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The Great Mandala

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[Verse 1]
F#m
ASo I GtolDd Ahim
Athat GHe'Dd Abetter
Ashut his Cmouth and do his jGob like a man
And he Eanswered, "listen Afather,
AI will nGeveDrA  
Akill GanoDtherA.
AHe thinks he's Cbetter
than his bGrother that died.
What the F#hell does he think he is Gdoing,
to his Efather
who brought him up rAight?
[Chorus]
ATake your Emplace on the Great ManAm7dala
As it Am11moves through the brief Am9moment of Emtime
Win or Close now, you must Emchoose now
Am11If you lose, you're Am9only losing your Am6life 
Am11If you lose, you're Am9only losing your Am6life 
Am11If you lose, you're Am9only losing your Am6life 
[Verse 2]
F#m
ATell Dthe EjAailer
Anot tDo bEotAher
Awith his Cmeal of bread and Gwater today.
He is fasF#ting 'til the killing's oGver.
AHe's Ga mDartyAr,
AHe thGinks Dhe's a Aprophet
ABut he's Ca coward, he's jusGt playing a game.
He can't F#do it, he can't cGhange it
It's been gEoing on for ten thousand Ayears,
[Chorus]
ATake your Emplace on the Great ManAm7dala
As it Am11moves through the brief Am9moment of Emtime
Win or Close now, you must Emchoose now
Am11If you lose, you're Am9only losing your Am6life 
Am11If you lose, you're Am9only losing your Am6life 
Am11If you lose, you're Am9only losing your Am6life 
[Verse 3]
F#m
ATell Gthe DpeAople
Athey Gare DsaAfe now.
AHunger stCopped him, he lies Gstill in his cell.
Death has Egagged his accusatiAons.
AWe arGe frDee nAow,
AWe caGn  kDill Anow,
AWe can Chate now
GNow we can end the world.
We're not F#guilty,
He was cGrazy
And it's bEeen going on for ten thousand Ayears.
[Chorus]
ATake your Emplace on the Great ManAm7dala
As it Am11moves through your brief Am9moment of Emtime
Win or Close now, you must Emchoose now
And Am11if you lose, you've Am9only wasted your Am6life.

All chords in this song (12)

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The Great Mandala

by Peter, Paul and Mary

Lyrics & chords · Original key

Chords in this song · guitar

F#m

Am7

Am11

Am9

Am6

[Verse 1]

F#m

A G D A

So I told him

A G D A

that He'd better

A C G

shut his mouth and do his job like a man

E A

And he answered, "listen father,

A G D A

I will never

A G D A

kill another.

A C

He thinks he's better

than his brother that died.

F# G

What the hell does he think he is doing,

to his father

who brought him up right?

[Chorus]

A Em Am7

Take your place on the Great Mandala

Am11 Am9 Em

As it moves through the brief moment of time

C Em

Win or lose now, you must choose now

Am11 Am9 Am6

If you lose, you're only losing your life

Am11 Am9 Am6

If you lose, you're only losing your life

Am11 Am9 Am6

If you lose, you're only losing your life

[Verse 2]

F#m

A D E A

Tell the jailer

A D E A

not to bother

A C G

with his meal of bread and water today.

F# G

He is fasting 'til the killing's over.

A G D A

He's a martyr,

A G D A

He thinks he's a prophet

A C G

But he's a coward, he's just playing a game.

F# G

He can't do it, he can't change it

E A

It's been going on for ten thousand years,

[Chorus]

A Em Am7

Take your place on the Great Mandala

Am11 Am9 Em

As it moves through the brief moment of time

C Em

Win or lose now, you must choose now

Am11 Am9 Am6

If you lose, you're only losing your life

Am11 Am9 Am6

If you lose, you're only losing your life

Am11 Am9 Am6

If you lose, you're only losing your life

[Verse 3]

F#m

A G D A

Tell the people

A G D A

they are safe now.

A C G

Hunger stopped him, he lies still in his cell.

E A

Death has gagged his accusations.

A G D A

We are free now,

A G D A

We can kill now,

A C

We can hate now

Now we can end the world.

We're not guilty,

He was crazy

E A

And it's been going on for ten thousand years.

[Chorus]

A Em Am7

Take your place on the Great Mandala

Am11 Am9 Em

As it moves through your brief moment of time

C Em

Win or lose now, you must choose now

Am11 Am9 Am6

And if you lose, you've only wasted your life.

About The Great Mandala Chords by Peter, Paul and Mary

Learn how to play The Great Mandala by Peter, Paul and Mary with free guitar chords, lyrics, and interactive chord diagrams. Search for “The Great Mandala chords”, “The Great Mandala guitar chords”, or “Peter, Paul and Mary The Great Mandala chords” and you will find this page — transpose to any key, tap chords for diagrams, and use auto-scroll while you play. Perfect for beginners looking for easy The Great Mandala chords and for experienced players who want accurate The Great Mandala lyrics and chords in one place. Common chords in this song include F#m, A, G, D, C, E.

FAQ — The Great Mandala by Peter, Paul and Mary

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What key is "The Great Mandala" in?

The chords for "The Great Mandala" show the original chord names (including F#m, A, G, D, C, E). Use transpose to move the song into any key that fits your voice or capo.