We have a lot of different Buddha's on the Buddha's Face blog but I particularly like this one of a Buddha statue in a fish tank and in full 1080p HD as well. Not quite sure what the conservative Theravadan ethics of this are but to my mind anything that helps to spread the serene message of the Buddha by any means and gets people considering who was this man and why is his images so iconic then it;s got to be a good thing.Sunday, 31 July 2011
Buddha Statue in a Fish Tank - Full HD !
We have a lot of different Buddha's on the Buddha's Face blog but I particularly like this one of a Buddha statue in a fish tank and in full 1080p HD as well. Not quite sure what the conservative Theravadan ethics of this are but to my mind anything that helps to spread the serene message of the Buddha by any means and gets people considering who was this man and why is his images so iconic then it;s got to be a good thing.
Buddha Obama - The Video
I enjoyed finding the picture of Obama Buddha that I mentioned in the last blog post so it got me thinking should I make a video. Which is what I've just done and linked it at the end to a speech given by the Dalai Lama on compassion and greed. Not my best work but I hope it makes it point simply and easily.
Old friends pass away, new friends appear. It is just like the days. An old day passes, a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful: a meaningful friend - or a meaningful day.
Dalai Lama
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Buddha Oabama - President of the United States
I just like this for what it is and maybe this was produced during the honeymoon period when all the promises had yet to be broken and Barack was all things to all men. Potent change was in the air and this time it was going to be different. It always is but when you are leader of half or the world's weaponry how can you expect the leader to be a pacifists or a “Buddha”. It was never going to happen and never will. The Prince who became the Buddha went in the opposite direction from having ultimate power to a humble ascetic seeking the truth of our place in the universe and how to change the world. Mr Obama it is not through violence sanctioned or otherwise that change will happen – that is change that I believe in.All forms of violence, especially war, are totally unacceptable as means to settle disputes between and among nations, groups and persons.
Dalai Lama
When Carl Sagan met the Dalai Lama
A favorite story of mine is that between a meeting of two great minds with seemingly contrasting worldviews. American astronomer, astrophysicist, cosmologist, and author, Carl Sagan sat down for an interview with his holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. Carl Sagan was an amazing proponent of science and an ardent critic of religion, he was a steadfast atheist who wrote books critical of religious worldviews and their encroachment on the sciences. In books such as The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark, Sagan struck a strong skeptical stance against the paranormal and the unexplained.While his holiness the Dalai Lama is said to be the latest reincarnation of a series of Dalai Lama’s who have chosen to be reborn in order to enlighten others. The differences in world views could not have been any greater. Sagan had previously spoken and debated with religious leaders before, but he was uniquely surprised by his experience with the Dalai Lama. Speaking of the event, he said:
"…in theological discussions with religious leaders, I often ask what their response would be if a central dogma of their faith were disproved by scientific discipline. When I put this question to the Dalai Lama, he unhesitatingly replied as no traditionalist or fundamentalist religious leaders do: In such a case, he said, Tibetan Buddhism would have to alter. Even, I asked, if it’s a really central tenet, like reincarnation? Even then, he replied. However, he said mischievously - it will be hard to disprove reincarnation ! "
Sagan was surprised with this response. The meeting between the Dalai Lama and Carl Sagan illustrates something very potent about Buddhism that so many individuals find refreshing. Buddhism at its core is not about accepting dogma. Buddhism is not about blindly accepting ancient beliefs or tenets, but about experience and careful analysis of one’s life. Cornell University has put up some of the footage of the meeting between the Dalai Lama and Carl Sagan. The video contains an engrossing discussion and analysis on the meeting.
For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.
Carl Sagan
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Richard Dawkins - The God Delusion - on Buddhism
Richard Dawkins's controversial book The God Delusion takes an intellectual broadside at the major Abrahamic religions of Judaism,Islam and Christianity. But what does he have to say about one of the world's greatest other religion Buddhism ? I thought I would trawl through the book to find out what.In the comprehensive index there are only 3 references pages 59,232 and 443.Page 59 ...".shall not be concerned at all with other religions such as Buddhism or Confucianism.Indeed there is something to be said for treating these not as religions at all but as ethical systems or philosophies of life."
Page 232 ...."Perhaps Islam is analogous to a carnivorous gene complex, Buddhism to a herbivorous one."
Page 443...."Julia Sweeney is also right on target when she briefly mentions Buddhism. Just as Christianity is sometimes thought to be a nicer , gentler religion than Islam, Buddhism is often cracked up to be the nicest of all.But the doctrine of demotion on the reincarnation ladder because of sins in a past life is pretty unpleasant."
