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http://www.ehow.com/how_2321732_place-buddha-statue.html
How to Place a Buddha Statue
By Ryn Gargulinski, eHow Contributor
updated: July 20, 2010
From a fat, happy camper to a thin, pensive meditating figure, Buddha statues come in many forms. Likewise, there are just as many places you can put him around your home. You can place a Buddha statue in a number of areas, to get the best boost of your Buddhaβs awaken-ness, awareness and kindness.
InstructionsThings You’ll Need:
Β· Buddha statue
1. Gauge your homeβs layout. The main rule for placing a Buddha properly is to give him a lofty perch, such as a mantle, raised platform or tall shelving unit. He should also not be surrounded by meaningless clutter and geegaws. Heβd be upset if he were stuck next to your owl-shaped salt and pepper shakers.
2. 2
Give him a place of honor in your personal altar. Buddha can be the main focus of your own shrine, surrounded by smaller, meaningful objects like a crowβs feather, sacred candles and your lucky penny.
3. 3
Keep out evil spirits by putting Buddha in your homeβs front room facing the front door. Anyone who enters will immediately note Buddha checking him out and will flee if they are filled with evil.
4. 4
Enhance your thinking by placing Buddha on a desk where you normally do your writing, reporting, creating or other brain activity. He can sit on a raised platform near your printer, next to your computer or in your artist’s studio, as long as you donβt paint on him.
5. 5
Give your garden a boost with your Buddha statue gazing out over your lawn and flowers. Your Buddha statue can bring enhanced growth by channeling the positive energy of the universe throughout your landscaping. Make sure, however, that your Buddha is an outdoor version if you choose this option so he doesnβt crack and rot in the sun.
6. 6
Have your whole house swirling with positive Buddha energy by giving him a throne in the middle of your home. Any central area will do, as long as heβs not obstructing any pathways, which will block the flow of energy and may make you stub your toe, or is crammed off to the side so heβs not properly honored.
Tips & Warnings
Β· Wherever you place your Buddha statue, you can enhance his vibrancy by having him face east, if possible, into the sunrise.
Β· Donβt put him on top of the TV. The tinny din will annoy him.
Β· Never put your Buddha statue in the bathroom, bedroom or kitchen. Itβs rude to use the toilet in front of Buddha, nor does he want to see you engaged in a passionate act or eating deadanimals.
Web sites
Interpreting music
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6XSaYhl_kI
Metta Sutta (Loving Kindness) Pali/English
Metta Song in Pali
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6wDNE75YB8&feature=related
Metta Song in Pali
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-DxwyeNA34&feature=related
http://wn.com/The_Timeless_Wisdom_of_Buddhamangala
mangala sutta
Awakened One
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha
Β§ We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Β§ Dhammapada, as translated by T. Byrom (1993), Shambhala Publications.
Β§ No one saves us but ourselves, no one can and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path but Buddhas clearly show the way.
Β§ Dhammapada Ch. 165
Β§ But truly, Ananda, it is nothing strange that human beings should die.
Β§ Digha Nikaya (DN) 16
Β§ Whatever is felt is within suffering.
Β§ Samyutta Nikaya 36.11
Β§ “Can there be joy and laughter When always the world is ablaze? Enshrouded in darkness Should you not seek a light?”
Β§ Dhammapada
Β§ This is deathless, the liberation of the mind through lack of clinging.
Β§ Majjhima Nikaya (MN) 106
Β§ To cease from evil, to do good, and to purify the mind yourself, this is the teaching of all the Buddhas.
Β§ Dhammapada verse 183
Β§ Whatever is subject to origination is all subject to cessation.
Β§ MN 74 Dighanaka Sutta (this saying is also in many other suttas as well)
Β§ Behold now, Bhikkhus, I exhort you: All compounded things are subject to decay. Strive with diligence!
Β§ Last words, as quoted in DN 16 Mahaparinibbana Sutta 6:8
Β§ Variant translation:
Β§ Mendicants, I now impress it upon you, the parts and powers of man must be dissolved; work out your own salvation with diligence.
Β§ As quoted in Present Day Tracts on the Non-Christian Religions of the World (1887) by Sir William Muir, p. 24
Exertion
Full text online, as translated from the Pali by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
Β§ Sensual passions are your first enemy.
Your second is called Discontent.
Your third is Hunger & Thirst.
Your fourth is called Craving.
Fifth is Sloth & Drowsiness.
Sixth is called Terror.
Your seventh is Uncertainty.
Hypocrisy & Stubbornness, your eighth.
Gains, Offerings, Fame, & Status wrongly gained,
and whoever would praise self
& disparage others.
