Buddha Statues

It’s funny Adam and I are searching for a Buddha statue to put in our new living room. We joke about how when people come over, they can just stare at giant buddha instead of a television haha.

 It’s interesting you are drawn to Buddha Statues after you said this year has been very trans-formative for you and spiritual. We attract what we are after all, like attracts like 🙂

Buddha in sanskrit means “the awakened one”, one who is awakened to the truths of reality and understands how this reality works. An enlightened being who understand the nature of the mind, the world and all that surrounds the universe. 

The Buddha lived approximately 3000 years ago (some say 2500). He was an Indian prince named Siddhartha, who gave up his throne in order to search for the Truth, to find a way to bring relief to the sufferings of humanity. After many years of diligent practice, he reached Supreme Enlightenment while sitting under a bodhi tree. He then exclaimed, “Wonder of wonders! All sentient beings are inherently complete and perfect! But they do not realize it because of their delusions and cravings."  

There upon He was known as Sakyamuni (or Gautama) Buddha, and embarked on an endless, compassionate journey to teach living beings how to see Reality, how to gain true wisdom, how to free themselves, and how to achieve true peace and joy. His teaching is known as the Dharma. The Buddha taught for 49 years until he entered nirvana at the age of 80.

Many disciples of the Buddha, following the Buddha’s example, renounced the home life to devote their lives to the practice of Enlightenment, to the gaining of wisdom that can transcend suffering, and to teach other sentient beings the same. They formed the ordained community of Buddhist monks and nuns known as the Sangha. Sangha means "harmony” or “harmonious assembly”. The Sangha is responsible for practicing, achieving, preserving, and propagating the Buddha Dharma. Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha are called the Triple Jewel.

“ To be Awakened means to see Reality as it is, not as we think it is. To see Reality is to gain true wisdom and this wisdom will free us. We are not trapped by external conditions, but by our misperceptions and prejudices. Whatever we do, our actions create reactions that come back to affect us. Because of this, we are responsible for our own actions. Also because of this, we are responsible for our own salvation. And exactly because of this, each one of us is capable of achieving Perfection. We just need to know how. The Dharma teaches us how. There are many ways of practice, many "Dharma gates” to achieve Enlightenment, and they all fall into these general categories: performing good deeds, meditation, and studying the Dharma.  .“ ~ Ven. Jian Hu

So my personal interpretation of the symbolism of this is that you are starting to seek enlightenment and Spiritual Awakening. You collecting buddha is just like someone collecting crystals, they are all archetypal symbols towards our subconscious. The Buddha statue also symbolizes the four noble truths and the eight-fold path. The path of virtue, integrity and honor. 

We all can become Buddha, we all have the infinite potential within us as the universe lives inside of us forever. We can live in a world free of delusions and suffering if we find the wisdom and compassion within ourselves to share with others. 

I hope this helps you

Ash