And that's the sum total of references - Buddhism isn't a religion that means you have to swallow a supernatural belief system and an omnipresent God. You yourself are responsible for your life, your choices and your happiness -end of. And by practising compassion and loving kindness we find the world a whole lot of a better place than if we do the converse.
Maybe Richard Dawkins should cut back on the throttle a little and respect the deeply held beliefs of some he would regard as God deluded. A little kindness rather than arrogant superiority never goes amiss !
Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.
Dalai Lama
Is this the weirdest Buddhist temple in the world?
I visited this Thai Buddhist temple near Nong Khai Northern Thailand about ten years ago and since then have visited a lot more Buddhist temples around the world but never one as strange and compelling as this one. The immense sculptures are mostly made out of concrete and the main temple hall is that of an overarching spider. By putting in small coins to some of the sculptures they come to life like a skeleton on a bike in a pond. Similar to many temples in Thailand it has a mix of Buddhist, Hindu and Confucian deities.
A Buddhist monk was exiled from his home country Laos in 1978 and ended up in Thailand. He began to assemble a collection of immense concrete sculptures from a variety of Religions and displayed them in a huge garden. It has to be seen to be believed and is a sort of mad scary Buddhist Disneyland – but then the concept of our own eventual demise is of course a scary concept and one the temple highlights in many of its bizarre sculptures.
The Very Best Quotes of the Buddha - New Video from the Buddhasface
Everybody loves the Buddha's quotes - bite sized chunks of wisdom and inspiring insight. It's been a while since I made a video (not counting Buddhist Techno Monks Dancing - which I don't). So I thought I would get the best high quality Buddha quotes and images from Google Images and string them together with a bit of footage from the Little Buddha (main seasoning for my videos it would seem) and add a top class tune from the Buddha Bar series. Well here it is hope you enjoy - it got a comment in the first three views (and not one from me!) so somebody likes it - hope you do too.
However many holy words you read, however many you speak, what good will they do you if you do not act on upon them?
Buddha
Friday, 29 July 2011
Cannabis / Marijuana and the Buddha - Buddhism
Whilst one the subject of intoxicants as we have just covered Lucky Buddha beer in the previous blog entry it would be timely to mention Buddha cannabis. The Dutch have been responsible for crossing numerous strains of cannabis over the last 30 years
Apparently it was developed by breeders in 1996 and is a female Oasis/Shiva/Haze crossed with a male Oasis/Shiva/Skunk. They say this was the talk of the town in Amsterdam in 1996. Of course it should be noted that Buddhists eschew intoxicants and seek enlightenment through discipline and mediation rather than a phat one!
Basho the Haiku Master writes:
The cannabis - How wonderful it is!
The summer drawing room.
Trees and stones, just as they are.
Ah, how glorious!
The young leaves, the green leaves,
Glittering in the sunshine!
Buddha Beer - Are You Feeling Lucky
Well this is a turn up for the books - Buddhists aren't known for their insobriety so I think we can reliably guess that it's not the Dalai Lama or any of his monks that are behind this beer brand. It is however a refreshing crisp beer from China say its makers and the green laughing Buddha bottles are an art from in themselves. Must get a couple and see if they can enlighten me further.( for Catholic monks though beer making and wine production is quite an art.)
The true meaning of the precepts is not just that one should refrain from drinking alcohol,but also from getting drunk on nirvana.
Bassui
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American Zen - Buddhist Rock Group
Quite a wacky group this and I’m having difficulty understanding their multicoloured website over at American Zen. They were founded in 1991 when the band’s founder Coyote moved to Utah and are looking to move up to the 8 levels of enlightenment which starts at an easy level 1 which is peace of mind. Looks as the sixties never finished.
Anyway be your own judges as to their talents on the accompanying YouTube video.
Hasta la vista Bhoddivista – Rock on American Zen !
“You only lose what you cling to.”
Buddha
Thursday, 28 July 2011
May be the Matrix is a Buddhist Allegory ?
Although the existence of Christian styles is strong within the Matrix, the influence of Buddhism is every bit effective and apparent. Indeed, the fundamental philosophical premises that drive major plot points could be nearly incomprehensible with no little background knowledge of Buddhism and Buddhist doctrines. So against this background are the Matrix and also the Matrix Reloaded Buddhist movies?
Probably the most apparent and fundamental Buddhist theme is the fundamental principle that our life on the planet according to the Matrix films, what many people think about as "reality" is really some type of computer-produced simulation. This seems to align carefully with Buddhist doctrine that the world was we all know is "Maya" or illusion, which we should get out of in order to be able to achieve enlightenment. Indeed, based on Buddhist concepts the greatest problem that faces humanity is our lack of ability to see our way through this illusion.