That, Namuci, is your enemy,
the Dark One’s commando force.
A coward can’t defeat it,
but one having defeated it
gains bliss.
Β· I spit on my life.
Death in battle would be better for me
than that I, defeated, survive.
This statement is made in reference to his battle against the personification of temptation to evil, Mara.
Β· That army of yours,
that the world with its devas can’t overcome,
I will smash with discernment
Β· I will go about, from kingdom to kingdom,
training many disciples.
They β heedful, resolute
doing my teachings β
despite your wishes, will go
where, having gone,
there’s no grief.
Β§ Sn 3.2, Buddha’s Purpose
After Awaken-ness
Β§ Open are the doors to the Deathless
to those with ears.
Let them show their conviction.(SN 6.1 Ayacana Sutta)
Β§ In a world become blind,
I beat the drum of the Deathless.’(MN 26 Ariyapariyesana Sutta)
Anguttara Nikaya
Friends
Nothing is as intractable as an untamed heart.
The untamed heart is intractable.
Nothing is as tractable as a tamed heart.
The tamed heart is tractable.
Nothing tends toward loss as does an untamed heart.
The untamed heart tends towards loss.
Nothing tends toward growth as does a tamed heart.
The tamed heart tends towards growth.
Nothing brings suffering as does
the untamed, uncontrolled unattended and unrestrained heart.
That heart brings suffering.
Nothing brings joy as does a
tamed, controlled, attended and restrained heart.
This heart brings joy.
Everything changes, nothing remains without change….
Soma and Mara
An adaptation of a translation by C.A.F. Rhys-DavidsOnce Soma, having returned from her alms round
and having eaten her meal, entered the woods to meditate.
Deep in the woods, she sat down under a tree.
The tempter Mara, desirous and capable of arousing fear, wavering and dread,
and wishing her to interrupt her focused meditation, came to her and said,
Your intent is difficult, even for the sages;
Completion cannot be reached by a woman regardless the wisdom reaped.”
Then Soma thought, “Who is this speaking, human or nonhuman?
Surely it is evil Mara desiring to interrupt my focused meditation.”
Knowing that it was Mara, she said,
“What does gender matter with regard to a well-composed mind,
which experiences insight in the light of the dhamma?”
The evil Mara thought, “Soma knows me”
and sorrowful for the evil, instantly vanished into darkness.
Bamboo Acrobats An adaptation of a translation by John Ireland.
In protecting oneself, others are protected; In protecting others, oneself is protected.
An adaptation of a translation by John Ireland.
The Exalted One was dwelling in the Sumbha country,
in a location of the Sumbhas called Sedaka
There He addressed the monks:
“Once upon a time, a bamboo-acrobat set up his pole
and called to his pupil, Medakathalika, saying,
‘Come my lad Medakathalika,
climb the pole and stand on my shoulders!’
‘All right master,’
replied the pupil to the bamboo-acrobat.
The student then climbed the pole
and stood on the master’s shoulders.
Then the bamboo-acrobat said to his pupil:
‘Now Medakathalika, protect me well and I shall protect you.
Thus watched and warded by each other,
we will show our tricks, get a good fee and
come down safe from the bamboo pole.’
At these words Medakathalika the pupil
Meditation brings wisdom; lack of meditation leaves ignorance. Know well what leads you forward and what hold you back, and choose the path that leads to wisdom
said to the bamboo-acrobat,
‘No, no! That won’t do master!
Look after yourself and I’ll look after myself.
Thus watched and warded each by himself,
we’ll show our tricks and get a good fee and
come down safe from the bamboo-pole.’”
“In the synthesis is the right way,”
said the Exalted One,
“Just as Medakathalika the pupil said to his master,
‘I shall protect myself,’
by this the Foundation of Mindfulness is practiced.
‘I shall protect others,’
by this the Foundation of Mindfulness is practiced.
In protecting oneself, others are protected;
In protecting others, oneself is protected.”
And how does one in protecting oneself, protect others?
By frequent practice, development and
making much of the Foundation of Mindfulness.
Thus in protecting oneself, others are protected.
And how does one, in protecting others, protect oneself?
Words have the power to both destroy and heal. When words are both true and kind, they can change our world
By forbearance and nonviolence,
By loving kindness and compassion.
Thus in protecting others, one protects oneself.
With the intention, ‘I shall protect myself,’
the Foundation of Mindfulness is practiced.
With the intention, ‘I shall protect others,’
the Foundation of Mindfulness is practiced.
In protecting oneself, others are protected;
In protecting others, oneself is protected.”
