Friday, November 21, 2008

Another Big Buddha

On the 1st of May 2002 sculptures started working on what will be by far the biggest human image in existence, a 68 meter high, 416 meter long reclining Buddha. The image is being carved out of a huge hummock in Yiyang County in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangxi. While missionaries in China attracts hundreds of thousands of converts every year with their basic health services, child-minding centers, English classes, beautifully produced and cheap or even free books, counseling centers, theological collages and old peoples' homes, we Buddhists continue to squander our recourses and energy on projects such as this. Judging by the pictures, like many giant Buddhas, this one doesn’t even have the virtue of being particularly beautiful.

From the 1st of next month I will be having a no souls bared - eh! sorry, that should be 'no holes bared' - look at hell, the subject that no one likes to talk about. I hope you'll log on for it.

5 comments:

Avatar said...

Didn't the Buddha discourage idol worshiping? Personally, I too feel that this isn't the right way to spread the Dhamma.

Branko said...

Well, for "moghā purisā" it is much more impressive to build a big Buddha and hope for merit, than to sit and train one's own mind. And the result seems more tangible one. Just seems so.

Unknown said...

March 2001, The Bamiyan Buddhas got blown to kingdom come!

May 2002, China got this sudden urge to build the largest Reclining Buddha!

I think the Chinese was trying to say something; or to balance the world's feng-shui!

:-)

Michael said...

No holDs barred.

Buddha statues said...

I always thought it ironic how the destruction of the Buddhas was a beautiful example of a central reminder in Buddhism: impermanence. In that way, the destruction was a great teaching.
Buddha shop