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29-500: Eunjin is best known for the giant standing stone Buddha called the Eunjin Mireuk , a popular place to visit for all South Koreans. The statue is 18.12 meters tall. It was completed in 968, in the nineteenth year of the reign of King Gwangjong , after 37 years of construction. This South Korea location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Buddharupa Much Buddhist art uses depictions of

58-425: A few are the oldest and most common. In Mahayana Buddhism , some of the most common have also become identified with the five transcendental Buddhas, also called " Dhyani Buddhas " or "Pancha Buddhas", further complicating identification of the figure shown. These mudras are as follows: Images of Buddha showing him reclining, represent his Parinirvana or departure into final nirvana at death. Other times he

87-502: A huge stomach (possibly a symbol of abundance or forgiveness) and many stories surrounding Budai involve his love of food and drink. Because of this, he is also referred to as the " Fat Buddha ", especially in the Western world . He is often mistaken by Westerners to be the original Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama . The main textual record of Budai's life resides in a collection of Chan Buddhist monks' biographies known as The Transmission of

116-422: A multiplicity of representative actions, like entertaining passersby, sheltering children under an umbrella and meditating using his sack as a cushion . In an especially known motif, Budai appears smoking in a kiseru and exhaling Otafuku , an ugly but charming prostitute that embodies Zen happiness, in a humorous reflection of the tradition according to which Shandao exhaled Amida , Kannon and Seishi with

145-448: A prayer. The smooth lumpfish is known in Japan as hotei-uo ("Budai fish") due to its rotund appearance. Angida was one of the original Eighteen Arhats . According to legend, Angida was a talented Indian snake catcher whose aim was to catch venomous snakes to prevent them from biting passers-by. Angida would also remove the snake's venomous fangs and release them. Due to his kindness, he

174-648: A prince, when he wore extravagant jewelry. The bump at the top of the head is the ushnisha and represents spirituality, wisdom, and awakening. Depictions of the Buddha vary widely across cultures. The image of Buddhas started to emerge from the first century CE in North India , developed in Gandhara and Mathura . The art of Gandhara was influenced by Ancient Greek art , leading to the development of Greco-Buddhist art with anatomically well-proportioned and realistic figure of

203-581: Is a nickname given to the historical Chinese monk Qieci ( Chinese : 契此 ; pinyin : qiècǐ ) in the Later Liang Dynasty , who is often identified with and venerated as the future or Maitreya Buddha in Chan Buddhism and Buddhist scripture. With the spread of Chan Buddhism, he also came to be venerated in Vietnam , Korea , and Japan . Budai is said to have lived around the 10th century CE in

232-416: Is holding various symbolic objects, or making symbolic mudras (gestures). The clothing also varies with national styles. In East Asia it tends to follow local monastic dress, with the arms covered. In India early depictions, especially from hotter regions, such as art of Mathura , Buddha is often shown with very thin robes or topless, with most of the body uncovered, or appearing so. Budai Budai

261-530: The Reclining Buddha , lying down, usually showing the moment of his death. Sets of narrative scenes from the life of the Buddha tend to concentrate on standard groupings such as the Eight Great Events or other sets, but may be much larger. Originally common in reliefs , and probably paintings of which few have survived, they have more recently mostly been in painted form. Narrative scenes may show

290-531: The Wuyue kingdom. The name "Budai" literally means "cloth sack", and refers to the bag he is usually depicted carrying as he wanders aimlessly. His jolly nature, humorous personality, and eccentric lifestyle distinguish him from most Buddhist masters or figures. He is almost always shown smiling or laughing, hence his nickname in Chinese, the " Laughing Buddha ". Budai is traditionally depicted as overweight and having

319-419: The "Happy" or "Laughing" Buddha, a different historical figure, who should not be confused with the images of Gautama Buddha. Budai , a Chinese Buddhist monk also known as Hotei , is depicted as fat and happy, almost always shown smiling or laughing, and is associated with Maitreya , the future Buddha. A statue or a painting of Buddha always illustrates a mudra or gesture. There are large numbers of these, but

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348-523: The "special transmission" that occurred during the early to mid 12th century. This transmission did not rely on patriarchal lineage legitimacy but instead used the peculiar personalities and qualities of various folkloric figures to illustrate the Chan tradition's new commitment to the idea of "awakening" and the propagation of Chan to a larger congregation. The Chan Masters, Dahui Zonggao (1089–1163) and Hongzhi Zhengjue (1091–1157), were both leaders in

377-421: The Buddha in various poses, though they tend to show the Buddha in the same standing, seated or lying positions, with other figures or a mudra indicating what moment is being depicted. Despite cultural and regional differences in the interpretations of texts about the life of Gautama Buddha, there are some general guidelines to the attributes of a Buddharupa: The elongated earlobes are vestiges of his life as

406-716: The Buddha of the Future. A body allegedly belonging to Budai was embalmed and displayed at the eastern section of the Great Hall at Yuelin Temple in Fenghua District , Zhejiang . Budai was one of several "uncommitted saints" that became incorporated into the Chan pantheon. Similar "eccentric" figures from the lamp histories were never officially inducted or appropriated into the Chan patriarchal line. Instead, these obscure figures represented

435-417: The Buddha. One of the most influential Buddhist art was Gupta art and the later Amaravati style. From India the depiction of Buddha spread to the rest of Asia. The Buddharupas of India, Sri Lanka, Javanese Sailendra and Cambodian art usually depict a well-proportioned figure, but sometimes he is shown emaciated, in recollection of the Buddha's years of ascetic practices. Many people may be familiar with

