Today. On my walk. By a retired doctor! But, he probably doesn’t even realize. Click to ENLARGE. Taken in January 2022, at the ‘Co-Op’ Supermarket in Hanover (‘Dartmouth’), New Hampshire. Click to ENLARGE & study here. From an achieved post from 2016.
What I find intriguing is that Buddhists don’t object to such desecration in anyway. I find that amazing.
Yes, that folks think it is also OK to disrespect the image of the Buddha, especially his head, is another matter. BUT, if there was even SOME push-back some might think BETTER of making and/or buying these products.
Can you see the image of any other religious leader being disrespected in this manner.
What I saw today was a PLANTING POT!
The Buddha’s head being used as a planting pot!
Come on. That is NOT right.
I am NOT a Buddhist. I am NOT even religious. As some of you know, I am a Refined, Born-Again, Heathen. But, I respect those that are religious. I know a few Buddhists. That they don’t seem to CARE confounds I.
PLEASE, PLEASE do NOT tell me that Buddhists are pacifists. Please, don’t make me laugh. Look at the Buddhist instigated violence in Sri Lanka, Myanmar & Thailand.
One of my cousins, a younger cousin of that, died unexpectedly & untimely yesterday (in Sri Lanka). A second cousin of mine, a nephew of the deceased, called me up, to talk about it. During our conversation he asked me IF I believed that: “Life Is Suffering“!
That did NOT sit well with I.
I turned it around. Asked him. He ‘squirmed’. He had been using the ‘life is suffering‘ to rationalize the death of his uncle. But, when I asked him the question he claimed that he did NOT believe it. That was good. I hope it is true.
I grew up with this ‘life is suffering’ as a centerpiece of my life. Yes, I know it all. You get old, you get sick, you die, you suffer separations, you suffer loss. Know all that. Bar death, experienced all the others too. Yes, I even know the symbolism of why Buddhist offer flowers as offerings. Flowers wilt & then die. Same as us. Suffering. The wilting of the flowers is supposed to remind us of this.
But, I cannot — & I will NOT — accept that life is suffering. That is too defeatist. That is giving up on life. I refuse to do that. I LOVE LIFE. My life is NOT a bed of roses. I have more impediments than most! But, I refuse to let them get me down. I wake up every morning raring to enjoy the day, make the most of it.
This cousin who died, a ‘chartered accountant’ (who retired way young), believed, totally & utterly, in ‘life is suffering’. 16 years ago he told me that MY LIFE WAS DONE. My life was over. That I was stupid to look forward in life. He basically expected me to give up on life because I was then in my 50s. He never married. He never had kids. Not so I. 16 years ago I was awaiting the birth of my youngest — & he tells me that my life was OVER. That did not sit well with I. 16 years later I have NOT given up on life. My life is not over. Kind of sad, & alas, his is. Knowing a bit of what he believed this must have been a relief for him. Over the last 20 years or so he became ultra-Buddhist. He did much for the cause. I know he tutored Buddhist monks on English. He was very devout. He probably hopes that he accumulated enough merit to attain nirvana. So that he will not be born again — to yet again go through a life was suffering. I doubt whether he would have attained nirvana. Sorry.
But, I have good news for him & all of you. We ALL ATTAIN NIRVANA when we die. Sod the merits. Merits don’t matter. There is NO AFTERLIFE. There is no soul. There is no rebirth. There is no reincarnation. When you die, you die. THE END. Kaput. Period. End of story. End of chapter. End of life. NOTHING AFTER THAT. Poof. Done. NOTHING. What Buddha called nirvana. Smile. Aren’t you glad I enlightened YOU. No thanks necessary. It is my pleasure & duty.
Click to ENLARGE. Taken today, at the ‘Co-Op’ Supermarket in Hanover (‘Dartmouth’), New Hampshire. Click to ENLARGE & study here. Click here for my post from 2016.
Forget the FAT guy on the left. Contrary to what YOU may think (or believe) he is NOT the Buddha. There is one thing we all know for sure, for sure, about the Buddha. He was EXTREMELY unlikely to be fat, let alone obese. For Christ’s sake this was a guy who fasted for years on end, forbid his (poor, long-suffering) monks from eating dinner & advocated moderation in all things. So, forget the FAT guy.
But, the serene heads to the right, with the curly hair is indubitably meant to be ‘Gautama’ Buddha — the last of the succession of (supposed) Buddhas.
The Buddha’s head as a CANDLE?
The Buddha’s head as a CANDLE that you burn. [Yes, there is deep symbolism there to do with the impermanence of things that the Buddha was very fond of preaching about, BUT this is taking that a bit too far?]
Why do folks think it is OK to disrespect the Buddha in such a manner?
This always confounds I.
I am NO LONGER a Buddhist. I have not been for 50-year! Yes, 50-years. I renounced Buddhism when I was 18. I am 68 now. Do the math.
I was brought up in fervently Buddhist family. I considered myself a Buddhist through-&-through. But, as I got older I started questioning reincarnation. By the time I was 18 I knew, for a fact, that I did NOT believe in reincarnation. Per the Buddhism I had been brought up in, IF you didn’t buy into reincarnation, you could NOT be a Buddhist. So, I quit been a Buddhist — & I am very glad I did so.
I became a heathen to begin with & over the years a REFORMED, BORN-AGAIN HEATHEN. So, I am not a Buddhist. But, I RESPECT all religions & it galls me to see the image of Buddha disrespcted.
Yes, the Buddha wouldn’t care. He can’t. He, by his own definition, no longer exists. He is GONE. Poof. Gone. Nothing. NADA.
He, by his own definition, is NOT a god; never was. So, he can’t object & to be fair he would find it funny. He had a fairly decent sense of humor. For one, he abandoned his first born, a son, the very day he was born.
What puzzles me is why Buddhists let this happen.
They can complain. AND PLEASE, PLEASE do NOT tell me that Buddhists are pacifists. Please, don’t make me laugh. Look at the Buddhist instigated violence in Sri Lanka, Myanmar & Thailand.
I have my own theory BUT I am NOT going to voice it here. SMILE.
These candles were in ‘Dartmouth’ — yes, as in the Hospital & College. Lot of smart people there. Hhhhmmm.
