The lotus flower is revered as a "holy object" in Buddhism, and it has a very close relationship with Buddhism, and is a symbol of Buddhist scriptures and Buddhist art. Not only in the image of the lotus flower, its allegory is also one of the main ideological contents in Buddhism. Next, let's take a look at the Buddhist lotus.
Lotus, also known as lotus. It is a Buddhist scripture and Buddhist art frequently
Symbols mentioned and seen. The lotus flower has an indissoluble relationship with Buddhism because it is associated with many legends of Shakyamuni.
It is said that Shakyamuni was originally a bodhisattva in heaven, who was born to the king of the kapila kingdom. Lady Maya, the princess of the King of Pure Rice, looks as beautiful as a celestial immortal, has a gentle and virtuous temperament, and has a deep love for the king.
Mrs. Maya recalled her wedding night when she dimly saw in the distance a man riding a white elephant coming towards her and gradually becoming smaller, burrowing into her belly from her right rib. In her heart, she vaguely felt the bodhisattva transform into a white elephant and enter the womb. Later, the pregnant Lady Maya's face was slightly glowing red, the brightly colored green neckline lace was like a lotus leaf, and her face was like a blooming lotus flower.
Later, when Lady Maya descended to give birth to the Buddha in the Shura Tree, the birds sang in groups, the heavenly music sang in the air, and the flowers and trees in the four seasons bloomed together, especially the lotus flowers as large as the lid of the car suddenly opened in the swamp. As soon as the Buddha was born, he stood on a lotus flower, pointed to the heavens and the earth, and said, "Heaven and heaven are the only ones." This day is April 8, and it has since become the "Buddha BathIng Festival" of Buddhism.
After Shakyamuni attained enlightenment, he got up and went north around the tree, "looking at the tree and walking through the path", which was one step at a time, a total of 18 lotuses. Whenever he preached, he sat on the "lotus seat", and the sitting posture became the "lotus sitting posture", that is, the legs were overlapped and the feet were upward.
The relationship between the lotus flower and Buddhism is very close, and it can be said that the lotus flower is the symbol of the Buddha.
Walk into a Buddhist temple and see the image of a lotus flower everywhere. In the Daxiong Treasure Hall, the Buddha sits on the lotus throne with his eyebrows and good eyes and low eyes; the Three Noble Buddhas of the West, Amitabha Buddha, Guanyin Bodhisattva, and Dashizhi Bodhisattva, also sit on the lotus flower. The rest of the bodhisattvas, some holding lotus flowers in their hands, some stepping on the lotus flowers, or making lotus gestures, or throwing lotus flowers into the world. Temple walls, moi wells, railings, sacred accounts, table fences, incense bags, prayer mats, there are also carvings, paintings or sewing embroidery of various beautiful lotus patterns.
The lotus represents holiness and beauty. In the Buddhist story, Shakyamuni's mother had large, beautiful and clear eyes like a lotus flower. When Prince Siddhartha was born, eight kinds of rays appeared in the imperial garden, one of which was a white lotus flower as large as a wheel in the pool.
In Buddhism, there are countless words that use lotus as a metaphor. The seat of the Buddha is called "Lotus Seat" or "Lotus Platform"; the Western Elysium, likened to the pure and unstained lotus realm, is called "Lotus State"; the Amitabha Sutra describes the Western Elysium as follows: "The Land of Elysium has seven treasure pools, eight merits of water, and the lotus flowers in the pool are as big as wheels." ”
Therefore, the Buddha's kingdom is called the "Lotus Kingdom"; the Buddhist temple is called the "Lotus Temple". "Brake" is the Sanskrit word, that is, the meaning of pure land, with the lotus flower as the place of past life, so it is called "lotus brake"; the person who recites the Buddha is called the knot "lotus fetus", which is metaphorically living in the lotus flower, such as in the mother's womb; the Buddha's eye is called "lotus eye", and the green lotus flower is used as a metaphor for the good and wonderful buddha's eye; the eight-leaf heart lotus in the chest is called "lotus palace", that is, the lotus-like realm in the heart.
