View source for Unsolved:Namkha

{{Short description|Tibetan form of yarn or thread cross}}
{{italic title}}
{{Tibetan Buddhism}}
A '''''namkha''''' (Tibetan: ནམ་མཁའ་ ''nam mkha' ''<ref name="DharmaDictionary.net-nam mkha">{{cite web
  | last = Staff
  | title = nam mkha'
  | publisher = DharmaDictionary.net RangjungYesheWiki
  | date =
  | url = http://rywiki.tsadra.org/index.php/nam_mkha%27
  | format =
  | access-date = 2010-02-04}}</ref> "[[Astronomy:Sky|sky]]", "[[Space|space]]", "[[Philosophy:Aether (classical element)|aether]]"," [[Unsolved:Heaven|heaven]]"), also known as ''Dö''; (Tibetan ''mdos'' (མདོས) <ref name="DharmaDictionary.net-mdos">{{cite web
  | last = Staff
  | title = mdos
  | publisher = DharmaDictionary.net RangjungYesheWiki
  | date =
  | url = http://rywiki.tsadra.org/index.php/mdos
  | format =
  | access-date = 2010-02-04}}</ref>) is a form of yarn or thread cross composed traditionally of wool or [[Chemistry:Silk|silk]] and is a form of the [[Religion:Endless knot|endless knot]] of the ''Eight Auspicious Symbols ([[Philosophy:Ashtamangala|Ashtamangala]])''. The structure is made of coloured threads wrapped around wooden sticks. Used in the rituals of Bön — the pre-Buddhist religion of Tibet — in reality this object represents the fundamental components and aspects of the energy of the individual, as defined from the conception until the birth of the individual.

==History==
Knowledge about the use of namkha were almost completely lost,{{cn|date=May 2023}} but in 1983 Chögyal Namkhai Norbu wrote a text entitled "The Preparation of Namkha which Harmonizes the Energy of the Elements", and in the same year gave oral teachings on namkha explaining that its function is to harmonize the elements of the individual and the various forms of energy related to them. Norbu's teachings on the namkhai are collected in his book ''Namkha''.{{sfn|Norbu|1999}}

==Symbolism==
Faithful to the meaning of space, both as origin and of indispensable support of the five material elements, the namkha as a whole represents the global space in which these interact. But while being founded on astrological calculations, and in fact certainly not being able to do without them, a namkha is not at all the equivalent of a three dimensional horoscope. It is not limited to a mere representation of the elements of the individual, but possesses a function, not just cognitive but operative. It is in fact a concrete, effective and extraordinary means to harmonize the energy of the individual, both internally and in relation to the total energy of the time and the universe as a whole.

==Uses==
In certain tantric rituals, the namkha becomes a [[Philosophy:Pure land|pure land]] abode of a deity while in other rites it may act as a snare for demons. Tradition holds that it was for this latter purpose that a namkha  was used by [[Biography:Padmasambhava|Padmasambhava]] after his Vajrakilaya Dance during the consecration of Samye monastery during the first importation of Buddhism to Tibet.{{sfn|Pearlman|2002|p=18}}   Weavings of a similar nature are called "[[Biology:God's eye|God's eye]]" in English folk art.

In the Bön and [[Philosophy:Vajrayana|Vajrayana]] Buddhist traditions, a namkha is constructed as the temporary dwelling for a deity during ritual practice. The structure of the namkha is traditionally made with colored threads symbolic of the [[Philosophy:Mahābhūta|elements]] (blue, green, red, white, and yellow; space, air, fire, water, and earth respectively ), the sequence, and the shape of the namkha differing for each particular [[Religion:Deity|deity]] or ''[[Religion:Yidam|yidam]]''. The namkha is placed on the practitioner's altar or shrine and an image of the deity may be placed beneath. The namkha is often accompanied in rites and ritual workings with the tantric and [[Unsolved:Shamanism|shamanic]] tool, the ''[[Engineering:Phurba|phurba]]''. Pearlman describes how [[Biography:Padmasambhava|Padmasambhava]] consecrated the land for the building of Samye Monastery by the enactment of the rite of the Vajrakilaya dance, which employed namkha to capture malevolent spirits.{{sfn|Pearlman|2002|p=18}}

== See also ==
* Nazar (amulet)
* [[Unsolved:Prayer flag|Prayer flag]]
* Weaving (mythology)

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

===Works cited===
* {{cite book |first=Namkhai |last=Norbu |year=1999 |title=Namkha |publisher=Shang Shung Edizioni}}
* {{cite book |last=Pearlman |first=Ellen |year=2002 |title=Tibetan Sacred Dance: A Journey into the Religious and Folk Traditions |place=Rochester, Vermont, US |publisher=Inner Traditions |isbn=978-0-89281-918-8}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite book |last=Beer |first=Robert |year=1999 |title=The Encyclopedia of Tibetan Symbols and Motifs |publisher=Shambhala Publications |isbn=1-57062-416-X |ref=none}}
*  {{cite book |last=De Nebesky-Wojkowitz |first=René |year=1976 |title=Tibetan Religious Dances |place=The Hague |publisher=Mouton |ref=none}}
*  {{cite book |last=De Nebesky-Wojkowitz |first=René |year=1996 |title=Oracles and Demons of Tibet |pages=369-397 |publisher=Book Faith India |isbn=81-7303-039-1 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Beyer |first=Stephen |year=1978 |title=The Cult of Tara: Magic and Ritual in Tibet |place=Berkeley, California |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0520036352 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Gold |first=Peter |title=Navajo & Tibetan Sacred Wisdom: The Circle of the Spirit |year=1994 |location=Rochester, Vermont |publisher=Inner Traditions |isbn=0-89281-411-X |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/navajotibetansac00gold |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last1=Müller-Ebeling |first1=Claudia |first2=Christian |last2=Rätsch |first3=Surendra Bahadur |last3=Shahi |year=2002 |title=Shamanism  and Tantra in the Himalayas |translator=Annabel Lee |place=Rochester, Vermont |publisher=Inner Traditions |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |first=Giuseppe |last=Tucci |year=1980 |title=The Religions of Tibet |translator=Geoffrey Samuel |place=London |publisher=Routledge & Kegan Paul |isbn=978-0710002044 |ref=none}}

==External links==
* [https://namkha-encyclopedia.com/ Namkha Encyclopedia] - website that outlines how to make namkha


[[Category:Buddhist symbols]]
[[Category:Tibetan Buddhist practices]]

{{Sourceattribution|Namkha}}