Photo from the remote Spiti Valley in northern India courtesy of Olivier Adam.

Historically, geographically, and economically these northern mountainous regions of India were linked so tightly to Tibet, one might argue as to which country they belonged. Tibet was a vibrant spiritual and cultural hub for China to the east, Mongolia to the north, and India to the south.

Monks would follow the trade routes into Tibet to join monasteries and study with great masters, bringing back inspiration and news from Tibet to the remote mountain valley communities.

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Nuns practice Tibetan Buddhist debate at Sherab Choeling Nunnery in the Indian Himalayas. The nunnery is one of seven nunneries in northern India supported by the Tibetan Nuns Project. Photo courtesy of Olivier Adam.

In 1959 the Chinese seized control of Tibet, severing the age-old connection between the Indian and Tibetan Himalayan regions. Cross-border interchange ceased and, just as Tibetans lost their monasteries and Buddhist culture was assailed, so also the Indian border areas lost their access to higher studies and connection with their Buddhist neighbor.

Where conditions for monks and monasteries are depressed, then those for nuns and nunneries are worse. Young women from the border region who are interested in religion, and who, through the spirit of the 21st century, are motivated to study and reach out at this time when the Tibetans in exile in India are establishing a firm base of monastic education, turn their feet in this direction and seek admission in the established Tibetan nunneries in the communities in exile.

Sherab Choeling Nunnery in the Spiti Valley, northern India. Photo courtesy of Olivier Adam.

According to the nuns who come to the Tibetan Nuns Project from these regions, there are few and poor nunneries for them to join and even fewer opportunities for them to study. A nun from Zanskar explains how it is nearly impossible to be a nun in that region because nuns have to struggle so hard for mere survival. Usually they remain in their family homes and receive no education.

Young nuns studying at Sherab Choeling Nunnery in Spiti, northern India. Photo courtesy of Olivier Adam.

This is why so many are prepared to take up the great challenge of learning Tibetan in order to join the nunneries in India and study Buddhist philosophy. They will in time become the first women teachers to return to these remote regions to introduce Buddhist learning for women.

During his teachings in Bodhgaya in January 2017, His Holiness the Dalai Lama said, “We also have here many people from the Himalayan region and there are many monks and nuns from their communities in our monasteries and nunneries. They have made up the numbers since the flow of monks and nuns out of Tibet has declined, something we can be mutually grateful for.”