Pilgrimage Practices

Kora (སྐོར་བ) — Circumambulation

Kora — walking clockwise around a sacred object — is the most fundamental pilgrimage practice. Whether circumambulating a stupa, temple, mountain, or entire sacred region, the principle is the same: by physically circling the sacred, we orient ourselves toward it, accumulate merit, and receive blessing.

How to Practice Kora

• ༔ Direction: Always move clockwise (keeping the sacred object on your right). Counter-clockwise circumambulation is practiced in the Bön tradition but not in Buddhism.
• ༔ Mantra: Recite mantras while walking. The most common is Om Mani Padme Hum, but you can also recite mantras specific to the site or your own practice.
• ༔ Counting: Many pilgrims use mala beads to count mantras. A single kora with 108 mantras, or 108 koras, are traditional numbers.
• ༔ Prayer wheels: If prayer wheels line the path, spin each one clockwise as you pass. Each wheel contains thousands of mantras that are "activated" by spinning.
• ༔ Dedication: At the end of each kora, dedicate the merit to all sentient beings rather than keeping it for yourself alone.

"A single circumambulation of a sacred site with genuine devotion can purify countless lifetimes of negative karma."

Prostrations (ཕྱག་འཚལ) — Physical Devotion

Prostrations (chaktsal) are the embodied expression of taking refuge and expressing devotion. They engage body, speech, and mind simultaneously and are considered extremely powerful for purifying negative karma.

Full-Length Prostrations

1. Stand facing the sacred object with palms together at the heart
2. Raise joined hands to touch forehead, throat, and heart (representing body, speech, and mind)
3. Lower to the ground — first knees, then hands, then stretch full-length on the ground
4. Arms extend fully overhead, palms together, touching the ground
5. Rise and return to standing
6. Repeat, stepping forward to the point where your fingers touched

Prostration koras — circumambulating a site entirely through prostrations — are particularly powerful. Pilgrims at Jokhang Temple in Lhasa or around Mount Kailash can be seen measuring the entire path with their bodies, a practice that can take days or weeks.

Short Prostrations

For those unable to do full prostrations, a modified version involves touching five points to the ground: both knees, both hands, and forehead. Even bowing from the waist with palms joined carries benefit when done with genuine devotion.

Offerings (མཆོད་པ) — Generosity Practice

Making offerings at sacred sites cultivates generosity and creates positive connections. The value lies not in the material worth of the offering but in the devotion and pure motivation with which it is given.

Traditional Offerings

• ༔ Butter lamps: Representing the light of wisdom that dispels the darkness of ignorance. Lighting lamps at shrines is the most common offering.
• ༔ Incense: The fragrant smoke carries prayers upward and purifies the environment. Juniper incense is particularly common in Tibetan practice.
• ༔ Khatas: White silk scarves offered as a sign of respect and pure intention. Offered to lamas, sacred images, and at holy sites.
• ༔ Prayer flags: Printed with mantras and prayers that are carried on the wind to benefit all beings. Hung at passes, peaks, and sacred sites.
• ༔ Money: Monetary offerings support the maintenance of sacred sites and the monastics who care for them.

Mental Offerings

The tradition also emphasizes mentally offering everything beautiful you encounter — a stunning landscape, a delicious meal, a moment of joy. By imagining these as offerings to the Buddhas and bodhisattvas, we transform ordinary experiences into practice.

Motivation (བསམ་པ) — The Foundation

Of all pilgrimage practices, motivation is the most important. The same action can produce vastly different results depending on the motivation behind it. Circumambulating a stupa for exercise produces some positive karma; circumambulating with the aspiration to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings produces immeasurably more.

Setting Motivation

Before beginning any pilgrimage practice, take a moment to set your motivation:

Dedication

At the end of each practice session and at the end of your pilgrimage, dedicate the merit to all beings. This prevents the merit from being "used up" by personal enjoyment and makes it inexhaustible:

Practical Advice

• ༔ Start where you are: If you cannot do full prostrations, do modified ones. If you cannot walk a long kora, walk a short one. Any practice done with genuine devotion carries benefit.
• ༔ Respect local customs: Each sacred site may have specific protocols. Watch what local practitioners do and follow their example.
• ༔ Maintain awareness: Pilgrimage is not a trance. Remain mindful of your surroundings, respectful of other pilgrims, and alert to the experience.
• ༔ Be patient: Transformation takes time. Don't expect dramatic experiences immediately. Trust that the practice is working even when you don't feel it.
• ༔ Continue practice at home: Pilgrimage plants seeds; continued practice waters them. Maintain your practice after returning home to nurture what you received.