To celebrate the ongoing FPMT Global Mani Retreat, which has brought together students of Lama Zopa Rinpoche from around the world to help fulfill one of Rinpoche’s most cherished wishes, we are sharing this excerpt on the Benefits of the Mani Retreat from Teachings from the Mani Retreat by Lama Zopa Rinpoche.

Rinpoche teaching during the 100 Million Mani Retreat 05-Oct-2017 ILTK. Italy Photo by Lobsang Sherab

Benefits of the Mani Retreat
By Lama Zopa Rinpoche

This is such a wonderful time, especially doing practice to develop compassion and bodhicitta. Without compassion you can’t have the realization of bodhicitta, you can’t enter the Mahayana path, you can’t achieve enlightenment, you can’t achieve the infinite qualities of the holy body, holy speech and holy mind of Buddha. Without great compassion you can’t do perfect work for sentient beings, bringing them to enlightenment. I mentioned this the other night when I arrived, but maybe it was difficult to hear so late at night . . . . Those who can make the time should come to the retreat. Even if you cannot come for all three months, you should come for some weeks—or at least for one week. If you do not give yourself the time, the freedom, to do this, it is very poor, very sad. Of course, it would be best to come for the whole time, until the end of the retreat, but if you cannot do that, while you can give yourself the time and the freedom, you should come for one month or for a minimum of one week. You should attempt to do this. If you have a family, of course it’s not possible for all the family members, the whole assembly of parents and children, to come for the Mani Retreat, but maybe you could take turns. Do whatever you can, whatever days you can do. Give yourself the time to come again and again. Even if you cannot do one week straight, come again and again. Do at least one day, then come another day, then another day. At least come quite often in this way. 

We should especially think of death. When the thought of death comes, when we remember death, there’s nothing else that makes sense; everything else is total nonsense. When we think of death, so much of what we do in life doesn’t make sense; it’s all just nonsense. The only thing that makes sense is Dharma practice. Only Dharma will benefit us at the time of death and after death. The only thing that we can carry with us and enjoy in our future life is Dharma—nothing else. This practice of the meditation-­ recitation of the Buddha of Compassion will especially benefit us.

Reciting oṃ maṇi padme hūṃ has merit as limitless as the sky. Even Buddha can never finish explaining the unbelievable purification and collection of extensive merit brought by reciting oṃ maṇi padme hūṃ. This is a special means to develop compassion. Intellectual study alone cannot bring you the realization of compassion and bodhicitta. With the intellectual understanding, you then have to purify your mind and collect extensive merit. On the basis of those preliminary practices, you then receive this special deity’s blessings by reciting oṃ maṇi padme hūṃ. It is through this that the realizations of great compassion and bodhicitta then come. Reciting oṃ maṇi padme hūṃ is one of the most powerful means of developing compassion and bodhicitta.

Doing specific meditation on the Buddha of Compassion and reciting the mantra are like soil and water, the conditions that together enable a seed to produce a sprout, or like all the pieces that are put together to enable a clock or watch to show the time. The mind works in a similar way. The preliminary practices and the meditation-­ recitation of Compassion Buddha persuade the Compassion Buddha’s holy mind. Purifying negative karmas, or obstacles, and collecting extensive merit enable us to receive the blessings of Compassion Buddha, and through these blessings we then receive realizations.

And the benefits of compassion are as limitless as the sky. After hearing the lamrim and having studied it and also other teachings, we can understand the benefits of compassion. Compassion has limitless benefits for oneself and for all other sentient beings. 

Excerpt from Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s book Teachings from the Mani Retreat bestowed at Chenrezig Institute, on December 2000. Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive Publications. You can also read this book online, or listen to an audio recording from the retreat.

Upcoming for the Global Mani Retreat

FPMT Mongolia’s 14th 100 MILLION MANI RETREAT in Ulaanbaatar has begun! This retreat is part of the official Global Mani Retreat program and will take place from August 20 – September 17 2026. Participation onsite is entirely optional.

Ven. Tenzin Drachom will lead the eighth Chenrezig Group practice on August 22.   

To keep up on all details related to the FPMT Global Mani Retreat, please refer to our webpage, and join the Facebook Group. 

Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT) is a Tibetan Buddhist organization dedicated to the transmission of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition and values worldwide through teaching, meditation, and community service.