Shakyamuni's hand is called "Lotus Hand"; monks and nuns are ordained as "Lotus Ring"; monks and nuns are called "Lotus Robe, which is pure and uncomplicated; the wisdom of the Five Wisdoms is called "Lotus Wisdom"; those who are good at speaking are called "Lotus on the Tongue"; the ascetic and happy is called "Returning to the House to Give Birth to the Lotus"; the Buddhist sutra "Lotus Sutra" for short, the Lotus Sutra, referred to as the Lotus Sutra, all of which are based on the lotus flower as a metaphor, symbolizing the purity and elegance of the teachings; the earliest Buddhist association in China founded by Master Huiyuan of Donglin Temple in the Eastern Jin Dynasty is called "Lotus Society" The Pure Land Sect of Buddhism advocates the practice of reaching the Lotus Pure Land in the West, so it is also called "Lotus Sect".
According to Buddhism, sentient beings in the Three Realms are born of lust, and the saints of the Pure Land are incarnated as lotus flowers and can manifest themselves in images familiar to the world. Since the lotus represents the pure Dharma body of the Buddha, the solemn body, it has become an important theme of Buddhist art and a mascot often seen in Buddhist temples.
For example, the ancient Indian Ajanta murals depict lotus flowers. In China's Dunhuang, Yungang and Longmen Grottoes, there are many artistic concepts with lotus flowers as the content. The Binyang Cave of Xianglongmen Grottoes is carved with lotus decorative patterns and the lotus flowers on the top of the Lotus Cave. Even in ordinary temples of all sizes, the sculptures of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are inseparable from lotus flowers, either standing on the lotus seat or holding lotus flowers, watching and contemplating.
Even the most familiar Guanyin Bodhisattva is accompanied by a lotus, and many images of Guanyin use the lotus as a foil: the white-clothed Guanyin, holding the lotus flower in the left hand, and making a wish seal with the right hand; lying on the lotus in the pond; Shi Lianyin, with the right hand supporting the cheek, the left hand twisting the lotus on the knee; the one-leaf Guanyin, floating on the water with the lotus; the Weide Guanyin, sitting on the rockside, holding the lotus in the left hand; the Dorodzun Guanyin, holding the green lotus; the Fuji Guanyin, sitting on the lotus leaf; holding the lotus Guanyin, sitting on the lotus leaf, holding the lotus in both hands...
So in the Buddha statues and sutras we see, the sages who introduce the Pure Land Buddha Kingdom are all seated with lotus flowers, or sitting or standing, all on the lotus platform to represent their purity and solemnity. It can be seen that the lotus is the symbol of the Pure Land of the Buddha.
Not only that, but lotus is also closely related to Buddhist medicine. Lotus is rich in nutrients and is both edible and medicinal. Ancient women often took lotus flowers with dew in the morning to beautify their faces, or took lotus flowers to rejuvenate their faces.
Lotus flowers contain dermatogen and xylosin, which can indeed moisturize the complexion. The fresh and tender lotus flowers are soaked in boiling water, and their juices are emerald green and fragrant, which has the effect of relieving heat and refreshing the heat and appetizing. The underground rhizomes of the lotus are called lotus roots. Legend has it that one of the Ten Great Disciples of the Buddha, Sariputta, suffered from tuberculosis, and Mu Qianlian came to visit him, and learned that Sariputta liked to eat lotus roots, so he brought some fresh lotus roots for Sariputta to eat, and Sariputta ate lotus roots and then recovered from illness. Later, Buddha's disciples often used lotus root as medicine to treat diseases, and discovered many medicinal properties of lotus root.
Today, the lotus flower is revered as a "holy relic" in Buddhism. The Buddhist lotus flower symbolizes a completely oriental culture
Stylish, peaceful, pleasant, detached and smiling. The immeasurable Buddha is like a lotus, the boundless Buddha is like a lotus, life should be like a lotus, and anxiang is a lotus step by step. Therefore, the pure merit and cool wisdom contained in the lotus flower will always be admired by Buddhist disciples and loved by the good people in the world.
In the world, plum blossoms are chaste, proud of frost and snow; orchids are fragrant, beautiful and elegant; bamboo is high and knotted, verdant and green; chrysanthemums are lonely and proud, and there are many forms, but my Buddha loves lotuses alone. This is due to the fact that ancient India had a long history of loving lotuses.
