The Exchange of a Mala(Rosary)

One cannot gift a mala used by oneself to someone else. However a Guru can give it to His disciple. A mala can also be kept as a memento of a departed soul. A mala acquired from a Guru who has renounced His body or a mala which is a memento of a dead person cannot be used for chanting. One should not use the Guru’s japamala as, if kept unused for a longer period one can derive maximum benefit whereas if used the sattva component in it gets reduced faster. One should not use someone else’s japamala since it is charged with the frequencies of his deity of worship and to charge it with one’s own chanting would take time.