You will find also numerous more short references to Buddhism in the films. Within The Matrix, Keanu Reeve's character Neo is assisted in the education concerning the character from the Matrix with a youthful boy outfitted within the garb of the Buddhist monk. He says to Neo that he should be aware that "there's no spoon" and therefore our capability to alter the world around us is really dependent on our capability to change our very own minds.
A substantial conflict between Buddhism and the Matrix is that struggle between Gnosticism and the Matrix. Based on Buddhism, the thing for individuals who would like to avoid our planet of illusion would be to acquire a disembodied, immaterial existence - possibly one where even our perception of the baby-self continues to be overcome. Within the Matrix films, however, we seek to leave a disembodied existence inside a computer simulation and go back to an extremely material, very physical existence within the "real" world.
It appears obvious, then, the Matrix movies can't be referred to as Buddhist films - but the reality is they make extensive utilization of Buddhist styles and concepts. As the Matrix might not be the same as Maya and Keanu Reeve's character Neo might not be a Bodhisattva, the Wachowski siblings did deliberately incorporate facets of Buddhism to their story simply because they think that Buddhism has something to express to us about the world and how we conduct our way of life.
Spoon boy: Do not try and bend the spoon. That's impossible. Instead... only try to realize the truth.
Neo: What truth?
Spoon boy: There is no spoon.
Neo: There is no spoon?
Spoon boy: Then you'll see, that it is not the spoon that bends, it is only yourself.
The Buddha's Face Complete Blog Index
In my last blog post I mentioned the recent update to the Buddha's Face Complete Blog Index and I thought it would be useful to break it down month by month. So no more waiting for more mentions of gardens and Buddha statues that you can shake a stick at.
The Buddha's Face Complete Blog Index Main Menu
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - 2009
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - January - May 2010
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - June - July 2010
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - August - November 2010
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - November 2010 - July 2011
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - November 2010
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - December 2010
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - January 2011
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - February 2011
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - March 2011
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - June 2011 Part 1
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - June 2011 Part 2
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - June 2011 Part 3
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - July 2011 Part 1
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - July 2011 Part 2
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - July 2011 Part 3
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - July 2011 Part 4
Complete Buddha Face Blog Index - July 2011 Part 5
Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.
Buddha
Now for a Buddha's Face classic new age relaxation video - chill it out maan !
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Complete Blog Index November 2010 - July 2011 now up !
Over at the Buddha's Face main website we have been assiduously maintaining a Complete Blog Index of all the blog entries which helps Google and our readers browse the blog entries more easily. After what seems like a week's work I have brought the index up to date with the latest version ;
I hope you enjoy browsing this major catalogue of the blog as much as I did writing it. Just to remind you of what we sell here is another chance to see last year's sales video.
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Sunday, 17 July 2011
The Anti materialism Buddha - Cartoon -Reverend Billy
Yes many a true word spoken in jest - so don't even think of following the link below or of buying yet another fair trade authentic hand carved Buddha statue.Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship. Buddha
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Tuesday, 12 July 2011
Saint Young Men - Japanese manga comic - When Jesus met Buddha
We've mentioned When Jesus met Buddha before in the blog and the story comes from a Japanese manga comic called Saint Young men written by the author Hikaru Nakamura (she is a woman by the way!) in 2007. The story revolves around Jesus and the Buddha coming back to earth to spend a holiday here and shows them in a number of situations trying to survive in the modern world (or more to the point modern Japan). To those with an open mind the manga comic is a refreshing look at modern spirituality. Jesus turns out to be a bit of a materialist spending money on stuff where the Buddha wants to save money and find the rent for their apartment.
"When we are still looking deeply, and touching the source of our true wisdom, we touch the living Buddha and the living Christ in ourselves and in each person we meet." Thich Nhat Hanh, the Vietnamese Zen monk
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Best ever song from the Buddha Bar - Wish You Were Here (Bliss)
Whilst searching for Buddha stories for the blog I have kept bumping into videos about the Buddha Bar records. I have always dismissed them until now when I thought I would check them out. They are a compilation of lounge, chill out music and world music, produced by George V Records.
The series was created by DJ and Buddha Bar founder Claude Challe who was responsible for producing the first two albums. The series continues with other DJs, including DJ Ravin, Sam Popat, and David Vişan.
The track below is called Wish You Were Here (Bliss) and is accompanied by ravishing HD images – loving it – the journey continues.
Ecstacy - The state of being beside one's self or rapt out of one's self; a state in which the mind is elevated above the reach of ordinary impressions, as when under the influence of overpowering emotion; an extraordinary elevation of the spirit, as when the soul, unconscious of sensible objects, is supposed to contemplate heavenly mysteries.
