Charity in Buddhism

In America, religion is often associated with types of charity. So it is interesting how Buddhism does not seem to participate in similar types of organized charity. Or do they? One reason why people might not hear about Buddhist charity as much is because Buddhist do not seek publicity for their charity. In fact, giving, or generosity, is one of the Six Perfections (paramitas) of Buddhism. However, for the act of giving to be “perfect” one must do it selflessly and without reward or praise. They say that even doing charity as a way to feel good about one’s self is doing it with the wrong intentions and is therefore impure.

I feel that this is a lesson that everyone should hold with them. With all of the different types of social media, I so often see people posting statuses about acts of charity they did or of others. It is true that this could be a good way of spreading awareness and encouraging others to do it. However, charity should not be done in order to make you look like a martyr, it should be done out of love and because you have a desire to fulfill a need of another individual.

Mount Wutai

Mount Wutai grew to become a sacred mountain as pilgrimage increased and monasteries grew in importance. The five peaks of Mount Wutai embodied the “true presence” of the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī as many monasteries were built with grand representations of the Buddha. One was called the Huayan Monastery which was a seven story pagoda built on a rising hill in the central valley of Mount Wutai. This was the first building in a series of many magnificent halls and pavilions and due to it’s location on the central axis is evidence of the pre-Tang style of monastic architecture. In the image hall of this magnificent monastery stand a grand statue of the Mañjuśrī  seated on the back of a lion. A Japanese pilgrim named Ennin travelled to Mount Wutai in 840 and described this statue in his diary:

“The statue of bodhisattva Mañjuśrī of the Great Sage appears in awesome spirit, and its dignified appearance is without comparison. Riding a lion, the statue [of Mañjuśrī] seems to take up the entire five-bay hall. The lion looked animated and nimble, seemingly ready to move. Vapor came out of his [open] mouth; for a while as I was beholding the view, it felt as if the lion were going to take off.”

This sacred place was meant as a place to revere the iconic statue and as a place of practice and enlightenment. Around the end of the seventh century, Mount Wutai went through a major transition, shifting the focus from the mountains to the bodhisattva. Mount Wutai was eventually converted into a Buddhist sacred site. The manifesta­tion of Mañjuśrī’s “true presence” actually altered the outlook of Mount Wutai.

It’s amazing how definitions and meanings of words, phrases, and places can change over time as the cultures changed. I feel like this change in meaning of Mount Wutai is similar to that of any site in America or around the world in which an important event has happened and changed people’s understanding and perception of that place. Or the meanings has changed of certain locations due to people capitalizing on natural wonders that don’t belong to them. It’s also similar to how meanings of words can change over time. The first word that comes to mind is the word “gay.” This word began as another way to say happy and transitioned to being synonymous with a person who identifies as a homosexual. Also for a while, teenagers would use is as another way to call someone stupid or a whimp but has since been fading out due to the changing veiwpoints of today’s society.

Therefore, as the number of the monasteries increased in the mountains so did Mount Wutai’s association with Buddhism and became a sacred place for practicing the religion. Mount Wutai became one of the most important pilgrimage site in Tang China. Due to it’s remote location the pious believer must travel a good distance in order to engage in the many spiritual experiences to be done at Mount Wutai.

 

SOURCE:
Lin, Wei-Cheng. Building a Sacred Mountain. Seattle, US: University of Washington Press, 2014. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 9 May 2016.

Buddhist Art

The earliest Indian art representations of the Buddha did not depict him in human form but instead his presence was indicated instead by a sign, such as a pair of footprints, an empty seat, or an empty space beneath a parasol. When the human depiction of the Buddha began in the first century A.D., there were many Roman influences in the artistic style with wavy curls and toga-like apparel. One of the most fascinating things about art is that it is typically representative of it’s time and culture. While art can give clues into specific lifestyles of ancient peoples it can also be confusing to historians and to costume designers because one must decide what is historically accurate and what is artistic license.

 

 

SOURCE

http://www.metmuseum.org/TOAH/hd/budd/hd_budd.htm

 

Buddha Poses and their Meanings

There are over 100 different poses of the Buddha each representing a different important event in the life of the Historical Buddha. The pose is called asana or an Attitude and is accompanied by a hand gesture, called a Mudra. People often place the Buddha statues in their home to provide them with peace and protection and to achieve a feng shui atmosphere in their homes.

Abhaya Mudra

Protection Buddha / Overcoming Fear

Abhaya is translated from Sanskrit as fearlessness. The Abhaya mudra is made with the open palm of the right hand extending outwards at the chest level or slightly higher. This mudra offers the energy of protection, peace and a sense of strong, deep inner security.