Β·
And this, monks, is the noble truth of the origination of dukkha: the craving that makes for further becoming β accompanied by passion & delight, relishing now here & now there β i.e., craving for sensual pleasure, craving for becoming, craving for non-becoming.Β· 56.11 Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta: Setting the Wheel of Dhamma in Motion translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
The Gospel of Buddha (1894)
The Gospel of Buddha is a compilation from ancient records by Paul Carus
Neither fire, nor moisture, nor wind can destroy the blessing of good deeds, and blessings enlighten the whole world.
Ch. 58 The Buddha Replies to the Deva
On a certain day when the Blessed One
dwelt at Jetavana, the garden of Anathapindika,
a celestial deva came to him in the shape of a Brahman
enlightened and wearing clothing as white as snow.
The deva asked,
What is the sharpest sword?
What is the deadliest poison?
What is the fiercest fire?
What is the darkest night?”
The Blessed One replied,
The sharpest sword is a word spoken in wrath;
the deadliest poison is covetousness;
the fiercest fire is hatred;
the darkest night is ignorance.
The deva said,
What is the greatest gain?
What is the greatest loss?
Which armour is invulnerable?
What is the best weapon?
The Blessed One replied,
The greatest gain is to give to others;
the greatest loss is to greedily receive without gratitude;
an invulnerable armor is patience;
the best weapon is wisdom.
The deva said,
Who is the most dangerous thief?
What is the most precious treasure?
Who can capture the heavens and the earth?
Where is the securest treasure-trove?
A saviour has a greater right over the saved one than killer
The Blessed One replied,
The most dangerous thief is unwholesome thought;
the most precious treasure is virtue;
the heavens and the earth may be captured by the mind’s eye;
surpassing rebirth locates the securest treasure-trove.
The deva asked,
What is attraction?
What is repulsion?
What is the most horrible pain?
What is the greatest enjoyment?
The mind is everything. What you think you become.
The Buddha replied,
Attraction is wholeness;
repulsion is unwholesomeness;
the most tormenting pain is bad conscience;
the height of bliss is redeemed awakening.
The deva asked,
What causes ruin in the world?
What breaks off friendships?
What is the most violent fever?
Who is the best physician?”
The Blessed One replied,
Ruin in the world is caused by ignorance;
friendships are broken off by envy and selfishness;
the most violent fever is hatred;
the best physician is the Buddha;
The deva continued,
Now I have only one doubt to resolve and absolve:
What is it fire cannot burn,
nor moisture corrode,
nor wind crush down,
but is able to awaken the whole world.
To conquer oneself is a greater task than conquering others.
The Buddha replied,
Blessing!
Neither fire, nor moisture, nor wind
can destroy the blessing of good deeds,
and blessings awaken the whole world.
Hearing these answers,
the deva was overflowing with joy.
Then clasping hands, bowed down in respect and
disappeared suddenly from the presence of the Buddha.
True charity occurs only when there are no notions of giving, giver, or gift.
David Ross, 1,001 Pearls of Wisdom, 2006, p. 26
We forgive principally for our own sake, so that we may cease to bear the burden of rancour.
David Ross, 1,001 Pearls of Wisdom, 2006, p. 30
Rather than continuing to seek the truth, simply let go of your views.
David Ross, 1,001 Pearls of Wisdom, 2006, p. 39
Disputed
These quotes are unsourced and their authenticity as sayings of the Gautama Buddha has been questioned.
Life is no more than a dewdrop balancing on the end of a blade of grass
Life is no more than a dewdrop balancing on the end of a blade of grass§
Β§ Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Just as the candle won’t be shortend, one’s happiness never decreases by being shared.
Β§ The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, nor to worry about the future, but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly.
Β§ Words have the power to both destroy and heal. When words are both true and kind, they can change our world.
Β§ If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change.
Β§ Let us all be thankful for this day, for we have learned a great deal; if we have not learned a great deal, then at least we learned slightly; if we did not learn slightly, then at least we did not become sick; if we did become sick, then at least we did not die. So, let us all be thankful.
Β§ On life’s journey faith is nourishment, virtuous deeds are a shelter, wisdom is the light by day and right mindfulness is the protection by night. If a man lives a pure life, nothing can destroy him.
Β§ Teach this triple truth to all: A generous heart, kind speech, and a life of service and compassion are the things which renew humanity.
Β§ Desire is the cause for all your sickness and misery.
Β§ It is your mind that creates this world.
Β§ When you realize how perfect everything is, you will tilt your head back and laugh at the sky.
Quotes about Buddha
To understand everything is to forgive everything.