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Large Buddha Statue made out of car tyres !
I never get tyred of finding new and unusual Buddha images for the Buddha's Face blog. I have to tread carefully though not to offendder some more conservative Buddhists. However I really care for this picture and I think it is wheely good !
"Nobility is that which shines from the heart of a human being"
Buddha
Buddha
Great Dhamma talk the Golden Buddha and the tyre iron !
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Monday, 11 July 2011
The Tallest Buddha Statue in the World - HD
We've covered huge Buddha statues before but this is now (difficult to keep up with China's Huge Buddha arms race!) officially the largest in the world. In this wonderful short travelogue which is a fine example of an amateur short documentary we get to see the approach to the Buddha and some stunning shots of the view from the summit.
Read more about the Spring Temple Buddha at Wikipedia.
Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.
Buddha
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How to make an origami Buddha
Origami (from ori meaning "folding", and kami meaning "paper") - the Japanese art of paper making is a wonderfully relaxing pastime and the most talented practicioners can make make elaborate shapes and forms from a single sheet of folded paper. In this wonderful video which takes place in a Buddhist temple room we see a young lady taking us step by step to make a sitting , meditating paper origami Buddha.“Patience is waiting. Not passively waiting. That is laziness. But to keep going when the going is hard and slow - that is patience.”
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Andy Coulson - News of the World and the Buddha
No comment the quote from the Buddha says it all.The Buddha's Face
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Fat Buddha LSD Acid Blotter Art
The Buddha as a counterculture hero reaches its apotheosis as an image on the banned psychedelic drug blotter art – in this case a Laughing Buddha. The blotter is a piece of absorbent paper which is soaked in a fixed amount of the extremely powerful drug to ensure an evenness of dose. I imagine anybody who took too much of these would have had some form of temporary enlightenment but it could so easily be a vision of hell as of heaven.
You're only as young as the last time you changed your mind.
Timothy Leary
The Buddha's Face
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All aboard the Indian train to Enlightenment - Buddhist pilgrim railways
The Indian authorities have laid on a special train to take Buddhist pilgrims from the Sri Lanka and all points in between to the major Buddhist pilgramage sites of India.The pilgrims can see 11 Buddhist sites starting with the paintings and sculptures in Ajanta and Ellora Caves. Other Buddhist pilgrimages are to the massive Stupa at Sanchi; Sravasti, capital of the ancient Kingdom; the birth place of the Buddha in Lumbini, Nepal; the Mahaparinirvana Temple in Kushinagar; Vaishali, where the Buddha gave his last sermon; Buddhist monasteries and temples of Nalanda; Rajgir, where Buddha gave two of his most famous sermons; Bodhi Gaya where the Buddha reached enlightenment; Sarnath – the deer park where he preached his very first sermon; and finally ending at Nagarjunakonda.
We're all pilgrims on the same journey-but some pilgrims have better road maps. - Nelson DeMille
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Buddhist Chanting - Nothing But Everything (Japanese)
Shingon is a form of Japanese Esoteric Buddhism. It was founded in 804 AD by Kobo Daishi in Japan. It is based on the Mahavairocana Sutra and the Vajrasekhara Sutra, the elemental sutras of Shingon. There are three key secrets – the body, speech and mind and through knowledge of these secrets we are able to attain enlightenment in our own bodies.
If we can sustain this state of mind, we can become one with the Universe, the Mahavairocana Buddha. Nature such as mountains and oceans and even humans express the truth described in the sutras.
In this ravishing HD video and beautiful chanting we can begin to feel the masteries expressed in this rarified form of Buddhist practice.
Finally out of reach -
No bondage, no dependency.
How calm the ocean,
Towering the void.
Tessho's death poem
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Abraxas - Japanese Film - Buddhist monk channels his energy through Leonard Cohen
Abraxsas Festival is a new film that gets into the heart of Japan's Buddhist revival
Until recently, Japanese Zen has remained pretty obscure to the average person in Japan. But when the economy turned sour and with corrupt political elite, many Japanese particularly younger ones have been rediscovering their parent’s religion.
Suneo Hair plays Jonen, who is a reluctant Zen monk who on his father’s orders has to wear black and white monk’s robes. As the temple business is a family business.
The position of the head monk goes from father to son, and it's a usually an advantageous situation, with major tax breaks and temple land ownership. But Jonen is a drug-taking depressive who wants to be the Japanese Leonard Cohen.
"Hallelujah" is his bag, not Zen.
Only version of this I could find was in Japanese but looks like a goodie – I will try and seek it out.
“When you seek it, you cannot find it.” Zen quote
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