Buddha Statues: Hairstyle?

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HenryDLacklaw
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Re: Buddha Statues: Hairstyle?

Post by HenryDLacklaw »

Check out statues of the Greek god Apollo. Sometimes his hairstyle looks pretty similar.
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tiltbillings
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Re: Buddha Statues: Hairstyle?

Post by tiltbillings »

Kim OHara wrote: The very *idea* of god-statues was Greek and overcame the expressed wishes of the Buddha who asked that no statues representing him be made,
Source for this?
>> Do you see a man wise [enlightened/ariya] in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<< -- Proverbs 26:12

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723
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Kim OHara
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Re: Buddha Statues: Hairstyle?

Post by Kim OHara »

tiltbillings wrote:
Kim OHara wrote: The very *idea* of god-statues was Greek and overcame the expressed wishes of the Buddha who asked that no statues representing him be made,
Source for this?
I can't remember, Tilt - sorry. I did a fair bit of research into early Buddhism 8 - 10 years ago but haven't looked at it much since then. If you had asked me three years ago, when I wrote that sentence, I may have been able to tell you but it has gone from my memory now.
:shrug:
If it occurs to me, I will pop back and tell you.

:namaste:
Kim
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tiltbillings
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Re: Buddha Statues: Hairstyle?

Post by tiltbillings »

Kim OHara wrote:
tiltbillings wrote:
Kim OHara wrote: The very *idea* of god-statues was Greek and overcame the expressed wishes of the Buddha who asked that no statues representing him be made,
Source for this?
I can't remember, Tilt - sorry. I did a fair bit of research into early Buddhism 8 - 10 years ago but haven't looked at it much since then. If you had asked me three years ago, when I wrote that sentence, I may have been able to tell you but it has gone from my memory now.
:shrug:
If it occurs to me, I will pop back and tell you.

:namaste:
Kim
That would be interesting. I rather seriously doubt such a sutta text that explicitly states that prohibition exists.

See:
http://huntingtonarchive.osu.edu/resour ... 0Image.pdf See pages 25-8.
>> Do you see a man wise [enlightened/ariya] in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<< -- Proverbs 26:12

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723
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lyndon taylor
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Re: Buddha Statues: Hairstyle?

Post by lyndon taylor »

I've heard that the Buddha asked that images not be made of him from several sources, but again no references.
18 years ago I made one of the most important decisions of my life and entered a local Cambodian Buddhist Temple as a temple boy and, for only 3 weeks, an actual Therevada Buddhist monk. I am not a scholar, great meditator, or authority on Buddhism, but Buddhism is something I love from the Bottom of my heart. It has taught me sobriety, morality, peace, and very importantly that my suffering is optional, and doesn't have to run my life. I hope to give back what little I can to the Buddhist community, sincerely former monk John

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tiltbillings
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Re: Buddha Statues: Hairstyle?

Post by tiltbillings »

lyndon taylor wrote:I've heard that the Buddha asked that images not be made of him from several sources, but again no references.
See the above PDF.
>> Do you see a man wise [enlightened/ariya] in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<< -- Proverbs 26:12

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723
Sylvester
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Re: Buddha Statues: Hairstyle?

Post by Sylvester »

tiltbillings wrote:That would be interesting. I rather seriously doubt such a sutta text that explicitly states that prohibition exists.

See:
http://huntingtonarchive.osu.edu/resour ... 0Image.pdf See pages 25-8.

For those itching to see the Ekottara Agama source of the legend of King Udayana (優填王) and King Prasenajit's (波斯匿王) statues of the Buddha in sandalwood and gold respectively, here it is from Sutta Central - http://www.cbeta.org/cgi-bin/goto.pl?li ... 5_p0703b13. Scroll down to p0706a01 onwards.

Oddly enough, James McHugh in "Sandalwood and Carrion - Smell in Indian Religion & Culture", p.211 mentions a medieval Jain legend of an image of Mahavira made from "ox-head sandalwood". In the above Ekottara Agama sutra, we have the same sandalwood being mentioned as the material for King Udayana's statue of the Buddha -
優填王即以牛頭栴 檀作如來形像高五尺
Hmm, I wonder if the Thais would approve if they discovered that this Mahasanghika sutra is the source of one of their their Monday Buddha legends.
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greenjuice
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Re: Buddha Statues: Hairstyle?

Post by greenjuice »

The only statue that I could find that represents Buddha with shaved head is Tuyet Son Statue, from 18th century Vietnam, where Buddha is represented sitting/ relaxing.

As for the hairstyle on other statues, it is not Greek, but Indian in origin. It is usually called the rishi knot, the knot that sages make of their hair. Shiva is represented with such hairstyle, as are the Hindu rishis, such as Vyasa. A lot of sadhus tie their hair like that, as do Sikhs.
chris98e
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Re: Buddha Statues: Hairstyle?

Post by chris98e »

This topic intrigued me too when I first read about it. But the Buddha it is well know cut off some of his hair after he left his luxurious palace/home. And now that he is a Buddha he has a crown of hair which is one of the marks of a great being. :buddha2: :anjali: :bow:
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Paribbajaka
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Re: Buddha Statues: Hairstyle?

Post by Paribbajaka »

I'm not sure of the source, but I'd always heard that the topknot hairstyle was also a visual way to distinguish between Buddha and other monks in art and statues.
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