This depiction of a seated Buddha with the right hand raised and facing outwards has two common meanings. The first is that of the Protection Buddha, as the raised right hand symbolically represents a shield. The second meaning, Overcoming Fear, is similar to the first (since someone who receives protection is less fearful).

The main features of this pose, aside from the raised right hand, is that The Buddha can be depicted either sitting or standing, and the left hand may either be extended outward or palm up in the lap.  People would probably put this statue near their front door or in the living room since this statue signifies courage and offers protection from fear, delusion and anger.

 

Dhyana Mudra

Meditation Buddha / Amithabha Buddha

This mudra depicts one or both hands in the lap, face up, symbolizing wisdom, possibly accompanied by ritual objects such as an alms bowl. People will usually place a Meditation Buddha in a room used for meditation or as place to unwind as this statue promotes peace and calmness and can be helpful for improving people’s meditation skills.

In this pose, the Buddha’s legs are crossed, either in a Double Lotus pose (with the ankles of each leg tucked behind one another in a locked position), or in a Single Lotus pose (where one leg rests on top of the other leg). As this statue generally represents focused concentration, the eyes of the Buddha are either depicted as halfway closed, or closed nearly all the way. The silhouette of the statue is shaped – more or less – like a triangle, which represents stability.

Many of the largest Buddha Statues in Japan, such as the Great Kamakura Buddha Statue at Kotokuin Temple, and large statues in Korea are in the Meditation Pose. This pose is also known as the Amithabha Buddha, which means “Boundless Light.”

 

Bhumisparsha Mudra

Calling The Earth To Witness / Earth Touching Buddha

All the five fingers of the right hand of the Buddha is seen reaching to touch the ground, symbolizing the enlightenment of the Buddha under the Bodhi tree.

The most common pose you will find in Thai temples is with the legs crossed, the left hand in the lap, and the right hand pointing to the ground with the palm facing inward toward the Buddha. This posture is known as Calling The Earth to Witness, and it is the definition of the moment of enlightenment for the Buddha under the Bodhi tree.

It is the story of how the Buddha, after six years, finally was at the verge of enlightenment. Unfortunately Mara, the Demon of Illusion, tried to dissuade The Buddha from the final last steps. The Buddha meditated all night to overcome the fears and temptations sent by Mara, and then called the Earth Goddess to witness that the Buddha achieved enlightenment in order to share with the rest of the world. Witnessing that, the Earth Goddess wrung her hair, releasing flood waters that swept away the Demon Mara and all the temptresses he had released.

 

The Nirvana Buddha / Reclining Buddha

There are differences in the meaning of Reclining Buddha Statues, and to understand the difference it is important to take note of the right arm position. When the right hand is supporting the head as in the picture above then this signifies that the Buddha is resting, and is related to the story of the Buddha and the giant Asurindarahu who wished to see the Buddha but did not want to bow down before him. The Buddha appeared larger than the giant while laying down, and then showed him all of heaven and all of the heavenly figures that were larger than the giant, thus humbling him.

If the right arm is laying by the side of the Buddha (as in the picture below) then this signifies that the Buddha has passed away at the age of 80 and is entering Nirvana. It is said that an alms giver had accidentally given the Buddha pork that had gone bad, and this eventually led to the death of the Buddha.

 

 

The Silk Road and Buddhist Cuisine

Starting in the third century BCE, people began questioning the ways of sacrificial religions and feasts and began developing universal religions, or religions of salvation. Many religions still held on to some sacrificial practices for some time though. We know that in the Christian bible, Jesus came to earth to sacrifice himself for all people and to eliminate the need for other sacrificial practices. However, Christians still remember this sacrifice by symbolically eating the body and drinking the blood of Christ.

Regardless, with the adoption of these new religions, a new culinary history was under way in which religions adopted specific cuisines for their followers. Monks often would fast or take whatever was offered to them in their begging bowls but a more intricate cuisine was developed for higher institutions. One of the earliest Buddhist cuisines involved steamed or boiled rice, sugar, ghee, and shunned alcohol and meat. Meals that required this restraint were considered high cuisine.

 

Source:

Laudan, Rachel. Cuisine and Empire: Cooking in World History. , 2013. Internet resource.

Buddhism and Music

Early on, Theravada Buddhists had a very negative view of music. They actually thought of music as a sort of sexual luxury. One of the Ten Precepts in order for becoming a monk, “requires that the monks avoid dancing, singing, music, and entertainments, and to abstain from wearing garlands, perfume, or cosmetics.” Therefore, they believed that music should be taken with much caution for they feared that the focus of the music would be on the quality of the voice of the singer and not the teachings themselves.

