#komboloi

I made a komboloi set because, when I saw videos, the movement looks JUST LIKE the movement I try and fail to do with my keys all the time when I'm feeling stimmy. I've been retooling the string the past couple days and I've got it where I want it now. I used tiger's eye beads with black glass spacer beads, a silver hamsa charm with a glass evil eye fidget bead, and a leather tassel on leather cord.

Typique Komboloi grec.

la Komboloi ou koboloi (en grec Κομπολόι) est le typique chapelet grec kombos qui signifie noeud et la parole loï. Bien qu'il soit encore controversée que ce soit du Rosaire catholique ou le Tasbih musulman, le Komboloi diffère de ses prédécesseurs par le fait que tout d'abord il n'a pas un nombre défini de perles, en second lieu, les perles ne sont pas fixes mais libres de glisser le long du fil. Le mot vient de Kobas, ce qui signifie corde

*I am not Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Sikh, Bahai, Jainist, or Umbandan (?). I am pagan. I researched this from various sources, I apologize for any misinformation in the sources I used, this is the first time I’m covering this topic.

Okay so I had this in mind for a while and then I cranked out research in about an hour so be prepared for chaos. Surprisingly, a lot of the sources AGREED on all the big key points, which is definitely a first in this field. And by “this field” I mean every field.

So prayer beads have been used in Hinduism, Buddhism, Shintoism, Umbanda, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism, the Bahá'í Faith, Jainism, and paganism. They’ve also been found and used in all of east Asia, India, the Middle East, Turkey, Greece, Europe, the Americas, and Africa. The oldest beads have been found in Africa. As a tool, prayer beads can be used secularly and can represent things like elements, spirits, figures, and so forth.

Let’s talk about that oldest beads, shall we? They were made of ostrich shell beads and date back to 10,000 BCE (before common era). Depictions of the use of prayer beads are from the Greeks of ancient Thira, from 1600 BCE. In the depictions, women the ones using them. Prayer beads were also used by Hindus in 500 BCE, and the Buddhists also joined them in using prayer beads.

Prayer beads have also been called many things depending on the religion:

Subha/Subhah, misbaha, tasbih/tasbeeha, or dhikr in Islam.

Japamala/japa mala or mala beads in Buddhism and Hinduism.

Sikh mala or mala beads in Sikhism.

Mala beads in Jainism.

Mala beads in Shinto.

Bahai beads in the Bahá'í Faith.

Rosary in Roman Catholic. Rosary for Anglicans in Anglican Christianity. Chotki in Eastern Orthodox Christianity. The Wreath of Christ in non-denominational Christianity.

The closest thing to prayer beads that Judaism has is the tallit, which is a prayer shawl. Eastern Orthodox Christians have knotted ropes instead of strings of beads. When not used for religious work, prayer beads are instead known as worry beads (or kompoloi or komboloi).

Prayer beads are used for keeping track of and counting prayers, chants, mantras, and devotions. Komboloi or worry beads can serve as stim toys to pass time or to limit smoking. They can also be used as an amulet against bad luck or as a mark of power or social prestige – the fancier the worry beads, the higher you were in the society’s hierarchy. Nowadays, in places like Greece and Turkey, komboloi are used as a men’s accessory for stress relief and to pass time.

Prayer beads are made of some kind of string, along with a number of beads that varies from religion to religion. The beads can be made from wood, glass, crystals, minerals, metals, bone, shells, plant seeds, and pearls, among many other things. Anything that can be made into a bead can be made into prayer beads. Prayer beads do not need a religious symbol or a tassel, as the importance of prayer beads is in the number of the beads and the beads themselves, not in the other things attached to it.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prayer_beads

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worry_beads

https://viennaimports.com/blog/religion/history-use-prayer-beads-throughout-world/

http://www.prayerbeadsworld.com/

http://dharma-beads.net/history-prayer-beads/religious-use-beads/judaism

https://www.learnreligions.com/islamic-prayer-beads-subha-2004515

https://www.prayerfoundation.org/dailyoffice/history_%20of_prayer_beads.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japamala

http://dharma-beads.net/history-prayer-beads/religious-use-beads/buddhism

http://dharma-beads.net/history-prayer-beads/religious-use-beads/hinduism

http://dharma-beads.net/prayer-beads/hindu-beads

Kompoloi improvisation.

Athens