After our discussion in class, I took some time to think about what artifact has impacted my life. It took me quite some time to think of something tangible, but finally I was reminded of a story that I had heard in my Interpersonal Communication class last semester. It is ‘The Story of the Golden Buddha’. As we speak about artifacts and the way they shape our world, we seem to focus on smaller aspects of life. For example, Bell Hooks looked at individual works and how their language, or images have potentially impacted women or minorities in our society. For me, ‘The Story of the Golden Buddha’ did not just change my perspective in one aspect of my life, but instead has changed many. There are several version of ‘The Story of the Golden …show more content…
However, what impacted me was actually the author’s interpretation of this story. He explains, “we are all like the clay Buddha, covered with a shell of hardness created out of fear, and yet underneath each of us is a ‘golden Buddha’…which is our real self” (Canfield, 2013). As we were listening to this story in class last spring, this message struck a chord within me, and I left the class feeling different. Had I really let those around me contribute to coving up my ‘natural self’ as Canfield calls it? Without knowing it, was I walking around with years of “clay” and not giving the world all I had to offer? These questions bothered me for several days and finally I decided that if I felt the need to question it, this was probably happening. From then on, it changed my perspective on how I represent myself in the world. I used the golden Buddha as a symbol of the kind of person I wanted to be for myself. I made a promise that if I felt the need to act a certain way based off of others, I would instead act the way I actually felt. That I would be honest and embrace my natural self, instead of hiding it. If this changed the way others felt about me, then so be it, because I deserved to feel golden all the time. Since then, I have seen myself in a more confident light. I have learned how to trust my instincts and to always do what is right for me, even if it is not what I am being told is
The Buddha was and is an important figure in several different cultures, and his influence has spread over large areas. Across these different cultures, many forms of art portrayed him in different ways. In Japan, one of the Buddha’s titles stood out as the “Amida Buddha.” The statue that this paper will be detailing portrays “Amida, the Buddha of Infinite Light” (“Amida”). The statue is located in the Dayton Art Institute’s Japanese Art Gallery 105 with the acquisition number 1935.1. Created in the thirteenth century during the Kamakura period, this statue stands out in the Dayton Art Institute as a prominent Buddha figure. It is made of wood with lacquer and gilt, and it was built to be approximately the size of a normal person.
Thích Nh’at Hanh is a world renowned Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk, religious figure and accomplished writer. Living Buddha, Living Christ is only one of his many famous publications. Thích Nh’at Hanh, is famous for his insights into spiritual heritage and mindfulness in the present moment. Many Americans are seeking religious understanding and personal spirituality, even if they do not practice in the traditional manner. Throughout this book Nh’at Hang encourages readers to find meaning, understanding, mindfulness, and peace in the teachings of Buddha and Christ. His main focus is to open meaningful dialogue between different traditions, cultures, and religious groups around the world, for the betterment
Analysis of Buddhism Plain and Simple by Steve Hagen The book Buddhism Plain and Simple, by Steve Hagen, caught my attention and became more interesting to me than I thought. I have always heard of the religion Buddhism, but I never knew what it was all about. I never thought that Buddhism was as huge as it is. I knew that it existed in other countries, but I never knew what exact countries. Many of the views in this book surprised me and the book taught me a lot about morals and better ways to live your life.
Yu, Han. “Memorial on Buddhism”. Making of the Modern World 12: Classical & Medieval Tradition. Trans. Richard F. Burton. Ed. Janet Smarr. La Jolla: University Readers, 2012. 111-112. Print.
Walking into the Hall of the Buddhas, there was a sense of peace and guidance lingering inside me. The seated Bodhisattva, of the Northern Wei dynasty (386-534), CA.480, from the Yungang, Cave xv, Shani Province, made of sandstone, guarded the entrance. At first, I thought it was a time to be disciplined, but the transcending smile from the statue was a delicate fixed gesture that offered a feeling of welcome. It was not a place to confess your wrongdoings; neither was it a place for me to say, “Buddha I have sinned.” It was a room to purify the mind, the mind that we take for granted without giving it harmony. There was a large mural decorating the main wall called “The Paradise of Bhaishajyaguru”(916-1125). I sat down wandering if the artist of the portrait knew that his work would one day be shared on this side of the world, in my time. Much like Jesus Christ and his followers, the mural is a painting of healers and saviors. It was a large figure of the Buddha of medicine, (Bhaishajyaquru) surrounded by followers of Bodhisattvas, Avalokiteshvara, and Mahosthamaprapta with twelve guardian generals who have pledged to disseminate the Buddha’s teaching (Tradition of Liao 916-1125, Metropolitan Museum wall plaque).
