Buddha Statues
Keywords: Buddha Statue | Laughing Buddha Statue | Garden Buddha Statue.
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In earlier times, Buddha was depicted through the construction of Stupas over his relics. The Stupas bore elaborations of the life of Buddha, including the stages he went through before attaining enlightenment and thereafter. The symbols used were many including sacred tree, foot, umbrella, and holy seat. Mathura, in India, saw the emergence of images of Buddha in the earlier part of the Christian era. Most of the statues were made from stone by local sculptors, who had a family tradition of sculpting statues of gods. Gradually, Buddha statues started gaining in popularity, and various cultures influenced by the preaching of Buddha started sculpting Buddha statues depicting him in different stages of evolution. Today, Buddha statues can be found in various countries with distinctive local flavors. A Thai Buddha statue can be distinguished from say a Chinese Buddha statue, Tibetan, or a Japanese Buddha statue due to local cultural influences that have crept in. These countries, along with Khmer (Cambodia), Thailand, Srilanka, and India have some amazing antique Buddha statues. China’s fascination for Buddha can be gauged from the fact that it has popularized Buddha all over the world through its Buddha feng shui statues.
Serious followers of the Buddha reverently follow his teachings and try to attain spiritual evolution and Nirvana as preached by the Buddha. This deity, on the other hand, has been able catch the imagination of the non-Buddhists, who love to place a Buddha statuette in their homes. Buddha garden statues are placed among greenery to adorn gardens. Laughing Buddha, weeping Buddha, happy Buddha, fat Buddha, meditating Buddha, large Buddha, and small Buddha – are the kinds of Buddha statues that can be found in homes all over the world.
The earliest Buddha statues were made of stone, but they are now available in jade, resin, wood, ceramic, and other metals. Buddha has come to be recognized as a universal symbol of peace, which attracts people to his statues.
More Resources on Buddha, please visit Jatak Katha
Keywords: Buddha Statue | Laughing Buddha Statue | Garden Buddha Statue.