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Fat Buddha?
Nerima
Veteran
Why is Buddha depicted in different forms? Is it a cultural thing?
I grew up in Taiwan where I noticed Buddha is often fat and jolly.
I also lived in Thailand, and there Buddha is depicted serene and dignified.
In India I noticed Buddha is depicted realistically, similar to Thailand.
Any thoughts on this?
Just wondering.
0
Comments
The fat Buddha is not Buddha.
The "fat Buddha" is Hotei / Budai, not Siddhartha Gautama. Hotei's nickname is "Laughing Buddha", that's what has led to such confusion.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budai
In a lot of countries, Jesus is depicted as a white/pink person, when in fact he was almost assuredly brown. When it comes to credulity, I think culture is a good bet for Gautama or any other religious/spiritual leader.
The fat "Buddha" was a spinoff of a Chinese folk tale, I believe.
Generally, it's how any of us practice the practice that matters. How the guy/gal looked is small potatoes.
@genkaku You are so right about the white (blue-eyed) portrayal of Jesus. That is a pet peeve of mine, a whole other discussion!
Any Buddhist who watched the show "The Finder" also knows Hollywood isn't immune to such misinformation... the lead character called the Buddha fat.
An even more aggravating situation is the song "Some Children See Him".
On top of that confusion between Hotei and Gautama, many of the seated in lotus figures being sold or pictures on the web are not Buddha, but various Hindu deities. I can't keep them straight.
In many Asian countries, being "fat" is a sign of prosperity, health and wealth (in some parts of Asia, especially the Indian continent, many actors in the posters advertising certain produces are plumpish) and portraying the Buddha as fat is also a sign of happiness/contentment-hence the somewhat obese, smiling Buddha image....Well that's my take on it...But I could be wrong...
The Buddha is a hotty HOTEI.
Seen him used quite often as a MAITREYA depiction, even in the Therevada tradition . . .
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budai
I use him in this way. I like a happy, fatso giving presents to kids. Father Christmas is the next Buddha in time maybe . . . I think the MettaRay needs all the manifesting potential possible.
I'm very much into Feng Shui.
My house looks pretty much like a Chinese take-out, actually.
So I am more than used to this fat-bellied smiling Buddha alter ego.
I have several scattered all over the house.
Sometimes it's just cultural. A lot of times it's because according to some traditions, there is more than one Buddha. Any being that has attained Buddhahood is said to be "a Buddha". The fat guy Budai is said to, so he is called "Buddha". "Buddha" does not necessarily mean Siddhartha Gautama.
the depictions you see in statuary, thankas and such depict qualities of enlightened being as opposed to a representation of an actual person. Virtually every aspect of the image presented is meaningfull - hair, eyes, skin, clothing, posture, hands, ears and feet all mean something.
Buddhist iconography is a vast and facinating study.
It's also likely that the Buddhaa was aactually pretty lean. The diet he and his monks probably lived on, while healthy, probably didn't have tons of calories, and that he's said to have walked everywhere he went probably kept the weight down.
Theres a depicition of an emaciated Gautama referring to his days as a yogi
In Thailand you will sometimes see statues of the fasting Buddha. Quite striking.
Yes @seeker242 I totally forgot there are many Buddhas!
If you see the fat buddha on the road buy him a sandwhich.
Or recommend Atkins.
I feel like the Jesus as a white man thing is a crazy as depicting him as a woman - it just makes no sense....!!!