Pictures of revered teachers, places, rupas, temples, bhikkhus, shrine rooms etc. that bring inspiration to our members. Pilgrimage advice, devotion etc.
Hmmm....
I think if you check you might find that you're not actually a Buddha but a putthujana (worldling).
Plwk:
The placement of a Buddharupa is about developing respect, gratitude and some of those other good-to-have mental qualities which assists one on the path.
kind regards
Ben
“No lists of things to be done. The day providential to itself. The hour. There is no later. This is later. All things of grace and beauty such that one holds them to one's heart have a common provenance in pain. Their birth in grief and ashes.”
- Cormac McCarthy, The Road
Learn this from the waters:
in mountain clefts and chasms,
loud gush the streamlets,
but great rivers flow silently.
- Sutta Nipata 3.725
True Ben. The Southern Indian friends I know have no qualms placing religious statues on the floor, including a Buddha rupa. To them, that spot on the floor is as usable as a higher platform as long as it's a designated area for religious practice. In my culture, the Chinese one that is, however, it is totally 'inappropriate' or even 'taboo' to place anything religious or regarded as respectable on the floor and should always be eye level or higher. Hence, I came to a conclusion, 'when in Rome, do as the Romans do'...
It seems that there is also a tradition at least in Korea to express different aspects of the Buddha in the four directions:
Each statue has different hand positions. The Buddha facing east is in the fearless position. The Buddha facing west is Turning the Wheel of Dharma. The Buddha facing south is touching the earth and the Buddha facing north is in the reclining position (the Buddha's final state of enlightenment before his death). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palsangjeon
But mostly it is a matter of folk beliefs and ritual behaviour, as this article shows:
[quoteBut mostly it is a matter of folk beliefs and ritual behaviour, as this article shows:][/quote]
I am not going to discard old belief without some good investigations.
When we say Buddhas statue, we are not just talking about concrete or rocks.
Buddha's statue is a meditation lesson written without words or letters. (eg: cross leggs and body erect is an important when meditate)
It also should remember that Hindus were worshiping sun in this period and Buddha had to adhere to some customs.
Another factor is the earths magnetic fields and we do not know how it affect our mind states.
If you are meditating in the morning will you be facing east or west?
If you are meditating in the afternoon will you be facing east or west?
“As the lamp consumes oil, the path realises Nibbana”
So why did the Buddha face east?
Well we know that the Buddha was enlightened on the morning of Wesak that is in May. This time of the year is the peak of the hot indian summer. He first sat down under the Bodhi tree on the evening of Wesak Eve probably around 5 to 6 pm when the sun was low on the horizon.
So the Buddha faced east, for no mystical reason but because in this position, he was on the eastern part of the large Bodhi tree where the shade was and he had his back to the Bodhi tree and the evening sun.
When meditating, one should sit facing towards nibbāna, which means that one should practice with one's mind inclined towards not clinging to anything, whether that be pleasant experiences, unpleasant experiences, having good concentration, poor concentration, pure thoughts, impure thoughts, etc.
Bhikkhu Pesala wrote:I think Sarath's comment was also meant to be taken figuratively. You cannot meditate facing nibbāna if your mind is erupting with defilements.
Perhaps. "Sitting on a volcano" is an expression I haven't heard before.
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Cool, another topic necro-posted back up to front page. Reading this thread brought back some memories...
pilgrim wrote:So why did the Buddha face east?
Well we know that the Buddha was enlightened on the morning of Wesak that is in May. This time of the year is the peak of the hot indian summer. He first sat down under the Bodhi tree on the evening of Wesak Eve probably around 5 to 6 pm when the sun was low on the horizon.
So the Buddha faced east, for no mystical reason but because in this position, he was on the eastern part of the large Bodhi tree where the shade was and he had his back to the Bodhi tree and the evening sun.
Yes, I agree with this and also the other posters that if it has meaning for you, then by all means do so, but focusing on it as if it were some kind of commandment would be attachment to rites, rituals.
Since this topic first began in the meantime I had a Maha Bodhi replica built at my place and by good luck and chance has it, the position was just right so that it faces East, including the main Buddha statue inside.