A Mala is used as a tool of devotion. They have 108 beads and a guru bead which is the 109th bead. Many have separators between the 12th bead to use with mantra’s or breath practices. The number of beads are in multiples of the sacred number 9, the number of the planets in Vedic Astrology, the number of months a baby develops in the womb, and the number of the Divine mother.