Wood prayer beads, presented by the Thirteenth Dalai Lama, received in the 7th year of the Guangxu reign (1881), Qing dynasty

Wood prayer beads, presented by the Thirteenth Dalai Lama, received in the 7th year of the Guangxu reign (1881), Qing dynasty

• Image Number: K1D005469N000000000PAB
• Dynasty: Qing dynasty
• Category: Miscellaneous objects
• Function: Dress accessories, magic tools
• Material: Plants/Wood/
• Description:
  Counting beads, or rosary beads, were originally used by believers to calculate the number of times they read when they chanted Buddha or chanted sutras. The number of beads varies, mostly 108. According to the Merit and Virtue Sutra of Counting the Beads, counting the pearls can lead to innumerable merits. This string of round and plump beads symbolizes the perfect fruit of the Bodhisattva. The string of lines is used to save all living beings from transmigration with the Bodhisattva’s various merits and virtues. Counting beads is the most common Buddhist instrument in the Danshu Kegong ritual in the Qing Dynasty. All the beads presented by the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama into the Qing Palace are neat, round and exquisite.