Β§
The age in which true history appeared in Jambudipa,i.e, the Great PraBudha Bharath was one of great intellectual and spiritual ferment. Mystics and sophists of all kinds roamed through the Ganga Valley, all advocating some form of mental discipline and asceticism as a means to salvation; but the age of the Buddha, when many of the best minds were abandoning their homes and professions for a life of asceticism, was also a time of advance in commerce and politics. It produced not only philosophers and ascetics, but also merchant princes and men of action.
Β§ A. L. Basham in The Wonder that was Jambudipa,i.e, the Great PraBudha Bharath
Β§ For the first time in human history, the Buddha admonished, entreated and appealed to people not to hurt a living being, and it is not necessary to offer prayer, praise or sacrifice to gods. With all the eloquence at his command the Buddha vehemently proclaimed that gods are also in dire need of salvation themselves.
Β§ Jambudipa,i.e, the Great PraBudha Bharath was the motherland of our race, and Pali the mother of Europe’s languages: she was the mother of our philosophy; mother, through the Arabs, of much of our mathematics; mother, through the Buddha, of the ideals embodied in Christianity; mother, through the village community, of self-government and democracy. Mother India is in many ways the mother of us all.
Β§ Will Durant,prolific American writer, historian, and philosopher in (The Case for Jambudipa,i.e, the Great PraBudha Bharath (1931)
Β§ If there is any religion that would cope with modern scientific needs it would be Buddhism…A human being is part of the whole, called by us “Universe”; a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest β a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and affection for a few persons nearest us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole nature in its beauty. Nobody is able to achieve this completely but striving for such achievement is, in itself, a part of the liberation and a foundation for inner security.
Β§ I have no hesitation in declaring that I owe a great deal to the inspiration that I have derived from the life of the Awakened One. Asia has a message for the whole world, if only it would live up to it. There is the imprint of Buddhistic influence on the whole of Asia, which includes, Jambudipa,i.e, the Great PraBudha Bharath China, Japan, Burma, Ceylon, and the Malay States. For Asia to be not for Asia but for the whole world, it has to re-learn the message of the Buddha and deliver it to the whole world. His love, his boundless love went out as much to the lower animal, to the lowest life as to human beings. And he insisted upon purity of life.
Β§ The Buddha is a being who is totally free of all delusions and faults, who is endowed with all good qualities and has attained the wisdom eliminating the darkness of ignorance. The Dhamma is the result of his awaken-ness. After having achieved awaken-ness, a Buddha teaches, and what he or she teaches is called the Dhamma. The Sangha is made up of those who engage in the practice of the teachings given by the Buddha. . . . One of the benefits of refuge is that all of the misdeeds you have committed in the past can be purified, because taking refuge entails accepting the Buddha’s guidance and following a path of virtuous action.
Β§ Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama, in The Way to Freedom’.
Β§ Now in this realm Buddha’s speeches are a source and mine of quite unparalleled richness and depth. As soon as we cease to regard Buddha’s teachings simply intellectually and acquiesce with a certain sympathy in the age-old Eastern concept of unity, if we allow Buddha to speak to us as vision, as image, as the awakened one, the perfect one, we find him, almost independently of the philosophic content and dogmatic kernel of his teachings, a great prototype of mankind. Whoever attentively reads a small number of the countless speeches of Buddha is soon aware of harmony in them, a quietude of soul, a smiling transcendence, a totally unshakeable firmness, but also invariable kindness, endless patience. As ways and means to the attainment of this holy quietude of soul, the speeches are full of advice, precepts, hints. The intellectual content of Buddha’s teaching is only half his work, the other half is his life, his life as lived, as labour accomplished and action carried out. A training, a spiritual self training of the highest order was accomplished and is taught here, a training about which unthinking people who talk about “quietism” and “Hindu dreaminess” and the like in connection with Buddha have no conception; they deny him the cardinal Western virtue of activity. Instead Buddha accomplished a training for himself and his pupils, exercised a discipline, set up a goal, and produced results before which even the genuine heroes of European action can only feel awe.
Β§ Herman Hesse
Β§ For natures such as Jesus of Nazareth, Mohammed and Gautama Buddha is already the capacity of its openness for a world vision part of its application documents. With its virtues, experiences and abilities they belong to each post written out in the world with each interview to the most promising candidates and easy are erhalten.
James Redfield, in the MANUAL of the tenth prophecy of CELESTINE, part of I: The threshold; Heyne publishing house Munich, German-language edition 1997,ISBN 3-453-11809X
Even death is not to be feared by one who has lived wisely.
