Bell and Dorje: Understanding Ritual Objects

In the Vajrayana context, practitioners utilize the bell and dorje as important symbolic ritual items. In this video, Tulku Migmar explains just some of the significance of this pair of implements. We hold the dorje, or vajra, always in the right hand,  while we ring the bell with the left hand.  At the outer level, these two implements represent the indivisibility of means (vajra) and the wisdom recognizing emptiness (bell). At the same time, we can understand that the dorje represents compassion, while the bell signifies Prajñāpāramitā, the perfection of wisdom.