Buddhist Symbology Part 1

One thing that non-Buddhists always notice are the distinctive symbols ‚Ä®involved with the various sects of Buddhism. We talked briefly about ‚Ä®the ‚ÄúWheel of Dharma‚Äù a while back, but that’s just the tip of the ‚Ä®iceberg. There are eight major symbols known as the ‚ÄúEight Auspicious ‚Ä®Symbols.‚Äù Let’s start by discussing one you may have already noticed: ‚Ä®the Lotus

The Lotus

The lotus has various symbolic meanings throughout Hinduism, and since 
Hindu influences pervade all of Buddhism, the lotus became important 
there too.

A lotus flower grows in the mud, its root stretching below the surface 
of the water, the stem reaches up through the water, and the flower 
appears to float on top of the water. This reflects symbolically the 
growth of the soul through materialism (the mud), experience (the 
water), and the sunshine (enlightenment/Nirvana).

The color of the lotus is also significant: ‚Ä®

White lotus = Mental and spiritual purity

Red lotus = The heart, compassion and love

Blue lotus = Wisdom and control of the senses

Pink lotus = The original historical Buddha

Purple lotus = Mysticism

The heart of a being is like an unopened lotus; when the virtues of a 
Buddha develop, then the lotus blossoms. This is why the Buddha is 
often depicted sitting on a blooming lotus flower.

Q&A #7

This is not exactly a question, but more an excellent recommendation by a reader:

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A Reader recently wrote:

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…The thought that I wanted to share with the rest of you is this: As a member of Netflix, it dawned on me to check and see what would come up for the searches; Buddha, Buddhist and Buddhism. The results were satisfyingly surprising. I only half-expected any results to be truly on-topic.

What I got back in the list of available discs was filled with documentaries, historical pieces, educational topics and even discs meant to supplement meditation. Don’t get me wrong, the list isn’t a who’s who of Buddhism, by any means. But, it had several titles that I found immediately worthwhile to add to my queue. The first of those queued titles arrived today.

Since first becoming interested in Buddhism, not too long ago, I immersed myself in what is my natural place to turn first. The internet. I read many many pages on Wikipedia, and then branched out in a multitude of direction, finding literally scores of fantastic websites, that now stuff my ‘Buddhism’ bookmark folder.

One of the places my searches took me was to the Bamyan Valley (spelling may differ). The giant Buddha statues there fascinated me. As one of the hobbies I eagerly pursue is the study of ancient astro-centric civilizations, this had a great feel of similar archeology about it. I read the article with zeal, until I got to the third paragraph, when my mouth hung open and my stomach pained me.

These massive works of faith, created some 1500 years ago, were dynamited by the leaders of the Taliban, after being proclaimed idols offensive to their religion. My heart sank.

The upside to my conveyance here is that one of the discs I found on Netflix, titled “The Giant Buddhas,” is a documentary telling their story and how the tragic events leading to their destruction unfolded.

I wanted to share this with anyone interested, and just express my satisfaction with the film.

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My Response

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Wow‚Ķ ‚ÄúBuddhist movies‚Äù is a topic I hadn’t even thought of before. That’s a great suggestion. A couple that I remember seeing, not documentaries, but regular ‚Äúfor entertainment‚Äù movies are ‚ÄúSiddhartha‚Äù and ‚ÄúLittle Buddha.‚Äù Neither are what I’d call great, but they have their moments. I’m sure there are plenty of documentaries available on Netflix.

If anyone has any movies they would specifically recommend, post it on the website, I’d love to hear about more movies!

Q&A #8

Disappointment, Part 3

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A Reader recently wrote:

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I think that one can only really take responsibility for their own attachments. We care about our friends, and it would be counterintuitive to just tell you to forget about it because it is his/her attachments that are at the heart of his/her problem. Clearly, part of the issue is your feelings about their feelings. Assuming that you have thought through a decision and came to the best decision for you, your friend really has the obligation to accept you. Love is more present in letting go of it. What your friend feels is possessive. You can only do your best to be honest about your decisions. Then, you have to accept your friends natural response. You can’t fix your friend. Just be honest. And then let it be.

I once had a similar situation. Only, I basically left in the middle of the night in anticipation of not facing a hard goodbye. I just left my portion of the remaining lease payment on the table and drove away. This is something that I regret having done. It was not until months later that we honestly talked and came to terms. Your friend needs to accept you for who you are and what you do. There is suffering in life, and that includes tearful goodbyes. Embrace what you both feel and let it be. Although Taoist, Lau Tsu once said something like, “If you want to shirk something, you must first allow it to expand.” This, to me, means that the solution to any difficulty is first in letting it truly manifest. Only in its true magnitude can it be settled. Hiding, burying, running, or even capitulating to avoid this thing you seek to shrink can only entrench it if you ask me.

