Gardening secrets

Asian Decorating Touch, the Reclining Buddha

Every decorator knows that when a client wants a room which is relaxed as well as peaceful, there’s just one direction to choose the decor, and that’s East. Imagine water features, bonzai, graceful flowers, lovely screens and exotic sculptures. It is possible to create a touch of the orient in numerous ways, however among the most straightforward would be to add a statue of the Buddha. There are more than one hundred known positions and three distinct orientations for these statues, so there will be one that would be ideal for virtually every room or space, even when it’s an awkward shape or size.

Buffets and desks almost all seem to cry out for a seated Buddha, gardens and balconies might be just right for a standing Buddha, however many spaces need an subject much broader than tall. There the optimal thing is a reclining Buddha.

Almost all Buddha statues have 32 features believed to have been physical features of the first Gautama Buddha who was born around 563 BC. They are also referred to as the ‘Thirty Two Signs of a Great Man’, and consist of:

- flat feet

- a pointed head

- beautiful golden skin

- long fingers all the same length

- long toes all the same length

- a robe draped over one shoulder

- long ear lobes

The Buddha was not in favor of representations of his own form, and so the real question is, why are there so many Buddha statues?

It appears this may be another matter that may be attirbuted to the Greeks, and on one Greek in particular, Alexander the Great. When Alexander occupied Northern India and Afghanistan, the leader left lots of military and artisans behind, therefore the artwork associated with that region was to a great extent affected by classical sculpture, as well as through Greek concepts of Gods and mortals. Alexander was well-known for enjoying the imitation of his own face, having understood the worth of paintings and sculpture as products of propaganda.

This might be why Alexandrian India, with a partially Greek population as well as ties to Greek tradition, was the earliest region to create Buddha statues. These became exceptionally popular and the concept propogagted with Buddhism itself, even so as Islam forbade the representation of the human form and considered such statues as idolatry, many of the historic and beautiful statues of the Buddha in that area have since been destroyed.

Generally there are a few established poses for these sculptures that refer to certain concepts or events in the life of the Buddha.

But the most interesting is the reclining pose of the Buddha. There are two versions. The first shows the Buddha, resting with his head on his arm. This is the sleeping Buddha, but the alternative pose, where Buddha’s feet are resting together, represents the day the Buddha entered Nirvana.

At age eighty, the Buddha sat down and told his followers he would soon enter parinirvana, the condition that happens whenever the physical body of an individual that has achieved total awakening or enlightenment ultimately passes away. He consumed his final meal and after that became strongly ill. He asked his followers for any inquiries that they had and when there weren’t any he gave all of them his last instructions. “All composite things pass away. Strive for your own liberation with diligence.” Tradition tells that when his body was placed among the sala trees, the plants bloomed, even though it was not the time of year.

This is the event commemorated by the reclining Buddha statue. In Thailand the most common pose shows the Buddha with legs crossed and with his left hand in his lap while the right points to the ground, palm inward in a pose called ‘Calling the Earth to Witness’ and relates to the specific of the Buddha’s enlightenment.

Whichever form your room, generally there is a Buddha statue which will fit, bringing a sensation of peace and harmony to your home.

About the Author

Kellog Vanderhague was walking through a Japanese garden recently when he was inspired to create a new look for his downtown loft. He was able to find
Buddha decor
online with great prices at Big Buddha Statue. He was especially delighted with their
Buddha head
collection with interesting pieces in brass, lais lazuli and even wood.

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