Tibetan Buddhist Funeral Prayers and Chants

When a Tibetan Buddhist dies, the prayers that follow are not eulogies or expressions of grief. They are active interventions — precise liturgical tools designed to guide the consciousness through the bardo and toward a favorable rebirth. Each prayer has a specific function, and the order and timing matter.

Immediate Post-Death Mantras (Hours 0–4)

The moment the outer breath stops, the most urgent prayers begin. The consciousness is still present in or near the body, and it can hear.

Om Mani Padme Hum — the six-syllable mantra of Chenrezig (Avalokiteshvara), the bodhisattva of compassion. It can be chanted after the final breath, spoken calmly and clearly near the body. Each syllable is understood to close the door to one of the six realms of rebirth (gods, demigods, humans, animals, hungry ghosts, and hell beings). Family members who know no other prayer can recite this one continuously until the lama arrives.

The Medicine Buddha Mantra (Om Bekhandzye Bekhandzye Maha Bekhandzye Radza Samudgate Soha) — chanted to purify illness-related karma and ease the transition. Particularly important when the person died after prolonged illness, as accumulated suffering can agitate the consciousness during its departure.

These two mantras serve as a holding pattern — maintaining a peaceful, supportive environment while the family contacts the lama for phowa.

Phowa: The Transference of Consciousness

Phowa is not a prayer in the conventional sense. It is a highly technical Vajrayana practice performed by a qualified lama (or, for trained practitioners, by the dying person themselves) to eject the consciousness through the crown of the head directly into Amitabha Buddha's pure land of Dewachen.

The lama visualizes the consciousness as a luminous sphere at the heart center, then uses specific mantras, syllables, and meditative force to propel it upward through the central channel and out the crown aperture. Physical signs of successful phowa include localized warmth at the crown, hair loss at the fontanel, and occasionally a small discharge.

Phowa must happen as soon as possible after death — ideally within the first few hours. If the lama cannot be physically present, it can be performed remotely by phone or video. The family maintains silence and continues mantra recitation while the lama works.

The Bardo Thodol Readings (Days 1–49)

The Bardo Thodol — often translated as The Tibetan Book of the Dead — is not a single prayer. It is a series of instructions read aloud to the deceased over the 49-day bardo period, explaining what the consciousness is experiencing and coaching it toward liberation.

Days 1–3: The consciousness awakens to the primary Clear Light — the luminous, empty nature of mind itself. The readings during this phase urge the deceased to recognize this light as their own mind and merge with it. If they succeed, liberation is immediate.

Days 4–14: The consciousness encounters visions of the Forty-Two Peaceful Deities followed by the Fifty-Eight Wrathful Deities (the Zhitro mandala). The readings explain that these appearances are projections of the deceased's own mind, not external beings to be feared. Recognition at this stage also brings liberation.

Days 15–21: The mind's confusion begins to settle; around Day 21, the deceased gains clarity that they no longer possess a physical body.

Days 22–49: The consciousness experiences projections of its future rebirth environments. The readings intensify, directing the consciousness away from the lower realms and toward human or higher rebirth.

Lamas and monks visit the home in shifts to perform continuous readings throughout this period. In the diaspora, where monastic support may be limited, the family can arrange for readings at specific intervals — particularly the seventh-day milestones.

Key Purification Prayers

Beyond the Bardo Thodol, several specific liturgies are performed at critical moments during the 49 days:

The Akshobhya (Mitrukpa) Practice — exceptionally powerful for purifying negative karma and closing the gates to the lower realms. The family sponsors a lama to perform the long Akshobhya mantra and ideally places an image of Akshobhya Buddha on the memorial altar. This prayer is especially important for people who accumulated significant negative karma during life.

The Namgyalma (Ushnisha Vijaya) Purification — the long Namgyalma mantra is chanted twenty-one times over clean water, sesame seeds, or perfume. The blessed substance is then sprinkled over the deceased's body or cremated remains to purify the five aggregates and support higher rebirth.

The King of Prayers (Sang Chö / The Prayer of Good Deeds) — recited collectively by the entire funeral assembly to generate a wave of merit for the deceased. Its place in a funeral liturgy depends on the family's lineage and lama.

The Jangchok Purification Ceremony — used when the body is unavailable (sudden death away from home, legal holds, geographical distance). The lama uses a photograph or a paper inscribed with the deceased's name to ritually "hook" the wandering consciousness, perform purification mantras, and then burn the paper in a consecrated butter lamp flame while meditating on the dissolution of karmic ties.

The Weekly Memorial Prayers

Special prayer assemblies are held on the 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th, 35th, 42nd, and 49th days after death. Each seventh day marks a threshold where the consciousness undergoes a kind of "mini-death" and enters the next phase of the bardo.

The 7th-day and 49th-day ceremonies are the most elaborate, typically involving:

• A large monastic assembly performing purification prayers
• Lighting one hundred or more butter lamps
• Preparing vegetarian feast offerings
• Sponsoring acts of charity (dana) with merit dedicated to the deceased

These ceremonies require advance planning — booking a venue (or hosting at home), coordinating with the monastery, arranging food for monks and guests, and procuring supplies. Families organizing a Tibetan Buddhist funeral for the first time often underestimate how much logistical coordination the weekly prayers require.

Arranging Prayers in the Diaspora

In Tibetan communities outside the Himalayan region, the biggest challenge is access to qualified lamas and a sufficient number of monks for the chanting assemblies. Some practical approaches:

• Contact the nearest Tibetan Buddhist center or monastery well before a death, if possible, to establish a relationship and understand what services they can provide
• For phowa, ask a respected lama or local center whether the practice can be performed remotely; the FPMT (Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition) also publishes death-and-dying resources
• Smaller weekly memorial ceremonies can be performed by the family with recorded chants and a single lama joining by video, reserving the large assemblies for the 7th and 49th days
• If no Vajrayana lama is available at all, continuous recitation of Om Mani Padme Hum by the family is considered genuinely beneficial — better this than no prayers at all

The prayers are not decorative. In the Vajrayana understanding, they are the primary means by which the living actively assist the dead. Every mantra recited, every butter lamp lit, every act of generosity dedicated — all of it reaches the consciousness navigating the bardo.