However, just as the religions and many other items spread along the Silk Road, music began to spread too and be incorporated into more and more rituals and chants. A Buddhist text called the Amitabha Sutra, describes how heavenly singing and chanting  can be heard all around us through nature and the animals that inhabit the world we live in. These sounds are all played in harmony to guide people to enlightenment.

On Mike Walker’s Silk Road Religion blog he talks a lot about music on the Silk Road. He points out how songs were used as ways to help remember the religious texts as well as used in meditation. Buddhist also utilizes this technique to teach as well as to ward off evil spirits. He also discusses how the music of Shamanism is very similar to sounds heard in nature and I imagine that Buddhist and Shamanistic music are very similar because of how the songs and chants are used in rituals and meditation in order to achieve a spiritual state.

 

Sources:

Buddhist Sacred Music

http://www.personal.utulsa.edu/~john-powell/Buddhist_Music/

 

A Deeper Look Inside the Caves of the Thousand Buddhas

Qianfodong, or the Caves of the Thousand Buddhas, is a cliff located in the desert just ten miles out from one the large oasis towns along the Silk Road called Dunhuang. The caves began one night in 366 AD when a wondering monk named Yuezan became inspired by images of a thousand Buddhas in a cliff and dug out a small meditation cell no larger than a coffin. Others quickly followed suit and these small caverns were used as places for prayer and meditation for those taking the treacherous journey across the Taklimakan Desert. Soon larger caves were being carved out for public devotions and these shrines were soon filled with images of the Buddha and other adornments. These early caves inspired the name the Caves of the Thousand Buddhas. These caves are a beautiful example of the evolution of Chinese art and the integration of Buddhism into Chinese culture.

As time went on, monks who lived in smaller caves to the right of the cliff, began to fill the Mogao caves with sculptures, paintings, banners, and sutras. These paintings and statues consisted of delicately created apsaras (heavenly nymphs), celestial musicians, depictions of nirvana, and Thousands of Buddhas depicted in large statues as well as filled in a thousand times in any unused space of the cave walls. Among these religious depictions “were earthier details familiar to any Silk Road traveler: Central Asian merchants with long noses and floppy hats, wizened Indian monks in white robes, Chinese peasants working the land” (Larmer). Due to being buried in desert sand, these caves have stood the test of time with their thin layers of paint escaping the dangers of war and pillage, nature and neglect.

Amidst all the wonders of the many caverns, one very specific cave, number 17, held hidden treasures for hundreds of years. A secret door was concealed by a statue of Hong Bian, a prominent ninth century monk (shown below). This hidden cave was finally opened up in 1900 by Wang Yuanlu, the caves self-appointed guardian, who discovered thousands of Buddhist texts and paintings crammed into this small room from floor to ceiling. He tried to give some texts to local officials in order to try to receive a donation but was only ordered to seal up the cave once again. It was not until a Hungarian born scholar, Aurel Stein, arrived that the real contents of this cave would be revealed. There were Manichaeism, Nestorian,  Jewish, Taoist, Confucian and secular texts relating to the economy, social structure, and history of the time. These texts also came in many different languages including Chinese, Sanskrit, Uighur, Tibetan, Khotanese, Kuchean, Sogdian, and Hebrew. This carefully constructed cave was clearly a planned operation and not rushed in a time of invasion. Studies suggest this cave was walled up sometime before Tanguts invasion when they established the Xixia kingdom in 1038. The reasons for enclosing this cave could have been for fear of military action as well as a need to store and preserve these worn scrolls. Interestingly, the figure of Hong Bian guarding this entrance was actually originally installed in a cave higher up soon after his death in the mid-ninth century. Read more about this discovery on my friend Kayla’s Explore Religion Blog.

 

Sources:

Larmer, Brook. “Caves of Faith.” National Geographic June 2010: Vol. 217, Issue 6. Print.

Wood, Frances. The Silk Road: Two Thousand Years in the Heart of Asia. Berkeley and Los Angeles: U of California P, 2002. Print.

 

Mogao Caves on the Silk Road

The Mogao Caves or Mogao Ku is one of five Buddhist cave temple complexes located along the Silk Road that collectively make up Dunhuang caves. The Dunhuang Caves are often called the Caves of the Thousand Buddhas. Mogao Ku has the largest known collection of Buddhist art in China, including more than 45,000 square meters of murals and more than 2,000 painted statues, dated from the 4th through fourteenth centuries AD. When the caves first were being made, they were used mostly for meditation but as time went on the caves became a place to teach and convert others to Buddhism and offered an extensive library of parable and sutras.

