Om Tare Tuttare Ture Soha

What this mantra is

Om Tare Tuttare Ture Soha is one of the most widely chanted mantras in Tibetan Buddhism — second only to Om Mani Padme Hum in daily practice across Tibetan, Bhutanese, Mongolian, and global Vajrayana communities. It is the mantra of Green Tara, the bodhisattva of swift compassionate action.

Green Tara is depicted in her half-relaxed, half-ready posture — seated on a lotus with her right foot extended, as if about to step down to help any being in need. The iconography is precise: her right foot rests on a small lotus on the ground, signifying she is ready to act in any moment; her left foot remains in meditation posture, signifying her grounding in stillness. She is the deity of action-from-stillness, of compassion that responds without delay.

The mantra is chanted for protection from fear in its many forms — what the tradition calls the "eight great fears" (lions, elephants, fire, snakes, robbers, captivity, drowning, and demons) and their inner equivalents (pride, delusion, anger, jealousy, wrong views, attachment, doubt, and obscuration). Tara is understood to respond directly when called upon. The mantra's three repetitions of her name (Tare, Tuttare, Ture) are not redundancy; each is a different door through which she is invoked.

Meaning

The mantra of Green Tara (Sanskrit: Tara, Tibetan: Drolma), the bodhisattva of swift compassionate action and the protector who responds quickly to those who call her. Each repetition of Tara's name in the mantra carries a specific tone: Tare addresses her as the deliverer who liberates from suffering; Tuttare emphasizes her swift response to fear; Ture honors her as the active savior. Soha (Sanskrit: Svaha) is the closing seal of any mantra in this tradition — meaning roughly "so be it" or "hail."

History

Green Tara emerged as a major Buddhist deity in Mahayana texts around the 6th-7th century CE, with her practice spreading particularly through Indian and Tibetan tantric Buddhism. The Tara Tantra and the Praises to the Twenty-One Taras are the central texts of her practice, the latter still chanted daily by Tibetan Buddhist practitioners worldwide.

The twenty-one forms of Tara — each with her own iconography, color, mudra, and specific function — are the elaborated cosmology of her practice. Green Tara is the central form; the twenty-one are her emanations addressing different needs. White Tara (long life), Red Tara (magnetism), Black Tara (wrathful protection), Yellow Tara (prosperity in dharma), and others are well-known forms with their own sub-mantras.

The mantra Om Tare Tuttare Ture Soha is the universal Tara mantra, applicable across all twenty-one forms. It is taught from beginning practice through advanced sadhana. In Tibetan tradition, beginners often start with Tara practice (alongside or instead of Avalokiteshvara practice) because Tara is considered particularly responsive to those in difficulty.

Tara's importance in Tibetan culture is hard to overstate. She is invoked at births, deaths, departures, illnesses, and dangers. Many Tibetan households have a Tara thangka (painted scroll) on the family altar. The Dalai Lama has spoken of Tara as one of his own daily practices.

Associated deity / focus

Green Tara (Sanskrit: Tara, Tibetan: Drolma) — bodhisattva of swift compassionate action; one of the most beloved deities in Tibetan Buddhism; depicted seated in a posture of half-relaxation with the right foot extended (ready to step forward and help), green-skinned, holding a blue lotus, draped in jewels

How to use it

Sit upright. Three slow breaths to settle. The mantra wants a quality of receptive openness — Tara is responsive, and the practitioner is asking to be available to that response.

Chant Om Tare Tuttare Ture Soha at a steady pace. The Tibetan tradition often chants it slightly more melodically than other mantras — there is a soft, almost lilting quality to traditional Tara recitation. The Soha at the end is held slightly, as the seal of the mantra.

With a mala: 108 chants for full practice. Tibetan tradition often uses a 108-bead mala of bodhi seed, sandalwood, or, for Tara practice specifically, sometimes a turquoise or green-stone mala.

Visualization (traditional): visualize Green Tara seated above your head or before you — green-skinned, half-relaxed posture, right foot extended, holding a blue lotus. As you chant, imagine green light flowing from her into you and then, through you, to all beings who are in fear or difficulty. The visualization makes the practice complete; the chant alone is also valid.

Close with the dedication: "May all beings be free from fear. May all beings be liberated by Tara's swift compassion."

For specific need: practitioners chant Tara mantra during journeys (the protection from travel-fears), through illness, before challenging situations, and on behalf of others in difficulty. The mantra travels well — it can be chanted silently while waiting in line, on planes, during medical procedures.

Best time

Anytime. Tara practice is woven into daily life rather than reserved for formal sit. Many Tibetan practitioners chant the mantra continuously through the day, in the back of the mind, while doing other things.

For formal practice: morning is traditional. The 8th day of the lunar month (Tara's day) and the 25th day of the lunar month (Dakini day, broadly applicable to Tara) are auspicious. The Tibetan New Year (Losar, in February) and the Buddha's birthday (Vesak) are particularly resonant for Tara practice.

Benefits

Traditionally: Tara mantra is said to remove fear, liberate beings from the eight outer fears and their inner equivalents, swiftly resolve obstacles, and cultivate the compassionate-action quality of bodhisattva practice. The mantra's specific gift is that of a deity who responds — practitioners often describe a felt-sense of being heard when calling on Tara.

In lived practice: people who hold this mantra over years often describe a softening of fear-based reactions, a felt-companion-presence in difficult moments, and a slow building of confidence that protection is available. The mantra functions as a relational practice — there is a sense of someone (Tara) being on the other side of the chant.

For practitioners moving through high-fear seasons (medical treatment, travel through unsafe areas, navigating threat), Tara is one of the most commonly recommended practices in the Tibetan tradition. The Dalai Lama has frequently described Tara practice as particularly suitable for women, though the mantra is equally available to all practitioners.

From a contemporary lens: relational protective imagery (visualizing a benevolent figure responding to one's distress) has well-validated effects on fear-state regulation and is used in trauma therapy. The traditional and the therapeutic framings are compatible.

Cultural context

Green Tara is one of the most welcoming deities in Tibetan Buddhism for non-Buddhist practice. Her mantra is shared generously and Tara herself is often described in the tradition as the most accessible bodhisattva — particularly responsive to those who do not have advanced practice but are in genuine need.

Respectful practice includes: learning what the words mean, treating Tara as a real bodhisattva in a real lineage rather than a generic "goddess," supporting Tibetan refugee communities and the Tibetan Buddhist tradition that has preserved this practice through severe political persecution, and not commercializing the mantra (selling "Tara abundance courses" misrepresents her).

The specific cultural-political note: Tibetan Buddhism has been profoundly impacted by the Chinese occupation of Tibet (since 1959), the destruction of monasteries, the persecution of monks and nuns, and the ongoing pressure on Tibetan Buddhist institutions. Practicing Tara mantra is, in a small way, participating in the preservation of a tradition under threat. Many Western practitioners take this as a quiet ethical responsibility — to practice with awareness of the cost others have paid to keep this practice alive.

If you have access to a Tibetan Buddhist teacher, taking refuge and receiving Tara practice transmission is the traditional path. If you do not, sincere solo practice with respect is also accepted.

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