I don’t think it is at all a matter of things not bothering us. I’ve never thought a Buddhist approach to be aimed at nihilistic vacuums inside a ethereal existence. Buddhism, as I try to discover it, aims at ontology, ignores metaphysics if it can help it, and helps in ways unique to each person. Do you think the Dali Lama is not bothered by the recent riots in Tibet? Of course he is. I can only imagine how hard it is for him to remember to work peacefully for peace.

I don’t have answer one for you. I only encourage you to be honest and open to how you feel and seek some measure of communication. I don’t think this path is about burying you heart.

A coworker asked me something that I would like to push forward in this thread. How is a Buddhist supposed to feel about what is happening in Darfur? How does one find equanimity in that? I’ve been stumped on that one. I still don’t know how to reply.

Michael

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My Response:

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I agree absolutely on your response to the original poster and won’t add to it.

Ah, the situation in Darfur. Tibet. Myanmar too.

There is suffering everywhere, no matter who you are. You should do what you can to reduce suffering, within your power and within the limits of your ability to do so. But what about a situation like Myanmar, where people are clamoring to send aid, but the government of Myanmar turns it away? Is there no way to help?

Talking about the problem won’t help a bit, and going to war only makes it worse. If talking or force won’t fix the problem, what will? It will be resolved in time, but many people don’t HAVE time.

Sorry, I don’t have an answer. I don’t know that anyone does.

Buddhist Symbology Part 2

The conch shell is another well-know symbol in Buddhism. This is another of the big Hindu symbols that has passed over to Buddhism. The great hero Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita carried a conch, as did most Hindu gods and heros.

A conch used as a “horn” is often used to call together assemblies of Buddhists, especially in Tibet, but other paces as well other places. As the sound of the horn goes forth, so does the fame and truthful teachings of the Buddha.

Buddhist Symbology Part 3

The Parasol

A parasol is not an umbrella. An umbrella protects from the rain, while a parasol protects from the sun. The parasol also symbolically protects against “the heat of defilements.” Another way to look at it is that the parasol represents the sky and the handle represents a mountain that holds up the sky, or possibly the axis that holds up the whole world. The proximity of the person under the parasol to the “axis of the world” represents the importance of the person.

Still another way of looking at it is that the dome of the parasol represents wisdom, and the hanging part symbolized compassion. The parasol as a whole represents the fusion of both.

Guess who is usually shown sitting under a parasol? Two points if you guessed “The Buddha.” However, other important figures, such as the Dalai Lama and others are entitled to parasols as well.

Buddhist Symbology Part 4

Golden Fish

Who wants to drown in the river of suffering? Who can avoid this fate? Fish of course! Just as fish swim where they wish and migrate as they will, an enlightened being can choose his own migration (rebirth). The fish can also represent fertility and abundance.

The golden fishes are another holdover from Hinduism, and are usually represented as a pair, historically symbolizing the Yamuna and Ganga rivers of India.

Mara The Tempter

We’ve briefly mentioned Mara a few times already. Last week (http://www.dailybuddhism.com/archives/83), we talked about four Maras that Buddha had to overcome. Those maras were symbolic representations of hindrances on his path to Nirvana. However, quite often Mara is portrayed as a physical manifestation of temptation.Much like Yama is sometimes considered the god of death, Mara is something like the god of temptation.

While Siddhartha Gotama (Buddha before his Enlightenment) sat beneath the Bodhi tree, Mara came to him with many temptations. He tried repeatedly to tempt Buddha to return to his wife and son, becoming a great king in the process. Failing in this, Mara hurled lightning bolts at him, but the lightning turned into harmless flowers before the got near Buddha. The thunderbolts turned into soft music.

Even today, Mara is said to tempt men’s souls, and is the lord of pleasures of the senses, and delights in confusing and misleading.

Announcements

The End of the Beginning?

As I do a quick mental inventory, I’m thinking we’ve covered most of what I would consider ‚Äúessential basic Buddhism.‚Äù It may be just about time to start covering more ‚Äúintermediate‚Äù topics. Before we start that, I want to make sure we’ve covered all the basics. So today, I’m going to put out another call for questions.

Have I missed a subject that interests you?
Is any topic that I’ve covered unclear or maybe too shallow?
Questions on anything?
Do you have any inspiring stories or personal thoughts you’d like to share?

Coming Soon…

I’m hoping to get enough reader questions and calls for topic elaboration to cover the rest of July, and then start the ‚ÄúDaily Buddhism: Book Two‚Äù in August. When we do start more advanced topics, what would you like to see?

Every Monk Has His Bowl

And once again, I need to mention that on the http://www.dailybuddhism.com website, there is a button labeled “Donate.” Buddhists around the world have survived for 2500 years on donations and gifts from others. Who am I to try to break that tradition? If you have enjoyed the emails and podcasts so far, please “drop something in the box.”

And have a great weekend!