India and the Himalaya · Nepal and the Himalayan foothills
Rudraksha
Also known as Rudraksh, Rudraksha mala, Shiva’s tears
Wrinkled, warm brown and surprisingly light, rudraksha beads are the dried stones of a tree’s fruit. For devotees of Shiva they are sacred prayer beads, worn close to the body.
Rudraksha beads are the dried seeds of trees of the genus Elaeocarpus, and in Hinduism they are sacred to Shiva. Strung as a , they are used to count prayers and worn by devotees as a sign of faith. For believers they are devotional objects first and adornments second.
The name and the legend
The word joins Rudra, an ancient name of Shiva, and akṣa, which means “eye”. It is usually translated as “Rudra’s eye” or, following a well-known legend, “Shiva’s tears”. In a story told in the Shiva Purana and retold by devotees, Shiva opened his eyes after a long meditation, and the tears that fell from them grew into rudraksha trees.
, the branch of Hinduism centred on Shiva, has honoured the bead for many centuries. Medieval texts such as the Shiva Purana and the Rudraksha Jabala Upanishad describe how the beads should be chosen, strung and worn, and which prayers belong with them.
From tree to bead
The tree that gives the bead grows in the Himalayan foothills of Nepal and India, and in South and Southeast Asia, including Indonesia. Botanists usually call it Elaeocarpus ganitrus, a name often treated as a synonym of Elaeocarpus angustifolius. Its ripe fruit is a striking blue, and the bead is the hard, ridged stone inside, cleaned of its flesh and dried.
Nepal is known for large, deeply furrowed beads, while Indonesian beads are usually smaller and smoother. Both are widely used, and preferences vary between regions, families and teachers.
Faces and malas
Each bead has natural lines running from end to end, which divide it into segments called , or “faces”. Most beads have five faces, and these are the ones usually strung into malas. Beads with fewer or more faces, from one up to twenty-one, are rarer, and in tradition each number is linked with a particular deity.
A traditional mala has 108 beads, a sacred number in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions, with one more bead, the meru or guru bead, marking the start and end of the circle. The person praying moves one bead at a time through the fingers with each repetition of a mantra, such as Om Namaḥ Śivāya, and at the meru turns the mala back rather than crossing over it.
A rudraksha mala is counted not in beads but in prayers.
What it means
For devotees, the rudraksha is a sign of Shiva’s presence and grace, a support for concentration in prayer and a reminder of the ascetic ideal of simplicity. Sadhus, the holy men and women of Shaivism, are often seen wearing long strings of the beads. Many lay Hindus wear a single bead or a short string as a sign of devotion.
Many claims are made today about the effects of particular beads. We describe the devotional tradition rather than any promised effect, and a bead is best chosen for what it means to you. In that spirit it belongs among the talismans of wisdom and guidance, as an aid to attention and prayer.
Wearing it with respect
Outsiders are generally welcome to wear rudraksha, and many Hindu teachers say the bead is open to anyone. Learning what it means, wearing it with care and, if you wish, learning a simple mantra to say with it are good ways to honour that welcome. Read more in wearing sacred and cultural symbols with respect.
Caring for the beads
Rudraksha is a natural seed and needs gentle care. Keep it dry when you can and clean it with a soft brush. Many owners rub in a little oil from time to time to stop the bead drying out and cracking. Restring a mala before the cord wears through, since a broken string is the most common way beads are lost. See caring for your talisman for more.
Relatives
Some Tibetan Buddhist practitioners also use rudraksha malas, and prayer beads of many materials are found across the Buddhist world. The rudraksha is often worn with an Om pendant, and it belongs among the talismans of India and the Himalaya, beside the endless knot.
A rudraksha bead is light in the hand and rough to the touch, its ridges smoothing slowly with years of use. That patient wearing down, bead by bead and prayer by prayer, is perhaps the most beautiful thing about it.
taliaris describes beliefs and customs; it makes no claim that a talisman has an effect.