Yant Khom
Circle Yantra with Khom Panels
A circle and two stacked panels of Khom syllables, ringed by a closed band of separate characters.
✦Meaning & Background
A yantra without an animal or figure: script alone. A circle and two stacked panels of Khom syllables form the heart, ringed by a closed band of separate characters. Building from small to large, from the centre outward, is the classic way a yantra is read.
✦More about this design
Not every Sak Yant needs an animal. This design consists entirely of Khom script: a circle with a syllable, two panels below it and a ring of separate characters around it. Anyone who knows the tradition reads a yantra like this from the inside out, just like the Paed Tidt and the Na Metta. Khom script is the Thai form of the old Khmer script. In the Sak Yant tradition it is not used to write Thai but to record Pali mantras, the language of the Buddhist texts. On the Khom mantra panels you see the same script in straight lines instead of a circle. A design of script alone is restrained and timeless: there is no image in it that goes out of fashion. Browse all Sak Yant designs, read about all Sak Yant symbols or book an appointment.
✦Frequently asked questions
What is Khom script?
Khom is the Thai form of the old Khmer script. In the Sak Yant tradition it is used to write Pali mantras, not to write Thai.
Can a Sak Yant work without an animal or figure?
Certainly. Many of the oldest yantras consist entirely of script and geometry. The Hah Taew is the best known example.
How do you read a circle yantra like this?
From the inside out. The centre carries the core of the mantra, the ring around it closes the whole.