The principles, elements and structures of Buddhism have been practiced for hundreds of years. Artistic renditions of Buddha have also been portrayed in many different ways. Drawings, sculptures and statues are just a few of the many types of art forms created since the beginning of Buddhism. The Metropolitan Museum of Art has many different stylistic artworks that are exceptionally intriguing. In particular, I have chosen two pieces of artwork I consider to be most interesting. Both depict an image of Buddha from different time periods. This essay will compare and contrast “Seated Buddha” (image 1), a sculpture from the Gupta period, India, and “Seated Buddha” (image 2), a hard stone from the Qing Dynasty, China. By looking at these two images of Asian art, Seated Buddha from India and Seated Buddha from China, they are each associated with Buddhism and originated from one similar form. However, they are representative of two separate, major theologies throughout Asia: Theravada Buddhism and Mahayana Buddhism images exclusive to each time period.
It is said that history is shaped by the lives of great men. Great men are leaders. They bring about change; they improve the lives of others; they introduce new ideas, models, and theories to society. Most of the world's religions were founded, developed, or discovered by great men. Two particular religions - Christianity and Buddhism - developed in different parts of the world, under different circumstances, and in different social atmospheres. But each religion is based upon the teachings of a great man. When one compares the life of Buddha with the life of Jesus, one finds that the two share many things in common. This essay aims to compare and contrast the lives of Buddha1 and Jesus in two key areas: conception and birth. In these two areas, one finds that the Buddha and Jesus share many similarities.
Ashvaghosha’s Buddhacarita: The Life of the Buddha serves as one of the most relevant and profound texts regarding the Buddhist religion and it’s foundations. However, unlike other popular religious texts, this one does not serve as a historical document but rather a vessel for explaining the teachings of the Buddha, serving as a guide for the followers of the Enlightened One. Ashvaghosha’s descriptions of the Buddha, his life, and his actions provide an example of the Buddha’s disciplines and truths, giving his followers a detailed and structured idea of his way of life. The Buddhacarita’s descriptions in particular focus on the teaching of pervasive suffering, it’s causes, and the paths (both right and wrong) to breaking free from it.
This paper is a comparison between two very different religions. Specifically Christianity and Buddhism. Coming from opposite sides of the globe these two religions could not be any farther apart in any aspect. I will discuss who Christ is for Christians and who Buddha is for Buddhists. I will also get into the aspects of charity, love, and compassion in both religions and I will be looking at the individual self and how christians see resurrection where the buddhists feel about the afterlife. One thing to keep in mind is that the two religions are very different but they seem to have a very similar underlying pattern. Both believe that there was a savior of their people, Buddha and Christ, and both believe that there is something good that happens to us when our time is done here on earth. This is a very generalized summarization but in order to go in to depth I need to explain the two religions more to fully convey this theory.
Armstrong, Karen. Buddha. New York: Lipper/Penguin, 2004. 66-98. Print.
Chinese artwork is a form that contains and demonstrates many different meanings and morals that can be linked back to not only religion, but the overall meaning of life. This paper will discuss the sculpture titled Seated Buddha and how it represents peace, enlightenment, and the overall importance of how these two components influence the mindset of the people involved in the Buddhist religion. The Seated Buddha was created between the 5th and 6th century in China. The artist of this piece is unknown, but this does not hinder us at all from seeing what the artist was trying to portray through the different aspects that they included in the Seated Buddha sculpture. This piece is crafted from stone and a chisel was then used to create the
Finding out about antiques, relics, and customs through narrating has formed who I am. These three things have inhabited of all societies to realize who they are. Family customs demonstrate how individuals experience their lives and cooperate with others. They additionally indicate how individuals respond when a relative weds into a group of an alternate ethnic foundation. Relics are great cases of material things that can instruct about one 's family history. Antiquities show who individuals are. This is valid for every single ethnic foundation.
Kunz, Sandra Costen. "A Buddhist in the Classroom." Buddhist-Christian Studies 31 (2011): 231+. Religion and Philosophy Collection. Web. 15 Nov. 2013.
For my site visit reflection paper, I decided to visit the Thai Buddhist Temple in Homestead. The reason this particular site was my choice was because information acquired from the videos in lecture about tradition and Confucianism in Asia made me curious to learn more about the Buddhist way of life. Because so many South Eastern countries instantaneously adopted Buddhism from India and then China with open arms, I decided to make the visit in the morning to learn the reasons for the international success of this way of life. This would give me a more interactive comprehension of Buddhism.
Story, Francis. "Buddhist Meditation." Access to Insight: Readings in Theravada Buddhism. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2014.