Building me shrine.
Rhodian
Loser Veteran
What's going on people.
As I said in my other topic I was going to build a shrine, however it is getting complicated, as I went and googled trough the internet people started about the rules. First of how high the buddha statue should maybe be and that you cannot have any icons above it. Sadly I got a painting that I cannot take away since it was put there, to preserve it. My great grandmother made it.
Also I read about offerings bowls and you have to offer fruit and water and such, water would be no problem and I can see the idea behind it. But people are suffering and hungry I would prefer to take account of how much a banana to offer would cost me each day and at the end of the month gift it to a good goal or something. Of course you can offer your fruits and stuff at the altar, I myself just think is that what the buddha wanted? When his teachers argued about what he said, he said that he didn't say anything at all his whole life.
Besides that I do understand you have to treat the statue and shrine with respect but with the shrine I get this 'I am honoring a God' kind of vibe. Of course explanations tell me it's more for yourself, but I am not comfortable with it yet.
So what do you guys think about these rules? I do have a small table it has no multiple floors etc but I could put the Buddha a bit higher in the middle and well it's not to big but a few things could fit on it! It has a drawer that I use to, what do you all think?
Comments
I know what I think the Buddha man would say if he were standing in your room. I am pretty sure he would say do with what you have...I think he has said that somewhere in his book about the story of his life. He was a sensible man, otherwise, I'd have nothing to do with him. Ha!
I'd say don't worry about those rules -- I figure they aren't modernized and the Buddha would certainly understand that - anyway, he's not a god so there is no one visible or invisible to look in and judge what you're doing. I think this is definitely one of those places and times where it IS the thought that counts.
I'd offer fake fruit - reusable and cheap that way. I think your own special shrine or altar would speak far more of the state of your heart and mind than worrying over some silly rules. I think it's a project that practically demands that you enjoy creating it.
You can use old tins or small boxes to make layers to your alter. Just my 2 cents.
About 'god' I think you should remember how rare it is in the multi-verse that there is a being, you, who cares about the dharma. So the shrine is part of your sacred space. By space I mean it is something with thought put into it that is inspiring. Buddha said that it is as rare to have a human birth with the dharma is a sea turtle who raises his head and goes in a loop.
http://www.khandro.net/animal_turtle2.htm
For the fruit you don't have to have fruit. Alternatively you could give it to the Buddha, he blesses it, and then you eat it to share in the blessing. Say 'om' 'ma' 'hum' over the food when you eat it. Om is the universal body of the Buddha, Ma is his message, and Hum is the bliss of the mind.
With a shrine it's not the thing to have to be perfect about. On the other hand if you are a perfectionist it's ok to be meticulous. I like the idea that you can use your own intuition. Also as your practice and responsiveness to ritual and symbolism adapts you can always change your shrine around.
YES!
Traditionally, a shrine needs only 3 components - representations of enlightened form, enlightened speech, and enlightened mind. These can be represented any number of ways but form is usually a statue or picture of the Buddha, speech a copy of a sutra or some other sacred text, and mind is usually a stupa statue or picture.
A candle and flowers are often included (light and fragrance). water offerings are also used - one, three or seven bowls. Incense is also common.
You don't have to offer food. I do, but in the form a small torma representing a food offering.
Many Buddhists will include a picture of their teacher/guru and the head of their lineage.
Perhaps, what is most important, is that there be nothing of self on the shrine.
I agree not to worry about following picky rules. Buddha in either statue or painting should be center. Offerings don't have to be food or water. It's the act of giving that's important. I use candles and incense myself.
'Building me', is what in part you are doing. Building a representation of self as Ideal Buddha. A reminder to Awakened Self.
The nature and form will change.
Me changes, shrine changes. The apples on my shrine got mindfully eaten. The laptop changes images. The puja and incense and perfume get used up, the water in the crystal gets used to clean dust etc . . .
