Guest guest Posted May 9, 2007 Report Share Posted May 9, 2007 The Buddha, at the time of his enlightenment, was just the opposite--so emaciated from living an acetic lifestyle (I don't want to write a whole book here, but just to let you know this was after living the high life as a prince in his youth) that he was on the verge of death. It is said that he lived on 5 grains of rice a day. When a girl saw him and offered him some food, he ate it, went to sit under the bodhi tree to become enlightened, and discovered " the middle way " of not too much, and not too little either. He went on to live a long life as a teacher. The " fat Buddha " statues you're probably thinking of are NOT the historical Buddha (Shakyamuni). I think they're actually a Chinese monk or deity?? (not quite sure about that) It's a fascinating tradition--I highly recommend reading more about the Buddha if you're interested. Best wishes! Judy Erin <truepatriot wrote: --- In rawfood , " Elchanan " <Elchanan wrote: > > My impression is that the Buddha, though wise in certain ways, was > nonetheless fat and did not live all that long. If my impression is > incorrect, please let me know! Bored stiff? Loosen up... Download and play hundreds of games for free on Games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 9, 2007 Report Share Posted May 9, 2007 Thanks, Judy! I really appreciate this. I've explored various things, but of course not everything, and you're right, what I " know " comes from seeing all those statues. I appreciate this info. Best, Elchanan _____ rawfood [rawfood ] On Behalf Of Judy Wednesday, May 09, 2007 10:29 AM rawfood [Raw Food] Buddha-OT-(was smoothies........) The Buddha, at the time of his enlightenment, was just the opposite--so emaciated from living an acetic lifestyle (I don't want to write a whole book here, but just to let you know this was after living the high life as a prince in his youth) that he was on the verge of death. It is said that he lived on 5 grains of rice a day. When a girl saw him and offered him some food, he ate it, went to sit under the bodhi tree to become enlightened, and discovered " the middle way " of not too much, and not too little either. He went on to live a long life as a teacher. The " fat Buddha " statues you're probably thinking of are NOT the historical Buddha (Shakyamuni). I think they're actually a Chinese monk or deity?? (not quite sure about that) It's a fascinating tradition--I highly recommend reading more about the Buddha if you're interested. Best wishes! Judy Erin <truepatriot@ <truepatriot%40metrocast.net> metrocast.net> wrote: rawfood@ <rawfood%40> .com, " Elchanan " <Elchanan wrote: > > My impression is that the Buddha, though wise in certain ways, was > nonetheless fat and did not live all that long. If my impression is > incorrect, please let me know! <http://geo./serv?s=97359714/grpId=5520395/grpspId=1705015482/msgId =28984/stime=1178731787/nc1=4438979/nc2=4299915/nc3=4025347> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 10, 2007 Report Share Posted May 10, 2007 a little buddha trivia.... ...the fat buddha is the chinese version of him....robust, well-fed..laughing... he represents abundance in a world where the average person has none... ....his blessings are very much desired. ...it is in china that buddha is often worshipped as a god..versus thailand,or india, tibet, etc..where he is just an enlightened human being.... ...the study of buddha statues itself is fascinating...different countries reflect different nuances about buddhism through the appearance of the buddha statues...for example, you may have noticed some have his eyes half open while others have his eyes closed in meditation....they are reflections of variances in practice depending on the school of buddhism practiced... buddhism started in india, moved east thru china, and ended in japan. each country added their own variations to it, personalized it, if you will... so buddhas from each country will look either slightly, or largely, different... not unlike crosses in christianity.. ...you can understand why the destruction by muslims of the giant buddhas found in the east a few years ago was such a big deal...they were priceless reflections of the culture that carved them, and tangible, personal, representations of their religion. and i too recommend reading about the buddha..the similarities between him and other " dieties " is uncanny....8-) peace anna On 5/9/07, Elchanan <Elchanan wrote: > > Thanks, Judy! I really appreciate this. I've explored various things, but > of > course not everything, and you're right, what I " know " comes from seeing > all > those statues. I appreciate this info. > > Best, > Elchanan > _____ > > rawfood [rawfood ] On Behalf > Of > Judy > Wednesday, May 09, 2007 10:29 AM > rawfood > [Raw Food] Buddha-OT-(was smoothies........) > > > The Buddha, at the time of his enlightenment, was just the opposite--so > emaciated from living an acetic lifestyle (I don't want to write a whole > book here, but just to let you know this was after living the high life as > a > prince in his youth) that he was on the verge of death. It is said that he > lived on 5 grains of rice a day. When a girl saw him and offered him some > food, he ate it, went to sit under the bodhi tree to become enlightened, > and > discovered " the middle way " of not too much, and not too little either. He > went on to live a long life as a teacher. The " fat Buddha " statues you're > probably thinking of are NOT the historical Buddha (Shakyamuni). I think > they're actually a Chinese monk or deity?? (not quite sure about that) > It's a fascinating tradition--I highly recommend reading more about the > Buddha if you're interested. > Best wishes! > Judy > > Erin <truepatriot@ <truepatriot%40metrocast.net> metrocast.net> > wrote: rawfood@ <rawfood%40> .com, > " Elchanan " <Elchanan wrote: > > > > My impression is that the Buddha, though wise in certain ways, was > > nonetheless fat and did not live all that long. If my impression is > > incorrect, please let me know! > < > http://geo./serv?s=97359714/grpId=5520395/grpspId=1705015482/msgId > =28984/stime=1178731787/nc1=4438979/nc2=4299915/nc3=4025347> > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 10, 2007 Report Share Posted May 10, 2007 Thanks Anna, what a wealth of knowledge exists on this among our group. Elchanan _____ rawfood [rawfood ] On Behalf Of Anna Bishop Wednesday, May 09, 2007 7:28 PM rawfood Re: [Raw Food] Buddha-OT-(was smoothies........) a little buddha trivia.... ...the fat buddha is the chinese version of him....robust, well-fed..laughing... he represents abundance in a world where the average person has none... ....his blessings are very much desired. ...it is in china that buddha is often worshipped as a god..versus thailand,or india, tibet, etc..where he is just an enlightened human being.... ...the study of buddha statues itself is fascinating...different countries reflect different nuances about buddhism through the appearance of the buddha statues...for example, you may have noticed some have his eyes half open while others have his eyes closed in meditation....they are reflections of variances in practice depending on the school of buddhism practiced... buddhism started in india, moved east thru china, and ended in japan. each country added their own variations to it, personalized it, if you will... so buddhas from each country will look either slightly, or largely, different... not unlike crosses in christianity.. ...you can understand why the destruction by muslims of the giant buddhas found in the east a few years ago was such a big deal...they were priceless reflections of the culture that carved them, and tangible, personal, representations of their religion. and i too recommend reading about the buddha..the similarities between him and other " dieties " is uncanny....8-) peace anna On 5/9/07, Elchanan <Elchanan@pathofheal <Elchanan%40pathofhealth.org> th.org> wrote: > > Thanks, Judy! I really appreciate this. I've explored various things, but > of > course not everything, and you're right, what I " know " comes from seeing > all > those statues. I appreciate this info. > > Best, > Elchanan > _____ > > rawfood@ <rawfood%40> .com [rawfood@ <rawfood%40> .com] On Behalf > Of > Judy > Wednesday, May 09, 2007 10:29 AM > rawfood@ <rawfood%40> .com > [Raw Food] Buddha-OT-(was smoothies........) > > > The Buddha, at the time of his enlightenment, was just the opposite--so > emaciated from living an acetic lifestyle (I don't want to write a whole > book here, but just to let you know this was after living the high life as > a > prince in his youth) that he was on the verge of death. It is said that he > lived on 5 grains of rice a day. When a girl saw him and offered him some > food, he ate it, went to sit under the bodhi tree to become enlightened, > and > discovered " the middle way " of not too much, and not too little either. He > went on to live a long life as a teacher. The " fat Buddha " statues you're > probably thinking of are NOT the historical Buddha (Shakyamuni). I think > they're actually a Chinese monk or deity?? (not quite sure about that) > It's a fascinating tradition--I highly recommend reading more about the > Buddha if you're interested. > Best wishes! > Judy > > Erin <truepatriot@ <truepatriot%40metrocast.net> metrocast.net> > wrote: rawfood@ <rawfood%40> .com, > " Elchanan " <Elchanan wrote: > > > > My impression is that the Buddha, though wise in certain ways, was > > nonetheless fat and did not live all that long. If my impression is > > incorrect, please let me know! > < > http://geo.. <http://geo./serv?s=97359714/grpId=5520395/grpspId=1705015482/msgId > com/serv?s=97359714/grpId=5520395/grpspId=1705015482/msgId > =28984/stime=1178731787/nc1=4438979/nc2=4299915/nc3=4025347> > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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