Creating these beautiful caves did not come cheap and the sponsors of the excavation often had more personal motives in mind. For example, the largest statue, which is a 100-foot White Buddha, was sculpted in 695 for the Tang Dynasty Emperor Wu Zetian, the only female Emperor in Chinese history. The face of this Buddha was made in her image and was used as way to show her legitimacy as an Emperor by showing her dedication to the Buddha.

 

Sources:

http://imperialtours.net/attractions/mogao-cave-murals

http://archaeology.about.com/od/religionandmagic/fl/Mogao-Caves.htm

Buddha Art

Buddhism actually had a pretty strong impact on Central Asian Art. Some of the most precious and powerful Buddhist sculptures, paintings, and murals still exist along the Silk Road today. The image of the Buddha first began in the Gandharan culture when Buddhism reached Gandhara in the 3rd century BC. As Buddhism spread along the Silk Road, monasteries, stupas, and cave temples were built that housed some of the most astounding Buddhist architecture and paintings. These murals are beautiful and tell us a lot of historical information about these ancient people. Kings, queens, knights, ladies, monks and artists would donate to these temples and have themselves painted on the walls. These depictions showed what people looked like and wore in specific centuries. I find this fascinating as a costume designer because it can be really challenging to find genuine historically correct depictions of ancient clothing and these cave paintings are a great research tool.

 

 

Source:

http://www.silk-road.com/artl/buddhism.shtml

 

The Buddhist Robes

This may or may not be a surprise to you but there or many different types of robes worn by Buddhists. The wearing of these robes dates back to when Siddhartha became the Buddha. It is interesting to note that in the depiction of the Buddha, in statues or otherwise, the clothes he wears are all very clean and not worn out. This is misleading because his and other monks’ actual robes were made from rags pieced together.

Buddha taught people that their robes should be made from “pure” cloth, which was fabric the no one wanted. These fabrics included “cloth that had been chewed by rats or oxen, scorched by fire, soiled by childbirth or menstrual blood, or used as a shroud to wrap the dead before cremation.” Monks scavenged for these fabrics in the trash, by roadsides and cremation grounds. Today, monks no longer scavenge in trash but instead receive donations or purchase fabrics. Any truly unusable fabrics were cut off and the rest was washed and sewn together into a sort of rectangular shape; large enough for monks or nuns to be able to wrap it around their bodies. The fabric was then dyed by being boiled with vegetable matter; using “gleaned roots and tubers, plants, bark, leaves, flowers or fruits, especially heartwood and leaves of the jackfruit tree, which resulted in a variable and generic color known in Sanskrit as kashaya, denoting mixed/variegated, neutral or earth tones.” This is considered an impure color and when dyed with spices such as turmeric or saffron, the cloth took on a yellow-orange color. This explains the origin of the term “saffron robe.”

The original Buddhist robe comprised of three layers and is therefore known as the “triple robe,” or tricivara in Sanskrit:

1. The uttarasanga, sometimes called the Kashaya robe, is the main robe worn that is about 6 by 9 feet in dimensions and can be wrapped to cover one or both shoulders.
2. The antaravasaka was worn underneath the uttarasanga and was wrapped around the waist to the knee like a sarong. This was typically not worn alone unless the monks was sick or looking for a new uttarasanga.
3. The sanghati was an extra layer used for warmth or can be used as padding for a seat or for bedding. When not in use it can be folded and draped over one shoulder.

The nun’s robes were very similar in that they had the same three layers as the monks but the nuns wore two additional pieces making it a “five-fold” robe. The two other pieces included the samkacchika, worn as a bodice under the uttarasanga, and the udakasatika, which was their bathing cloth.

Theses robes were sufficient for warmth and decency in India but as Buddhism began to spread in China, this “triple robe” did not seem to be fit for the temperatures and societal standards of decency in China. So the Chinese monks began to wear an additional Taoist-style garment with large sleeves and fastened in the front (similar to a kimono). This was worn under the uttarasanga. Chinese monks also did more manual labor, such as gardening, and wearing the uttarasanga all day became impractical and they created split skirts (like culottes) or pants to be worn in place of the antaravasaka. Eventually, Chinese monks reserved the uttarasanga for meditation and ceremonial purposes only.

The Buddhist robes went through many changes throughout the years but it remains to say that robe is not what makes one Buddhist, it is the thoughts and beliefs of the one who wears the robes.

 

 

 

Resources:

http://buddhism.about.com/od/thefirstbuddhists/a/robes.htm http://www.urbandharma.org/udharma10/robe.html