Β§ If we ask, for instance, whether the position of the electron remains the same, we must say ‘no’; if we ask whether the electron’s position changes with time, we must say ‘no’; if we ask whether the electron is at rest, we must say ‘no’; if we ask whether it is in motion, we must say ‘no’. The Buddha has given such answers when interrogated as to the conditions of a man’s self after his death; but they are not familiar answers for the tradition of seventeenth and eighteenth century science.
Β§ Buddha conquered the lands of China, Japan, entire South-east Asia, Burma, Indonesia, Java, Sumatra, Lanka and other countries without sending out even one soldier; he spread the message of karuna (mercy), prema (compassion), samanata (equality) and atmasanyam ( tolerance) throughout the world many centuries before Jesus and Mohammad; even today the flame of his sandesha ( message) lights up the whole world and entire humanity with the soft glow of manavatavadi (humanitarian), vaidhnyanik (scientific) and addhatmik(spiritual) message of India.
Β§ J. K. Verma
Β§ The fundamental teachings of Gautama, as it is now being made plain to us by study of original sources, is clear and simple and in the closest harmony with modern ideas. It is beyond all disputes the achievement of one of the most penetrating intelligence the world has ever known. Buddhism is the advance of world civilization and true culture than any other influence in the chronicles of mankind.
Β§ H. G. Wells
Β§ The Buddha Is Nearer to Us You see clearly a man, simple, devout, lonely, battling for light, a vivid human personality, not a myth. Beneath a mass of miraculous fable I feel that there also was a man. He too, gave a message to mankind universal in its character. Many of our best modern ideas are in closest harmony with it. All the miseries and discontents of life are due, he taught, to selfishness. Selfishness takes three forms β one, the desire to satisfy the senses; second, the craving for immortality; and the third the desire for prosperity and worldliness. Before a man can become serene he must cease to live for his senses or himself. Then he merges into a greater being. Buddha in a different language called men to self-forgetfulness five hundred years before Christ. In some ways he was near to us and our needs. Buddha was more lucid upon our individual importance in service than Christ, and less ambiguous upon the question of personal immortality.
Β§ H. G. Wells, in The Outline of History Ch. 25
I do not believe in a fate that falls on men however they act; but I do believe in a fate that falls on them unless they act.
Β§
The teachings of Buddha are eternal, but even then Buddha did not proclaim them to be infallible. The religion of Buddha has the capacity to change according to times, a quality which no other religion can claim to have…Now what is the basis of Buddhism? If you study carefully, you will see that Buddhism is based on reason. There is an element of flexibility inherent in it, which is not found in any other religion.Β§ Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar , Indian scholar, philosopher and architect of Constitution of India, in his writing and speeches
GOOD GOVERNANCE
Supreme Court upholds Mayawati’s land acquisition policy
NDTV Correspondent, Updated: September 08, 2010 13:15 IST
New Delhi: Dismissing an appeal by a farmer body, the Supreme Court today upheld the Uttar Pradesh government’s land acquisition policy for development of projects alongside the Yamuna Expressway connecting the national capital with Agra.
The court did not agree with the contention of the farmers that the land was acquired for a private purpose and not for a public purpose.
It dismissed an appeal filed by some farmers challenging the Allahabad High Court decision which had upheld the policy of the Mayawati government.
Uttar Pradesh state government is preparing to step up security for Babri title suit verdict on September 24
Allahabad: In two weeks, a court will decide one of India’s most divisively and destructively-argued debates - which came first - Ram Janmbhoomi or the Babri Masjid.
The verdict by the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court will end a lawsuit that began sixty years ago.
For most Indians, however, the brutal moment of awareness came on December 6, 1992, when thousands of kar sevaks, led by BJP and RSS leaders, demolished the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, in what they described as their fight to reclaim the birthplace of Lord Ram.
In 1949, an idol of Lord Ram was furtively placed inside the mosque at Ayodhya. The unrest that followed forced the government to confiscate the site. Then came a series of lawsuits.
The first, by Gopal Singh Visharad, a member of the Hindu Mahasabha, petitioned that the idol of Lord Ram should not be removed from the premise. In 1959 came a second law suit from Nirmohi Akhara, a Hindu religious group, who asked to be given charge of the site. In 1961 came a third suit filed by the UP Sunni Waqf Board, asking the site be declared as Babri Masjid. The final case was filed in 1989, in the name of Bhagwan Shree Ram Lalla Virajman, asking that the disputed site be declared Ram Janmabhoomi.
All these lawsuits were clubbed together and the court then asked the Archaeological Survey of India to excavate the site to understand if a temple existed before Emperor Babar built Babri Masjid in 1528.