464-602: The Kangxi Emperor. In Thailand , Budai is sometimes confused with the arhat Kaccāna , known in Thailand as Phra Sangkajai or Phra Sangkachai . Buddha praised Phra Sangkajai for his excellence in explaining sophisticated concepts of the dhamma in an easily and correctly understandable manner. Phra Sangkajai is also known for composing the Madhupindika Sutta . One story from Thai folklore relates that Phra Sangkajai

493-505: The Lamp . Budai has origins centered on cult worship and local legend. He is traditionally depicted as a fat, bald monk wearing a simple robe. He carries his few possessions in a cloth sack, being poor but content. He would excitingly entertain the adoring children that followed him and was known for patting his large belly happily. His figure appears throughout Chinese culture as a representation of both contentment and abundance. Budai attracted

522-470: The centuries, perhaps now outnumbering images of the historical Buddha. In its first centuries Buddhism was largely or entirely aniconic , not showing the person of Buddha except by symbols and relics. This changed, and figures of the Buddha became very common in the art of Gandhara and Gupta art . As forms of esoteric Buddhism developed, other figures from the expanding array of Buddhist sacred persons became more prominent. In Theravada Buddhism this

551-553: The established culture and folklore of Japan. The assimilation and reapplication of these wondrous charismas to the Zen pantheon assisted in the expansion of the Zen tradition. As the images demonstrate, Budai is most jubilant when in the presence of others, especially children. When depicted with other gods in the Seven Lucky Gods , Budai maintains a solemn or even depressed countenance. Budai's round figure comes into practical use through

580-555: The historical Buddha, Gautama Buddha , which are known as Buddharūpa ( lit.   ' Form of the Awakened One ' ) in Sanskrit and Pali . These may be statues or other images such as paintings. The main figure in an image may be someone else who has obtained Buddhahood , or a boddhisattva , especially in the various traditions of Mahayana Buddhism . Other Buddhas and bodhisattvas in art have become increasingly common over

609-407: The initial merging of local legend and Buddhist tradition. They hoped the induction of likable and odd figures would attract all types of people to the Chan tradition, no matter their gender, social background, or complete understanding of the dharma and patriarchal lineage. Bernard Faure summarizes this merging of local legend and Chan tradition by explaining, "One strategy in Chan for domesticating

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638-411: The occult was to transform thaumaturges into tricksters by playing down their occult powers and stressing their this-world aspect..." The movement allocated the figures as religious props and channeled their extraordinary charismas into the lens of the Chan pantheon in order to appeal to a larger population. Ultimately, Budai was revered from both a folkloric standpoint as a strange, wandering vagabond of

667-595: The people as well as from his newfound personage within the context of the Chan tradition as a 'mendicant priest' who brought abundance, fortune, and joy to all he encountered with the help of his mystical "cloth sack" bag. Budai is almost always depicted with his cloth sack that looks like a large bag. The bag serves as a prominent motif within the context of Chan Buddhism as it represents abundance, prosperity, and contentment. Ink paintings such as these attributed to Budai often had an inscription and seal that signaled to high-ranking officials. For example, Budai and Jiang Mohe

696-545: The sculpting of the incense box (18th century) that splits the monk's body into two halves. The newer images such as Hotei and Children Carrying Lanterns (19th century) employs much more color, dramatization of physical features, and detail than the older pieces such as Hotei from Mokuan Reien (1336) that employs much more wispy and heavily contrasting outlines of his figure with no color or assumed setting. Japanese iconography, like that of Zen master Hakuin Ekaku , shows Budai in

725-405: The townspeople around him as he was able to predict people's fortunes and even weather patterns. The wandering monk was often inclined to sleep anywhere he came to, even outside, for his mystical powers could ward off the bitter colds of snow and his body was left unaffected. A recovered death note dated to 28 March 917, which the monk himself wrote, claims that he is an incarnation of Maitreya ,

754-521: Was able to attain bodhi . In Chinese art, Angida is sometimes portrayed as Budai, being rotund, laughing, and carrying a bag. In the Western world , Budai is often mistaken for Gautama Buddha himself, and thus is nicknamed the "Fat Buddha". In Mongolia, Budai is called Enkh Amaglan Khan, which is identical to the Mongolian name for the Kangxi Emperor . Because of this, Budai is often mistaken for

783-456: Was inscribed by Chusi Fanqi, who was closely related to Song Lian (1310–1381) and Wei Su (1295–1372). After Chan Buddhism was transmitted to Japan around the 13th century as Zen Buddhism, the devout monastics and laymen of the area utilized figure painting to portray the characters central to this "awakening" period of Zen art. Many of the eccentric personalities that were inducted into the Zen tradition like Budai were previously wrapped up in

812-454: Was much less the case, and figures of the historical Buddha remain the most common main images in temples and shrines to the present. Early images were most often of Buddha standing, but seated meditating postures, essentially the lotus position of yoga , came to predominate. Often these represent a specific moment in the Buddha's life, which is identified by the Buddha's hand gesture ( mudra ), or attributes shown. There are also statues of

841-419: Was so handsome that even a man once wanted him for a wife. To avoid a similar situation, Phra Sangkajai decided to transform himself into a fat monk. Another tale says he was so attractive that angels and men often compared him with the Buddha. He considered this inappropriate, so disguised himself in a fat body. Although both Budai and Phra Sangkajai may be found in both Thai and Chinese temples, Phra Sangkajai

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