People suffer from the hot climate of the country, and the lotus flowers that open in spring and summer are especially comfortable, fresh and pleasant. Therefore, from the very beginning of Buddhism, it has paid attention to conforming to the folk psychology to attract believers, so the lotus flower is often quoted in buddhist scriptures. As the Buddhist scriptures say, there are no dozens of lotus flowers in the world, hundreds of lotus flowers in the sky, and more than a thousand petals in the lotus flowers in the Pure Land.
The Lengyan Jing Yun: "Ershi Shizun, from the flesh bun, gushes out a hundred treasures of light, gushes out of the light, a thousand leaves of the treasure lotus, there is a transformation of Rulai, sitting on the treasure lotus ..." The Vimala Sutra of the Buddha's Kingdom says: "If you are not like a lotus in the world, you are always good at entering into silence." The Essential Explanations of the Sutras say, "Therefore, the Buddhas of the Ten Directions were born together in the turbidity of the mud, and they all sat on the lotus platform with three incarnations."
It can be seen that the lotus flower represents the transition from defilement to purity. It shows that it is born in the mud, blooms on the surface of the water, and comes out of the deep connotation of the mud without staining. At the same time, the lotus blossoms in the hot summer water, the heat indicates the trouble, and the water represents the coolness, that is, brings the realm of coolness in the disturbing human world. So the lotus flower is the incarnation of a saint who was liberated from his troubles and was born in the Pure Land of Buddhahood. The Buddha just came out of the mud and came out of the mud, attained enlightenment, attained great freedom.
Although it is otherworldly, it does not leave the worldly law. The lotus fits perfectly with the birth personality advocated by Buddhism. Buddhism believes that there are more troubles in the world than the sand of the Ganges, and losing oneself is like a dirt and grime. Aspirants should strive to practice, purify themselves, be unpolluted, be otherworldly, and seek to reach a pure and unhindered state.
The natural beauty of the lotus flower can be used perfectly to symbolize this ideal of Buddhism. Moreover, the lotus flower itself does have an attractive place, that is, the lotus is noble and beautiful. It stands tall, bright and fresh; it is clean and self-evident, proudly independent; its roots are like jade, not colored; its stems are empty and do not see the five aggregates; its leaves are like blue, pure from the middle; its silk is like wisps, stretching continuously; its flowers are solemn, fragrant and long-lasting; no branches are not vines, no hangings are unimpeded; it prefers lotus seeds, and its heart is like a Buddha; it earnestly teaches people and lives in the Pure Land.
The Tang Dynasty poet Li Shangyin praised Lotus for writing a famous poem:
The flowers and leaves of the world are not compatible, and the flowers are dusted into the golden pots of leaves.
Only the green lotus red han, the curl shu open and close Ren naïve.
This flower and this leaf look at each other, and the green and red decay is sad!
Reasons why Buddhism promotes the lotus flower: First, Buddhism originated in India, where the climate is hot. Lotus flowers bloom in summer, bringing people cool and beautiful enjoyment.
In Indian literature, the lotus flower is a symbol of goodness, goodness, holiness, tolerance, and generosity. For example, "The Story of the Lotus Prince" compares the good national flower of high morality, kindness, integrity, and obedience to the ten laws of the king to the lotus flower. The story goes that the prince of the lotus, in order to save the people from famine, jumped into the Ganges, turned into a big red fish, told the people to cut his flesh to eat, and his flesh was cut and then grown, so that for twelve years, he used his own flesh to feed the people of the whole country, and spent twelve years of famine.
"The Story of the Lady of the Mother of Deer Lotus" says that every step of the Lady of the Deer Mother Lotus, a beautiful lotus flower immediately appears behind her feet, and she gives birth to five hundred virgin boys in one child, all of whom are handsome Hercules and heroes of defending the country, so the Lady of the Deer Mother Lotus has become a symbol of being able to give birth to many beautiful men.
