Meanings of different Buddhas
MESSAGES OF DIFFERENT BUDDHAS
Healing Buddha
A healing Buddha is an enlightened being who helps all living beings with unbiased compassion.
It protects them from physical and mental diseases and other dangers and obstacles and helps them eliminate the three poisons:
- excessive attachment
- the hatred
- and ignorance,
which are the source of all diseases and dangers.
He is usually seen in a sitting position, holding an aruna branch in his right hand, which is one of the most effective medicinal herbs and a wide-ranging antidote to diseases.
In her left hand held in her lap is a bowl full of healing nectar.
Zambala
In Tibetan Buddhism, Zambala is the god of wealth, the protector of material and spiritual economy and financial stability, who brings good luck, moral purity, long life, and increased intelligence.
It has five appearances that represent the essence and benefits of generosity, and their aspiration is to help the poor and the downtrodden.
Zambala is usually a pot-bellied male figure holding a mongoose in his left hand, which symbolizes strength, and a money bag under his hand.
Green Tara
The Green Tara occupies a special place among the statues, since, unlike the other statues, it is a female figure, the mother of all Buddhas.
Tara is the goddess of grace and compassion, who is freely available to everyone and takes under her patronage all those who suffer.
The Green Tara appears as a beautiful young woman wearing a crown decorated with five Buddha heads, seated on a lotus throne in a half-lotus posture, ready to jump whenever help is needed.
The lotus symbolizes the universe, the symbol of the soul, the birth of life, the unfolding of the chi hidden in the dark depths, thus representing freedom from suffering.
Czenrezi
Every person whose heart is moved by love and compassion, who acts deeply and sincerely for the good of others, without putting their own reputation or social status first, expresses the essence of Csenrézi.
Chenrezi is the most beloved of all Buddhist deities, except for the Buddha himself: he is considered the patron saint of Tibet, and his meditation is practiced in all branches of Tibetan Buddhism.
Whenever we feel passionate love for a person, an animal, or a part of nature, we experience our natural connection to Csenrézi.
Csenrézi's statues are usually four-armed, which symbolizes that his love and compassion can be found everywhere, which is why he is often seen in other depictions with a thousand arms and 11 heads.
Shakyamuni
When a Buddhist talks about Buddha, he is talking about Shakyamuni Buddha, also known as Siddhartha Gautama.
He was born as a prince 2,650 years ago, but leaving his wealth and palace behind, he meditated for years, during which he found the true meaning of life and finally achieved complete enlightenment, which is why he is the embodiment of enlightenment and teaching, and his teachings serve as the basis of today's Buddhism.
His sculptures depict Shakyamuni Buddha in different ways, with different hand gestures, sitting, standing, lying on his side or walking, representing different stages of his life and teachings.
Maitreya
According to Buddhist tradition, Maitreya is the future Buddha who will appear as a great spiritual leader and help find the path of virtue.
His main teaching will be loving-kindness, which will result in people giving up their deluded attitudes and harmful behavior.
Her most common depiction is that she is seated on a throne, awaiting the time when she will return, her hands held in front of her heart in a gesture of teaching, while she holds a lotus flower stalk between her thumb and forefinger, signifying her radiant power and purity.
Above Maitreya is a beautiful parasol, signifying that she offers shelter and protection to all beings.
Blessed Buddha
A typically seated figure, his right palm faces upwards and outwards, which has two different meanings:
- on the one hand, the raised right hand symbolically represents a shield,
- on the other hand, it shows the overcoming of fear, since whoever is protected by the shield is less afraid.
This statue represents courage and provides protection against fear, delusion and anger.
White Tara
Like Green Tara, she is a female figure, a symbol of longevity, but she is also known as the goddess of fertility and motherhood.
A forest goddess, she is usually associated with plant life, flowers, acacia trees and the wind.
Thanks to her connection with nature and plants, White Tara is a healing goddess who counteracts diseases, thereby helping to promote longevity and fertility.
She embodies compassion, and her relationship with the wind also means she is quick to respond to a call for help.
Most often, we can see his two arms resting on a lotus, eyes on his two feet and palms, and a third eye on his forehead, so he sees everything with his seven eyes.
Mahakala
Mahakala is not a Buddha, but a wrathful deity who repels monsters and defeats external and internal demons.
Mahakala is not bound by rules, he has the power to liberate space and time, to destroy living beings and the universe without mercy, because he is the personified form of time, so he is not bound to anything or anyone.
One of the strongest defenders, he comes into action when the other deities are no longer strong enough to repel attacks.
In the various forms of representation, a two-, four-, or six-armed deity has three eyes, his crown is decorated with eight skulls, and his figure is surrounded by flames.
How to place Buddha statues?
Buddha statues and images are not religious idols and do not represent any deity, their purpose is only to remind people of Buddha's teachings.
Buddha statues create a positive environment, but for this to happen, you need to choose the place of the statue carefully and pay attention to some basic things when placing the statue.
If we do this, the Buddha statue will increase the flow of energy in our home.
The unhindered flow of chi "life force" is what brings peace and tranquility to our environment.
When placing the statue, the following factors must be taken into account:
- if the statue is placed inside the apartment, it must be at least 75-80 cm high;
- the statue should face the front door, as it attracts positive energy and protects our home from negative energy;
- do not place the Buddha statue on the floor, in the kitchen, bedroom and bathroom;
- if we place the Buddha statue in the study room, make sure that it is placed in good light and is easily visible. It stimulates the flow of positive energy and enhances intellectual activity;
- full-figured Buddha statues always have more power than those depicting the head;
- the Buddha statue should be acquired in a positive spirit and with confidence;
- if we want to use the Buddha statue for meditation purposes, it is advisable to place it at eye level.
Offer something to your Buddha statue!
It is a nice gesture to treat the Buddha statue with respect and offer it something from time to time.
This means that we offer the best of ourselves to the best of our knowledge so that one day we ourselves can reach the higher level that the Buddha statue represents.
The act of gift-giving is an act of generosity, thus an emotional and physical expression of our respect.
We can offer many things, such as flowers, which are beautiful and when they fade, remind us of transience.
We can also offer a candle, with which we offer the radiation of our own mind and heart.
Remember: Buddhism is the path of wisdom, so we don't want to approach it with a vague, problem-filled soul, instead we offer the wisdom and brightness of our own mind to Buddha with the candle.
We can offer incense: incense has a calming effect on the mind, so when we offer incense, we offer our own peace to the Buddha.
Finally, by offering water in a small bowl, we offer purity of mind.
Water symbolizes goodness and virtue: we offer water because we do not want the purity of our minds to be tarnished by our actions, our thoughts and the words that leave our mouths.
We don't want our mind to be angry, it's like boiling water, we don't want our mind to be like dark, dirty water, that's why we always place clean, fresh water in front of the statue, which symbolizes that, that we strive for a clean and calm state.