So this boy, went to clean his room, and tried to build the foundations of a shrine. Here it is, I figured instead of fruit I will put tea in one of the cups and water in the other, and then I do not know how long you should leave an offer but I will drink my tea then whenever the day is ending or such I use lose tea hence the spoon. Also I will make an incense offering but I do not want to use incense because I do not know if incense is very healthy I think I will use oils with an oil burner since you can get oils made without chemical additives.
As you can see there is three stages I have created one with a dvd case and one with my nook e-reader package. It's not a big gap but I have put two things on each stage to show I was able to make 3 stages!
Also the strange bag is a mala bag with my mala in it. Now I need to figure out what the stages do and what I put on the second stage on the first stage I will put a buddha but I have none at the moment.
@Silver
Thanks for your advice, I decided to indeed use some stuff to make stages, and it worked out greatly. So thanks a lot, for the fruit I found a solution as I said above just use loose tea and drink it at the end of the day, also I thought of using vitamin pills lol.
@Jeffrey
Thanks a lot for your input and learning me the chants I should use when I am about to drink my tea.
@Chaz
My yoga teacher had her buddhist shrine in the yoga room in a corner it indeed had a picture of two buddhist monks, I guess it was her master and the head of the lineage. Makes sense now, thanks for your input. I will have to find something for the speech to put on my shrine I guess
@Cinorjer thanks!
@Lobster
Looks very nice! Thanks for showing me a picture, that kind of fired me up. Thanks a lot Lobster!
Do you have a printer? Can you print off a nice painting of Buddha and stick it in a frame? That's all it takes.
Some schools of Buddhism do prostrations (bows) before the altar as part of our practice. It's up to you, what you do with it.
I might do that or I might buy a buddha statue I am not sure, I think I would like the view of a statue, since even if I printed something I'd have to ask my mom she has a printer, and I'd have to buy a frame still. I will look around and keep you posted when it is done! thanks a lot for your input.
Great start there, @Rhodian.....I LOVE the tea idea. (*)
@Rhodian, the chant should be OM AH HUM... not MAH.. sorry couldn't edit when I found the error.
My altar is a constant work in progress.
I keep putting and taking away things.
Water is a no-no because my altar is in my bedroom and according to feng shui, you should not have water element in your bedroom.
Like @Cinorjer, I use candles and incense.
Green Tara and Ganesha (a Hindu deity, but I have loved him all my life
) are permanent fixtures.
I put everything on a Tibetan folding table: two Tibetan singing bowls, a Chinese incense burner with Chilins, which are auspicious mithological animals, photos from my spiritual gurus. Have added the picture of Dzogchen Rinpoche and the mala made by a very dear friend of our site since this picture was taken.
Sorry to include the same picture again and again.
@DhammaDragon
That looks very awesome, I found a buddha statue website, that was also really close to me. They only have a webshop but I mailed and chose out 4 buddha's I wanted to see. She said she would take them to her home and I could come and look at the buddha's. I will then buy one, and after that put it in my shrine to then find an incense thing, I might use essential oils instead of incense sticks, since I am afraid of the chemicals in them. But your altar is very nice maybe I should start embracing tibetan buddhism there is a Kadampa temple I could get to by car.
@Jeffrey
Thanks it is noted.
@Rhodian. Heres a very simple tip. You need not light the incense you want to offer. There are a few people who like to use my practice area who are allergic to the smoke produced by burning incense. So for them they simply place the incense.
I much prefer essential oils. Love to have nice smells in my home and incense sticks don't smell as good to me.
Shrine looking really good!
Awesome I am quite lost in this world of oils, i read you can put those drops on a small stone and it will smell good how do you spread also which smells so you use I was thinking of cedar.
@Rhodian the one aroma lamp I used there was a little 'house' with a votive candle in it and set on top of the walls of a house there was a bowl with water in the bowl. The flame of the candle heated the bowl of water and the oils were put in the water. You can get an electric 'warmer' and I would do that because of risk of a fire.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=aroma+lamp&rh=i:aps,k:aroma+lamp
I do the same as @Jeffrey - with a candle. Have not had any fire issues so far!
