ALL of us have heard stories of buddha or even have a brass buddha statue in our home. Ever wondered if laughing buddha and shakyamuni buddha are the same or different person. For instance, Both of them have Buddha in their name.But Does it mean they are the same? If not then who are they? How are they different ? Why are they so famous?One of the Major difference between them is that Laughing Buddha is a chinese monk and Gautam Buddha is THE founder of buddhism. One of them attended ‘Nirvana’ and the other one is yet to get there.
Still curious about them. Keep reading to get a detailed description about their life, teaching and them in general.
THE SHAKYAMUNI BUDDHA
Shakyamuni’s real name is Gautam Buddha. He was born around 4 -5 century B.C in Present day Nepal. He is THE “OG ” Buddha, founder of buddhism who laid the foundation of Bodhisattva. He got enlightenment at the age of 35. He is known for His down – to – Earth method of identifying, wondering and solving problems and answering the questions of people and his disciples. His teaching revolves around “suffering or Illness” of people. Here, suffering means problems caused by human desires. He says that we can end our suffering by following that path of truth. His teaching tells us to lead a life of good Karma and pure heart.
THE LAUGHING BUDDHA
The Laughing Buddha has many names like Fat Buddha, Smiling Buddha, Budai, Hotei and many more but who is he? He is a Chinese monk who lived around the 10th century in the Liang Dynasty. He is known for his bald head, protruding pot belly, laughing or smiling face. He is seen with a cloth bag, Hence he got his name ‘Budai’ which translates as Cloth Bag in Chinese.He is known to give children sweets, gifts, rice grains to people. He believes in the philosophy of Give more and receive more. He has many Chinese tales around him but the one that is most famous is of His Death. Before his death he asked his disciples to cremate him which was quite uncommon in that time. After his death when his disciples burned him, they were shocked to see a firework cracker show! Turns out that he had hidden crackers in his clothes so that when his body is cremated the people will be greeted with sparkle and splatter. Thus he gets his title of Laughing Buddha.
WHAT ARE THE MAIN TEACHING OF SHAKYAMUNI BUDDHA AND LAUGHING BUDDHA?
Shakyamuni Buddha and Laughing Buddha have given us their Priceless teaching which we should try to practise in our day to day life. There are a few ways to keep reminding yourself of their teaching when life gets tough like writing their quotes on sticky notes or in posters, or buying a brass buddha statue, joining a course and many more. Some of the significant teachings which we can corporate in our life are written down below.
- Give More, Receive More – In Yale University’s happiness course it is mentioned that doing Small acts of kindness is the best way to live and lead a life full of peace and happiness. What better way to do small acts of kindness than giving away things to people. Here receiving is more on the Psychological end. When we Give something to a person our brain produces happy hormones.
- GREED FOR MORE – More money, more time, more food, more marks, more, more, more…. In this vicious cycle of more we are cutting our happiness short. Does the need for more ever end? Buddha says this is the one of the main causes of suffering in people. We are so fixated on getting more as if more money, more cars, more gold will actually solve all our problems in life. Stop, breathe and look inside your mind you’ll find your happiness from within not from material things.
- RIGHT ACTION – There are five Principles in regards to Right Action in this teaching. They are No Killing, No Stealing, No engaging in Sexual misconduct, No Lying and No Intoxication.
- PRACTISE MINDFULNESS – It means to be aware of your actions. Sounds simple but actually it is a deep talk thing. We can practise mindfulness for the smallest of work while walking, eating, breathing, and so on…
- RIGHT INTENTION – We need to be aware of our thought process as our thoughts become action in no time if we are aware of our thought process then we will be able to track our actions on the basis of our Emotion.
- RIGHT SPEECH – When we talk we should not lie and speak ill of others as these acts bring suffering into our lives.
- CHANGE IS CONSTANT – Instead of being afraid of change we should readily accept it because the more we are holding onto a certain thing the more suffering, pain and discomfort it will make us feel.
- RIGHT LIVELIHOOD – Instead of getting engaged in wrong and questionable jobs. We should try to Stay away or Totally avoid such acts as in some way or other it will bring misery and impact our lives.
- RIGHT PERSPECTIVE – According to Merriam Webster, Perspective means The capacity to view things in their true relation or relative importance. Right perspective comes from right knowledge attaining true knowledge means ending the path of suffering.
- RIGHT CONDUCT – What do we mean when we say conduct? Well, Conduct means to cause oneself to act or to behave in a particular and especially in a controlled manner. Here, Right Conduct signifies that we should not speak ill of others, condemn them or criticise others. To be of Right conduct means to be able to behave well even in the state of anger, frustration or any other kind of negative emotions. We should not let emotions overrule our conscious mind.
BENEFITS OF HAVING BRASS BUDDHA STATUE IN OUR SURROUNDING
As we have read about Buddha and their teaching in our blog, Here are some benefits of keeping a brass buddha statue around you in order to get benefits from its presence. Here, we have stated a few of them below :
- Radiates positivity – Having a buddha statue around ensures the constant flow of positive energy in the palace.
- Better concentration – when we have a positive environment around us we are able to concentrate better and get more work done.
- Faster healing – It is believed that if you pray to the buddha statue which has a bowl in one hand and herbs in the other accelerates the recovery of the patient.
- MINDFULNESS – Praying or meditating in front of buddha is said to help in meditating.
- PROBLEM SOLVING – It is believed that having a buddha statue nearby helps with solving problems in life and prevent them from growing.
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Vikas Sudan is the SEO Manager at whisskers marketing, an United States digital marketing agency. An expert in Digital Marketing and Blogging, He never misses an opportunity to spread the knowledge and share the industry’s best practices. Vikas Sudan is present on social media like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest & Twitter also.