Second, the character and character of the lotus flower coincide with the Buddhist teachings. Buddhism is a religion that focuses on seeking liberation from the sufferings of life, regarding life as a sea of suffering, hoping that people can get rid of the sea of suffering, and the way to liberation is: the sea of suffering - practice - the other shore (pure land). That is, from the earthly world to the pure world, from the evil to the perfect, from the ordinary to the Buddha. This is the same as the lotus flower growing in muddy water and otherworldly, not stained by the sludge, and finally blooming an incomparably delicious flower.
One of the Buddhist teachings is compassion for all beings. Those who have attained a very high level of enlightenment (the realm above the bodhisattva) will naturally develop compassion for all beings. Compassion refers to "unrelated compassion, compassion of oneness." Compassion is the hope and help of others to be happy; compassion is the hope and help others to remove suffering. We treat all sentient beings with compassion and kindness, regardless of good or evil, regardless of human or animal.
Tolerate and forgive all evil deeds, and use compassion to help and feel the evil people, so that they can be good and bear good results; they must also be in a filthy earthly world and not pollute them. It is the lotus flower that expresses this beautiful thought and sentiment.
The lotus is born in the mud, just as life is in the world of turbid dust, and will be invaded by many evil and filth. Buddhism requires people not to be disturbed and influenced by the evil and filth of the world. Like a lotus flower, "out of the mud without staining", the blossoming of clean flowers is the most beautiful symbol.
Buddhas often compare lotus nature to Buddha nature. The Great Wisdom Theory of the First Edition of the Interpretation of the First Product of The Middle Household Luo PoloMixia says: "For example, the lotus flower comes from the sludge, although the color is fresh, the source is not pure. The Sutra from the Forty-second Chapter says, "I am the sand gate, and I am in a turbid world, and I should be like a lotus, and not polluted." "The Great Brahma King who saved the world was also born sitting on the golden lotus flower of Chiba. Buddhas and bodhisattvas also sit on the lotus platform or hold lotus flowers in their hands, expressing the pure and untainted state of the Buddha from the earthly world.
If one wants to cultivate to a state that comes from dust and is not polluted, it is not an easy task, and it requires a high degree of enlightenment and concentration, which requires continuous practice to enrich Buddha-nature and cultivate demonic nature.
The lotus flower also represents a state of wisdom, the so-called "enlightenment." The Immeasurable Life Path says, "It is the bodhisattva who is the mind, and in all sentient beings, there is this enlightened lotus, and the world is purified without being tainted with troubles." "The Image of the Great Tibetan Scripture, Bai Baokou Copy" Yun: "On the heart of ordinary people is like a lotus flower, and the heart of a saint is like a lotus flower." Question: 'Why is the mind of all beings such as lotus flowers?' Answer: The Secret Book of The Secret Book: In the Lotus Branch itself, there is the principle of pure bodhichitta purity, and although this principle flows through the dead mud of the six paths and four realms of life, it is not stained or dirty, and it is called the Lotus Part. ’
Shu XII Cloud: 'Look at the lotus flower and don't look at the remaining flowers? It is also intentional that the lotus flower of the world is in the mud, and although it is evil in the place of birth, the lotus flower is pure in nature, and its color is incomparable, and it is not stained by all kinds of dirt. Ordinary people become like this, although all kinds of inexhaustible three poisons have been immeasurable, and this lotus flower is very deep, and the fruits are born in it, that is, the light of equal wisdom is also. ”
Buddhism says that "flowers bloom to see Buddha-nature." This flower refers to the lotus flower, and the blossoming of the flower refers to the attainment of a certain state of wisdom by the practitioner. In the parable, when a person has a lotus state of mind, he will manifest Buddha-nature.
The true practitioner also understands that when the practice reaches a very high level, he may see that a very small lotus-like lotus platform will be born in his abdomen (in fact, it is not a lotus platform, there is no such corresponding flower of auspiciousness in the human world, just a lotus metaphor), and at the same time cultivate that very small Buddha body (the body of Vajrayogini) sitting on the lotus platform; with the improvement of the cultivation realm, the more this vajra incorruptible body grows, the lotus platform will also grow; when finally cultivated, the vajra body will be as large as his own flesh and merge into one.
At this time, some people with special abilities can see that there are two bodies in the practitioner's body. This is the fundamental reason why Buddhism uses the lotus flower to symbolize the Buddhist cultivator and to compare the Buddhist cultivator.