These verses are devoted to Prajnaparamita: the female Wisdom Buddha. They are written for recitation as a puja, a ritual intended to inspire faith in the possibility of gaining the deepest Wisdom and devotion to the path that leads to it. 

The Buddha Prajnaparamita is the distillation of the Perfection (paramita) of Wisdom (prajna) texts, which are devoted to the wisdom of shunyata or voidness. These texts include the Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra, as well as many others. She is represented as a beautiful, mature woman, and her golden colour is made up of millions of tiny Buddhas. Each hand holds the stem of a lotus flower on which rests a copy of The Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines.

Puja to the Buddha Prajnaparamita

Composed by Vishvapani
1. Worship

Om namo bhagavatyai aryaprajñaparamitayai
Om namo bhagavatyai aryaprajñaparamitayai
Om namo bhagavatyai aryaprajñaparamitayai

Bright queen of the sky,
Radiant in glory,
Brilliant you shine
Like the sun at its height.
And far spread your beams
Through infinite space.
Piercing the gloom
Like dawn’s gentle rays.

O bringer of vision
To those who are lost,
And stumble in darkness
In the thick night;
O beacon of wisdom,
Dispeller of darkness,
Destroyer of craving –
Illumine my life.

mantra: om ah dhih hum svah

2. Salutation

Gold is your body
Like ripening corn;
Blue are your eyes,
Gazing far inward;
And dark is your hair
As it falls by your side.
Jewels adorn you
And silks flow upon you.
You are seated serene,
Poised in Samadhi,
Perfectly still
In the infinite sky.

3. Confession

Om svabhava suddha sarvadharmah svabhava suddho ham
Om svabhava suddha sarvadharmah svabhava suddho ham
Om svabhava suddha sarvadharmah svabhava suddho ham

Mother of Buddhas
And all of the wisdoms,
Knower of essence,
And bearer of jñana,
Sunyata’s emblem:
Please hear me confess.

When I have been unskillful with my body
I have forgotten you;
When I have been unskillful with my speech
I have forgotten you;
When I have been unskillful with my mind
I have forgotten you;
In many ways, at many times, in many places,
I have forgotten you.

I confess all my failings,
My weakness, my blindness
O hear my confessions
And grant me your blessing!

4. Entreaty

Om namo bhagavatyai arya prajñaparamitayai
Om namo bhagavatyai arya prajñaparamitayai
Om namo bhagavatyai arya prajñaparamitayai

O silent one, wise one,
O knower of secrets,
Whisper to me
The sound before silence.
Enter my heart
With the wisdom of dhih.
May dhih fill my heart.
May dhih fill my speech.
May dhih fill my mind.
Oh, wide is my heart,
Please grant me your teaching!

Recitation of the Heart Sutra

5. Completion

O, great Lady Prajñaparamita,
May I rest in your beauty.
Suffuse me, O bright one,
With you golden light.
May dhih pervade me,
Transforming defilements.
May it shine through me
With the warmth of compassion.
Now, and at all times,
May your secret light
Illumine my mind.
May it guide me to the truth.

mantra: gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha

6. Concluding Mantras

om mani padme hum
om a ra pa ca na dhih
om vajrapani hum
om tare tutare ture swaha
om amideva hrih
om muni muni maha muni shakyamuni svaha
gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha
om santi santi santi

The sections of this puja are based on features of traditional pujas. The mantras are taken from texts associated with Prajnaparamita. For more information see Jayarava’s excellent Visible Mantra site.