The oil I use tends to depend on which chakra I am working on. I use cedar for security. For the past few months, I have been focussing on my throat chakra so have been using geranium oil. I use a mixture of lavender, when I need relaxation, patchouli when I need balance and bergamot when I need an energy boost in my bath.
Think I need to give my third chakra some care right now. This gives a choice of:
Sandalwood sounds good for this time of year - plus I already have some!
If I can't research what is appropriate, I just do it by what smells good to me at the time. That's pretty much always my most reliable way of deciding.
@SarahT I have found it confusing in chakra aroma therapy that different authors have different views on which chakra. Of course that could be because there are multiple correlations.
I use an electric essential oil diffuser for the home, but still prefer the old-school sandalwood stick for the altar.
There are many organic brands available with natural oils.
You can get professional advice in any good health shop or pharmacy or check on Amazon.
Is it the smoke or the scent of the incense that's symbolic or something?
I'm not into altars but I love decorating with stuff, but if its just the aroma, you could even use dryer sheets wrapped in a decorative napkin or satchel.
Yes.
Oils are the essence of our aspirations. Smoke has a visible tendency to take these aspirations upward.
Smoke is also a reminder of the state of our wind/mind.
You can light incense and immediately blow it out, which is also an offering, enactment of enlightened mind.
Oils are I would suggest are less traditional but healthier new age dharma improvement (now there is a novelty).
Sandalwood is used traditionally for concentration, others are used for relaxation. Camphor for example opens the lungs but should be used moderately. Frankincense is used in Tantra on occasion.
I do have sticks, one scent that I found at the local pharmacy is called Naga Champ, I believe, and it's really nice.
I toss dryer sheets under the seats of my van, fwiw.
Yes - I do find there are multiple correlations. For example, geranium is recommended for both third and fifth chakras. It's the confusion that makes me rely most on what my nose tells me!
I love watching the steam come off my incense burner
@SarahT. Will wonders never cease. Another cheery gift to us all. Cool.
A buddha has appeared on the scene.
Oh, very nice!!
That is soooo beautiful, @Rhodian!
We have a similar Buddha statue in the living-room.
It seems to exhude so much peace and kindness, that the first thing every kid that comes to our house does, is go up to him and caress his face.
My son did that all the time when he was a toddler.
When it arrived by post, the statue had a 20 mm deep cut from the folding leg down, which in no time opened to almost 50 mm and up to the breast.
The company sent us a replacement statue, but since they are all handmade and therefore unique, we simply could not relate to it. It lacked that spark.
There is a shop that repairs wood not far from us, so I decide I would pop by some time.
But to our total astonishment, a couple of weeks later the cut simply closed and disappeared. You can see absolutely no trace left.
I was told that wood is alive, but this is by far the most experience I've had with wood "aliveness and kickness."
@DhammaDragon
Thanks a lot I really love the statue, I was also going to order it by post but the delivery cost was rather high... So I thought forget about it I live in a very rural area, not a lot of shops here. After a while I went googling and by accident googled that store, and lol seems they lived 13 kilometers away from me a 12 minute drive, so I e-mailed them and made an apointment, had them set 4 buddha's ready for me. They have no shop but they go to Bali and import the statues there.
So I bought it and indeed he also told me wood is alive, things to take care of. Do not put it very close or on a radiator, this will make it burst.. The temperature difference makes that so. Also he told me to sometimes uhm use beewax on it with a paintingbrush, this protects the wood and such and so on.
But very awesome you have one like that! It really did look nice of all four buddha's this one was special for me.
The statue for my little shrine is only about 6 inches tall. He's back center atop a carved wooden box. I kinda wish I knew how to share photos here from my phone. The shrine serves me well but is very simple.
I'd like to incorporate Ganesha into the shrine but the statue I have is too big... Will have to wait until I get a bigger Buddha.
A very nice find, @Rhodian...I'd be very pleased to find one that nice.
@ourself
If you have facebook you can upload pics from phone to facebook and trough that you can take the url link and post it in a image.