Our lovely garage sale Buddha sits in the corner of our living room. I often meditate on the sofa across the room. One morning, the autumn light came in at a certain angle and fell on the Buddha. I can say the light traveled across the Buddha, but it was obviously much more complex than that with the planet spinning on its axis, the sphere tilted a certain way in relation to the sun, a window in this house at a certain place, and then a cognizing lump of aliveness on the sofa to see the show. These pictures show some frozen rendition of what I saw. In short, that is the story. But, of course, I need to say more.
I hope you have a Buddha in your home. Tammy has generously offered some Buddha statues brought back from India. They are on the coffee table at Sangha. A few Buddhas would be good; Pam and I have found that Buddhas are out there in the garage/estate sale realm. Many of these second hand Buddhas are very lovely. They sit all around our house and serve as reminders. You have perhaps heard that when you take refuge in the Buddha, the Buddha is also taking refuge in you. Buddha is always looking to be revealed in a new home and knows that a home exists in you and me. A stunning teaching is that the Buddha inside is not something we create; it is something revealed. Michelangelo said that he removed the excess stone to reveal the David that was always there.
Our garage sale Buddha is not the work of a master. It is made of some type of resin and came from a mold, but it is quite beautiful. Causes and conditions sometimes conspire to make it even more beautiful. The changes in the Buddha in the photos occurred very fast, maybe 15 minutes for the whole transition. Light, shadow, and color played on the Buddha. Buddha was fine with that play, just sat there and let it be revealed.
One temple I know of does not have a Buddha statue. Instead they have a big stone on the altar. Maybe people would’ve been freaked out by a Buddha statue. Tammy talks of the fear of having a Buddha where the group sat at Plymouth church. Then a homeless guy gave them a tiny Buddha. Now we have a bunch of Buddhas at Sangha House. I would love to meet that homeless guy and thank him for what he had a hand in. Maybe the thought is that we can get lost in a Buddha image. Maybe the stone points to real enlightenment as beyond forms. Nice thought. But it is perhaps a thought that takes shape a little early. It might be too clever. Until we can see Buddha in a stone or in a cloud or in the light that pours through a window, it is good to have a figure we can relate to as an enlightened form.
John Steinbach
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